Mustard Seed Faith

‘They came bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. Unable to get near Jesus because of the crowd, they opened up the roof above him. After they had broken through, they let down the mat on which the paralytic was lying. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to him, “Child, your sins are forgiven.”’ Mark 2:3-5

How wonderful to have friends like these four men who brought the paralytic to Jesus’ attention! The sick man was helpless, and we do not know what he was thinking, if it was his friends’ initiative to bring him, or if he begged them to carry him across the uneven cobblestones in Capernaum. What we can surmise is these four were not hired men, they had faith, they had persistence, and they were not stopped by the crowd. They had come to bring their friend for healing, and they made a hole in the roof of the home where Jesus was, and lowered him down! I would like to be like them and bring my friends to Jesus’ attention. 

There are so many who are in need right now, some are sick with COVID, with cancer, some are depressed and some have homes that were destroyed by the last typhoon. We need to be like the four men, and be persistent in prayer, to have faith that Jesus can see, so that He will say, “Your sins are forgiven”, and then help them. How do we grow our faith? In Romans 10:17, St. Paul writes, “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” We need to build up our faith by reading the Word aloud, or listening to YouTube or podcasts. There are so many resources available for those who want to have a richer, deeper faith. Let us show Jesus our mustard seed of faith and give it fertile soil in which to grow.