Mark 2:3-4 Then they came to Him, bringing a paralytic who was carried by four men. And when they could not come near Him because of the crowd, they uncovered the roof where He was. So when they had broken through, they let down the bed on which the paralytic was lying.
Upon his retirement in 1953, United States Army General, Omar Nelson Bradley made the following quote: “We live in a world of nuclear giants and ethical infants, in a world that has achieved brilliance without wisdom, power without conscience. We have solved the mystery of the atom and forgotten the lessons of the Sermon on the Mount. We know more about war than we know about peace, more about dying than we know about living.”
Does this accurately describe America? A people without ethics, wisdom, and conscience. A nation that has turned from Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount and has no respect for life?
We murder unborn babies by the millions and take the lives of people whom we determine to be no longer productive members of society. This is not God’s way or His Plan for humanity. America has turned so far away from the Word of God, that most don’t even know what is written there. It’s indeed a sad time in American history.
In the Miracle of the Healing of the Paralytic, the crippled man’s four friends literally picked him up on his bed and carried him to Jesus. There were so many people trying to get to Jesus they couldn’t make their way through the crowd. Determined to see their friend healed, they climbed on the roof and cut it open. Then they lowered their friend down through the roof in front of Jesus where he was forgiven and healed by the Master.
These four men lived their lives as God intends us all to live. They were ethical and sought the Wisdom of God. Their conscience motivated them to live out the lessons of Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount. They cared more about life than death.
Who among us would join forces with three others and pick up a crippled friend on his bed and carry him to Jesus for healing? Who has that much faith? Who cares enough about a person who is crippled and unproductive? Are they worth our effort? Is their life worth anything?
The real question is: Who are we to determine whose life is worth living? Who are we to say a child is unwanted so it is better to kill them? Who are we to cast aside an old person and let them die because they are worthless and a drain on society? Who do we think we are?
Jesus said, Love your neighbor as yourself. If we were the crippled person lying on the mat, we would want someone to pick us up and carry us to the feet of the Master.
There are millions of physically and spiritually crippled people in America. It’s time we picked them up and carried them to the Master. He still saves, heals, and delivers. He has told us how to live. It’s time we started obeying and loving our neighbors as ourselves.
One way or another, God will……….turn the tide
Loving my neighbor, Doreen
