xt in Luke 5:17-39 and Mark 2:1-12 that has been resonating with me. It is about the paralytic who was let down through the roof of a house and received healing.
The reason the man had to be let down through the roof was not only because of the paralysis that had overtaken his body, but also because there was standing room only in the house. According to the text in Mark, there were so many people in the house the door wasn’t even accessible. They were beyond maximum capacity and the owner could have been cited for a violation of blocked passageways with no way to get to an exit in case of an emergency.
The overwhelming capacity of the house was not the only reason the man was let down through the roof. The other reason was because of his friends. It is here that we can do a little exploration. Was it that his friends cared enough about him to cause thousands of dollars worth of damage to a stranger’s home and use their strength and tenacity to get to Jesus by any means necessary? Or was it that he had annoyed them so much about wanting to see Jesus that they said “alright already” and proceeded to climb the walls of the house and cause thousands of dollars worth of damage to a stranger’s home for their friend? Either way, these friends were loyal.
Can we say that about ourselves as friends? Are we willing to get our hands and feet dirty as we climb the walls of a house? Would we even climb the walls of the house? Are we the kind of friends to exhaust all possibilities for the sake of our friend’s miracle? The kind who will use all we have so our friend can have a new chance at life? I hope these questions lead us to think about what kind of friends we really are and what kinds of friends we really have.
Proverbs 18:24 speaks of an unreliable friend bringing ruin and true friends sticking closer than family (paraphrased, NLV). John 15:13 says there is no greater love than one who will lay down his life for a friend (NKJV).
There were four men with a friend in crisis. They showed up for him. They stuck closer to him than his family. They risked (gave) their lives, to get him through a roof so he could live. There was no question what kind of friends they were to him.
With this year drawing to a close and a new one on the horizon, there are lots of efforts being undertaken. We are accomplishing goals, exercising more, eating less of the wrong things and so on. I offer two suggestions for our list of year-end tasks:
1
Complete a self-assessment of the kind of friend you are to others. It’s not a matter of what you think but rather what you are. The best way to do this is to ask your friends how you show up in their lives and others’ and for them to answer honestly.
2
Complete a friend detox. Consider the ways in which your friends show up for you — is it in their time of need or yours? Do they receive and give or only receive?
I hope you take me up on the suggestions so by end the year you can feel free of unfriendly baggage and begin the New Year knowing without any doubt who is really on your side.
