Mark 8.22-26

Mark 8:22-26
22 And they came to Bethsaida. And they brought a blind man to Jesus and implored Him to touch him. 23 Taking the blind man by the hand, He brought him out of the village; and after spitting on his eyes and laying His hands on him, He asked him, “Do you see anything?” 24 And he looked up and said, “I see men, for I see them like trees, walking around.” 25 Then again He laid His hands on his eyes; and he looked intently and was restored, and began to see everything clearly. 26 And He sent him to his home, saying, “Do not even enter the village.”

Secrecy seems to be more and more of a priority in the ministry of Jesus at this point.  As animosity towards Jesus begins to build in the hearts of the religious leaders, Jesus begins to focus more and more on the training of the disciples.  In today’s text a blind man is brought to Jesus and He heals the man, but he strives to keep the healing quiet so as not to call attention to them and avoid confrontation with the Pharisees.  Jesus had a mission to accomplish investing in the disciples but He also had great compassion on the people.  That balance is always difficult to find in ministry.  Preparing leaders for the people and meeting the immediate needs of people are both ministries that demand attention and we must be careful not to allow one swallow up the other.

THE METHOD OF HEALING THE BLIND MAN: When Jesus and His disciples enter Bethsaida, a blind man is brought to Jesus.  This was a common occurrence.  What makes this interesting is how Jesus healed him and where He healed him.  The first thing that Jesus did was take him out of town before healing him.  In the past, Jesus had heled people openly and the crowds of people gathered around Him.  On other occasions, Jesus would simply speak or touch a person or even simply be touched by the person.  On this occasion, Jesus uses saliva and the healing is more gradual taking place in two different stages.  It seems that Jesus is wanting to avoid the crowds and making a scene so He can focus on His disciples.  Why this miracle was not complete the first time Jesus applied saliva to the man’s eyes or why salvia was used in the first place is hard to understand.  Perhaps it was simply to demonstrate that there is not a secret formula that must be followed when healing.  We tend to want to follow patterns but we must be careful not to focus on a certain method of ministry.  Every situation and person should be treated individually.

THE MESSAGE TO THE HEALED BLIND MAN: After the man is healed Jesus seems to be concerned about the man telling others about the healing.  He tells him to go directly home and not go back into the village.  In the past when Jesus had instructed people to keep quiet about a healing the people went out and told everyone what had happened and Jesus ended up being swamped with people who were brought out to Him for healing.  It seems like this man obeys Jesus and returns to his home outside of the city and keeps the miracle to his family.  Jesus was not running a popularity contest.  He wanted to meet the needs of people but He also wanted to have time to prepare His disciples for what was ahead.  Balancing these priorities is always a challenge in ministry.


APPLICATION: Don’t try to look at the experience of God’s dealings with one person and make a pattern that we try to apply to every situation.  Strive to find a balance between meeting immediate needs of people and making long term investment in the lives of leaders.

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