22 And
he cometh to Bethsaida; and they bring a blind man unto him, and besought him
to touch him. 23 And he took the blind man by the hand, and led him out of
the town; and when he had spit on his eyes, and put his hands upon him, he
asked him if he saw ought. 24 And he looked up, and said, I see men as
trees, walking. 25 After that he put his hands again upon his eyes, and
made him look up: and he was restored, and saw every man clearly. 26 And
he sent him away to his house, saying, Neither go
into the town, nor tell it to any in the town. (Mark
8:22-26)
This is the only recorded
instant of a progressive miracle, but its underlying mystery may be very much
like the improving spiritual vision of those who receive Christ blindly,
but come to see Him in more perfect light as a result of the process of
sanctification over time. You will recall the faith of even Abram was not fully
developed when he left Ur of the Chaldees. He was commanded to leave both
kindred and possessions and go into the “land which I shall show you.”
Abram (later called Abraham) did embark as commanded, but he failed to comply
fully for he took both kindred and possessions. Later, Abraham’s faith was so
fully matured that he was willing to sacrifice his only Begotten Son at God’s
command without so much as a whimper or question.
Two salient points (there are
more) of this miracle are 1) the efficacious benefit of our prayers for others.
Christ was approached by friends of the blind man who had brought him to the
best source of healing; and 2) the importance of patience on our part in our
petitions to God. The man did not receive perfect vision at the first, but did
so at the last. We shall all, thank God, have perfect vision at the last. “For
we know in part, and we prophesy in part.” (1 Cor 13:9) As our
knowledge of Christ improves over time, so does our vision of Him and our
awareness of His will for our lives. “For now we see through a glass,
darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even
as also I am known.” (1 Cor 13:12)
Perfect vision is a grant
of our Lord by Grace. In previous devotions, we have discussed the miracles of
the feeding of 5,000 and then the 4,000. The 5,000 seem to have been mostly of
the Jews, and the 4,000 were at Decapolis which would imply the great majority
were Gentiles. Christ came to open the eyes of all who have eyes to see – and
if they have not and plead for it, He will give them eyes to see. The miracle
of the provision of Bread to such multitudes is significant to the occasion.
Christ is our Bread, and the Manna of God which came down from Heaven. He is
that Bread which has neither spot nor leaven. It is that Bread which nourishes
our spirit, and the Presence of Christ, which we see clearly in the Sacrament
of the Lord’s Supper. Remember the two men who were on the Road to Damascus
following the crucifixion (and unbeknownst to them – the Resurrection of
Christ). As they walked and lamented the events of the last three days, Jesus
came and walked with them. They knew Him not until He stopped to sup at their
house. When He broke the Bread and gave it to them, their eyes were immediately
opened and they KNEW Him! Jesus opens eyes!
Just prior to the miracle we are
examining today, Jesus was challenged by the Pharisees to give them a sign from
Heaven, but Jesus never used His power to impress or to gain personal acclaim.
A good friend sent me this quote just this morning: “Jesus fitted his help
in just where it was needed. He never used his power to show that he could, but
to help somebody. The people were hungry, and he fed them. The widow was broken
hearted over her boy, and Jesus brought him back to life. The tax-collector
called, and he helped Peter pay the bill. The wedding supplies run out, and he
renewed them. His power is at hand today to help in the common things of our
daily lives.” S. D. Gordon.
A single grain of faith may go a
long way, indeed. “. . . . they bring a blind man unto him, and besought
him to touch him.” Someone had at least heard about Jesus and knew that
He could do something good for their blind friend. We do not know if the blind
man had any faith at all, but he had friends who had at least a touch of that
Light of Faith. Those who brought the blind man to Christ did not know EXACTLY
what Christ could do, but they knew that His simple touch would be of benefit
to their friend. Their prayers for the Touch of the Master’s Hand were selfless
and compassionate. They dared not ask Christ to restore the man’s vision, but
they were bold to ask only for the touch.
Jesus could see into the heart
of the blind man. We know not what the searching eyes of Jesus found there, but
it is possible that He discovered that the man himself lacked faith. He had
been brought on faith that he did not own. “And he took the blind man by
the hand, and led him out of the town.” The best solution for a lack of
healing faith is to get alone with the Lord. The man, unable to find his own
way, was led by the hand of Christ away from the madding crowd. “. . . and
when he had spit on his eyes, and put his hands upon him, he asked him if he
saw ought.” This miracle of gradual healing is one of remarkable
exception. It may often be true that the suppliant to the benefits of Christ
needs patience and greater understanding for healing. The truth of His power,
in this instant, seems to needed to grow in the heart of the blind man. Jesus
has touched this man in the most intimate way, and now Jesus asks of him if he
can see. If you are seeking the Hidden Manna of Christ in the Scriptures, it
may be that the Holy Ghost will raise a multitude of questions to haste you on
to the Treasure you seek.
