Matthew 9 is getting us to ask ourselves, would I rather be liked, admired, and always scandal-free, or would I rather be like Jesus? Much of the time, maybe most of the time, we won’t have to choose. But at some point, we will.
Jesus is approached by a few people carrying their paralyzed friend. And instead of immediately healing the man’s body, though he will do that a few moments later, he says something no one expects: “Take heart, child, your sins are forgiven.” In other words, “God is not mad at you. God is not hanging onto your mistakes. And (to borrow from 2 Corinthians 1) God’s word to you is not sometimes yes and sometimes no, depending on what kind of mood he’s in; his word to you is only yes. God is pleased to love you.”
To the religious leaders nearby, this is nothing less than scandalous. There was a process to enter into a state of forgiveness. It involved the book of Leviticus, an animal sacrifice, a priest, and the Jerusalem temple. For a simple rabbi like Jesus to hand out forgiveness without any of those elements was at best foolishness, at worst blasphemy against the God who alone can forgive sins. Surely we can understand Jesus’ critics at least a little.
The elaborate system of religious rules by which forgiveness could be spoken works for these religious leaders. But it doesn’t work for Jesus, because any elaborate system of religious rules, no matter how well intentioned and theologically well rounded it may be, will eventually turn into a barrier, something Jesus loves to jump right over. He wants forgiveness to be offered freely, without price or doubt. If only we could forgive as easy as he does. Unfortunately, forgiveness is difficult. Letting go of the hurts we’ve been caused is not easy. It takes a long time, and those wounds can unexpectedly resurface now and then.
So, what might be the paralyzed man’s reaction? He would like the ability to walk, yes, but what is the look on his face as Jesus leans in and says, “Take heart, child, your sins are forgiven. God is not mad at you. God is not hanging onto your mistakes. God’s word to you is not sometimes yes and sometimes no, but only yes.” What a shocking and sudden way to hear that God is pleased to love him. I wonder what feels like more of a miracle to him – the ability to walk or the announcement that God feels only peace, not resentment, toward him. What would feel like the bigger miracle to you – to have physical health and vitality back in an instant, or to live every day in the awareness that your sins really have been let go of by God?
This is not to dismiss the danger of sin. It is simply to enjoy the good news that our sin has no power to change the heart of God, no power to make God anything but joyful to forgive and renew us. If any of this sounds too soft, too easy, too much like a spiritual fluff devoid of uncomfortable truths, then I’d say we’re starting to understand what makes Jesus’ easy pronouncement of forgiveness a scandal.
Forgiveness really is free. God really is happy to not hang onto our mistakes. The question is, can we receive this good news? Are we able to believe that God has lovingly and easily let go of our sin? And are we able to go and be scandalously generous with forgiveness like he is?