Could the action described in Mark 2:3-5 be an early form of “retaining and forgiving sin”?
The point is that when Jesus “saw their faith”, it was then that He told the paralytic “your sins are forgiven.
It appears to me that the ones carrying the stretcher knew that the man needed healing and forgiveness—and that the man knew the same. All five must have trusted Jesus to resolve the matters.
In their solidarity with one another, and in their trusting dependence on the Son of God, Jesus decided to act favorably on both accounts. No sin retained. Sin and sickness gone away.
To ponder in light of this: The elders pray for the sick in the Book of James.
The point is that when Jesus “saw their faith”, it was then that He told the paralytic “your sins are forgiven.
It appears to me that the ones carrying the stretcher knew that the man needed healing and forgiveness—and that the man knew the same. All five must have trusted Jesus to resolve the matters.
In their solidarity with one another, and in their trusting dependence on the Son of God, Jesus decided to act favorably on both accounts. No sin retained. Sin and sickness gone away.
To ponder in light of this: The elders pray for the sick in the Book of James.
