Quinquagesima—February 11th, 2024
Trinity Lutheran Church, Block, Kansas
Rev. Joshua Woelmer
Text: Luke 18:31–43
“By Faith Alone”
Theme: Jesus opens our eyes of faith, so that we recognize who he is and what he does.
Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
My world is full of blind men—those who cannot see and those who do not want to see. What do I mean by this? Well, there are some like myself who could not see with our eyes. Yes, I am a man by the name of Bartimaeus, a man who was born blind but now can see. I want to tell you the story how I had clearer sight than many, even though my eyes did not work. For there are many who are blind in a different sense—blind to their sin, blind to their need for a Savior, blind to the purpose of Jesus.
Ah…Jesus. He is the one who healed me, who said those words: “Recover your sight; your faith has made you well” (42). My faith has indeed made me well, in more ways than one. My story is not really about me though—it is for anyone who needs their eyes of faith opened to see the mercy of God. Maybe, it can be for you too.
My story begins where everyone’s story does. I was born the son of Timeaus, which is where my name Bar-Timaeus comes from. But when I was born, I was born blind. My mother and father loved me, but it’s not easy raising a blind child. They knew that they could not rely on me. They knew that I would be dependent on charity—theirs or someone else’s all the days of my life. I suppose we all come into this world inheriting original sin from our parents, but some of us have a harder life from birth because of our maladies. Some like me are blind, some cannot hear or speak, some cannot learn as well as others, and some are lame.
Still, being blind does have some benefits to it. My hearing is particularly good. I can hear when people are dismissive towards me. I can hear when people whisper about me across the road. I can hear when voices are tinged with mercy, and I can hear when they reach for their moneybags to give me some alms.
That is how I lived: outside of the city of Jericho, begging for alms with another blind man. He and I had our differences. He did not care as much for God as I did. That is at least one thing that I could do: I asked for someone to take me to the synagogue on the Sabbath and listen to the Law and the Prophets being read. I listened to how we are all sinners who plead to God for mercy. You might not think that a blind beggar can do much sinning, but I have a stubborn sinful nature like the rest of humanity. At least I can listen to the Psalms of David where he repents of his sin that is ever before him. It’s comforting to me. And then, I listen to the Pharisees arguing endlessly about this minor quibble or that minutia of the law. Well, such is life.
But the latest hubbub has been about two prophets who have risen up in Israel recently. The first was named John the Baptist, and he baptized many people for repentance not far from here in the Jordan River. I wasn’t able to go, but I heard he baptized the next prophet by the name of Jesus.
Boy, did the Pharisees have a lot of opinions about him. They said that his teaching was remarkable. They said that he cleansed lepers, cast out demons, healed the deaf, raised the dead, and even given sight to the blind. Oh, how I wished that he would do that for me!
But the Pharisees also called him a blasphemer. Yes, lately Jesus has been calling himself “the Son of Man,” a clear reference to the divine figure in the book of Daniel. He has been calling God his Father. I don’t know, though. I mean, if you listen to the Law and the Prophets, it certainly gives the impression that the Messiah must be a divine being. Honestly, I started to believe in my heart that, well, he was the Messiah, the son of David—and that he was my only hope to see again and receive forgiveness.
It’s weird, though: I felt like I could see so much clearer about Jesus than anyone around me. The other beggar scoffed at my ideas. He told me to keep my head down and just keep on begging—that’s all I was good for. The Pharisees were threatening everyone with punishment if we hinted that we believed in Jesus. But it just seemed like they were blind to the truth of who Jesus really was.
And then, everything changed that one day when I heard a crowd milling around Jericho. These sorts of crowds gather for all sorts of reasons: excitement over executions, anger against the Romans, or reports about bandits on the road to Jerusalem. So I asked them why this crowd was passing by and “what this meant” (36). You wouldn’t believe this, but they told me, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by” (37)! Jesus of Nazareth…I knew better. He’s more than just some guy from a backwater town in Galilee…he’s the Son of David. He deserved more recognition than just the place where he grew up.
So I shouted out like so many others had: “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” (38). I knew what he would do: he would stop and put mud on my eyes like I heard he did to another blind man, and then speak some words and give me my sight back. I just knew it.
But you wouldn’t believe what happened. The crowd told me to stop yelling and shut up! They told me that he had more important things to do than stop for a lousy beggar on the side of the road. Honestly, I felt like all hope was being lost. If I couldn’t get Jesus’s attention, I would be blind my whole life!
So, I “cried out all the more, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’” (39). Did you know that the blind can still cry? I was crying, not just with my voice, but with tears running down my face.
My cries were heard. Jesus stopped. He had others bring me near, and he asked me, “What do you want me to do for you?” (41a). I gave the obvious answer, “Lord, let me recover my sight” (41b).
And then he said those words that changed my life forever: “Recover your sight; your faith has made you well” (42). I could see for the first time in my life. What once was darkness was filled with light and colors and depth and beauty! My eyes weren’t the only thing that were restored. I felt my soul become light and happy again too. Jesus did not only give me back my sight, but he acknowledged my faith in him. I gladly followed him, “glorifying God” (43). As we went on our way, the whole crowd that had seen what Jesus did for me rejoiced and praised God too.
What is the rest of the story? Well, surely you know that too. I learned later that Jesus had predicted to his disciples three times that he would “be delivered over to the Gentiles and will be mocked and shamefully treated and spit upon. And after flogging him, they will kill him, and on the third day he will rise” (32–33). They were blind for a time, not believing that this would happen. But, it did. It needed to happen.
Jesus needed to fulfill what was spoken about him in Isaiah 53: “He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His stripes we are healed.” (5, NKJV).
My exhortation for you is to open your eyes of faith, so that you can recognize who Jesus is and why he came to this earth. He is the Son of David, the true King of this world. He is your Lord who took up his throne on the cross, establishing justification and peace with God the Father there on your behalf.
And, he is the one who heals your soul by comforting you in times of distress, who listens to your soul’s complaints, and who makes all things new. He may or may not grant you new eyes or ears in this life—maybe doctors will become skilled enough one day to allow God to work miracles through them. What do I know, I’m only Bartimaeus of Jericho, one whose eyes Jesus healed, and who can see Him clearly now.
Now may the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
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