ALIVE: Chapter, 121 The Sky Falls in Capernaum

The holy troupe, the traveling hospital of God continued to blanket Galilee with miracles. The six disciples, adapting to the phenomena of their leader lived in a very different world than ordinary people fixed with feet firmly placed on the earth, where the laws of nature are obvious. These men lived in constant amazement of Jesus who straddled heaven and earth. Who brought heaven to earth. 

They ate and slept and travelled together week after week. He often left them to pray alone. During those times, sometimes they would pray too, other times they talked to each other sensing that their lives were unusual, that their young leader was...dare they say? When they overheard the demons call Him the Son of God they didn’t know what to make of that. Did Jesus banish the demons for spewing lies? Or did He banish them for speaking the truth that He didn’t want revealed? Who could do such wondrous acts if God was not working through Him? Who else had authority over demons?

Except when Jesus went off to pray, the men ate when He ate, they slept when He slept. There were no arguments, no complaints, no bickering or blaming. Instead, the men became a family of brothers, a battalion against the enemy of sickness and despair. Neither Phillip, nor James, nor Andrew could ever look upon a healing as something matter of fact or natural. The reactions of relief, and of gratitude that emanated from most of the healed penetrated their own manly hearts. Imagine walking into a hospital, into the cancer ward with Jesus. Imagine walking into one room at a time behind Him. He takes the hand of the bedridden soul. Her eyes look into His not afraid or curious, but sensing the presence of Holiness. “Do you want to be healed?”asks the Lord, “Do you really want to be well?” 

The reply is no more than a whisper as tears trickle down her cheeks. “Yes.”

“Be made well. Show yourself to the priest, and return to the world to heal others with forgiveness, with compassion. Never judge another for that person belongs to God. You have no right to judge the servant of another.”

She sits up straighter. Her eyes gradually grow clear. “Who are You?” she asks. 

Yet, there were no hospitals when Jesus walked the rich earth.  His followers through the centuries built them to emulate Him as best as they could, to battle nature’s corruption of the body with healing. More significantly, He came to straighten the crooked path, to extinguish sinfulness from the soul, the sinfulness that caused many diseases. 

It was the fourth day of the week, the day that God created the sun and moon and stars, the day when the measurement of time began. Jesus, Peter, and Nathanael were sitting on a bench in the garden of a quaint Galilean village chatting with each other while the other disciples went to fetch food to refill their knapsacks. Jesus looked up attentively listening and waiting. He intuited that He was going to be approached by a leper. An average person, even a doctor would have cringed, if only internally because the disease was so infectious. Peter didn’t notice the leper approach as he continued talking about where they would go next, when they would leave, and whether they could afford a caravan for a change. He still had some money from selling fish.

Sure enough, the scary-looking leper recognized the Healer that he had just heard about. The leper was relieved that the Healer hadn’t left the village yet. Jesus and His disciples were easy to spot because they were the only strangers in town who were not traveling merchants. 

The leper approached the disciples and Jesus. Jesus looked straight at him, While Peter and Nathanael looked at each other and then at Jesus to see what He would do. Jesus didn’t flinch.

The leper boldly stumbled up to within an arm’s length of Jesus, fell to his knees, clenched his fingers together and begged, “Please, oh please kind Sir, if you will, I know you can heal me of this wretched disease. I am a pariah to the people and I can’t even stand myself. My brother and sister will have nothing to do with me. I am starving and I must live in a cave. I beg of you to make me clean, if You can.”

Jesus looked at the poor desperate man with his deformed face and had compassion on him. He stretched out His arm and placed His holy hand on the top of man’s head and said, “I will. Be made clean.”

Peter and Nathanael stood up stepped away from sitting Jesus and the kneeling man. They watched as if watching time-lapse photography as the man’s skin changed from white to beige, it became supple and full. His eyes cleared up and his nose actually grew a new shape! It was as if the man was being reconstructed before their eyes! 

The man wept.

Jesus stood up, and took him by the hand to help him off his knees. The former leper hugged Jesus who returned the hug. Then Jesus told him sternly, “Do not speak to anyone, but go directly to the priest in the synagogue and offer the thank-offering which Moses commanded to thank God for your cleansing. Do you hear me?”

