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Power To Forgive Sins - Mark 2
Power To Forgive Sins - Mark 2
With the opening of chapter 2 of Mark we see Jesus forgiving a man’s sins. The Jewish leaders in one sense were right in affirming that only God has the right / power to forgive sins. Jesus points out that in like manner only God can heal the sick miraculously. So Jesus does what they can observe in healing the man and then affirms that He also did that which they could not see in that He forgave the man’s sins. The power to forgive was demonstrated by the power to heal.
Yes, Jesus has the power to forgive OUR sins. While He was on the earth He forgave several people and this of course would include the infamous thief on the cross as well as this paralytic. However, He is NOT among us now and cannot directly and specifically forgive us. He still has the authority and power to forgive sins but He has left us His word about who will be forgiven. He instructed the apostles to preach the gospel unto every creature, stating that ‘he that believes and is baptized shall be saved’. They went forth preaching and baptizing people for the remission of their sins (cp. Acts 2:28). Today we have their word that instructs US on how to be forgiven by Jesus. ”Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him” (Hebrews 5:8–9). Hugh DeLong
