Another Way

One day Jesus was teaching, and Pharisees and the teachers of the law were sitting there. They had come from every village...and the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal the sick. Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. 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. -Luke 5: 17-19 (NIV)

This has always been one of my favorite gospel stories because of my father. For much of my life, my father did not profess to be a follower of Christ. To be honest, I had almost given up hope that he ever would. But I had a group of friends who were committed to faithfully placing my father before Jesus in prayer...just like the friends in this story were faithful in placing the paralyzed man before Jesus.  When my father finally became a follower of Jesus, I am convinced that it was in part because of the faith of those who continually placed him before the Lord.

But as I reflect on this text for today's devotional, something else stands out to me. The reason why the friends had to resort to lowering the paralyzed man through the roof is because the "religious people" were in the way.

We are told that Pharisees and teachers of the law come from everywhere to hear Jesus teach. These are the so-called religious "experts". When the friends arrive to place the paralyzed man before Jesus, they cannot find a way to do it because of the religious folks who have gathered; these religious people are an obstacle for the paralyzed man who would be placed before Christ.

I wonder: how many times have you and I (as religious people) gotten in the way of others coming to Christ? How many times have we been an obstacle to someone because of our attitudes, our indifference, or or arrogance? How many times have we said or acted some way that does more harm than good for the cause of Christ?

My mind drifts back to my father in the days before he became a follower of Jesus. Preachers from denominations other than mine would visit my dad on a regular basis. They'd try to convince him that he needed Jesus or else he'd perish in hell. What I realize now is that, though perhaps well meaning, these preachers were actually obstacles to my father getting to Jesus. He simply wasn't going to respond to that kind of reasoning. But when a United Methodist colleague of mine went to visit my father, he never even mentioned God or faith in the first few visits. He met my father where he was and talked about the things that my father enjoyed talking about; only much later (after a relationship of trust had been developed) did the subject of faith get introduced. Like the friends in the story, this pastor found "another way" to help get my father before the feet of Jesus.

May God grant you the grace: to continually place others before Christ (like the friends), to not be an obstacle to others who might come to Jesus (like the "religious" crowd), and willing to find "another way" if obstacles are encountered that prevent people from coming to Christ.




Tomorrow's Reading: Luke 6

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