Now the blind man answers Jesus:
“And he looked up, and said, I see men as trees, walking.”
Yes, the man can see now, but his vision is very limited. Newly converte4d
Christians often believe that they see more truth than time and study could
have revealed. To this blind man, even see men as trees walking was a glorious
improvement, but he had no idea how glorious would be that improvement in the
end. He, like a new convert to Christ, sees “through a glass darkly.”
“After that he put his hands again upon his eyes, and made him look
up: and he was restored, and saw every man clearly.” Once we have
been touched by the hands of Christ at our weakest point, we will be restored
wholly. When we see our fellow man clearly, we are also able to know God
better. When we know that man is clearly incapable of righteousness and trust
apart from the efficacious working of the Holy Ghost, we will know no other
power than God upon which to call.
We all come to Jesus out of our
desperate need. He satisfies that need and sends us out to be a light to
others. “And he sent him away to his house, saying, Neither go into the town, nor tell it to any in the town.”
It is a curious matter that Jesus, unlike other times, told the man to tell no
man in the town. Jesus usually told those whom He healed to simply “tell no
man.” There are two main possibilities, in my view, for this present
instruction to the blind man: 1) Jesus had other pressing business later in
Caesarea Philippi and could not linger for the crowds that would have surely
emerged from the town at the news of the healings; and 2) Jesus prefers for us
to come to Him in faith and not seeking signs and miracles. Of course, He
always worked miracles for those who needed them, but not for show or
spectacle.
We have a summary of the manner of Jesus in conducting this
miracle by Rev. A. F. Muir:
He
Isolates From Disturbing Influences.
First with Christ, that
afterwards he may be in Him.
He
Encourages and Confirms Faith.
Personal contact and operation,
and kindly words, evoking patient’s inner freewill and power.
He
Exacts Implicit Obedience.
The first use of the restored vision is to
avoid those upon whom the man had formerly depended — a hard task! The life
Christ’s people are bidden to lead may not commend itself to their judgment or
desire, but it is best for their spiritual interests.
The Purpose in healing from
spiritual blindness is at least five-fold: 1) Deliverance from blind
guides. 2) Transfer of confidence to the true Guide. 3) Revelation of the
invisible power of God. 4) Exercising the soul’s newly acquired powers of
spiritual vision. 5) Giving spiritual direction for the future. Earnestness and
knowledge are the parents of faith. This is the only progressive cure
recorded in the New Testament. Why was it not instantaneous like the rest?
Nothing our Lord did or left undone was without meaning; so there must have
been a reason for this. That reason cannot have been in Christ. He was no
respecter of persons; His tender sympathy yearned over this sufferer as
tenderly as over the rest. It must be traced, then, to the man himself and his
fellow citizens. If the state of morality had been higher in
Bethsaida, if public opinion had been more upright, if the
collective example of the citizens had been better, the
probability is that Jesus would have healed outright and allowed the man to go
into the town with the news.
What present application do we find in this miracle? We know from our own
personal observations that something is terribly wrong in America today – something
that was not so wrong in ages past when the nation stood on Godly principle and
was a veritable Light to the World. When ‘My Country ‘tis of Thee’ was sung
following the reading of a Psalm each morning in our public schools. No we
stumble as drunken men. Our children have rebelled because they have seen the
utter dereliction and hypocrisy of their parents who will stand for nothing. (I
am generalizing, for there are yet many incredible heroes remaining among our
disheveled lot). America has lost her vision. The Lord took us by the hand as
vagrants and oppressed believers in Europe and led us through the storms of the
sea to this land that literally flows with milk and honey. He gradually opened
our eyes to His Providence in our founding as a Nation, revered above every
other nation of the world. He made our vision clear and our purpose bold. But
we have gone blind once more for lack of seeing the Light. When we have been
blessed so bountifully in our young years as a Constitutional Republic, who is left
to bring us back to Christ by faith? We are blind men struggling in the
darkness of our own doing.
My Christian friends of America, allow me to warn you and the nation – the
BRIDGE to the future has been washed away! DETOUR!
Turn from your wicked ways, seek out the old paths wherein our fathers walked,
and return to the God who is your Maker! “How shall we escape, if we
neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord,
and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him; 4 God
also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers
miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?” (Heb
2:3-4)
