Throwing Off The Old Coat

Introduction

We have walked with Christ from the inauguration of His ministry through the three years that He taught, healed, and performed miracles on this Earth through the lens of Mark, the Evangelist.

Christ has been on mission, He has had a purpose and goal in mind the entire time.

Ultimately, that goal is the Cross… He knows that is His destiny and where He will end up.

However, as we make our way toward Jerusalem, Christ is going to exemplify one last show of mercy…

This instance that we read this morning is the final miracle of mercy that Christ performs prior to the Cross.

In it, we see a very explicit example of what Christ has come to bring… salvation!

This is the story of Christ healing Blind Bartimaeus.

I can recall as a teenager, at home with mom and dad - a storm passing through where we lived.

It was a particularly bad one, and the power went out that afternoon.

At first it was cool, and maybe even just a mild inconvenience.

As the day progressed, and the night came around… the less cool it seemed. It got dark… really dark.

Flashlights ran out of batteries, no AC, no way to see where we were going… suddenly it became very evident: It is not easy living in the dark!

In our text today, we see a man who had to contend with that reality everyday, AND his story reveals a great deal about our own spiritual condition.

Read Mark 10:46-52

I. The Condition of Bartimaeus

Mark 10:46–48 ESV

46 And they came to Jericho. And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. 47 And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 48 And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

What was it that made Bartimaeus a candidate for healing, restoration, and ultimately salvation?

a. he was aware of his state

When we say Bartimaeus was aware of his state, we mean that he was aware of who and what he was.

Think about the life this man lived, he is blind. This man is at the mercy of the world around him and he sits by the road begging.

Bart. would have been well are of the condition that he was in… he would’ve woken up this morning like every other morning.

Without a home or abode, he would have shaken the dirt off him and struggled his way to the roadside where he would sit and have no other choice but to accept the mercy of others.

We must understand, because of Bart.’s condition, he could do nothing for himself. He is completely disabled.

We understand the in a physical sense, yet Scripture utilizes this story to highlight the fact that we are in the same exact boat in a spiritual sense. Apart from Christ, naturally, we are born into this state… a state of spiritual blindness.

We, like Bart., have nothing we can do for ourselves, we cannot help ourselves.

Bart. couldn’t work his way to wealth, we cannot work our way to Heaven - Can’t earn favor.

Bart. couldn’t alleviate his own physical blindness, we can’t heal our spiritual blindness.

We, like Bart. are born in a place of complete and total ignorance to the truth - it will take a miracle for God to heal Bart.’s blindness… it will take a miracle for God to heal our spiritual blindness.

The silver lining here is this: What leads to Bart.’s healing? First, Bartimaeus had to recognize that he was blind.

Bart. would have never been healed by trying to walk around convincing himself and others that he could see.

He would have only fooled himself. He would have only been doing a disservice to himself.

Can I say that when we (being lost) try to convince ourselves that we don’t really need Jesus… we don’t need salvation… we don’t need any help, etc. - we only do a disservice to ourselves.

We, like this blind man, must recognize that we are lost in our trespasses in sin and need salvation.

Romans 3:23 “23 For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God;”

Romans 5:8 “8 But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

b. he was aware of Christ’s status

So the first key was understanding that HE was blind. Secondly, he had to come to terms that the only one who could help him was Christ.

In doing so, we see him recognize who Jesus truly is…

Mark 10:47 “47 When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!””

What is this? It is an acknowledgment of the fact that Christ is Lord.

In Judaism, the “Son of David” is the title of the Messiah who would eventually show up and reign of Israel.

Jeremiah 23:5–6 “5 “Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will raise up for David a righteous Branch, and he shall reign as king and deal wisely, and shall execute justice and righteousness in the land. 6 In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell securely. And this is the name by which he will be called: ‘The Lord is our righteousness.’”

In this encounter, this man is correctly ascribing that status to Jesus Christ… which would not have been popular!

We see in this, that this man acknowledges that Christ is Lord.

This was necessary for his healing… This is also the second component necessary for our salvation.

We must acknowledge Jesus is who He says He is… He is not just another good teacher. He is not just a prophet. He is not just a wise man.

