Holes in Ceilings

 This past Sunday, November 25th, in RiverKidz (Rocky River Church's Kids Ministry) we talked about Luke 5:17-26 (NIV) and here is the passage:

17 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. 18 Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. 19 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.

20 When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”

21 The Pharisees and the teachers of the law began thinking to themselves, “Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemy? Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

22 Jesus knew what they were thinking and asked, “Why are you thinking these things in your hearts? 23 Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? 24 But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” 25 Immediately he stood up in front of them, took what he had been lying on and went home praising God. 26 Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God. They were filled with awe and said, “We have seen remarkable things today.”

I have thought about this passage a lot for about 2 weeks and yesterday it really hit me. These 4 friends really believed what Jesus was doing. They really believed that Jesus could heal their friend and change his life. What would it be like if every person who goes to church on a regular basis or every person who says they are a follower of Christ, had the same faith and commitment as these 4 friends did? How packed would our churches be, how many holes would be in ceilings and how many lives would be changed?