The leper looked down at the ground and said he would. Then he turned and ran away joyfully. 

The healed man could not help himself. As he passed fellow villagers and they remarked about his transformation, he stopped and proudly, and exuberantly told person after person and group after group how the Stranger, healed him. He looked down at his hands and legs and noticed the difference. He couldn’t see his own face, but others remarked how different he appeared. 

Everyone who heard the news and saw the transformation of Misha the leper rushed to find the Healer. They made a mad dash for where they heard He had been, so that a crowd gathered around Jesus, Peter and Nathanael. The crowd was so dense that they could hardly move. Peter and Nathanael, went into crowd-control mode shouting, “I’m sorry, we must be going! Go back to what you were doing.” By then, the other disciples found them and assisted in shielding Jesus from the crowd-become-mob when they could not get their way. 

“That settles it!” said Peter, let’s go to the caravan stop. We could never walk away from here.”

He added, “and I hope the news doesn’t go ahead us.” 

Jesus exclaimed, “But I told him not to tell anyone!”

Even young John, looked at Jesus with a friendly smirk on his face, and said, “Seriously my Lord, did you expect that to happen?”

Jesus shrugged His shoulders and replied, “Well, maybe.” thinking of how obedient He was to the Father. 

The disciples surrounded Jesus with the shield of their own bodies as they slowly made their way to the docks instead, because it was closer. Fortunately, or rather by God’s Providence an empty transport boat was waiting at the stop. “Where are you going?” asked the captain.  “Away from here” replied James. “Where are you going?” “My boat is going to Capernaum” 

“Perfect” said Peter and reached into his satchel to pay the captain. 

The men climbed into the boat which quickly pulled away from the dock before anyone else could jump on. Finally, they could rest. 

“That was close! I thought those people would eat us alive!” exclaimed Andrew. Then He turned to Jesus and said, “My Lord, we can’t let that happen again. I think we should either go out in the desert where there is plenty of room; they will find you, or at least go into a house where there are walls and a door. Agree?”

Jesus looked at Andrew pensively and replied, “I suppose you are right. This is what I have you for.” And then He winked ever so slightly, and smiled. 

The next several hours the loud sound of the wind made it hard to hear, so the men either gazed out at sea or napped. Jesus’ eyes were closed. John wondered if He was sleeping or praying. 

After several hours the boat pulled into its slip at Capernaum. The captain shouted, “Everyone out!” The men filed out.

After they disembarked most eyes were on Peter as if to ask if they would be going back to his house. Peter answered, “I’m not sure my wife and mother are ready for us again. I have a friend with a bigger house on the ground, let’s go there.”

The troupe followed Peter. When they arrived at the house they were impressed by how large it was. Peter said, “Step back. Let me go first.” The disciples and Jesus waited under the big sycamore tree as Peter went to the front door and knocked. A teenage boy, probably a servant, opened the door and asked Peter to wait while he went to get his master. The disciples watched and chatted with each other. The master came to the door and invited Peter in. They spoke for a while, and then Peter emerged and gave them the high sign to come in. 

“Yes, you can stay here for a few days. I will go to my house to be with my wife and her mother. I’ll return in the morning.”

“Welcome to my home. My name is Athanasse. I am honored.” The master of the house said to the five men, looking expressly at Jesus. 

“It is we who are honored and grateful.” replied Jesus with a subtle bow of his head. The other disciples echoed Jesus, bowing and thanking their host. 

“Well, come in, come in. Let me show you to your rooms to set your things down. Make yourselves comfortable while I see about supper.”

Athanasse was thrilled. He had heard so much about Jesus, the itinerant rabbi and healer. He was even among the curious crowd on the first night when they went to Peter’s house. ‘Imagine that Jesus has come under my own roof!’ he thought to himself. Athanasse went to tell his wife and to have them gather whatever they could to prepare a feast for the evening. He suspected that the next day would be busy. Athanasse was smart enough to know that where there is honey, there are bees, and that people would start coming to his home to listen to Jesus and to be healed. He heard what had happened at Simon’s home. He needed to prepare. 

