Mark 8:22

Turn in your Bibles, if you would, to Mark chapter 8. Mark chapter 8, page 844 in your pew Bible. Mark chapter 8, we'll read beginning in verse 22.

Mark 8 · chapter mention Mark 8 · chapter mention Mark 8 · chapter mention

Mark 8, verse 22. And they came to Bethsaida, and some people brought to him a blind man and begged him to touch him. And he took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village.

Mark 8:22

And when he had spit on his eyes and laid his hands on him, he asked him, Do you see anything? And he looked up and said, I see men, but they look like trees walking.

Then Jesus laid his hands on his eyes again, and he opened his eyes. His sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly. And he sent him to his home, saying, Do not even enter the village.

Thus far the reading of God's word. May he bless it to us.

Well, there's no doubt that we live in a highly visual age, probably the most visual age in human history.

It wasn't always like this. In the ancient world, of course, it wasn't quite as visual as it is today. Maybe an odd cave painting here or there, but it was an oral culture.

And people would sit around the campfire, and they would tell stories. And these stories would be passed down for centuries.

This is where we get the Gilgamesh epic, or Beowulf, or even Homer's stories.

And then, for centuries, this was the way of life. And then we have the invention of the printing press.

And then we become a written culture. Published material becomes affordable, and common people can own books, and literacy rates skyrocket.

And this way of life lasted until just a few years ago, when we became a digital culture.

We don't read books made of paper and ink anymore. We read ones and zeros on a screen.

Most of us walk around with HD cameras in our pocket.

Seeing is believing has never been more true. We must see to believe.

But imagine if you lost your ability to see.

Those of you who may have struggled with visual impairment know how debilitating this condition can be.

All of life has to change to accommodate this condition.

Seeing is no longer believing for those who struggle with their eyesight, for those who walk in darkness.

But even more debilitating than physical blindness is spiritual blindness.

This is our condition apart from the regenerative power of the Holy Spirit.

We're blind to the things of God. We're dead in our trespasses and sin.

We cannot see our triune God as creator, as redeemer, as the maker of all things new.

Apart from Christ, we walk in darkness.

The Word of God speaks quite often about blindness.

In the ancient world, it was much more common than it is today.

Some scholars estimate as many as much as 10% of the population suffered from some level of blindness.

This was mainly due to poor sanitation and the unchecked glare of the sun.

And you can imagine how much Moses wished he would have had a pair of sunglasses.

He's walking around the desert for 40 years.

This condition was a common part of everyday life, though.

But when Scripture speaks of blindness, it often refers to a spiritual condition.

So in Deuteronomy chapter 16, it refers to corrupt judges whose eyes are blinded.

Deuteronomy 16 · chapter mention

Isaiah 44 mentions idolaters who are blind in their false worship.

We see Jesus repeatedly in the Gospels condemning the scribes and Pharisees for being blind to the ways of God.

For those with physical blindness, there is no hope to be cured.

There is no miracle cream or special pill.

This condition could not be remedied by self-effort.

The same is true for spiritual blindness back then and today.

You cannot work your way out of this condition.

You can only look to the work of another.

The one who can bring us from darkness to light.

And this is why Messiah came.

Only the Messiah can open the eyes of the blind, both physically and spiritually.

It's only through his work that we see the truths of God's word.

The greatness of our sin and misery.

But the offer of forgiveness with God and reconciliation with him.

And we see this in our passage today here in Mark chapter 8.

Mark 8 · chapter mention

First we see that the Messiah has come to heal us of physical blindness.

And second, the Messiah has come to heal spiritual blindness.

Because Jesus has healed us of spiritual blindness, we must consistently be reminded of the nature of his work.

So first we see that Jesus has come to heal physical blindness.

We see that the disciples, Jesus' disciples, come to Bethsaida.

They just crossed the Sea of Galilee.

They come to Bethsaida.

And they're introduced to this man born blind.

We see his utter dependence upon others to help him.

He's brought to Jesus.

Some people brought to him a blind man and begged him to touch him.

He's unable to come to Christ by his own power.

