[0:00] For our second Bible reading, please turn to the Gospel of Luke, chapter 5. I will read verses 17 to 26.
[0:15] Luke 5, verse 17. Let's hear the word of God. One day, as Jesus was teaching Pharisees and teachers of the law, who had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem, were sitting there.
[0:34] And the power of the Lord was present for him to heal the sick. Some men came carrying a paralytic on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus.
[0:47] When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus.
[0:59] When Jesus saw their faith, he said, Friend, your sins are forgiven. The Pharisees and the teachers of the law began thinking to themselves, Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemy?
[1:12] Who can forgive sins but God alone? Jesus knew what they were thinking and asked, Why are you thinking these things in your hearts? Which is easier, to say, Your sins are forgiven, or to say, Get up and walk?
[1:27] But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins. He said to the paralyzed man, I tell you, get up, take your mat, and go home.
[1:38] Immediately he stood up in front of them, Took what he had been lying on, And went home praising God. Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God.
[1:50] They were filled with awe and said, We have seen remarkable things today. Amen. What is man's greatest problem?
[2:02] I'm sure if you asked that question on the street, You'd receive many answers. Disease and health problems. The economy and financial problems.
[2:15] Family and marriage problems. Work problems. Political gridlock. War. Threat of nuclear war.
[2:27] Terrorism. Natural disasters. Now that these are serious problems, No one would deny. But none of these are man's greatest problem.
[2:38] According to the Bible, Man's greatest problem Is that we have sinned against a holy God. We have sinned against a holy God.
[2:49] We've all sinned and come short of the mark Of what God expects from us. In his first of the ten commandments, God says, You shall have no other gods besides me.
[3:04] And we've all set up gods aplenty of our own. Ourselves. We worship ourselves and our desires and our plans and pleasures. Our ease.
[3:14] Our things. And that's just one sin. Where we give to ourselves what we owe to God himself. And contrary to popular opinion, God doesn't just expect us to try our best And then put up with whatever performance he gets from us.
[3:33] No, the scriptures tell us that he requires perfect performance Of his commandments. Even as it was said in the Sunday school, Quoting James chapter 2, That if we've offended and broken one command, We've broken the whole law.
[3:48] And we're lawbreakers. Well, none of us have measured up to that standard. There's none righteous. No, not even so much as one.
[3:59] So that's our sin against God. We've broken his commandments. We've violated his law. But so what? What's so bad about that?
[4:11] Well, just this. That the Bible says that sin is arrogance in the presence of God. That sin is rebellion against God.
[4:24] That sin is wickedness. That it's the height of ingratitude to this good and gracious God.
[4:37] It is not a small thing. And sin is so offensive and obnoxious to God. And his holiness.
[4:48] That he's determined to punish it wherever he finds it. The sentence has already gone out of his mouth. Be sure of this. The wicked will not go unpunished.
[5:01] He will by no means spare the guilty. The soul that sins shall die. The wages of sin is death.
[5:13] According to Revelation chapter 20. That's not just referring to physical death. Yes, that. But the second death. Eternal separation from God.
[5:24] God. In the agonies of hell. Forever. So there in the courtroom of heaven. God's keeping record of sins. Again, Revelation 20 says that in that day of judgment.
[5:37] When he summons all men before him at the end of time. When Christ returns. He will open the books. And he will judge all. All mankind based on what is written in the books.
[5:51] And not one sin on the books. Will be left unpunished. Now can you see why I say that. Our greatest problem.
[6:02] Is none of these other things. But rather just precisely this. Our sins against God. And that's why the gospel of Jesus Christ. Is such amazingly good news.
[6:14] Because the gospel tells us of a savior. Sent by God himself. To take care of our sin problem. So whoever you are.
[6:25] Whatever your age. Whatever you've ever done. The gospel is good news for you. It tells of a savior. Who has authority. To forgive sins.
[6:37] Sins. Now I invite you to. To open to Luke chapter 5. We talk a lot about forgiveness. But I wonder if we really understand. What it means for God to forgive us.
[6:49] Of our sins. We need to realize. That sin puts us in debt. To God. And forgiveness. Is God canceling.
[7:00] Our debt. Taking our bill. On which our debt is recorded. And blotting it out completely. Erasing it. So that we no longer owe him anything.
[7:13] The debt is forgiven. Now is that not good news. To think that all of my wrongs. All of my sins against God.
