Several weeks ago. You may remember, if you were here that I shared with you about a podcast that I was listening to where a guy who runs a non profit ministry called dare to share Greg steer was being interviewed. You may or may not remember his name, but if you were here, you probably remember me talking about his uncle. His name was Uncle Jack, and Uncle Jack was a not so great guy. He was pretty rough guy. Made a lot of terrible choices in life, but Jesus got a hold of his life, and he became a Christian, and he began to share the Good News of Jesus with everyone. And there's so many people's lives who were transformed and changed because Uncle Jack told so many people about Jesus. Well, Greg, during that podcast, didn't just tell the story of his Uncle Jack, but he told a lot of stories. One of the other people that he focused on throughout that time was his mom and her story. She was someone who was pretty rough as well. Had made a lot of terrible decisions in her own life. I think I may have even shared with you how she grabbed a baseball bat and pretty much beat her boyfriend who wasn't a great guy and his car to a pulp one day. And this was the kind of life that she lived. There were a lot of things that she had done that she felt guilt about, that she felt shame about. There were just a lot of sins that were hanging over her head. She was carrying the weight of those she felt so unworthy of love, like there was no hope for any kind of redemption for her now, one of the things that she was most ashamed about was the way that she had conceived Greg through a one night stand at a party. She had honestly gone to an abortion clinic, and her plan was to not have him. I can't tell you all the details that went into it, but one thing led to another, and she didn't actually go through with it, thank goodness. But she never really got over that, that that was what she was going to do, and how this kind of thing went about, and she carried a lot of guilt and shame from that. It affected her relationship with Greg, her son when he was growing up, but after he became a Christian, he just knew that his mom needed to know Jesus. And he was just a young kid, and he was, you know, 1011, 12 years old, doing his best to try to share Jesus. And what the gospel, the good news of Jesus, really was, but it wasn't really clicking. She didn't really get it. And finally, he just got desperate as a teenager, and he said, Mom, sit down at the kitchen table and listen to every word that I have to say, this is important, and I need your full attention. He just began to do the very best that he could as a teenage boy, to share the good news of Jesus Christ with his mom. And he shares the story, he says that she just kept going, great, you don't you don't know the kind of person I am. You don't know how terrible of a person that I really am. I've done some horrible things in my life. There's no way that I can make up for all of those sins that I've committed. Grit said, Mom, that's the good news. That's the whole thing about Jesus dying on the cross. You don't have to do anything to make up for those. Jesus took them all to the cross and you can actually be forgiven and have eternal life in him. She said, even the big ones, Greg, because I've done a lot of really terrible things. He said, Yeah, Mom, that's the thing. He took all sins, even the big ones, to the cross.She said, Well, in that case, I'm all in. Andhe had the privilege of being able to lead his mom at the kitchen table to pray a prayer of faith to receive Jesus Christ and His forgiveness and eternal life in His name. Now, a lot of you will hear that story, and you'll go Praise God. That's awesome. I can't believe that that really happened. And then as a teenager, God worked in and threw him in that way to impact his mom and all the things that happened there after. But some of you hear a story like that, and you may go, really, I mean, how do we know that really happened? Like, like, Can Jesus really forgive sins. I mean, she was not a very good person, and you could tell all the things that she did. How can she just is it really that simple? And does Jesus really have the authority to just declare that someone's sins are forgiven like that because they pray a simple prayer of faith? Ask you to turn to Luke chapter five told you we're going to be starting in verse 17 today. Let's turn our attention there and see if we can find out any answers to those questions. Luke says in verse 17 One day Jesus was teaching and Pharisees and teachers of the law were. Sitting there, they had come from every village, Luke says, of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem. And Luke says the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal the sick. One of the things that Luke is trying to communicate, right off the bat here, as he switches gears into this section, is that we see that Jesus has gotten the attention of some pretty powerful and influential religious leaders in Judaism of that day and age, the Pharisees and the teachers of the law were pretty, pretty influential people during this time, the Pharisees were one of four major religious groups, along with the Sadducees, the Essenes and the Zealots, and their goal was to try to keep the nation of Israel faithful to the Mosaic law. So they would take the law and they would develop it even further. They would try to address rulings and give rulings on a variety of things in the law that weren't addressed specifically by Scripture. And then the teachers of the law that Luke talks about here would come along, and they were like the scribes. They