Matthew 9:1-8
1 Jesus stepped into a boat, crossed over and came to his own town. 2 Some men brought to him a paralytic, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.” 3 At this, some of the teachers of the law said to themselves, “This fellow is blaspheming!” 4 Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said, “Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your hearts? 5 Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? 6 But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins…” Then he said to the paralytic, “Get up, take your mat and go home.” 7 And the man got up and went home. 8 When the crowd saw this, they were filled with awe; and they praised God, who had given such authority to men. Jesus Christ is the Savior of mankind. If you meet Jesus, no matter what your circumstances are, you can overcome them. All man’s unhappiness comes from sin; and sin causes poverty, illness and death, and finally it will take you to hell where you will be tormented forever and ever. The thing that God detests the most is the devil and sin. The devil challenged God and destroyed man, who was created and loved by God, by making him sin and causing him to suffer both body and soul. For this, the devil will never be forgiven. He will be judged and punished with eternal torment in hell. Man also was punished according to the wages of his sin. But God sent his Son, Jesus Christ, into this world and made him become our faith by letting Jesus be punished on our behalf (Isaiah 53:5~6). God allowed man to repent, and to be able to go to heaven, rather than be punished in hell. Whoever turns away from sin by repenting with the blood of Jesus, will be forgiven and set free. His disease will turn into health, his curses to blessing, death to life, hell to heaven, and he will enjoy eternal happiness both spiritually and physically. In today's Scripture, a paralytic met Jesus. He surely believed that he would be able to walk if he met Jesus (Matthew 9:5). Jesus saw his faith and healed him, but he forgave his sin first, because illness is caused by sin. "Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven." (Matthew 9:2). Sin is worse than disease, for the cause of disease is sin. All suffering comes from the working of the devil and from sin. If your sin is forgiven, you can be set free. Therefore, the prophets, Jesus Christ, and even the Holy Spirit through the disciples cried, “Repent!” We should not be destroyed by our circumstances and sickness, since Jesus has destroyed our enemy, the devil and sin. The working of Jesus' blood on the cross and his resurrection are the proof that he has solved all of man’s suffering. The devil is looking for someone to devour all the time. "In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood." (Hebrews 12:4). Whether your sin is big or small, repent before you are cursed like the paralytic. Do not let sin produce suffering in you. Only Jesus Christ is the key for all of our suffering to end. Dear brothers and sisters, what problems do you have? They come from sin. Solve all your spiritual and physical problems right now by the working of Jesus' blood. Be freed from them (Romans 8:1~2, John 8:32). Dear brothers and sisters, let us pray, repent, and be freed and enjoy happiness. Only by the working of Jesus' blood.
