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The Day a Paraplegic Walked Home, Part 1 · INSIGHT FOR LIVING: Biblical Wisdom For Everyday Living

• 0:07
  Speaker 1: Picture this, a house packed wall to wall, a teacher
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  Speaker 1: whose words held everyone's attention. And then, dust begins to
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  Speaker 1: fall from the ceiling, light breaks through, and a man
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  Speaker 1: who can't move is lowered right in the middle of everything.
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  Speaker 1: Today on Insight for Living, Chuck Swindoll opens the second
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  Speaker 1: chapter at Mark and a scene unlike any other. Four
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  Speaker 1: friends so determined to reach Jesus, they'll tear through a
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  Speaker 1: roof to do it. But what Jesus says next isn't
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  Speaker 1: what anyone expects. It exposes the deepest need in that room,
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  Speaker 1: and maybe in yours.
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  Speaker 2: Today we gather from all different walks and journeys and
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  Speaker 2: stages of life. Some of you sit among us with
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  Speaker 2: broken hearts. Some of you are in physical pain. Others
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  Speaker 2: of you have gone through a time of great disillusionment, disappointment,
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  Speaker 2: perhaps even climbing your way out of cynicism and skepticism.
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  Speaker 2: You were just as welcome in this place as the
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  Speaker 2: believer with the heart that overflows with praise. We're going
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  Speaker 2: to read a story in a moment of a miracle,
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  Speaker 2: and we want to have the right perspective on that,
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  Speaker 2: since God still does miracles, though they are very rare.
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  Speaker 2: This is one of those occasions when he chooses to
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  Speaker 2: record the event. I'm referring to the second chapter of
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  Speaker 2: the gospel by Mark, the first 12 verses. Mark 2,
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  Speaker 2: verse 1 says, Referring to Jesus, when he had come
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  Speaker 2: back to Capernaum, several days afterward, it was heard that
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  Speaker 2: he was at home. And many were gathered together so
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  Speaker 2: that there was no longer room, not even near the door.
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  Speaker 2: And he was speaking the word to them. And they came,
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  Speaker 2: bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. Being
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  Speaker 2: unable to get to him because of the crowd, they
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  Speaker 2: removed the roof above him. And when they had dug
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  Speaker 2: an opening, they let down the pallet on which the
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  Speaker 2: paralytic was lying. And Jesus, seeing their faith, said to
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  Speaker 2: the paralytic, Son, your sins are forgiven. But some of
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  Speaker 2: the scribes were sitting there and reasoning in their hearts,
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  Speaker 2: Why does this man speak that way? He is blaspheming.
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  Speaker 2: Who can forgive sins but God alone? Immediately, Jesus, aware
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  Speaker 2: in his spirit that they were reasoning that way within themselves,
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  Speaker 2: said to them, Why are you reasoning about these things
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  Speaker 2: in your hearts? Which is easier? To say to the paralytic,
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  Speaker 2: Your sins are forgiven. Or to say, Get up and
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  Speaker 2: pick up your pallet and walk. but so that you
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  Speaker 2: may know that the Son of Man has authority on
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  Speaker 2: earth to forgive sins. He said to the paralytic, I
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  Speaker 2: say to you, get up, pick up your pallet and
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  Speaker 2: go home. And he got up and immediately picked up
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  Speaker 2: the pallet and went out in the sight of everyone
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  Speaker 2: so that they were all amazed and were glorifying God, saying,
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  Speaker 2: We have never seen anything like this.
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  Speaker 1: You're listening to Insight for Living. To dig deeper into
• 4:13
  Speaker 1: the gospel according to Mark, be sure to purchase a
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  Speaker 1: copy of our Searching the Scriptures Bible Study Workbooks by
• 4:20
  Speaker 1: going to insight.org. Chuck titled today's message, The Day a
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  Speaker 1: Paraplegic Walked Home.
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  Speaker 2: Hope for a miraculous healing is one thing. Experiencing the
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  Speaker 2: miracle of healing is something altogether different. Hoping for healing
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  Speaker 2: is a human and very, very natural thing. Experiencing a
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  Speaker 2: healing that is immediate is the God thing. It's supernatural.
