Carry Your Mat

Then Jesus said to him, “Get up! Pick up your mat and walk.” At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked.

The day on which this took place was a Sabbath, and so the Jewish leaders said to the man who had been healed, “It is the Sabbath; the law forbids you to carry your mat.”

But he replied, “The man who made me well said to me, ‘Pick up your mat and walk.’ ”

So they asked him, “Who is this fellow who told you to pick it up and walk?”

John 5:8-12

On two separate occasions, when our Lord healed paralyzed men, He commanded them to pick up their mat and take it with them as they left (here and in Matthew 9:6). Have you ever wondered why? It hardly seems like something that needed to be said. Jesus certainly didn't have to say it. He chose to, so there must be a reason. Was Jesus concerned that their mat would be a tripping hazard for the crowds? Was He discouraging litter? I don't think so. I think Jesus' reason was far greater than this. Put simply, the sight of a man walking down the street in full health and strength carrying a beggar's mat was a sign of the great miracle that Jesus had done in his life.

I can imagine people saying to themselves. "Is that Simon the beggar? No! It can't be. He is walking. But yes, it is Simon, for there is his mat. He is carrying it!" Had the man simply walked away without his mat then he could have blended into the crowd, but Jesus didn't want them to blend in. He wanted them to stand out as a testament to God's glory. God had done a miraculous thing and there it was on display for any who cared to look in the profoundly simple act of a healthy man carrying his mat.

In a way we all carry our mats with us. The lives we led before we came to know Christ left their marks on us. The sin and hurt and brokenness that we walked in left scars. Each of us bear these in different ways. Sometimes these are clearly seen on our bodies (i.e. literal scars, track marks or tattoos). Sometimes they show up in our personalities, our quirks or our worldviews (i.e. the way we prefer to dress or talk, our abnormally shy or aggressive personality, etc...). At other times they become apparent not by what is there but by what is lacking (i.e. our spouse, our children, our health).

While we should always strive to be free of lingering sin in our lives, in many ways we can never be completely rid of these lingering effects and marks of our former sin. And for good reason! Though we may wish to cast them aside, in many cases Jesus still bids us to take up our mats and carry them because they bear witness to the amazing work of God in our lives. Yes, sometimes they draw the judgment of religious people. Just as the man in John 5 was attacked by the Pharisees. But even in these moments, they give us an opportunity to bear witness, to give a testimony of what God has done for us. "Yes, I used to be broken in that way," we say. "But then I met Jesus!"

In fact, just like the scars in Jesus' hands and His side, the marks of sin in our lives can become the proof, the evidence, of God's miracle! They add credibility to our testimony. So even in this, God receives the glory! It is okay to be ashamed of the way you lived before you knew Jesus. In fact, it is good to be ashamed of your sin. But don't try to hide it. Instead, carry your mat and use it to illustrate the miracle Jesus has worked in your life.