DETERMINED TO DISBELIEVE
1. Matthew 9:2-8 (NKJV) Then behold, they brought to Him a paralytic lying on a bed. When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, "Son, be of good cheer; your sins are forgiven you." 3 And at once some of the scribes said within themselves, "This Man blasphemes!" 4 But Jesus, knowing their thoughts, said, "Why do you think evil in your hearts? 5 "For which is easier, to say, ’Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ’Arise and walk’? 6 "But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins"; then He said to the paralytic, "Arise, take up your bed, and go to your house." 7 And he arose and departed to his house. 8 Now when the multitudes saw it, they marveled and glorified God, who had given such power to men.
2. Mark and Luke also offer their accounts of this story and add additional details such as the paralytic man being let down through the roof into the presence of Jesus. However, Matthew does not focus his attention as much on the miracle itself as he does on the reaction of the people who were present.
3. Luke tells us that there were Pharisees and teachers of the law present who had come out of every town of Galilee as well as Judea and Jerusalem [Luke 5:17]. What brought about such a turnout of the religious authorities?
a. Jesus had been working a great many miracles. He had healed the sick. He had cast out demons. He had calmed the stormy sea.
b. Multitudes followed Jesus. He must have been the talk of all Israel. The healing of the paralytic man took place in "His own city" [Matthew 9:1] . . . that referred to Capernaum at the northern end of the Sea of Galilee. But some of the scribes present had come all the way from Jerusalem.
c. Some of the scribes were impressed with Jesus. We saw in our last study how one scribe impulsively promised to follow Jesus wherever He went [Matthew 8:19]. However, not all of them were so open-minded.
4. Jesus spoke to the paralytic man and said, "Son, be of good cheer; your sins are forgiven you." Sources indicate that many of the Jews in Jesus’ time thought that all kinds of physical illness came as a direct result of a person’s sin. Some of the rabbis taught that no one could be healed until their sins were forgiven. Jesus does not say that this is true, but it is not His intention at this time to correct this misunderstanding. So instead of saying, "you are healed," He told the man "your sins are forgiven."
5. The scribes heard this and reasoned something like this:
-- Only God can forgive sins.
-- This man is not God.
* Therefore, this man is blaspheming.
6. This kind of reasoning betrays their judgmental spirit. They were looking for something to criticize about Jesus.
7. A better way of thinking about what they were seeing and hearing would have been:
-- Only God can forgive sins.
-- This man claims to be able to forgive sins and he can work miracles.
* Therefore, this man may be God. (They should have been open to considering the evidence rather than immediately jumping to the conclusion that Jesus was making a false claim.)
8. Jesus replied to their unspoken thoughts.
a. He asked "Why do you think evil in your hearts?"
b. Was it easier for the Son of God to say "your sins are forgiven" or "arise and walk"?
c. Commanding the paralyzed man to walk provided visible proof of Jesus’ power, so He said, "Arise, take up your bed, and go to your house." [Matthew 9:6].
9. The crowd was filled with awe and glorified God [v. 7]. However, the scribes evidently not included in that summary statement of the reaction to this miracle taking place. The religious authorities continued to oppose the good that Jesus was doing. We are accurate to say that they were Determined to Disbelieve.
10. We still live in a time when many people are determined to disbelieve. They refuse to consider the proposition that Jesus is able to forgive sins.
I. THEY DO NOT BELIEVE THAT THEY HAVE ANY SINS.
A. Many believe the concept of personal sinfulness is out-dated. We’re told that sin and guilt are old superstitions and should be discarded by modern, intelligent people.
1. Of course, it’s true that we don’t always get sick directly because of sin. Germs cause an infection within us and we get sick. [Some sicknesses do come as a consequence of sinful behavior. For example, one who gets drunk a lot may end up with cirrhosis of the liver.]
2. Most modern thinkers admit to the existence of evil in a general sense. Hitler was evil. Saddam Hussein was evil. Mass-murderers and serial killers are evil. But they do not want to think of themselves as sinful people.
B. The Bible teaches a very different point of view.
1. 1 John 1:7-10 (NKJV) But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. 8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.
2. No progress toward forgiveness can take place until we experience repentance [Acts 17:30]. No one can repent until he first acknowledges that he has sins.
II. THEY DO NOT BELIEVE THAT THEY WILL BE HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR THEIR CONDUCT.
A. If people do not accept personal responsibility for their actions, they do not have to change or do anything better.
1. Evolution is a wonderfully accommodating theory which allows people to say they are what they are as a result of the happenstance of nature. "This is just the way I evolved."
