Passage: Matthew 9:1-8
Points:
1. Personal action can reveal our faith in Christ.
2. An act of faith will receive a response of forgiveness.
3. People will scoff and on the other hand praise the works of God.
Personalize
This passage reveals an important lesson. Our simple acts reveal our faith in Christ’s ability to bring change and healing in our lives. “ Some men brought to him a paralytic, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, ‘Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.’” (v.2) The simple act of bringing the paralytic man to Jesus revealed their faith in Jesus’ ability to heal. The response of Jesus was to offer forgiveness.
Jesus knew the heart of the paralytic. He knew he needed more than a physical healing, but he also needed to be relieved of the sin burdens of his life. Thus Jesus told the man his sins are forgiven. Was this the cause of the paralysis? We can not be confident of the fact, but we do know a sin burden can bring a paralysis in our life. Sin keeps us from moving forward. It keeps us trapped to our past because of guilt and regret. We are unable to move into the future with joy because of the burdens of the past. When we are forgiven, our sins are removed through the sacrifice of Christ and we can move forward with hope and confidence. The paralytic was freed of his sin that held him captive to his past and now he would walk with joy and hope for the future.
In the same way, what are the memories, regrets, and guilts keeping us paralyzed and unable to move freely into the future? Our response should not be to remain paralyzed, but to move to action. Move to Christ who is able to relieve us of our sin and physical burdens. Our actions reveal we really believe Christ can bring about the change and He will. I once heard it said: ”What we do says more about what we believe than what we say.” What do our actions reveal? Do they reveal we truly believe Jesus is the Lord and is able to bring the change we need within our lives?
Prayer
Lord, may our actions reveal our faith. When burdened down by the regrets and guilt of the past may we come to you boldly through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. We know you are able to bring forgiveness and we will act with confidence and faith in your ability to forgive and heal. Lord may others be filled with awe and praise of you when they see your transformation power in our lives.
