6. What the Blind Man Saw
Three of the gospels record an event relevant to the sonship of Jesus that occurred just prior to his triumphal yet humble entry into Jerusalem and before his betrayal and crucifixion (Matthew 20:29-34; Mark 10:46-52; Luke 18:35-43). Luke's account of the incident is the most detailed and tells us that on the way to Jerusalem:
As he drew near to Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. And hearing a crowd going by, he inquired what this meant. They told him, "Jesus of Nazareth is passing by." And he cried out, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!" And those who were in front rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!" And Jesus stopped and commanded him to be brought to him. And when he came near, he asked him, "What do you want me to do for you?" He said, "Lord, let me recover my sight." And Jesus said to him, "Recover your sight; your faith has made you well." And immediately he recovered his sight and followed Jesus, praising God (Luke 18:35-43 ESV). To understand the story of the blind man, we must remember that by this point in Jesus' ministry crowds formed wherever he went. Messianic excitement and expectation were building by the day. Luke tells us that when Jesus arrived in Jericho one man, Zachaeus, had to climb a tree to catch a glimpse of him because of the crowds waiting to see Jesus as he passed by. This was only a day before Jesus entered Jerusalem with crowds spreading their garments in the road before the colt on which he rode, and the "multitude" calling out: "Blessed be the king who comes in the name of the Lord" (Luke 19:35-38).
The messianic fervor of the crowds was doubtless at its height at this point, as many of the Jews longed for a king who would overthrow the brutal Roman occupation and give them their independence again. This was the king the crowds came out to see. Yet far from being caught up in the adulation of the crowds, Christ's compassion (Matthew 20:34) was such that he focused on a blind man who saw his real role at that time: a man who had "seen" in his blindness not a regally aloof king, but the compassionate human Son of God. Sight and Insight The blind man, whose name was Bartimaeus (Mark 10:46-52), saw what few others saw: the real nature of Christ's role in his first coming. Yet before leaving on this trip to Jerusalem Jesus had openly explained to the disciples that he would humbly submit to shame and death and that now was not his time to rule (Luke 18:3133); but they didn't get it. Luke stresses this fact for us not once, but three times in the same verse: "The disciples did not understand any of this. Its meaning was hidden from them, and they did not know what he was talking about" (vs. 34). The disciples, like the people, expected a king. It was in Jericho – where he healed the blind man – "because he was near Jerusalem and the people thought that the kingdom of God was going to appear at once" (Luke 19:11-12) that Jesus gave the people the parable of the nobleman who went away to receive the kingdom and did not establish it until he returned later.
Given this background and the lack of understanding of the people and of the disciples themselves at this time, it is amazing that the blind man in the crowd saw the true nature of the Son of David. What the blind man "saw" with his mind was the basis of his faith. Jesus commented on the faith of this man and people like him when they appealed to his mercy. While Jesus frequently said to his disciples "You of little faith," the blind man and others like him were commended for theirs.
Perhaps the blind man and many of the others who were sick and disabled who came to Christ had been driven to their knees by their illnesses and afflictions. Evidently they had developed a faith that the crowds and even the disciples had not. Whatever the case, it is clear that the blind man's faith enabled him to see something few others saw – an insight for which he was greatly rewarded.
Looking closely at Bartimaeus' example of faith, we can learn from other details of this story. Luke tells us that although the people told the blind beggar to keep quiet, he ignored them and continued to call on Jesus all the more fervently (Luke 18:39). How fervently? Matthew, in his account, uses the word krazo which means to shout very loudly or scream – a word that was often used of women in childbirth – that's how fervently Bartimaeus called. And we need to notice what he was shouting. Luke tells us that when he asked who was passing by, Bartimaeus was told it was "Jesus of Nazareth;" but he called out not to "Jesus of Nazareth," but to "Jesus Son of David" – he called out to the promised Son. He also called "Have mercy on me!" – the call of repentance and sincere asking for help. It was at this point that Jesus stopped and turned to him. Alternative Realities We might wonder what would have happened if Bartimaeus had not kept calling out, if he had not called so fervently, or if he had not called out what he did. Would Jesus not have heard him and, as a result, would nothing have happened to the blind man? We might see many lessons there for our own prayers – lessons of persistence, fervency and humility – things that Bartimaeus clearly exhibited as part of his faith.
PART TWO:
SERVICE
Although the promised Messiah was destined to become a great king, one of the clearest hallmarks of his life was humble service. The first and last events we find recorded in the ministry of Jesus were, in fact, opportunities that he took to serve. Throughout his life, we find it was Christ's willingness and desire to serve others that guided what he said and did – a fact that shines through the gospel accounts continually. As his disciples we can find many lessons in the details of that service …