Inner Healing: The Power of Forgiveness and Restoration

If you remember, this culture and civilization, they're like, Hey that was part of our economy. That was part of what we know. You're disrupting. Even though those two guys were dangerous and we all just steered clear of here, you're still disrupting our way of things and we're going to ask you to leave. Even though Jesus is bringing order out of the chaos, he's still disrupting the order that we're comfortable with and we're not sure we want to call on that name. And so this is where chapter 8 wraps up. They ask him to leave and therefore he does. [00:11:51]

But what we don't necessarily think about when we read this story is something that would have been thought about a lot in that culture. And honestly, I would argue still is thought about a lot in our own culture. We just don't immediately think of it the same way we're reading a text like this. And that is this paralytic man has this condition. Why? What has happened in this man's life where God has punished him and put him in this situation? [00:18:33]

But for some people, especially those in this religious community, there is kind of this heart and mindset of what sin have you brought into this situation? What sin or brokenness is in your life that God has punished you in this way? Deuteronomy 28 I just recently read. God is about to take his people into the promised land finally. Moses is preparing them. He's going to hand over authority over to Joshua. He's going to lead them into this promised land. He's kind of going back over the commands and the laws and getting everything together. [00:18:56]

And so there's this mentality, especially from a group of people who have lived on this rollercoaster of up and down for so many years. They've seen that they strayed from God's teaching and they were exiled to another place. They were conquered and taken over by others. Now they're living in this Roman rule where again, we're not really our own people. They're technically in charge because we're not following the law well enough. And so we see these Pharisees, these scribes, these teachers of the law really hammering in on this concept of we must do what God has called us to do or there will be punishment if we don't. [00:20:31]

But as you grow, I expect you to understand the reality that those decisions you make are things I'm trying to protect you from. My law is here to help you see the right path that brings life to the full and not death and destruction. If we need a little help understanding this, we look at something like John chapter nine, starting in verse one. As he was passing by, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind? You see this mentality right here. [00:23:11]

Jesus' response, Neither this man nor his parents sinned, Jesus answered. This came about so that God's works may be displayed in him. Now it's interesting in this moment, he's saying that God's works might be displayed in him. There is an opportunity for God to work in his blindness and there is opportunity for God to work in his healing, but it doesn't necessarily guarantee which of those is going to be the case. If you read the rest of the story, which you can do on your time, you'll find out the answer. [00:24:36]

But in the midst of this moment, Jesus' statement is saying, Listen, it's not that he or his sin that brought this on, but there are trials and difficulties in the broken world you live in that God is trying to restore and redeem and bring wholeness back to. And so when you see that brokenness, don't assume that it's because of sin. Assume that there is an opportunity for God to be glorified in the midst of the circumstances. The outer hardships are what we like to focus on. We find our discomfort as the problem. [00:24:56]

But if we stopped this story right here, we don't know if this man can walk again anymore or not. Have courage could be you may still be on that mat tomorrow. Take courage. You don't know. Stick with me. Have faith. And then he makes this statement, Your sins are forgiven. For a second, you've just been through all this momentum. We're assuming that there was a roof torn up on your behalf. Your friends are frantically trying to get you to Jesus. There is this hope that is kind of eating at the back of your heart and mind. [00:28:42]

Because if I'm him, I don't know what I know now. For me, I up here in my mind know that the information that your sins are forgiven is huge. He knows it as well. He lives in a culture where there's a temple, there is sacrifice, there is much that goes into having your sins atoned for. And for it is an ongoing process of continually bringing back sacrifice, continuously coming back and confessing those sins and realizing that I am not perfect. I am far from whole. I'm far from okay. He knows it's a big deal when Jesus says this. [00:30:11]

But the reality is we are such a people of our circumstances that when the inward work starts to happen, we still struggle with that. We're not sure that's as good as being able to walk because it's great that my sins are forgiven, but I don't see the immediate impact of that. But Jesus is teaching here in this moment, the immediate impact of anything that goes on in our life starts in here. You see, salvation, which is a word we throw around and use a lot in reference to forgiveness and healing, as we talk about our physical healing in the body, are sozo, the same word. [00:30:37]

