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Listen to sermons from Christ Covenant Church in Charlotte, NC and Pastor Kevin DeYoung.
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Coleson White | The Priorities of Jesus
Sunday Evening, October 12, 2025
Given by Dr. Kevin DeYoung | Senior Pastor
Christ Covenant Church
The Priorities of Jesus
Sermon Text: Mark 2:1-12
Good evening, Christ Covenant Church. My name is Coleson White. As I already said, I'm a pastoral intern here. And tonight, we're going to be continuing on through our sermon series of pastors’ favorites, but since I'm your pastoral intern, that changes the sermon series tonight to your pastoral intern's favorite. And, as many others have given the caveat before, that what they're preaching through is not their favorite text, this is one of my favorite texts. So, you can rest assured in that tonight. Pastoral intern's favorites. Let's pray and ask for God's help upon the preaching and reading of his word.
Father in heaven, who are we that you are mindful of us? Who has been your counselor? Who has given to you that it should be repaid? For from you, and to you, and through you are all things. To you belongs the glory forever and ever. Yet, Father, we humbly come before you tonight, asking for your help. Lord, we do not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from your mouth. And we, like the disciples, are asking tonight, where else can we go for the words of eternal life? Lord, please give us your word. Show us Christ through the scriptures by your Spirit. We pray these things in Jesus’ holy name. Amen.
This evening we're going to be in Mark chapter 2, verses 1-12. You can start flipping there right now, but before we read through the text, I want to briefly give some context of where we are at in Mark's gospel. So once you flip to chapter 2, if you can flip back one page to chapter 1, we'll situate ourselves and then get going. You see there in chapter 1, verse 1, that Mark starts right away by telling you what he is doing. He says “the beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the son of God,” and he shows that Jesus is the fulfillment of this prophecy in Isaiah, specifically as John the Baptist is the forerunner to the Messiah. You see there in verse 9 through 12 that Jesus is baptized. He's tempted by Satan. And then in verse 14, Jesus begins his public ministry in the region of Galilee by proclaiming the gospel of God. We see there in verse 21 of chapter 1 that Jesus goes into the city of Capernaum, and Capernaum is a city in the region of Galilee, much like Matthews is a city in the greater Charlotte metro region. So Jesus is going back in between Galilee and Capernaum in this chapter, and he's teaching with authority in the synagogue, you see there in that section, and he cast out a demon. In verses 29-34 he performs some more miracles, and then in verse 38, there, Jesus says, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out.”
So throughout chapter 1 you see Jesus doing two things: he's preaching the gospel, he's teaching with authority, and he's performing miracles and casting out demons. And as you can expect of one who is preaching with authority and performing miracles, we see there in verse 28 that Mark says, "And at once his fame spread everywhere throughout the surrounding region of Galilee.” Jesus is becoming famous. And so you, as the reader, are supposed to be asking the question, who is Jesus? What is he here for? What is his mission? He says that he came to preach the gospel to people, but why is he healing? How does that fit into his ministry? So that's where our text in Mark chapter 2 picks up tonight. So if you turn there with me, Mark chapter 2, verses 1-12. This is God's holy, inerrant, and sufficient Word:
“And when he returned to Capernaum after some days, it was reported that he was at home. And many were gathered together so that there was no more room, not even at the door. And he was preaching the word to them. And they came, bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him. And when they had made an opening, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay. And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, ‘Son, your sins are forgiven.’ Now some of the scribes were sitting there questioning in their hearts. Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming. Who can forgive sins but God alone? And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, ‘Why do you question these things in your hearts? Which is easier to say to the paralytic, “Your sins are forgiven,” or to say, “Rise, take up your bed, and walk”? But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins, he said to the paralytic, "I say to you, rise, pick up your bed, and go home."’ And he rose and immediately picked up his bed and went out before them all, so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, ‘We never saw anything like this.’"
Thus ends the reading of God's holy, inerrant word. May he write his eternal truth on all our hearts. So tonight in this story of Jesus' ministry in Mark chapter 2, we are going to see what are Jesus' priorities in his ministry, and how does that affect your relationship with him? We're going to push through that central purpose by examining our text under three headings for tonight. In verses 1-5, we're going to see Jesus’ priority. In verses 6-7, we'll see Jesus’ opposition. In verses 8-12, we'll see Jesus’ proof. So we have priority, opposition, and proof. And we'll end with two points of application.
So, I'd like to direct your attention, there, to chapter 2, verse 1. It says that Jesus is returned to this city of Capernaum. He's in a house. He's preaching the word to these people, as we see in verse 2. And Mark makes a special note of just how packed this house is. There's no more room, not even to the door. You imagine yourself walking in five minutes late to a morning service here at Christ Covenant, and it's probably much of the same feeling. There's no room to sit, not even in the balcony. But in this small Israelite house, there's bodies flooding out the doors, trying to get a sight, trying to hear the words of Jesus preaching. And at the beginning of this story, we are then introduced into another scene there in verse 3.
So there's two scenes happening simultaneously, that Jesus is preaching in this house, and then in 2:3, we are introduced to these men carrying this paralyzed friend to see Jesus, probably on something like a stretcher. And it's important to remember that in the ancient world, something like paralysis would have been a death sentence if you would not have had family members or friends to care for you. And for this family or this group of friends, whatever they are, this has probably been their life for a long time. This man has probably been paralyzed, maybe since birth, but probably for years. And this has been all that they've known. They've known life by taking care of their paralyzed friend. And so you can imagine in your mind's eye with some sanctified imagination the scene as they hear that Jesus arrives in Capernaum. They are sitting around one night, and they say, "Oh, have you heard about this Jesus guy? He's going around. He's preaching. He's casting out demons. He's healing people. Isn't that crazy that he's in Capernaum? He's so close to us.” And you can imagine one of them gets the bright idea. They say, "Well, what if we go? What if we go to see Jesus? What if we take our paralyzed friend to see Jesus?" Maybe after some deliberation, one of them pulls out the line and says, "Isn't it worth it? Isn't it worth it if this – if our friend could just be healed by seeing Jesus?” Maybe some of them are skeptical. Maybe some are hopeful. We don't really know. But they're probably all thinking, "Wouldn't it be great if Jesus healed our friend?" That's why they're taking their paralyzed friend to Jesus. They want him to be healed.
So, they wake up early the next morning. They make a plan to take their friend to go see Jesus. They walk however far they need to. And as they arrive at this house where Jesus is preaching, they're heartbroken. There's no room. They can't – they can hear Jesus's voice, but they can't get a line of sight to him. There's no clear path to Jesus. It's like showing up to the North Carolina DMV at 6:00 a.m. and realizing that there have been people there since 2:00 a.m. But these men do not stop. They go up on the roof, and they begin digging a hole in the roof – literally unroofing the roof. Quick side note here: I was struck by the dedication of these friends. Do you have friends like this in your life, who will point you to Jesus and bring you to him at all costs? Who will disregard all social norms that you might have a clearer glimpse of your Savior? Maybe another way to ask the question is what kind of friend are you? Are you the kind of person that points your friendships to Christ? Often we can center our friendships around good things, good, God-pleasing things, but how often are you pointing your friends to Christ?
So, as we jump back into our story, you can imagine yourself sitting in this house as Jesus is preaching. You're shoulder to shoulder. It's hot. It's sweaty. And Jesus is preaching, and all of a sudden you hear bang, bang, bang – what’s that noise from above? The ceiling starts to fall. A cone of light shines through, and the next thing you see, there's a paralyzed man being lowered through the air. The room is silent. The tension is palpable. Everyone is wondering, "What is Jesus going to do? What is this up-and-coming preacher who just got interrupted going to do? Are his disciples going to kick this man out? Is Jesus going to ignore him? Is Jesus going to chastise him for interrupting him? Or will Jesus live up to his reputation and heal him? And friends, I hope what Jesus says in verse 5 is just as shocking to you as it would have been to those that were probably listening to Jesus preach that night. Because as this man is lowered down from the ceiling, is put right in front of Christ, what does Jesus say there in verse 5? He says, "Son, your sins are forgiven."