He cannot reach the Messiah through his own effort.

So his friends lead him to the Savior.

This was no chance encounter that we see in the Gospels where Jesus is walking on the road and someone calls out to him to heal him.

No.

This was a purposeful seeking out of the Savior.

Not only do they bring this man to Christ, but once they're there, they beg Jesus to touch him.

To heal him.

They weren't hired by the blind man at some sort of taxi service.

And they don't just bring him to Jesus and say,

Okay, I hope it goes well.

No.

They bring him to the Savior and they implore him to touch him because they know that he is the one who can make their friend well.

This blind man has pretty good friends who go out of their way to bring him to the Messiah.

Just as a side note for us, this is a picture of prayer.

We cannot bring our friends to the literal feet of Jesus, but we can lift them up to him in prayer.

Beseech him on their behalf.

Well, Jesus exhibits great compassion to this blind man.

He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village.

This blind man who was brought to Jesus is now led by Jesus.

One who is rejected by society due to his blindness.

Yet Christ humbles himself and touches him, comforting him.

Jesus doesn't have the assumption that the disciples had when they see another blind man in John chapter 9.

John 9 · chapter mention

They say, Who sinned?

This man or his parents that he was born blind.

No doubt they're just repeating the common assumption of the day that any debilitating illness was due directly to some person's sin.

No.

Jesus doesn't look at him as someone to be condemned for his sin, but he's one made in God's image.

And today he would be the object of the Savior's love.

Now, of course, the blind man's friends who brought him to Jesus could have led him out of the city.

But Jesus personally takes him by the hand.

No doubt he's talking to him as they walk out of the city.

He's hearing about his life.

Hearing about his story.

This man probably never told about his life to anyone else.

No one asked him how his day was.

No one cared to know him.

He spent his life in the fringes of society.

Yet the creator of the world is giving him his undivided attention.

Christ leads him out of the city and away from the crowds in order to focus his entire attention on him.

You see, at this point in the Gospel of Mark, Jesus begins turning away from the crowds.

He's away from all the multitudes.

He says earlier in Mark chapter 8 that he's not there to perform signs.

Mark 8 · chapter mention

He's there to instruct his disciples on the nature of his Messiahship.

He cannot be distracted from his duty by the crowds who want him to perform parlor tricks so they can be amused.

Wow.

The next thing he does seems highly unusual to us.

He spits in this man's eyes.

It seems rather disgusting to our 21st century ears.

But you have to remember, these are the days before hand sanitizer.

They weren't so worried about every germ as we are today.

And saliva was actually believed to be a healing agent in the ancient world.

There are multiple miracles reported involving saliva.

Perhaps the most famous miracle was allegedly performed by the soon-to-be Emperor Vespasian, who is the Roman general who sacked Jerusalem in AD 70.

Allegedly, allegedly, he healed someone of blindness with saliva, adding to his legend on the way to the Roman throne.

Who knows if that was true.

So Jesus could have been using this convention for his own act of healing, as he did previously in Mark chapter 7.

Mark 7 · chapter mention

He heals a deaf man using saliva.

Or he simply could have been cleaning dirt from the man's eyes.

You can imagine, first century Palestine, it's very dry, very dusty.

This man who doesn't use his eyes, no doubt.

Dirt would build up.

Things would have to be cleared away before Jesus can open his eyes.

He knows that this man is about to see.

Either way, this act demonstrates the closeness of attention that Jesus gives this man.

This intimate connection that he has with this blind man.

Again, Jesus touches him.

This time, a healing touch.

This man who was regarded as defiled, an outcast of society.

He only would have been touched by others who in some way were defiled themselves.

Yet, Jesus touches him.

Now, this touch of Christ, this healing touch, is a sign of the age to come, breaking into this present evil age.

You remember in the Old Covenant, the Old Testament, the Levitical law.

If you are ceremonially clean, and you touch something that is ceremonially unclean, what happens?

It's instantly, you're unclean.

So if you're riding down the road in your ox cart, there's a dead animal blocking the road.

You get down, you move the dead animal out of the way.

Instantly, you're unclean.

