The Gospel for the Nineteenth Sunday after Trinity is from Matthew 9 and tells of Jesus healing a paralyzed man by first forgiving his sins. The scribes or scholars of the law are scandalized because they think that only God can forgive sins. In one way, the scribes are correct. Ultimately, forgiveness or pardon comes from God, and Jesus can forgive sins because He is God the Son incarnate. Yet, with Christ's incarnation, a new era has begun. The Gospel is fully proclaimed by Jesus and later by His disciples, His Church. So the Apostles and other disciples as the living Body of Christ in the world have continued to proclaim forgiveness in Word and sacrament.
