Introduction Jesus is only weeks away from his arrest, execution and resurrection. On His journey to Jerusalem Jesus is detoured for a moment, a detour where a blind man is healed. Luke 18 has been a chapter filled with lessons. We saw a needy woman who would not go away (vv.1-8); a sinful man who went away justified (vv.9-17); a rich ruler who went away sad (vv.18-34); and now a blind man who goes away with Jesus able to walk with God. People are like books, they come with different stories, with different bindings and different endings. Luke has introduced us to the wealthy and the widow, adults and little children, the rich and the poor, beggars and believers and now a blind man. We find in the church people who are widows and politicians, little children and adults, the rich the poor beggars and believers but we sometimes also find the blind. Blind in the sense of deluded like the Pharisee and dishonest like the ruler or blind to the things of God and the claims of Christ. Now Jesus teaches us more lessons about spiritual vision from a blind man. The lessons include a willingness to see ourselves as we really are we must see our need. The second lesson in seeing our need we must be willing to see Jesus as the fulfiller of that that need. Third we must be willing to cry out to Jesus Have mercy on me. Coming To Terms With Our Condition (vv. 35-37) Luke 18:35 (NKJV); Then it happened, as He was coming near Jericho, that a certain blind man sat by the road begging. Mark s gospel preserves the man s name. Mark 10:46 (NKJV); Now they came to Jericho. As He went out of Jericho with His disciples and a great multitude, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the road begging. Matthew s gospel tell us there were two blind beggars who met Jesus as He left Jericho (Matt.20:29-30); Luke introduces us to one of them; who called out Jesus as he approached Jericho. Some skeptics see in these accounts contradictions. Wait a minute they will say. In Matthew s gospel there are two blind men, in Luke there is one, in Matthew s gospel they are leaving Jericho and Luke s gospel they are entering into Jericho. I knew it! The Bible is a fraud, filled with contradictions and cannot be trusted. In their blind desperation for the Bible to be wrong they do not look at the obvious solutions found both in the text and in the geography of Jericho. There were two Jericho s; the old ruined city, and the new one; build by Herod the Great. They stood about a mile apart. In many modern cities like New Orleans, Santa Fe, Albuquerque and Denver, you have the old city and the new. According to Josephus Herod built a fort and a winter palace in Jericho. Modern scholars have speculated the tomb of Herod, which 1
has never been found, is somewhere near the old city of Jericho. A certain native plant in the region of Jericho was believed to have healing properties for the blind. For this reason a large population of the blind frequented the city. The two men the loudest Bartimaeus were positioned at the gate of the new city. Jericho is believed by some to be the oldest continuously occupied city. Rahab the harlot was from there, she helped the spies Joshua and Caleb and tied a scarlet threat to remind the Israeli troops not to harm her household. She would be included in Jesus ancestral line. Just west of the city was the wilderness where Satan tempted Jesus. There were many reasons why someone might be blind in the ancient world; accidents, birth defects, battle wounds, disease. Many became blind shortly after birth because of sexually transmitted diseases in the birth canal. Other children were blinded by trachoma, a form of conjunctivitis. It may have taken weeks or months for such diseases to cause total blindness. Blindness in the Bible is often a metaphor for people who are lost, who are in darkness. Fanny Crosby was totally blind. She was blinded as an infant as the result of an accident. She lived to be over 90 years old. She wrote many popular Christian songs and choruses. When she was only eight years old, she wrote: Oh, what a happy child I am, although I cannot see. I am resolved that in this world, contented I will be. How many blessings I enjoy that other people don't. To weep and sigh because I'm blind--i cannot and I won't. The Bible tells us people are born blind spiritually blind and they remain blind willingly. They refuse to see the truth about Jesus. Many in our world are blinded by false religion. False religion is any religion that seeks to substitute Christ as the solution to the plight of the human race. John 1:9-11 (NKJV); That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. 11 He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him. Luke 18:36 (NKJV); And hearing a multitude passing by, he asked what it meant. Luke 18:37 (NKJV); So they told him that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by. The moment the blind man heard, Jesus of Nazareth he knew what it meant. With Jesus close by there is hope. With Jesus close by there is the possibility of wholeness and wellness. What does it mean when Jesus is close by? Hope; healing. Coming To Take Christ s Mercy (vv. 38-41) Luke 18:38 (NKJV); And he cried out, saying, Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me! 2
