A Faith That Can Be Seen

You see, faith is never something just to be talked about. It is something that must be demonstrated in the way we walk, in the way we talk and in the way live. Paul Harvey the radio announcer once said, “If you don’t live it, you don’t believe it.” And there’s Biblical basis for that statement. Because James 2:18 said, “Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.

There is a story in Mark 2 that demonstrates this principle. And I want you to read and study the whole story, but for now, I want to draw your attention to four short words in verse 5: which said “Jesus saw their faith”. Most people would say, “You can’t ‘see’ faith. People would say faith isn’t in the physical or visible realm.” But I’m here to beg the differences. And how I know that is because Jesus saw the faith of these four men.

It’s an interesting story that begins in verse 1: and it says

"And again He [Jesus] entered Capernaum after some days, and it was heard that he was in the house. Immediately many gathered together, so that there was no longer room to receive them, not even near the door. And he preached the Word to them." (Mark 2:1-2)

In verse 1, we’re told that Jesus was “in the house.” At least, that’s what the New King James version says. Now it is generally thought that this was just an expression, a figure of speech, which means he was at home. In fact, that’s the way that the NIV translates it: but it seems like to me that the translation should be, and the people heard that he had come home. Reason being is because we know that Jesus grew up in Nazareth, and Capernaum and Nazareth are not far from each other.

In fact, Luke 4 tells us that when Jesus went back to Nazareth, after his baptism and temptation in the wilderness, he was so thoroughly rejected by the people with whom he grew up with, that he left Nazareth and made his way into Capernaum, which was a fishing village on the Sea of Galilee, and this was his home base for the three years of his public ministry.

So, what does it mean, that this was his home? Perhaps his mother and brothers had also moved to Capernaum. Others have speculated that this may have been Peter’s house, and that Jesus stayed in a room with the family of Peter and Andrew. Or maybe Jesus may have had his own place, not one that he owned, but one that was made available to him for use, as he needed it.

Regardless of the specifics, the particulars, and the data when people found out that Jesus was there, they began to gather in. It was clear that Jesus was already starting to be quite a popular fellow. People were following him, they were attached to his ministry, and they were beholding his teaching. And wouldn’t it be amazing if these days the house would fill up when Jesus shows up.

Now what blew me away is, I wondered why these people were just able to walk in the house where Jesus was? It blew me away because the bible said that many people came to where he was that there was no more space left available. But then I remembered that the life in Palestine was a little more public than we are used to. In Palestine usually, the doors would be opened in the morning, and everyone was free to go in or out as they please. So the doors were never shut unless there was some special need for privacy.

So, as the crowd filled the house and overflowed into the street, and everyone trying to get closer to hear Jesus. The bible says then they came to Him, bringing a paralytic who was carried by four men. And when they could not come near Him because of the crowd, they uncovered the roof where He was. And when they had broken through, they let down the bed, on which the paralytic was lying. And when Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, ’Son, your sins are forgiven you.’

Now everything was alright by way of heaven, But some of the scribes, some of the church people, alright let me say it the way it is, some of the hell raiser were sitting there and they reasoning, they were murmuring, alright let me put it in plain English, they were complaining and hating in their hearts, (talking about who can forgive sins but God alone? So that tells me that not only will people hate on you, but they will also hate on Jesus.