From Blindness to Sight

You open your eyes and see nothing. No matter how many times you blink, no matter how much you rub your eyes, all you can see is darkness, darkness so thick that you could cut it with a knife. You get on your hands and knees and crawl across the ground, dizzy from the loss of one of your sensory perceptions. People walk to and fro around you, bumping into you and stumbling over you whenever you cross their path. They yell at you, telling you to get out of the way, but do not offer a helping hand. You hear the laughter of children and then feel the shove of a small hand on your side. Had you been able to see, the shove wouldn’t have meant anything, but in this impaired state, you fall over. Kicked and stepped on, you finally make it to a wall and prop your back up against it. Your state is hopeless; you feel helpless. But then, you feel something land on your lap. You pick it up and feel the shape and features of a coin.

If you followed along, you have just stepped into the weary and worn shoes of blind Bartimaeus. To imagine a day in this man’s shoes is difficult for many of us. One of the things many of us take for granted the most, besides perhaps the sun that shines on our heads and the air that we breathe, is our God-given ability to see. It is truly a blessing to be able to open our eyes each day and see the wonders of God’s green earth: “The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork” (Psalm 19:1).

However, a far greater blindness than the one Bartimaeus experienced darkens the eyes of many today: the blindness of sin exacerbated by turning a blind eye to the word of God, the only lamp that provides any light unto our spiritual path (Psalm 119:105). As pitiful as Bartimaeus’ situation was, it is nothing compared to the plight of a soul separated from God. Thankfully for Bartimaeus, a solution to his problem was near. And thankfully for the blind sinner, the same solution to an even greater problem likewise is near (cf. Romans 13:11). Jesus was the answer to Bartimaeus’ blindness, and that same Jesus is able to save people from their sins and thus their spiritual blindness (Matthew 1:21; Luke 4:17-21).

Some obstacles stood in the path between Bartimaeus and the answer to his blindness. The first obstacle was the blindness itself; he could not see Jesus even though He was walking down the very highway on which Bartimaeus sat and begged. Fortunately, Bartimaeus still had his ears, and as the Bible records, “he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth” (Mark 10:47). Bartimaeus believed that Jesus was near but also knew that this was not enough for him to receive his sight. As a result, he tried to call out to the Lord, saying, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” (Mark 10:47). The second obstacle then reared its head: those around him “warned him to be quiet” (Mark 10:48). Thankfully, these people did not stop Bartimaeus, who “cried out all the more, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’” (Mark 10:48). Jesus heard, “stood still and commanded him to be called” (Mark 10:49).

Some obstacles stand between the blind sinner and Jesus as well. The sinner is surrounded by the blinding influence of the world and false religion. His schools have taught him that he is nothing more than an animal. People he thought to be religious have told him that one religion is as good as another. Yet, the sinner still has ears if he will listen: “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17).
Having heard the pure Word of God ring out in a multitude of darkness and having believed it, a sinner can call out to the Lord by obeying His simple commands to repent, to confess the name of Jesus, and baptized, just like another formerly blind man was told: “Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord” (Acts 22:16). Sinners must ignore other obstacles like the cries of their friends and family who try to silence them by saying things like “It is silly to be baptized,” or, “One church is as good as another,” or, “You don’t need Jesus.” No, they must cry even louder to the Lord by obeying His voice. Upon doing so, a sinner is called by Jesus in that he or she becomes one of the “called out” – a member of the church (1 Peter 2:9). The sinner is no longer lost and no longer blind.

Bartimaeus asked and received his sight. A sinner has only to call upon the name of the Lord in faithful obedience in order to receive the remission of his sins and his spiritual sight. However, the story must not end there; it did not end for Bartimaeus. In the parallel account recorded in Luke 18:35-43, we learn that after he was healed Bartimaeus “followed Him, glorifying God” (Luke 18:43). The Christian, whose sins have been cleansed by the saving blood of Christ, must faithfully follow Jesus all the days of his life (Revelation 2:10). The person who dies a faithful follower of Jesus will be rewarded by the “Rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Hebrews 11:6), just like Bartimaeus was.                  

-Patrick Swayne