And you must be purified.

The unclean corrupts the clean.

The unholy corrupts the holy.

But now, with Christ's advent, the kingdom of God is at hand, and we get a foretaste of the redemption that is coming.

Now, when the holy touches the unholy, the unholy is transformed.

The unholy becomes holy in Christ.

We see this throughout the Gospels.

You remember the woman with the issue of blood.

Matthew, Mark, and Luke, both, all three, recount her story.

For 12 years, she has this condition.

Every day of her life, she was unclean.

Can you imagine?

Her daily toil.

Never once, not knowing a day when she could be clean.

And she comes to Jesus and touches him.

And what happens?

Is he defiled?

No.

Instantly, she is made clean.

The unholy becomes holy when it comes in contact with the Savior.

The same is true for the prostitutes, the tax collectors, and sinners.

When Jesus hangs out with them, is he defiled?

Of course not.

He makes them holy.

They don't corrupt him.

He purifies them.

This concept is absolutely radical.

And it horrified the first century Jews, the scribes and Pharisees,

who were so proud of their adherence to the law and their ceremonial cleanliness.

They would not even come within feet of someone who was unclean.

And they see Jesus touching those who are outcasts and defiled.

And yet, he makes them clean.

He transformed them.

And this concept is only beginning with the advent of Christ, the coming of the Holy Spirit.

The kingdom of God is being extended throughout the earth until one day all will be made clean.

All the unholy will be holy.

All will be transformed.

Because Christ will make all things new.

This is the power of our Savior.

And he touches the blind man and he asks him for the results.

Do you see anything?

And the blind man gives an interesting response.

And he looked up and said, I see men, but they look like trees walking.

He can now see, but only partially.

The healing is not complete.

So Jesus touches him again.

And it seems odd that he would heal in this two-fold manner.

It's the only time in the New Testament that we see this.

And he does it for a very important reason, which we'll see in a minute.

But with this second touch, Mark gives us a three-fold description.

He opened his eyes, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly.

There's no doubt as to the effectiveness of this second touch.

It is complete and total.

Now, most likely for the same reason that Jesus led him out of the village to avoid the crowds,

he now informs the blind man, do not even enter the village.

Again, Christ is focusing on his disciples.

He's not there to perform signs for the crowds.

He's there to instruct the disciples on the nature of his Messiahship.

Now, with this healing of physical blindness,

Jesus is giving concrete proof that he is indeed the Messiah.

In all of Scripture, only the Messiah opens the eyes of the blind.

Many miracles are performed.

People are even raised from the dead.

But only the Messiah can open the eyes of those who do not see.

After Christ seals that blind man in John chapter 9,

John 9 · chapter mention

the Pharisees question him, and he responds,

Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone

opened the eyes of a man born blind.

This fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah,

that when the Messiah comes, the eyes of the blind shall be opened.

In Matthew chapter 11, John the Baptist is in prison.

Matthew 11 · chapter mention

And he's about to die, and he needs one last confirmation

that Jesus is indeed the Messiah.

That he is who he says he is.

Perhaps John's expectations of the Messiah's kingdom hasn't come true.

If the kingdom of heaven is at hand as I've been preaching,

why am I in jail?

And he needs to know that Jesus is the one.

So he sends his disciples to Jesus and asks him,

Are you the one who is to come?

Or shall we look to another?

And Jesus does not hesitate.

He says, Go and tell John what you hear and see.

The blind receive their sight.

And he lists other things.

He says, You want proof that I'm the Messiah?

Here's the first proof.

The blind now see.

That's all the proof you need.

Only the Messiah can do this.

Only the Messiah opens the eyes of the blind.

We see here in our passage that the Messiah has come to heal physical blindness

as only he can.

But more importantly, he has come to heal spiritual blindness.

We see this clearly in this passage.

Now what's the blind man's spiritual condition?

We don't know.

Perhaps he believed.

We hope he believed.

But physical healing is not direct proof of spiritual healing.

We know many people in the Gospels who were physically healed by Jesus

and didn't believe in him as Messiah.

