Friendship, Faith, and Forgiveness

In one paragraph

Pastor Carl stepped away from the ongoing First Corinthians series to preach from Mark 2:1-12, the healing of the paralyzed man. He drew three life lessons from the passage: a lesson in friendship, a lesson in faith, and a lesson in forgiveness. The songs chosen for the service, including "Learning to Lean on Jesus" and "Leaning on the Everlasting Arms," carried the same thread throughout the...

Read together

1. Matthew 11:28 Jesus saying come to me all who are weary and heavy laden, used to introduce the hymn Learning to Lean
2. Isaiah 41:13 quoted before the singing of Precious Lord: God takes hold of your right hand and says do not fear, I will help you
3. Mark 2:1-12 the healing of the paralytic, the main scripture text for the sermon
4. Proverbs 17:17 a friend is always loyal and a brother is born to help in a time of need, used in the lesson on friendship
5. Hebrews 11:6 it is impossible to please God without faith, used in the lesson on faith
6. Hebrews 11:1 definition of faith as confidence and assurance of things hoped for and unseen, used in the lesson on faith
7. Mark 9 the father who said I do believe but help me overcome my unbelief, used as a prayer for those who lack faith
8. Mark 10 the blind beggar who cried son of David have mercy on me and was healed, cited as an example of faith Jesus commended

Talk about it

1. Carl described the four friends as doing 'absolutely everything that they could to get their friend to Jesus' in spite of the crowd, discouragement, and obstacles. What do you think would have stopped most people from going as far as these four men did, and what does that say about the kind of friendship they had?
2. Carl pointed to Proverbs 17:17 and the Henri Nouwen quote about a friend who can 'be silent with us in a moment of despair or confusion.' Think of a time when someone's presence mattered more than anything they said. What made that kind of friendship possible?
3. Carl said it seems like God does some of His best work 'when we come to the end of ourselves and we say, I've done all that I can do and now I'm asking You, God, to move in power.' Have you experienced that, and what made it hard to get to that point?
4. Carl referenced the father in Mark 9 who said to Jesus, 'I do believe, but would You help me overcome my unbelief?' and said, 'That's a prayer I need to say too.' What areas of your life right now are hardest to fully entrust to God, and why?
5. Carl said that by forgiving the paralyzed man before healing him physically, Jesus was showing that what is going on inside us is God's first priority. How does that challenge the way you tend to think about what you most need God to do in your life right now?