Blind and Begging

 

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 ESV).

 

Jesus is approaching Jericho. It's one of His last stops before Jerusalem. Along the road sits a blind man begging. Hearing a loud commotion passing by, he asks what's going on. Someone from the crowd answers, "Jesus of Nazareth is passing by." Immediately, the beggar begins shouting at the top of his lungs. He knows Jesus is somewhere in that crowd, which is shuffling past him. But unlike the stranger from the crowd he doesn't call Him "Jesus the Nazarene." Instead, he calls him, "Jesus, Son of David." He is convinced that Jesus is the promised Messiah, David's Son.

Jesus indeed is the King marching on to save His people from their enemies. Some in the crowd try to silence the blind man, but he shouts all the louder to get Jesus' attention. That is the character of faith: the more people and circumstances rise up to silence us, the louder we cry for our Lord to be merciful to us. It is also the character of self-realization: we all are blind beggars in need of the Messiah’s touch.

We might expect Jesus to be so preoccupied with His approaching death that He wouldn't notice a lone voice, crying out to Him in the midst of the clamor of the crowd. But His ears are attuned to cries for mercy from His children. Now that He has accomplished His mission and won complete forgiveness, we can be confident He hears our cries for mercy and pity too.

I love the end of this story. The man is blind no longer. He rises and follows Jesus on His way. I’ve often wondered what would have become of me had I not had my “sight” restored so many years ago. I wonder what would have happened if I had not been given the unfathomable riches of His grace! Lent is a time to renew our cry to the Son of David.