Subject Sixty-nine

THE SALVATION OF THE PARALYZED MAN

Scripture: Mark 2:1-12
The following points are concerning the selection of materials for gospel preaching:

1. When you choose this passage for a gospel message, never emphasize that this is a case of a paralyzed man being healed, because people might misunderstand that this is just a sickness that was healed and not realize that it is a matter of a soul being saved.
2. Do not go to the book of Matthew to find a story of healing for preaching the gospel, because that book shows us that the Lord Jesus is the King expressing authority, rather than one ministering to man. The narrative in Matthew does not fit as gospel material. Therefore, when you want to use the miracles performed by the Lord Jesus as gospel material, take the text from the book of Mark. When you are preaching the gospel of life, take the text from the book of John. When you are preaching the gospel of forgiveness of sin, Luke is the book.
3. Outwardly speaking, the miracles in the four Gospels show that the Lord healed the physical body. In reality, the Lord saved the person. Therefore, all the miracles in the gospels should be considered as symbols of salvation.
4. When you use the gospels of Luke and Mark, the more simple and common the title, the better it is. Your presentation should also be simple and easily understood. When you use the gospel of John, the title and the presentation should be deeper, because it is a matter of life.
   
   
1. Man was born paralyzed, “sick of the palsy”
   In the gospels, the sickness of the physical body symbolizes the sickness of life. Therefore, this paralysis means the paralysis of human life.
   1. Before God, man can do nothing. As to pleasing God or obeying the will of God and doing good, man is just like one paralyzed, without any strength.
   2. Give an example of the paralyzed condition of man in the matter of doing good. He knows that he should do good, yet he just cannot do it. He knows that he should be kind and live righteously, yet he is not able to be kind or live righteously. Touch people’s feeling at the very beginning.
2. Then Jesus came
   1. In the second chapter of Mark Jesus went into Capernaum which was a slum area of Galilee filled with paralyzed people. The place where man lives is just like a slum area for paralyzed people.
   2. When Jesus entered into Capernaum, He came not openly in the street, but into a house. Christianity is such a house. The denominations—Presbyterian, Baptist, etc.—are such houses. Even the homes of believers may be such houses.
3. Come to Jesus
   1. Jesus came to save us; yet we still need to go to Him. Although He came into the house, yet He was surrounded by the house. We need to break through this house to come close to Him.
   2. Anyone that comes to Jesus needs to break through His surroundings. What was it that surrounded Jesus? It was the house where He was. The Christians in Christianity are the surroundings of Jesus. Although in Christianity there is some measure of Christ, yet the organization and the Christians themselves have completely imprisoned Him. If you blame them in this way, the listeners will surely agree with you. They have never respected the organization of Christianity, nor the Christians with their so-called Christian families. If you point out these things and preach in this way, the listeners will surely agree with you, and the gospel meeting will be opened up. People will get saved. You should know people’s psychology when you are preaching. Do not think people will not be convinced, when you are condemning Christian organizations and nominal Christians in this way. Sometimes it is really convincing. For example, in China, Dr. John Sung strongly condemned the Western missionaries when he was preaching; yet the missionaries were helped while the listeners were saved. For he condemned the sins, but he did not condemn the sinning ones. Christ is confined by the house—by many Christian schools, Christian hospitals, and Christian homes. Although Christ may be in them, they have confined Christ so that man can hardly approach Him.
   3. The way to break through:
      1. You need transcendency. They climbed over the roof top of the house which surrounded Jesus. This was the same as Zaccheus, who climbed the sycamore tree. You need to transcend over the house of Christianity, the Christian organizations, the Christian works, and even Christians themselves.
      2. You need to tear down the roof top. Tear through the Christian organizations and you will see Jesus.
   4. You need to present yourself and your condition before Jesus. This is what the paralyzed one did in presenting himself on his bed in front of Jesus. If you want to come to Jesus, you should do the same.
   5. Anything you do to come to Jesus should be done in faith.
4. The Lord’s salvation
   1. The paralyzed one only knows the result of being paralyzed, but does not know the cause of his condition. We only know we should do good, but have no strength to do good. As far as doing good is concerned, man is paralyzed. Yet we do not know the cause of being paralyzed.
   2. The paralyzed one does not know the cause of being paralyzed, yet the Lord knows the cause. When the paralyzed one came to the Lord for healing, the Lord did not heal his sickness first; rather, He said, “Your sins are forgiven,” because the cause of being paralyzed was sin. Therefore, friends, if you do not want to be paralyzed in your human living, you have to solve the problem of sin.
   3. The healing of the paralyzed man was based on the forgiveness of sins. Our salvation is also based on the forgiveness of sins. You need to touch people’s feeling on this point. Do you not feel guilty in your conscience? Do you not feel that you are sinful? You should not consider your own ability in doing good; rather, you should pay attention to the cause of not being able to do good. Therefore, you should take care of the problem of the forgiveness of sins.
   4. Only God can forgive man’s sins. Because the Lord Jesus is God, He can forgive man’s sins. At that time Jesus said, “Your sins are forgiven,” and they all murmured. Today, although there is some measure of Christ in Christianity, however, many still do not know that Christ can forgive sins, so even their own sins have not been forgiven. Here you should condemn the pastors and elders in Christianity. They are the scribes daily preaching from the Bible; yet they do not know that the Lord can forgive sins. Even their own sins have not been forgiven.
   5. The proof of the forgiveness of sins is that the paralyzed man rose up, took up his bed, and walked out. Once a man receives the Lord, his paralyzed condition is healed and he can rise up and walk. Formerly, it was the bed that held him; now he can take up his bed and walk. Once he followed his bed; now his bed follows him. In Jesus, nothing is impossible. Which is easier, to forgive sins or tell the paralyzed one to rise up and walk? In the Lord all things are easy. But the scribes murmured and said, “It is too hard to forgive sins. Who has the authority to forgive man’s sins?” Actually, to tell the man to take up his bed and walk is even harder. If you tell him to take up his bed and walk, he cannot rise and walk. What shall you do?
5. The results of being saved
   1. The man not only had his sins forgiven, but also rose up and walked. Once a man comes to the Lord Jesus and is saved, he not only has peace within, but also has the outward strength to walk.
   2. Once a man comes to the Lord Jesus and is saved, he can glorify God.