“For whether is easier, to say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Arise, and walk?” (Matt. 9:5)
Jesus knew, but we have only what was written for us in the Scriptures. This man’s sins were forgiven, but that is not what the Lord said each time. “And Jesus answering said, Were there not ten cleansed? but where are the nine?” (Luke 17:17) Sometimes He simply fulfilled their request to be healed, not every time did He say, “Thy sins are forgiven.”
I’m not sure that all of us truly realize what it means to have our sins forgiven, every sin from the past, the ones you committed against the Lord today, and all of them that you will commit before you die, every sin you have ever or will ever do the Savior paid for on the cross. Do you still desire to walk, to see, do you want the physical pain to stop, was not this enough?
I think for some of you that are reading this right now, I could end this letter here, for you understand, nothing can compare with this knowledge, that because of Jesus Christ, because of His shed blood for me I am forgiven, I am hid in Christ, the wrath of God will never be placed upon me, I have a peace that passes all understanding. The one leper that returned understood this, Mary Magdalene understood, Paul, as he was being beaten and imprisoned understood. Some do not though, they count it as a lite thing, as an event that happened in their lives when the repeated the words, when they were baptized, when they had a “special feeling” one day in church when they had asked to be saved.
We have all done it, sometimes the path can become unbearable, sometimes the frustrations of a world running headlong into hell, and that willingly, are enough for us to beg for mercy, for relief from it all. And then He lays His hands upon our soul, He comforts us through the Holy Spirit, and says “Patience, soon enough you will be with me forever.”
Because your sins have been forgiven.
That truth gives us hope, it leads us to the still waters, it delivers our souls from torment, from the suffering. We can do all things through Christ, because our sins have been forgiven.
Jesus Christ our Lord gives us the assurance of our salvation, there are no works involved, we do not have to perform any deeds, His sacrifice on the cross was all that was necessary, all we needed to do was believe. “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.” (Romans 10:9)
The crippled man does not go away from the cross with this knowledge, with this bountiful grace and mercy, and in the next breath ask to be able to walk. The blind man can see better than many who have eyes. The broken-hearted find joy incomparable, everything in our lives becomes new and wonderful when the Savior calls us, the pain does not need to stop. “He is risen” falls on souls with joy even when the body remains broken.
There is nothing wrong with asking the Lord to heal you, He may in fact perform that which you ask, the question you must ask yourself is this, if He replies, “My grace is sufficient,” can you accept that, is it enough to know that your sins are forgiven?
Soon enough we will go home, either through death or the rapture, where there will be no pain, no sorrow, no tears. “In your patience possess ye your souls.” (Luke 21:19) Those who understand this verse agree with this statement, “It is enough that my sins have been forgiven.”
