35 As he drew near to Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. 36 And hearing a crowd going by, he inquired what this meant. 37 They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.” 38 And he cried out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 39 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!” 40 And Jesus stopped and commanded him to be brought to him. And when he came near, he asked him, 41 “What do you want me to do for you?” He said, “Lord, let me recover my sight.” 42 And Jesus said to him, “Recover your sight; your faith has made you well.” 43 And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.
Section Overview
The disciples, we could say, are blind regarding Jesus’ destiny. And as he is on the way to Jerusalem, Jesus comes to Jericho, where a blind man is begging. He cannot see what is happening, but he hears the noise of the crowd and asks its cause. Upon hearing that Jesus is passing by, he hails Jesus as the Messiah, the Son of David, and asks him to show him mercy. The people tell him to be silent, but he reiterates that Jesus is David’s son and continues to ask for mercy. Jesus, upon hearing the commotion, approaches the blind man, asking what he wants. The blind man asks for his sight, and Jesus grants it, saying that his faith has saved him. The man, upon receiving his sight, gives praise to God and follows Jesus as his disciple.
Section Outline
IV. Galilee to Jerusalem: Discipleship (9:51–19:27) . . .
C. The Last Leg of the Journey (17:11–19:27) . . .
5. Healing of Blind Man (18:35–43)
Response
A story is told of a man who wanted to see the world. He wanted to see new places, for he was tired of the familiar sights nearby. It was all so routine and boring. He decided to travel by boat. He prepared for his journey and was finally ready to set out to sea. After he was at sea a few days, a terrible storm struck. In the midst of the storm, he did not know if he would survive. Finally, the storm abated and somehow he made it to land. He was struck by the strangeness and newness of the land he had found. He entered a city and saw its gleaming buildings and the beauty of its architecture. How wonderful and invigorating to see and experience something in a strange new land. What the man did not realize, however, was that he had landed in his own country and returned to his own city. He saw things with new eyes and in a fresh way because he was no longer taking for granted the things he saw every day. The person who tells this story is G. K. Chesterton.227 Chesterton’s point is that most of us take a vacation to see something new and exciting. But we do so only because we no longer see the world we live in every day. We take for granted the remarkable beauty right in front of us, and so we no longer see it. What Chesterton says is true of our spiritual lives as well. We may think we see spiritual reality, and yet we remain blind to what is most important. Even though the blind man could not see, he recognized that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of David, the Savior of Israel.