God, Us and Truth Part 3

Parable of the lost son

In Luke 15 Jesus tells three stories to illustrate how much God loves people, seeks them out and rejoices when they turn to him. One is about a shepherd seeking a lost sheep, one is a woman searching for a special coin that was lost. The third story is the story of the Lost Son.

Luke 15:11-32 NLT
To illustrate the point further, Jesus told them this story: "A man had two sons. [12] The younger son told his father, 'I want my share of your estate now before you die.' So his father agreed to divide his wealth between his sons. [13] "A few days later this younger son packed all his belongings and moved to a distant land, and there he wasted all his money in wild living. [14] About the time his money ran out, a great famine swept over the land, and he began to starve. [15] He persuaded a local farmer to hire him, and the man sent him into his fields to feed the pigs. [16] The young man became so hungry that even the pods he was feeding the pigs looked good to him. But no one gave him anything. [17] "When he finally came to his senses, he said to himself, 'At home even the hired servants have food enough to spare, and here I am dying of hunger! [18] I will go home to my father and say, "Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, [19] and I am no longer worthy of being called your son. Please take me on as a hired servant."' [20] "So he returned home to his father. And while he was still a long way off, his father saw him coming. Filled with love and compassion, he ran to his son, embraced him, and kissed him. [21] His son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against both heaven and you, and I am no longer worthy of being called your son.' [22] "But his father said to the servants, 'Quick! Bring the finest robe in the house and put it on him. Get a ring for his finger and sandals for his feet. [23] And kill the calf we have been fattening. We must celebrate with a feast, [24] for this son of mine was dead and has now returned to life. He was lost, but now he is found.' So the party began. [25] "Meanwhile, the older son was in the fields working. When he returned home, he heard music and dancing in the house, [26] and he asked one of the servants what was going on. [27] 'Your brother is back,' he was told, 'and your father has killed the fattened calf. We are celebrating because of his safe return.' [28] "The older brother was angry and wouldn't go in. His father came out and begged him, [29] but he replied, 'All these years I've slaved for you and never once refused to do a single thing you told me to. And in all that time you never gave me even one young goat for a feast with my friends. [30] Yet when this son of yours comes back after squandering your money on prostitutes, you celebrate by killing the fattened calf!' [31] "His father said to him, 'Look, dear son, you have always stayed by me, and everything I have is yours. [32] We had to celebrate this happy day. For your brother was dead and has come back to life! He was lost, but now he is found!'"

The Story.
This is a story about a wayward son who wants to find his own way in the world and totally wastes everything he was given. It is a story about a self righteous son who couldn't grasp the Father's love. And it is a story of a Father who is willing to love and forgive, to bring hope and restoration.

What do we learn about God?
The father in this story represents God.
1. One of the things I notice is that the Father lets the son go. He actually gives him the value of his share and lets him loose into the world, even if it broke his heart.

He doesn't force the son into relationship. Instead, he lets him exercise his free will and lets him go. This must have been incredibly hard. It is difficult as a parent to let your children go, when you know the dangers ahead. But God does not force us into relationship. When we choose to go our own way, he lets us go.

2. The father is waiting for the son to return.
When the son chose to return, the father was there, ready, watching, waiting. God wants us to return to him, but does not force us to return. However, when we come to God, he is there waiting for us and watching out for us, ready to embrace us. God wants to be in relationship with us and he is there waiting for us when we choose to return to him.

The father was filled with love and compassion for his son. He was not concerned with what had passed, only that his son was again with him. God is waiting for us to come to him. He is filled with love and compassion for us, and when we return to him, he celebrates that return. There is no recrimination, no reminding us of what we did, just love, forgiveness and the chance to start anew.

Psalm 117
Praise the Lord, all you nations. Praise him, all you people of the earth. [2] For his unfailing love for us is powerful; the Lord ’s faithfulness endures forever. Praise the Lord!

Ps 100:5
For the Lord is good. His unfailing love continues forever, and his faithfulness continues to each generation.

Eph 3:18
And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is.

Luke 24:47
It was also written that this message would be proclaimed in the authority of his name to all the nations, f beginning in Jerusalem: ‘There is forgiveness of sins for all who repent.’

Romans 4:5-7
David also spoke of this when he described the happiness of those who are declared righteous without working for it: [7] "Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sins are put out of sight. [8] Yes, what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of sin.”