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  Speaker 2: The former happens all the time. There isn't a person
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  Speaker 2: hearing me right now who doesn't deep within his or
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  Speaker 2: her own heart hope that there would be a healing
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  Speaker 2: in the life of an individual we could name. Even
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  Speaker 2: several people we could name. But not only are those
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  Speaker 2: miraculous healings unusual, they are exceedingly rare. Rare indeed. In fact,
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  Speaker 2: I have a friend who says if they were that common,
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  Speaker 2: we'd call them regulars. But miracles are not found that often.
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  Speaker 2: When you find a parking place at Christmastime, it isn't
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  Speaker 2: a miracle. Don't call it a miracle. When you get
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  Speaker 2: the job you wanted and you've been looking for it
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  Speaker 2: for many days, maybe even weeks, and you land it,
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  Speaker 2: it isn't a miraculous landing. It is a great thing.
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  Speaker 2: It is a wonderful thing, but a miracle. That's in
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  Speaker 2: a category all by itself. Unfortunately, there are some today
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  Speaker 2: who would teach that they are very common. Just come,
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  Speaker 2: get in line, and I'll heal you. Let's go there
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  Speaker 2: for a few moments as we travel back to the mid-1970s.
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  Speaker 2: My wife and I had been invited to enjoy a
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  Speaker 2: part of the 50th anniversary celebration as we returned to
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  Speaker 2: our alma mater at Dallas Theological Seminary back in February
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  Speaker 2: of 1974. We, along with a number of fellow classmen
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  Speaker 2: and wives and husbands, traveled together on a big jumbo
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  Speaker 2: jet back in those days when they flew those big
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  Speaker 2: Boeing 747s from the West Coast to Dallas. We flew
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  Speaker 2: to Dallas on one of those and we flew back
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  Speaker 2: as well. And by the time we had been here,
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  Speaker 2: better part of that week, we had gotten to see
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  Speaker 2: one another and getting to know each other even better.
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  Speaker 2: By then we were full of stories, reminiscing and laughter
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  Speaker 2: and having fun, especially on our way home. We took
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  Speaker 2: up a couple, if not three of the big long
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  Speaker 2: rows of three and five and three across the plane
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  Speaker 2: And we were having such a great time together. We
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  Speaker 2: enjoyed our meal together. It was back in the days
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  Speaker 2: when they served meals. And we were having a great time. However,
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  Speaker 2: there was a couple on the plane not laughing and
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  Speaker 2: not enjoying the meal. They were sitting very near the
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  Speaker 2: back of the plane that was on purpose. The plane
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  Speaker 2: wasn't full and the whole middle section was open. And
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  Speaker 2: the flight attendants allowed the husband of the couple... take
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  Speaker 2: up all five seats. They pull the armrests up and
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  Speaker 2: I don't believe he ever lifted his head the entire trip.
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  Speaker 2: He was sick with advanced cancer. I met the wife
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  Speaker 2: and she noticed that we were talking of ministry and
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  Speaker 2: the Lord and the Bible and seminary and she was,
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  Speaker 2: of course, very curious because they had just left Louisiana,
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  Speaker 2: their home, where they had sold everything planning to bring
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  Speaker 2: all of the money they have that they might lay
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  Speaker 2: it at the feet of one who promised to heal
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  Speaker 2: her husband. He was terribly sick. And she was, of course, distraught,
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  Speaker 2: but by now living in the hope that he would
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  Speaker 2: be healed. And then in an unguarded moment, she took
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  Speaker 2: me by the arm and said, what do you think
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  Speaker 2: of that? That was a very, very difficult place to be.
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  Speaker 2: I owed her the truth, and yet I certainly needed
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  Speaker 2: to be tactful and careful. I began very cautiously by saying,
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  Speaker 2: of course, God can do anything. I know it. I
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  Speaker 2: know it. We know this is what he's got. I said, well,
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  Speaker 2: just wait a minute. He can do anything. He certainly
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  Speaker 2: is able to. If his son could still the storms
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  Speaker 2: and calm the seas and raise the dead and give
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  Speaker 2: sight to the blind, he certainly is able to raise
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  Speaker 2: your husband. But he could have done that for you
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  Speaker 2: when you were in Louisiana. No, no, no, no. They
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  Speaker 2: had burned their bridges. All hope was placed in this
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  Speaker 2: miracle worker who resided on the West Coast. And they
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  Speaker 2: were going to bring their husband home. that man there,
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  Speaker 2: and she was counting on that healing. And she said,
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  Speaker 2: I'm confident that's what's going to happen. I'm going to
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  Speaker 2: save the rest of the story until the end of
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  Speaker 2: the message. But you have listened well enough to know
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  Speaker 2: that this is a very tender subject for many. I'm
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  Speaker 2: aware of that. And anyone who hears these words and
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  Speaker 2: leaves saying Swindoll doesn't believe in a miracle-working God is
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  Speaker 2: misquoting me. Don't put those words in my mouth. Listen
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  Speaker 2: to my words. I believe God can do whatever he wishes,
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  Speaker 2: whenever he wishes, however he wishes, at any time he wishes.
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  Speaker 2: But I also know from my study of the scriptures
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  Speaker 2: that miracles... are rare. I just was looking over Wayne
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  Speaker 2: Grudem's book, Our Miraculous Gifts for Today, and I came
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  Speaker 2: to a chapter written by my friend Robert Soce, who
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  Speaker 2: held the theology department chair at Talbot Seminary for a
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  Speaker 2: number of years.
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  Speaker 1: Dr.
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  Speaker 2: Soce writes this about healing. The close association of the
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  Speaker 2: spiritual gift of healing with other supernatural manifestations of the
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  Speaker 2: Spirit suggests that this gift also refers to that which
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  Speaker 2: was clearly miraculous. The reports of such healings in scripture
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  Speaker 2: reveal that they were instantaneous. Marks of the miraculous gift
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  Speaker 2: of healing in scripture make it questionable as to how
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  Speaker 2: many reports of healing today truly manifest this gift. Still reading.
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  Speaker 2: We must also remember, before we identify a supposed supernatural
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  Speaker 2: healing as the result of the gift of healing, that
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  Speaker 2: extraordinary healings can have other explanations. Some illnesses, including blindness, deafness,
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  Speaker 2: and paralysis, may be symptoms of psychological trauma or hysteria,
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  Speaker 2: not genuine organic diseases. Emotional healing campaigns with their powerful
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  Speaker 2: suggestions can produce at least temporary spectacular results in such cases,
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  Speaker 2: but these are not genuine miracles. God has so constituted
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  Speaker 2: us that spiritual healing can have a powerful effect on
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  Speaker 2: the body. Not all sickness is the result of sin.
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  Speaker 2: Healing that results from confession of sin may simply be
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  Speaker 2: the result of the natural spirit-body symbiosis. A theology of
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  Speaker 2: healing must recognize that bodily health is nowhere promised as
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  Speaker 2: a provision of salvation for this age. Little is said
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  Speaker 2: about the ministry of healing in the Church Only one
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  Speaker 2: passage refers to healing as a gift. 1 Corinthians 12, 9.
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  Speaker 2: Only one passage refers to healing as a gift. I'll repeat.
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  Speaker 2: Nowhere else are the saints to minister to each other
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  Speaker 2: through healing, nor is it listed in the ministries of
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  Speaker 2: the gathered community. And he concludes, for the church to
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  Speaker 2: place an emphasis on miraculous physical healing, or to hold
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  Speaker 2: special healing campaigns, therefore, seems foreign to the New Testament
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  Speaker 2: picture of the church community. Having read that and having
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  Speaker 2: said what I've said, we come to a section of
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  Speaker 2: scripture where we will witness in words and in our
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  Speaker 2: imaginations an instantaneous miracle. One of the characteristics of a
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  Speaker 2: miracle is its instantaneous nature. There's no waiting. There's no lingering.
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  Speaker 2: There's no exchange of money. Healing is never purchased. Healing
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  Speaker 2: is a sovereign act of a sovereign God who on
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  Speaker 2: these rare occasions chooses to remove the sickness, the disease,
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  Speaker 2: the ailment, and to bring about full bodily health. As
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  Speaker 2: in the case of the man who is called a paralytic.
