Matthew 9:1-8, Evidence (7)

Did the Old Testament predict a Messiah who would have authority to forgive sins? YES!  Look in Isa. 53:12: Because He poured out His soul unto death, and He was numbered with the transgressors, and He bore the sins of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.  Jesus claimed to have this authority and He used the healing of a paralytic man as a sign confirming this authority.

This healing took place in Capernaum, His own city. The disciples and Jesus had crossed over to the other side, to the country of the Gergesenes (or Gadarenes, 8:28) and now crossed over, and came to His own city (9:1).  See the map to understand that so much of Jesus ministry and the crossings took place at the north end.

Luke 5:17-26 adds that there were four friends and they let their friend down through the roof.  Notice that neither the paralytic nor his friends brought up the desire for forgiveness.  They were there for healing.  It is Jesus who pronounces the man forgiven.  And He did this in response to their faith, the faith of all of them.   

The complaint of the scribes is important to note: This Man blaspheme!  This is not complicated.  They realize that only God can forgive sin.  Jesus is declaring His deity.  Keep two things in mind here.  First, only God can forgive sins because only God is the Judge of the whole earth (e.g. Ps. 96:13; 98:9 and many other places).  Second, Son of Man is a Messianic title.  Son of God emphasizes His deity; Son of Man emphasizes His humanity.  What is being proven is that a Man has authority to forgive sins.  That Man is the Word who became flesh, the Word who was in the beginning, was with God and was God (John 1:1,14).  This is the only thing that makes sense in this exchange between Jesus and the man and his friends.

Tomorrow we will delve a little deeper into what it means to forgive.  Notice for now these different Biblical ideas related to forgiveness:

·        Matt. 9:2,5,6; Hb. 9:22: aphieme, to remit; to send away.

·        Eph. 4:32: charizomai, to give something to someone.

·        Ps. 103:3; 130:4: sawlakh, to bear away.

·        Ps. 25:18; Ex. 34:6-7: nawsaw, to pardon.

The various terms give us a well-rounded idea of what is involved in forgiveness.  What you must not miss is that each verb requires someone to do something for another person that they cannot do themselves.  The One performing the action must have the authority to do this.  The word often translated power in 9:6 is not the word for muscles or might; it is exousia, the word for authority.  But that is not all.  Since we are talking about sin, and talking about the Holy God who is forgiving that sin, we realize that there must be satisfaction or atonement.  Someone else must pay the price for the sin that is forgiven; it cannot simply be sent away.  That is the reason that the Son of Man must not only be God who, as Judge, can exercise that authority; He must also be Man, who can die and thus pay the price for the sins of that paralytic.