themselves, “This man insults God.” Jesus was aware of what they were thinking; and said, “Why have you
such evil thoughts? Which is easier to say: ‘Your sins are forgiven’ or ‘Stand up and walk’? But that
you may know, that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins,” he said to the paralyzed man,
“Stand up! Take your stretcher and go home!” The man got up, and went home. When the crowds saw this,
they were filled with awe, and praised God for giving such power to human beings.
Reflection:
Sometimes, it is our friends who bear us in their prayers that make a
difference in our lives. Their intercession pleases God and help is immediately
dispatched from heaven. But there are some who also try to block the graces of God
into our lives. They are not happy with the good things that happen to us. Take for
example the teachers of the law. The healing of the paralytic do not impress
them. Rather, they are angry at the formula used by the Lord. They think it is
blasphemous. They fail to see the wonder unfolding in their eyes because of their
narrow, legalistic mind set. And so Jesus showed them that He can do and effect
healing whatever formula He uses. He obliged them by saying the standard
formula used and still the healing takes effect. This in turn earned the admiration
of the people. The question from that incident is, “Who is He who can work such great
miracles in our midst?”
© Copyright Bible Diary 2021