He said a lot of great things, and did a lot of great things but that is not all He is.

He IS the King of Kings, Lord of Lords, the Rose of Sharon, Wonderful Counselor, the Prince of Peace, the Alpha and Omega.

He is the Son of Man in Daniel, the Son of David in Jeremiah, the Suffering Servant in Isaiah, The Seed of the Woman in Genesis, He is Jesus Christ of Nazareth the Son of God.

How is He 100% man and 100% God? I don’t know, but can I say you don’t have to understand every technical detail about the inner workings of WHAT He is, you just need to acknowledge WHO He is! He is the Christ, Son of the Living God.

Matthew 16:16 “16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.””

c. he was not swayed by the crowd

Finally, and importantly, notice in verse 48 what happens...

Mark 10:48 “48 Many warned him to keep quiet, but he was crying out all the more, “Have mercy on me, Son of David!””

The crowd attempted to shame this man into keeping quiet…

They attempted to sway him away from seeking the healing hand of Christ.

Yet, this man “cried out all the more.”

In spite of the peer pressure this man was experiencing, he cried out to Jesus and ran to Him.

Why? Why did the crowd have none effect? Well, this man was bound to this area, he’s blind and can’t move around.

Jesus is passing through, he’s heard all about Him and His miracles.

So, when it becomes evident that Jesus is passing through, when Christ is passing by… this man is comes to the point where he says, “Nothing is going to stop me from getting to Jesus.”

Jesus is passing by now, he may never get another chance, so… He cries out and in essence is saying, “Me getting to Jesus is more important than what these people think of me.”

Some of us today need to get to that point… We have, for too long, tried to be man-pleasers, and cared too much about what people think of us. Be it pride, embarrassment, maybe you made a profession a long time ago and are scared what people might think… These are lies from the enemy.

No, what we need to do, is realize that when it comes to salvation there is a sense of urgency! Today is the day of salvation, because we aren’t guaranteed tomorrow.

This man knew it was his only opportunity to get to Jesus, and he seized it without regard for what the crowd and others might say. Here’s the question, “do we have that same urgency in our heart?”

II. The Compassion of Christ

Mark 10:49–52 ESV

49 And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart. Get up; he is calling you.” 50 And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. 51 And Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to him, “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.” 52 And Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.

a. Christ’s invitation

Here’s the glorious truth about this story… Christ is on a mission, with a purpose, and a full itenerary of things to accomplish. Yet, He is not too busy to be a Savior to this man.

Very simply, He says, “Call him.”

In other words, “Let him come to me.”

Christ is highly exalted, and currently seated at the right hand of the Father.

Yet, He has the same disposition to us needy beggars as He did all those years ago…

He stands, with open arms, inviting all who would come and partake of His sacrifice.

What we have to understand is this: Christ is on the way to Jerusalem to die on the Cross. He’s aware of that, and He takes the time to heal this blind man and show him the compassion of a Savior to not only minister to him but to minister to us as well.

In tending to this man, Christ is showing us exactly what He intends to do upon the Cross… die to the end that He will save a multitude.

b. Christ’s inquiry

Notice that Christ also asks this man what he needs.

Last week, we saw a bad example of that… James and John.

This week, we see the humble example of this is v. 51.

How is this significant? Christ is showing the reader and the crowd, anyone who witnesses this what it means to desire salvation.

Most people want Jesus so they can get something out of Him.

Most people’s answer to this question would be, “A million dollars in the bank” or “the nicer house.” or “the nicer car.” “More popularity/more people to like me.”

Yet, this man, understanding his blindness, says, “I want to see.”

He is aware of his need for restoration, and asks that of The Lord.

In the same way, Salvation is only granted to those who realize that is their need and ask for it.

c. Christ’s intervention

Finally, v. 52 shows us the miracle of what Christ says: “Go, your faith has saved you…”

This is σῴζω in the Gk., which has a double meaning: it can refer to healing but is often times more closely associated with salvation or complete restoration.

He restores this man sight, and also saves his soul.

This is what Christ offers to you - complete and total restoration.

