2023

Mark 8:22-26

(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.

  This is one of those passages that really make you think. I had stated in an earlier study that there is not one simple recipe for having these miracles performed. Jesus demonstrates different approaches to each and every "need” at hand. This passage has a certain vibe that believe Jesus is trying to convey. 1st let’s look at what takes place. They Bring Jesus a blind man, Jesus leads him out of town. Jesus sits in his eyes and puts His hands upon him and asked if he can see. The man replies and says he see shapes like men as trees walking. Jesus puts His hand on his eyes again and the man saw clearly.  Let’s stop here and digest what took place. So far, we have read that all of Jesus’ previous miracles have happened instantaneously. Here we see there needed to be Jesus’ touch twice for the healing to truly manifest itself.  Just that statement alone could be a 10-part sermon. When I do these studies, I try to be as organic as possible and not get any outside help. I do not rely on others to help convey the meaning of scriptures, as I truly want our thoughts to be as inspired by God as possible. I want to look at two viewpoints on this though. One is my own and another is what is written in my study Bible. I will go with that 1^st.

"Because of where it is in the narrative, this miracle should be considered an object lesson – a physical demonstration of the spiritual condition of the disciples. Some people of Bethsaida ask Jesus to heal a blind man. Jesus applies saliva to the man’s eyes, lays hands on him and asks what he sees. The man’s vision improved because he can see the shapes of men. Jesus again places His hands on the man and this time he can see clearly. Similarly, although the disciples’ spiritual vision is not yet 20/20, they will eventually come to see clearly who He is.”

When I read the passage, I for one did not correlate this being some lesson to the disciples, nor would I disagree. It does make sense to know what had happened prior to this. Meaning the feeding of the 4000, the disciples clearly did not get the message way earlier when feeding the 5000. They should have known to feed the 4000 the same way Jesus fed the 5000. Clearly their vision was blurred.

 Psalm 119:18  Open thou mine eyes, That I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.

Matthew 13:16  But blessed are your eyes, for they see: and your ears, for they hear.

My 2^nd viewpoint is this. Jesus is constantly working on us. Not everything we ask or hope for will come immediately or automatically. Often there is a process involved because we are human/sinners. We must understand that Jesus is always with us, always working on us, always rescuing us, always loving us, always forgiving us. He is always there. I believe we have put so much junk in our lives that our vision is blurred to the greatness and fullness of Jesus. When I read that Jesus spit on the man, to me that was an act of cleansing. Remember when our moms would wet a towel with her saliva and wipe our face. It’s a cleansing. Trying to get the dirt and grime off of us.

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 

Psalm 46:1  God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble.

2 Thessalonians 3:16  Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace always by all means. The Lord be with you all.

Joshua 1:5  There shall not any man be able to stand before thee all the days of thy life: as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.

Deuteronomy 31:6   Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the LORD thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee.