Seeing Clearly - Mark 8:22-30

Copyright Rev. Bruce Goettsche June 4, 2023

Every time I go to the Eye Doctor he asks me to read a chart on the wall. He wants to know the smallest line I can read. Over the years, the task has gotten more and more difficult. . . especially if I have to do it one eye at a time. The next part of the exam is when the Doctor puts a machine on my eyes and flips different lenses and asks, “Is it better with 1 or 2, or 2 or 3.” The Doctor is looking to see what kind of correction is needed for me to see clearly again.

Some of you have seen your vision get increasingly blurry. That’s because of cataracts. I’m told that having a cataract removed is a remarkable thing . . . vision is restored and you realize just how compromised your vision had become.

The passage we look at today is concerned about our vision. It tells us a unique account of a miracle that is only recorded in the Gospel of Mark followed by a quiz for the disciples that shows us the most important question in life and eternity. I hope to show you that these two stories are related to each other. Let’s dig in. We are in Mark 8 starting at verse 22. We start by looking at verses 22-26.

22 And they came to Bethsaida. And some people brought to him a blind man and begged him to touch him. 23 And he took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village, and when he had spit on his eyes and laid his hands on him, he asked him, “Do you see anything?” 24 And he looked up and said, “I see people, but they look like trees, walking.” 25 Then Jesus laid his hands on his eyes again; and he opened his eyes, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly. 26 And he sent him to his home, saying, “Do not even enter the village.”

The man that came for healing had obviously been able to see at one time. (How would he know what a tree looked like otherwise?) It appears that the healing of Jesus does not work the first time. So, Jesus does it again. Is this an illustration of a power failure, or a lack of faith in the man? I don’t believe it is either of these things. But let’s start at the beginning of the text.

Good Friends

Let’s start with the miracle itself. This miracle is a result of the action of this man's friends. We are told the friends brought Him to Jesus. If we are good friends, we will do the same thing. When we see friends, family, and others who are blind to who Jesus is, or who desperately need to meet Him, we will do our best to bring them to Jesus. But how?

We do this first, by pointing to what He has done in your own life. It is good to share the story of how your eyes were opened to see yourself as a sinner in need of grace, and then how you came to see Jesus as the One who could deliver you and save you.

Second, we do this by bringing our friends to places where Jesus resides. I hope this would be to a time of worship where the Word of God is preached. It could be a Bible Study or a Sunday School class. It could even be a fellowship event in the church where you friend can see the light of Christ in others.

We can introduce them to radio stations, to The Chosen TV series, our website, our livestream and so many more resources. A good friend will do whatever they can to bring their friends and family to Christ.

The Great Physician

Once the friends bring their friend to Jesus, the first thing Jesus does is take the man out of the city. Why? It is because Jesus wanted to heal the man but did not want to create a spectacle. He didn’t want people constantly clamoring for “signs,” He wanted them to listen to the message. Jesus was aware that many people came to Him as a means to an end, rather than seeing Him as the end itself.

Here is what I mean: there are many who turn to the Lord in a time of crisis. They are looking for help. Their instinct is certainly correct. Jesus is the One who can help when no one else can. They may profess faith. They will attend church. They might even get into a Bible Study or a home group. However, for too many people, when the crisis passes, they walk away. They got what they came for. They didn’t really see Jesus for who He is, they looked to Him for what He could do for them! Our Lord is not looking for superficial believers. He wants people who see Him as the One who can save them and lead them in life and for eternity. So he moves away from the city.

When it comes to healing the man, Jesus does something strange (again): He “spit on his eyes” and then put His hands on the man’s eyes. From what I understand, this was not an unusual act for healers at this time. However, the real healing did not take place until He laid His hands on Him. Jesus is not trying to teach us to spit at those who need healing. Again, let me say that the method of praying for healing is secondary to the act of seeking God for healing.

I think we would pray and lay hands on more people if we realized that healing is not because of what we do or say . . . it is about who we are turning to. What a surprise it must have been to everyone when Jesus asked the man what He saw. The man said, “I see men like trees walking.” There is no record of Jesus asking that question at any other time. I am sure the disciples were shocked when the man did not see clearly. Jesus touched him a second time and sight was restored.

Here’s the thing we need to remember about Jesus: He always does things for a reason. Jesus healed people in many ways. Perhaps this is to keep people from thinking there is some magical formula or incantation we must do to effect healing (e.g., if we learn the right words or technique, we can go around healing masses of people too). The kind of healing Jesus does is not about a technique, it is about the power of God! In this case, I think there is no question that Jesus could havecured the man immediately with one touch. He chose to do it in two steps.