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  Speaker 2: We would call him today a paraplegic. The man is
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  Speaker 2: unable to move, perhaps unable to talk. We read nothing
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  Speaker 2: of his words here in Mark 2. We only read
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  Speaker 2: of his helpless condition when four friends bring him to
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  Speaker 2: a setting that is revealed here in the first two
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  Speaker 2: verses of Mark chapter 2. If you had your Bible open,
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  Speaker 2: Please notice that the setting includes three specifics. First of all,
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  Speaker 2: we are told where Jesus was. When he came back
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  Speaker 2: to Capernaum, several days afterward, it was heard that he
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  Speaker 2: was at home. Capernaum is a village located to the
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  Speaker 2: north shore of the Sea of Galilee. You can visit today,
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  Speaker 2: the village of Nahum, still in existence, ancient that it is,
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  Speaker 2: and all who go to Galilee certainly include Capernaum as
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  Speaker 2: a part of their journey. He is at Capernaum at
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  Speaker 2: a home. Not his, since the Son of Man had
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  Speaker 2: no place to lay his head. It is someone's home,
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  Speaker 2: probably not the same home where he has healed Peter's mother-in-law,
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  Speaker 2: mentioned for us in chapter 1. It is a home.
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  Speaker 2: Like all other homes in Capernaum of the first century,
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  Speaker 2: it is a small square dwelling where one main room
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  Speaker 2: held everything. We'll read of the roof in a moment,
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  Speaker 2: but this is a simple dwelling. And in this case,
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  Speaker 2: we are told who was there. Many were gathered, verse two,
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  Speaker 2: many were gathered there so that there was no longer room,
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  Speaker 2: not even near the door. We would say the place
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  Speaker 2: was packed. The house is full of people. They go
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  Speaker 2: all the way to the doorway and out the door,
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  Speaker 2: out into the open area to the front of the house.
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  Speaker 2: And it's obvious that the place is full and running
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  Speaker 2: over because by now, Jesus' name is a household word
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  Speaker 2: in Galilee. He has been meeting needs. He has been
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  Speaker 2: exorcising demons. He has been healing the sick. He has
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  Speaker 2: been engaged in a ministry of teaching, sharing the good
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  Speaker 2: news of himself to others. Never once does he advertise
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  Speaker 2: himself as a healer. Healing was never the reason he
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  Speaker 2: wanted people to follow him. He healed so that people
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  Speaker 2: would realize he is, in fact, from God. The healings
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  Speaker 2: that Jesus performed, and they were many, were designed to
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  Speaker 2: corroborate his authenticity. They validated his authority as having come
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  Speaker 2: from God, as being, in fact, God. So not surprisingly,
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  Speaker 2: there are a number of healings during the era of
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  Speaker 2: Christ's three and a half year earthly ministry. This is
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  Speaker 2: one of the cases in point. We are told now
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  Speaker 2: what he was doing. The end of verse two, he
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  Speaker 2: was speaking the word to them. I take it that
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  Speaker 2: there was a scroll and the scroll was unrolled and
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  Speaker 2: some part of the Old Testament truth was being declared.
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  Speaker 2: Paul writes in Romans 15, 4, whatever was written in
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  Speaker 2: earlier times was written for our learning that we through
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  Speaker 2: patience and comfort from the scriptures might have hope. Paul
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  Speaker 2: wrote of that while the New Testament was still being written.
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  Speaker 2: So whatever was written in earlier times is a reference
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  Speaker 2: to Old Testament scriptures. Jesus is unrolling the scroll of
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  Speaker 2: some part of the Old Testament or perhaps speaking ex
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  Speaker 2: cathedra for he in fact knew God's word. He in
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  Speaker 2: fact is engaged in the writing of God's word supernaturally.
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  Speaker 2: He is the word in manifest form. And so no
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  Speaker 2: one could teach as he would teach. But by now
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  Speaker 2: I'm sure many had gathered to watch the miracles, to
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  Speaker 2: see the healings. Though again, I repeat, that was not
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  Speaker 2: the motivation of his gathering them together. He is teaching them.