[7:25] And recorded on his books. By which. I will be judged one day. That all of those sins have been blotted out. Cast into the deepest sea.
[7:37] And remembered no more. Well that's why God's. Eternal son. Jesus Christ. Came into the world. And here in Luke chapter 5.
[7:48] We see. He himself. Making this claim. Of having authority. To forgive sins. So. Let's consider it. He's just. He's just come from.
[8:00] Ministering. All throughout the region of Galilee. Where crowds of people came. To hear him preach. And to be healed. Of their diseases. And when the word got out.
[8:12] That Jesus had come home to Capernaum. You find this in Mark's account of the gospel. It's in Capernaum. That Jesus. Is now. Ministering. That's his home base. And when.
[8:25] The word got out. That he'd come home. The house where he was ministering. Was soon packed with people. Even overflowing. Outside the door.
[8:35] So that. No more could anyone get in. Wouldn't you be there. If Jesus was there. And he had power to heal. All diseases.
[8:46] And was offering. Eternal life. To others. To sinners. Everyone wanted to see Jesus. And we're told that even his critics were there.
[8:57] Verse 17. That the Pharisees. And teachers of the law. They had come from. Every village of Galilee. And from Judea.
[9:08] And from Jerusalem. It was like a. A migration. They came from every direction. And the sheer numbers. Of them.
[9:19] Must have suggested. That a possible showdown. Could be happening here. Today. It's a bit suspicious. Why they're all showing up. To see Jesus.
[9:29] Indeed. Their early suspicions. Of Jesus. Had quickly ripened. Into hatred. And. A plot. To kill him. Because he was calling God. His own father.
[9:41] Making himself. Equal. With God. John 5. 18. And so the religious police. Are out in force. This day. And then. Some men arrived.
[9:53] And four of them. One on each corner. Of the mat. Were carrying a paralyzed man. Wanting to get him. To the Lord Jesus. But the house was so packed.
[10:04] With people. That they couldn't. Get inside. That is at least. Through the door. So. Let's go on. In inside ourselves.
[10:15] Now. And. See what happens. In this home. 2,000 years ago. It's wall to wall people. People are crammed.
[10:26] Into this house. And Jesus. Is preaching. The word of God. He's preaching it. With unheard of. Authority. Almost as if.
[10:38] He knew things. About God. That no other man knew. And he stated them. As certainties. And they're. They're listening. As Jesus. Is preaching.
[10:49] Do you hunger. For the preaching. Of God's word. You know. We find things here. That. We don't. Find anywhere else.
[11:01] We're told here. Things that. Only God. Would know. And that we. As sinners. Need to know. Is the Bible. Is the word of God.
[11:11] More precious to you. Than gold. Than much pure gold. Is it sweeter than honey. Than honey. From the comb. Jesus. Is preaching. God's word.
[11:22] And so we're listening. To him. And as we're listening. We start to hear. Some scuffles. And footprints. Above us. Up on the roof. And then there's the sound.
[11:33] Of scraping. And tearing apart. And. And. After a while. There's. There's a bit of dust. And debris. That starts to sift down. Into the room.
[11:44] Where we're packed. Out. And. Then a shaft of light. Breaks through. And. And then the hole. Gets bigger. And bigger. And bigger. As they're tearing the roof.
[11:56] Apart. Pulling aside the tiles. And now there's four faces. Staring down at us. And. And then there's this mat. That they lower down.
[12:07] Lower. Lower. Until it's right in front of Jesus. What a scene. Well. What. Does Jesus see. Before him.
[12:18] A botherless. Interruption. To his sermon. That. Must be rebuked. Not at all. Verse 20 says. Jesus saw their faith.
[12:29] He saw their faith. He saw. These men. That they had faith. They had a need. And they were desperate. To get to Jesus.
[12:39] Because they believe. That he and he alone. Could help them. And they were not. To be denied. Where there's a will. There's a way. It said. And when they couldn't.
[12:50] Get in. The door. Because of the crowd. They took to the roof. Got to get to Jesus. Got to get to Jesus. I know that.
[13:01] He's the answer. To our need. Is that where you go. In your times. Of desperation. And need. He's there.
[13:14] He's there. Do you go to him. Convinced that Jesus. Can help me. Jesus alone. That's the desperation. Of faith. That turns away.
