What the blind man saw was amazing. Confusing as that statement may sound, this one is even more confusing: he saw before he saw. But, we're getting ahead of ourselves; let's go back to the story first:
"Then they came to Jericho. And as He was leaving Jericho with His disciples and a large crowd, a blind beggar named Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the road. When he heard that it was Jesus the Nazarene, he began to cry out and say, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" (Mark 10:46-47)
A blind man who had never seen anything, including Jesus, had amazing insight in to who He really is - the "Son of David". Addressing Him with this phrase indicates that he knows full well that Jesus is the Messiah, the promised Son of God, descendant of David. And yet, I wonder, what was the basis for his conclusion? He obviously had never seen him perform any miracles. He had never gazed into Jesus' eyes, searching them for this answer. No, apparently the blind man had concluded that Jesus was the Son of God on the basis of hearing alone. And through hearing he came to truly see.
It is through hearing that we receive sight: "So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ." (Romans 10:17). Hearing and receiving the word leads to faith, which is true sight. It was faith which ultimately led to sight for the blind man: "your faith has made you well." (Mark 10:52).
The old saying goes, "seeing is believing", but in this story - and ultimately in the spiritual realm - "believing is seeing". Until we hear and receive we will never truly see.
Blind Bartimaeus believed that the touch of Jesus would restore his sight. He saw what many others - especially the religious leaders - never did see. He saw Jesus through eyes of faith before he ever saw with his own eyes. So we might say, he saw before he saw. But what he saw in faith opened up new vistas that he could scarcely imagine. Imagine someone seeing the sky, trees, water, birds, and people for the very first time! Hours, days, weeks, and longer could be devoted to taking in these new sights. But notice Bartimaeus: "he regained his sight and began following Him on the road." (Mark 10:52). This man of unswerving insight, rather than pausing to drink in the miracle of new sight, instead followed the object of his true sight, Jesus.
What new vistas has Jesus revealed to you? Through faith in Him, what sight has He given you? Rejoice in the wonderment of what you see, but, like Bartimaeus, let that sight and insight guide you in following Him more closely and zealously.
Steve
"Then they came to Jericho. And as He was leaving Jericho with His disciples and a large crowd, a blind beggar named Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the road. When he heard that it was Jesus the Nazarene, he began to cry out and say, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" (Mark 10:46-47)
A blind man who had never seen anything, including Jesus, had amazing insight in to who He really is - the "Son of David". Addressing Him with this phrase indicates that he knows full well that Jesus is the Messiah, the promised Son of God, descendant of David. And yet, I wonder, what was the basis for his conclusion? He obviously had never seen him perform any miracles. He had never gazed into Jesus' eyes, searching them for this answer. No, apparently the blind man had concluded that Jesus was the Son of God on the basis of hearing alone. And through hearing he came to truly see.
It is through hearing that we receive sight: "So faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ." (Romans 10:17). Hearing and receiving the word leads to faith, which is true sight. It was faith which ultimately led to sight for the blind man: "your faith has made you well." (Mark 10:52).
The old saying goes, "seeing is believing", but in this story - and ultimately in the spiritual realm - "believing is seeing". Until we hear and receive we will never truly see.
Blind Bartimaeus believed that the touch of Jesus would restore his sight. He saw what many others - especially the religious leaders - never did see. He saw Jesus through eyes of faith before he ever saw with his own eyes. So we might say, he saw before he saw. But what he saw in faith opened up new vistas that he could scarcely imagine. Imagine someone seeing the sky, trees, water, birds, and people for the very first time! Hours, days, weeks, and longer could be devoted to taking in these new sights. But notice Bartimaeus: "he regained his sight and began following Him on the road." (Mark 10:52). This man of unswerving insight, rather than pausing to drink in the miracle of new sight, instead followed the object of his true sight, Jesus.
What new vistas has Jesus revealed to you? Through faith in Him, what sight has He given you? Rejoice in the wonderment of what you see, but, like Bartimaeus, let that sight and insight guide you in following Him more closely and zealously.
Steve
posted by steve @ 7:50 AM
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