The Invitation - Day 6

35 As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind beggar was sitting beside the road. 36 When he heard the noise of a crowd going past, he asked what was happening. 37 They told him that Jesus the Nazarene was going by. 38 So he began shouting, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

39 “Be quiet!” the people in front yelled at him.
But he only shouted louder, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

40 When Jesus heard him, he stopped and ordered that the man be brought to him. As the man came near, Jesus asked him, 41 “What do you want me to do for you?”
“Lord,” he said, “I want to see!”

42 And Jesus said, “All right, receive your sight! Your faith has healed you.” 43 Instantly, the man could see, and he followed Jesus, praising God. And all who saw it praised God, too.

This is another healing story of Jesus; we should never get tired of hearing these.

Jericho would have been the last stage of the journey to Jerusalem for Jesus and the disciples. They would have to make one final climb up the mountain, and this one would be his last. People were excited that Jesus was coming, and the crowd was becoming increasingly excited and bigger and bigger. 

When the blind man heard the commotion, he was very excited to see if he could get the attention of the “son of David.” Why is this name important? It identifies the royal heritage of Jesus and implies that Jesus would be crowned in his ancestor’s place. Luke doesn’t tell us how the blind man knew all of this. 

But when he shouted it, the people around him asked him to be quiet. They didn’t ask; they seemed to yell aggressively at him to stop being a menace. But the man could not be deterred and kept crying for Jesus to be merciful. 

When Jesus stopped, he asked the man what he wanted. The man let Jesus know that he wanted to see. And Jesus healed him immediately. 

This changed the tenor of the crowd to praising God! They must have been amazed! What strikes me about this story is that the man was unwilling to give up. Sometimes, we must be just as willing to continue to pray, search, believe that God is good, and reach out when we don’t always feel he is. 

Others will tell us that God is not accurate, that it doesn’t matter, and that we can live our lives without the hope of Jesus and nothing changes. I have people in my life that tell me these things. And sometimes, when it feels like God has been silent for a long time, I almost think what they say makes some sense. 

However, I always think back on texts like this where people were unwilling to leave, reluctant to stop praying, and willing to remain. Ultimately, they were blessed by God in so many ways. 

So the message today is simply this: to remain, continue, and expect God to show up.

JOURNAL

1. Have you ever thought about leaving? 
2. What kept you searching for God? 
3. How can we help each other to remain?