God is ready and willing to embrace us and not count our sins against us. His forgiveness is complete.

What do we learn about human nature?

There are two sons in this story. Both of these sons needed redemption

Son 1 was self righteous and his attitude was full of pride.

It is clear from the story, that he believed his acceptance was all about what he did and how he behaved. His attitiude was one of pride and disdain for his brother. As a result he could not handle that the father had forgiven the second son and he became jeaous and sulky because he thought life was unfair.

There is a lesson for us here:
How do we respond when it seems that we are the ones who have been working hard, but someone else gets the party and the recognition, for what we believe they have not earned?

We've worked hard, we haven't fallen away. In truth, we can become like the older brother who is only focussed on what he has done, and has missed the truth. If we find our value in what we do, rather than who we are, we toatally miss the truth of God's great love and forgiveness, and his joy for those who come to him.

The older son says "all these years ...." he was so caught up in what he did that he could not see the need for grace and forgiveness.

Son 2 had been sinful, but repentent.

Yet he did not fully appreciate the extent of the father's love. He wanted to come home, but he felt unworthy. He was prepared to be a servant, rather than a son. The father greats him and restores him to sonship. The Father in this story is not in need of an extra servant. He is wanting restoration, total restoration for his son.

We can fall into the trap of missing the point. We feel so bad about our past, that we do not believe we are good enough to be "sons" in the family. Instead, we expect to be treated like a servant in the hope that it will be slighlty better than what we have now.

But the Bible tells us that we are forgiven, utterly and totally. Our sins are remembered no more.

Ps 103 - as far as the east is from the west
Our sis are forgiven etc.

Psalm 103:12 NLT
He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west.

God is not holding our sin against us, yet sometimes we are!!!

What sins are you holding against yourself that God has already forgiven?

What other truths do we see in this story?
There are many other things that we can draw from this story. The one I want to highlight is the position we have in God. We are "sons" of God. We have been given position in the family.

The first son was all about works and earned position. He missed the point that position in the family was not earned. It was not about works, it was not about what he did. We are born into family and that is what gives us position. The works were important, the family business had to be run and run effectively and efficiently, but his position in the family was not reliant on what he did.

Position is not about how good we are and what we have done. Our position is because of what God has done. In John 3 Jesus tells Nicodemus that he must be born again. This new birth is by the Spirit. We enter God's family by rebirth, through the Spirit, and we become members of the family with the position and the rights and responsibilities that go along with that.

Neither son fully understood their position. The first son thought it was all about what he did, his works and his "goodness." He totally missed out on the good things that go with the position because he was trying to earn his way. The father says that he could have asked at any time for a party, yet he never did? Why? He didn't understand the heart of his father.

The second son also thought it was about what he had done. He did not understand the power of forgiveness that the father had for him. His position in the family was not changed because of what he had done. He was still a son. He had been born into the family.

John 1:12-13 NLT
But to all who believed him and accepted him, he gave the right to become children of God. [13] They are reborn-not with a physical birth resulting from human passion or plan, but a birth that comes from God.

1 John 3:1 NLT
See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are! But the people who belong to this world don't recognize that we are God's children because they don't know him.

We are heirs of God.

Romans 8:15-17 NLT
So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God's Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, "Abba, Father." [16] For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God's children. [17] And since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of God's glory. But if we are to share his glory, we must also share his suffering.

Everything that is God's is at our disposal. We are heirs, we are God's children, and what we have or have not done does not change our position.

How well do we understand the position we have in God?

Which camp do we fall into?

Are we concentrating on earning our position instead of embracing the position we already have through grace?

Jesus tells us that we can ask God for whatever we will, in his name and it will be done. The father was happy to give the first son a party but the son never asked for one because he forgot his position.

Are we like the second son, feeling like we don't deserve the position because of the lifestyle we led?

So we don't ask God because we don't think we are worth it. We are children of God. Our position in him does not change. We are his children, born into the family by rebirth, through the love and grace and mercy of God.

We can ask ourselves:
What attitudes, or perceptions about God do I need to address in my life?

What does God say about me and my position in his family?

I encourage you to search God's word and find out what he says about us, and who we are. We are children in his famiky, loved and forgiven. We have access to God, and to all that is ours because we are positioned in him.

