I Once Was Blind…
MARK 10:46-52 | simon Marshman
We all need good role models
Meet Bartimaeus, a role model of discipleship:
- Bartimaeus, who humbly cries out for mercy, in contrast to the rich young man in 10:17-31
- Bartimaeus, rebuked by the crowd just as the disciples rebuked those bringing children to Jesus in 10:13-16
- Bartimaeus, the kind of person that Jesus said he came for in 2:17
- Bartimaeus, who stands in contrast to the request of James and John in 10:35-37
- Bartimaeus, who is healed immediately as a contrast to the man healed in two stages in 8:22-26
- Bartimaeus, the blind man who sees Jesus clearly where the disciples have only seen him in part as highlighted by Peter in 8:29-33 and repeatedly explained by Jesus in 8:34-38, 9:30-32, 10:32-34.
- Bartimaeus, who knew that he could only receive Jesus’ mercy as a gift, just as Jesus had described in 10:13-16
- Bartimaeus, who responded in faith, which was exactly what Jesus had been calling for ever since 1:15
- Bartimaeus, who put his faith into action by following Jesus, just as Jesus had been calling people to do from the beginning in 1:16-20 and 8:34.
Role models in our midst
And some of my favourite role models to read about:
- Bonheoffer by Eric Metaxas. A biography of faith and integrity under the incredible pressure of life in World War II Germany.
- Give Me This Mountain by Helen Roseveare. An autobiography of a journey to the mission field. Courage, sacrifice and forgiveness in the face of profound suffering.
- The Secret Thoughts Of An Unlikely Convert by Rosaria Champagne Butterfield. A profound autobiographical story of the conversion of an English professor advancing radical leftist ideologies to a humble disciple of Christ.
Reflection for Lent:
What strikes you about the portrayal of Bartimaeus as a role model of discipleship?
Next Week
Mark 11:1-33 | Simon Marshman