2. If I can get by with saying, "this is just the way I am," I can excuse anything I want to do on the basis of nature.
a. Promiscuous sexual behavior is rationalized because human beings are "sexual animals."
b. Dishonest business practices are covered by our "instinct for self-preservation." Just ’lookin’ out for #1’ no matter who else might be hurt by our conduct.
B. But God says different.
1. Everyone must give account of himself to God [Romans 14:12 (NKJV) So then each of us shall give account of himself to God.]
2. Sinful behavior has eternal consequences [Ezekiel 18:20 (NKJV) "The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.]
III. THEY DO NOT BELIEVE THAT A LOVING GOD WILL ALLOW ANYONE TO BE LOST.
A. Many of your friends and neighbors don’t go all the way down this road. They do believe in God. They believe that cognizant human beings do have an inherent sense of right and wrong. There is a moral oughtness in the human condition.
B. They understand some things about the nature of God. They know that God is love [1 John 4:8]. They know that God is a God of mercy and grace who wants everyone to be saved [1 Timothy 2:3-4 (NKJV) For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, 4 who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.]
C. The philosophy of universalism is increasingly popular in the modern world. Such a God, the universalists say, cannot condemn anyone to be lost.
1. The pagan who has never heard about Christ . . . will he be condemned for his unbelief. "Won’t he be judged by the light he has?"
2. The "pious unimmersed" who tries to live a good moral life, but has never been baptized. "Surely God will not condemn this type of person."
3. What about devout believers in denominational churches. "Sure, they may worship in ways the Bible does not teach and participate in activities the Bible does not authorize, but surely our merciful God will not condemn them for such little things, will He?"
D. Christ will judge all these people, not us! However, we know what He will use as His standard for judgment [John 12:48 (NKJV) "He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him; the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day."] Cf. Revelation 20:12 (NKJV) And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.
IV. THEY DO NOT BELIEVE THAT JESUS IS THE SON OF GOD.
A. America is a nation of great religious diversity. Many Americans do not profess to believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. That change has occurred over the last generation.
1. The overwhelming majority of immigrants to this country in the waves of immigration in the 19th & early 20th century came from so-called Christian nations . . . where most people did believe that Jesus is the Son of God. Immigration was severely curtailed in World War I era and not opened again until the 1960s.
2. Many immigrants in the decades since have come from places such as the Middle East and Asia where people are much more likely to be Moslems, Hindus, or Buddhists, or members of other world religions than they are to be believers in Christ. The percentage of our population made up of people from other religions has increased dramatically.
3. Couple this with the increasing secularization of American society. There has been a concerted effort to take God out of public life. A price has been paid for the success these efforts have enjoyed. God is left on the sidelines in the arena of people’s lives today.
B. "But most of my friends are believers." No doubt it is true that (particularly in our area of the country) the majority of people would answer "yes" to the question, "Do you believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God?"
1. But there are levels of belief. [James 2:19 (NKJV) You believe that there is one God. You do well. Even the demons believe; and tremble!]
2. It is one thing to be intellectually convinced that the Bible is correct in its presentation of Jesus.
3. It is another thing to be convicted of our sinfulness and understand that Jesus is the only One who has the ability to forgive us and offer us the hope of everlasting life. This faith must be strong enough to move us to obey the teachings of the gospel ["What must I do to be saved?" -- Acts 16:30].
4. The Philippian jailer asked that question of Paul and Silas. He was told to believe. But Paul didn’t stop there. He did not say, "Only believe and you will be saved." He spoke the word of the Lord to the jailer then took him the same hour of the night and baptized him [Acts 16:31-33]. Saving faith MUST lead to saving action. The great majority of people around us do not have that kind of faith in Jesus Christ.
CONCLUSION
1. But what does all this say to me? I believe in Christ. I have obeyed the gospel. What does Jesus’ encounter with the scribes say to me?
2. The problem with the scribes is that they jumped to false conclusions in their opinion of Jesus.
a. The same problem repeats itself with the way people of the modern world look at Jesus.
b. The same problem again shows up when we see how many religious people look at Jesus.
3. Let’s be sure we don’t fall into the same trap. Let us not be guilty of thinking evil in our hearts when we think about Christ and the work of His church. Let Jesus speak through the New Testament to inform the understanding of our hearts. Be willing to humbly follow Him wherever He takes us!
4. Invitation
