Mark 10:51-52,51 “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him. The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.” 52 “Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.
When Jesus approached Jericho with his disciples, a huge crowd followed Him. He healed a blind man there and gave him sight. Here it is to be noticed that the name of the person healed is given and also that of his father. It is an exception from the many nameless people Jesus healed, only he is named, Bartimaeus.
1.Sitting by the roadside: Be it by the side of the roadside or some place else, a beggar is always insulted and ill treated by the society. They are treated as low as animals. People who rush them away are also not few. It is not possible that by the roadside Bartimaeus was alone begging. Yet he was the only one who was healed. Even though he was physically blind, his inner eye or the eye of the soul was open. He sensed the approach of the Son of God, Jesus by the shouts of the crowd. Instead of waiting for another opportunity to come his way he shouted as loud as he could to grab Jesus’ attention. Whenever someone has shouted, pleaded and compelled/ insisted for healing, he/she has been healed by the grace of the Lord. Our forefather Jacob too compelled the angel of the Lord to bless him or else he would not let the angel go. It was there that Jacob was blessed and named Israel.
2.Son Of David: Even though Bartimaeus was blind, he called upon Jesus as Son of David. Mark 10:48, 48 Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” Even though physically blind, he was hopeful about the day when Son of David, our Lord Jesus will rule as King on the throne one day. He proclaimed the same when he called upon the Lord.
3. He shouted: The Bible says that all those sought the grace and mercy of the Lord have shouted and prayed to the Lord. He hears them and has given them healing. For eg: the children of Israel, Hagar and Ishmael, Samson, etc. These are people who made the impossible happen. Even though Bartimaeus was blind he did not seek the help from others, neither was he dependent on anyone.
Psalm 118:8-9, 8 It is better to take refuge in the Lord
than to trust in humans.
9 It is better to take refuge in the Lord
than to trust in princes.
We can always see that there is a crowd following wherever Jesus goes. Yet there is a crowd who always walk in front of Him. Some of them rebuked Bartimaeus and asked him to keep quiet. These people who walk in front are barrier to the grace that reaches ordinary man. These are self certified God men who feel that just because they have walked in front and behind Jesus for a while they know Him too well. To reach and stand before the presence of the Lord one does not require any special qualifications.
4.Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.”: The shout and pleading of Bartimaeus was such that it stopped Jesus in His tracks and made Him turn towards him. The Lord said, “Call him”. The ones who rebuked him must have been the ones who brought him to Jesus. First they acted smart and later became fools. These people should understand that Jesus is not someone’s personal property. All those who have faith in Him and shout to Him will definitely receive grace.
5. “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him: The reply to this was, The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.” Rabbi means teacher in Hebrew. It did not take much time for his faith to lead him from Son of God/David to Rabbi. When Bartimaeus heard Jesus call him, he threw aside his cloak and rushed towards Jesus. Here we can learn a valuable lesson that when the Lord calls, we would have to give up certain cloaks we wear. We need to put down things that pull us backwards towards out former life.
It is not enough to just have faith, one should also proclaim it from the lips and pray out aloud. Bartimaeus followed Jesus is what we read in the Bible. The message we receive here that we should not sit down after receiving His grace rather we should follow Jesus. Many people must have seen the blind man. He became a witness to the Lord, following Jesus. All those who saw him believed in the Grace of the Lord.
AMEN
Jehovah Roi 