would write all of this stuff down to keep a record of these things. And so these were people that were making big decisions when it came to Judaism at the time. And Luke makes sure, as he's been communicating, that Jesus had gotten the attention of a lot of people, crowds were beginning to follow, wondering what he was all about, and he was even getting the attention of these super influential, powerful religious leaders who were coming from like Luke said, Every village of Galilee and Judea and Jerusalem, Luke says that while Jesus was teaching them. And these influential leaders were there in verse 18, that some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. Verse 19, when they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat, through the tiles, into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus. What a what a scene, right? I mean, what, what? What kind of friends are these who would go to that much trouble to get him to Jesus, right? I mean, to just carry him however far that they came, knowing that he was there. And then they they know that he needs this healing, and they show up and like, I mean, Jesus is there right in through those doors, but the crowd is so heavy and so thick. They like, he's right there, but yet they're still so far away. And so, I mean, they go to get creative and go to great lengths to be able to get him right in front of Jesus, to provide the healing that he needs. And they, you know, do what they did to the roof after crawling up there and and figured out a way to lower him down there, and then all of a sudden he's there, like we did it. We got him right there in front of Jesus now he can finally get the healing that he desperatelyneeds.Sure all eyes were on Jesus to see what he was going to do next. They had heard of him healing other people. Maybe they had even seen him heal other people, and here was a guy who was in obvious need of healing. What would Jesus do? Verse 20, Luke says, When Jesus saw their faith the friends and the faith of the paralyzed man, he said, friend, your sins are forgiven. What? What? God, why? I mean, it's obvious that that's not what this guy came for. What he came for was healing. He's paralyzed. Jesus, don't you see that he needs to be healed? That's why we went all this way. That's why we dug through the roof. That's why we lowered him down to heal him. What are you talking about? His sins are forgiven. Why would Jesus say that? It's a couple of scenarios that we need to consider. First scenario, the first question even for you is, I mean, how many of us actually are usually convinced that our situations and our circumstances are the biggest things that need to be changed in our lives, and if that thing could just be changed, then when we finally be where we need to be and have what we need to have, if I could just get that guy to like me, things would be different. If I could just get this person to marry me. I could find the right man, I could find the right woman, then my life's finally going to be complete. If I could just get here in my career, if I could just make this much money. I mean, I don't need the money that Elon Musk has. I just I mean, if I could just get here, man, I would be where I need to be. My life would be different. Everything would be so much better than. Is right now, if I could just get retired one day, if I could just have children, or if I could just get my kids to like me or respect me, or do whatever it is that I'm telling them to do, if I could just get here with my spouse, then maybe things would be so much better if they would start acting this way and doing what they need to do and what I need them to do to get what I need out of them, and we just go, if I could just get here, if they would just do this, and my situation would change, and I'll finally be where I need to be. Maybe that's the situation that this guy was in. Maybe that's the way he saw it was, this is just what I need. If I get this, then everything will be just right. Everything will be better. The truth is that Jesus knew if he healed him, then there would be another situation and another circumstance that would just come up that would be the next big thing. Now again, that's a pretty big thing, not being able to walk. I get it, but we've all had pretty big things in our lives that God has overcome, and then we just get to something, and it's not even anywhere near as big of a deal, but we make it the biggest deal, and it's the next thing that's just gotta happen in order for us to be where we need to be. It's just this tendency to be able to focus on, if we could just get here, have this or do that, thenthat's what it's really all aboutJesus. Also, of course, knew that he could heal him physically, but that that would have no bearing on his eternal life. I mean, he could heal the guy, and maybe he could walk, but then one day he would die and still be separated from God for all of eternity. And so he made his life better in the short term. But what did he do for the long term? He was trying, maybe in one scenario, to help this guy see that his biggest need was not to have physical healing, but spiritual healing, that he was a sinner when that sin is a barrier between him and God, and that he needed to be forgiven, to be made right with God, to impact him for all of eternity. So that could be one reason that Jesus was declaring this in this moment when the guy's obvious need right before him was to be physically healed. We also have to consider that maybe he knew the depth of his sin. Maybe he realized that he was a sinner and that he needed to be forgiven, and Jesus picked up on that, or knew that and was trying to help for this guy to have that weight removed off of his shoulders. Maybe he carried that in there, because there was a common belief in this day and age that if someone was crippled, then it was a result of their sin or their parents sin, and so maybe that's what had been labeled a sinner because he was physically crippled. So maybe he's carrying that in there, and Jesus knew that and picked up on that he wanted to free him from the guilt and the shame and the associations of being a sinner in this way, either way, Jesus makes it known that he has a need to be forgiven, whether it was to help make him aware of that or he knew it, and he was showing them that he was someone who had the authority to forgive him and provide that for him in that moment now, Jesus declaring that he could do such a thing certainly raised some questions among those religious leaders, the Pharisees and the teachers of the law that Luke made us aware of were present when Jesus was teaching in this situation happened. So look at what Luke says in verse 21 the Pharisees and teachers of the law began thinking to themselves, Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemy, who can forgive sins, but God alone? The Pharisees and teachers of the law knew that the only one that could really truly forgive sins is God, and in their minds, I mean, this guy certainly isn't him. And so this is blasphemy. Now that was an important claim. I mean, that is the kind of thing that, if proven guilty of, then you could be stoned to death. That was the punishment for blasphemy. And so they're raising some pretty big things. Whenever Jesus says this, of course, they didn't really raise it. It's like something they said, we're just thinking. But Jesus knew that He picks up on what they were thinking. Look at verse 22 Jesus knew what they were thinking and asked them, Why are you thinking these things in your hearts? Which is easier to say Your sins are forgiven, or to say, Get up and walk well, of course, it's easier to say that your sins are forgiven. They would think right, because honestly, who can prove that you could go around all day going Your sins are forgiven. Your sins are forgiven. Your sins are forgiven. But how would we ever really know they were forgiven or not? Anybody can. Say that the hard thing to do would be to say, this guy who's obviously paralyzed and crippled, to go get up and walk, because now, if he gets up and walks, then, oh, okay, that says something about who he is, but if he doesn't, I mean, that's a lot harder thing, because now you got to back it up. You say your sins are forgiven, then okay, youcould just say that kind of thing. It's easy.Look at how Jesus continues verse 24 but I want you to know that the Son of Man, reference to himself, has authority on earth to forgive sins. So he said to the paralyzed man, I tell you, Get up, take your mat and go home. And so the scene is set now, right? I mean, it's, it's, it's set. If this man gets up, takes his mat and goes home, that's going to say a lot about Jesus's authority to forgive sin. And if he doesn't, Jesus said those words now, and this guy just lays there, then that's also going to say a lot about his inability to be able to follow through with the claim to forgive the man's sins. Verse 25 immediately he stood up in front of them, took what he had been lying on, and went home praising God. Verse 26 everyone was amazed and gave praise to God. They were filled with awe, and said, We have seen remarkable things today, apparently Jesus did have the authority to forgive this man's sins, because he did get up, he took his mat and he walked home. And of course, Jesus had the authority to forgive sins, because all of Scripture communicates that Jesus was Emmanuel. He was God with them, fully God and fully man. And he knew what he was being born into this world to do, that he was headed to the cross. This was during Jesus' earthly ministry, on his way to the cross, that as a man, he knew that he could represent all men, all human beings, and take their sins, our sins upon himself, because he was also fully God had no sins to pay for himself. Jesus knew that's what he was headed towards, or where he was going, so that he could remove that barrier that existed between God and humanity, so that we could be with Him and have eternal life with Him forever on the other side of the cross. The writers of Scripture communicate that that is exactly what happened. Peter was one of the guys that was his disciples, and in first, Peter 224, Peter tells us that is exactly what happened when he went to the cross. He says he himself again, a reference to Jesus bore our sins in his body on the cross. Why? So that we might die to sin and live to righteousness? He says, For by his wounds, you were healed.You were forgiven. You were setfree from the bondage to sin. And so because of Jesus's finished work on the cross to accomplish all that was necessary to forgive sins, he could forgive the paralytic. In this moment, he knew who he was. He knew what he would accomplish, and based on who he was and what it is that he would do, gave him the authority to forgive the paralytic sins in this moment. And it wasn't just something that Jesus had the authority to do on that day or during that time. He still carries that same authority today, and because of him being able to accomplish everything that he did on the cross for us, the only thing left for him to do, since there's no more work to be done, is to give that forgiveness away as a free gift that you and