[13:25] From all other helpers. And comes to him. Who is God's help. From heaven. Jesus saw that faith. That's what he saw. He saw their faith.
[13:36] And he rewarded it. And then he spoke. And what he said. To the paralytic. Is probably not. What you and I. Would be expecting. To hear from Jesus. The man's paralyzed.
[13:48] He can't move. He can't run. Or walk. Or work. He can't do. A whole lot of anything. For himself. He couldn't do.
[13:59] What you do every day. You wake up in the morning. And you get up. Don't you? And you go here. And you go there. And you go through your day. You're walking. Not this man.
[14:11] He's paralyzed. And so we might expect. For Jesus to say. Friend. Your body is healed. That's his need.
[14:21] Obviously. But instead. To our surprise. What Jesus does say. Is friend. Your sins. Are forgiven. Your sins.
[14:32] Are forgiven. That must have sounded. Off the wall. To many people. That day. Yes. Even a paralyzed man. Who cannot walk. Can.
[14:44] And does sin. Against God. With his. Thoughts. And words. And deeds. And we don't know. The thoughts of this. Paralytic.
[14:55] At this point. But what we do know. And are told. Are the thoughts. Of the scribes. And Pharisees. Their minds. Are thrown into high gear. When they hear Jesus say.
[15:06] Your sins are forgiven you. They were thinking. To themselves. Not talking. Just thinking. To themselves. Who is this fellow. Who speaks blasphemy.
[15:19] Who can forgive sins. But God. Alone. Now. Were they right. Or were they wrong. These Pharisees. And scribes.
[15:30] Well. Yes. They were. Both right. And. They were wrong. Weren't they. Well. How are they right. Well. They were right.
[15:41] To conclude. That no one. Can forgive sins. But God. Alone. It is not. The prerogative. Of man. To forgive sins. Is because.
[15:52] All of our sins. Are ultimately. Against God. And since they're against him. And he's the offended party. He's the only one. Who can forgive. The debt.
[16:03] Of sin. He's the one. Who has been violated. His holiness. Has been violated. His commandments. His.
[16:14] His authority. Has been despised. And. He's been treated. As a nobody. And therefore. Only God. Can forgive sins. Remember.
[16:25] Sin. Is. A debt. We owe. To God. So. Let's say. I. Broke into. Ollie's home.
[16:35] And. And I got. His identity. And I. Somehow. Stole. Five thousand dollars. From his bank account. And.
[16:46] After spending it all. I'm starting to feel bad. And. And so. I. Go to Ron. Over here. And I. I say. I stole. Five thousand dollars. From Ollie. And my conscience.
[16:57] Is bothering me. And Ron says. Well. Friend. Your sins. Are forgiven. You. The debts.
[17:09] Cancel. Well. Ollie. Would have a right. To protest that. Wouldn't he? He. He was the one. I wronged. He alone. Therefore. Can forgive my debt.
[17:19] To him. Who does Ron. Think he is. To forgive debts. Ode to Ollie. In the same way.
[17:30] All of our sins. Are against God. Almighty. The God of heaven. And therefore. Only God. Can forgive. Our sins. The Pharisees.
[17:41] Were right. For once. They were right. About that. So when Jesus. Pronounces. The forgiveness. Of sins. His religious.
[17:52] Critics. Conclude. That he's. Blaspheming. With the greatest. Irreverence. Toward God. He's acting. As if he was. God. Taking to himself.
[18:02] The prerogatives. Of God alone. For who can forgive. Sins. But God alone. They were right. To sit up. And take notice. Of a man. Acting.
[18:13] As if he were God. But what if. In fact. He is God. What if.
[18:24] This Jesus. Of Nazareth. Standing. Before them. Looking like. Any other man. Is more. Than a man. What if. He is. Both. God. And man.
[18:35] In the one person. At the same time. God. The son. Come in the flesh. Well then. They are in the wrong.
[18:47] They are the ones. Guilty. Of blasphemy. Not Jesus. For none other than. God himself. Is in their midst. And they're treating him. As a nobody.
[18:59] A mere man. With the greatest irreverence. Thinking evil thoughts. Of him. Charging him. With blasphemy. And of course.
[19:10] That's precisely the case. Of the reality. Of it. Wasn't it? That this Jesus. Of Nazareth. Is both God. And man. And because he's God. He does have the authority. To forgive sins.
