LET GO OF THOSE HURTS AND PAINS

Many times, when we experience failures in the past, we seem to hold on to it tightly. We cling on to these memories. We tend to grasp these in our hands. We cannot forget. We always remember and play back over and over again in our memory recall those unforgettable incidents that have happened many years ago. We remember how people mocked and laughed at us. We remember how we have been humiliated. We remember how we have been disgraced. We remember the blow and the pain in our hearts. Because of such bad memories, we are unable to go on. We cannot move forward. We are not healed emotionally. We are not healed physically. We could not recover. We have put ourselves in prison of our own making. We remain on our mat still knocked out cold and unable to stand just like the paralytic.

Jesus is looking at us today. Jesus wants us to let go. He wants us to stand up. We must be released from those hurts. We must be set free from those pains. We must be unleashed from those failures. He said to you and to me: “GET UP.” Get up O sister! Get up O father! Get up O mother. Get up O sons. Jesus says to you and me: GET UP!

When you get up and let go of those hurts and pains, it means that you and I must learn to face those past problems squarely and deal with them properly. Put them in your back. These are but records of your history. The past is past and you could not bring them back. You must not resurrect them to life. It might be alive in your memory but not in reality.

Therefore, we must get rid of our victim mentality. We are NOT victims; we are victors in Christ. We are NOT victims; we are more than conquerors in Christ. Therefore, we must get up and get going. We must go beyond our limited thinking of the past. We must get out of that regular routine and get our dream back again. Let us remember that God can do what man cannot do in us. Therefore He tells to every one of us, “GET UP!”

These are the same words that God spoke to Joshua before they entered the Promised Land. Moses was no longer with them. Joshua was now the new leader. He has a big task ahead of him. God said to Joshua: “Get up! Why are you lying on your face like this?” (Josh. 7:10 –Living Translation). The Israelites had just been defeated by the enemy in battle. They were outmaneuvered. They were humiliated. Their confidence had vanished. They fell flat in their face. This was after the great victory when the walls of Jericho had fallen.

Joshua still remembers the time when he was in his horse jubilant for the victory. They just blew the trumpet and the walls of Jericho had fallen. Amazing. They were so confident that they could conquer that next little town called Ai. But no! They were wrong. They were mistaken. They could not understand it. Now, they were beaten terribly and their self-esteem had been crushed. Joshua was lying on his face and nursing his wounds. He was discouraged. He was wallowing in self-pity. He could not stand up. What face will he show to those people? How can he lead again with this condition?

But God told Joshua, “GET UP.” Bet strong. Take courage. Believe God for better things. God is able. God is all that we need. God can heal our hurts. God can heal our pains. God can heal our sorrows. God can transform our lives. Get up and trust God. He is your only Hope. He is your shield. Commit your life to Jesus and you will be healed.

GET UP!

Mark 2:11 (NIV) “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.”

In our text for today, we find JESUS CHRIST in a large house teaching the people about the kingdom of God. We find Him emphasizing about God’s authority to heal. He was encouraging people to trust God. He wanted to give them new expectation and confidence in life. He wanted to bring them closer to God. However, he had difficulty getting through to their hearts because there were some Pharisees present at that time that came not to learn but to criticize him. Their hearts were not teachable. Their hearts were bitter. They were jealous of Jesus’ popularity.

When suddenly, four men brought down a paralytic from the roof of the house. Jesus was disrupted in his teaching, but he did not mind. He knew that this was important. Every disruption in life has a purpose. Every disruption in life is an opportunity to learn. Every disruption in life is a good break to gain new knowledge from a different perspective. He realized that this man needed help. This can be an object lesson to teach them a lesson of the heart.

And so, looking closely at the man, Jesus knew that the paralytic has been invalid for many years. He could not stand. He could not walk. He was so dependent to the four men for help. Many times he tried to stand up but probably he failed. He failed several times. Because of this, he did not try again. He lost all hope. He lost all faith. He lost his self-esteem. He thought that this is what life is all about. There is nothing more that he could do. He does not want to exert any more effort to improve himself because he does not want to fail again.

After all, he has become so comfortable lying in his own bed that he thought that this is his destiny. He thought that his end was near. It was like the sunset in his life. There was gloom and doom in the horizon. But you and I know that this is not what life is all about. There is beauty in the sunset. After the sunset comes the sunrise. There is much more to life than just lying in bed and being dependent to others for help. There is much more to life than being bitter to your present situation. This man must stand up and overcome his failures of the past. That is why Jesus looked at the man and said in the hearing of them all, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” (vs. 11).

Jesus told him to stand up. He wanted him to build his faith back in his heart. He wanted him to believe God for big things ahead. He wanted him to go beyond his limited thinking of the past. He wanted him to set his eyes on the supernatural God. To keep a positive faith. That he will never give up. That ultimately, God will give him a fresh new start in life even if he failed several times in the past.

Jesus is speaking the same message to each one of us. Probably you had been like the paralytic for so long. You might be lying there in your bed of depression for so long. You might have been raised in an unhealthy family environment. You might have experienced the pains of rejection. You have lost your self-esteem. You blamed the past for your bad attitudes. You blamed the past for your poor choices. You blamed the past for your hot temper. But Jesus is saying to each of us: “GET UP. Take up your mat and go home.”