He Ain’t Heavy, He’s My Brother
Breakthrough Faith
This song became an instant hit for the Hollies in 1969. It was originally a slogan that was used for The Boys Town children’s home by the founder Father Edward Flanagan. However it was not merely a slogan. It originated from a true story of a young boy by the name of Howard Loomis with polio. He had been abandoned by his mother and left at Boys Town. He had to wear heavy leg braces, and walking was difficult for him as you can imagine. Soon after, several of the older boys began to carry Howard up and down the stairs. One day Father Flanagan asked one of the older boys if carrying Howard was hard? To which Reuben replied, “He ain’t heavy, Father…he’s my brother.”
This is exactly how the four men that brought their paralytic friend to Jesus felt. They knew that Jesus was in town. As a matter of fact the entire town had made their way to where He was preaching. It was more than a full house! “Immediately many gathered together, so that there was no longer room to receive them, not even near the door.” They arrived too late to get in the door. They knew the miracles that were taking place wherever Jesus showed up, but now there was no room for their friend to enter; not even into the doorway. How discouraged were they?
There is not one word recorded that they were upset or considered leaving. A full house with no room for them was no deterrent. Rather it inspired them to bypass accepted protocol, which would be, “we will come back later, or we will make sure to see Jesus in the next town” That thought never entered their minds; instead they proceeded to the roof of the house, “And when they could not come close to Him because of the press, they uncovered the roof where He was; and when they had broken it up, they let down the bed…”
Imagine this scene. A house filled with people eager to hear every word that Jesus was preaching, when suddenly debris from above begins to fall into the crowd. They had to be wondering what all the commotion was about, when all of a sudden they see a paralytic man on a mat being lowered into the crowd of people. Were they stunned? We don’t even know what the paralytic man was feeling. What we do know is what Jesus saw.
“When Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic, Son, your sins are forgiven you.” Jesus saw faith! It was “breakthrough” faith; a faith that was so determined that it would not turn away because there was no room for them. It was faith in action that went outside the “household” rules of decorum. They had to use some sweat equity to dig through the roof, tie ropes on a makeshift bed, and carefully lower it into a crowded home.
How much love did these four men have for their friend? It’s amazing to think about all that they did for him. They had to carry him across town to even get him there. This was far more than a simple act of kindness. It takes the laying down of your life for a friend. “Greater love hath no man that this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:13
If we have just a few friends life this in our lifetime, we are truly blessed. Most of us have busy lives. It is either work or family that occupies most of our time. However, Jesus calls us to love our neighbor as ourselves, and our neighbor is not just the person next door to us. It is the person that He puts on our hearts to pray and intercede for. There are times we bless with a financial gift, or something else tangible. But the gift that keeps on giving is the gift of prayer.
All of us need an Aaron and a Hur in our lives. (Exodus 17:11) We all grow weary at times, especially when the trials and the tribulations last longer than we had imagined. We need the friends that are willing to step in and “carry our mat” and bring us before the Lord even when the situation looks impossible. Their faith literally sustains us through the storm.
Do you know someone that is enduring through an extended storm or fiery trial? Pray and ask the Lord how you can be a support to them. It is not always about money. In fact I believe that our time and our prayers are far more valuable to someone who is in a “long haul trial” They need the kind of friends that are determined to see them through to the other side.
“There should be no schism in the body, but the members should have the same care for one another. And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with them.” 1 Corinthians 12:25-27