Pressing on in Mark’s gospel we have some practical lessons on faith. What is faith?

Faith is Persistence

And they came, bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him, and when they had made an opening, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay. And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” (Mark 2.3 – 5, ESV)

I love this story, and because the text is so crisp, I think we miss the persistence of these four guys. Nothing stopped them. They’re carrying their friend, and they “can’t get near Jesus because of the crowd.”

“What will we do?” The decision to tear up somebody’s house couldn’t have been instant. They would have had to brainstorm a bit and come up with the idea. “Do you really think we should?” “How hard will it be?” There are a hundred reasons not to tear up the roof. But they do it anyway. “And when they had made an opening they let down the bed…”

“When Jesus saw their faith.” How do you see faith? By action. In this case raw determination and follow through. That’s faith. Then, maybe, as a friend of mine suggested, they dropped the ropes!

So faith is persistence.

Faith is also trust without fear. We’ve seen this before.

Mark 4 ends with the story that starts:

On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side… (Mark 4.35, ESV)

A clear statement: we’re going to the other side. However…

And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” (Mark 4.37 – 40, ESV)

The last time I wrote on this, July 10, we were drowning in a sea of moving boxes. I reminded myself that God didn’t tell us to move into this house so we would be stuck in moving mode.

Now, we’re in the house, and it looks and feels great…but we’re still carrying a loan collateralized by our former house. But it’s the same. Jesus will not leave us in the middle of the sea to drown. We’re in the pit with a live lion, to change the metaphor, but victory will come. In fact, as of last Sunday, our old house is under contract!

In our first story, “When Jesus saw their faith…,” he acted.

The key verse in the second story:

He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” (Mark 4.40, ESV)

The “have no fear” message is reinforced in the following chapter in the story of the raising of Jairus’ daughter:

But overhearing what they said, Jesus said to the ruler of the synagogue, “Do not fear, only believe.” (Mark 5.36, ESV)

“His heart is secure, he will have no fear…” (Psalm 112)