The Faith that Opens Our Eyes

As he drew near to Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. And hearing a crowd going by, he inquired what this meant.  They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.” And he cried out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” And those who were in front rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” And Jesus stopped and commanded him to be brought to him. And when he came near, he asked him, “What do you want me to do for you?” He said, “Lord, let me recover my sight.” And Jesus said to him, “Recover your sight; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God. (Luke 18:35-43).

The crowd could not see the truth behind Jesus’ warning about His impending betrayal and crucifixion and resurrection. Although He was on a determined mission to the cross, He paused to respond to the heartfelt cry of a blind beggar. There He granted a physical miracle and taught a powerful spiritual lesson. Christ’s compassionate response to the blind man’s request highlights the faith that opens blind eyes.

Faith in the messiahship of Christ opens our eyes to spiritual perception. The blind man saw Jesus and believed He was the “Son of David”, a title assigned by the prophets to the Messiah… “Behold, the days are coming, declares the LORD, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land” (Jeremiah 23:5). Thus, He agreed with God’s identification of Jesus as the Messiah, the ultimate king and sovereign authority over all of life, and therefore the One able to grant his request and meet his need. Real vision is the ability to see everyone and everything just as God sees them. This is how true disciples learn to walk by faith… “For we walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7). As we mature in the faith our eyes become less distracted by the temporary, physical world around us and we become more sensitive and responsive to the true, spiritual world… “For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal” (2 Corinthians 4:17-18). Our faith will grow and our eyes will be opened to the truth in every trial and triumph of life as we trust Jesus as the one and only sovereign authority over every inch of our life.

Faith in the mercy of Christ opens our eyes to serving possibilities. The blind man saw and appealed to the mercy of Jesus… “have mercy on me!” The rebuke of “those who were in front” betrayed their blindness as they did not recognize the compassion and mercy of Christ even though they were closer to him. The Holy Spirit inspired Zechariah, the father of John the Baptist to proclaim mercy as a primary reason for the incarnation of the Father in His Son… “Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, for he has visited and redeemed his people and has raised up a horn of salvation for us in the house of his servant David… to show the mercy promised to our fathers and to remember his holy covenant” (Luke 1:68-72). Our faith will grow and our eyes will be opened as we learn to trust and share the mercy of Jesus Christ with others.

Faith in the mission of Christ opens our eyes to sacred priorities. I wonder what the formerly blind man saw first. The Spirit reveals that he was granted larger, deeper insight into the mission and purpose of Jesus Christ, and he “followed Him”. He now saw the heart and mission of the One who interrupted His journey to touch and heal a blind man and he wanted to be part of that wonderful mission. The results were immediate as “all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God”. As we mature in the faith we begin to see ourselves as God does and He still gets praise and glory as we are transformed from living for self into living for Him… “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10). Our faith will grow and our eyes will be opened as we become more fully engaged in the mission of Jesus Christ.

As we grow up into Christ, believing in His messiahship, mercy, and mission nurtures within us…

The Faith that Opens Our Eyes.