Paralyzed

So I’m going to start this one off with a rap lyric \, coming from NF:

“I’m paralyzed
I’m scared to live but I’m scared to die
And if life is pain then I buried mine a long time ago
But it’s still alive
And it’s taking over me where am I?
I wanna feel something, I’m numb inside
But I feel nothing, I wonder why
And on the race of life time passes by
Look
I sit back and I watch it, hands in my pockets
Waves come crashing over me but I just watch ’em
I just watch ’em
I’m under water but I feel like I’m on top of it
I’m at the bottom and I don’t know what the problem is
I’m in a box
But I’m the one who locked me in
Suffocating and I’m running out of oxygen”

And then I read this:

And entering into the boat, He passed over and came to His own city. And, behold! They were bringing a paralytic lying on a cot to Him. And seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralyzed one, Be comforted, child. Your sins have been remitted. And, behold, some of the scribes said within themselves, This One blasphemes. And seeing their thoughts, Jesus said, Why do you think evil in your hearts? For what is easier, to say, Your sins are remitted, or to say, Rise up and walk? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to remit sins, then He said to the paralytic, Rising up, lift up your cot and go to your house. And rising up, he went away to his house. And seeing, the crowds marveled, and they glorified God, the One giving such authority to men.
(Matthew 9:1-8)

So often, individuals read over this chapter and the thought is, “Yes, God is mighty and powerful. Able to heal the sick.” I feel like there is so much more to see than what we see with the naked eye. Just as the leper represents the sinner, I think the paralyzed here represents paralyzed believers. Not paralyzed with physical limitations, but with the thoughts above that our friend Nate was feeling. Have you ever felt like that? I have. At a loss. Can’t move. Paralysis is “Paralysis is the loss of muscle function in part of your body. It happens when something goes wrong with the way messages pass between your brain and muscles.” Diseases that slowly progress can cause it as well as trauma. Now lets look at that in a spiritual light, knowing God is displayed in His creation.

There are some Christians that slowly become numb. Just like a disease progressing, they lose more and more feeling until they can no longer breathe and eventually die. Another way of getting paralyzed is shock from acute injury. I honestly have experienced some of both of these, but the latter much more recently. When I felt a loss, it was like the breath was knocked out of me and I could not catch another. I was stuck. Life had turned upside down and I was a loss for what to do, feel, think next.

This scripture is good to me. Jesus did not just say, “Get up and walk!” He understood this person’s condition, their pain, their willingness to move but the lacking ability. He knew the spirit was willing (I mean he had people bring him to Jesus) but the flesh was indefinitely WEAK. No! He didn’t just say “Get up.” He says, “Be comforted, child. Your sins have been remitted.” He provides comfort. He knows how we are suffering:

For we do not have a high priest not being able to sympathize with our weaknesses but One having been tried in all respects according to our likeness, apart from sin. Therefore, let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy, and we may find grace for timely help.
(Hebrews 4:15-16)

For in what He has suffered, being tried, He is able to help those being tried.
(Hebrews 2:18)

Lets remind ourselves of whom He is that we serve:

For He comes up before Him as a tender plant, and as a root out of dry ground. He has no form nor magnificence that we should see Him; nor form that we should desire Him. He is despised and abandoned of men, a Man of pains, and acquainted with sickness. And as it were hiding our faces from Him, He being despised, and we did not value Him. Surely He has borne our sicknesses, and He carried our pain; yet we esteemed Him plagued, smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was wounded for our transgressions; He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement of our peace was upon Him; and with His wounds we ourselves are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have each one turned to his own way; and Jehovah made meet in Him the iniquity of all of us. He was oppressed, and He was afflicted, but He did not open His mouth. He was led as a lamb to the slaughter; and as a ewe before her shearers is dumb, so He opened not His mouth. He was taken from prison and from justice; and who shall consider His generation? For He was cut off out of the land of the living; from the transgression of My people, the stroke was to Him. And He appointed Him His grave with the wicked, but He was with a rich man in His death; though He had done no violence, and deceit was not in His mouth. But Jehovah pleased to crush Him, to make Him sick, so that If He should put His soul as a guilt offering, He shall see His seed; He shall prolong His days; and the will of Jehovah shall prosper in His hand. He shall see the fruit of the travail of His soul; He shall be fully satisfied. By His knowledge the righteous One, My Servant, shall justify for many, and He shall bear their iniquities. Because of this I will divide to Him with the great, and with the strong He shall divide the spoil; because He poured out His soul to death; and He was counted with those transgressing; and He bore the sin of many, and made intercession for those transgressing.
(Isaiah 53:2-12)

In THIS we are comforted: That CHRIST has remitted our sins. We need not be afraid of moving – terrified that we are going to do or say the wrong thing. Christ is capable -not only BUT HAS DONE IT – of cleansing us of not just sins, but sin itself. We can do all things IN HIM. We need not be afraid to move. BE YE COMFORTED. This man left walking! Oh, how those who are numb; those who are lost would be comforted if they brought themselves to THIS Christ.