Mark 2:1-12

Jesus asserts his authority to forgive sins in full view of the religious leaders. It's one thing for him to heal people--they can accept that he's FROM God, maybe like the prophets of old, but they can't accept that he IS God! Only God can forgive sins. I'm sure he began to make enemies on that day. He could have healed the paralytic without being so confrontational, but it was time. He didn't want them to follow him just because he could heal them. He was there to save sinners by forgiving sins. What good is it to save the body if it dies in its sin and the soul is eternally lost? The body will one day get sick again and die, but the soul lives on.