And you can imagine these people being like, "Jesus, what are you talking about? Can't you see that this man can't walk? His legs don't work. Why are you talking about his sins? Why are you talking about his soul? Why are you talking about his spiritual state? We want you to fix the real problem. What are you doing? But friends, this story proves that Jesus knows something that we don't know. Because Jesus proves to know that he knows that this man's real problems are not his physical deformity. They are not that he can't walk or that he has to live life different than someone who can walk. This man's real problem is his sin-stained condition. And because Jesus knows this, he proves to have different priorities than you or I would have. Jesus' priority towards us is the forgiveness of our sins. And I hope Jesus' words in verse 5 prick up your theological antenna a little bit, because we know that in Hebrews 9, the author of Hebrews says that without the shedding of blood, there can be no forgiveness of sins. There can be no atonement. So, how can Jesus say this to this man? How can Jesus pronounce this man's sins as forgiven before he has paid for his sins on the cross?
And I think to answer that question, we need to zoom out a little bit in Mark's gospel and examine Mark's narrative as a whole, because Mark's gospel has the largest percentage of its content dedicated to the Passion narrative. You'll remember that the Passion narrative is Jesus' suffering, crucifixion, and death and burial. More than any of the other gospels, Mark has 16 chapters, and three of those chapters, which is 18% of Mark's content by chapter, is dedicated to the Passion narrative, whereas Matthew and Luke only have 7% dedicated to the Passion narrative. But nine chapters, in total, of Mark are dedicated towards Jesus going to Jerusalem to die. The explicit focus of the last half of Mark's gospel is Jesus' predicted suffering and death – so much so, that many have called Mark's gospel a Passion narrative with an extended prologue. Peter Bolt, who is a scholar on the Gospel of Mark, says this: “The cross cast its shadow of prominence over Mark early in the narrative.”
So we see that what's happening here is that the atonement and cross – the idea of the atonement and the cross – in Mark has somewhat of a snowballing effect, that it has such an important emphasis at the end of the gospel that we have to interpret the earlier chapters in light of it. Again, Bolt says that this story in Mark 2 is something like a linkage – a forward linkage to the cross. And you'll quickly trace Mark's narrative with me. In chapter 8, Peter confesses him as the Christ. And then Jesus three times predicts his suffering and death before the climactic statement that he gives in Mark 10:45. Many of you know it well: “The son of man came not to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.” This is why Jesus came into the world. This is why Jesus preached repentance in the coming kingdom of God. This is why Jesus performed miracles – all so that he could give his life as a ransom for you, if you would have faith in him.
And friends, I want you to notice also in verse 5 – there's a lot of good stuff in that short verse – what does Jesus see when this man is being lowered from the ceiling? What is Jesus looking at? He's not looking at the hole in the ceiling. He's not looking at this paralyzed man being descended onto the floor. He's not thinking about what interruption this just caused to his preaching. No, what does it say there, in verse 5? It says that Jesus sees their faith. So friend, whether you are coming to Jesus for the first time or the five billionth time, you have to know that when you come to Jesus in faith, he doesn't see your “could have done betters.” He doesn't see your addictions to sin. He doesn't see your mistakes. He doesn't see the ways that you could have been a better parent last week. He doesn't see your sins. He doesn't see your deformities. He doesn't see your problems. He sees your faith. What a great Savior you and I have, that if you come to him in faith, even the smallest bit of faith, he accepts you and he says, "I will never cast you out.” Do you see that there in verse 5? Run to Jesus with complete abandonment of all the other cares of this world, with faith and trust that he will receive you in love.
That moves us into our second point for this evening: Jesus' opposition there in verses 6-7, because not all in this passage are coming to Jesus in faith. We're supposed to see a clear contrast between these men as they're bringing their paralyzed friend to Jesus and those of the scribes and Pharisees. We see there in verse 6 that these scribes are charging Jesus of blasphemy. They're saying, "Who can forgive sins but God alone? Who do you think you are, Jesus, to say something so insane, something that only God can do?” And in many ways, these scribes are speaking better than they know. But in Mark 14, verse 64, the charge of blasphemy is the exact charge that they end up condemning Jesus and crucifying him for. So throughout Mark's gospel, this is what they nail Jesus for. And that should give us pause for a moment, that these scribes, who spent their whole lives studying the word of God missed the Word made flesh right in front of their face. They accused the holy Lord of the universe of blasphemy, and in doing so, committed the ultimate act of blasphemy themselves. So Christ Covenant, take heed lest you fall. You can know the word of God better than anyone else in this church, but if you do not know the Word made flesh – Jesus – we can be in a dangerous spot. You can know the right answers, you can go to Covenant Day School, to Greyfriars, you can be homeschooled, you can grow up in the Christian south, but if you do not come to Jesus in faith like this paralyzed man and his friends, you will be questioning Jesus forever in your heart like these scribes.
