Forgiving Sins: Luke 5:17-26

As we continue our journey through the gospels focusing on Jesus’ life, we arrive at a passage that has an interesting opening. If you have read the gospels for any length of time, you might be surprised to see a detail in this opening that is likely very understated.

If you have ever taken a trip to see someone or something special, then you might see this detail at the opening of our passage sooner than someone who has never done this. Perhaps this detail is only included in one of the gospels and that is why many people overlook it. While this event is found in three of the four gospels, only in Luke’s gospel do we have an interesting detail – one that could help frame Jesus’ setup for this healing miracle.

Let’s look at this event, Our passage is found in Luke’s gospel, chapter 5, and we will read it using the Contemporary English Version of the Bible. Starting in verse 17, Luke sets the stage by telling us:

¹⁷ One day some Pharisees and experts in the Law of Moses sat listening to Jesus teach. They had come from every village in Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem.

God had given Jesus the power to heal the sick, ¹⁸ and some people came carrying a crippled man on a mat. They tried to take him inside the house and put him in front of Jesus. ¹⁹ But because of the crowd, they could not get him to Jesus. So they went up on the roof, where they removed some tiles and let the mat down in the middle of the room.

²⁰ When Jesus saw how much faith they had, he said to the crippled man, “My friend, your sins are forgiven.”

²¹ The Pharisees and the experts began arguing, “Jesus must think he is God! Only God can forgive sins.”

²² Jesus knew what they were thinking, and he said, “Why are you thinking that? ²³ Is it easier for me to tell this crippled man that his sins are forgiven or to tell him to get up and walk? ²⁴ But now you will see that the Son of Man has the right to forgive sins here on earth.” Jesus then said to the man, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk home.”

²⁵ At once the man stood up in front of everyone. He picked up his mat and went home, giving thanks to God. ²⁶ Everyone was amazed and praised God. What they saw surprised them, and they said, “We have seen a great miracle today!”

Before today, I had not ever noticed how Luke’s version of this event opened. Luke opens this passage and event by telling us that the Pharisees and experts in Moses’ Law had “come from every village in Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem.”

This short phrase tells me that while this was early on in Jesus’ ministry, He was starting to become better known, and that His ministry was gaining traction. The detail Luke includes in his gospel that these religious leaders sat listening to Jesus implies that they initially came because they wanted to see and hear Jesus for themselves without taking other people’s word for it. Also, since people had traveled from all over the region to see and hear Jesus, we can conclude that Jesus’ fame had grown to the point where the formerly crippled man’s friends knew about Jesus and that Jesus could heal their friend.

Outside of probably a few isolated cases, such as Jesus teaching up in Nazareth and being thrown out of the synagogue, this event might have been the spark that ignited the hostility the religious leaders had towards Jesus throughout the gospels.

At the beginning of this passage, there is no indication that the Pharisees were hostile towards Jesus, but they were probably curious. In reality, I am a little curious what Jesus actually was teaching about that day before the crippled man enters via the roof. Part of me suspects that Jesus was teaching on something related to forgiveness and this unexpected entrance helped bring Jesus’ sermon to its main point.

What amazes me about Jesus is that He does not tip-toe around an issue. While He is loving and compassionate to those who need healing, He is also very direct to those who need to hear truth shared directly.

In this miracle, we see a clear contrast between two ideas: mere talk verses practical action.

The Pharisees and religious leaders had mastered the ability to talk about ideas and debate theories, but they lacked the practical action to support their message. In Jesus’ statement on forgiveness, He expresses an action that is really only internally expressed or felt, since feeling forgiven by God, or by anyone for that matter, is something that has no visible signs in the moment.

When Jesus claims that this man’s sins had been forgiven, this statement gets the Pharisee’s attention. Forgiveness is an action, but it is a God-only action. Perhaps, since forgiveness is an intangible action, perhaps these religious leaders felt that it was better left in the talk realm, specifically for them to be able to encourage or discourage people when they bring their sacrifices. However, Jesus assures the man that His sins have been forgiven, and this is before the man had done anything like asking for forgiveness or bringing a sacrifice.

The Pharisee’s don’t like Jesus’ attitude towards forgiveness, so Jesus chooses to frame their model of forgiveness as mere talk by asking them the rhetorical question, “Is it easier for me to tell this crippled man that his sins are forgiven or to tell him to get up and walk?”

While we have no tangible proof when God forgives a sin, we can very easily test the command, “Get up and walk”. Get up and walk is something that is so testable that it takes mere seconds to verify. Can the man actually obey Jesus’ command?

This is a bold move on Jesus’ part.

While Jesus claimed to have knowledge of who God has forgiven, in the Pharisees’ minds, Jesus was directly taking credit for forgiveness, which was a role they believed was God’s alone – specifically the power to forgive sins. Jesus challenged their understanding and belief with a clear, direct miracle.

When reading this event, we might be tempted to think that this event is an example of Jesus drawing attention to Himself, but this would not be the case. Instead, throughout this whole event, the focus was on giving God the glory, and it was a success, because the passage closes with these words in verse 26, “Everyone was amazed and praised God. What they saw surprised them, and they said, ‘We have seen a great miracle today!’”

Another powerful truth in this passage that I want to draw our attention to is that Jesus never claims to have the power to forgive sins according to what we read in this passage. Jesus did not say “I forgive you of your sins.” Instead, He said “My friend, your sins are forgiven.” This passive statement is one subtle way that people in Biblical times attributed a truth to God. In other words, Jesus tells this man that God had forgiven His sins.

In this statement, Jesus shared the truth that God forgives sins because that is who He is – and He forgives sin with no strings attached. Jesus wanted to stretch the mind of His audience to the reality that God loves before God requires. The Pharisees believed God’s love was conditional and based on obedience to His requirements. Jesus challenged this idea with the truth that God loves first, and Jesus’ presence in a sinful, rebellious world is the biggest evidence of this truth.

Through all the details included in this event, Jesus gave 100% of the glory to God – and Jesus’ actions and message in this event reveal a profound truth about God the Father’s character and love for us.

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

As I always challenge you to do, intentionally seek God first in your life. If you are struggling with feeling forgiven, claim Jesus’ promise now that God has already forgiven your past sins and resolve to move forward, starting today, into a new life with Him.

Also, continue praying and studying the Bible for yourself, because the Bible reveals God’s true character, and while other people have ideas and opinions, when wanting to know who God is, it’s best to look at what He tells us about Himself in the pages of the Bible.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or abandon where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!