Checking out the Son of God
Luke 5v17-26
INTRODUCTION
Judging by some recent books, God is still relevant today. We see this in such titles as: the Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown, The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins, and Christopher Hitchens’ book, God Is Not Great. Just before his death in 2010, the former atheist, Antony Flew wrote a book called, “There is a God: how the world’s most notorious atheist changed his mind.” One delighted publisher announced that the new hot topic is God. Many it seems want to read about God and his relevance for today. This brings us to Luke 5:17-26 where people were: Checking out the Son of God. They were…
CHECKING OUT HIS CREDENTIALS
A growing reputation
So far in Luke’s Gospel, we have seen the reputation of Jesus growing and 5:17 says Pharisees and teachers of the law came from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem. This was not just idle curiosity—it was an official delegation to check out the credentials of Jesus. Let’s see what happened…
Jesus responds to the curiosity
Verse 17b sets the scene when it says, “The power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal.” In this context, v18 says some men came carrying a paralysed man on a stretcher. They tried to get into the house but there was no room. So they lowered the man from the tiles that covered the roof.
Jesus did not heal the man straight away. He first forgave his sins. Verse 20 says, “When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the man, “Your sins are forgiven.” This is a further step in the unfolding revelation of who Jesus was. It was particularly intended for the Scribes and Pharisees who had come to check him out.
Checking out his credentials today
In a review of Christopher Hitchens’ book on God’s non-existence, Alexander Chancellor said that one explanation for the popularity of such books may lie in the fact that non-believers feel guilty about their non-belief and cannot get enough reassurance that it is OK to be an atheist. In other words, it gives atheists and agnostics a reason to opt out of commitment. Rather than doing this, we should listen to the one who offers forgiveness and eternal life. No one apart from Jesus can do this. Christopher Hitchens cannot do it and nor can Richard Dawkins. So check out their credentials and compare them with the credentials of Jesus. This leads to a further point…
CHECKING OUT HIS CREED
Who is this man?
A creed is a statement of faith and the Apostles Creed says, “I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth.” People like Christopher Hitchens and Richard Dawkins have a passionate belief about the non-existence of God, and they promote this as vehemently as any other fundamentalist. The Scribes and Pharisees were also fundamentalists. They believed passionately in the one true God of Israel. In this context, Luke 5:21 says they began to reason among themselves: “Who is this who speaks blasphemy… only God can forgive sins?”
Jesus is the Messiah
The Scribes and Pharisees were well schooled in academic theology, but they were weak in spiritual experience. They believed that only God forgives sin. This is good theology, because ultimately, all sin is against God and so only God can forgive sin. If this is true, concluded the Pharisees, then Jesus is a blasphemer. In coming to this conclusion, they did not allow themselves to see who Jesus really was, and why he came. If they did this, they may have concluded that Jesus is the Messiah who came to save Israel from their sins. He is the suffering servant of Old Testament prophecy who lived and died for our salvation.
Who do you say he is?
The Scribes and Pharisees are like many today who reject the Christian faith without seriously checking out who Jesus was, and why he came. In contrast, those who followed Jesus observed his life, they listened to what he said, and they responded positively. They were filled with awe and said: “We have seen remarkable things today.” This leads to a final point…
CHECKING OUT HIS CREDIBILITY
Our response today
History tells us that Jesus lived 2000 years ago and did amazing things. He said he came to forgive us and to bring us back to God. He could have been a fanatic, a fool, or a false prophet, but given the evidence, a former atheist, C. S. Lewis, concluded that Jesus is not a liar or a lunatic. He is Lord.
The authority of Jesus
The critical point in this credibility check on Jesus is in v24. Jesus said, “I do this so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins.” In essence, Jesus said to the Scribes and Pharisees, “You don’t believe I have the right to forgive sins. You say this because there is no tangible evidence. He then asked them who has the power to heal. Again, these theologians knew the answer. Ultimately, God is the only one who heals. Jesus then said, “Watch this!” He then told the man to do something he could not do. He said, “Get up and walk.” Immediately the man stood up, rolled up his bed, and went home. Notice that Jesus did not pray to God for healing. He used his own authority.
The relevance of Jesus today
One reviewer said recently that the God market is expanding. Current titles include The Case for a Creator, God’s Politics, Conversations with God, and Searching for God Knows What. Why is this? One publisher said, “There remains a lot of faith and belief, but people find it increasingly hard to marry organised religion with their own view of the world. People want a more intellectual and contemporary take on the subject.” We should respond to this with a positive experience of Jesus Christ. Only he has the words of eternal life, and we should bring these words to a world that is searching for spiritual truth; we should bring these words to a world that is searching for spiritual reality; we should bring these words to a world that is searching for spiritual experience.
Bernard Cartledge