A Greek audience may not have understood the prophetic significance of the title Son of David, but they would have understood the claim to be descended from a famous king. The Jews had grown weary of Greek and then Roman domination. The Rabbi s believed that God s messiah would come as a second David, and sometimes they would simply call Messiah David. Other than the genealogy in Luke 3:31 this is the only time the expression son of David occurs in Luke s gospel. Some conservative Bible scholars suggest the blind man s use of the name Son of David means the blind man understood what the sighted religious leaders had failed to see; Jesus was God s Messiah. The man is screaming at the top of his lungs, Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me. This is a dangerous thing to scream, even for someone as desperate as a blind man. The religious leaders certainly don t believe Jesus is the Messiah. The Romans kept close watch on so called liberators and saviors which threatened the pax Romana. But the blind man doesn t care. He was sure Jesus could heal him. You should take special note of that. The blind man knew he was blind. You might find this surprising but some people who are blind do not know they are blind. Helen Keller was both blind and deaf from an early childhood disease. She was once asked; Isn t it terrible to be blind? She responded, Better to be blind and see with your heart, than to have two good eyes and see nothing. For this blind man blindness was in fact a benefit. For some reason he was able to see what the religious leaders failed to see the true identity of Jesus Christ. Luke 18:39 (NKJV); Then those who went before warned him that he should be quiet; but he cried out all the more, Son of David, have mercy on me! The desperation turned into a shouting match. The louder the blind man screamed the louder the crowds told the man to shut up! The blind man kept crying out to everyone s embarrassment! People in the world are sometimes embarrassed that you cry out to Jesus. The multitudes told them to shut up. People in the world and even in the church can sometimes be cruel. In some ways everyone in the crowd was better off than the blind man they had more money, better clothes, jobs, a family. To the crowds the blind man was an annoyance, a hindrance, a nusance, perhaps even a handicap. But as one Bible scholar put it, the blind man refused to be bludgeoned into silence by the indifferent crowd. When you cry out to Jesus, don t be surprised if people tell you to shut up. They will say, Jesus doesn t care about you! Jesus has his own mission, his own agenda. Don t you realize he has more important things to deal with that your petty problems? You are a beggar in a desert town on the outskirts of the most powerful empire in the world. Jesus doesn t care about you...your blindness is sin or karma. The crowds will tell you to shut up, Christianity is a religion for fools and children, for people who need a crutch, and even if there are a few good stories in the Bible, it still is all a matter of private interpretation. People will say Stay away from Jesus. Never 3
listen to them. Reject their counsel. They will offer you substitutes, Enjoy your blindness. Just think, you get to park in the handicap section. He refuses to give up, but with passionate persistence continues to plea again and again. Do you need help from God? Persist, perservere, go against the odds, oppose the crowd. The blind man needs food, clothing, shelter but he cries out for mercy. When you are blind, or sick, or lonely or helpless or homeless, you have a lot of time to think about your condition and your circumstance. We are reminded what Jesus had said just a few verses earlier in chapter 18; unless you come as a child, helpless, dependent, honest about your condition. The blind man is urgent, persistent, and keenly aware that Jesus is close by. The blind man thought what a lot of desperate people think, I need help, I need hope, I need assistance. But some refuse hope. Some refuse to acknowledge their need. For some, the answer is I could lose face. I could be refused. I could ask and not get what I am asking for. I could be disappointed. Eric Fromm writes; A man sits in front of a bad television program and doesn't know that he is bored; he joins the rat race of commerce, where personal worth is measured in terms of market values, and is not aware of his anxiety. Ulcers speak louder than words. Theologians and philosophers have been saying for a century that God is dead, but what we confront now is the possibility that "man is dead," transformed into a thing, a producer, a consumer, an idolater of other things. In his little epistle the brother of Jesus tells the early church God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble. Therefore submit to God, resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you (James 4:6-8). Hebrews 11:6 (NKJV); But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. Luke 18:40-41 (NKJV); So Jesus stood still and commanded him to be brought to Him. And when he had come near, He asked him, We come to heart of the passage. So Jesus stood still. Jesus still has to go to Jerusalem. Jericho is just 17 miles away. We are reasonably certain that Jesus must have passed through Jericho many times yet this is the only recorded instance we find Jesus in Jericho. In one sense Jesus must go to Jerusalem. He must be rejected, he must suffer, he must die he must be resurrected from the dead. Nothing will stop him. No amount of protesting and pleading on the part of the disciples, no opposition from well meaning friends, and bitter enemies. But the passionate persistent plea of a blind man stops Jesus in his tracks. The man s cry is Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me. A blind man bold enough to ask great things from God! The blind man believed the things he had heard about Jesus. R. Kent Hughes writes; What a window into our Savior s heart! He is alive today doing in a far more exalted fashion the things he did while on the earth. Now in Heaven, he 4
