100 Days of HopeSample

Who Are They?

Who were “they”? They were bringing the paralytic to Jesus. They defied ethics and the call for politeness. They even removed the roof! All they knew was that Jesus could heal and all they wanted was for the paralytic to be healed by Jesus. They could have given “valid” excuses to the paralytic, like, “The room is already full of people,” or “Jesus will not have time anyway because there are already a lot of people waiting to be healed,” or “We have already done our part, and we have brought you here, good luck getting in,” but they didn’t.

The paralytic was helpless. He was at the mercy of the men who were carrying him. In his heart, he must have desperately wanted to see Jesus and be healed. But he knew he could not do anything by himself.

So, what about us? Do we know that Jesus can heal and forgive? Do we have “paralytics” in our midst who we want to see Jesus? What are we doing to bring them to Him? How far are we willing to go in order to bring people to Jesus?

At the end of the day, it is not about us. It is all about Jesus. Without Christ, we are as helpless and hopeless as the paralytic but— praise God—Christ restores, and He wants us to help Him heal and restore others. He is the one who calls us, and gives us the strength to bring others to Him. The paralytic of our day can be our next door neighbor, our community leaders, our fellow staff, or maybe even strangers whose lives we touch because we show Jesus in our lives. What a blessed privilege!

Prayer: Lord, thank you for your desire to restore us. Help us to have confidence in your healing power. Open our eyes to the “paralytics” of our day. Give us the compassion and courage to reach out to them so that you can further your Kingdom through our lives.