How To See Clearly

Today’s Bible readings are Leviticus 19:1-20:21, Mark 8:11-38, Psalm42:1-11, & Proverbs 10:17

Mark 8:22-25

²² When they arrived at Bethsaida, some people brought a blind man to Jesus, and they begged him to touch the man and heal him. ²³ Jesus took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village. Then, spitting on the man’s eyes, he laid his hands on him and asked, “Can you see anything now?”

²⁴ The man looked around. “Yes,” he said, “I see people, but I can’t see them very clearly. They look like trees walking around.”

²⁵ Then Jesus placed his hands on the man’s eyes again, and his eyes were opened. His sight was completely restored, and he could see everything clearly.

This is such an amazing testimony of how Jesus works. Every time that I read this story it still grabs my heart. Thank God for friends who bring friends to Jesus. This man’s life was forever changed because somebody cared enough to bring him to Jesus.

Yet, the first thing that we notice in this event is that Jesus immediately took the man into a private place. He grabbed him by the hand & began to talk to him privately. Jesus wanted to have an intimate moment with this man. There was a reason for this.

Many times, the people around us may be the biggest hurdle in the way of our miracle. Even though the people closest to us care for us, they can be a hindrance too. The things that they say to us, the ideas that they try to share with us to comfort us, the plans that they device to help us, these can all cloud our mind. Maybe they try to convince us that things are going to happen a certain way. Maybe they mean well but are not well informed themselves. Maybe the information that they have is inaccurate or incomplete.

I believe that could have been the case with this man. As Jesus grabbed him by the hand, He started to tell him the things that He wanted the blind man to know. Jesus started to share with Him the accurate truth. He intentionally led the blind man away from everybody & everything. Some would say that it was because Jesus needed to get him away from the doubters. I don’t necessarily agree with that idea. The blind man’s friends must have believed because they brought him to Jesus. There must have been something else that was in the way.

As Jesus finally got away from the crowd with this one man, He did the most unorthodoxed method of healing that I have ever seen. He literally spit in the man’s face. This is bizarre. It could have been offensive. It is definitely not your traditional method to pray for someone. BUT IT WORKED!!! It was the method that Jesus chose to use to begin to bring freedom & deliverance to this man. This is very important for us to see.

Some people tell others that their faith is weak if:

1.      Take medicine

2.      Go to the doctor

3.      See a counsellor

4.      Have a surgery

5.      Join a support group

I say that they are uninformed & inaccurate at best. These things DO NOT show a lack of faith. It was not a lack of faith that Jesus displayed by spitting on the man’s eyes. It was just the method that He chose to start the process.

What would have happened if the man would have stomped his feet & said, “No sir, Jesus. I will not let you do any such things. I am a man of faith. I’m going to trust God for a miracle.”  That is absurd to think that way, yet many people do. Jesus wanted to start a process to bring healing to the man & this was the first step toward the bind man’s healing.

God can, & often does, use medicine to start a process of healing in a person’s life. God can, & often does, use other means as a STARTING POINT to bring about His plans for us. It is not a lack of faith. It is simply God choosing to meet us where we are at.

NOTE:  DON’T BE SO ARROGANT AS TO TELL GOD HOW HE IS GOING TO DO THINGS IN YOUR LIFE.

After Jesus spit on the blind man’s eyes He asked him:

²³ Jesus took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village. Then, spitting on the man’s eyes, he laid his hands on him and asked, “Can you see anything now?”

²⁴ The man looked around. “Yes,” he said, “I see people, but I can’t see them very clearly. They look like trees walking around.”

Praise The Lord! The miracle had started. It didn’t happen the way that it did in other instances. It wasn’t by a simple word. It wasn’t done the same way that it was for Bartimaeus, BUT IT WAS STARTING TO HAPPEN!!!

What a moment it must have been in this man’s life. For the first time he could see, even though it was still cloudy. It was coming. Relief was on it’s way. This was a great encouragement to this blind man. It didn’t rob his miracle, it positioned him to receive his completed miracle!

After this first step, Jesus then touched the man again & his eyes were open. He could see clearly for the first time in his life. Now who am I to tell this man to refuse to let Jesus spit in his face? Who am I to tell this man that the only way for him to get healed is to trust in Jesus alone.  Who am I to tell somebody that they aren’t in faith if they take a pill or a treatment? Maybe that is the reason that Jesus had to get the man away from the crowd.

I want to encourage you today. If you are taking medicine believe that God is going to work a miracle in your life through it. It is not a lack of a faith on your part. If you have a mental illness & you are on medication, God will work through it if you put your faith in Him. If you are in counseling, it doesn't mean that you are in doubt. This may be the first step toward your miracle. Don’t feel like you have no faith because you are on medicine. Take the medicine in faith just like the blind man took the spit in faith.   

Pastor Richard Schlotter