And oftentimes Jesus uses them interchangeably when talking about being saved or talking about being healed, because what this word really refers to is our being made whole, restored, things being that were broken being renewed and remade and restored and made new and whole. So here this man's ability to walk is broken. It has not been made whole. But in this moment, Jesus says, Listen, this brokenness that keeps you from God's presence, that keeps you living on the outside, that keeps you from being able to fully access, from entering into his presence, has been made new, has been healed, has been restored, has been saved. [00:30:37]

He knows that this work needs to start internally, that the most important piece we have to have corrected in us is one we could not accomplish on our own, something we could not achieve for our and therefore he says, Your sins are forgiven. At this, some of the scribes say to themselves, He's blaspheming. They're saying it to themselves, right? And I would think that in this next moment, perceiving their thoughts, we immediately go, Here's Jesus reading minds again. I don't think he had to read this one on their minds, okay? Because these scribes are experts in the law. [00:33:39]

They understand what goes into atonement. They understand the amount of sacrifice, the amount of work, the amount of things that need to be done for the law to be fulfilled and for this man to be forgiven. And none of that has been done. In fact, look, there's probably something still wrong with him. He is probably still a sinful individual. Look at the situation of his life. How could you look at him and say he's forgiven? It's probably all over their faces. And the fact that Jesus is declaring this, what authority do you have to speak for God? [00:33:39]

Which is easier to say, your sins are forgiven or to say, get up and walk? I'll put that question back to you. Which is easier? Huh? Is it? Because here's the reality, 2000 years later, we've made a lot of medical advances. Are we good at telling the paralytic to get up and walk? No. But do we still have any authority to say your sins are forgiven? This is a lose-lose question. Which is easier? Neither. That's the problem. That's why we're upset. And you think we're the ones saying evil things. You think we're the ones thinking evil stuff. [00:33:39]

Jesus is saying, Which is easier? In light of today, in light of Jesus' life, his ministry, his death, his burial, his resurrection, we might say to say your sins are forgiven. But in this moment, that's not happened. This is a hard question. But so that you may know the Son of Man, Jesus' favorite name for himself, has authority on earth to forgive sins, then he told the paralytic, Get up, take your stretcher, and go home. You'll notice what he does not say there. Your ailments are healed. Your paralysation is fixed. He doesn't say you are healed outside of saying you are forgiven. [00:33:39]

His statement is, I have done this work in you, but so that they know I have the authority to do it, get up and go home, which then takes some of that courage he talked about earlier. You got to trust me when I say you're forgiven. You got to trust me when I say don't be afraid. Just listen. I would imagine in this moment, some of that hope, some of that cautious optimism starts to return in this man's mind. He starts thinking, Can I do it? And the rest of the room is kind of waiting with a hushed silence over everything. [00:33:39]

We have no ability to tell ourselves, get up and walk. That's a whole nother thing. And oftentimes I'm not sure we have the ability to tell ourselves, stop saying these words, stop doing these things that you know are against God's will and God's way. Stop living outside of the way we think is right. Just because you now think it's the right thing to do. I think that there has to be this work internally where forgiveness and the joy of forgiveness and the reality of forgiveness and the truth of forgiveness takes such deep root in our hearts that I only want to pursue the one who offered me that gift. [00:41:59]

And then he turned to the people, he, that were his followers who witnessed this moment and said, it is your mission, your job to speak truth into people's lives. It does not matter what the outer circumstance of their life looks like in this moment. The truth is they are forgiven, period. Period. You don't get to hold their paralysis against them. You don't get to hold their sin against them. You don't get to control the outer circumstances. And if you do, guess what you're probably doing? You can't be a follower of Jesus because I still see this brokenness in you. [00:42:41]

