One of my all time favorite Bible stories is the story in Mark 2:1-12. Four men, out of compassion for a lame man brought him to Jesus so he could be restored to full health. This is such a great example of what how we should act as a church. The thing that I love about this story is the fact that Jesus was moved by the faith of the four men. I'm not sure what kind of faith the lame guy had but the four men believed if Jesus laid his hand on the man he would be healed. The other thing that is interesting is the fact that the four guys went to such lengths to get the lame man to Jesus. When they arrived, there was a crowd, but that didn't stop these men. They literally took their friend up to the roof, broke through the roof and lowered him down in front of Jesus. Now the intent of the four men may have been to have their friend healed but this act of love also reflected Jesus power to not only heal but to also forgive sins, therefore revealing the very nature of the son of God and why He entered into human history.
Each of us has the capacity to do the same thing for someone, and this story shows us that it is a group effort. Our faith in Jesus is not just a personal thing. It's not to be kept to ourselves. We need to band together as a body of believers to bring people to Jesus. We need to see someone in need and bring them to an encounter with God, one person at a time. We need to work together to make this happen. We must be willing to sweat and labor as these guys did to make that happen and not give up when there are obstacles in our way!
Let's live out the great commission, and let our lives reveal the nature of Jesus!
