Lesson 19: The Authority to Forgive Sins (Luke 5:17-26)

There is a focus in Luke 5 on the authority of Jesus, authority that is joyously accepted by some and disdained by others. Those two worlds collide in this section. We observe some faithful friends literally tearing the roof off of a house to get their paralyzed companion close to Jesus because they believed that Christ had the power to help him. As Jesus tangibly confirmed this belief, the stage was set for the religious authorities to reveal their disbelief in Jesus authority, especially His authority to forgive sins. The key point then of this message from Pastor Daniel is that, “as God, Jesus Christ has the total, complete, full authority and ability to totally, completely, fully, entirely, wholly, forgive the sins of those who place their faith in Him.” It follows, therefore, that we should, 1) Beware of challenging Christ’s authority in our hearts and, 2) Produce fruit that demonstrates our faith.

Summary by Seth Kempf, Bethany Community Church Staff