Have you ever seen anything like this?

The buzz and excitement over Jesus when He walked this earth was electric. People were amazed in a way they had never been amazed before.

One example is found in Mark 2. There’s a story about a paralyzed man whose four friends were convinced Jesus could heal him. The problem was, they couldn’t get to Jesus:

“When Jesus returned to Capernaum several days later, the news spread quickly that he was back home. Soon the house where he was staying was so packed with visitors that there was no more room, even outside the door. While he was preaching God’s word to them, four men arrived carrying a paralyzed man on a mat. They couldn’t bring him to Jesus because of the crowd …” Mark 2:1-3a.

Being convinced about Jesus, and committed to their friend, the four guys in the story didn’t let a crowd clog them out of getting the help their friend needed:

“They couldn’t bring him to Jesus because of the crowd, so they dug a hole through the roof above his head. Then they lowered the man on his mat, right down in front of Jesus. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralyzed man, ‘My child, your sins are forgiven.’ Mark 2:4-5.

So here’s a man who’s paralyzed. And then here is also Jesus. The outcome?

“‘So I will prove to you that the Son of Man has the authority on earth to forgive sins.’ Then Jesus turned to the paralyzed man and said, ‘Stand up, pick up your mat, and go home!’ And the man jumped up, grabbed his mat, and walked out through the stunned onlookers …” Mark 2:10-12a.

What the crowd witnessed blew their minds!

“… They were all amazed and praised God, exclaiming, ‘We’ve never seen anything like this before!'” Mark 2:12b.

The intensity of their amazement was because they, indeed, had never seen anything like such a miracle before.

That’s because they had never seen God in the flesh before! And when you have Jesus present, things are different!

That story made me think one of the problems of the church today is that it isn’t often that people look at a local church and are amazed at what they see. It’s not often that people look at a local church, specifically the way the people in that church love and care for one another, and find themselves amazed and saying, “We’ve never seen anything like this before!”

But they should.

Because where Jesus is, things are different.

And Jesus is the head of His church. Because Christ is in us, and we in Him, we should be different, we should treat each other differently, and that should be amazing to the world outside the church.

It was when the world looked at the first church. Because of their love and unity in the faith, they were different, they lived differently, they loved and cared differently, and the world was amazed by it:

“All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer. A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders. And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need. They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity — all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved,” Acts 2:42-47.

When the world around your local church looks at your fellowship, are they amazed by what they see? Are they moved by the level of love, compassion, and unity they see shared among you? Or does it look much like the old world around them? How does Christ in you make you and your church different to those around you?

Scotty