hears constant hosannas from the heavenly host and the Church. Yet he is instantly attentive to all our cries, even when a million of us beggars cry to him at the same time! The heart s cry of one in need is far sweeter to Christ than the shallow hallelujah s of the crowd. Are you hurting? Do you feel helpless? If so, understand that your plea will be sweetness to his ears ( Luke II;p.216). Mark s gospel gives us Peter s recollection of what happened that day; Mark 10:49-50 (NKJV);49 So Jesus stood still and commanded him to be called. Then they called the blind man, saying to him, Be of good cheer. Rise, He is calling you. 50 And throwing aside his garment, he rose and came to Jesus. Luke 18:41 saying, What do you want Me to do for you? He said, Lord, that I may receive my sight. Jesus asks, What do you want Me to do for you? You might think the blind man would say something like, You know Lord. Has Jesus ever asked you What do you want Me to do for you? Jesus possessed the power of God. This was a time for courage, the kind of courage that asks great things of God, even if they seem impossible. Jesus wants the blind man to articulate his need. Tell me what you want what you really really want! This would reveal his own desire and strengthen his faith. Jesus asks, What do you want Me to do for you? Make me rich like Bill Gates. Make me beautiful. Make me desirable. Make me comfortable. Make me popular. Is Jesus promoting a gospel of health and wealth? The blind man knew exactly what he wanted; Lord, that I may receive my sight. Coming To Trust Christ s Salvation (vv. 42-43) Luke 18:42 (NKJV); Then Jesus said to him, Receive your sight; your faith has made you well. There is something powerful about knowing your need, articulating your need and believing Jesus can meet that need. Luke 18:43 (NKJV); And immediately he received his sight, and followed Him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God. A powerful miracle takes place. And immediately he received his sight imagine how that must have been. No bandages, no surgery, no snake oil drops, no prayer clothes. I have read stories of people born blind with a rare condition called congenital cateracts. No lasik, no eyedrops, no bandages, no goggles in the night, no adjustment surgery, just vision he sees and the first thing he sees is the face of Jesus. He sees people, he sees palm trees, he sees Jericho, the city of Roses and hills of Moab off in the distance. 5
A woman named Rose Crawford had been blind for 50 years. I just can t believe it! she gasped as the doctor lifted the bandages fro her eyes after her recovery from delicate surgery in an Ontario hospital. She wept for joy when for the first time in her life a dazzling and beautiful world of form and color greeted her eyes that now were able to see. The amazing thing about the story, however, is that 20 years of her blindness had been unnecessary. She didn t know that surgical techniques had been developed, and that an operation could have restored her vision at the age of 30. The doctor said, She just figured there was nothing that could be done about her condition. Much of her life could have been different.. As I read the news account of her case, some questions came to my mind. Why did she continue to assume her situation was hopeless? Had no one told her about the wonderful advances in eye surgery? Then I thought of the plight of those unreached by the Gospel. How many will go on living in moral blindness unless we bring them to the Savior? Millions will never know anything but spiritual darkness because no one has shared with them the Light that has come into the world (Rom.10:14). Clarence Macartney writes; And for you and me, too, that will be the greatest of all sights. When we awake from the dream men call life, when we put off the image of the earth and break the bonds of time and mortality, when the scales of time and sense have fallen from our eyes and the garment of corruption has been put off and when this mortality ahs put on immortality and this corruption has put on incorruption and we awaken in the everlasting morning, that will be the sight that will stir us. Jesus adds the remarkable words, Your faith has healed you. What do you mean Jesus? Bartimeaus must have believed Jesus was God s Messiah. He must have also believed that Jesus had the power, the authority, the compassion and the willingness to heal him. Blind Bartimeaus believed Jesus could help him and heal him and save him! Jesus is telling Bartimeaus you were right about your blindness and you were right about me! You were right to be persistent! You were right to call out! You were right to ignore the crowds and the cat calls from the unbelievers who insisted that calling out to me was just a waste of your time! You were right to disregard their ignorance and blindness and unbelief. You were right to trust me, to trust that I could I heal you, forgive you, restore you! Conclusion A novel by Madeleine L'Engle is titled A Severed Wasp...; (T)he title, which comes from one of George Orwell's essays, offers a graphic image of human lostness. Orwell describes a wasp that "was sucking jam on my plate and I cut him in half. He paid no attention, merely went on with his meal, while a tiny stream of jam trickled out of his severed esophagus. Only when he tried to fly away did he grasp the dreadful thing that had happened to him." The wasp and people without Christ have much in common. Severed from their souls, but greedy and unaware, people continue to consume life's sweetness. Only when it's time to fly away will they grasp their dreadful condition. 6
Don t wait until it s too late. You may think you are fine. When Jesus healed the blind man he was headed for Jerusalem and Calvary. He paused for a moment, gave sight to the blind and continued his journey. Did you know Jesus hears your voice in the roar of the crowd? Jesus hears your thoughts and knows your heart. Jesus is alive. Jesus had compassion on that blind man and he is willing to have compassion on you. Matthew 21:22 (NKJV);22 And whatever things you ask in prayer, believing, you will receive. 7