Through the Roof — TDW Kids

Home in Capernaum. Capernaum was a fishing town by the Sea of Galilee. Jesus made it His home base, and Simon Peter and Andrew had a house there (Mark 1:29). The news spread. “It was heard that He was in the house” (2:1). People in that town had already seen Jesus heal the sick, so everyone wanted to come. No room at all. “There was no longer room to receive them, not even near the door” (2:2). The house was packed inside and out. Jesus taught first. “And He preached the word to them” (2:2). Many people came hoping to see a miracle, but Jesus gave them God's Word. Hearing the truth about God was what they needed most. Some came to watch. Teachers of the law were sitting in that room too (2:6). They heard every word, but they had not come to trust Jesus. Room for you. Jesus welcomed everyone who came. There is still room for you to come close and listen to Him. What we learn. Jesus cares about our bodies, but He cares most about our hearts. Make time every day to hear His Word.

Capernaum (2:1). Capernaum sat on the north shore of the Sea of Galilee. Jesus left Nazareth and “dwelt in Capernaum, which is by the sea” (Matthew 4:13). The house may have been the home of Simon and Andrew, where Jesus had stayed before (Mark 1:29). Crowds before. The first time Jesus healed there, “the whole city was gathered together at the door” (Mark 1:33). After a leper told everyone he had been cleansed, “Jesus could no longer openly enter the city” (Mark 1:45). By chapter 2 the crowds were bigger than ever. “He preached the word” (2:2). The word is the good news Jesus announced everywhere: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15). Authority. People were amazed at His teaching, “for He taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes” (Mark 1:22). The scribes quoted earlier teachers. Jesus spoke as the One the Scriptures were about. Visitors from far away. Luke adds that Pharisees and teachers of the law had come “out of every town of Galilee, Judea, and Jerusalem” (Luke 5:17). Religious leaders had traveled a long way to examine Jesus. Luke also says, “And the power of the Lord was present to heal them.” Why it matters. The crowd wanted to see what Jesus could do. Jesus wanted them to know who He is. People still come to Jesus for many reasons, but the greatest gift is to hear His word and believe it: “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17).

Capernaum was a town beside a big lake. Jesus made His home there. Many people in that town had seen Jesus heal sick people. So the news about Jesus went everywhere. People crowded into the house to see Him. Even the doorway was full of people! Jesus did not start with a miracle. He taught them God's Word first. God's Word tells us the truth about God. It shows us how much God loves us. Jesus wants you to listen to His Word too. You can read your Bible every day. Each time, you can learn more about Jesus.

Jesus came home. Lots of people came to hear Him. The house was full! Jesus taught them God's Word.

A man who could not walk. He was “a paralytic who was carried by four men” (2:3). Paralyzed means his body could not move the way it should. He could not get to Jesus on his own. Friends who cared. Four men picked up his mat and carried him to Jesus. That took time, strength and love. A blocked door. “They could not come near Him because of the crowd” (2:4). Many people would have turned around and gone home. Up on the roof. Houses in Israel had flat roofs, often with stairs on the outside. A roof was made of wooden beams covered with branches and packed clay. Luke says they let him down “through the tiling” (Luke 5:19). A hole above Jesus. “They uncovered the roof where He was. So when they had broken through, they let down the bed” (2:4). The bed was a simple sleeping mat. Faith that moves. These friends believed Jesus could help, so they did not give up. Real faith trusts Jesus enough to do something. What we learn. You can carry a friend to Jesus by praying for them and inviting them to hear about Him. Keep going even when it is hard.

Carried by four (2:3). Four men carried a grown man on a mat to Jesus. Love for their friend cost them time, strength and comfort. The obstacle (2:4). “They could not come near Him because of the crowd.” The crowd was not cruel; it was simply full. Sometimes people who are already near Jesus can make it hard for others to reach Him. Followers of Jesus should make room. The roof. A Galilean house usually had a flat roof reached by an outside stair. Beams were laid across the walls, then reeds or branches, then packed clay. Luke says they lowered him “through the tiling” (Luke 5:19), which may mean clay tiles. Either way, they had to dig. “Broken through” (2:4). The friends dug out an opening above the place where Jesus stood and lowered the mat, probably with ropes at its corners. The man landed “into the midst before Jesus” (Luke 5:19). Persistence. Jesus later taught, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you” (Matthew 7:7). These men were willing to knock through a roof. Faith you can see. Faith is trust in Jesus, and real trust shows up in what we do. Their faith was not just a feeling. It climbed onto a roof and dug a hole. Why it matters. Bringing a friend to Jesus may mean effort, awkwardness and creativity. Prayer, an invitation and staying faithful when it is hard are all ways to carry someone to Him.

The man on the mat could not walk. He could not even get up by himself. But he had four good friends. They picked up his mat and carried him to Jesus. Then they saw the big crowd. They could not get through the door! The friends did not give up. They climbed up onto the flat roof. They dug a hole right above Jesus. Then they let their friend down on his mat. These friends believed that Jesus could help. Real faith keeps going, even when things are hard. You can pray for your friends to know Jesus.

The man could not walk. Four friends carried him to Jesus. They made a hole in the roof! They did not give up.

