If we were blind and heard a peaceful acoustic song playing in the distance, we would surely listen. If we were on the verge of drowning somewhere out there in the fringes of the unknown, we would call out for help. And when we call out from the depths of darkness in faith, a rescue ship of grace saves us from the relentless waves of the night. Such is Jesus’ mercy for the sinner who has faith in him.
Jesus told him, “Go your way; your faith has saved you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way. Mark 10:52
The verse concerns the healing, and more importantly, the faith of the blind beggar, Bartimaeus in the Gospel of Mark.
Faith is to believe what you do not see; the reward of this faith is to see what you believe. – St. Augustine
When I read this passage, I tried to put myself in that situation. Why did Bartimaeus act the way he did? The man was blind. And then I realized there’s no way he was living complacent. Bartimaeus was a beggar, and he was living on the edge. With his handicap, he was forced to live on the very fringe of society itself.
They came to Jericho. And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a sizable crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind man, the son of Timaeus, sat by the roadside begging. Mark 10:46
While other people were walking by, Bartimaeus sat there alone, as if he was stranded. Complacency is not an option for a blind beggar. Although he was blind, Bartimaeus was no fool. His other God given senses were highly acute.
On hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, son of David, have pity on me.” Mark 10:47
Stranded – Bartimaeus cried out as if he was stranded somewhere in the Gulf of Mexico, alone, treading water…and it was as if Jesus was a Coast Guard rescue ship.
I shall remember how Saint Peter at a blast of wind began to sink because of his lack of faith, and I shall do as he did: call upon Christ and pray to him for help. And then I trust he shall place his holy hand on me and in the stormy seas hold me up from drowning. – St. Thomas More
I heard a true story of a guy who was chasing after a grouper while scuba diving. When the hunt was over and he surfaced, his boat was nowhere in sight. He soon found himself stranded out in the Gulf of Mexico. To make matters worse, nightfall set in.
Woe to the soul without Christ as its true pilot; drifting in the darkness, buffeted by the waves of passion, storm-tossed at the mercy of evil spirits, its end is destruction. – St. Macarius
A cargo ship was passing by, and it just so happened the captain’s daughter was on that route. She had gone out on deck after dinner, and just before she went back in she thought she heard a man crying out for help somewhere in the dark of the night. She notified her father immediately. Her father rebuked her saying that there would be no one out there at night where they were in the Gulf.
And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he kept calling out all the more, “Son of David, have pity on me.” Mark 10:48
The stranded scuba diver kept crying out in the distance. The captain’s daughter insisted that they investigate. And finally, at the persistence of his daughter, the captain stopped the cargo ship, and they panned over the water with the ship’s search light. And to their surprise they saw a bobbing head in the water. The sunburned face of a desperate man was looking back at them. Desperation is not always seen by the human eye unless one stops daily pursuits and actively looks for it.
Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” So they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take courage; get up, he is calling you.” Mark 10:49
It took a miracle for that lost scuba diver to be saved, and it took a miracle for Bartimaeus to be saved. It takes miracles for souls to find Jesus. But miracles are what Jesus does. God’s grace can rise our hearts from darkness into the light of his love.
He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus. Mark 10:50
No doubt the rescued scuba diver sprang up in the safety of the cargo ship with what energy he had left to spare. The man’s cries were heard. It was a miracle on the Gulf!
Jesus said to him in reply, “What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man replied to him, “Master, I want to see.” Mark 10:51
The stranded scuba diver wanted to see his family again. He wanted to see a second chance at life. Bartimaeus just wanted to see. One minute you’re completely blind and stranded, and the next minute you’re looking at the Son of God in the eye.
In seeing God one possesses all things. – St. Gregory of Nyssa
Both Bartimaeus and the lost scuba diver had to have complete faith that their voices would be heard. In the urgency of their situation it was the only way. The enveloping darkness of complacency is not an option. Only faith in Christ rescues us from the blindness of the world’s deceit. May the Lord rescue us all in the oceans of his grace.
Jesus told him, “Go your way; your faith has saved you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way. Mark 10:52