WATCHWORD:
46 Then they reached Jericho, and as Jesus and his disciples left town, a large crowd followed him. A blind beggar named Bartimaeus (son of Timaeus) was sitting beside the road. 47 When Bartimaeus heard that Jesus of Nazareth was nearby, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me.” 48 “Be quiet!” many of the people yelled at him. But he only shouted louder, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 49 When Jesus heard him, he stopped and said, “Tell him to come here.” So, they called the blind man. “Cheer up,” they said. “Come on, he’s calling you!” 50 Bartimaeus threw aside his coat, jumped up, and came to Jesus. 51 “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked. “My Rabbi,” the blind man said, “I want to see!”
52 Jesus said to him, “Go, for your faith has healed you.” Instantly the man could see, and he followed Jesus down the road. Mark 10:46-52
Meditation:
I Want to See
This story is about healing. In the scripture passage it’s about restoring sight and the role that faith plays in that process. In many of Jesus’ parables someone has a problem, and there is a factor that seems to complicate what’s happening. Jesus resolves the problem which he attributes to faith, and the result is a confirmation of a solution, which we sometimes refer to as miracles.
In the passage where Jesus heals the 10 lepers, only one comes back healed seeking to thank Jesus for the miracle. We only assume that the others are healed from what the healed leper said.
Think about the exchange between doubting Thomas and Jesus (John 20:24-29). When Thomas says, “unless I see I will not believe,” and when he does, he exclaims “my Lord and my God”. To which Jesus replies, “Because you have seen me you have believed, blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed”. This is a reference back to Bartimaeus and the restoration of that man’s sight because he believed that Jesus could.
How many of us can honestly side with the apostle Thomas who wants to see proof, to be reassured by tangible evidence. We pray for healing, and it does not seem to come and yet something changes. Maybe our circumstances, maybe our attitude towards that infirmity, maybe it’s our circle of acquaintances, our loved ones. We pray for healing, and we can define what that means in our minds but when the true healing comes it may be totally different for it follows the will of the Father.
Think about that. Mark reports that Jesus did not call Bartimaeus directly, but instead he has the crowd call the blind man and encourage him to go. This story then, not just about the calling of new disciples through healings, but the formation and instruction of existing ones. How do we respond when Jesus occupies an embarrassingly low status in our relationship with the Almighty?
And all the stories we hear of Jesus calling and healing, Jesus tells the person to come or to follow him. He tells Bartimaeus to go. Is going the same as following when it leads to the cross? It certainly can when following Jesus to the cross becomes our purpose, and so we go and we share what we have seen and experienced. Our own healing occurred when we answered God’s call. We share when we lift high the one who is our Lord and savior for all to know and see in us. Amen.
A Rare Piece of Wisdom:
I cannot give you what I have found, but I can share with you what I experienced.
Closing Prayer:
Precious heavenly Father, we pray for healing, healings that take us from the distractions of our world and keeps us from drawing close to you and following your will. We ask for healing of our loved ones, friends, even strangers, and, yet we are slow to recognize our own infirmities that keep us firmly entrenched in the affairs of the world. Help us heavenly Father to rise above our blindness and our lack of understanding to follow your will more closely throughout this day. In Jesus name. Amen
