Meeting Jesus

Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus and, after digging through it, lowered the mat the paralyzed man was lying on. Mark 2:4

A devotional

Recently I learned why they “could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd”, and it was not a simple question of clearing a path.

His illness rendered the paralytic ceremonially unclean, and to allow him to enter a house would likewise render that house unclean—as well as everyone in it. So they intentionally blocked him from entering, space or no space, and no doubt rebuked his friends for having the gall to even try.

If I were one of those friends I would have given up then and there, and silently commended myself for the lengths to which I had already gone in trying. I would have enhanced my self- righteousness, and he would have remained paralyzed—end of story.

Our job is to give people the opportunity to meet Jesus. That access is often not easy, certainly not in China or NK. Just like in this story there are two basic kinds of obstacles: external barriers of physical logistics and the hostility of people blocking the way, and my internal timidity and lack of determination in the face of those people.

Giving people access to Jesus and his salvation calls for some radical steps, like doggedly pushing through the physical obstacles of oceans, mountains, jungles, and deserts, plus social obstacles like offending those around us, or provoking hostile authorities, or confronting a resistant culture.

Ultimately, however, those can be overcome if we push through the only real barrier keeping them from the Lord—our own intimidation. What obstacle are you allowing to intimidate you, stopping you from bringing people to the Jesus who is the only One who can save them?