What is my next step?
What will I do this week to challenge the wrong perceptions I carry about God?

Challenge: Who does God say I am?

Who will I share this story with?
Be open to who God might be leading you to, to share his love and grace with them.

God, Us, and Truth Part 2

Parable of scattering the seed

Luke 8:4-15
While a large crowd was gathering and people were coming to Jesus from town after town, he told this parable: 5 “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path; it was trampled on, and the birds ate it up. 6 Some fell on rocky ground, and when it came up, the plants withered because they had no moisture. 7 Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up with it and choked the plants. 8 Still other seed fell on good soil. It came up and yielded a crop, a hundred times more than was sown.”
When he said this, he called out, “Whoever has ears to hear, let them hear.”
9 His disciples asked him what this parable meant. 10 He said, “The knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of God has been given to you, but to others I speak in parables, so that,

“‘though seeing, they may not see;    
 though hearing, they may not understand.’[a]

11 “This is the meaning of the parable: The seed is the word of God. 12 Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved. 13 Those on the rocky ground are the ones who receive the word with joy when they hear it, but they have no root. They believe for a while, but in the time of testing they fall away. 14 The seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature. 15 But the seed on good soil stands for those with a noble and good heart, who hear the word, retain it, and by persevering produce a crop.

What does the Story Say?
Jesus tells this story to people from a rural context who are gathering together to hear him. His disciples don’t really understand the parable and so Jesus explains it to them.

Jesus is using this parable to help people understand that there are different responses to the word of God. The seed is God's word, and the ground is the state of the heart and determines the response to the seed and the fruitfulness of God's word in people's lives.

What do we learn about God?
God’s Word is sent out. It will accomplish what he planned for it, but not everyone will respond.

Isaiah 55:10-11
10 “The rain and snow come down from the heavens    
 and stay on the ground to water the earth.
They cause the grain to grow,     
producing seed for the farmer     
and bread for the hungry.
11 It is the same with my word.     
I send it out, and it always produces fruit.
It will accomplish all I want it to,     
and it will prosper everywhere I send it.

The interesting thing about the parable, is that it seems like some of the word does not accomplish its purpose. But God knows who will and who won’t accept his word, and his purpose will always be accomplished in the world.

Jesus understood that the hearts of the people were hard. They look, but do not really see, they hear, but they are not really listening and learning. As a result, Jesus uses parables, and says – listen to the truth and understand it – he who has hears – should listen and understand. God wants us to listen to his word, to take notice of it, to learn from it and for it to be able to grow and produce fruit in our lives.

Isaiah 53:3a
“Come to me with your ears wide open.     
Listen, and you will find life.

God wants us to really listen to him and to understand him, to take notice and to act on it. This is hearing with the intent to act! When we truly take the time to listen, and listen with the right attitude we will actually receive more understanding.  

God says he will remove from us the ability to understand if we don’t come to him with the right heart.

Luke 8:18
So pay attention to how you hear. To those who listen to my teaching, more understanding will be given. But for those who are not listening, even what they think they have will be taken away.

This sounds kind of harsh, but Jesus never minced his words. The word is sent out to accomplish God's purpose in our lives.

What other truths does the story portray?
This is also a story about the state of the human heart.
1. Sometimes the heart is so hard that the devil can easily take the word away. This person is so bound up that the heart is so hard, that the grace of God has not had a chance to penetrate. They have no interest in the things of God and the truth of his word. They have shut themselves off from God’s grace.

2. The rest of the seed falls on ground where it is received, and received with joy. The next group of people are those who have heard the word. They are joyful, because they have understood and received God’s grace and salvation. The difficulty here is that they forget to devote themselves, or they devote themselves for a while but slacken off quickly.

I liken this group to those who accept Jesus from emotion, rather than from faith. There is no substance and no deep roots of belief or desire to know God in a real way. There is temptation in this world, and these people easily succumb because they do not have the strength and the maturity to face it, and overcome it.

The sad thing is that these people have actually heard and joyfully accepted the truth, but the lack of substance, the lack of deep roots means they fall away easily. This is the “I tried Christianity and it didn’t work” people. There is something in this I think about a selfish heart that does not deeply care about God, but is only joyful about what God can do for them. There is no desire to really honour and worship God. 

But God actually enables us to stand against temptation if we will allow him.