[19:20] And because he's God. He knows exactly. What these. Men are thinking. In their heads. He searched them. And before a word. Was on their tongues. He knew it completely.
[19:33] You see. They refused to believe. That Jesus is God. That's why they plotted. To kill him. But in working miracles. Jesus was doing. What only God could do.
[19:45] And in so doing. He was revealing. His identity. I'm not just a mere man. Show me a man. That can do. What I'm doing. No. He was doing. What no man could do.
[19:56] He was doing. What God could do. And thereby. Revealing his deity. Through his works. So he asked them.
[20:07] Which is easier. To say to the. To the paralytic. Your sins are forgiven. Or to say. Get up and walk. You see.
[20:18] It's a question of. Compare the two. Which is easier. To say. Your sins are forgiven. Or get up and walk. And I believe. What Jesus. Is getting them. To see. Is that neither one.
[20:29] Is easier. Than the other. But that both. Are equally impossible. With men. Men cannot forgive. Sins. Against God.
[20:40] By saying. Your sins are forgiven. That's not. For man to do. He can't do it. But neither. Can men. Grant healing. With a spoken word. Get up and walk. Both things.
[20:52] Are things. That only God. Can do. To forgive sins. Against God. And to but speak. And have paralyzed. Legs. And dead nerves. And atrophied muscles.
[21:03] All at once. Spring to life. And respond. To the voice. Of the son of God. Only God. Could do these things. Now. It would be impossible.
[21:14] To be able. To prove. That by saying. Your sins are forgiven. That that actually happened. Wouldn't it? That would be. Hard to prove.
[21:26] I mean. Any. I could stand here. And just tell you. Your sins are forgiven. Your sins are forgiven. How. How would we prove that? It's impossible. To prove. In and of itself. Because no man.
[21:36] Can enter into the throne room. Of heaven. And verify it. Verify it. There where. Sins are being recorded. No man can come. And open the books. In heaven.
[21:47] And see whether. A person's sins. Are still there. Or whether they've been. Blotted out. And forgiven. But Jesus. So I say.
[21:57] That could not be proven. But Jesus. Could prove. That he's God. By healing the man. With a word. In plain view. For all to see. And in proving that.
[22:09] He would also be proving. That he can also do. What men cannot see. Forgive sins. In heaven. Both. The acts. Of God.
[22:20] And so he says. To the. Critics. That you may know. That the son of man. Has authority on earth. To forgive sins.
[22:31] He turns to the paralyzed man. And he says. I tell you. Get up. Take your mat. And go home. Jesus is saying.
[22:43] To the folks. In the room. If you can see. My divine authority. In the physical arena. Of healing. Then you can believe. My divine authority. Extends to the spiritual arena.
[22:55] As well. If I can heal. As only God can heal. Then I can forgive sins. Like only God. Can forgive sins. You see. The two things. Stand.
[23:05] Or fall. Together. And boy. Did they stand. Because what we read next. Is immediately. The man stood up. Took his mat. And walked out. In full view of them all.
[23:16] Praising God. And this amazed. Everyone. And filled with awe. They too. Praised God. And said.
[23:30] We've seen remarkable. Things today. And you just see them. Walking home. Remarkable things. That we just witnessed.
[23:42] Mark. Says that they were saying. To each other. We've never seen. Anything. Like what we've just seen. Of course they hadn't.
[23:55] God had never. Before. Become man. With power. To heal. And power. To forgive sins. And he was standing.
[24:06] In their midst. That day. Well that's the story. That's the real life. Occurrence. That happened. There. In Capernaum. That day.
[24:16] Let me draw three. Lessons. And we're done. The first lesson. Is the greater blessing. Of sins forgiven. The greater blessing.
[24:28] Of sins forgiven. Jesus did two God like things. For this paralyzed man. Didn't he? He forgave his sins. And he healed his body.
[24:41] Things that only God could do. Which is more important. To you. Which means the most. To you. Have you noticed.
[24:54] All the medical facilities. Being built. And added on to today. It's like it's. If you don't know. What's going up. And you just guess. It's got something to do. With medicine. You're probably right.
[25:05] Aren't you? They're the only ones. That got the money to build. But. It reveals something. People are flocking. To doctors. They're filling. Hospitals.