Jesus saw their faith. “When Jesus saw their faith” (2:5). He saw the hole in the roof, and He saw the trust behind it. Their faith brought the man to Jesus, but only Jesus could help him. A kind word. Jesus called him “Son” (2:5). It was a tender word, like a father speaking to his child. The biggest need. Everyone expected Jesus to heal the man's legs. Instead Jesus said first, “Your sins are forgiven you” (2:5). The man's deepest problem was not his body. It was sin, which separates every person from God (Romans 3:23). Was he sick because he sinned? Not always. About a man born blind, Jesus said, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned” (John 9:3). Everyone needs forgiveness, sick or well. The scribes' question. Scribes were teachers of the law. They sat there thinking, “Who can forgive sins but God alone?” (2:7). They were right. Only God can forgive sins, because every sin is against God. So when Jesus forgave sins, He was claiming to be God. Blasphemy. The scribes thought Jesus was speaking “blasphemies” (2:7). Blasphemy means speaking against God or claiming what belongs only to Him. It would be blasphemy if Jesus were not God. But He is God! What we learn. Your biggest need is to be forgiven, and Jesus is the One who can forgive you.

Their faith (2:5). Jesus saw the faith of the friends and of the man they carried. Faith is the empty hand that receives; Jesus is the One who gives. Faith does not earn anything: “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8). “Son.” The Greek word is teknon (say: TEK-non), a warm word for a child. Before the man was healed, he was welcomed. “Are forgiven.” The verb is a form of aphiēmi (say: ah-FEE-ay-mee), which means to send away, release or let go. The same verb is used when the fishermen “immediately left their nets” (Mark 1:18). Jesus spoke as if it were already done: the man's sins were sent away right then. Sickness and sin. Sickness and death came into the world because of sin (Romans 5:12). But not every illness is caused by a person's own sin. Jesus said of a man born blind, “Neither this man nor his parents sinned” (John 9:3). Here Jesus went to the root every person shares. The scribes (2:6). Scribes copied and taught the Law of Moses. They were “sitting there and reasoning in their hearts.” Their reasoning was sound: “Who can forgive sins but God alone?” (2:7). In Isaiah 43:25 the Lord says that He is the One who blots out sins. Blasphemy (2:7). Blasphemy is speaking against God, including claiming for yourself what belongs only to God. The Law punished it with death (Leviticus 24:16). The same charge would later be used to condemn Jesus (Mark 14:64). Only two choices. Either Jesus was speaking against God, or He is God. The scribes chose the first. God's Word gives the answer: He is “Jesus Christ, the Son of God” (Mark 1:1).

Jesus saw the four friends and their great faith. Then He looked at the man on the mat. Jesus said, “Young man, your sins are forgiven.” Everyone thought Jesus would heal his legs first. But Jesus forgave his sins first. Sin was the man's biggest problem. Sin is our biggest problem too. Some teachers of the law were sitting nearby. They thought, “Only God can forgive sins.” They were right about that! So Jesus was showing that He is God. Jesus can forgive your sins too.

Jesus forgave the man. Sin is our biggest problem. Only God can forgive sins. Jesus is God! He can forgive you too.

Jesus knew. Jesus “perceived in His spirit that they reasoned thus within themselves” (2:8). The scribes said nothing out loud, but Jesus knew their thoughts. Only God knows every heart. Which is easier? “Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Arise, take up your bed and walk’?” (2:9). Proof you can see. Anyone could say “your sins are forgiven,” and nobody could check it. But if Jesus said walk and the man stayed on the mat, everyone would know. So Jesus did the thing they could see to prove the thing they could not see. The Son of Man. “But that you may know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins” (2:10). Son of Man was the name Jesus used for Himself most often. It comes from Daniel 7:13-14, where “One like the Son of Man” receives a kingdom that lasts forever. Right away. “Immediately he arose, took up the bed, and went out in the presence of them all” (2:12). He carried the mat that had carried him. Praise. All the people “were amazed and glorified God” (2:12). Does Jesus still heal? Jesus really healed, and He still cares and hears our prayers. He does not heal every sickness right away. But He always forgives everyone who comes to Him in faith. What we learn. Jesus has power to forgive sins. Come to Him, and then praise God for what He has done.

“Perceived in His spirit” (2:8). Jesus knew their unspoken thoughts at once. Scripture teaches that God alone knows every human heart (1 Kings 8:39). Jesus answered the scribes' question before they asked it out loud. The easier word (2:9). Saying “your sins are forgiven” is easier because no one can test it. Saying “Arise, take up your bed and walk” is harder because everyone will see whether it happens. By doing the harder, visible thing, Jesus backed up the invisible thing. Authority (2:10). The word translated power is exousia (say: ex-oo-SEE-ah): the right and the power to act. Jesus did not ask God to forgive the man. He forgave him on His own authority, the same authority people noticed in His teaching (Mark 1:22). “On earth.” Forgiveness was not only a hope for the future in heaven. The Son of Man was standing in a house in Capernaum, forgiving sins on earth. Daniel's vision. In Daniel 7:13-14, “One like the Son of Man” comes “with the clouds of heaven” and receives “dominion and glory and a kingdom.” By using this name, Jesus claimed to be that heavenly King. At His trial He said the same thing (Mark 14:62). Immediately (2:12). The healing was instant and complete. Luke says the man went home “glorifying God” (Luke 5:25), and the people said, “We have seen strange things today!” (Luke 5:26). A sign of what is coming. Isaiah promised that when God comes to save, “the lame shall leap like a deer” (Isaiah 35:6). Many Christians see each healing as a preview of the day when God will make every body new. Today. Jesus still hears prayer for the sick, and sometimes He heals. He does not promise to heal every sickness now. He does promise to forgive every sinner who comes to Him (1 John 1:9).

Jesus knew what the teachers were thinking. Only God can know what is in every heart. Jesus asked them which was easier to say. Anyone can say that sins are forgiven. Nobody can see it happen. But everyone can see a man stand up! So Jesus told the man to stand up and walk. Right away the man jumped up. He picked up the mat that had carried him. Now everyone knew Jesus has power to forgive sins. The people praised God together. Jesus still cares when people are sick. He always hears our prayers.

Jesus told the man to stand. He stood up and walked! He carried his mat home. Everyone praised God.