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Friday 9/24/21
Bringing Others to Jesus

  1And again he entered into Capernaum after some days; and it was noised that he was in the house.
 2And straightway many were gathered together, insomuch that there was no room to receive them, no, not so much as about the door: and he preached the word unto them.
 3And they come unto him, bringing one sick of the palsy, which was borne of four.
 4And when they could not come nigh unto him for the press, they uncovered the roof where he was: and when they had broken it up, they let down the bed wherein the sick of the palsy lay.
 5When Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy, Son, thy sins be forgiven thee.
 6But there was certain of the scribes sitting there, and reasoning in their hearts,
 7Why doth this man thus speak blasphemies? who can forgive sins but God only?
 8And immediately when Jesus perceived in his spirit that they so reasoned within themselves, he said unto them, Why reason ye these things in your hearts?
 9Whether is it easier to say to the sick of the palsy, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and take up thy bed, and walk?
 10But that ye may know that the Son of man hath power on earth to forgive sins, (he saith to the sick of the palsy,)
 11I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy bed, and go thy way into thine house.
 12And immediately he arose, took up the bed, and went forth before them all; insomuch that they were all amazed, and glorified God, saying, We never saw it on this fashion.
 13And he went forth again by the sea side; and all the multitude resorted unto him, and he taught them.
 14And as he passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the receipt of custom, and said unto him, Follow me. And he arose and followed him.
 15And it came to pass, that, as Jesus sat at meat in his house, many publicans and sinners sat also together with Jesus and his disciples: for there were many, and they followed him.
 16And when the scribes and Pharisees saw him eat with publicans and sinners, they said unto his disciples, How is it that he eateth and drinketh with publicans and sinners?
 17When Jesus heard it, he saith unto them, They that are whole have no need of the physician, but they that are sick: I came not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.
 18And the disciples of John and of the Pharisees used to fast: and they come and say unto him, Why do the disciples of John and of the Pharisees fast, but thy disciples fast not?
 19And Jesus said unto them, Can the children of the bridechamber fast, while the bridegroom is with them? as long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast.
 20But the days will come, when the bridegroom shall be taken away from them, and then shall they fast in those days.
 21No man also seweth a piece of new cloth on an old garment: else the new piece that filled it up taketh away from the old, and the rent is made worse.
 22And no man putteth new wine into old bottles: else the new wine doth burst the bottles, and the wine is spilled, and the bottles will be marred: but new wine must be put into new bottles.
 23And it came to pass, that he went through the corn fields on the sabbath day; and his disciples began, as they went, to pluck the ears of corn.
 24And the Pharisees said unto him, Behold, why do they on the sabbath day that which is not lawful?
 25And he said unto them, Have ye never read what David did, when he had need, and was an hungred, he, and they that were with him?
 26How he went into the house of God in the days of Abiathar the high priest, and did eat the shewbread, which is not lawful to eat but for the priests, and gave also to them which were with him?
 27And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath:
 28Therefore the Son of man is Lord also of the sabbath.
Written By: God through Inspiration
Penned By: John Mark
Date Penned: (55-65 AD)
Overview: Mark Records the 1st Gospel Written (c 1-16)
Theme:  The Message and Ministry of Jesus, The Servant (c 1-13)
Message: Jesus Heals a Paralyzed Man (v 1-28)

Mark 2 Commentary

(2:1-12) Jesus Heals a Paralyzed Man - Chapter 1 draws the battle lines between Jesus and the power of Satan. Chapter 2 introduces a new factor in the conflict: resistance to Jesus by the religious establishment. The religious leaders, accustomed to giving lip service to the idea of a coming Messiah, found that Jesus threatened their power and prestige. Jesus challenged their authority, questioned their teachings, and trampled on their way of doing business. Mark illustrated their reactions and rejection of Christ with five clashes that form chapter 2 and the beginning of chapter 3.

(2:13-17) Jesus Eats with Sinners at Matthew's House - The next clash between Jesus and the religious leaders revolved around the company he kept. Not only had Jesus not separated himself from distasteful characters, he sought them out. Jesus was charged with befriending sinners. Just as Jesus entered the world to save sinners, he still enters sinful human lives to rescue those he loves.

(2:18-22) Religious Leaders Ask Jesus About Fasting - At every turn, Jesus challenged the Pharisees’ way of looking at life. They lived by appearance; he challenged motives. They constructed elaborate behavior patterns to indicate their holiness; Jesus taught that good behavior done for the wrong reasons has no spiritual value.  In response to their questions about fasting, Jesus turned the discussion from proper behavior to the reasons for fasting. Jesus made it clear that fasting was not a self-justifying action. It was right in its proper place, but there was also a proper place for feasting and   joy. To further underscore this truth, Jesus added two other analogies (clothing repair and wineskin care). A worn item of clothing cannot be repaired with a new piece of cloth that shrinks when washed. A well-stretched wineskin filled with new wine will expand and burst when the wine ferments. So also the new spiritual age brought by Christ would not fit the old system; indeed it would burst the confines of the old system.

(2:23-28) The Disciples Pick Wheat on the Sabbath - Jewish life in Jesus’ day revolved around the Sabbath. Elaborate laws had been designed so that everyone knew exactly how to “keep the Sabbath.” The fourth clash between Jesus and the power of Satan recorded by Mark occurred on a Sabbath. The way Jesus kept the Sabbath irritated his critics to the point of fury. The religious leaders, by imposing a bewildering system of Sabbath laws, had in fact made themselves masters of the Sabbath and thus masters over the people. They made the seventh day dreaded rather than enjoyed.  By claiming the title “Lord of the Sabbath,” Jesus was stating his own divinity. But this claim was also an affront to the position of the religious leaders. His remaking the Sabbath into a day of refreshment, worship, and healing pried open the tight-fisted control the Pharisees held on the people. No wonder Jesus’ approach to the Sabbath led his enemies to plot his death.
Each day we walk through the Bible chapter by chapter making an application of our text to help us grow in the Lord. Many applications can be made from each day's text. Today we continue in the book of Mark with Chapter 2. In our text today we see Jesus heals a paralyzed man, eats with sinners, teaches on fasting, and rebukes the Sadducees. What catches my eye is how the four brought the paralyzed man to Jesus to be healed. In making application we see that those of us who have been saved have an obligation to bring the sin sick to Jesus. Today, more than ever we have others around us who need to brought to Jesus so they can be saved. How about you? Do you bring others to Jesus? Let us learn from our text today and the example of the four to see that if we can bring sinners to Jesus they will have the chance to be made whole. 
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Sincerely,
Dr. Dave Burnette
Director, The United States Bible Society, Inc.