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  Speaker 2: He's speaking the word to them. I drive that point
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  Speaker 2: home because it is easy to be drawn to the
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  Speaker 2: miracle and to miss the ministry Jesus is sustaining. He
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  Speaker 2: always is teaching and preaching and declaring and proclaiming the
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  Speaker 2: truth to equip his disciples and also to prepare people
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  Speaker 2: for the kingdom that he has declared it. In the
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  Speaker 2: midst of his teaching, there's a very unusual interruption. We
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  Speaker 2: read of it in verses 3, 4, and 5. Simply,
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  Speaker 2: these words, they came, we don't know who the four are,
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  Speaker 2: bringing to him a paraplegic or a paralytic, we don't
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  Speaker 2: know who he was. He has four friends, and the
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  Speaker 2: five of them agreed death. to bring him to Jesus
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  Speaker 2: was the best thing they could do, for no one
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  Speaker 2: else had that kind of authority, that kind of power. Certainly,
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  Speaker 2: if they brought him to Jesus, there could be a
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  Speaker 2: miraculous healing. They were certainly hoping for that. Verse 4,
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  Speaker 2: being unable to get to him because of the crowd,
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  Speaker 2: they removed the roof above him. Now, we have to
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  Speaker 2: stop there because everybody thinks in terms of his or
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  Speaker 2: her own roof. You'd work a long time to break
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  Speaker 2: through our roof at our home or your roof because
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  Speaker 2: roofs now are built differently than they were then. Kent
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  Speaker 2: Hughes writes, The typical Syrian roof was constructed of timbers
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  Speaker 2: laid parallel to each other about two or three feet apart.
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  Speaker 2: Then crosswise over the timbers, sticks were laid close together,
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  Speaker 2: close to each other, thus forming the basic roof. Upon
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  Speaker 2: this was laid reeds, branches of trees, and thistles. The
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  Speaker 2: whole thing was overlaid with about a foot of earth,
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  Speaker 2: which was then packed down to resist water. All told,
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  Speaker 2: the roof was about two feet thick. During the spring,
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  Speaker 2: grass flourished on these primitive roofs. These men were digging
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  Speaker 2: through the roof. Those inside... heard the shoveling, then the
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  Speaker 2: pounding amidst loud conversation as the men dug away the dirt,
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  Speaker 2: tore the branches, and pried the roofing loose between the beams.
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  Speaker 2: Debris began to fall on those in the house. I
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  Speaker 2: wanted to read that for you so you could get
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  Speaker 2: the picture. Imagine our being in that house and all
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  Speaker 2: of a sudden... There starts to fall on us little
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  Speaker 2: bits of debris and earth and who knows what else.
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  Speaker 2: And we look up and a little ray of light
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  Speaker 2: breaks open and finally a large enough hole. And then
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  Speaker 2: they poke this guy through and they let him down
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  Speaker 2: on this soft pallet. We would call it a stretcher.
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  Speaker 2: And they let him down into the room. Now, he's teaching.
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  Speaker 2: And nobody says, may we interrupt? They simply break open
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  Speaker 2: this roof while he's teaching. And I'll tell you, since
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  Speaker 2: a good part of my life is spent teaching, you
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  Speaker 2: have amazing things happen when you're teaching. I have never
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  Speaker 2: had somebody break through a roof. Thank goodness. I've had
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  Speaker 2: people answer back. I've had people stare. I've had people
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  Speaker 2: stomp out. That happens a lot. I have people... disagree
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  Speaker 2: i have people ready to shout glory i've got even
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  Speaker 2: a few baptists ready to say amen and uh invariably
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  Speaker 2: it's like saying sick him to a bulldog makes the
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  Speaker 2: sermon go longer and longer so watch it watch it
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  Speaker 2: maybe that's why we're so quiet here huh they break
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  Speaker 2: through the roof and jesus must have paused at that
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  Speaker 2: moment and down comes a man who cannot move he's
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  Speaker 2: suddenly in their midst Jesus sees something and then says something.
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  Speaker 2: What he sees is not what you and I would
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  Speaker 2: have seen, and what he says is not what you
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  Speaker 2: or I would have said. Being Jesus, having this kind
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  Speaker 2: of perception, he cuts to the chase. He doesn't see
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  Speaker 2: the man's body first, he sees his heart condition. He
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  Speaker 2: doesn't witness all the debris and concern himself with the
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  Speaker 2: trouble it took to get him through the roof. What
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  Speaker 2: he sees is the faith in the hearts of those
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  Speaker 2: five men. And then what he says has to do
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  Speaker 2: with that faith. Look at verse 5. Jesus, seeing their faith.
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  Speaker 2: Only Christ can see faith. Only Christ. We see evidence
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  Speaker 2: he knows faith when he sees it. He knows deep
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  Speaker 2: within the heart of this paralytic, though he may not
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  Speaker 2: be able to move a muscle, is a heart that
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  Speaker 2: beats hot for God. He longs to have a relationship.
