Luke 5
"'Which is easier, to say, "Your sins are forgiven you," or to say, "Rise and walk"? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins'—[Yeshua] said to the man who was paralysed—'I say to you, rise, pick up your bed and go home.' And immediately he rose up before them, picked up what he had been lying on, and went home, glorifying God." - Luke 5:23-25
With the scribes and Pharisees looking on, Yeshua forgives the sins of a paralysed man (v. 20). This is blasphemy to the scribes and Pharisees. No man has the authority to forgive sins. Only God can do that. But Jesus backs up his authority by healing the paralysed man, who immediately gets up, picks up his mat, and goes home. If Jesus can heal in this way, maybe he can actually forgive sins.
If we want forgiveness for our sins and total healing, whether it be physical, emotional, mental, relational, or spiritual, there is one person to whom we should come. Yeshua can do it all. He is the God-man, the Servant of Yahweh, the Word of God, the Way, the Truth, and the Life. He is like us in his humanity, but he also God in the flesh. We must never doubt his authority over all things.
Father, thank you for sending your Servant into our dark world. He is the Light we need. Thank you for the forgiveness of sins and the healing of our illnesses through Yeshua. We long for him and his coming kingdom. May we wait in hope for him. In Yeshua's name, amen.
- Jeff Coleman