How To Bring Your Friends And Family To Jesus

The King's Church International Audio Podcast

God wants the whole world to know His love. First, He sent His only Son Jesus to live and die and rise again to bring us new life. Next, He sent His disciples to spread the good news everywhere. And today that remains the challenge and calling for every Christian. But first we need to start much closer to home by doing all we can to connect the people we know the best with Jesus. So we start a new series called: Bringing your friends and families to Jesus. Whatever the size or the state of your family, as Christians we must love our families. God has great plans for families. God wants to work miracles in our families, to reunite families, to bless families, to prosper families.

All of us need friends, not just so-called Facebook friends or Instagram friends but true friends that really care for us and want the best for us. So many people today are lonely and need real friends to help them. As Christians we can be great friends to people and the best thing we can do is to introduce our friends to Jesus.

We read in Luke 5:17-20 about four outstanding friends who did everything they could to help a friend in great need. Jesus was likely staying at Peter's house in Capernaum during this time. Capernaum was an ancient city on the northwestern shore of the Sea of Galilee, Israel which you can still visit. It was the operational centre for Jesus’ ministry, and where great crowds gathered from near and far to listen to the teaching of Jesus and seek miracles of healing. So many people packed into the house that the four friends who desperately wanted to help a sick friend could not get in. In those days, people relied on charity for their needs. Moreover, illness was often associated with sin, leading to social stigma. In this case, the paralysed man's condition not only caused physical pain but also added to his sense of isolation and helplessness. He definitely needed friends around. In this story we see:

1. Friends will carry you when you cannot carry yourself (Luke 5:18; Galatians 6:2)

2. Friends with real faith who believe in Jesus (Luke 5:18-20)

3. Friends who are determined to find a way to connect with Jesus (Luke 5:19; Mark 2:4)

4. Friends who will bring you great blessings (Luke 5:20; Luke 5:25-26; Hebrews 13:8)

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1. Friends will carry you when you cannot carry yourself (Luke 5:18). This paralysed man could not walk on his own. Often there are moments in life where is difficult to stand, to move and we need friends around us, people who will lift us up (Galatians 6:2). Carrying means much more than saying kind words or “I am praying for you.” It means going to them, lifting them up with encouragement, carrying the weight with them, pitching up to their house in a time of need, being available, helping them to stand strong. Maybe you feel like you are paralysed in some areas in your life. Well, today you can count on your church family. You are not alone, you are not friendless. Today we can lift each other up.

2. Friends with real faith who believe in Jesus (Luke 5:18). There are different kinds of friends: friends who can lead you in wrong ways and friends who can help you in the best ways, so we must choose friends with real faith who believe in Jesus. Real friends will not carry you just anywhere, say to the pub or sports ground. Real friends will carry you to the presence of Jesus. Real friends will take you to the right place, a place of hope, miracles and where you can encounter the one answer to your real need. Real friends can have faith for you even if you struggle to have faith for yourself. Real faith means real action. These friends were putting their faith into action. These 4 friends were determined to help their friend (e.g. when you invite someone to Life Class, you are being that good friend trying to carry your friends to the right place to encounter Jesus). Each one of us should take care to surround ourselves with people filled with faith, not people of doubts and negativity. Jesus was impressed by the faith of these four friends (Luke 5:20). Jesus immediately reacted to not only the faith of the paralysed man but especially to the faith of his four friends. This is the power of teamwork, the power of friends working together.

3. Friends who are determined to find a way to connect with Jesus (Luke 5:19). When these friends saw that there was no way in, they must have considered their options. The doors are blocked. People are spilling out everywhere. So, what now? Then one of them probably suggested ‘ok let’s make a hole in the roof. We’ll get him in some way, even if it means smashing in someone’s roof and getting into trouble’. How happy would you be if someone suddenly knocked a hole in your ceiling? Well, the four friends managed to get their paralysed friend to the roof. Then they started pulling or digging or banging. The NIV study notes on Mark 2:4 say: “The roof was often made of a thick layer of clay (packed with a stone roller), supported by mats of branches across wood beams.” The friends even had to remove tiles (Luke 5:19). Whatever mess they were creating with falling debris, they somehow managed to create a big enough hole to lower their friend down so that he ended up right in front of Jesus. These four friends exhibited extraordinary compassion and sensitivity towards their paralysed companion. But they were also so determined to overcome every obstacle stopping their friend getting to Jesus. We too must not be easily put off by difficulties in seeing a friend come to hear the gospel and see Jesus work in their lives. Maybe your friends are paralysed with work or social commitments. Maybe other friends want to keep them from Jesus. Maybe your friend has lost hope. Well, make a plan to help get your friends close to Jesus. Just do what it takes.

4. Friends who will bring you great blessings (Luke 5:20). The first reply of Jesus was not to heal, it was to forgive his sins. Jesus was interested in something much deeper than the physical aspect. A healing is for a limited amount of time. Forgiveness of sins is forever. So, what does it mean to be forgiven? Well maybe you live all the time with a guilty conscience, you may have done wrong, made many mistakes in your life and feel like you are spiritually paralysed. Forgiveness means that your relationship with God is restored and that you can be washed clean through the blood that Jesus shed at the cross. It means you can live a life of friendship with God. This man received the great gift of forgiveness. He was no longer paralysed by sin. But he also received physical healing (Luke 5:25-26). He came in paralysed through the roof but was able to walk out through the door. No wonder everyone was amazed. The same Jesus who healed this man is still the healer and saviour today (Hebrews 13:8). You can be healed in your body. You can be healed from whatever paralyses you. You can be healed in your mental health, your emotions and from traumatic past experiences. Wouldn’t you like to be forgiven and healed also? Wouldn’t you like to have friends like this? And wouldn’t you like to be friends like this and bring your friends to Jesus?