Once was Blind

Scripture:  Mark 10:46-52

The fad has long since faded away, but do you remember “magic eye” pictures?  These were a product of the 1990s which had brightly colored, bizarre, patterned picture.  Allegedly if you stared at it then you could see the hidden image underneath.   I have to say allegedly because I absolutely to this day cannot see those things.  Back in the day it was a frustrating experience when it seemed everyone but me could see the hidden horse or dinosaur.  People would often offer up a bunch of tips like “just cross your eyes” or “stare at one point” or “stare at nothing in particular”.  They would say it like this was the most obvious and easiest thing in the world, but no matter how hard I tried to follow their less than helpful advice I could not see what was so obvious for them. 

            You could tell me exactly what I am looking for, give me all the instructions on how to see it, I can stare at it until sunset.  There is no way I am ever seeing that hidden image.  For whatever reason my brain cannot parse out the visual cues it is seeing and put it all together to reveal the hidden image.  Magic Eyes were only around for a minute.  In 1994 they were all the rage, but in a couple of years pop-culture had largely moved on.   I know that I was not sad to see them go, because it honestly annoyed so much that I could not see them. 

            As annoying as not being able to see the Magic Eye images are to me, it was just a mild inconvenience.  Considering this morning’s scripture makes that abundantly clear.  Magic eyes are something that I cannot see, but that does not even begin to compare to the plight of Bartimaeus.  Bartimaeus knew that he was missing something important in his life, and he believed that Jesus could fix it.  In a similar way, we all have areas in our lives that Jesus can transform and make whole.   However, like me with those silly magic eye pictures we might not be able to see what is right in front of us.   We can be encouraged by this morning’s scripture because if Jesus has the power to make the blind to see, then Jesus has the power to help us see our own shortcomings we might not be aware of.  This means if Bartimaeus can be healed and made whole by faith, then so can we. 

In this morning’s story Bartimaeus asks Jesus for something that no one else can give him.   We do not know a lot about Bartimaeus.  The gospels of Matthew and Luke also contain a version of this story, but the gospel of Mark has more details including his name.   We do not know if he was born blind, lost his sight in an accident, or if he suffered from a degenerative condition that led to him being blind.  We do not know the details of his life, but if he was reduced to begging on the side of the road things were not going well.  We must realize that Bartimaeus did not have an easy life.  In the first century there was very little work that a blind man would be allowed to do.  Many in his community would have viewed his condition as a judgement from God due to sin.  We know this is the case because of a different incident regarding Jesus healing the blind that is recorded.  This meant that Bartimaeus would have been on the outskirts of his community.  He would have been known to many, but likely he was ignored at best and constantly judged at worst.  This meant that he was likely resigned to a solitary life of begging.  He had to scrap by on the begrudging kindness of strangers.   Every day he had to hope he would get enough money so that he could go to sleep at the end of the day without feeling hungry.   If he could only see, then he could live a very different life.  He would not be cut off and alone, he would be able to work and support himself, he would be able to be a blessing to himself and others.  

Of course, Bartimaeus wanted to see, so when he heard that Jesus of Nazareth, the miracle worker, was passing by he knew this was his chance.  We get a clue though, that Bartimaeus had more than just a passing familiarity with Jesus.   He knew that Jesus was more than just another holy man, more than just another traveling miracle worker.   Bartimaeus addresses him as “son of David.”   There is no mistake that this is a messianic title.  It is a title reserved for the one chosen by God to usher in God’s kingdom.  Bartimaeus was not just hedging his bets that this traveling rabbi could be the one who could heal him, he was declaring that he believed sight was possible because Jesus is God’s chosen one. 
I think there are a couple of important lessons we can learn from Bartimaeus.  First, I think it is important to focus on what Bartimaeus first asked Jesus.  Even though Bartimaeus probably wanted to see more than anything, even though sight would have vastly improved his life, and fulfilled many of his wishes, Bartimaeus does not shout out “Son of David, heal me!”   He says “Son of David, Have mercy on me!”    The concept of praying for mercy is not something we hear a lot about today, but perhaps we should.   One of the oldest Christian prayers, dating back to the very beginning, is Kyrie Elision: “Lord, have mercy.”    To ask for mercy is an acknowledgement that we have nothing to give.  Asking for mercy is asking for special privilege from a position of weakness.   To ask for mercy is a confession that we are not truly deserving, but we still greatly desire or need a special kindness given upon us.  To ask for mercy is the somewhat audacious request to ask for a gift; specifically, a gift that is given without strings attached and with the acknowledgement that it cannot be paid back.   When we ask God for mercy we should do so from a point of humbleness and reverence, as we acknowledge that God is the only one capable of granting that which we ask.       
 
