Breaking Ceilings

February 20, 2000

Sermon by Rev. Laurel Bobb

How would you have reacted if you were in the middle of a speech and all of a sudden the ceiling breaks through and laying in front of you is a paralyzed man? Maybe your first inclination would be to yell at him for ruining the roof--mine probably would--or maybe to think, "What am I going to do now?" That is the difference between Jesus and us. When he was confronted with just that same scenario Jesus's first thought was, "I'll forgive him." It would have taken me quite a while before that would have occurred to me I'm sure. But then I can't read what is in people's hearts, and Jesus can.

He saw the faith displayed by the people and decided to reward that faith by meeting the paralyzed man's deepest need. He presumed the authority to forgive sins. Jesus knew what the scribes and Pharisees were thinking after he did this. He knew they were questioning his authority to do that, and he beat them to the punch by asking them a question before they asked theirs.

"Which is easier, to say to the paralytic 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Stand up and take your mat and walk'? "

The answer to the question is that both are equally easy to say, and also equally difficult to do. In this Jesus asserted that he did have such authority and emphasized that authority by ascribing to himself the title, "Son of Man." While this phrase originally was another way of saying the pronoun, I, by this time in Judaism it was linked to the idea of one who was to come on the clouds and be honored by all the nations.

This probably angered the Jewish leaders even more. They knew very well what Jesus was doing. They called it blasphemy. But Jesus wasn't finished; on this rare occasion he gave the people a sign of his authority. He continued by saying to the --" I say to you, stand up, take your mat, and go home." The amazing thing was he did! The people praised God because of this wonder, saying they had never seen anything like it. We all know what's coming, however; we know that the religious leaders didn't accept this as a sign that Jesus had the authority to forgive sins. But we do. We remember that the forgiveness of sins was neither easy nor cheap; Jesus went to the cross to secure that forgiveness for us. It is truly an amazing thing! What is equally amazing is that he didn't stay dead.

Friends have been known to die for another, but only one friend was raised to die no more, our best friend, Jesus.

We are called to respond to this in faith. One way we can do that is to do as the paralytic's friends by bringing people to Christ. Let's look at their characteristics so we can better model their behavior. According to William McDonald they displayed four traits. The first is sympathy. In order to help someone we must realize they have a need and care about it. In our world that encourages self-absorption this alone would be miraculous. Caring about others is a gift from God and one of the purposes for which we were created.

The second trait is cooperation. It would have been difficult for any one of these people to carry the lame man on his own, but together the deed was accomplished. Like them we can all use help in doing God's work. We don't do it alone. Together we, friends, are ministers.

The last two traits are related. They are persistence and originality.

When they found one way to Jesus blocked, they kept looking for another. We know from our own experience that not everything works all the time for all people. We may have invited one person to worship and they said, "Sure," and came, but someone else may need a different approach and a lot more time. We can be there for our friends to support and pray for those whose faith is weak or nonexistent. That's what the men in this story did for one seminary instructor, Hans.

"Hans and Enid were very much in love. Nearly every day they took long walks together, holding hands. It warmed the hearts of the students and faculty alike to see them sitting close to each other in church.

Then one day Enid died. Hans was struck with sorrow. For weeks he would not eat or take walks. The seminary president, along with three other friends, visited him regularly, but he felt lonely and depressed. He was experiencing the dark night of the soul.

On one of their visits, Hans said to his friends, 'I am no longer able to pray to God. In fact, I am not certain I believe in God.'

After a moment of silence, the seminary president said, 'Then we will believe for you. We will make your confession for you. We will pray for you.'

The other friends looked bewildered by their president's words, but not knowing what else to say, they agreed.

In the days ahead the four men met daily for prayer. They made confession on behalf of Uncle Hans. They asked God to restore the gift of faith to their dear friend and they continued to visit him in his home.

Then, after many months, the four men all gathered in Hans's living room. He smiled before he spoke. 'It is no longer necessary for you to pray for me. Today I would like you to pray with me.'

The dark night of the soul had passed."

William White, pp. 44-5. Stories for the Journey. Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1988

We are all called to be such friends, such ministers. Ministers serve.I have such friends here and I hope that you do as well. Via de Cristo reunion groups can be such places of support for each other, so I encourage you to join one.

I remind you that in baptism we were ordained to serve God as Ethan was today. The Lutheran Church teaches about the priesthood of all believers. How many of you have ever thought of yourself as a priest? A priest is one who represents God to people and people to God.

Now maybe It's going to take a little while for the terminology you apply to yourselves to catch up with your actions, but you have certainly been ministers to me. The warm welcome I received, the concern about how things were going for me, the expressions of affirmation and care--all are signs that whether you call yourself a minister or not, you definitely are. I also know that many of you pray for me and each other, and that is priestly action; so whether you like it or not, you are also priests. You are experienced.

Now that you are aware you have the title and experience, I'd like you to think about who else may need you to be a minister or priest or friend to them? Who needs you to help them get beyond whatever barrier is keeping them from coming to Jesus for healing? Is someone you know discouraged or lonely? Is someone sick or grieving? Are you feeling this way?

If you are then share it. Is someone outside God's will and plan for them, or too proud to admit he or she needs God? If f you know any people like this, they need you. The hurting need you to hold them up and pray for them when they cannot pray for themselves. The openly sinful and arrogant need you to shed the light of God's truth on their behavior, so they have a chance to see their need and be healed.

Whatever tack we choose, remember the goal is the same. We are to be friends, bringing friends to Christ for forgiveness and healing. The same Jesus who had authority to forgive sins is here offering you and your friends forgiveness and healing as well, so come and bring a friend into God's presence.

Copyright 2000 by Rev. Laurel Bobb

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