Jesus is not a subject to be analyzed. He is the lamb of God that came to take away the sins of the world. And you see there in verse 8 that Jesus knows where you're at tonight. He can perceive the hearts of these scribes without them even saying anything. He knows where you're at. Do not question him in your hearts, but trust in him by faith.
That leads us into our third point: Jesus’ proof in verses 8-12. Because you see there in verse 9, Jesus responds to these scribes’ accusation by asking them a question in return, as he often does. In verse 9 there, Jesus says, "Which is easier to say to the paralytic? Your sins are forgiven? Or to say, rise, take up your bed, and walk?” And the answer to Jesus' rhetorical question is that it's much easier to say that your sins are forgiven. Because to say to someone, “rise, pick up your bed, and walk,” that is a physical claim. It's immediately verifiable by sight. But to make the claim that one's sins are forgiven, that can't be verified empirically. And so Jesus here is using a stronger reason argument. He's saying that if I can heal this man's sins, I can surely heal his body. Paralysis is not the real problem here. It is the fact that this man is a sinner. And in verse 10, Jesus, to prove that he is the Daniel 7 Son of Man, with the authority on heaven and earth to forgive sins, he says that – he tells this man, he says, "Rise, take up your bed and go home." And this proves that Jesus is not only willing to forgive you, dear Christian, but he is able to. He is able and willing to forgive you, and both are necessary for your salvation. And in these words, here in verse 10, Jesus makes the connection that we've been waiting to see in Mark's gospel. He makes the connection between the forgiveness of sins and Jesus' teaching and Jesus' healing.
The purpose of Jesus’ healing ministry is to validate the truth of his preaching. You can think of two-factor authentication, which you have to do on almost every single online account we have nowadays, whether it's your fantasy football or your bank account. When you log in, they say, "What's your phone number? What's your email? We're going to send you a code so you can re-input that code into our website to prove that you are who you say you are.” If you're like me, you can never remember which email you use, so you always go for the phone number. And Jesus' miracles are the authentication code to his preaching. Jesus preaches verbally the forgiveness of sins, the coming kingdom of God, and these miracles that he does are to verify that what Jesus proclaims from his mouth is truly from the mouth of God. So when you ask that question of “why don't we see miracles as ordinarily in the gospels or in Acts as we do today,” the answer is that these were unique times in redemptive history when God is verifying his message and verifying his messengers, as we read earlier in Hebrews 2. And so by healing this paralytic's body with his words, Jesus proves that his words also healed this paralytic's soul. And moreover, he proves that these scribes are right. Only God can forgive sins. But Jesus proves that he is not the blasphemer, but they are.
That moves us into our two application points. Our first one will be very much shorter than the second. Application one – speaking to the doubter. Because Christian, if you have trusted in Christ by faith, you are forgiven in your sins. And maybe you're tempted to ask, where is my miracle? How can I know that this is true? Christian, you look to the cross. This is your sign of the forgiveness of your sins. Earlier I said that this point in Mark's narrative is in the shadow of the cross, but Christian, tonight you are not in the shadow of the cross. You stand with the sun at your back, fully illuminating the cross, and you see it clearly. Jesus died for the sins of his people. Jesus died for you, if you have faith in him. And if that is not enough for you, look at the work of the Holy Spirit in yourself, in those around you, of the sustenation [sic] of the church for over 2,000 years. Even more than that, God is so gracious that he gives us sensible signs in the sacraments, that we can know that Christ's blood was shed for our sins.
