Messengers of the GospelSample

Going to Great Lengths for the Gospel

One day Jesus was teaching, and Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there. They had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal the sick. Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. 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. (Luke 5:17-19 NIV)

The crowd is pressing in.

The way is blocked.

It looks like there is no way.

But four friends will not let roadblocks stop them. They may have said something like:

“We have to get him in there.”

“He can’t go on living like this.”

“But what can we do? There is no way in."

“Well, what if we tear the roof off?”

Long pause… then they take action!

What are the most extraordinary lengths you have gone to bring someone towards Jesus?

In Luke 5, there was no way to get to Jesus because of the crowd surrounding the house, but the friends pushed beyond obstacles, embarrassment, public opinion, and financial risk to get their paralyzed friend to Jesus' feet. These friends looked for opportunities to bring him into the room with Jesus and then took bold action. Their only option was breaking the roof and lowering their friend down through the hole. What a great feat to bring someone to Jesus!

Their example is inspiring. Each of them probably had other things on their “to-do” list, but they chose to prioritize the eternal over the urgent and the selfless over the selfish.

How often do we fill our days with urgent things that have no eternal significance? I do it all the time, and you probably do, too, but the people around us must become more important than our “to-do” lists.

On a daily basis, I can do more. I can be more intentional with the grocers who bag my food. I can ask them about their story and look for open doors to share my story. I can offer to pray with the person in the cubicle next to me who is having a hard week. I can build a relationship with the elderly couple down the street and pray for opportunities to introduce them to Jesus.

Will it be easy? Probably not, but most things that are really meaningful in life are not easy.

If you are going to share the gospel with someone, it will have to be with strong intentionality. Ask yourself, “Am I prepared to take such lengths as the friends of the paralyzed man?”

At what cost am I willing to share?

Am I worried about what people think?

Am I worried more about my own schedule?

Am I worried about offending people?

These are very real questions we face, but they take the focus off Jesus. The author of Hebrews reminds us:

… let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. (Hebrews 12:1-3 NIV)

With dirt under their nails and splinters in their fingers, the four friends saw the fruit of their persistence. As they fixed their eyes on Jesus, He fixed His eyes on their friend. Jesus responded to their faith by forgiving the man’s sins and healing his body.

Reflection:

Think about the following questions. If you feel conviction about one of them, bring it before the Lord today in prayer.

At what cost am I willing to share the gospel?

Am I worried about what people think?

Am I worried more about my own schedule?

Am I worried about offending people?