Through the Roof

“When they were not able to bring him in because of the crowd, they removed the roof above Jesus. Then, after tearing it out, they lowered the stretcher the paralytic was lying on” (Mark 2:4, NET).

I loved watching the above plot unfold in The Chosen. (Have you watched that show yet? If you haven’t, boy, should you!!) It’s truly such a unique story. Let’s visit it together in our imagination for a moment. Can you see, with your mind’s eye, the scene from inside the room where Jesus is? The first thought that comes to my mind is, this kind of over-capacity crowd was probably a fire hazard. Nobody was worried, though. They wanted to come into close contact with the fire of God that was flowing through Jesus.

What about when the noise began above their heads? They must have all looked up at the ceiling. What in the world?? I would wager that Jesus paused His ministry and gazed upward with everyone else. A small hole would have begun to open up, dirt and debris falling down on everyone below. I can see people dusting it off and trying to inch out of the way.

I can only imagine what a reaction was coming out of the owner of the house as this unfolded. Was he yelling frantically for the roof demolition to stop? Was Jesus gently instructing him to hold his peace? Were the paralytic’s buddies hollering down that they would cover the cost for the repairs?

Whatever it looked like that day, this was a dramatic scene indeed. These four men went to an extreme to get their friend the help he needed. You know, they were modeling for us what it means to put love into action. They could have shrugged and resigned themselves that day to the impossibility of getting help from Jesus. Instead, they aggressively went after it until they obtained it. Real love finds a way when there is no way.

God probably won’t call you and me to tear open any literal holes in physical roofs. However, He invites us to aggressively go after solutions in prayer. We get to partner with Him, making holes in the heavens. He invites us to cry out to Him, “If only you would tear apart the sky and come down!” (Isa. 64:1, NET).

Those four friends are a picture of the kind of intercession He invites us into: unwavering, indefatigable intercession. They didn’t stop until their friend was healed. When we cry out to God to tear apart every hindrance getting in the way of redemption, He responds. He rends the heavens, and He comes down.

In prayer, you can carry another person right into the presence of Jesus like these men did. Look at what His response was – and is, every single time – “When Jesus saw the extent of their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, ‘My son, your sins are now forgiven…I tell you, stand up, take your stretcher, and go home’” (v. 5, TPT; v. 11, NET). He saw their faith, and He responded with deep compassion and life-changing power.

“My son,” He said tenderly to this broken man, looking right into his eyes. He gave him a new identity: no longer helpless, hopeless sinner, but beloved son. This, followed by the flabbergasting miracle of his physical healing!

It’s mind blowing what your prayers can do for someone. When you pray, ask God to tear open the heavens over your friend’s life. With the eyes of your heart, see that person brought directly into His immediate presence, the presence of the Healer, the Redeemer, the Savior. Then pray for what they need with this kind of confidence: “When you performed awesome deeds that took us by surprise, you came down, and the mountains trembled before you. Since ancient times no one has heard or perceived, no eye has seen any God besides you, who intervenes for those who wait for him” (Isa. 64:3-4, NET).

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Do you take “rend the heavens” (Isa. 64:1) to be metaphorical? Spiritual? Both? Share your thoughts on this, I would love to hear them!