Second and final application point – this is to the doubting sufferer, or the suffering doubter, however you want to put it. Because many of you tonight are facing hard providences – cancer diagnoses, the loss of a loved one, a hard marriage, a perpetual pain in yourself or in your children. And maybe you're tempted to think – you say, "Where is my miracle? I wish I was like this paralytic. He got his sins forgiven and his body healed." And maybe sometimes, and just sometimes, and you're not always proud to admit this, but you think, "Jesus, why do you only forgive my sins? Won't you just take away my suffering? Won't you just heal my child's broken body? Why won't you fix my suffering?” And Satan is whispering in your ear, and he says, "Jesus only forgives your sins. He doesn't really care about you. If he did, he would forgive your sins and fix your problems. You deserve more.” But Christian, that is a filthy lie from the deceiver. Preach to yourself that forgiveness of sins is enough. Because so often we think about the forgiveness of our sins as a vertical relationship with God. It's just me and God. God forgives my sins and that's it. And that's certainly true. We want to take nothing away from that. But it is so much more than that.
The fact that you can be forgiven because the Son of God took on flesh and came into the world is so much greater than just a “you and him” thing. Mark starts his gospel by quoting Isaiah 40, which we read earlier in the service. And if you'll remember in Isaiah's prophecy that chapters 1-39 is judgment. It's bad, bad, bad. God's judging the nations. He's judging Israel. In chapter 40, what we read is the turning point. It's the hinge point in Isaiah's narrative, that before the promised salvation of the redeemer, the forerunner of Christ says, "Comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem that her iniquity is pardoned, that she has received from the Lord's hand double all her sins." The fact that Jesus came into the world is not just an individual forgiveness. It's also a corporate forgiveness of God's people. And that leads to Isaiah 65 – the promise of the new heavens and the new earth. Because Jesus came into the world and can forgive sins, he can then say that there will be a day when there's no more weeping, no more infants dying, no more old men who do not fill out their days. No more will your labor be in vain. No more calamity for children. Before they call, I will answer. While they are yet speaking, I will hear.
The Bible speaks of forgiveness of sin as a mere paintbrush stroke on the canvas of God's redemptive plan. And we can glory in the fact that we are forgiven by our redeemer in this life by faith, but Christian, there will be a day when your sin and your misery is no more. There will be a day when your temptations and your sufferings will be squashed. And you ask, "What sign do I have? What assurance of hope can you give me?” And as you look to the cross for the forgiveness of your sins, you look to the empty tomb for the assurance that all will be made right one day. Jesus is not dead. His body cannot be found on this earth. And because of that, there will be a day when he returns, and your misery and suffering will be no more.
But friend, as you wait for that day, you must remind yourself of this paradoxical, mysterious fact – that if it were not for this man's paralysis in Mark chapter 2, his friends would never have taken him to Christ. Think about that – that this was the providence that God used that this man might be brought to Jesus. His very illness, his very hard life circumstances, was the thing that God used him to draw him to his Savior. Joni Eareckson Tada – which many of you know, I'm sure, the founder of Joni and Friends – was 17 years old, and she dove into the Chesapeake Bay at a point that was deceptively shallow. In doing so, she fractured her spine and became a quadriplegic, meaning that she can't use any of her four limbs. Yet, over 50 years later, she says this: "My weakness, that is my quadriplegia, is my greatest asset, because it forces me into the arms of Christ every single morning when I get up.” Only the Christian can say that. No one else can say that – to view your sufferings and your toil in this world as the thing that points you to Christ. Many of you, your sufferings are real, and they are hard, and they are really hard. But use them as the thing that drives you to Christ morning after morning after morning after morning, until one day they will be gone, and you'll be face to face with your Savior forever. As you come to him now, he sees your faith. Trust in him that that faith, given by him to you, will take you to the resurrection. Let's pray.
Father in heaven, we praise you that you are a God that is merciful and gracious and abounding in steadfast love and that you will by no means pardon the guilty, and you prove that truth through the sending of your Son for the forgiveness of our sins. Lord, would you bind up the brokenhearted? Would you give faith to the doubter? Would you encourage the sufferer? And would you build up the saint? Help us to know that through your Son our sins are forgiven, by faith. We pray all these things in his name. Amen.