Luke 5:15-26

     Although Jesus clearly tried at times to restrain people from sharing the news of the way he had healed them, the news spread anyway. Luke told how people came in great crowds to seek healing. In 5:16, Luke mentions, almost in passing, that he would go away to lonely places so that he could pray.
     This is not the only place where we know that Jesus sought solitude for prayer and rest. It is a powerful expression of his humanness. He needed time to himself for rest and renewal just as evhe was eryone does. Actually taking that time is an expression of his wisdom. It can also be called stewardship. To act selflessly does not require stupidity nor the inability to take time for rest and spiritual revitalization. Jesus made sure he sought the source of strength so that he could give fully to the people who needed him.
      After this, Luke’s telling of Jesus’ story shifts the scene from lonely places to a town, inside a home. His reputation has spread enough that teachers and Pharisees from many areas have come to talk with him. As he talked with them, a group of men came carrying a friend who was paralyzed. They couldn’t get into the house where Jesus was because the crowd was too much and, apparently, no one was making way for them and the need of their friend. Undaunted, the friends made their way up on the roof, lifted tiles out of the way, probably digging a hole in the roof. Then they left their friends down into the room in front of Jesus. When Jesus saw the faith of the friends, he said to the man that his sins were forgiven.
     This was a surprise to the people in the room, perhaps also to the man and his friends. After all, they’d come for their friend to be healed, not forgiven. Of course, some people believed that illness or other misfortune was due to sin. Even today, there are strands of thought that tend to interpret problems as the fault of the sufferer. This wasn’t the theology of Jesus, who once said that the rain falls on the just and the unjust.
      The words of Jesus provoked a controversy and an important discussion with the teachers and Pharisees concerning the authority of Jesus. Yet, Jesus surely was not saying this to the man to begin a theological discussion. He cared too much about people to simply use them. He must have recognized a need in the paralyzed man for forgiveness. The fact that he was unfortunate enough to be paralyzed did not make him sinless. (Some theologians have interpreted statements such as “blessed are the poor” as though this means the poor or suffering is equitable with righteousness. What it does indicate is God’s concern for those who are powerless. Israelite society was always and consistently called to give aid to the same, summed up in the widow, the orphan and the sojourner in the land. )
     We don’t know what the sins were that the paralyzed man might have on his conscience. There is no particular suggestion here that his paralysis could be the result of it.  Nor is there a suggestion that could necessarily be intepreted that it was a psychosomatic condition.
      Any further healing of the man is delayed by the ire of many who were listening. Only God has the authority to forgive sins, they mutter to each other. Jesus was a master of human psychology and clearly understood the looks on their faces, their body language and the odd word he may have overheard. He posed a simple question. Was it easier to say ‘sins are forgiven’ or to heal of man of his paralysis? After all, words are easy. A charlatan could speak of forgiveness and who could prove him wrong?  But if a man who is paralyzed is told to get up and walk, then it demonstrates the Son of Man’s authority to forgive. Then Jesus told the man that he should rise, pick up his bed and walk.
      This was exactly what the man did, praising God for all he was worth. Everyone who saw it was equally impressed and praised God for what they had seen.
       In the excitement of the healing and the question of authority for forgiveness, the presence of the friends must not be forgotten. They came, carrying their friend, willing to go to any lengths in order to help him. While Jesus did not always require faith as a requirement to healing, in this case we’re told that the faith of the friends was important to Jesus.


In what way could you carry friends and family to Jesus?


Could your faith create movement for good in the world?


What kind of healing would true understanding of forgiveness make in your life?

Luke 5:12-15

     A leper saw Jesus and threw himself down before him, begging for help. Jesus reached out his hand and touched him. Jesus touched him. There is probably nothing that would match the shock of this statement for the original readers of Luke’s words. No one touched lepers, not voluntarily. They were considered unclean, the farthest end of unclean. People feared lepers, but also judged them as unfit for society.
     Any skin condition could be called leprosy. A wall, with mold or some other fungus might also be termed leprous and unclean. Since some skin conditions and disease did heal over time, there was a procedure and ritual by which a “leper” could be readmitted to society. Leprosy, such as we know it today, did not heal. Also known as Hansen’s disease, it was progressive, debilitating, painful and disfiguring. The causes were unknown and anyone suffering from it was shunned. To this day it carries a stigma; in Jesus’ lifetime, it was extreme. The leper who approached Jesus was most likely suffering from Hansen’s Disease.
      Lepers were loathsome, even to themselves. It must have taken tremendous faith in the power and personality of Jesus for this man to approach him and proclaim his faith in the ability of Jesus to cleanse him. Jesus was willing and the man was healed.
     Jesus told the man to tell no one. He was to show himself to the priest and bring the offering for the cleansing, according to the law, to show that he was cured.
     On a number of occasions, Jesus told people no to tell others about the healing (except for the appropriate priest on this occasion). As noted in another study, this probably seems strange in a time when publicity is craved and notoriety is often considered desirable. Why not get all the word-of-mouth advertising possible? Especially about miracles of healing that no one had ever been able to accomplish. Yet it’s plain that miracles did not always produce faith. The disciples, who saw more than anyone, still struggled and doubted. The compassion of Jesus led him to heal, yet his real mission has already been explained—to tell the good news of God. There were also charlatans who traveled the country-side promising healings they couldn’t deliver. Jesus certainly wouldn’t have wanted to be confused with any of these. He might also have been cautious about his central calling being lost in the reputation as a miracle worker.
      Despite his best efforts, Jesus was unable to keep a low profile. The word spread all the more. Crowds came to him to listen and to be healed. They sensed that he could make a genuine difference in their lives and in the life of the world.


