Mark 8:22-26 "And he cometh to Bethsaida;
and they bring a blind man unto him, and besought him to touch him.
(23) And he took the blind man by the hand, and led him out of the
town; and when he had spit on his eyes, and put his hands upon him, he asked
him if he saw ought. (24) And he looked up, and said, I see men as
trees, walking. (25) After that he put his hands again upon his
eyes, and made him look up: and he was restored, and saw every man clearly.
(26) And he sent him away to his house, saying, Neither go into the
town, nor tell it to any in the town."
We find Jesus working another miracle upon one that was brought to Him. Notice his situation as "they bring a blind man unto him" and afterwards, "he sent him away to his house." I start with these phrases to note the difference that Jesus made in this man's life. He was brought to Jesus, but he left on his own ability and being able to see where he was walking. A popular song in the 70's by B.J. Thomas said, "What a difference you've made in my life." This man, as well as every person whose life was touched by Jesus had a wonderful difference made in their lives.
Another hymn that we sing sometimes states, "what a wonderful change in my life has been wrought since Jesus came into my heart." There is a difference in our lives when we truly have a walking, talking, working relationship with Jesus. When He touches our hearts, our desires are changed. When He opens our eyes, we have a new manner in which to look at life. When He opens our ears, we hear things that we've never heard before as He speaks to us through His Word. What a difference He truly makes in our lives!
They brought the man to Jesus, but then "He took the blind man by the hand and led him out." I'm thankful this man had friends who brought Him to Jesus, but they could only do so much for him. At that point, Jesus indeed took control of the situation and began a process of opening the man's eyes. For some who were blind, Jesus instantly opened their eyes. For this man, there was a process that Jesus used to give sight. At first, the man saw things in a blurry state. "What do you see?" asked Jesus. "I see men as trees, walking." He had some sight, but could not see clearly. Jesus was not finished with him. "He put his hands again on his eyes." "He was restored." I'm breaking the sequence of events into smaller segments so we can see that Jesus finished the work that He began in this man. Paul speaks of the Lord working a process in our lives when he spoke in Philippians chapter one, "Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 1:6).
Each of us is still a work in progress. A song that the children sang at the Central States Primitive Baptist Youth Camp a few years ago went like this, "He's still working on me to make me what I ought to be." They changed the words to an absolute truth, "He's still working on Steve." I'm thankful that He is still working on me. I'm thankful that I have the confidence to know He is not going to drop me in the middle of the work with blurry vision. I'm not perfected yet, by any stretch of the imagination. But I can truly say my heart's desire is to be what the Lord would have me to be. In order for any of us to be that person, we need His hands to touch us and take away anything that would blur our vision or obstruct us from having Him in the lens of our spiritual eyes.
We find Jesus working another miracle upon one that was brought to Him. Notice his situation as "they bring a blind man unto him" and afterwards, "he sent him away to his house." I start with these phrases to note the difference that Jesus made in this man's life. He was brought to Jesus, but he left on his own ability and being able to see where he was walking. A popular song in the 70's by B.J. Thomas said, "What a difference you've made in my life." This man, as well as every person whose life was touched by Jesus had a wonderful difference made in their lives.
Another hymn that we sing sometimes states, "what a wonderful change in my life has been wrought since Jesus came into my heart." There is a difference in our lives when we truly have a walking, talking, working relationship with Jesus. When He touches our hearts, our desires are changed. When He opens our eyes, we have a new manner in which to look at life. When He opens our ears, we hear things that we've never heard before as He speaks to us through His Word. What a difference He truly makes in our lives!
They brought the man to Jesus, but then "He took the blind man by the hand and led him out." I'm thankful this man had friends who brought Him to Jesus, but they could only do so much for him. At that point, Jesus indeed took control of the situation and began a process of opening the man's eyes. For some who were blind, Jesus instantly opened their eyes. For this man, there was a process that Jesus used to give sight. At first, the man saw things in a blurry state. "What do you see?" asked Jesus. "I see men as trees, walking." He had some sight, but could not see clearly. Jesus was not finished with him. "He put his hands again on his eyes." "He was restored." I'm breaking the sequence of events into smaller segments so we can see that Jesus finished the work that He began in this man. Paul speaks of the Lord working a process in our lives when he spoke in Philippians chapter one, "Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 1:6).
Each of us is still a work in progress. A song that the children sang at the Central States Primitive Baptist Youth Camp a few years ago went like this, "He's still working on me to make me what I ought to be." They changed the words to an absolute truth, "He's still working on Steve." I'm thankful that He is still working on me. I'm thankful that I have the confidence to know He is not going to drop me in the middle of the work with blurry vision. I'm not perfected yet, by any stretch of the imagination. But I can truly say my heart's desire is to be what the Lord would have me to be. In order for any of us to be that person, we need His hands to touch us and take away anything that would blur our vision or obstruct us from having Him in the lens of our spiritual eyes.