The Power of Faith Through Relationship

I. CORE THESIS

Irish Proverb: “There are good ships, and there are wood ships, the ships that sail the sea. But the best ships are friendships, and may they always be“.

• Key Exhortation: “Choose your circle of friends and family wisely.”

  • Lydia of Thyatira (Acts 16:13–15)

    • After she believed and was baptized, her household was baptized with her.

  • The Philippian Jailer (Acts 16:25–34)

    • “What must I do to be saved?” Paul replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.”

  • The Nobleman’s Son at Capernaum (John 4:46–54)

    • The man’s faith not only healed his son but led his entire household to believe in Jesus

  • The Centurion’s Servant (Matthew 8:5–13) 

    • A The servant was healed at that moment—entirely due to the centurion’s faith.

  • Jairus and His Daughter (Mark 5:21–43) 

    • Because of Jairus’s persistent faith, Jesus raised his daughter from the dead, restoring her to her family.

  • The Canaanite Woman’s Daughter (Matthew 15:21–28) 

    • Jesus said deliverance is the children’s bread. “Yes, Lord, but even the dogs eat the crumbs…” Jesus replied, “Woman, you have great faith! Your request is granted.” Her daughter was healed instantly because of her mother’s faith.

• Central Miracle Event:

  • Jesus heals a paralyzed man not because of the man’s own faith, but because of the faith of his four friends.

  • Mark 2:1–12 (primary); cross-references: Matthew 9:1–8, Luke 5:17–26

Mark 2:1 And when he returned to Capernaum after some days, it was reported that he was at home. 2 And many were gathered together, so that there was no more room, not even at the door. And he was preaching the word to them. 3 And they came, bringing to him a paralytic carried by four men. 4 And when they could not get near him because of the crowd, they removed the roof above him, and when they had made an opening, they let down the bed on which the paralytic lay. 5 And when Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven.” 6 Now some of the scribes were sitting there, questioning in their hearts, 7 “Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?” 8 And immediately Jesus, perceiving in his spirit that they thus questioned within themselves, said to them, “Why do you question these things in your hearts? 9 Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Rise, take up your bed and walk’? 10 But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins,”—he said to the paralytic— 11 “I say to you, rise, pick up your bed, and go home.” 12 And he rose and immediately picked up his bed and went out before them all, so that they were all amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never saw anything like this!”

II. INFLUENCE: THE INVISIBLE CONTAGION OF FAITH

1. Etymological Revelation

   • The English words “influence” and “influenza” share the same Latin root (influentia = “flowing in”).

     1. Originally an astrological term: celestial bodies “flowing” power into humans.

     2. Modern implication: Influence spreads like a virus — passively, powerfully. 

   • Biblical Command: Proverbs 13:20 (NLT): “Walk with the wise and become wise; associate with fools and get into trouble.”

   • Literal outcome: Your companions determine your destiny.

     1. Show me your friends and I will show you your future! 

     2. Do your friends join you in your pity party or your power and praise? 

     3. Good friends FEEL FOR YOU, Great friends FAITH FOR YOU! 

III. WHAT KIND OF FRIEND ARE YOU? 

1. 2 Corinthians 5:20 (NIV): “We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us…”

   • God is drawing the world through your life.

2. Self-Reflection Questions

   • Is your influence “appealing” in:

     • Your neighborhood?

     • Your church?

     • The shopping mall?

   • Does your behavior make knowing God look attractive to:

     • Your children?

     • Your unsaved family?

3. Universal Truth

   • Most people will never enter a church or read a Bible.

   • They only see BIBLE THEY SEE IS YOU.

   • 2 Cor. 3:2 You are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read by all men; 3 clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart.

IV. FAITH’S RELATIONAL INFLUENCE AND POWER

1. Scripture Example

   • Luke 18:42 Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.” 43 Immediately, he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God.

     • Blind man healed: “Thy faith hath saved thee.”

       1. Immediate result: He followed Jesus, glorifying God.

          1. Crowd reaction: “All the people… gave praise unto God.”

             1. One act of faith → mass worship.

Illustration: Napoleon’s Old Guard: Historical Analogy

• Elite Unit: Nicknamed “The Immortals”

  • Selected for skill + courage

  • Never lost a battle

• Critical Battle: Enemy advancing → Napoleon orders retreat.

  • Young trumpeter: “I don’t know that bugle call!” → plays charge.

  • Soldiers assume reinforcements → surge forward → win.

2. Scripture

   • Romans 14:7 “For none of us lives to himself, and no man dies to himself.”

     • Every action of faith echoes into relationships.

V. BRINGING THE PARALYZED TO JESUS

1. Universal Need

   • We all know people paralyzed by:

     • Guilt, Fear, Worry, Addiction, Self-harm, Anxiety, Loneliness, Depression, Grief

     • Sin 

2. The Friends’ Mission

   • Paralysis = inability to reach Jesus alone.

     • Without four friends, Jesus’ power never touches them.

3. The Four Friends’ Extreme Faith

   • Obstacles Overcome:

     • Crowded house – Other people can stand in the way of the miracles.

     • Dug through the roof (manure + beams) – Circumstances and life can stand in the way of miracles. 

     • Lowered man on mat – Inaction can stand in the way of miracles. 

   • Jesus’ Response(Mark 2:5):
     “When Jesus saw THEIR faith, He said, ‘Friend, your sins are forgiven.’”

   • Faith = Confidence to act in pursuit of God’s ability to act.

4. Healing Redefined

   • Not always:

     • Olympic-level health – God leaves us with certain strengths, but also in our weakness, we are made strong in Him. 

