Having “Inside Friends”

 

A neighbor from years ago once described friendship to me this way: There are those friends who you wave to on the street from your doorstep, there are those friends you invite onto your porch for a brief chat and there are those friends who come through the front door of your home and sit down for a long visit. The last group, those “inside friends,” are special and few.

 

In all three synoptic Gospels (Matthew 9:1-8, Mark 2:1-12 and Luke 5:17-26), there is the story of the paralyzed man and his four special friends who hear that Jesus is at a house in town. And when Jesus is in town, everyone flocks to Him. They are eager to get their infirmed friend to Jesus for healing, no matter how big the crowd is. So, these “inside friends” tear open the roof of the house, dig through dried mud to create an opening above Jesus and then lower their friend down through the hole.

 

The Scripture says, “When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, ‘Son your sins are forgiven.’” (Mark 2:5) After a brief dialogue with the religious leaders who question Jesus’ declaration that He could forgive sins, Jesus heals the man.

 

The part of the story that I never really paid much attention to is that Jesus chose to heal the man based on the faith of his friends. Their willingness to trust Jesus on behalf of their ill friend was enough to allow him to be healed.

 

What about these friends? Their love for the paralyzed man is obvious. They are willing to try anything to help him. We have no idea how the person with paralysis felt about their plan. Did he protest or go along with it? Or, perhaps he was too weak to do anything at all? All we know is that he gets up and walks out of a house with a new skylight, thanks to the faith of his buddies.

 

We have all had times when whatever life has thrown at us feels too much to bear. Maybe it’s the loss of a loved one, an illness that has taken our strength, or a worry that has overwhelmed us. Those real “inside friends” are the ones willing to tear open roofs and do whatever it takes to carry us when we don’t have the strength to get up.

 

Sometimes, we can be that kind of friend, too. That is what it means to live and grow in a community. There are times when the faith of others is what keeps us connected to God. May we learn to cultivate faith-filled friendships and be that kind of friend when the moment arrives.

The Rev. Elizabeth A. Miller

Pastoral Assistant

If you would like to reply to this devotional, please email

the Rev. Elizabeth at emiller@smec.org.