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The Faith of Bartimaeus
Mark 10:46-52
Mari Ikeda
46 Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (which means “son of Timaeus”), was sitting by the roadside begging. 47 When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 48 Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 49 Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.”So they called to the blind man, “Cheer up! On your feet! He’s calling you.” 50 Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus. 51 “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him. The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.” 52 “Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.
A. The faith of Bartimaeus
1) Continuing to plead, “Have mercy on me!”
2) Deciding to follow Jesus
B. If Bartimaeus hadn’t called out, would he have been saved?
Summary
Faith means continually calling out to Jesus for mercy. He wants us to open up to him with our needs and desires. There are times in our lives when we can no longer call out to Jesus or we simply don’t receive the answer we desire. During those times, Jesus has not abandoned us, but is offering us salvation in the truest sense: his presence with us in our suffering.
For Discussion
- Have you had the experience of calling out to Jesus and receiving an answer?
- Are there times when you have become weary of calling out? What should we do in such times?