[25:15] And clinics. And going to specialists. In search of healing. For their physical problems. Sometimes waiting in line. For months. To be seen. And we thank God.
[25:27] For all the wisdom. And skill. That he's given to men. And for our access to it. In this country. Which is no small thing. You know. Some of you are still alive. Just because of that.
[25:39] Aren't you? A blessing. From the Lord. But in 39 years. Of ministry. I've never seen. The same enthusiasm. Of people flocking.
[25:50] To get into the church. Out of concern. For their eternal souls. Desperate to have. Their sins forgiven. Most don't even realize. That that's their greatest problem.
[26:04] But you know. You can die of cancer. And if your sins are forgiven. You go to heaven. But you can live.
[26:14] 80, 90 years. In good health. And if your sins aren't forgiven. You cannot get into heaven. Which is more important?
[26:25] Your physical health? Or your sins being forgiven? What is the evidence of your life show? Is more important to you? You know.
[26:36] David got it right. When he was counting up his blessings. And naming them one by one. In Psalm 103. He says. Praise the Lord. Oh my soul. Oh my soul. And forget not all his benefits.
[26:49] Who forgives all your sins. And heals all your diseases. There's these two benefits. But topping the charts.
[27:01] That which deserves his highest praise. Is that this God. Has blessed me with the forgiveness. Of all my sins.
[27:12] All of them. And so he praises God. And so he praises God. That's a man who understood. His greatest problem was not his physical diseases.
[27:24] His greatest problem was his sins against God. And so his highest praise goes for the forgiveness of sins. He's not treated me as my sins deserve. He goes on to say.
[27:35] He's not repaid me according to my iniquities. For as far as the east is from the west. So far has he removed my transgressions from me. That's what David prizes.
[27:49] The superior blessing of sins forgiven. Because it answers our greatest need. It solves our greatest problem. Our sins against God. So then what should we say about.
[28:01] What we're seeing with our eyes. This. All this concern for the body. And little if any concern for the soul. And forgiveness. Fastidious devotion to the body.
[28:15] We exercise it. We work it out. We do all kinds of things. For the health of our body. We diet. The food that we're careful to feed it.
[28:28] The salon and beauty treatments. With which we decorate it. And the clothes in which we dress it. And the suntan in which we color it. And it's all about the body.
[28:39] We see it. Don't we? The healing of the body. While barely any concern for the soul. Is it not insanity? Something's backwards here.
[28:50] We have to say. If we're reading our Bibles. Because as goes the soul. So goes the body. If your soul is not right with God.
[29:03] When you die. Your body goes into the ground. And your soul goes to hell. But in the day of resurrection. Your body will follow your soul to hell.
[29:15] If your sins are forgiven when you die. Your spirit goes to be with Christ. And your body goes in the grave. And at the return of Christ. Your body will follow your soul. Into everlasting pleasures.
[29:26] At God's right hand. As goes the body. Or as goes the soul. So goes the body. So if you really care about your body. Not just for a few more years here.
[29:37] And then it's dying anyway. But if you care about where it will be. And what it will be experiencing. Forever and ever. Then. Care for your souls.
[29:49] Get to Jesus for the forgiveness of your sins. You see nothing's changed. This. This is lifted out of Luke's.
[29:59] Gospel account. Two thousand years ago. And it's now as it was then. Careful about the body. Careless about the soul.
[30:11] Let's learn from Jesus. The greater blessing. Of the forgiveness. Of sins. But secondly. Let's learn from this account. The greater condemnation. For neglecting the forgiveness of sins.
[30:25] Now our Lord's here in the city of Capernaum. As I said. This is his base of operations. And he's confronting them. With this truth. Of the importance. Of the forgiveness of sins.
[30:37] People don't you see. I'm able to solve your greatest problem. I'm not here just to heal. Your bodies for a few more years. I'm here to forgive your sins. What a gracious savior.
[30:49] Not only to come to do that. But to be pressing that reality. Upon all who were pressed into the house that day. Now we're told in the gospels. That days earlier. When Capernaum had heard of his healing powers.
[31:02] That the whole city showed up at his door. Wanting. Him to heal them. And the Bible says that he healed them all. He healed them all.
[31:16] And now that he has just proved. I say they did that when they saw he. He had power to heal. They all flocked to him. But now when they just heard that. He has the authority to forgive sins.
