It is almost inevitable that at some point in life there will be circumstances that will cause paralysis in our lives.
What keeps (or has kept) you awake at night? What makes you shudder in your soul beneath the Christian rhetoric?
“I tell you, get up, take up your mat and go home.”
It is almost inevitable that at some point in life there will be circumstances that will cause paralysis in our lives. Fear, disruption, and even accomplishment can all cause a seemingly endless pause. But for a believer, the Gospel offers the soul-nourishing and life-moving assurances that we are forgiven and that it is possible to get up from paralysis and move into what God has made us to do.
We tend to take our mobility for granted. But, in Mark 2, four friends realize they are “immobile” when it comes to healing paralysis. So they decide to use their faculties to bring a friend to Jesus. They believe that Jesus is sufficient for souls and for legs. I cannot imagine what it would be like to be lowered through a ceiling, or what it would feel like to have a cloud of witnesses looking at my paralysis as if they had no paralysis in their own life. Especially I can’t imagine how the Pharisees could watch the kingdom pull back reality like a curtain and see a miracle walk through the room, yet still, meet that moment with criticism. But I do know—we all know, really—what it is like to be paralyzed; not physically, perhaps, but emotionally, mentally, spiritually.
What we gain from Mark’s fast-moving Gospel is a good reminder about paralysis. When life shakes us—and it will shake us—we have a propensity to remain so very, very still. We anticipate an impending doom. We shudder at the paralyzed eyes of others never thinking about how similar they are to our own. We hear doom in our ears and see doom in our eyes.
After dealing with sin and the Pharisees, the four, the onlookers, and probably the homeowner’s roof and the good-hands insurance adjuster, Jesus turns to the once-paralyzed man and tells him what every disciple needs to hear in life: “Get up, take up your mat and go home.” There can be many experiences that can betide you: a new or old job, a new position with old opposition, new sickness, an accident, economic shuffling, great achievement beyond expectation, or the whole room (or world) has their eyes on you. At best all of it is only temporary for the forgiven ones in the Kingdom. God will take care of you. Paralysis is temporary; you will walk again. That shadow of death hanging around the corner may be real but it is only temporary. That pounding of “doom” you hear in your ears may actually be the beat of the way and truth and life telling you to “get up” and get back to the things you were made to do.
It would have been nice for Mark to tie up the story with a nice bow. I want to say: “Mark, tell us that the four who walked with him while he was paralyzed now walked home with him. Or tell us that the Pharisees picked up their paralyzed thoughts about Jesus and the objectified disabled person and praised God as the crowd did. Tell us the crowd saw their own paralyzed logs in their eyes while looking at a few splintered legs.” Unfortunately, Mark doesn’t supply what we’d like to hear. We are only told that Jesus has the authority to forgive and to send people on their way. When you are startled, shook, or paralyzed, remember that believers are qualified to walk in the light. Remember, if all you have is a mat, you’re still not walking alone. Jesus is walking with you.
So, by his grace, hear the good news: Get up, take up your mat and be on your way.
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