Some men came carrying a paralytic 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. When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.” Luke 5:18-20
When Jesus saw their faith, He healed the man and forgave his sin! What? Our faith affects others?!
Like it or not, our faith always affects others for better or worse. These guys risked their lives hoisting a their friend up on a roof, got their hands dirty digging a hole through a dirt and straw roof, and risked embarrassment in front of a huge crowd, and not to forget Jesus who they interrupted, to get their friend healed. How much are you willing to risk to save your friends who don’t know the Lord?
While you may not know someone who is paralyzed physically, I’m sure there are people in your world who are “paralyzed” in their faith. Certainly there are some in your life who have been crippled by fear and anxiety and have lost faith during this time, and they can’t find a way out for themselves. Maybe your faith is the vehicle that brings them to the feet of Jesus so he can set them free.
Spend some time in prayer asking the Lord to bring to mind people in your life who are “crippled” in their faith. Write them down on a piece of paper or your phone. Now go and exercise your faith and give them a call and ask how you can pray for them during this time. Sacrifice a roll of your toilet paper and some snacks and drop off a care package at their door with a note telling them you are praying for them and ask if they need anything else.
I feel like the Church does a good job of learning about God faithfully going to Bible study and showing up at church on Sunday, but now that we are “forced out of our pews”, its time to put our faith into action! You may have to get your hands dirty, you might have to risk embarrassment, and you might even need to risk your life but there is a world out their in desperate need of Jesus. If you are a believer, Christ is in you, and while you can’t save anyone, you can bring them to the one who is mighty to save!
Two Minutes with God 