I'm not real good at surrendering. I've still got these other sins in my life that are weighing me down and I just can't get past them. I can't willpower myself through them. And we beat ourselves down and we run from his presence because we're just not sure we're worthy of that presence. And by not even allowing ourselves to be forgiven, we are retaining the brokenness in our lives, holding onto it more than we hold onto the truth of the work that was done on our behalf. The truth of it, taking courage in it. The truth is you were forgiven, period. [00:43:56]

It is the good news of the gospel. Christ then rose from the dead, putting sin and death and hell in its place, saying those things don't have control over you anymore unless you let them. Unless you let them take hold of you, unless you let them rule in your life, unless you retain those things. Because the reality is I have set you free from them. Do you believe the truth that you are forgiven? And if you believe that truth and you let it take root in your heart, I will start this work in you that works from the inside out. [00:44:38]

You see, Jesus was facing a religious system that said you have to offer sacrifices, you have to follow the rules, you have to do all these things. And if you're not doing all these things, you are failing. And this is a miracle that pushes back against the religious system a little bit and says, no, no, no, no, no. It doesn't matter what you've done. It doesn't matter what sin anyone else perceives is in your life. It doesn't matter the brokenness of your circumstances, the trial that you are currently facing. Forgiveness is yours. [00:45:30]

There are a couple of little simple things I think we should walk away with here this morning. Number one, healing, salvation are something God wants for every part of us. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength is what he says. He does not view all those pieces as separate. I got to work on my inside a little bit. I got to work on my outside a little bit. I got to work on my mental state a little bit. I got to work on my spiritual state a little bit. He sees it as one piece that makes up you, the person that is you, and he wants to restore and make it all new. [00:45:58]

But that work starts in surrendering to him and letting our heart be given over to him in a way where he can begin that work from the inside out. That what is being poured in is his presence. Therefore, what proves that we are his is what he says proves we are his. They will know you are my disciples by the way that you love one another. They will know you are my disciples by the way my character pours back out of you. You will start to look like me, but you're not going to start to look like me unless that is what you are taking in here. [00:46:03]

Letting that forgiveness clear this path for my presence so that you can be in my presence and know my presence and know my character and know me and become like me. And that will start this restorative healing process that continues its way from the inside out. You have been saved. You are being saved, renewed, restored, made whole, and you will one day be saved. Spirit finally restored and made whole. Scripture talks about salvation in all three of those ways because the thing that barred us from God's presence has been dealt with. [00:47:13]

But we have to let that process begin. Number two is remembering the beauty of what he said. Your sins are forgiven. And that is the message of the good news that we are to carry to everyone. Can you imagine if you're a prisoner chained to a wall and someone hands you the key and unlocks you? You're set free. Here's the key. I took care of it. I brought you the key. I gave you the gift. It's taken care of. You've got it. You've got access to it. No one's stopping you. [00:48:01]

It is for us to continue to declare, like Jesus' mission, it does not matter what the world says about your status, your condition, the trials you face, the hardships in your life, the sin you are still dealing with, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. All of us are guilty of breaking the law. Every one of us has failed. Every one of us is forgiven and you are forgiven too. But I'm not quite, it doesn't matter. You are forgiven. And I can declare that with confidence because I know it with confidence because it is truth. [00:48:50]

As we wrap up this morning I want to encourage you with these words: therefore we do not give up even though our outer person is being destroyed our inner person is being renewed day by day for our momentary light affliction is producing for us an absolutely incomparable eternal weight of glory so we do not focus on what is seen but on what is unseen for what is seen is temporary but what is unseen is eternal this morning I encourage you to let that process begin in here and work its way out continue to declare that good news but to continue to have courage in the truth you have been forgiven no matter what the lies being whispered in your ears say. [01:17:12]

In this space he teaches us to love our neighbor as much as we love ourself no matter how we agree or disagree with them and if they're afraid because the world does not feel safe for them right now I care more about them and their fear and their hurt and their brokenness than I care about being right about a daggone thing because Jesus told me to feel that to let that be the inside of me more than anything else and so I want to encourage you this week no matter what noise is being shouted from every corner what we think is real not real to love your neighbor as you love yourself. [01:19:08]