Lord, That I May See!

 Mark 10: 46-52

Blind Bartimaeus Receives His Sight

⁴⁶ Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (which means “son of Timaeus”), was sitting by the roadside begging. ⁴⁷ When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

⁴⁸ Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

⁴⁹ Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.”

So they called to the blind man, “Cheer up! On your feet! He’s calling you.” ⁵⁰ Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus.

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.

Even in his blindness, Bartimaeus was able to "see" and recognize that Jesus could restore his sight. His direct request came from a faith in the man he knew only by hearsay, but that was enough for him  And it was enough for Jesus to grant his request immediately.  Here we are with a lifetime of real-life instances of God's healing power and of hearing these Gospel stories, and yet our faith does not seem to be as strong and confident as that of this blind beggar.  He was rich in faith and we are poor in faith, the beggars. He is the man to ask for an increase of faith.   May he intercede for us and grant us this needed gift if we are to be witnesses of faith to others as he is.

Bro. Rene