[31:27] They ought to be flocking to him. Saying Jesus. Please forgive my sins. He was right there in their midst. The only savior able to forgive sins.
[31:39] And their concern for physical things. The here and now predominated. And choked out their concern for their greatest need. To have their sins forgiven. So the greatest gift was ignored.
[31:51] And slighted. And left unsought. Capernaum. It figures largely into our Lord's ministry. As I said. They were uniquely blessed.
[32:03] To have Jesus base of operations. For three years. There. In Capernaum. And what they were privileged to see and hear.
[32:15] Most people in the world. Would just. Stand in awe of. Later in Matthew 11. 20 to 24.
[32:25] We read. Jesus began to denounce. The cities in which. Most of his miracles. Had been performed. Why denounce? Because they did not repent.
[32:43] Notice Jesus sharp words. Are not for what they did. But for what they didn't do. Doesn't say anything about what they did. But we know what they did. They sinned. But what's pointed out is.
[32:55] That they didn't do. They didn't repent. They didn't turn from their sinful way. And turn to Christ. To be forgiven of their sins. They rather just.
[33:07] Carried on. Life as usual. They heard him preach.
[33:18] They saw his miracles. And they did nothing. But continued on. In sin. And self. Maybe that's you. Maybe. You come often.
[33:29] And hear the gospel. About Jesus Christ. And about the forgiveness. That he offers. For sins. And yet. You go out. And do nothing. Just continue on.
[33:40] Life as usual. That was Capernaum. That was the city. And Jesus has sobering words. For Capernaum.
[33:51] He says to them. You know. This city of Capernaum. Though they had relatives. And neighbors. Walking around in town. Who used to be paralyzed.
[34:03] And they had blind men. Who were now seeing. And deaf people. Who were now hearing. And various diseases. Cured and demon possessed. Now in their right minds.
[34:15] Yet they did not seek. Jesus. For the forgiveness of sins. And this is what Jesus says. And you Capernaum. Will you be lifted up.
[34:27] To the skies. To heaven. No. You will go down. To the depths. If the miracles. That had been performed. In you. Had been performed.
[34:37] In Sodom. They would have remained. To this day. They would have repented. And remained. To this day. But I tell you.
[34:48] That it will be more. Bearable. For Sodom. On the day of judgment. Than for you. Now these are the religious folks. These are the. The scribes.
[34:59] And Pharisees. And the ordinary. Citizens of Capernaum. They love seeing. All the miracles. And having. Aunt Tilda. Fixed up. In all of her. Problems. And seeing.
[35:09] All these wonderful. Things done. But no interest. In the forgiveness. Of sins. He's blaspheming. And Jesus says. It will go better.
[35:20] For the. People of Sodom. In the day of judgment. Than it will for you. You church going folk. The greatest judgments. Are reserved.
[35:30] For those who receive. The greater light. And did not turn. To Christ. For forgiveness. I would rather. Be an Islamic. Terrorist. Who grew up. In a family.
[35:41] Where all I knew. All my life. Was the. Religion of Islam. I never met a Christian. I never heard. The gospel.
[35:51] Of Jesus Christ. I would rather. Be that man. Than to be a man. Who grew up. In the church. Where I. Heard.
[36:02] That Jesus. Christ. Alone. Can forgive sins. Over and over. Where I saw. Miracles. In that church. Body. This.
[36:13] Man. Saved. From a life. Of sin. And walking. In holiness. This one. Saved. Out of their sin. And walking. In a newness. Of life. Lives.
[36:24] Transformed. By this gospel. Of Jesus Christ. I would rather. Be the Islamic. Terrorist. Who never. Heard of Christ. Than to show up. In the day of judgment. Having heard.
[36:35] Of him. Over and over. Having seen. His works. Of supernatural. Miracles. In life. And yet. To have neglected him. Because it will be better.
[36:46] For the Islamic. Terrorist. In the day of judgment. Than for those. Who heard. And saw. The works. Of Jesus. Heard the gospel. Is Jesus able.
[37:01] To forgive sins. Well then. You should go to him. At once. And ask him. To forgive your sins. Because he's faithful.
[37:11] And just. To forgive us. Our sins. And to cleanse us. From all. Unrighteousness. How will you escape. If you neglect. So great.
[37:22] A salvation. So great. A savior. I plead with you. Don't show up. On judgment day. With one sin. Unforgiven. We've seen.