But the blind man's lack of spiritual sight is not the most important in this passage.

It's the disciples' spiritual blindness that is the key.

They are the main focus of this narrative, yet they appear nowhere in it.

You see, the main question of the first half of the Gospel of Mark is,

Who is Jesus?

And the disciples repeatedly get this answer wrong.

They don't know what to make of Jesus.

They think he's the Messiah, but he's not really the Messiah that they were looking for.

And so he feeds the 5,000 in chapter 5.

And then in chapter 8, he feeds 4,000.

And he rebukes the Pharisees for demanding a sign.

And as they're crossing the Sea of Galilee after these events,

he's crossing with the disciples and he uses their lack of bread

to warn them of the leaven of the Pharisees and Herod.

But the disciples are hung up on the fact that they don't have bread.

They're consumed by the God of their bellies.

And they grumble and complain, just like Israel in the wilderness.

So Jesus rebukes them in verse 18.

Having eyes, do you not see?

Having ears, do you not hear?

And do you not remember?

When I broke the five loaves for the 5,000,

how many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?

They said to him, 12.

And the seven for the 4,000?

How many baskets full of broken pieces did you take up?

They said to him, seven.

He said to them,

Do you not yet understand?

The answer to that question is no.

They don't understand.

They don't really know who he is or what he came to do.

They don't understand the main theme of the Gospel of Mark,

which is the king and his kingdom.

Who is Jesus and what is his mission?

They're blind to who Jesus is.

And to demonstrate their condition,

Mark basically gives the reader what is a giant sermon illustration.

The disciples are just as seeing impaired as the blind man

when he first comes to Christ.

But there is hope.

Just after this healing comes the centerpiece of Mark's Gospel.

Jesus and the disciples go to Caesarea Philippi.

Jesus asks the questions,

Who do people say that I am?

Disciples tell him.

Some say John the Baptist.

Some say Elijah.

Some say other prophets.

And Jesus asks the most important question that anyone can ask.

Who do you say that I am?

Everyone at some point in life has to answer this question.

Who do you say Jesus is?

Is he a great teacher?

Is he a religious sage who taught us to love one another?

Or is he the Son of God?

If you've never been asked this question before today,

today is the day to answer.

Who do you say Jesus is?

Peter answers,

Thou art the Christ,

the Son of the living God.

In Matthew's account,

Jesus tells him,

Flesh and blood didn't reveal this to you,

but the Father who is in heaven.

Just as the blind man's eyes were opened,

so too Peter's eyes are now open to who Jesus is.

He came to this conclusion,

not through careful reasoning and contemplation.

He didn't weigh the evidence and decide in Christ's favor.

No.

He was completely blind in darkness

until the Father opened his eyes

and enabled him to see Jesus as Messiah.

So, imagine being in a first century church

and we receive our copy of the Gospel of Mark in the post.

You know this is how it took place in the first century.

Paul or one of the gospel writers would write a letter,

they'd write a gospel,

and they would send it by a messenger through the postal route.

And so what would happen is

the church would gather together

and the messenger would bring the letter or the gospel

before the congregation.

They would all be there in one place

and he would read the entire letter.

He'd read the entire gospel in one city.

And incidentally,

if you've never listened to the Gospel of Mark on audio,

check it out.

It's really amazing to hear it aloud.

You can find it on the internet.

It takes about 90 minutes

if you listen all the way through.

And the action comes alive.

This is how it was originally meant to be consumed.

You've heard it.

And the Gospel of Mark is like a comic book.

There's just action taking place one right after the other.

Jesus is doing such amazing things

and this really comes alive when you hear it audio.

And so we would be gathered together

and we'd hear the messenger reading the Gospel.

And we would hear the first chapters of the Gospel of Mark

and the disciples are confused.

They don't know what to make of Jesus.

And then we get to chapter 8

and he tells them,

you have eyes but you don't see.

And we think,

they're not getting it.

What's wrong?

And then we hear the story of the blind man

and we think,

why is this happening now?

And then we hear Peter's confession

and we think,

yes, they get it.

The disciples see.

Finally.

