Praise be to the Lord!

Gospel Reflection for December 11, 2023

“One day as Jesus was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and Jerusalem, and the power of the Lord was with him for healing. And some men brought on a stretcher a man who was paralyzed; they were trying to bring him in and set [him] in his presence. But not finding a way to bring him in because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on the stretcher through the tiles into the middle in front of Jesus. When he saw their faith, he said, ‘As for you, your sins are forgiven.’ Then the scribes and Pharisees began to ask themselves, ‘Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Who but God alone can forgive sins?’ Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them in reply, ‘What are you thinking in your hearts? Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk’? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins’—he said to the man who was paralyzed, ‘I say to you, rise, pick up your stretcher, and go home.’ He stood up immediately before them, picked up what he had been lying on, and went home, glorifying God. Then astonishment seized them all and they glorified God, and, struck with awe, they said, ‘We have seen incredible things today.’” (Luke 5:17-26 NABRE)

There are so many incredible takeaways that can be reflected on from today’s Gospel.

First, this passage demonstrates Jesus’ divinity. Jesus makes it clear that He has the power to forgive sins, which the Jews know only God can do. He provides evidence for His power and authority to forgive sins by healing the paralyzed man. So, Jesus not only claims that He can forgive sins, but He also heals the man to provide proof of His power and divinity. The way in which the Pharisees are outraged by Jesus’ supposed blasphemy leaves no room for questioning what Jesus was communicating. Jesus was claiming to be God and everybody knew it.

Secondly, Jesus healed the paralyzed man because of his faith and the faith of his friends who brought him into the presence of the Lord. These men pursued Jesus in faith, trusting that He could, and would, heal this man. And because of this, Jesus did heal him.

Do we often approach the Lord with this same unwavering faith? Do we trust that God is our Father who cares for us, and who hears and answers our prayers? Or have we forgotten or lost faith in the power of prayer? As such, have our prayers become monotonous and lukewarm?

We must remember that our prayers make a difference whether we can see the results or not!! Not a single prayer goes to waist. So, we must always approach the Lord with faith, knowing that He will hear what we ask for and respond in some way, or another. Prayer and faith have the power to change the course of direction, just as it did for the paralyzed man. So, as we pray, we must remember to have faith that the Lord will respond and that our prayers count!

Lastly, the healed man and all who witnessed the works of the Lord, glorified God. When the Lord works in our lives, do we glorify Him? Do we thank Him and praise Him? Or do we forget about Him? May we always glorify God with our prayers, how we live, and by proclaiming to others how He has worked in our lives. All praise and glory be to our loving Father forever and ever!