1 Corinthians 10:13 (NLT)
13 The temptations in your life are no different from what others experience. And God is faithful. He will not allow the temptation to be more than you can stand. When you are tempted, he will show you a way out so that you can endure.

Proverbs – people make their own dumb mistakes and the blame God for it.

Prov 19:3
People ruin their lives by their own foolishness, and then are angry at the Lord.

Developing deep roots takes time and effort, reading the word, praying, worshipping, and seeking a kingdom purpose not a self-purpose.

We can ask ourselves:
How am I ruining my own life because of my own foolish behaviour?

3. The seed that falls among the thorns, is heard, taken in and starts to grow and develop. This seed grows, but the growth is choked.

It is choked out by:
Care – the things of this world that we worry about. We allow them to become more important than God’s word and what he has to say about the situation. Jesus often said "do not worry, God knows what you need". The writers of the letters talked about not allowing cares to get in the way, but to bring them to God and to let him deal with them.

Dea with cares, give them to God. Look up these verses and see what they say about dealing with worry and care.

1 Peter 5:7; Phil 4:6-8, Matt 6:31-33

The key is to act on these scriptures, not just to repeat them.

Riches – This is a big one for us. We either allow what we have to choke out the word of God, or we are so focussed on what we don’t have, that we let it get in the way. Either way, it is indicative of a heart that is captured by wealth, and more intent on storing up treasure here on earth than on storing up treasure in heaven. The bible  has a lot to say about the riches of this world

1 Timothy 6:6-8
6 Yet true godliness with contentment is itself great wealth. 7 After all, we brought nothing with us when we came into the world, and we can’t take anything with us when we leave it. 8 So if we have enough food and clothing, let us be content.
9 But people who long to be rich fall into temptation and are trapped by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is the root of all kinds of evil. And some people, craving money, have wandered from the true faith and pierced themselves with many sorrows.

The love of money is a trap. It stops us from growing in to the people God has called us to be and it blinds us to the truth of God’s word. These people know and hear the word, but don’t apply it to life because the chasing after riches has become the main focus.

Pleasure –(The Greek word is Hedone) - This is basically hedonism. The "feels good so it must be right" attitude. The word of God is planted and growing, but the desire for “pleasure” is greater than the desire to know God and to actually experience true joy.

This is a misunderstanding of what joy is. God is not against fun, and he’s not against pleasure, these things have their place in the right context. The people Jesus is referring to are those who get side tracked by these things and allow them to become more important that God’s word. They allow the things of life to be more important than producing fruit for the kingdom of God.

Titus 3:3-8
3 At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another. 4 But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5 he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, 6 whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Saviour, 7 so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. 8 This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone.

The sad thing about this group of people is that they have the potential to reach maturity. They just never do because the things of the world have become more important than what God is doing in their lives.

James 4:1-3
What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? 2 You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask God. 3 When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

Unfortunately, I think this group of people often present to the world as who Christians are and give the world a misunderstanding of who God is and his love for them. Christian maturity is developed over time, when people are proactive in their faith and deliberate about removing the “weeds” from their life.

My garden has many great plants. The new plants struggle if I don’t constantly keep the weeds down. This is a good picture of what this means. If we don’t remove the weeds, if we don’t give the plant a chance to grow, then the plant will not produce the new fruit and will not achieve its purpose.

What weeds do I need to extract from my life?
What is choking out what I know God wants me to do.

4. The good ground is soil that is well prepared. The hard work has been done to prepare it to hear what God has to say. This soil receives the word and grows and produces fruit. This is well prepared soil and represents a well prepared heart, ready to receive the news of salvation, and ready to receive the grace of God.

This soil represents the person who makes the effort to keep their heart right and to remove anything that will affect the quality of the soil. The word is able to take root, to grow strong, and to produce good fruit. In fact, through perseverence, these people multiply the seed and there is a huge harvest.

What do we learn about how we are to live?
Ideally we are to live in a way that allows good soil to develop in our hearts. There are many aspects to this story. There are many ways we can look at it. Jesus was talking to people who were God followers. They were people who already had an understanding of who God is.

Which people do we most relate to in the story?  Why?

The truth is, this is not just about the salvation message. The word of God is there, we read it, we hear it. Our hearts can be open to one aspect of it and closed to another. Sometimes we just don’t want to hear what the word of God says because we know it will mean a change. It is helpful to take time to take a good hard look at our lives.