[37:36] The greater blessing. It's sins forgiven. More important. Than. Body healed. We've seen. The greater condemnation. For neglecting. The forgiveness. Of sins. Which is what.
[37:48] The hearers. There in Capernaum. Packed into that house. That day. For the most part. Responded with. Neglected. The forgiveness. Of sins.
[37:58] In Jesus. Let's come. Lastly. To the greater. Cost. Of sins. Forgiven. I believe. That the greater. Of these two blessings. The forgiveness. Of sins.
[38:09] Or the healing. Of the body. Can be determined. By the cost. Of each. So let's ask. What did it cost. Jesus. To heal. The paralyzed. The paralyzed. Man's body. Well just a spoken word.
[38:19] Get up. Take your mat. And go home. And power. Attended the word. And he went. Home healed. Well what did it cost. Jesus. To forgive. This man's sins.
[38:29] Well now we're talking about something different. It will take far more than just words. To forgive this man's sins. We'll need to follow Jesus through the gospel account.
[38:42] And come two years later. To that hill outside of Jerusalem. And on the middle cross. To see this same Jesus. Nailed to that cross. Suffering.
[38:53] Dying. Not only under man's worst. But under the worst. Of God's infinite wrath. And condemnation. We might ask him.
[39:04] What are you doing here? And he would say. I am paying the price. For that paralyzed man's. Forgiveness.
[39:16] Mere words. Are not enough. The price. The debt. Had to be paid. For without the shedding of blood.
[39:27] There is no forgiveness of sins. No spoken words. Could pay the price. No amount of good deeds. Could ever make up. For the sinful deeds. It would cost blood. And not animals blood.
[39:39] But the blood. The precious blood. Of Jesus. The lamb. Of God. Slain from before. The creation of the world. And the purpose of God. The only blood.
[39:50] That can take away. The sin of the world. The sin of the world. The sin of the world. Follow me. On this. Before we close. I'm afraid. Most people. Don't understand. How forgiveness.
[40:01] Of sins. Works. As central. As it is to the Bible. I don't believe. Very many. Understand it. Remember. We saw. Sin incurs. A debt. To God.
[40:12] There is. Hell. To pay. For sin. It's a debt. And that means. For sins. To be forgiven. Someone. Must. Pay. The debt. Ode.
[40:24] Now. We've been hearing. A lot. In these days. About student debt. Forgiveness. Haven't we? Interesting. Isn't it? Debt. Forgiveness. Over 40 million Americans.
[40:37] Are in debt. For their education. They borrowed money. From the government. Which is you and me. And they. Spent it. On their college education. And now.
[40:47] They're having to pay. Their debts. Just like. You and I do. With all of our debts. But I fear. That many. Who hear. This. Student debt. Forgiveness. Think that.
[40:57] Just with a few words. From the president. It just kind of. Poofs. And it's gone. Into non-existence. No. Someone.
[41:08] Has to pay. That debt. Don't they? And Uncle Sam. Is just short. For you and me. Isn't it? That's the money. They're spending. Is our money.
[41:19] And so. The point is. That student debt. Forgiveness. In order to be forgiven. It has to be paid. It doesn't just disappear. If I.
[41:34] Owed you. A thought. Ten thousand dollars. And you had mercy on me. And said. I'm going to forgive. Your entire debt. You no longer owe me anything. The debt. Didn't just disappear. In that moment. You yourself.
[41:46] Assumed the debt. Didn't you? You yourself. Suffered the debt. You suffered the loss. It lowered your. Bottom line. By ten thousand dollars. To forgive me.
[41:57] But that debt. Was paid for. Believe me. By your hard earned money. Every dollar of it. Debts don't just disappear. Into thin air.
[42:08] They have to be paid for. By someone. God. And in the same way. I think most people. Just assume. That in forgiving sin. God just kind of. Cancels the debt. And brushes it under a rug.
[42:19] And pretends that it never happened. God's too holy for that. Because it did happen. Sin did happen. And it must be paid for.
[42:30] A debt was incurred. And it's got to be paid for. If it's to be forgiven. And folks. It must be paid. There is this hell to pay for sin.
[42:40] And it'll either be paid. By the sinner himself. In hell forever and ever. And he'll never make the last payment. On his debt. Or it will be paid by Jesus Christ. On the middle cross of Calvary.