But then the messenger keeps reading

in verse 31 of chapter 8.

He began to teach them

that the Son of Man must suffer many things

and be rejected by the elders

and the chief priests and the scribes

and be killed

and after three days rise again.

And he said this plainly.

And Peter took him aside

and began to rebuke him.

But turning and seeing his disciples,

he rebuked Peter and said,

get behind me, Satan.

For you are not setting your mind

on the things of God

but on the things of man.

It can't be.

They recognize Jesus as Messiah

but not the crucified King.

They take two steps forward

and one step back.

Their eyes are opened by the Father.

But yet they do not have full sight.

They don't see as clearly

as the blind man did.

This is why the blind man

is healed in two stages.

Some critics like to say

that Jesus didn't have enough power

in the first touch

so he had to have another run at it.

He just raised Jairus' daughter

from the dead.

Of course he can open

the blind man's eyes.

No.

The blind man is healed partially

to demonstrate

the partial sight

of the disciples.

They think they see

but it's not clear yet.

The disciples see Jesus

as Messiah

but as the Messiah

they want him to be.

They say,

oh yes,

you're the one

for whom Israel has waited.

You're the one sent from God

and we're happy

to sit on your right hand

and left hand

as you ride into Jerusalem

on a white stallion,

overthrow the Romans,

establish your political kingdom.

We're happy to be part

of a glorious kingdom

with a conquering king.

But they wanted no part

of a suffering Messiah.

One who was rejected

by elders,

the chief priests and scribes.

One who was killed

by the hands of the Romans.

That was unthinkable.

So unthinkable

that Peter has the gall

to rebuke Jesus

for mentioning such things.

The disciples see

but not yet clearly.

They wanted the theology of glory.

He offered the theology

of the cross.

They wanted a golden throne

next to his.

He offered a wooden cross

on his right and his left.

They wanted their lives

to be saved.

He said,

you must lose it all

for my sake.

For what does it profit a man

if he gains the whole world

and loses his own soul?

What does it profit a disciple

if he gains a seat

in the restored kingdom of Israel

if he does not have

the Messiah

to die for his sins?

The disciples see

but not clearly.

They don't see clearly

in chapter 9

when he foretells

his death and resurrection.

A second time

they get confused

in chapter 10.

A third time

he foretells

his death and resurrection.

You remember after this

it's James and John

are jockeying

for the prime seats

in the kingdom.

They won't see clearly

until after the crucifixion,

after the resurrection,

and even after the ascension.

It's not until

the day of Pentecost

when they get

the full picture

of the crucified king.

As Peter stands up

in Acts 2.36

and he says,

Let all of the house

of Israel

know for certain

that God has made him

both Lord and Christ,

this Jesus

whom you crucified.

They finally get it.

The Lord and Christ

is the crucified Jesus.

No longer do they tell people

like the blind man

not to say anything.

No,

they are now eyewitnesses

to his resurrection.

They take the word

of the suffering Messiah

to the ends of the earth

as they are empowered

by the Holy Spirit.

They realize that Christ

has died for their sins,

that he was buried,

that he was raised again

for their justification.

They clearly see

the truths

of who Jesus is

and what he came to do.

Their spiritual eyes

have finally been opened.

Of course,

we are blessed

to stand on this side

of the cross

and the resurrection.

We have the full revelation

of God,

unlike the disciples here

in Mark chapter 8.

Mark 8 · chapter mention

We're privy to the end

of the grand history

of redemption.

We've received

the Holy Spirit.

We see how Christ

has sent the gospel

to the ends of the earth.

We know that Satan

is bound

and that the church flourishes

and we await our King

in power and glory.

But so often

we want that power

and glory now.

We want the triumph

of the age to come today.

We don't want to suffer

as the church militants.

We want victory

and success in our lives.

We forget that we live

in this present evil age

and we demand

all the benefits

of the age to come

in this life.

Like the disciples,

we want the theology

of glory

and not the theology

of the cross.

The theology of the cross

is what Martin Luther

called the suffering

of Christians

for the cause of Christ.