     • Pre-illness condition – age ( Our bodies are of the Earth and to the cursed Earth they shall return.)

   • Includes:

     • Inner transformation → accept chronic/terminal conditions without despair.

     • Strength and ability to share the gospel and complete our Earthly mission. 

     • Example Joni Erickson Tada – 

       1. On July 30, 1967, a teenage girl went with her sister to a beach on the Chesapeake Bay and suffered a diving accident that rendered her quadriplegic. Today, Joni Eareckson Tada leads an international ministry, advocates for those with disabilities, and is a sought-after speaker, best-selling author, and radio host, reaching many thousands of women for fifty years. “After more than fifty years in a wheelchair chair I still walk with Jesus. 

VI. IN THE TEXT – THE SCANDAL OF FORGIVENESS 

1. Jesus Sees Faith → Speaks to Man

   • “Friend, your sins are forgiven.”

   • Trouble begins.

2. Scribes’ Internal Accusation

   • Heart question: “Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

   • Jesus perceives the heart 

3. Jesus’ Rhetorical Challenge

   • “Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or ‘Get up and walk’?”

   • Neither is easy — both require divine authority.

   • Three healings here actually: Son, your sins are forgiven, rise and walk. 

ILLUSTRATIVE STORY: Will Daylight Come? (Richard Hoefler)

• Boy gets his first slingshot at his grandparents’. Practices → misses.

• Sees Grandma’s pet duck → impulse shot → duck dies.

• Hides in the woodpile → sister Sally sees.

• The Blackmail begins:

  • Dishes: “Johnny wants to help… Remember the duck, Johnny?”

  • Fishing: “Johnny wants to make supper…Remember the duck, Johnny?”

• Days of slavery → confesses to Grandma.

• Grandma: “I know, Johnny. I saw from the window. I forgave you because I love you. I wondered how long you’d let Sally make a slave of you.”

2. Application:

   • Paralysis = guilt, sin, control → powerless to escape.

   • Jesus forgives → frees then HEALS (order matters).

     • Burden of guilt blocks wholeness.

       1. Don’t remind others of “dead ducks” — examine your own woodpile.

IX. FAITH IS VISIBLE

1. Visual Reverse: 

   • Man carried in on mat → walks out carrying mat.

   • Walking witness to Jesus’ power.

2. Scriptures

   • James 2:17-26 — Faith without works = dead.

3. In the Story

   • Jesus saw THEIR faith(Mark 2:3–5).

     • Intercession impacts others.

       1. Paralytic’s faith:

          1. No resistance to friends.

          2. Obeyed the command to rise.

X. WHY FORGIVENESS FIRST?

1. God’s Priority: Spiritual > Physical.

2. Sin-Sickness Link (sometimes):

   • Unforgiven sin → Satan’s legal ground.

   • Forgiveness → freedom to receive all blessings.

XI. THE LAWS GOVERNING FAITH

A. Faith operates by spiritual laws — not arbitrary.

• Like electricity:

  • Existed since creation.

  • Thunderstorm = power for a city.

  • Harnessed only via knowledge of laws.

B. Case Study: Woman with Issue of Blood (Mark 5:25–34)

• Action: Touches hem in the crowd → healed instantly.

• Jesus’ Reaction:“Power went out” — faith-activated, not Jesus-initiated.

• Laws Activated:

  1. She heard of Jesus(Romans 10:17)

  2. She acted(James 2:20)

  3. She spoke: “If I touch His clothes, I shall be whole.” (Mark 5:28)

C. Voice-Activated Faith

• Proverbs 18:21: “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.”

• Hebrews 11:3: Creation by words.

• Law: “You’ll have what you say” (Mark 11:23).

• Danger: Speaking problems = live wire → death.

D. Faith’s Function

• Hebrews 11:6 — Pleases God.

• Hebrews 11:1 — Brings the spiritual to the physical.

• 1 John 5:4 — Victory over the world.

XII. EVERY BELIEVER HAS JESUS-LEVEL FAITH

A. Common Misconception

• “I need more faith.”

• Truth: All born-again believers have the same quality/quantity as Jesus.

B. Salvation Faith = Supernatural

• Ephesians 2:8 — Faith = gift of God.

• Titus 2:11 — Grace to all, but faith activates.

C. Source & Permanence

• Romans 10:17 — Hearing Word → Holy Spirit empowers.

• Galatians 5:22-23 — Faith = fruit of the Spirit (permanent).

• Romans 12:3 — THE measure (same ladle).

• 2 Peter 1:1 — “Like precious” (Greek: isotimos = equal honor).

• Galatians 2:20 — Paul lived by faith OF the Son of God.

• John 14:12 — Believers do greater works.

E. Variation = Usage, Not Amount

• Matthew 8:10 — Centurion: “Great faith.” 

• Matthew 8:26 — Disciples:“Little faith.”

• Philemon 1:6 — Faith is effective by acknowledging what we have.

XIII. MIRACLES FOR EVERY BELIEVER

1.  Starting Point

• 2 Peter 1:3-4All things via knowledge of Him.

XV. FAITH = SUBSTANCE OF UNSEEN REALITY

1. Hebrews 11:1
   “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”

   • Not pretend — real.

2. TV Signal Analogy

   • Signals exist unseen.

   • Blank screen → check receiver, not station.

   • God broadcasts 24/7 — our receiver is the issue.

Final Word: Your friends’ faith can carry you when yours fails. Your faith can carry them when theirs fails. Choose wisely. Act boldly. Speak faith. The roof is no obstacle