“As Jesus was leaving town, trailed by his disciples and a parade of people, a blind beggar by the name of Bartimaeus, son of Timaeus, was sitting alongside the road. When he heard that Jesus the Nazarene was passing by, he began to cry out, “Son of David, Jesus! Mercy, have mercy on me!” Many tried to hush him up, but he yelled all the louder, “Son of David! Mercy, have mercy on me!” Mark 10:46-52
He had grown accustomed to sitting on the street everyday. People were used to seeing him sit there. He probably was no longer noticed by people because he had been there so long. People had grown numb to the sound of his voice asking for coins. He depended on the kindness of people to simply live.
However, this man, who could not see, was determined to be more than a “street squatter” for his whole life. This man, who sat and begged everyday, must have been thinking and dreaming with eyes closed . What ideas and dreams formulated in his head over time? He might have had a brilliant idea to construct a net that allowed fisherman to catch more fish. Maybe he dreamed about building a new type of road, house, or building. However, he was always overlooked. Blind people were not in high demand for jobs.
Though he could not see, Bartimaeus could think. And he did think…He thought about Jesus. He had gotten clips about him helping people and healing them from by-passers conversations. Oh how he dreamed of the words he would say if only Jesus walked his way. Finally, his moment came. It wasn’t exactly how he had planned. Jesus was in a moving crowd. He had thought a private audience with Jesus would have been more appropriate. The street was basically his, because he sat there everyday. But, he did not care. Jesus was too close to let go of a divine opportunity. The blind man was going to get noticed if it was the last thing that he did. So as he called out, Jesus took notice.
49-50Jesus stopped in his tracks. “Call him over.”
They called him. “It’s your lucky day! Get up! He’s calling you to come!” Throwing off his coat, he was on his feet at once and came to Jesus.
What? It was his lucky day! The people that had just told him to be quiet were now congratulating him. The blind man didn’t care. Bartimaeus left everything to talk with Jesus. The blind man took a risk, because he had a chance of being left in the crowd and trampled. Apparently, the risk was worth it.
51Jesus said, “What can I do for you?”
The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.”
52“On your way,” said Jesus. “Your faith has saved and healed you.”
In that very instant he recovered his sight and followed Jesus down the road.
He didn’t have a fancy request. It only took five words to ask. Even the best eye doctors could do nothing to help him. He had wanted to see his whole life. A simple request was followed by a loving response. Instantly, he could see! I wonder what it felt like to see the sun pouring on his face. Standing in front of him was the man who healed him. Jesus was the first person he had ever seen, and it changed everything. All of the dreams he had thought about and the plans that he had imagined while sitting on the street were now possible. Surprisingly, it didn’t matter. Bartimaeus, the man who was blind, could now see. As his eyes were opened, he could see that following Jesus was the best plan out of all of his dreams.
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