I receive by faith. We've been studying the book of Ephesians with some of the men. On Wednesday night, it's been really cool to walk through and see what these guys have to say about that and what God's showing and revealing to all of us along the way. And we covered Chapter Two a few weeks ago, and there's some incredible statements in here about the finished work of Jesus and what salvation is. And in Ephesians chapter two, verses eight and nine, Paul says, For it is by grace, you have been saved. How through faith? And he says, This is not from yourselves. It is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast again, Jesus has accomplished all the work necessary. There's no work left to do. So he offers that forgiveness as a gift. We receive it by faith, by declaring that our trust is in Jesus as the Way, the Truth and the Life, and that no one comes to the Father except through Him. We're pushing all the poker chips in on the middle of the table, on that Jesus is not one of many ways. He is the only way. And the moment that happens, we are come. Completely forgiven, because he has the authority through who he is and what he's accomplished to declare that based on those things. And then the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in us. And then we enter in this spiritual union with Jesus, and we're given eternal life in that moment, now and forever. And when you see that and that Jesus has this kind of authority to forgive sins, then the first thing that says to maybe some of you who are here today, watching online today, is that Jesus can free you from the shame and the guilt of your past, even the big things of your past. So why not walk out of here today with that off of your back, knowing that you're completely forgiven and you have the assurance of eternal life. That's certainly one of the things that we see, and one of the ways that you can apply to you today based on whether you've taken a step to receive that free gift of forgiveness and salvation or not,or whether you havenow, if you have and you've experienced that complete forgiveness, then let's talk about what this text, what Luke reveals about what Jesus did here, in line with the series that we've been in. This series, as you know, if you've been here, is titled Life expressed, and we've been saying all along that the moment we say yes to Jesus, not only are we completely forgiven, but the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in us. We enter that spiritual healing with Jesus, and then he begins to express his life through us, in speech and in behavior, character actions. He leads. He guides and powers enables. He lives his life in us and through us, as us and so what we see when we look at what Luke communicates here about Jesus having the authority to declare that this man's sins were forgiven, that he still carries that same authority today. And if He dwells in you and me, then one of the ways he will express his life through you and me is to declare that other people's sins have been forgiven as well. Not that you walk around and get to say that based on your authority, but the way that he works in and through you to share the good news of Jesus Christ, what he accomplished on the cross, to lead them into receiving that free gift of salvation, and then they do. Then Jesus, through you, gets to declare Your sins are forgiven, friend, this is how he works in and through us now to be able to do what he just did to the paralytic lying right beforehim. It's who he is. It's what he does.This is what he was doing in and through Greg, the story I shared with you earlier, Greg came to know Christ as a kid and Jesus life was put in him. One of the ways that he expressed his life through him was to point to this truth to his mom, friend, Mother,your sins areforgiven. Why? Because you've heard the good news, you've understood it, you've received it, and put your faith and trust in Him. Now, again, she didn't believe it. She thought she was, you know, way too far gone for those kinds of things. But Greg said, again, Jesus through Greg, it's not about what you've done what you've got to do. It's a gift that you receive by faith, and that may be one of the ways that Jesus wants to work in and through you and through me. There are certain people that you now know who carry the same shame, the same guilt that Greg's mom did. It's obvious they feel the weight of their sin, and Jesus wants to lead us through the relationship that we have with them, to share the good news that they can have forgiveness and have that weight lifted off of them. And whenever we share that with them, and he opens up their minds to see it and receive it, then we can declare with them, friend, your sins are forgiven. Drop the chains. Now there are others who were in relationship who may not see it. They don't really feel that much shame and guilt, because they don't even believe that they're a sinner, right? I mean, we're all basically just good people. You'll hear people say that a lot in today's culture, and so some people are blind to it, and they're just like, I'm fine now, even if they acknowledge that they're not perfect. Again, we say this all the time, but we just have this habit of looking at other people and comparing ourselves to them and going, Well, I'm not not as bad as them. And so God grades on a curve, or there is a god I'm sure I'm okay, because I'm not as bad as as they are, right? Well, we saw one of the possible scenarios with the paralytic is that he was blind to it as well. We don't know he could have been the one felt guilt and shame and all those