Bartimaeus

The days seemed endless, lost in the constant darkness that always surrounded him. The air was dry, thick with dust stirred up from the steady flow of people passing through the city gate. Bartimaeus wondered what sights his eyes would behold if he could only see. Yet, he had been blind since birth. He had never seen the sun rise or set. He had never seen the loving smile of his parents. Instead, his mind painted pictures of what his ears heard. His life had become one of sitting by the road, begging for mercy from travelers. He had forgotten what it was to be known as anything other than a blind beggar. 

This life of darkness thrust him into a place of dependency. Dependent on the compassion of strangers. Dependent on the mercy of others to exist from one day to the next. And while his world remained dark, void of color, his ears had learned to listen. From his spot along the road, he could hear bits and pieces of news from those that passed by. He had even heard tales of a man that could heal. Bartimaeus had heard stories of the blind seeing, the mute talking, and lepers being healed. He had even heard a story about a little girl who had died and been brought back to life. His mind pondered the miracles. Could this Jesus be the Messiah? Could this Jesus be the One for which they had been waiting? If only he could get close enough to Jesus, then maybe he could finally shake loose of the constant darkness that surrounded him.

Time moved slow, as one day crept into another. Bartimaeus pulled his cloak a little more tightly around him. He owned little, so that which he had he held tightly. His ears tuned into the sound of approaching voices. As he listened, his heart began to flutter quickly in his chest. Jesus was coming. He and his disciples were leaving the city, headed to Jerusalem. What were the chances that Jesus would notice him, a blind beggar? Could he somehow gain his attention as he passed by? He knew he had to try. Bartimaeus began yelling, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!". "Be quiet!" was the response that came back swiftly from the crowd passing by. Bartimaeus dropped his head feeling the sting of being so easily dismissed. But just as quickly, he raised his head and shouted even louder, "Son of David, have mercy on me!".  Silence surrounded him. Then, he heard a man say, "Cheer up! On your feet! He's calling you." (Mark 10: 46-50). Bartimaeus hastily threw his cloak aside and rose to his feet. He felt Jesus' presence, there, beside him. "What do you want me to do for you?", Jesus asked him. Bartimaeus replied, "Rabbi, I want to see." "Go", said Jesus, "your faith has healed you." (Mark 10: 50-52) 

Light pierced the darkness. His eyes slowly adjusted to the brilliance of the sun light. For the first time, Bartimaeus could see. He could see the crowd passing by. He could see the blue sky. He could see the city gate. He could see his own hands. Now, his eyes could see what only his spirit had been able to behold. Bartimaeus knew the only response was to follow Jesus. He quickly turned in the direction Jesus went, and ran to join the group. He would follow Jesus anywhere. Now that he had come face to face with the Messiah, he couldn't imagine a life apart from him.

Application

I can't imagine a life void of color. A life cloaked in darkness. I can't imagine being totally dependent on others to exist from one day to the next. And if this isn't hard enough, to be seen as an outcast, as if the sins of my parents had somehow subjected me to this life void of sight. Yet, this is where we find Bartimaeus. His days were spent sitting by the road, begging for a handout to help him survive. He was considered an outcast, a nuisance to society. The cloak he clutched was more than likely his most precious possession. And although Bartimaeus was blind, he saw more than the Pharisees, who would soon crucify Jesus. Bartimaeus realized Jesus was the promised Messiah. This is shown when he cries out, "Son of David, have mercy on me!" By declaring that Jesus was the Son of David, Bartimaeus was acknowledging that Jesus was the long awaited Messiah. This makes me wonder, "Do I see Jesus for who He really is?". Do I live my life believing that God is who He says He is? Often, I hold back, afraid of truly living with the reckless abandon faith requires. I cling to some illusion of control that was never really mine to begin with. Bartimaeus' response to Jesus was to follow him. He left his old life behind, and followed Jesus. And where exactly did he follow Jesus? To the cross...Jesus was on His way to Jerusalem, to the cross, and to His death. This is the life that faith requires. A life wholly surrendered, and willing to go wherever Jesus leads. Life lived to the fullest will only ever be found at the foot of the cross.

When Jesus bid Bartimaues to come to him, Bartimaeus got up and threw aside his coat. The King James Version says, "And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus." (Mark 10:50 KJV) The greek word for "cast away" is the word apoballo. It means to throw off; figuratively, to lose-cast away (Blue Letter Bible). In casting aside his coat, Bartimaeus is throwing aside his most valuable possession. He is casting off anything that would impede him from coming to Jesus. In Matthew Henry's Commentary of Mark 10, it states "Those who would come to Jesus, must cast away the garment of their own sufficiency, must strip themselves of all conceit of that, and must free themselves from every weight...". We live in a society that tells us we can have it both ways. We can have the world, and we can have Jesus. Society screams at us that in order to be relevant we must keep one toe dipped in the tides of this world. And we are given a choice...we can keep ties to both and be lukewarm, or we can forsake one so that we can be fully committed to the other. In Revelation 3, God admonishes the Church in Laodicea for being neither hot nor cold. He says, "But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth!" (Revelation 3:16 NLT) The Message version of the Bible phrases it as "...You're stale. You're stagnant. You make me want to vomit" (Revelation 3:16 MSG). If you keep reading further into verse 17 it says, "You brag, ' I'm rich, I've got it made, I need nothing from anyone,' oblivious that in fact you're a pitiful, blind beggar, threadbare and homeless." (Revelation 3:17 MSG) Could it be that when we are choosing to remain lukewarm, not fully committed to or surrendering to God, we are as blind as Bartimaeus? So many days I want to hang on to my own sufficiency instead of leaning into Jesus and relying on Him. But this attitude is repugnant to God. God doesn't want my half-hearted devotion. He wants all of me. He wants me to cast away anything that would hinder my relationship with Him. He wants me to realize that He is the only thing I will ever need. 

Jesus asks Bartimaeus one question, "What do you want me to do for you?" What if Jesus asked you this question? What would your response be? What is it that you want Jesus to do for you? Maybe you want healing from an illness that plagues you. Maybe you want freedom from an addiction. Maybe you want to finally be free from the strongholds that have a grip on you. Maybe you want security, or maybe you just want to feel loved. What is it that you really want Jesus to do for you? I think that often the things we ask Him for are not really what we want. Yes, we may want the thing, whatever it may be but in the deepest recesses of our soul what we really want is more of Him. We want our souls to be satisfied, and we think the thing that we ask for will fill us. And in the waiting, in the "no", in the "not now", we find that what we really wanted all along was Him. As Herman Bavink says, "God, and God alone, is man's highest good". God alone is the only thing that will quench the thirst of our souls. Everything else we chase in this life will leave us thirsty for more. 

Bartimaeus' story is the story of a man who knew he was nothing. He had nothing of value to offer the world. But he knew he needed Jesus. He was willing to throw himself on the mercy of Jesus. He was willing to cast aside anything that would hinder him, and he was willing to follow Jesus anywhere. He was poor yet he was rich. It reminds me of 2 Corinthians 6:10 in which Paul is writing to the Church at Corinth. He is telling them of the trials he has had to endure. He says, "We are poor, but we give spiritual riches to others. We own nothing, and yet we have everything" (2 Corinthians, 6:10b, NLT) This could also be said of Bartimaeus...he owned nothing, yet he had everything. 

You must decide if you are willing to cast aside anything that hinders you from complete surrender to God. Will you live your live believing He is who He says He is, and that He has all power and authority to do what He says He will do?