Incredible Things
Monday of the Second Week of Advent
Read this Gospel passage aloud to the family
Luke 5:17-26 – One day as Jesus was teaching, Pharisees and teachers of the law, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and Jerusalem, were sitting there, and the power of the Lord was with him for healing. And some men brought on a stretcher a man who was paralyzed; they were trying to bring him in and set him in his presence. But not finding a way to bring him in because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on the stretcher through the tiles into the middle in front of Jesus. When Jesus saw their faith, he said, "As for you, your sins are forgiven."
Then the scribes and Pharisees began to ask themselves, "Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Who but God alone can forgive sins?" Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them in reply, "What are you thinking in your hearts? Which is easier, to say, 'Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, 'Rise and walk?' But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins?" he said to the one who was paralyzed, "I say to you, rise, pick up your stretcher, and go home." He stood up immediately before them, picked up what he had been lying on, and went home, glorifying God. Then astonishment seized them all and they glorified God, and, struck with awe, they said, "We have seen incredible things today."
(Parent) Reread this part a few times aloud
“But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins…”
(Parent) Read this meditation aloud to the family
The scribes and the Pharisees thought Jesus was speaking blasphemies when He said to the paralyzed man, “your sins are forgiven,” because they knew that only God can forgive sins. So Jesus does something impossible to the paralyzed man’s visible body (He heals its brokenness) to show that He also has the power to do something impossible to the paralyzed man’s invisible soul (to heal its sin).
When Jesus heals someone in the Gospels, He certainly cares for their physical health, their painful suffering, their difficult situation…but He is also showing that He has a higher power. Jesus is showing that has the power of God over evil and death and sin. The paralyzed man and many others in the Gospels receive both physical and spiritual healing because they want these enough to make the effort to seek Christ out and fall before Him, helpless. During prayer, consider: Are we are making efforts to be near Christ? How and when are we doing this?
As a family, pray a portion of the Rosary together (very short if children are young) reflecting on the Scripture passage above. (Optional: allow a brief time for discussion or questions from children concerning their thoughts and prayer.)