The question is: why? The majority opinion is that Jesus was trying to illustrate that coming to faith and understanding comes in stages. In other words, we continue to need the Spirit to enlighten us as we move forward in the Christian faith. Just as this man started by seeing partially, so do we. We need subsequent enlightenment from God to see more clearly.

Remember, the disciples, as we looked at them last week, were not seeing clearly at all. Jesus was talking about the Leven (or false teaching) of the Pharisees and the disciples were arguing about the fact that they did not bring enough bread for lunch! The truth was revealed to them in stages.

The Most Important Question

It seems that the next section is an abrupt change but I don’t think it is.

27 And Jesus went on with his disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi. And on the way he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?” 28 And they told him, “John the Baptist; and others say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets.” 29 And he asked them, “But who do you say that I am?” Peter answered him, “You are the Christ.” 30 And he strictly charged them to tell no one about him.

While the disciples were traveling with Jesus, He gave them a little quiz. It had two questions. First, “Who do people say that I am?” In other words, what is the popular view of Jesus? Some thought John the Baptist had come back (even though Jesus and John were contemporaries), and others thought He might be the Elijah who was promised in the last verses of the OT to precede the Messiah. Still, others saw Jesus as a prophet. People recognized that Jesus was someone special, however, they didn’t understand who He was. They could see partially, but they could only see shadows.

I must admit, I am surprised the disciples did not say, “and some people think you are crazy or from the Devil himself,” because, we know some people did think this.

As we look around our world today, people have a variety of views on Jesus. Some are so bold as to say, He never existed. These folks dismiss all the historical documents that talk about Jesus. Every true historian says Jesus was a real person. But that does not matter to some people. These people are steeped in their blindness.

Many others talk about Jesus as a prophet of some kind. We have said many times (and will say many times more) that when someone says they “Believe in Jesus” we always need to prob to see what it is they believe about Jesus. They may see Him as a powerful and godly speaker. They might think of Him as a great teacher and moral example. They may admire His teachings but see Him as merely an extremely wise man who can give us great direction for our lives. They acknowledge Jesus as a religious man and as a powerful influence in the world, but they do not see him as God in human form who died for our sin and rose again to complete the process of making eternal life and forgiveness available to any who will believe.

There was a second question on the quiz and it is the most important one: “Who do YOU say that I am?” This question is not about how society as a whole views Jesus, it is personal.

Peter responded, “You are the Christ.” Peter acknowledged that Jesus was the One they had been waiting for. He was convinced Jesus was the Messiah. His eyes had been opened. His loyalty was fixed. However, as we will see next week, Peter still did not see clearly. He would not see clearly until after the resurrection.

You might ask, “Why did Jesus tell them not to tell anyone?” First, Jesus knew such words would certainly incite the Pharisees. Second, it might be that the disciples didn’t really know what the words meant yet. They were looking for a political leader. Jesus was coming to bring in a different Kingdom.

When all is said and done, this question is the one that will make the difference between Heaven and Hell. It won’t matter what kind of church you attended or your experience or knowledge; the only thing that will matter is who Jesus is to you.

Jesus did not come, like other religions, to tell us how to save ourselves, or how to find nirvana and enlightenment. He came to save us in spite of our inability to do so. He took our place! He lived the life we should have lived. He died the death we should have died. And he brings us the forgiveness and new life we could NEVER gain apart from Him.

Until we see Christ as God in human form, sent to pay the price for our sin, who is Lord of our life, we are still blind to the truth. Until we can say (and mean it) that “Jesus is MY Savior and MY Lord, the One who has paid the price for my sin, and the One who will lead me into eternal life,” we have not seen clearly enough to be saved.

Of course, these are not magic words. It is not the words that save us, it is the genuine relationship with Christ that saves us. It is coming to that point when we put all our hope and confidence in Him. We must know He is the One we can trust and depend on; not only for forgiveness and new life, but also for strength and guidance every day of our lives.

When we reach this point we are still only seeing men like trees walking. Everyone who has trusted Christ for any length of time can look back on our early lives in Christ and say, “I knew and trusted Christ for my salvation but there was so much more I did not see.” We all need continuing touches from the Lord to enlighten us.

