May 7, 2023, Mark 2:1-12, "Jesus' Authority to Forgive", (Full)

[Points and references.]
[Curiosity gathers.]
Mark 1:38
Mark 1:41-45
Mark 2:1-2, a massive crowd gathered when Jesus returned to Capernaum.
Mark 2:3-4, significant effort is made by 4 men to bring a paralytic, through the crowds and through the roof of Simon Peter's house, to Jesus for healing.

Mark 2:5, Jesus using His authority to forgive sin. In this instance the patient is a paralytic.

Mark 2:6-7, Pharisees as usual, were waiting for an opportunity to see if Jesus would transgress their law, and they did not believe Jesus had the power to forgive a paralytic of his sins.

[The believing paralytic.]
Mark 2:5, the power of Jesus to heal both physically and spiritually. In this instance, Jesus heals the man spiritually (later in verses 9 thru 12, Jesus heals him physically).

1 Samuel 16:7, God sends Samuel to find the future king of Israel, telling him how God can see into the heart (ex: Matthew 11:7-8), for the future king cannot be recognized by outward appearances.

Probably the faith (ex: faith in things not seen or apparent) of the paralytic in Mark 2:5, allowed him to believe in the authority of Jesus to forgive sins.

Mark 2:6-7, despite all this, certain scribes (who had the law of the prophets) still gathered together to judge Jesus.

[The unmistakable power of God.]
Jeremiah 17:9-10, God searches the heart and mind.
Mark 2:8-9, Jesus moved on to physically heal the paralytic, after he perceived the hardness of the hearts of these scribes (Pharisees).

Mark 2:10-12, Jesus physically showed His authority (to forgive and heal) and also healed the paralytic from his medical condition. Recall Christ already said the word spiritually in verse 5. In this instance, the obvious act was shown (through physical healing), in front of the scribes and the hardness of their hearts.

Mark 2:12, the same paralytic (now former paralytic), walking past the same crowds he was carried through earlier.

[Greeting]
2 Samuel 22:1-4

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