What do you mean? - The Gospel: We like this blind man, are naturally blind in a spiritual sense. Except that, our condition is far worse than this man’s. The God of this universe is holy, righteous and just. When He created our father, Adam, He formed him out of the dirt. And this creature, from the dirt, was tempted by the serpent along with his wife and defied a thrice holy, righteous, just God. However, this God is not only holy, righteous, and just - He is gracious, merciful, and loving. He declared THAT DAY that Man is banished from the Garden because of the stain of sin he had invited upon himself. (Therefore, you and I inherited that sin nature, and we are, by nature, at enmity with God or enemies of God. Spiritually blind, and the sin that we have incurred upon ourselves will be punished in an eternity in Hell.) Yet, because of His mercy, grace, and love, He also THAT DAY promised there would come One, the seed of the woman, who would crush the head of the serpent. This “One” is Jesus Christ - See, Jesus lived a perfect, sinless life and died on the Cross at Calvary for my sins and your sins.

(2 Corinthians 5:21 “21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” ) God placed upon Jesus Christ the sin of every person who would ever believe and heaped the punishment for that sin on Christ at the Cross. Christ then died, and rose again victorious over that sin, and God His Father vindicated Him and was pleased with His sacrifice -

What does this have to do with me? The result of this is that by putting you faith and trust in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, He will forgive your sins and cleanse you from all unrighteousness.

Like the blind man - you also only have ONE chance at being restored, except that if he didn’t seize his chance, he has to walk around blind, while if you do not seize your chance, you will be condemned to Hell for an eternity.

This is not games, this is not fun, this is not casual, this is reality. Do you really think this is all there is? One day you will stand before the God of Heaven and give an account for your life, and the only plea that will heard by God is the blood of His Son Jesus Christ - Our righteousness is as filthy rags!

III. The Casting of the Coat

Mark 10:50 ESV

50 And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus.

Finally, I want you to notice something we skimmed over as we close…

v. 50, it says he jumped up and “threw off his coat” - why is this significant?

In ancient Jewish culture, a coat symbolized a lot. - You could tell a great deal about someone by what coat they have on.

In other words, this coat is your identity… A Pharisee wore a Pharisaical coat, a scribe wore a scribal coat, a nobleman wore a nobleman’s coat.

And a blind beggar wore… a blind beggar’s old dirty rotten coat.

This coat would have been grotesque sight: moth-worn holes, grease, dirt, never washed, etc.

This coat would have had a putrid stench: he’s wallowing in the dirt, animals and dogs, etc.

So, no matter if wanted to even fake it, his coat (identity) would give away who he was: a blind man.

However, when he makes a move toward Jesus - He throws the coat away. PAUSE: How is a blind man going to get back a coat that he throws away? It’s not like he’s going to be able to go back and find it!

No, what we see here is that this man NEVER intends to go back and try to find that old rotten coat - Why? Because he knows he doesn’t need it anymore!

He knows that when he gets to Jesus, Jesus is going to change his identity! He does not need the blind man’s coat anymore. Because once he gets to Jesus, he will no long be the “blind man”!

Now, here’s the invitation: Twofold…

1. You’re here and you are the blind man… God has made it clear through the presentation of the Gospel that you need Jesus as your Savior. It doesn’t matter if you’ve made a profession, it doesn’t matter what people think, all that matters is that you need Jesus. Do not let Him pass by today without calling out to Him and putting your faith and trust in Him as your Savior. If that is you, you need to make that right today. We have people in the altars right now that will pray with you and answer any question you have…

2. Think about this… how foolish would it have been for Bartimaeus to have walked away from this encounter with Jesus, miraculously seeing, and went back to that old street corner, pick up his old rotten blindman’s coat, and went back to begging? Yet, this is how many people treat salvation. You may be here and you have trusted Jesus as your Savior - yet, you have been tempted and fallen back into sin - in other words put back on the old blind coat. Maybe that’s you - at the end of v. 52, you know what it says about Bart. - that he immediately went with Jesus and followed Him in the way. Salvation is as simple as trusting Jesus as your Savior, but if that’s as far as you go, you’re missing the whole thing. What a shame it would be to walk into Heaven with a blind man’s coat on and have God ask you why you never lived for Him…

These altars are open, His arms are open, and today is the day of Salvation. It is the time to do business with The Lord.