Have you ever felt ‘unclean’ or otherwise unacceptable?
What kind of healing would you ask for from Jesus?
What difference do you believe Jesus can make in your life and that of the world?

Luke 5:1-11

     It’s a simple scene. Jesus is standing by the sea of Galilee talking to a crowd of people. Two boats are riding close to shore, probably tied to keep them from drifting, although we’re not given that detail. The fishermen are on shore washing their nets. We’re not told whether they had ever heard Jesus before his, but it’s often thought that they did.
     One of the boats belonged to Simon (Peter), which means that the other boat possibly belonged to James and John, the sons of Zebedee, for they were partners in the fishing business. It’s hard to know, since someone, unnamed, was later in the boat with Simon. The men were tired; they’d fished all night without any luck, now they were washing their nets. They probably listened as Jesus talked with the people.
     The people were probably crowded close. It was hard for everyone to see him. So he got into Simon’s boat and asked him to push off a little from shore. Since the lake shore probably rose a little from the water, this would let the people see him as he talked. He sat down and continued.
     When he was finished, Jesus told Simon to go into the deep water and let down his nets for a catch. Simon is doubtful. They’d worked all night to no avail. But he’ll do it if that’s what Jesus wants. This time the net is so full the nets begin to tear, so he signals for the other boat to come and even the two boats can hardly contain the catch.
     At this, Simon Peter falls down at Jesus’ and asks Jesus to depart because Peter is a sinful man. Matthew tells about a similar event with Peter, when Peter grabs Jesus around the knees and asks him to leave.) Peter here isn’t the only one who feels the awe at the catch (and likely at the wise teachings they’d overheard), James and John experience the same wonder.
     Jesus tells Simon that from now on, he’ll be catching people.
     When they come to shore, they leave their boats and nets and fish and follow Jesus.
      Luke doesn’t actually say that the catch of fish was a miracle. As Barclay points out, the Sea of Galilee (also know as Tiberias and the Lake of Gennasaret) could have vast shoals of fish. With a keen eye, Jesus might have spotted one of these. Of more significance is Peter’s decision to do as Jesus suggested. Peter was a strong man. The tradition passed down about him is that he was the best fisherman on the lake. He was also impulsive and didn’t always think things through. (For example, telling a man on a boat to “depart from him,” –where was Jesus going to go? Or hanging onto the knees of a man who he’d asked to leave. Nonetheless, Peter was strong and able. He probably was not the most highly educated man in town. Most Jewish men at the time could read and write to some extent, but as a fisherman, Peter would have had little opportunity or purpose in being a scholar. To follow Jesus was a huge step. It meant leaving a thriving business and venturing out of his comfort zone of ability and financial success.
      In Simon Peter, Jesus must have seen qualities of leadership. Luke doesn’t tell us there was a specific word to James and John, but they felt the pull nonetheless, for they all went together to follow Jesus—and all became part of the twelve with whom Jesus spent particular time teaching.
      Barclay makes another interesting point. When Peter agreed to let down the nets, the night was past, and night was the best time for fishing. He still gave it an effort. Barclay reminds us that if we spend our time waiting for the perfect opportunity, we will never begin at all.
     This is reminiscent of a story about a mission group who sent word to a missionary. They said, “Are the roads built yet? We have workers ready to join you as soon as the road is finished.” The missionary wrote back and said, “Don’t send them. We only need people who are willing to come even if there isn’t a road.”

Are there things in your life that you are using as a reason for holding back on Jesus?
Since Jesus eventually gave all his followers the call to fish (make disciples), in what ways are you fulfilling the call?