Phillip was sent by Jesus to tell Athanasse that they were going for a walk around town, and ask if they could arrange an assembly for the next morning.

“Of course, of course. I expected that. Go, but return by sunset. We should be ready by then. Shalom!” He hollered as his guests filed out of the home. After they left, the household was a buzz with preparations for the evening meal and beds for the guests and preparations for the assembly the following day. 

Outside, the men decided to split up so they wouldn’t be so obvious, and also to spread the word that there would be an assembly the next day at high noon when the fishermen would be back. 

A few blocks away from Athanasee’s house, heading toward the center of the town, Jesus stopped and they all stopped too. He said, “I’ll meet you back at the house. You should also buy food to take to them. You know what to do.” Jesus was feeling increasing comfortable and familiar with His disciples. He was their teacher and their leader. His superiority was always clear and present, no matter how many experiences of travel and confrontations with the world they shared. The disciples respected Jesus instinctively because of His powers; they could only learn so much; they would never achieve the level of their Master; but to support Him, and watch Him was an honor. These were the good days. The weeks and months when they proudly watched Jesus defy nature and human authority. Jesus told them that they should be able to do the things He did, but they were skeptical. 

Jesus was glad to be back in Capernaum. Capernaum had become a home town to Him like Nazareth, but safer. He was still saddened by how He was treated in Nazareth. On the outskirts of Capernaum He had discovered a very remote place where He could pray and listen to His Father, where no one could see Him or hear Him speak to God. It was a quiet place. No, it was a silent place. It was His most secluded place to pray in all of Galilee.  

The next morning Jesus was already up and gone by the time the disciples and the household had started stirring. Athanasse and his servants were excellent hosts. The disciples were well fed and cared for. But they were also grateful guests, making their beds and doing whatever chores they could anticipate a need for. 

The household soon buzzed with servants and guests alike setting up, cleaning up, and cooking. Each person contributed whatever he or she could to the place sensing that a great event was about to happen, as if God Himself would be present. 

The same young man answered the knock on the door and opened it to Jesus who had returned. “Hello friends!” Athanasee’s wife looked up and went straight over to her eminent guest. “Welcome! Come, let me get You something to eat. You must be hungry by now. We have eggs and bread and cheese and fruit, come. Come in.”

Jesus was grateful and thanked her for her hospitality to Him and His men. He went into the dining area and sat down at the place laid out for Him. The disciples all heard Him and went over and sat around the dining table to wait for any instructions He may have for them. 

Soon after Jesus finished His meal, the people started to arrive. They filed into the house in ones and twos. Jesus was positioned with His back against the wall to maximize the space around him. His men formed a line of defense in the front row to give Jesus room to walk around while He spoke. Athanasse and his wife put themselves to the right of the rabbi, also in the front. They sat in awe of what was happening in their own home. What a blessing! Before an hour passed the house was packed with people. No one else could enter. 

Jesus spoke to the people as if He was speaking individually to each person, to each heart. His eyes clasped the boy’s eyes, then the mature mother’s, the grandmother’s and the fisherman’s. Then He drifted over to a teenager and said, “Do you recognize that there are passions within you?” The teenager nodded. 

“That is good. A person who acknowledges his passions humbles himself and then the grace of God comes.” To the next person He said, “You should be glad at being constantly wrong, for you have pride and that is how you are humbled. Say, “My God, this is who I am. Help me.”

And to the old lady He said, “If you do not help me I will not be able to do anything. Do not despair. Whenever you make a mistake, your real self is revealed. You come to know God. Try to correct yourself. This is how you can move forward confidently and not live with the false impression that you are doing well. When your weakness displays itself, when your passions, and yours, and yours, and yours” He said pointing to people and landing on a Pharisee to whom He said boldly, “when your passions sprout up...when you get angry, or when you censure someone... grieve for yourself because you fell.” Then to the doctor of the law He said, “but you should also be glad, because your weakness was made manifest, and will then prompt you to struggle to be delivered from it.”

No sooner had Jesus finished that sentence when the crowd heard a great rumble above.

Some people wondered if the sky was falling and God had come. 

