The Blind Man Sees

As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. 36 When he heard the crowd going by, he asked what was happening. They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.”

He called out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Those who led the way rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him. When he came near, Jesus asked him,  “What do you want me to do for you?”

“Lord, I want to see,” he replied.

Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God. Luke 18:35-43

The story begins with a blind man begging, and this opens up possibilities for endless judgments. Was this man begging before he was blind? Was he blind and started begging? Questions like these are seldom answered, but I will go down this path a later time. In the meanwhile, do think about the community that the beggar had and why he ended up begging. Being blind is no justification for begging.

Before we get to that point, what I wanted to point out today was that the blind man was the only figure in the passage to recognize who Jesus really was. In verse 37, the people refer to Jesus as ‘Jesus of Nazareth.’ The blind man, however, calls out, “Jesus, Son of David.” When he does so, he acknowledges the biblical prophesies of Jesus as the Messiah.

The question now stands, who really is blind here?