Written ~ 02-21-2024
Read Mark Chapter Ten
Mark 10
Verses 10:46-52…
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 And Jesus said to him, “Go, for your faith has healed you.” Instantly the man could see, and he followed Jesus down the road.
As we have been reading through the Book of Mark it has come to our attention that Jesus heals at the response to faith. Chapter 6 gives us another example of a man’s faith where Jesus responded with healing.
Here in Chapter 10, we find a man sitting beside a road. He was a beggar, and he was blind. On this particular day, he overheard that Jesus was coming. And what did he do? He lifted his voice and called out to Jesus. This blind beggar knew the power of Jesus and called out to Him.
“Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”
He had no shame, no fear, he just called out. Even the people around him told him to be quiet. But did that stop him? No! He called out again, even louder!
“Son of David, have mercy on me!”
Maybe you are afraid to call out to Jesus for healing, or for help in your difficult circumstance. Or maybe someone is feeding into your fear and telling you not to cry out to Jesus. Let’s have courage to stand in our faith and cry out all the more! If this blind man had not heard that Jesus was coming down the same road he was sitting beside and called out, could he have missed his healing?
The blind man was calling to Jesus, and he did not stop just because those around him told him to be quiet. Then the moment this man was waiting for, look at verse 10:49a, “When Jesus heard him, He stopped…”
Jesus hears us when we call out His name. He stops to listen to our requests; He has genuine concern for our needs. So, when Jesus told the man to come, he immediately throws his coat aside and went to Him. In that action, in that hope of being healed, his faith was ignited. And what does Jesus ask, see verse 10:51a, “What do you want Me to do for you?”
When we call out to Jesus, we may have a lot on our minds, we may have many things we need help with. But when Jesus asks what He can do, let’s use the blind man as an example, he was very clear with what he wanted, verse 10:51b, “I want to see!” He did not give Jesus a vague reply, no, he wanted to see and that’s what he asked for. And what happened next!? Verse 10:52, “And Jesus said to him, “Go, for your faith has healed you.” Instantly the man could see, and he followed Jesus down the road.”
It was this man’s faith that healed him! Jesus didn’t touch him, He didn’t apply mud to his eyes, Jesus didn’t make him wash in the river. Nope! Jesus simply says, “…your faith has healed you…” In the Book of Luke, the account of this same story, says this in verses 18:41-42, “What do you want Me to do for you?” “Lord,” he said, “I want to see!” And Jesus said, “All right, receive your sight! Your faith has healed you.”
Matthw 7:7a says,
“Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for.”
What if we have prayed and prayed for the same request and nothing has happened. Does that mean our faith isn’t strong enough? Does it mean God isn’t going to respond to our request? Maybe we just aren’t getting the answer we had hoped for. That does not mean we discontinue calling out to Jesus. When we learn of the faith that ordinary people had when they encountered Jesus, it should leave us in a place of awe. The stories we read about in the Bible about healing and answered prayer should give us encouragement. Jesus is listening to our requests. Maybe we need to cry out louder, ignite our faith by running to Jesus, name your request with specific description. Don’t blanket over all your requests with vague descriptions, list each one specifically. When the blind man was asked what he wanted, Jesus could obviously tell he was blind, had this man not been specific with his request to see, the response Jesus could’ve given may have been much different than expected.
Does it mean God is not listening when our prayers go unanswered? That’s a common question I would imagine. When we come to terms that there are three responses to our requests, “Yes”, “No” and “Wait,” and we are willing to except whatever answer is given, our faith can continue to grow. Our trust in the Lord can flourish. But the moment we decide we don’t like the answer “No” or “Wait,” what happens to our faith and our trust?
Let’s use this blind man as our example today, don’t give up, if you have to call out to the Lord many times, continue to do so. When the Lord asks what it is you want, be specific. As we study this glorious Word, magnify God’s gracious mercy and love for us. Pray for His will to be done in your life and know He is working behind the scenes, even if you can’t see any changes. Let’s all come to the point in our faith in Jesus, that no matter what the outcome of our requests, we give all glory, all honor and all praise to the Lord God Almighty.
~AMEN~