[42:53] The infinite son of God. Paying that infinite debt. Of God's infinite wrath. And this is the wonder of the cross. That God to whom the debt was owed.
[43:08] God whose name was violated. Whose nature was despised. That that God himself. Assumed the debt. Paid the price himself.
[43:21] Laid the debt on his beloved son. And then crushed him with the payment. Exacting all the payment. That our sins deserved.
[43:33] Isn't that the wonderful thing. That brings us tonight. To remember him. And what happened there. At Calvary's cross. In him.
[43:44] We have redemption. Through his blood. The forgiveness of sins. Christ bore our sins. In his body. To the tree. And there. Once for all time.
[43:55] He died for sins. The righteous. For the unjust. The unrighteous. To bring us to God. That whoever. Repents. And believes on him. Might not perish. But have everlasting.
[44:08] Life. You see. He was wounded. For our transgressions. He was crushed. For our iniquities. And the punishment. That brought us peace. Was on him.
[44:19] And by his wounds. We are healed. The punishment. The cost. To be able. To say to you and me. Your sins are forgiven. That's what Calvary is.
[44:31] That's why. The father. Abandoned his son. And caused him to suffer. What we had coming. At Calvary. God alone. Can forgive sins.
[44:42] And only in this way. You remember. Jesus says. If there's any other way. Father. Please. And heavens were quiet. There is no other way. Only God can forgive sins. And only.
[44:53] Through. His son. The lamb of God. The only way. To have sins forgiven. Calvary is the price tag. For our full. And free forgiveness. And here's the beauty of it.
[45:03] Believer. As your trust is in the savior. If Jesus has paid the debt. For your sins. Then it is forgiven. God will not.
[45:15] Charge double. For your sin. Once. At Christ's hands. And then. Again. At yours. No. If Jesus paid it all. There's no more to pay. And we sing that song.
[45:27] Because it's a biblical song. Jesus paid it all. All to him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain. He washed it white. As snow. The blood of Jesus.
[45:40] God's son. Cleanses us from all sin. All sin. Isn't that a precious promise? All forgiven. All blotted out. All erased. Remembered no more.
[45:52] Removed as far as east. From west. Now if that's true. Why do you linger? Lost person. Why do you wait? He's exalted. He died.
[46:02] But he rose again. And is exalted. To give repentance. And forgiveness of sins. From his throne. Of grace and mercy. He gives. Forgiveness. Go to him.
[46:14] And have your sin debt. Canceled. Once and for all. Time. You know. There's coming a day. When. The forgiveness of your sins. Will mean more to you.
[46:25] Than. All the world. Combined. That day of judgment. When all of humanity. Will be divided. Into two groups. They're all sinners.
[46:36] We've all sinned. And come short. But they will be. Divided in half. Or in. Into two groups. That day. And one group. Will be the forgiven. And the other. Will be the unforgiven. Those who are the unforgiven.
[46:49] Will go away. Into everlasting punishment. And those who are the forgiven. Will go into everlasting life. And never.
[47:00] Get over the fact. That Jesus took our debt. And paid it in full. Worthy is the lamb. That was slain. To receive.
[47:11] Honor. And power. And glory. And blessing. Both now. And forevermore. Whisper. Father in heaven.
[47:25] We thank you for the account. Of our savior's life. And. Just the purpose of it. Why. In the first place. Did you ever send him. We know it wouldn't.
[47:35] It wouldn't be for some small thing. That you would cause him. To be so humbled. As to become. One of us. It wouldn't be for a small thing.
[47:47] That you would. Send him. To be damned. On the cross. In the place of his people. Who would trust in him. It. It. It. It must be something big. Forgive us.
[47:58] For our small thoughts. Of the gospel. For our small thoughts. Of. Your love for us. The depth of that love. That would give up. Your own son. And pile all of our debt.
[48:12] Upon him. And exact the payment. From him. Oh. Glory be to Jesus. Help us then.
[48:22] Help us then. To believe it. And to enjoy the forgiveness. Of sins. This day. And every day. Until we see you face to face. And. Are lost in love.
[48:34] And wonder. And praise. And bring. Those who. Are still under the debt. Of sin. To come to this savior. This day.
[48:45] Even as we sing. And to unpile the whole burden. Upon Christ. Thank you for this gospel. We praise you in Jesus name. Amen. Amen.