Breakthrough

“When he saw their faith, he said to him, ‘Child, your sins are forgiven.’” Today’s gospel is the story of Jesus healing the paralytic when his friends break him through the roof of Peter’s house in Capernaum where he was teaching. The story says that Jesus was moved by the faith of the paralytic’s friends to act with mercy. For some reason this pulled my heartstrings with a little extra force today. How comforting to know that the faith of our friends can directly affect our soul and vice versa, our faith can impact our friends as well. When I am weak and vulnerable and paralyzed by shame or fear or grief it allows my friends to act in faith and when my friends are weak and vulnerable it gives me the courage to act in faith as well. Notice that Jesus did not physically heal the man at first, but rather said, “your sins are forgiven.” We all have those soul friends that care enough about us to help us breakthrough that which separates us from Jesus and to lower us into the depth of his heart where mercy and forgiveness are waiting. It might be a dramatic breakthrough and the dust and debris will take some time to settle, or it might be a subtle one that simply allows us to see better. Each breakthrough is a chance to be placed at the feet of Christ, which is where healing and forgiveness are readily available.   

Jesus shows us today that the cleansing of our sins is the first step toward the healing of our paralysis. Of course it is his saying, “your sins are forgiven”, that offends the religious people. This made me do a self-evaluation. Do I celebrate when others have breakthrough or do I focus on the stuff in my own life that still has me lying on the mat? Do I do enough to bring my friends to Jesus? Do I believe that forgiveness of my sins is what Jesus wants to do first before anything else or do I let shame continue to paralyze me? The good news is that the faith of the paralytic’s friends countered the lack of faith of the scribes and the paralytic received a double portion of forgiveness AND physical healing. Now that is breakthrough!!

Jesus understands deep friendship because he was that kind of friend himself. He honors our faith whenever we earnestly give each other over to him because there is nothing more we can do, no more words we can say, no more distractions we can create, and no more advice we can give. Raise your hand if you have ever helped someone break through spiritual paralysis. Raise your hand if faithful friends have ever opened the roof for you and lowered you into the heart of Christ. Let’s give thanks for those soul friends in our lives whose faith brings us double portions of grace when we are paralyzed. It is well with my soul. 

Reading 1HEB 4:1-5, 11

Let us be on our guard
while the promise of entering into his rest remains,
that none of you seem to have failed.
For in fact we have received the Good News just as our ancestors did.
But the word that they heard did not profit them,
for they were not united in faith with those who listened.
For we who believed enter into that rest,
just as he has said:

As I swore in my wrath,    
"They shall not enter into my rest,"

and yet his works were accomplished
at the foundation of the world.
For he has spoken somewhere about the seventh day in this manner,
And God rested on the seventh day from all his works;
and again, in the previously mentioned place,
They shall not enter into my rest. 

Therefore, let us strive to enter into that rest,
so that no one may fall after the same example of disobedience.

Responsorial Psalm PS 78:3 AND 4BC, 6C-7, 8

R. (see 7b)  Do not forget the works of the Lord!
What we have heard and know,
and what our fathers have declared to us,
we will declare to the generation to come
The glorious deeds of the LORD and his strength.
R. Do not forget the works of the Lord!
That they too may rise and declare to their sons
that they should put their hope in God,
And not forget the deeds of God
but keep his commands.
R. Do not forget the works of the Lord!
And not be like their fathers,
a generation wayward and rebellious,
A generation that kept not its heart steadfast
nor its spirit faithful toward God.
R. Do not forget the works of the Lord!

AlleluiaLK 7:16

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
A great prophet has arisen in our midst
and God has visited his people.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Gospel MK 2:1-12

When Jesus returned to Capernaum after some days,
it became known that he was at home.
Many gathered together so that there was no longer room for them,
not even around the door,
and he preached the word to them.
They came bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men.
Unable to get near Jesus because of the crowd,
they opened up the roof above him.
After they had broken through,
they let down the mat on which the paralytic was lying.
When Jesus saw their faith, he said to him,
"Child, your sins are forgiven."
Now some of the scribes were sitting there asking themselves,
"Why does this man speak that way?  He is blaspheming.
Who but God alone can forgive sins?"
Jesus immediately knew in his mind what 
they were thinking to themselves, 
so he said, "Why are you thinking such things in your hearts?
Which is easier, to say to the paralytic,
'Your sins are forgiven,'
or to say, 'Rise, pick up your mat and walk'?
But that you may know
that the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins on earth"
–he said to the paralytic,
"I say to you, rise, pick up your mat, and go home."
He rose, picked up his mat at once, 
and went away in the sight of everyone.
They were all astounded
and glorified God, saying, "We have never seen anything like this."