What kind of people are we? What heart issues do I need to address?
What do I need to do now?

How am I making sure that my heart is in a place where the word can grow and develop and produce good fruit?

What actions might I need to take this week? What issues of life might I need to address?

Will I listen with the intent to act or the intent to ignore?

Next Steps
What will I do with what I know. How will I apply these truths to my life?

God, Us and Truth.

Jesus Heals in Response to Faith

Luke 5:17-26 NLT
One day while Jesus was teaching, some Pharisees and teachers of religious law were sitting nearby. (It seemed that these men showed up from every village in all Galilee and Judea, as well as from Jerusalem.) And the Lord's healing power was strongly with Jesus. [18] Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a sleeping mat. They tried to take him inside to Jesus, [19] but they couldn't reach him because of the crowd. So they went up to the roof and took off some tiles. Then they lowered the sick man on his mat down into the crowd, right in front of Jesus. [20] Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the man, "Young man, your sins are forgiven." [21] But the Pharisees and teachers of religious law said to themselves, "Who does he think he is? That's blasphemy! Only God can forgive sins!" [22] Jesus knew what they were thinking, so he asked them, "Why do you question this in your hearts? [23] Is it easier to say 'Your sins are forgiven,' or 'Stand up and walk'? [24] So I will prove to you that the Son of Man has the authority on earth to forgive sins." Then Jesus turned to the paralyzed man and said, "Stand up, pick up your mat, and go home!" [25] And immediately, as everyone watched, the man jumped up, picked up his mat, and went home praising God. [26] Everyone was gripped with great wonder and awe, and they praised God, exclaiming, "We have seen amazing things today!"

What does the story say?
Can you imagine being in this situation. Jesus is in the area, everyone wants to see him, but you and your friends can't get in because it is so crowded. You are desperate to see him, so what do you do? I'm not sure I woukd have thought about going through the roof, but these friends did.

The friends realise that this is no ordinary situation, so they decide to lower their friend through the roof. Now that was sure to get attention. Jesus saw them, he saw their heart, and their desires, and he responded.

Jesus heals in response to faith

Jesus heals the paralyzed man in response to faith. He saw and responded to the faith of the man and his friends. Jesus knew the people's hearts, he knew that the man on the mat needed healing and forgiveness. (He also knew what the reaction of the pharisees would be). But he knew the need, he saw the faith, and he responded. 

The friends' also saw the need and the possibility of new life and were determined to get the man to Jesus, no matter what. They were prepared to do something radical. The place where Jesus was teaching and healing was crowded, but his friends were radical in their thinking and did not allow circumstances to defeat them. They knew Jesus was the answer for their friend. Jesus knew that the real need was forgiveness, he addresses both the felt need, and the real need and the man walks home totally free.

We also see here the critical heart of the pharisees. They were not responding to faith. They chose to judge and to criticise.

What do we learn about God?
God forgives, and his grace and mercy are available to all no matter the situation. Jesus had been healing lots of people, his desire is to set people free so that they can truly be all that God created them to be.

God is a God who heals. Whether your 'paralysis' is physical, emotional or spiritual, God is there and wants to set people free. Forgiveness of sin is often linked to healing. We need God's forgiveness. Jesus healed the man, and set him free, not just from his physical paralysis, but from the sin that separated him from God. God will heal in all sorts of ways, and  he heals in response to faith, and sets us free.

Psalm 103:1-5 NLT
Let all that I am praise the LORD; with my whole heart, I will praise his holy name. [2] Let all that I am praise the LORD; may I never forget the good things he does for me. [3] He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases. [4] He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies. [5] He fills my life with good things. My youth is renewed like the eagle's!

What other truths does the story portray?
Religious people like the pharisees, miss opportunities for miracles because they are caught up in rules and regulations rather than grace and forgiveness. These people had come as spectators to watch and to criticise. They had all the right gear, but they had not come to support the game, they had come to sit back and watch the players.

Jesus often had strong words for the pharisees, because whilst they knew so much, or thought they knew so much about God, they did not come to God with the right attitude.

