First Things First

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And some men were carrying on a bed a man who was paralyzed; and they were trying to bring him in and to set him down in front of Him. (Lk. 5:18, NASB)

   One of my favorite Jesus stories is the healing of the paralytic as recorded in Luke 5. Here lies a man who is paralyzed, being carried by four of his friends to Jesus. Jesus heals the man but it was not because of the man's faith. No, his healing came as a result of the faith of his four friends, who happened to lower their paralyzed friend down through someone else's roof, right in front of Jesus, while He was teaching. It is a beautiful picture, and a great example of what the church should be. Furthermore, it contains all sorts of spiritual and life lessons for you and I today.

   As I am reading this story again this morning, a thought occurs to me. While we do not know the extent of his paralysis or how long he has been this way, he had an obvious physical need, and has survived on the mercy of his friends and family. And yet, with his obvious and overwhelming physical need, when he finally meets Jesus, the first thing Jesus says to him is, "Friend, your sins are forgiven." (5:20, NASB) The man is paralyzed and yet Jesus is speaking to him about his sin. At first this may seem cruel, as if Jesus is "kicking him while he is down", but that is not the case at all. As a matter of fact, Jesus's words reveals just how much He cares for the man. His physical body was need, but the condition of his soul was a more urgent situation. Jesus healed the man, but His first concern was for his spirit. 

   It is so very easy to become focused on our physical world. I mean, we are physical beings. However, our physical nature houses a spiritual person. We are spiritual beings wearing a temporary coat of humanity that will be shed one day. And, while we must concern ourselves with this physical world in which we live, our first priority should always be the eternal things of God. The physical is temporary, the spiritual is eternal. 


*Image courtesy of http://jrforasteros.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/FirstThingsFirst.jpg

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