No Self-Condemnation

No Self-Condemnation

Mark 2:1-12

 

A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. They gathered in such large numbers that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. 

Some men came, bringing to him a paralyzed man, carried by four of them. Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus by digging through it and then lowered the mat the man was lying on. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” 

Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, “Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things? Which is easier: to say to this paralyzed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk’? 

But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the man, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” He got up, took his mat and walked out in full view of them all. This amazed everyone and they praised God, saying, “We have never seen anything like this!” (Mark 2:1-12 NIV)

Remember:

~The man who was possessed with the legion of demons, Jesus said to the impure spirit "come out" and it came out

~The man whose hand was covered with leprosy, Jesus said to him "stretch out your hand" and it was cleansed

~The woman with the issue of blood believed that she could receive her healing by touching Jesus' cloak

~Jesus took Jairus' daughter by the hand and told her to get up; she got up and begin to walk around.

BUT TO THE PARALYZED MAN, JESUS SAYS "YOUR SINS ARE FORGIVEN"

~Or, what about the Syrophonecian woman whose daughter was healed according to her faith.

~Consider the deaf and mute man, whose ears and tongue Jesus touched.

~And the blind man that Jesus took by the hand and spat on his eyes and placed his hands on the man's eyes so that the man could see

~Blind Bartimaeus received his sight according to his faith and

~The demon possessed boy...Jesus spoke to the demonic spirit and said "come out" and then lifted the boy by the hand and the boy was healed

(Referenced from Jesus' healing ministry)

In all of these healing encounters, Jesus takes a direct approach. He either speaks directly to the affliction or physically aid the person by touching them to deliver them from the affliction.

But to the paralyzed man, Jesus says that "your sins are forgiven"...quite a different approach from the rest -- this was more indirect.

Questions: Why does Jesus take this approach (your sins are forgiven)? Wouldn't it have been easier, logically, to do what he has done for the others...to reach out and touch him, to consider the amount of trouble his friends had gone through to lower him in a hole from the roof and the faith that his friends had to get him there? Jesus could have spoken the word "be healed", right? Another question: what is the significance of the paralyzed man?

Jesus understands that we have the tendency to condemn ourselves when considering the amounts of sin from our past. He understands that we often look at our sins and deem them unforgivable and at this conclusion people have the tendency to continue doing what they've been doing, sinking deeper in sin...thinking there is no hope for them, paralyzed in their current state of being and unable to pursue after the plan that God has for their lives, confined, in a sense, to their own mats. We are so paralyzed at times that it keeps us from getting to the altar to receive the gift of salvation. Though we are unworthy, considering the depths of our sin, God gives us a stamp of approval, one of value and worth by the blood of Jesus.

I believe this passage is a depiction of our human tendency to self-condemn.

Jesus spoke directly to the thing that was hindering the paralyzed man from moving (his sins), because otherwise, the man would be closed off by his own understanding and would not be able to receive that he was healed if it was spoken to him. Have you ever tried to convince a person of a job well-done when they appear to be too hard on themselves? Well, this is exactly what Jesus intended to avoid. A paralyzed individual may respond this way: "no, forgiveness is for those who are not deep sin as I am". So Jesus says, "that thing(s) that you are using to hold yourself back, you are now free from that". 

*Abortion, Prostitution, Promiscuity, Drug dealing, Squandered Finances, Rebellion, Premarital Sex, Children Out of Wedlock, Theft, Murder, etc...whatever it is, Jesus said "it is done, it is finished, it is on the cross, today is a new day". He has made all things new for you, a brand new start...not to say that you are perfect, but your motive should be to strive towards that. If you happen to mess up, he will pick you up...God does not place the burden on us to be perfect but he desires for our wicked motives be put away and to let our intentions be pure.

After addressing the root cause of his condition, 'now that you understand-- paralyzed man-- that you are forgiven,' Jesus then says "get up, take up your mat and go".

At first I thought Jesus' question to the Pharisees was a rhetorical question "which is easier, to forgive his sins or tell him to take up his mat?" But I believe that in this case it would be easier to address the sins because it would have been hard for the man to understand the words "you are healed" when he was in a cycle of condemning himself...saying things like "but I did this or that, how can God forgive me for that?"

Thank you, Father, that we are able to come before your throne of grace, with confidence and that you are not holding our past against us. The fact that you are faithful and just to forgive us of our confessed and repentant sins should encourage us to stand boldly before your throne, not allowing the barrier of self-condemnation to keep us from experiencing your loving-kindness or the blessings that you wish to pour on us. I decree that self-condemnation has no power; today it is laid to rest; today we are fueled by your Spirit so that we are stirred with passion to come to know our gifts that will define the services that we will impart on others and will be a blessing to the kingdom of Heaven. Self-condemnation shall NOT prosper, every yoke attached to it is broken, in the name of Jesus, Amen!

A Dream: Grand Canyon

A Dream: Grand Canyon

On Thursday, September 19, 2013, I had a recurring dream about falling to my death. Each dream is different and I have had them since my early childhood, following an accident where I fell several feet to the ground from a window (that’s a story in itself). These dreams of falling would disturb me to the point that I used to awake with such alarm, usually jerking myself into an upright position from my sleep. However, in these past few years my experiences with these dreams have been quite different, therapeutic in a sense, and a direct encounter with God that has helped me confront and overcome my fear of heights. I call this Therapy by Divine Intervention.

