Have Mercy on Me!
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| Psalm 121:8 "the Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore." |
Scripture:
Mark 10:46 They came to Jericho. As he and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus son of Timaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the roadside. 47 When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 48 Many sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he cried out even more loudly, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 49 Jesus stood still and said, “Call him here.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart; get up, he is calling you.” 50 So throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. 51 Then Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man said to him, “My teacher, let me see again.” 52 Jesus said to him, “Go; your faith has made you well.” Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way.
Observation:
This is the second blind man to be healed in Mark’s gospel. Each of the blind men depicts the disciples — or the pathway for discipleship available for all. The significance of Bartimaeus is that he comes to Jesus in faith. Then, as he cries out, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” we recognize the depths of his belief in Jesus, the Messiah. The way in which his request is made resembles that of a petition made before a king. Because of Jesus, Bartimaeus has a much higher expectation than the usual day of begging for alms.
Bartimaeus is not only healed, but his life is transformed. That day he gains his sight, and immediately follows Jesus. This is the life of discipleship, one that reflects a desire for mercy, revealed in mercy.
Application:
As we close out this final day of the year, and of the decade, it seems appropriate to think about discipleship. We’ve all been blind somewhere in our journey and been in desperate need of an encounter with the Messiah. We may be somewhat like the first blind man who needed Jesus to touch him twice before he could see clearly. Or, we may be like this man, crying out for mercy from the one whom we have recognized to be our king.
As we enter this next decade I am aware of my need for mercy from the Messiah. We cry out to the Lord today, “Have mercy on me!” In response he comes to us with mercy and heals our brokenness and removes that which has blinded us. Now more than ever, we need to experience that type of healing for we are a broken people. God’s grace is available to us, his healing that is poured out like an anointing balm upon the wounds of our soul. We respond to this healing by following Jesus on the way.
From this moment in the gospel story Jesus is headed toward Jerusalem. There he will experience redemptive suffering and death and those who were willing to be his disciples will follow him. This includes Bartimaeus, who regained his sight and immediately followed Jesus on the way.
What does this next decade have in store? We have no idea but if the changes will be as cataclysmic as they were in this last decade, we’d better hold on. But where do we hold on? We hold onto Jesus who knows the path ahead. There is so much that we cannot understand and that we don’t know but we cry out to the Lord — pleading for mercy. He responds in mercy, and leads us into the unknown.
Prayer:
Lord, today, and every day, we follow you, knowing that you will lead us well. Amen.
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