Not everyone wants to hear truth, especially not those whose lives are convicted by truth spoken in public. To them, spoken truth is a social humiliation. They hear it not as truth, but as a painful branding of themselves as less than those around them. This is something their pride cannot tolerate, and they seek to rebrand truth as lies.
Matthew 9:2 reads, “Some men brought to him a paralytic, lying on a mat. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven.” ” Still immobile on his mat, the paralytic can know that while he yet has to suffer paralysis, he is free before God. Those around him are filled with wonder at Jesus’ words, but some of the teachers of the law are immediately convicted. They had not been trying to free people from their sins. They had instead been busy instructing people how to legalistically gain God’s favor through certain observed behaviors – something that a paralytic could not do. In their eyes and from their teaching, the paralytic would’ve been bound to his sin and cursed of God to suffer. They saw the paralytic as quite unlike themselves, who they felt had and were earning God’s approval.
That Jesus immediately forgives when the paralytic is presented to Him is both a sharp hurt to their pride, as well as a harsh rebuke to their teaching. But instead of considering the truth of Jesus’ actions, they immediately see Jesus as wrong on both counts, and that in the worst way possible, “At this, some of the teachers of the law said to themselves, “This fellow is blaspheming!”
It never even occurs to these particular teachers of the law that perhaps He is not blaspheming. Perhaps He is who He presents Himself to be – the Son of God, sent of God to preach the Word of God and do the will of God. Perhaps they have been and are now, just plain wrong. But even that is too light a conclusion. “Knowing their thoughts, Jesus said, “Why do you entertain evil thoughts in your hearts?” ”
It is not merely wrong to hear the Words of God and think error of them. It is evil.
Calling God’s truth a blasphemy is pure, unadulterated evil. A wrong is just a mistake. The teachers of the law are not making a simple mistake. They are labeling the truth and beauty of the forgiveness of God Most High as incompatible with the God they know. In doing so, they elevate themselves to the position of judge over God. That is not a simple mistake. That is – ironically – the worst kind of blasphemy. It is as evil as what Lucifer did when he said in his heart, “I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of the sacred mountain. I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.”
It takes discernment to learn how to parse between good and best. But it does not take discernment to know how to parse between evil and good. The two are as different as night and day. When we come across God’s truth and take offence, we have to know that God’s truth is not the offender. We are, and our sense of offence should drive us to take a good hard look at our hearts.
Amen.
Even in the disclosure of sin a further purpose is evident: that having discovered their sin, people might turn to Christ for cleansing from it.
James Montgomery Boice
APPLICATION: Intentionality
What has God’s latest work produced in you? To the pure in heart, God’s truth is always and consistently peace, righteousness and joy.