things, but it could have been a scenario where he didn't see it at all in Jesus. Brought it up to him to be able to help show him that that was his biggest need. Maybe that's the way he'll work in and through you and me as well. There are people we're in relationships with who don't see that they're sinners, or they don't get it, where you know they really stand before a holy and a perfect God, and maybe he wants to use us to talk about our experience. I found that Jesus rarely expresses his life through us in ways where we walk up to other people and we just go, did you know that you're a dirty, rotten, disgusting sinner. But as we have relationship with people and we're able to say, Hey, man did Can I just share you something that Jesus opened my eyes to see about in my own life. Man, I thought I was doing okay. I knew I wasn't perfect, and this and that, and, you know, I thought I was probably okay. And all of a sudden I realized, oh my gosh, other people are not the standard God is. And even though I feel like I'm okay compared to a lot of people, when I'm comparing myself to him, all of a sudden God was like, Oh my gosh, I'm missing the mark big time, and that that sin in my life is a barrier between me and God. And then all of a sudden he revealed this glorious truth about what Jesus did on the cross to forgive my sins and how he offers it to me as a free gift, and I said yes to him. And do you know what that felt like? It felt like the weight of all those things, just all of a sudden we're gone after me realizing that I was such a sinner compared to a holy and a perfect God. And then we're able to walk in and go and you know, I don't know if you've ever thought the same thing. Have you ever thought about how you have compared yourself to a holy and a perfect God, and the state that that puts you in as someone who's not perfect before him. And man, did you know that Jesus, that I talked about, who died on the cross and made such a difference in my life, did the same thing for you, and that that applies to you as well. And maybe he turns the lights on them, for them, in and through us, so that after all of that, he can declare friend, your sins are forgiven. This is the way Jesus will express himself in and through us as we make ourselves available to him. Sometimes it's with those who know it, and they just oh, they feel like they're too far gone. And other times, it's to help share our experience and how God turned the lights on for us to help them see that's true about themselves as well. A question just becomes as we finish up today, is there someone that he's laying on your heart that he wants to lead you to share with, someone you know is struggling with the guilt and shame of their sin, or someone that you know and in a relationship with that he wants you to share your story with to help them see that that's true of them as well, and if so, then allow him to express his life through you, to share the Good News of Jesus with them. It could change their life forever.Jesus, what a privilege it isto be able toshare with others the same good newsthat you made known that you revealed to us, every single one of us who have put our faith and trust In you to have our sins forgiven, were cheered this information by someone else. You worked in and through someone else to help us see it, to change our lives forever. We're grateful. We rest in the forgiveness. Thank you that you've looked at each one of us and said, friend, your sins are forgiven. Wow, so freeing. And as we rest in that and thank you for the relationship that allows us to be in with you now and forevermore, we recognize that you want to use us as your instruments to share that same good news with other people so that you could declare with them, friend, your sins are forgiven.So continue to whisper to our hearts.Place those people on our minds that you want to lead us to share with today. Youthe work in us and through us as your instruments.God, for those who are here today, andmaybe they've yet to take that step of faith and receive that forgiveness we've been talking about, would you continue right now, in this momentto reveal your truth to them,your love, your care, your concern, the forgiveness that is available to them right now in this moment, is only you can do you. And if that's you this morning and Jesus is knocking on the door of your heart, saying, I want to come in and dwell with you, experience real, abundant, meaningful life with you, thatthat can be true, if you'll just let me forgive you.Maybe he's leading you to pray a prayer of faith right now, in this moment, to receive that free gift of salvation, and if so, I want to give you the opportunity to do just that. When I was sitting at Vacation Bible School at 10 years old, someone began to pray just like this, and I just felt and sensed that Jesus was tapping on my heart, that this good news was so good, it was good for me, and I received it in that moment. It had changed my life forever. And if he's doing that with you right now in this moment, whether you're here in this room or you're watching online, you could just pray a simple prayer of faith like Jesus. I recognize that there's sin in my life, andthat that sin separates me from you.But thank you for coming to die on the cross for my sins, out of your love for me right now, I put my faith and trust in You, Jesus to be my Lord, to be my savior. Please forgive me. Come, dwell in me. Adopt me into your familyand begin to express your life through me. Thank you for loving me,forgiving me and rescuing me right now in this moment in Jesus name, amen. Amen.