Scripture Post #291: *BLIND BARTIMAEUS*

Mark 10:

51 And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight.

52 And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.

[Disclaimer: The image here (in it's original form) was from an image search-engine. The original source of this image is unbeknown to me. I own no rights of this image.]

Context: 

Mark 10:46: "And they came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging."

V. 47: "And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me."

V. 48: "And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me."

V. 49: "And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee."

V. 50: "And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus."

V. 51: "And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight."

V. 52: "And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way."

Notice how in V. 45 it reads: "For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many", then right after that, the following verses (46-52) state the healing of *BLIND BARTIMAEUS*. JESUS had just said he came to minister, not be ministered unto (in the sense of servanthood), then HE ministers to blind Bartimaeus! 

JESUS said, "…Thy faith hath made thee whole" in V. 52. We know that it was also by JESUS' power that this man received his sight. But JESUS only focused on this man's faith and not at all HIS power. Bartimaeus' faith in JESUS was so great, that *before JESUS even healed him, he took off his blind-man clothes*! (V. 50: "And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus.") He didn't even wait for JESUS to perform the miracle first! Him removing his blind-man clothes was an act of his faith and trust in JESUS! This is why JESUS said that it was Bartimaeus' faith that made him whole. It's about our faith in GOD. You can't even be saved without *your* faith. GOD has the power to redeem you, but it takes your faith to activate redemption in your life. JESUS had power to heal Bartimaeus, but it was Bart's faith that made him whole. When we pray to GOD, unless we pray in faith, we are just babbling. Have and keep faith. 

Originally Published: Sun. 6/30/13