My God and My Country

Word of God

But he replied and said, "It is written, 'It is not by bread alone that a man lives, except by every word that issues from the mouth of God

The Gospel According to Matthew 4:4

The Gospel According to Mark 2:10-11

Commentary and study notes by

Matthew Henry and John Gill

Edited/Prefaced by Dr. Riktor Von Zhades

10 But that ye may know, that the Son of man hath authority in earth to forgive sins, he said unto the sick of the palsy, 11 I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy bed, and get thee hence into thine own house.

Brethren:

In a previous study we have read the word; “authority”. Many times in the four Gospels we see that same word. Too often it is the belief of this writer that we tend to forget the deity of our Savior. True, He was indeed love, compassion, and forgiveness, yet more importantly He was God in the flesh. When we go further into this chapter we read how the scribes spoke and reasoned among themselves that only God can forgive sins. And they were right for only God can do so. However, where they went wrong was that they could not recognize that Messiah had come to them with all power and authority as given to Him by God. As such, He was not only able to perform the miracles of which we read today, but was indeed granted the right to forgive sins. And not only forgive them, but to take all of our own upon His shoulders and pay the price for them on the cross for us. How magnificent a Savior we serve! - Dr. R.V.Z

“In front of the whole crowd, in the face of the lawyers lined up by the wall, and without even a touch from the hand of Jesus, the paralyzed man rises to his feet, bends down again, rolls up his mattress, puts it over his shoulder and makes his way out through the throng. So which is easier? The point is that the healing proves Jesus is genuine. Although the Old Testament prophets occasionally healed people, no real prophet ever claimed to forgive sins. But Jesus does! Now it is up to the crowd and the teachers of the law to draw the correct conclusions. The fact that Jesus has healed the man with a word excludes the possibility that he is a harmless madman. The fact that he lives a humble life and accepts the rejects of society excludes the possibility that he is an evil tyrant (for even Hitler spoke with authority). The only option left is the hardest one of all – that he is actually who he claims to be, he is what the Bible points us to: he is the man who is God.” - Source - “ A Ransom for Many; Welwyn Commentary Series”