            In an attempt to make faith more accessible, we sometimes make errors by oversimplifying.  We often simplify the act of prayer down to “We can ask God for what we need and because God loves us he will give it to us.”  There is a downside to simplifying prayer too much because when prayer is all about what God gives us, we treat God like some sort Cosmic Santa Claus, or worse a divine vending machine that we can always go to when we want to be happy.    It is true that God loves us a great deal, and that God answers prayers, but when we take “Lord have mercy on me a sinner” out of our prayer life something great is lost.  When there is a need we should take it to the Lord in prayer, but not because we deserve or expect God to answer our prayer.  We take it up in prayer because what we are in need of is God’s mercy.
  If mercy is humbly asking for a great gift, we have no chance of achieving on our own, then the opposite of mercy is entitlement.  Entitlement is when we believe we deserve something just because of who we are or what we are owed.   If seeking mercy is based in humility than entitlement is based in pride.   Bartimaeus could have easily felt that he was entitled to being healed.   He could have been bitter about living a lifetime with a disability he did not want; he could have demanded that he has paid his dues and it was his turn for something to go right. It would not be a stretch for him to believe he deserved to be healed after all that he had gone through.  Yet, that is not what he does.

 His request is not one based in entitlement it is based in hope and faith. Bartimaeus approaches the messiah by saying “Lord have mercy on me.”  Jesus, overflowing with grace and mercy, calls him over and asks how exactly he can do that.   This morning’s scripture should cause us to take a moment of self-reflection and ask ourselves some pointed questions.  When you pray, what is the attitude you approach God with?    Do you approach the throne saying “Lord have mercy on me” or do you approach God expecting him to give you what you feel entitled to?   Now clearly, none of us are going to God in prayer and verbally say, give me what I am entitled to, but this is not about the words we use, it is about the attitudes of our hearts.  In our relationship with God do we see ourselves as seeking mercy or demanding entitlements?   

When we approach prayer with an attitude of entitlement in our hearts then what we take to God is often a list of our wants.   However, if our attitude in prayer is Lord have mercy on me, then what we are seeking is not a vain list of wants- it is the very grace of God.  Bartimaeus asked first for mercy.  Jesus then followed up and asked, “what do you want me to do” and then he was able to say he wanted to see.  When we start with mercy, then the needs we end up asking God to meet our less based in our wants and more based in what we need to be restored, healed, and made whole. 
For Bartimaeus it was clear to him what he needed to be restored, healed, and made whole.   Perhaps it is a bit harder for us to answer that question, because we cannot see what we are missing.  If Bartimaeus suffered from a form of physical blindness perhaps we suffer from a form of spiritual blindness.   Perhaps our hearts can be hardened, so that we cannot see the needs all around us.  We miss the people God has put in our path, because we look just right past them.  Perhaps just like those stubborn Magic Eye pictures we cannot see what God has put right in front of us.

            Historically, this has been a problem in Christianity.  Even people who demonstrate righteousness and desire to follow God can have places where their hearts were hard and the missed a chance to love their neighbors right in front of them.  A good example of this is Martin Luther, the famous reformer and founder of the Lutheran Church.   Many consider him a righteous man, and the writings of Martin Luther were instrumental in John Wesley’s conversion.   Yet, Martin Luther was still imperfect.   Because he wrote several books on the subject, it is well documented that Luther was a very strong anti-Semite.  He advocated for the burning down of synagogues, expulsion, and even violence against Jewish people.   Even someone like Martin Luther allowed hate to blind him from seeing all of God’s people.   Lord have mercy.   

            It just is not Martin Luther; many people have a hardness in their heart and struggle to see certain people with compassion.   I have spent years working with teenagers in some capacity, and I have met my fair share of good Christian people with a spiritual blindness to young people.  It has hurt my heart to hear people I respect complain about “kids today.”  Too many people in too many pews are quick to dismiss young people as spending too much time on phones, not enough time outside, and being too entitled.  It bothers me deeply when I hear people who confess to follow Jesus belittle an entire generation of people younger than them as whiny snowflakes.   We cannot complain about a whole generation and then wonder why that generation wants little to do with churches today.  When we refuse to empathize with young people and when we do not communicate that they belong and there is a seat for them, then we miss that God loves these children just as they are.  We miss the fact that young people are not just the future of the church, they are the present of the church if we are willing to include them.  In too many churches instead of working to include people of all ages in age-appropriate ways in the work of God’s kingdoms, teenagers are either shoved out or hidden in the church basement.   Lord have mercy

            We can be so focused on ourselves and our own lives that we do not see the great need in the world today.  We are quick to get upset when the price of gas jumps up by 30 cents a gallon, but there is very little outrage over the fact that 273 million people do not have access to safe drinking water in the world or the fact that every minute of every day around the world 21 children under the age of five die from easily preventable causes.   Why, church, does our heart not break over this?   Imagine if all churches, collectively were as passionate about ending world hunger, as NFL fans were passionate about their favorite teams.   We would be able to end world hunger before the Colts make it back to the playoffs!   Lord have mercy.
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            In this morning’s scripture, Bartimaeus ask Jesus for mercy and in response Jesus heals him, gives him eyes to see, and Bartimaeus responds by following Jesus.  In the same way, when we seek mercy then we can be made whole.  We can be transformed to better be the person God intends us to be.   So may the prayer of our hearts be “Lord have mercy on me.”   May we seek the Lord’s mercy with an attitude of humbleness not entitlement.  May we have eyes to see, hearts to love, and hands to make a difference.   May we be a people who can testify to the almighty power, grace, and mercy of God by proclaiming “I once was blind, but now I see.   The Lord had mercy on me.”