Opening of the Eyes

Introduction

Last week we saw an occurence where Jesus fed another large crowd and after he did that the Pharisees wanted to see a sign and the disciples were worried about what they would eat. In it we saw that they did not yet understand who it is that Jesus was. Through this though we saw that they were starting to get it, they were starting to understand, though the pharisees were not.

Tonight we are looking at another miracle and this one concludes part 1 of this series. When we began this book I studied through the entire thing and broke it up into three sections. Through part 1 we learned about the identity of Jesus and we will see tonight that is the giver of sight, the great revealer. Tonight we will see a blind man being healed but not all at once, Mark is drawing the connection with how the disciples are beginning to see more and more and we are going to kick off Part 2 with the disciples fully understanding.

This Passage acts as a transition for us from part 1 into part 2 as we are able to see the direction that Jesus is going. Lets go ahead and read these few verses tonight as we begin.

Mark 8:22–26 ESV

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, 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 people, 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.”

Within the context that this passage sits in we can interpret it as Jesus illustrating what he is doing in the lives of the disciples and what he also does in our lives. we can see that we are blind and Jesus can make it so that we can see but this is not always an immediate process but he often leads us up to it.

Maybe tonight you think that this whole Jesus thing doesn’t make much sense, I want to encourage you to keep seeking answers in it. Maybe it is starting to make sense but you still don’t really get it, that is ok just keep pressing on in seeking understanding. Maybe for you you do get it and have had the life changing salvation that Jesus offers, recognize that others may not be there but there is a chance that they are on their way to it. Many will never make it out of spiritual blindness but for those of us that do get it, it isn’t our job to see this it is our job to keep sharing this message.

Tonight I want to walk you through spiritual blindness and how the man in this story is a great representative for it and how our coming to Jesus is not always immediate but it is always glorious. Through all of this I want you to think if you truly understand the truths of the gospel and the significance of salvation. If you don’t truly grasp this then you may still be spiritually blind. The thing is though if you recognize this you are on the right path. Lets pray then begin by seeing what spiritual blindness looks like.

Pray

We are blind

The man in the story is physically blind. This was actually very common in this day because of poor hygiene and the commonness of accidents. blind people cannot see, they go through life not knowing what is a couple of feet in front of them. Someone that is blind from birth has no knowledge of what anything looks like, they don’t even know color. Truly someone that is blind from birth knows that they are missing out on something because of everyone around them but they can’t even grasp what it is that they are missing out on. Sure they rely on other senses but the blind life was a rough life.

The condition that this man has is not to much different from the condition that we are born with that is spiritual blindness. Just like a person that is born blind doesn’t even know what they are not seeing we are born not seeing the truths, the necessity, and the reality of the gospel. It’s not that it isn’t there, it’s often right in front of us but we are blind to it.

What if we stay blind to the gospel? if this happens we will never accept the salvation that Christ offers, we will have to pay the price for our sins. This is all our own fault because of our sins. Spiritual blindness is a serious issue and can lead down a dark path. I think it is easy to see how our culture today is spiritually blind and this is a sad reality.

This is not without a cure though. We see that the man in this story is made to where he can see so there must also be a way for our spiritual blindness to be fixed if Jesus is using this to illustrate our own lives. Well there is a solution but you must know that sometimes it takes time.

It takes time

Mark 8:23–25 ESV

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?” And he looked up and said, “I see people, 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.

Here we see that the friends brought the man to Jesus and from there Jesus led him out of town then healed him in two stages. This was not the fastest healing that Jesus could have done but why? We see also that the disciples are growing in understanding as we go further into the story. Jesus is showing that sometimes this understanding is not immediate.

Just because you bring a friend to church once does not mean that anything is going to happen, you must continue to bring them and talk to them yourself and encourage them. I went to church for years before I accepted Christ, I knew it all but then all at once I could see clearly that I needed the gospel.

Another example of this was my call to ministry. In my call to ministry I began by going to a class at the BCM to learn to preach because they told me it would be good for leading a Sunday school so I went. At the completion of the course I was asked to preach one Wednesday night so I did. After that I saw all the churches that needed help filling in on Sundays so I began to do that some and thought that this was my area of service. After a while of doing this I knew that I was called to full time ministry. I think that if God would have told me the day I started that preaching class I would have ran like Jonah but he didn’t and here I am. A result of a gradual call where I was equipped before I even knew I was called.

Jesus works in the perfect way, sometimes this is an immediate change of a life but sometimes he builds us and works us up to it. Neither is right or wrong but it is exactly how he works and we can be grateful for it.

We can see

Mark 8:25 ESV

Then Jesus laid his hands on his eyes again; and he opened his eyes, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly.

Here the mans sight was restored fully. In the next passage the disciples understand fully. For some of us Jesus has granted us spiritual sight. We have seen the realities of the gospel and our need for them, our desperate need.

We are sinners and that separates us from God. To be separated from God is the worst thing there could ever be for us. I have heard it put this way once, walking into heaven is a million times better than walking out of hell because when you walk into heaven you are with God. So we can see that separation from God is bad and it is a result of our sin. Jesus came sent from God to offer himself as a sacrifice to bridge that separation and all that you need to accept this forgiveness and be brought back to right relationship with God is to put your faith in him.

This is what some of us have seen, the seriousness of your sin and your need for a savior and you have put your faith in Jesus and have had spiritual sight. Maybe tonight some of you are beginning to see this for the very first time. It says in the Bible that anyone that calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. If you see your need for this now don’t wait any longer but accept the salvation that he offers tonight.

Conclusion

Through part 1 of Mark we have seen the identity of Jesus. We have seen his heart of compassion for all and his ability to grant spiritual sight to us. We have seen who our savior is and it is clear that he is a man of love. Part 2 starts out with the confession of who he is and that is the savior of the world.

Maybe tonight you are seeing this for the first time, you see that you have been blind to it but God has been working in your life. Much like the man in this story and the disciples themselves. If this is you then do not hesitate to talk to one of us adults or even grab a friend and they can go with you. This is the most important decision that you could ever make.

I know that some of you have seen the need that you have for a savior and have put your faith in Jesus. Don’t forget the significance of that, you were blind to the things of God and he has given you eyes to see. How amazing! Realize now where others are in this and the part that you can play in it. It might be the words that you speak to someone that God uses to open the eyes of their heart to himself. It might be the church service that you invite them to that they see clearly for the first time of their life. You never know how God will use you, look at the friends of the blind man in this story, they are barely mentioned but without them he would not have made it there to Jesus. Play the part that Jesus has for you, be the best friend that they could ever even desire for their life even when they do not know it.