Matthew 23:2-4, 23-28 NLT
"The teachers of religious law and the Pharisees are the official interpreters of the law of Moses. [3] So practice and obey whatever they tell you, but don't follow their example. For they don't practice what they teach. [4] They crush people with unbearable religious demands and never lift a finger to ease the burden. [23] "What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore the more important aspects of the law-justice, mercy, and faith. You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the more important things. [24] Blind guides! You strain your water so you won't accidentally swallow a gnat, but you swallow a camel! [25] "What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are so careful to clean the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are filthy-full of greed and self-indulgence! [26] You blind Pharisee! First wash the inside of the cup and the dish, and then the outside will become clean, too. [27] "What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs-beautiful on the outside but filled on the inside with dead people's bones and all sorts of impurity. [28]Outwardly you look like righteous people, but inwardly your hearts are filled with hypocrisy and lawlessness.

We can ask ourselves some questions here:
How do I see other people and what is my response to what God is doing for others?

What critical and judgemental attitudes do I have that stop me from seeing God's grace and mercy at work in others?

James 4:8, 11-12 NLT
Come close to God, and God will come close to you. Wash your hands, you sinners; purify your hearts, for your loyalty is divided between God and the world. [11] Don't speak evil against each other, dear brothers and sisters. If you criticize and judge each other, then you are criticizing and judging God's law. But your job is to obey the law, not to judge whether it applies to you. [12] God alone, who gave the law, is the Judge. He alone has the power to save or to destroy. So what right do you have to judge your neighbour?

It is usually spectators who are not taking part in the game who think they have a right to criticise the actions of everyone else. Think about sport: its the commentators and the spectators, who usually sit back in judgement of the referees or the players. Some know quite a bit about the game. But they are just spectators. People truly active in God's kingdom usually have a desire to just get on with it, and they don't have the time or the inclination, to criticise.

Proverbs 3:7 NLT
Don't be impressed with your own wisdom. Instead, fear the LORD and turn away from evil.

Mostly we criticise because we think people should do things our way. It's actually a selfish motive, usually based in wanting/needing to promote ourselves in some way. (Note: I'm talking about the attitude of criticism, as opposed to having a good, sound objective, critical analysis of a situation.)

What do we learn about how we are to live?
Our attitude is meant to be one of faith that is based on who God is, not on who we are. The paralyzed man was not trusting in what he could do himself, he was trusting in what God can do. His friends were not trusting in their own abilities. They were looking to Jesus for the answer.

Proverbs 3:5-6 NLT
Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding. [6] Seek his will in all you do, and he will show you which path to take.

The friends facilitated the healing, they were active and practical, but they trusted In God not in man. They had a desire to be close to Jesus and they wanted to place their friend in a situation where he was close to Jesus. We don't know whose idea it was, the man or his friends, but together, they made a difference for someone. This is the value of good friends. Notice that they positioned themselves close to Jesus and were prepared to be a little radical in what they did to make sure they got close. God wants people to draw close to him.

Isaiah 55:1-7 NLT
"Is anyone thirsty? Come and drink- even if you have no money! Come, take your choice of wine or milk- it's all free! [2] Why spend your money on food that does not give you strength? Why pay for food that does you no good? Listen to me, and you will eat what is good. You will enjoy the finest food. [3] "Come to me with your ears wide open. Listen, and you will find life. I will make an everlasting covenant with you. I will give you all the unfailing love I promised to David. [4] See how I used him to display my power among the peoples. I made him a leader among the nations. [5] You also will command nations you do not know, and peoples unknown to you will come running to obey, because I, the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, have made you glorious." [6] Seek the LORD while you can find him. Call on him now while he is near. [7] Let the wicked change their ways and banish the very thought of doing wrong. Let them turn to the LORD that he may have mercy on them. Yes, turn to our God, for he will forgive generously.

The friends didn't care if they looked a little bit silly. They just did what they needed to do to get close to Jesus and give their friend a chance to be healed.

Are we living in a way that positions us close to Jesus?

What radical actions (out of the square, out of the box kind of actions) are we prepared to take to help our friends come close to Jesus?

What do I need to do now? Or; What is my next step?
The answer to this is for personal reflection.

A thought

Jesus says in Luke 8, Be careful how you hear.

Am I hearing with the intent to take action and respond to the word of God and the voice of God, or am I hearing to ignore?

How am I hearing? What is my attitude and how will I respond?

What is my response to what I have just heard?