Practically

First, we need to see how great is the love of God. God does not see you the way others may see you. He does not judge you on the basis of superficial things. He sees the dark secrets and the hidden sins. And still, He loves you and reaches out to you. Others may shake their heads and distance themselves from you. But not God. Instead, He sent Jesus to rescue you. He sent Christ to do for you what you could not do for yourself. He came to make you new. He believes in you and what you can become in Him.

Second, we need to ask ourselves. “Who IS Jesus to me?” The fact that you are here indicates that you like Jesus. But do you see clearly enough that He is more than a likable historical figure? Do you see that He is God reaching out to you? Do you see that His death was to pay for your sin and that His resurrection opened the door for you to live forever in His Kingdom?

Maybe you understand you need to be saved, but you think you must DO something (namely be a better person) before you can be saved by the cross of Christ. You don’t yet understand that we cannot do anything to earn salvation . . . it is a gift . . . a glorious gift . . . an incredible gift from God. He calls us to admit we need to be forgiven and then run to the open arms of Jesus.

This is hard for many to believe. Even the best of us have fallen far short of His standard. This gift may be too staggering to believe. . . more staggering than if the Publishers Clearing Van came to your home to tell you that you have won the grand prize. But, it IS true.

Because of Christ we can approach God not with fear but out of love. We can live with confidence and hope even though others want to keep beating us up over the mistakes and sin of our past. We are forgiven! Life lies ahead of us. We are free to live as we were meant to live when God created us. May God grant you eyes to see and ears to hear. When people ask “who do you say He is” may you confidently say, “He is My Lord and My Savior, He is the One who changed my life forever!”

Third, we need to remember that we do not see all things clearly yet. A good parent does not expect their children to be mature before they have had time to become mature. Our children learn incrementally. Even when they become teenagers, and think they know so much more than we do, we understand that this is part of growing up. We know they do not yet see as clearly as they think they do.

The same is true with our spiritual understanding. In 1 Corinthians 13:12-13 right after the great discourse on love, we read,

Now we see things imperfectly, like puzzling reflections in a mirror, but then we will see everything with perfect clarity. All that I know now is partial and incomplete, but then I will know everything completely, just as God now knows me completely.

We don’t think this is the case. We believe we are the exception because of a class, a particular teacher, an experience. We are deeply wedded to our beliefs. However, this produces more Pharisees than genuine followers.

One commentator drove it home with these words,

Contemporary followers of Christ thus do well in asking God to let them see in which areas of their lives they are likewise “deaf” and “blind” to the ways of God. Are they, for example, seeking wealth, power, or recognition as a purported sign of God’s blessing, when, in fact, God is calling them, above all, to a life of humility, honesty, transparency, honest labor, and love, as well as a willingness to suffer dishonor and derision? (ESV Expository Commentary)

We must remind ourselves that no matter how long we have followed Christ we do not “have it all figured out.” The things of the Lord are more vibrant and beautiful than we can now perceive and we should hunger for and eagerly keep our minds and hearts open to a new and deeper understanding. When we read the Bible we should always be trying to read with fresh eyes and an open heart.

Finally, since we all need several touches from the Lord to see clearly, it only follows that we should be patient with each other. Tim Keller has written,

if everybody here really believes very solidly in Jesus Christ, do you know what this means? You must never feel impatient or superior to anybody else who doesn’t believe or who believes less than you do. You must never look down your nose at them. You must never get irritable with them. You mustn’t get impatient with them.

There’s something in our hearts, naturally … When you really are so sure of something and you’re talking to somebody else who just doesn’t see it, deep in your heart (sometimes you’ll say it out loud, but certainly in your heart) you’re thinking, “You fool. Why can’t you see this? Why are you so blind to the truth?” You mustn’t do that. How dare you do that? If spiritual sight is ultimately a gift of God, how can you do that? Have you forgotten?[1]

We must be patient with each other while at the same time being open to learning from each other. We may all be seeing different pieces of the same puzzle. We must guard against false teaching but also always we alert for new understanding. We must maintain this balance.

The Lord wants us to see clearly. It begins by seeing the Lord Jesus clearly. And when we come to Him, He wants us to know that He has so much more that He wants us to see. You can be content with where you are, but every new touch from the Spirit reveals the Lord in a new and greater way, and I, for one, can’t wait for what He enables me to see next. I can hear God saying, “You haven’t seen anything yet!” And someday, as we cross the threshold into eternity, we will gasp with wonder at the majesty of His presence and weep at the realization of what Jesus has made possible for us to see. And finally, our sight will be fully restored.

[1] Timothy J. Keller, The Timothy Keller Sermon Archive (New York City: Redeemer Presbyterian Church, 2013).