Rubble fell on people’s heads. Ladies shrieked. Children became afraid and cried. The roof was coming off of the building! The sun poured into the cool darkened room. There were men up there!! They were actually trying to lower a man on a palette into the crowded room! 

The people directly below the opening pushed those behind them to make room lest the palette fall and crush them.

Athanasse was outraged. His home was being torn apart! But there was nothing he could do to stop it, so he remembered to observe his passion and suppress it. 

Several large fishermen worked their way under the opening to receive the palette that was being lowered by ropes. 

A crippled man lay there looking both cheerful and pathetic.

Jesus was amused too.  He looked into the crippled man’s eyes and smiled because He was pleased by the faith of these people. He looked up at the ceiling and saw the proud faces of the successful friends who had lowered the man. They were peering down at Jesus and the crowd curious for their reaction. Then Jesus looked at the cripple, but also directed his statement to his faithful friends and said, “Man, your sins are forgiven.”

The Pharisees gasped. The scribes and lawyers echoed their gasps. One of the Pharisees shouted aloud for all to hear, “Who is this guy who dares blaspheme God? Only God alone can forgive sins!” The Pharisee looked around him for approval, and received a few sheepish nods. Others, the majority of people, feeling embarrassed that the Healer was being treated so poorly looked at Jesus for His response. 

Jesus confidently replied, “It doesn’t matter whether I say, ‘Your sins are forgiven’, or ‘Stand up, take your palette and walk.’ Why is your heart so darkened?” He said that the man’s sins were forgiven intentionally to goad the Pharisees. To reach deep into their psyche and challenge their knowledge of the relationship between sin and death. 

The man’s arrogant expression was echoed by a few, but only a few of his well-dressed falsely-noble friends. 

The rest of the packed crowd stared at Jesus who without a hint of arrogance, matter-of-factly added, “You should know that I have the authority on earth to forgive sins.” The crowd was silent, anticipating what they had come to see. 

Jesus turned His face from the arrogant Pharisees to look down at the man with palsy laying on the wood that had landed on the ground. The people had moved out of the way of it so that it was in front of Jesus who walked over to it. Jesus smiled at the suffering man, anticipating his relief and his joy and said to him, “Get up, take your palette and go home.” 

As if those words alone had the power of creation, like the first words God spoke, “Light Be!” And there was light. Just like that, the power of Jesus’ words poured into the broken, corrupted man and, dare it be said, he was restored! 

The man rolled over and set one foot down on the floor and then the other. He pushed himself up with his arms, from the floor to his knees. A young man went over to help him stand and he said, “No, I can do this.”  He stood erect for the first time that he could remember. The healed man looked around at the crowd. His face was radiant. His eyes sparkled, his yellow teeth shined. Then he looked at Jesus, his healer and bowed his head in awe and gratitude. Tears began flowing from his eyes. Jesus reached out his hand and the man grabbed it and kissed His hand. Jesus withdrew it. 

This time the rest of the crowd gasped while the Pharisees were stunned silent. 

The man then picked up his wooden palette proudly. He was so filled with energy that indeed he needed to walk, and not stand there any longer. He couldn’t wait to go home and show his family. 

“Thank you! Thank you my Lord! May God be glorified!” And then the healed man with his piece of wood worked his way through the crowd that opened a path for him. He left through the front door. His friends came off the roof to greet him. They joyously hugged him, one of them taking the wood from him, and walked with him to see the expression on his family’s face when he got there. 

Meanwhile, inside Athanasee’s house, the people were filled with amazement. One woman began chanting Alleluia, and everyone agreed it was all they could say. So, for the next several minutes, the glorious chants of alleluia saturated the air. 

Jesus discreetly withdrew into the bedroom. Athanasse took over and thanked the people for their attendance. The Pharisees were the first to leave, perplexed. The man who first shouted to correct Jesus needed time to process what had just happened. He was not ready to accept what he saw, but rather he went home to think about how he could spin it enough to retain his anger and arrogance. 

The people obediently filed out of the door to tell their friends and families what had happened at Athanasee’s house that day; seeing such strange things!

Athanasse and his wife stood in their emptied great-room and looked up at the huge hole in their ceiling. The sky was clear and luminous.