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  Speaker 2: He longs to know what it is. And so Jesus,
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  Speaker 2: seeing him, says to him, son, not all four of
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  Speaker 2: the other men, but the one man in the pallet, son,
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  Speaker 2: your sins are forgiven you. He saw the faith of
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  Speaker 2: all of them, but he sees the one who is
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  Speaker 2: on the pallet and addresses him singular, son, your sins
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  Speaker 2: are forgiven. What a great moment. Suddenly there is a
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  Speaker 2: man who is born into the family of God. Son
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  Speaker 2: is a family name. You're one of us. You're in
• 24:51
  Speaker 2: the family. You're a part of the life.
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  Speaker 1: What an incredible scene. Before Jesus healed a single muscle,
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  Speaker 1: he reached the man's deepest need and called him son.
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  Speaker 1: That's the heart of today's message from Chuck Swindoll. You see,
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  Speaker 1: our greatest need isn't physical, it's spiritual. And if you're
• 25:18
  Speaker 1: facing pain or uncertainty in your life, know this, the
• 25:22
  Speaker 1: one who saw faith in that crowded room sees you too.
• 25:26
  Speaker 1: This is Insight for Living. Chuck titled today's message, The
• 25:30
  Speaker 1: Day a Paraplegic Walked Home. Here at Insight for Living,
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  Speaker 1: we're committed to providing helpful resources to strengthen your walk
• 25:37
  Speaker 1: with God. And today we wanna tell you about a
• 25:40
  Speaker 1: brand new tool Imagine starting every single day with a
• 25:44
  Speaker 1: fresh word from Scripture and a rich insight from Chuck
• 25:47
  Speaker 1: to go along with it. That's exactly what you'll find
• 25:50
  Speaker 1: in Swindoll's Living Insights for Every Day. It's a colorful
• 25:54
  Speaker 1: flip calendar from Insight for Living. The calendar offers a
• 25:58
  Speaker 1: key passage from most chapters of the New Testament paired
• 26:01
  Speaker 1: with one of Chuck's thoughtful reflections. And because it's perpetual,
• 26:05
  Speaker 1: you can use it year after year. There's no expiration
• 26:08
  Speaker 1: date on truth. To purchase Swindoll's Living Insights for every day,
• 26:13
  Speaker 1: call 800-772-8888 or go to insight.org slash offer. Well, who
• 26:22
  Speaker 1: would have guessed that an insecure, stuttering boy from South
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  Speaker 1: Texas would one day carry God's word to millions around
• 26:29
  Speaker 1: the world? Certainly not Chuck. And that's exactly the point
• 26:32
  Speaker 1: of his new memoir, Awakened by Grace. This isn't the
• 26:36
  Speaker 1: story of a gifted man who set out to build
• 26:38
  Speaker 1: something great. It's the story of an ordinary boy whom
• 26:42
  Speaker 1: God chose, shaped, and used in ways that no one
• 26:45
  Speaker 1: could have predicted. Page after page, you'll see that God
• 26:48
  Speaker 1: doesn't call the qualified. He qualifies the called. And the
• 26:52
  Speaker 1: same God who wrote this remarkable story in Chuck's life
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  Speaker 1: wants to write his story in yours. We'd love to
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  Speaker 1: send you a copy of Awakened by Grace. To order
• 27:01
  Speaker 1: Chuck Swindoll's memoir, call 800-772-8888. or go to insight.org slash memoir.
• 27:18
  Speaker 2: I'm Bill Meyer.
• 27:19
  Speaker 1: Join us when Chuck Swindoll continues to describe that amazing
• 27:22
  Speaker 1: day when the paraplegic walked home. Tuesday on Insight for Living.
• 27:29
  Speaker 1: The preceding message, The Day a Paraplegic Walked Home, was
• 27:33
  Speaker 1: copyrighted in 2010 and 2026 and and the sound recording
• 27:37
  Speaker 1: was copyrighted in 2026 by Charles R.
• 27:40
  Speaker 2: Swindoll, Inc.
• 27:42
  Speaker 1: All rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for
• 27:46
  Speaker 1: commercial use is strictly prohibited.