First, Jesus came. The man began to cry out. Many charged him to be quiet. He cried out even more. Jesus commanded him to be called. They told the man, “be of good comfort. He calls you.” The man cast away his garment and came to Jesus. The conclusion of this little story is that Jesus told the man to go his way. But, it says that the man followed Jesus in the way. IN the way--such a small word in but it makes all the difference to the meaning of the story.
Where does the story come from? It’s in Mark 10:46 thru 52. It’s the story of the blind man Bartimaeus who is a beggar. On this particular day he’s sitting by the highway outside Jericho. He’s blind. He’s probably brought there every day to beg passers by for whatever they can spare. As the crowd approaches he hears that Jesus of Nazareth is coming. Bartimaeus starts yelling to get Jesus’ attention. He must be really loud because people in the crowd tell him to stop. He’s pretty determined, though, and yells even more.
Why does Jesus stop? In fact, it’s more emphatic than that. He stood still. Bartimaeus stopped Jesus in his tracks. Why? Because he kept hollering ‘thou son of David.’ Bartimaeus wasn’t just thinking that here comes the famous Jesus he had heard about. He wasn’t thinking that Jesus was a prophet, or a great teacher, or any of the things that made him well known. He wasn’t even thinking about begging Jesus for what he could spare. Bartimaeus’s blindness was only confined to his eyes, not his heart. That is why Jesus stopped and stood still.
Bartimaeus is brought before Jesus and Jesus asks him, “What can I do for you?" It’s simple. Bartimaeus comes to Jesus as he is. He has already freed himself from his garment and there he is before his Lord. Yes, he calls him Lord. He knew who Jesus was. The request is granted and Bartimaeus has his sight.
Bartimaeus had already believed that Jesus was the son of God. Someone had taught him and he knew it well. He was simply waiting by the roadside with an open heart. When he heard the invitation, he dropped everything to meet his saviour. With his newfound vision, he followed Jesus.
Where does the story come from? It’s in Mark 10:46 thru 52. It’s the story of the blind man Bartimaeus who is a beggar. On this particular day he’s sitting by the highway outside Jericho. He’s blind. He’s probably brought there every day to beg passers by for whatever they can spare. As the crowd approaches he hears that Jesus of Nazareth is coming. Bartimaeus starts yelling to get Jesus’ attention. He must be really loud because people in the crowd tell him to stop. He’s pretty determined, though, and yells even more.
Why does Jesus stop? In fact, it’s more emphatic than that. He stood still. Bartimaeus stopped Jesus in his tracks. Why? Because he kept hollering ‘thou son of David.’ Bartimaeus wasn’t just thinking that here comes the famous Jesus he had heard about. He wasn’t thinking that Jesus was a prophet, or a great teacher, or any of the things that made him well known. He wasn’t even thinking about begging Jesus for what he could spare. Bartimaeus’s blindness was only confined to his eyes, not his heart. That is why Jesus stopped and stood still.
Bartimaeus is brought before Jesus and Jesus asks him, “What can I do for you?" It’s simple. Bartimaeus comes to Jesus as he is. He has already freed himself from his garment and there he is before his Lord. Yes, he calls him Lord. He knew who Jesus was. The request is granted and Bartimaeus has his sight.
Bartimaeus had already believed that Jesus was the son of God. Someone had taught him and he knew it well. He was simply waiting by the roadside with an open heart. When he heard the invitation, he dropped everything to meet his saviour. With his newfound vision, he followed Jesus.