Just as Simon the Cyrene

bore the cross of Jesus

on the way to Calvary

so too we are called

to suffer

to carry the cross.

To suffer for his sake.

Now this doesn't

earn us any merit

with God.

It just reminds us

of the suffering

of Christ

and the fallenness

of this world.

The theology of the cross

is contrasted

with the theology of glory

which seeks to avoid

the cross of Christ.

It wants all the benefits

of the age to come

in the here and now.

We wonder why

we should have to suffer

for Christ now.

We want to skip

the suffering

and get to the good part.

Let's get to the end

where we get all

the good stuff

and fast forward

through this suffering.

We want perfect

peace and contentment.

That's what the disciples

wanted.

And so often

it's what we want.

In the 16th century

there was a pastor

named Friedrich Myconius

who wrote

The History of the Reformation

1517-1542.

And he writes

of the indulgence

controversy

in 1517 and 18.

If you've seen

the Luther movie

you remember

it's a very good movie

by the way.

You remember

the indulgences

where Tetzel

comes rolling into town

and he's selling indulgences

which are pieces of paper

that can buy you time

off of purgatory

for you

or your loved ones.

And it's at this time

during the indulgence

controversy

that Luther is preaching

in a tiny

broken down chapel

at the Wittenberg

monastery

and Myconius notes

that this chapel

actually resembled

artists' rendition

of the stable

in Bethlehem

where Christ is born.

And Luther's battling

Rome

for selling indulgences

and Rome

is using the money

to build

St. Peter's Basilica

in Rome

which is the height

of wealth

and opulence

and grandeur.

No place like it

in the world.

And Myconius notes

in this poor

miserable

wretched chapel.

God let His dear

Holy Gospel

and the dear

child Jesus

be born again

in these last times.

That's the theology

of the cross.

But our memories

are so short

and we know

that Christ

has made us

a new creation

and He's granted

a citizenship

in the heavenly kingdom

but we want

that kingdom now

and so we grumble

and we complain

and we grow cynical

and we wonder

why we hear bad news

from the doctor

and we wonder

why we suffer

financial hardship.

But the good news

is

that even though

we're forgetful

and we set our minds

on the things of men

and not the things of God

our Savior is patient

with us

just as He was

with the disciples

no matter how many times

He had to explain

to the disciples

the nature

of His kingdom

and who He was

as Messiah

not once

does He lose

His temper.

He doesn't fire

His disciples

and hire new ones.

No.

Our Savior

knows our weaknesses

and He knows

that our memories

are short

and He's always

long-suffering with us

despite our

daily return

to partial sight

and our focus

on ourselves.

But we have

even better news

than the disciples

originally had.

We have the Holy Spirit

who's there to help us.

Jesus tells His disciples

it's better that I go away

because I will send

a comforter to you.

We have this advocate

who dwells within us

to convict us

of our short-sightedness

remind us of the Gospel.

He's there to strengthen us

to sanctify us

even when we don't feel like it

even when life is a struggle

the Holy Spirit

is there for us.

He is the one

as Chuck preached this morning

our roots go deep

into the Word of God.

Who brings our roots

down there?

The Holy Spirit.

He is bringing us

to Christ.

He's reminding us

of all the promises

that we have

in Him.

So we must not allow

our eyes that see

go back to partial sight.

The Messiah has come

to heal us

of spiritual blindness

as only He can

and this is why

we must consistently

be reminded

of who Jesus is

and the nature

of His kingdom.

We must look forward

to the day

when He returns

in power and glory

for it is then

that we will experience

the kingdom of God

in its fullness

and we shall be like Him

for we shall see Him

just as He is.

Let's bow together

in prayer.

Our merciful God

who is pleased

to condescend

and to speak to us

through Your Word

grant us the grace

that we may not be

mere hearers of Your Word

but doers also.

Give us the grace

of Your Holy Spirit

that we may believe

what has been promised

to us.

May we bring glory

and honor to Your name

in all that we do

as You conform us

to the image of Your Son

Jesus Christ our Lord.

All of this Father

we ask in the name of Christ.

Amen.