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The following is a listing of the Bible Truths in Mark 2:1-12, the story of
Jesus healing a paralyzed man.
- Four men made a tremendous effort to bring their paralyzed friend to
Jesus. Mark 2:3-4.
- The men demonstrated their faith by their behavior. Mark 2:3:5.
- When a person places faith in Jesus, Jesus chooses to forgive sin. Mark 2:5.
- Jesus showed His authority as God by forgiving sins and healing the paralyzed
man. Mark 2:10-12.
- Jesus has authority to forgive sins. Mark 2:10-11.
- Jesus has power over sickness. Mark 2:11-12.
- Jesus' ministry brought glory to God. Mark 2:12.
The following Background Information is helpful in understanding the story.
 | Sin - When we
disobey God in what we do, think, or say. Sin displeases God and makes
a person unacceptable to God. |
| Forgiveness - When a
sinner turns away from his sins and asks for God's cleansing, God is pleased
to accept him.
 | Forgiveness is for those who believe in Jesus
Christ (Acts 10:43). |
| Sinners ask for forgiveness (Matthew 6:12). |
| Sinners asking for forgiveness forgive others
who have wronged them (Matthew 6:14-15). |
| Sinners repent, or turn from their sinful ways,
when asking for forgiveness (Mark 1:4; Acts 2:38). |
| Sinners confess their sins when asking for
forgiveness (1 John 1:9). |
|
| Scribes - Scribes, who
are called "teachers of the Law" in the New International
Version of the Holy Bible, continuously increased in importance during
Biblical times. The first Scribes wrote whatever needed to be remembered. One
of their jobs was to make new copies of
Scripture as the old copies needed replacing. The constant exposure to
Scripture led to the role of interpreting the Mosaic Law. The
Scribes applied the Law to daily situations and their findings became common
law for the Jewish people. By New Testament times, Scribes also served
as Teachers of the Law, Judicial Officials, Theologians, and keepers of the
Scriptures. Scribes based their teachings on Scripture and traditions passed down from previous
generations. The Scribes emphasized strict obedience to the smallest details of
the Law. Jesus was critical of the traditions taught by the Scribes
(Mark 7:1-13) and did not base His teachings on these traditions (Mark
1:22). The Scribes opposed Jesus because He claimed to speak and act for God (Mark
2:6-7). Jesus' teachings included warnings to beware of the
Scribes because they showed a proud, high class appearance in public while
behaving corruptly in private (Mark 12:38-40). Thus, it is not
surprising that the Scribes were one of the groups initiating the arrest and
crucifixion of Jesus (Mark 14:43). For more information, refer to the Dictionary
of Jesus and the Gospels edited by Joel B. Green and Scot McKnight. |
The following activities can be used to teach the Bible Truths.
Bible Story Activities.
| Make a Get Well Card - Let the children
choose markers, colors, pens, construction paper, etc. to use in
designing a Get Well Card for a friend. |
| What is Sin and Forgiveness?
See discussion under "Background" above.
| Ask the class to define Sin and write the
definition on the board. Read Isaiah 59:2. |
| Ask the class for examples of sins against other
people and sins against God. Write the examples on the
board. Ask them to describe how they felt when someone did
something wrong to them. |
| Ask the class to define Forgiveness and write
the definition on the board. Read what the Bible says about
Forgiveness in Acts 10:43; Matthew 6:12; 6:14-15; Mark 1:4; Acts 2:38; 1
John 1:9. |
| Ask the class to describe situations when they
forgave someone else or they were forgiven by someone else. How
did they act and feel toward the person before and after the Forgiving
took place? |
|
| Ask the Whiz Kid - Part I.
Use
this activity to help the children think about the topics of Sin,
Forgiveness, and Showing your Faith by Example.
| Print the "Dear Whiz Kid" letters
listed below and put the letters in separate envelopes. |
| Give a letter to each student in the class and
ask the students how they would respond to the letters. Discuss
the responses. |
| Page 1 includes letters from:
 | "Torn"
- Wants to know who he should hang with, his weird cousin who just
moved to town or his friends. |
| "Sweet
Tooth" - His best friend is stealing candy at the corner
store. Is it o.k. for him to eat the candy since he did not steal
it? |
| "Game
Girl" - How can she convince her parents to buy her a Game Boy? |
|
| Page 2 includes letters from:
| "Card
Freak" - Messed up his dad's mint condition Babe Ruth card. What should he do? |
| "Cheated"
- Should she tell her friends how mean and unfair her teacher is? |
|
| Page 3 includes letters from:
| "Confused" - Needs to
choose between picking on another boy or being made fun of himself. |
| "Betrayed" - Should
she give her best friend another chance? |
| "Mature Enough" -
Wants to know what cuss words are o.k. to use. |
|
| Page 4 includes letters from:
| "Scared" - Why can't
she let her brother take the blame? |
| "Just in Case" - Is
it o.k. to carry a good luck charm just in case? |
| "Team Player" - Will
God understand if I skip church to go to soccer practice? |
|
| Page 5 includes letters from:
| "Being Watched" - He does
not understand why his mom says he should watch the way he acts. |
| "TV Rules" - Needs help
making rules for watching TV. |
| "In the Middle" - Why can't
we all be friends? |
|
| Page 6 includes letters from:
| "I Love Music" - Wants to
know why she cannot listen to the same music her friends do. |
| "Let Down" - His favorite
baseball player was just arrested. Should he find a new hero? |
| "Slumber Party" - Should
she watch a movie at a friend's house that her parents will not let
her watch at home? |
|
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| Thought Question - Jesus did two things for
the paralyzed man. He forgave his sins and healed the man. Ask
the students if it is more important to have your sins forgiven or to have
your paralyzed body healed. Why? If the students had to choose
between forgiveness or healing, what would the choice be? Additional
thoughts include:
| The men never spoke to Jesus. How did Jesus know what they
wanted? Why did Jesus choose to forgive the man's sins before
healing the man? |
| Sin separates us from God. Read Isaiah 59:2. |
| A sick body does not separate us from God. |
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Life In Biblical Times.
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