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His response reveals that he was
not born bind. He would not have known what trees looked like if he had
been born blind. He once was able to see. Sometime during his life he
became blind through disease, an accident, or a genetic disorder. How
many years had he been blind? We do not know. But he must have been anxious
to have his eyesight restored.
Then Jesus laid His hands on the man’s eyes again.
Then again He laid His hands on his eyes; and he looked intently and was restored, and began to see everything clearly. And He sent him to his home, saying, “Do not even enter the village.” Mark 8:25-26 (NAS95S) The man’s eyesight was completely restored. He could see clearly
and Jesus sent him home. Jesus did not want him to go through the city.
It is possible that Jesus did not want someone or a group of Pharisees
in the city to know that He had healed the blind man. For whatever reason,
Jesus did not want him to go through the city.
His Eyes. The English reader is unaware
of the fact that two different Greek words are translated as “eyes” in
verses 23 and 25. In verse 23, we are told that Jesus spit on the man’s
eyes. The root Greek word for eyes in this verse is HORAO. This Greek
word does not refer to our physical eyes. It refers to a person’s
perception, but the Greek word, OPHTHAIMOS, translated as “eyes” in
verse 25 is the normal word for our physical “eyes.”
The first word indicates that Jesus enabled the man to
mentally see and the second time Jesus repaired his physical eyes. Maybe
the man’s brain was damaged and could not process the visual electrical
responses from his eyes. If so, Jesus repaired both in succession - his
mind and then his physical eyes. This would have been an important event
since Mark’s next account is about Peter’s perception or
great confession about Jesus Christ. In Mark 8:27-38 we will discover
that Jesus will be asking Peter, “Who do you say that I am?” Peter’s
perception will be tested. Mark may have wanted to include this account
in preparation for what follows. One may see clearly in this world but
not see very clearly in reference to spiritual matters. I wonder if the
blind man had good spiritual perception? Did he have good perception
about Jesus Christ? Did he finally realize that Jesus was his God and
Savior?
His Compassion. We are like a blind man
in a spiritual wilderness without anyone to guide us. We can not see
spiritual truth without God’s guidance. We are helpless. If you
do not believe in Jesus Christ, you are spiritually blind and need God
to guide you to the truth. But if you believe in Jesus - trusting Him
for the forgiveness of your sins, you can praise God that you are no
longer spiritually blind. Everyone of us needs Jesus’ touch each
day in order to understand spiritual truth. I may think I see clearly,
but I need the Holy Spirit to help me to spiritually see or understand
clearly. 1 Corinthians 2:12-14 tells us that we need the Holy Spirit
to teach us. This is a constant need. I need to confess my sins to God
directly on a regular basis in order for this to occur.
Conclusion. Before we end our study we
need to ask, “Why did Jesus touch the man’s eyes?” He
did not need to touch the man. On some occasions He healed people who
were a long distance away. So why touch the man’s eyes? Have you
ever noticed how often Jesus touched people? He touched children, lepers,
the blind, a deaf-mute and others. I have discovered that most people
respond positively to a casual touch on the shoulder. Touch communicates
concern and compassion. I believe that Jesus touched intentionally in
order to communicate His compassion for people. He cared about their
physical health and comfort. He cared about each one personally. He loved
people, and so He touched them. No one was unimportant to Him.
Sometimes we ignore people. Sometimes we are just too unloving
and treat them as numbers in our statistics.
A businessman and his wife were busy to the point of exhaustion. They were committed to each other, their family, their church, their work, their friends. Needing a break, they escaped for a few days of relaxation at an oceanfront hotel. One night a violent storm lashed the beach and sent massive breakers thundering against the shore. The man lay in his bed listening and thinking about his own stormy life of never-ending demands and pressures. The wind finally died down and shortly before daybreak the man slipped out of bed and took a walk along the beach to see what damage had been done. As he strolled, he saw that the beach was covered with starfish that had been thrown ashore and helplessly stranded by the great waves. Once the morning sun burned through the clouds, the starfish would dry out and die. Suddenly the man saw an interesting sight. A young boy who had also noticed the plight of the starfish was picking them up, one at a time, and flinging them back into the ocean. “Why are you doing that?” the man asked the lad as he got close enough to be heard. “Can’t you see that one person will never make a difference - you’ll never be able to get all those starfish back into the water. There are just too many.”[1] “Yes, that’s true,” the boy sighed as he bent over and picked up another and tossed it back into the water. Then as he watched it sink, he looked at the man, and smiled, and said, “But it sure made a difference to that one.” - Denis Waitley, Seeds of Greatness When is the last time you touched someone - touched someone twice? When
was the last time you cared about the physical and spiritual health of
your neighbor, a fellow believer, a co-worker, or stranger? Or, are you
indifferent? Are they just like a starfish to be left on the beach?
The following lyrics of “He Touched Me” are
a great reminder of Jesus’ great compassion for all of us.
Shackled by a heavy burden, He touched me, Oh, He touched me, Since I met the Blessed Saviour, He touched me, Oh, He touched me, He touched me and made me whole.[2] --- William J. Gaither May God bless you as you show compassion to others and tell others that
Jesus Christ died for them in order to forgive their sins. Now that is
the spiritual touch . . .
May the Lord bless you,
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References:
 1. Charles R. Swindoll. The Tale of the Tardy Oxcart. Word Publishing co. 1998. p. 111-112. |
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