29 As Jesus and his disciples were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed him. 30 Two blind men were sitting by the roadside, and when they heard that Jesus was going by, they shouted, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!”
31 The crowd rebuked them and told them to be quiet, but they shouted all the louder, “Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!”
32 Jesus stopped and called them. “What do you want me to do for you?” he asked.
33 “Lord,” they answered, “we want our sight.”
34 Jesus had compassion on them and touched their eyes. Immediately they received their sight and followed him.
This passage is for all of us who at times struggle with the notion of God not being willing to help us when we seek Him or at the very least, we struggle with the pregnant pause in His timing and wonder if our continuous supplications even reach the Ear of heaven. We are definitely a microwave group of people – ask now get now types. Waiting in our society has a very negative connotation. Yet God is always at work in the waiting. If He does not act within our time frames – like perhaps say a genie – we wrongly assume His lack of mercy, compassion and love. Nothing could be further from the Truth. God is not only willing to help us - He is all powerfully able to aid. He eagerly waits for us to seek Him - desiring for us to articulate our needs (prayer) and have faith in His ability to act on our behalf in His timing. He wants us to trust Him in this indeed, He responds to our trust.
God is the Master of making a way when there seems to be no way. I believe He enjoys parting those Red Seas – doing God size things that are simply too hard for man to accomplish. He will either change our circumstances or change our hearts in the circumstances bestowing grace giving way to grace sufficient to meet each need. He heals both physically and spiritually. The One who gives the power gets the glory. Jesus’ compassion is shown even clearer in Mark’s account of our verses for today:
46 Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (that is, the 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. Mark 10:46-52 (NIV)
“God never strikes except for motives of love, and never takes away but in order to give.” Francois Fenelon
Our Lord is not only ready to aid, Scripture tells us He rises to show us compassion, He runs to the returning, He rejoices over us with singing, He is the rewarder of those earnestly seeking and He is the restorer of our souls. It is His desire to show us His great love. The Prophet Isaiah tells us:
18 Yet the LORD longs to be gracious to you; he rises to show you compassion. For the LORD is a God of justice. Blessed are all who wait for him! Isaiah 30:18 (NIV)
The Prophet Zephaniah tells us:
17 “The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing.” Zeph 3:17 (NIV)
In our verses for today we find two eagerly seeking the Master’s mercy. Physical ailments often cause us to be more aggressive in seeking His Presence and the touch from His healing hand – that is a beauty from the ash for there is no better place to be than at the feet of the Savior. The cries of these blind men reach the ears of our Jesus and in His tenderness He calls them while all the while the crowd is noisily rebuking and seeking their silence. Jesus asks what they desire not because He did not know (He is fully aware of what is in a man’s heart) but because He wanted them to petition their need. We do not realize we need a Savior until we realize we have a need for One. In mercy He immediately restores their sight – such is the love of sweet Jesus.
“He who counts the stars and calls them by their names is in no danger of forgetting His own children.” Charles H. Spurgeon
“God loves each of us as if there were only one of us to love.” Augustine