God has also counseled me in the past to overcome anxiety with various techniques to implement before I would lie down to sleep and for 11 years I have been anxiety-free. Migraines, pinched nerves in the neck and shoulders, issues with my feet are other ailments that I have suffered with in the past, many times to the point of incapacitation over a number of days. I have been healed of these things as well by confronting various other traumatic childhood experiences. I love my healing journey and I am always eager to share it with many with the hopes that it will cause us to look at ways to attain healing with a new, but ancient perspective, especially when we have reached the rope’s end by seeking the help of physicians who are unable to discover what exactly is ailing us.

Have you ever wondered why test results show inconclusive evidence that there is anything wrong with you? I believe that is because we are in the very early stages of the ailment before it manifests visually in test results. You are in a great place because this rescues you from harsh treatments like surgery, chemotherapy, radiation, etc. It is important that we are sensitive enough to be aware of this stage so that spiritual intervention can be implemented for the cleansing and healing of your body.

Your first treatment will often come in the form of being transparent and honest about the things that are embedded in the emotions that is the source of the physical ailment. The next phase is experiencing the emotions that have been denied and stored (e.g. grief, shame, guilt, etc.). For example, when there are situations that warrant anger but you did everything to avoid expressing this anger in an healthy and effective way, there is a possibility that it has been stored and unresolved. For each unresolved event that proceeds this one concerning anger is stored, yet it grows into bitterness, jealousy, envy and negative talk. Things like this threaten blood pressure, heart rate, muscle tension, and increased discharge of body chemicals (e.g. adrenalin, cortisone, etc.), which causes imbalances that can develop into various conditions.

We cannot physically see the wounds of emotional hurt, but we do know that they take up residence in us. Many times we think that they no longer exist until a new experience triggers an old unresolved hurt that has been lying dormant. Only the individual can identify what these hurts are, things that no test can reveal. I truly believe that once these hurts are stored up in us and we fail to address them over a period of time, they become the source of physical ailments. I pray that you witness the therapy of my dream of the Grand Canyon, one of the world’s greatest attractions.

On this particular night I dreamed that my family and I toured the Grand Canyon. From a distance I could witness the heights and width of the canyon, but to explore the depths I had to build up the courage to walk to the edge. I begin to experience the usual nausea, dizziness and light-headiness that I get when challenged with heights until I fainted and fell over the edge. In mid-flight I awakened in an upright position…in a panic, I sorted through my thoughts and discovered that I did not have an option of grabbing ahold of something; my only option was to begin to speak the promises of God.  I spoke to God “you said you will never leave me nor forsake me” (Deut. 31:8), that “you would command your angels to charge over me so that my feet would not strike against these stones” (Ps. 91:11, 12), now lift me Lord, tuck me and hide me in the shadow of your wings (Ps. 91:4). Immediately, I felt a warm presence embrace me (completely wrapping around my whole body)…this was my encounter with God. I did not see His face, just a physical presence. He leaned in closely to my ear and whispered “do not fear, for I Am with you” (Isaiah 41:10).

In this moment I thought the Lord was going take me up straight away and quickly, but instead he lowered me ever so slowly and said “look at the details, the different layers and colorations of the stone that reveals its ancient history”. This is the phase of confronting. He said, “I am more than that”. As we approached the bottom he said to me “look at how deep the valley is; I am deeper than that”. In our slow ascension he had me to look at these details again, then he said “look out at the width; it goes further than your eyes can see and I am wider than that. Now…look up, and understand that I Am much higher than this” (Eph. 3:18).

When I had awakened from this dream I felt that I had physically gone through this experience. My heart was racing and felt enlarged; it was uncomfortably tender all the next day. I was not alarmed by this feeling in my heart; though it could have raised some concerns for doctors…I would imagine they would run all kinds of test. The feeling was indescribable for most of the morning. All I could truly say was that “God is big”, and as elementary as it sounds, He is simply BIG. I was awestruck to say the least. I understood fully that there is nothing moore satisfying than to be in the arms of the Almighty God.

As I was driving to work the following day I had a vision of standing on the highest peak, looking down and feeling confident that I had just conquered my fear of heights. The discomfort of this world is nothing compared to the protection that God has around them that love Him. I am so thankful that the Lord did not take me up straight away, we continued to descend…for, in low places there is much to learn. He acknowledged and empathized with my fear but did not enable me to stay there by rescuing me prematurely, before I could see and explore each detail in the layers of the canyon. This is the phase where I believe that healing and freedom can be experienced. As we continued to descend, every detail was clear to me…He required that I open my eyes to see them rather than shut them tight thinking that I could brace myself for the fall. Can you think of a time when you closed your eyes tightly to avoid the impact of circumstances? Yes, me too. I want to encourage you to look carefully at the details. These are necessary lessons that you will use to construct your greatest visions.

I realize that many of us have had valley experiences; we have tried to withstand the blows by standing upright, smiling and denying that we have been wounded. I recall the feelings of our brother Mordecai in the book of Esther, when a decree went out to every region to annihilate the Jews; he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and poured ashes on his head. He was grieved at this news, he fasted and prayed. I have witnessed people in difficult circumstances like this, who handled it with cockiness, saying “my God has got this”. While this is true we see such a person has denied themselves to experience the hurt that comes with the situation. That hurt is stored and causes our prayers to become ineffective; the frustrations of unanswered prayers overtake the individual and the situation becomes overwhelmingly stressful…it is this stress that causes physical ailments. We can meditate on Mordecai’s experience and be confident that in due time we too will be exalted. But, I feel right now in the Spirit that it is now your time to go higher.

“Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time” (1 Peter 5:6).