The Blind Man Who Saw Jesus
Notes
Transcript
Opening Comments:
Opening Comments:
Please meet me in Your copy of God’s Word in Luke 18:35–43. Page 825 in our church provided Bibles.
Jesus’ journey toward Jerusalem that began in chapter 9 is now in its final stretch. And it’s along this final leg of the journey that Jesus encounters a blind man sitting in darkness on the roadside.
It’s fitting that we come to this passage today. This is the first Sunday of Advent, the season when we remember that Christ came to bring hope into a world of darkness. And here on the Jericho road, hope comes to a man who cannot see. Advent begins with hope, and this passage shows us exactly why.
This is God’s all-sufficient Word, let’s read it together.
35 As he drew near to Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging.
36 And hearing a crowd going by, he inquired what this meant.
37 They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.”
38 And he cried out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”
39 And those who were in front rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”
40 And Jesus stopped and commanded him to be brought to him. And when he came near, he asked him,
41 “What do you want me to do for you?” He said, “Lord, let me recover my sight.”
42 And Jesus said to him, “Recover your sight; your faith has made you well.”
43 And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.
Introduction:
Introduction:
Our text opens with Luke telling us this encounter happened “as Jesus drew near to Jericho.”
In Jesus’ day, Jericho consisted of two cities: the ancient ruins from Joshua’s time, and a newer, flourishing Jericho rebuilt by Herod. Jesus was traveling between these two places, which explains why Matthew describes Him as leavingJericho while Luke describes Him as approaching it.
The road between them was a major east–west route used constantly by travelers, merchants, and caravans. And at this time of year, it would have been especially crowded because Passover was drawing near. Jewish pilgrims from all over the region were making their way up to Jerusalem.
It’s along this noisy, dusty stretch of road that a blind man sat unable to see Jesus approaching. But he could hear. And when he heard the words, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by,” he recognized something the rest of the crowd missed.
There are three main characters who take center stage in this encounter:
A Blind Man Who Sees Jesus Clearly (vv. 35–38)
A Crowd That Tries to Silence His Faith (v. 39)
A Savior Who Restores Sight and Gives Salvation (vv. 40–43)
1. A Blind Man Who Sees Jesus Clearly (v. 35–38)
1. A Blind Man Who Sees Jesus Clearly (v. 35–38)
Let’s look again this encounter begins:
As he drew near to Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging.
Matthew mentions there were two blind men, but Luke chooses to simply spotlight the one who steps forward in faith.
This is not an unusual scene in the ancient world. In a culture without modern medicine, or social programs, a blind man had one option for survival, sit along a busy road and depend on the mercy of those passing by.
And hearing a crowd going by, he inquired what this meant.
This man can’t see, but he can hear everything. The footsteps, the voices, the shifting noise of a large crowd. Something unusual is happening, and he knows it. And when the people tell him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by,” his heart immediately ignites with hope.
Medical researchers have observed that when someone loses their one sense the other senses, often become sharper. Neuroscientist call this “cross-model neuroplasticity”—The brain reorganizes itself, and the areas normally used for vision, begin helping process hearing and touch. Studies show that blind individuals identify sounds faster, distinguish direction, better, and detect details most sighted people never notice.
So, while this man could not see the crowd, he could hear with remarkable focus. His ears were trained to catch what others passed missed.
With that keen awareness, he does the only thing he knows to do – he cries out:
Only Read Quotations
And he cried out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”
This is remarkable! He cannot see the road, but he understands exactly who is on it.
“Son of David”- Is a clear, Messianic title rooted in the promises God made to David about a coming King who is kingdom would never end. It only appears here in Luke’s Gospel, making this moment stand out even more.
This man, living in darkness, and sitting in the dust, recognizes Jesus as the promised Messiah.
A. He believed the reports about Jesus.
He had heard the stories and taken them to heart. Something in him had already been awakened to the possibility that the Messiah had come. His physical blindness had not left him spiritually indifferent.
Sometimes suffering gives a person more time to reflect, more time to listen, more time to think deeply about what truly matters.
B. He approaches Jesus with the understanding he has.
He doesn’t yet know everything. He may not fully grasp the fullness of who Christ is. But he knows enough to cry out to Him, and he does so boldly, without hesitation or fear, and without caring what others think.
And His cry is specific: “Have mercy on me.”
Mercy- Isn’t just sympathy or pity; it’s active compassion.
This is the cry of a man who understand his need and understands that only Jesus can meet it.
He has no physical sight, yet he sees Jesus with clarity that puts the entire crowd to shame.
He hears that Jesus is near and everything in him moves toward Him in humble, dependent faith.
That simple, believing cry is what sets the entire story in motion.
Application: Genuine faith always begins: not with having everything figured out, but with recognizing our need and bringing it honestly to Christ.
You do not need perfect sight to take the next step toward Jesus; you need a heart humble enough to call on Him.
2. A Crowd That Tries to Silence His Faith (v. 39)
2. A Crowd That Tries to Silence His Faith (v. 39)
Notice how the crowd responds:
And those who were in front rebuked him, telling him to be silent…
Rebuke- carries the sense of a sharp, dismissive correction. They were scolding him.
There is likely more here than them just being annoyed with him. In that culture, many assumed blindness or long-term illness result of personal sin, or God’s judgment.
1 As he passed by, he saw a man blind from birth. 2 And his disciples asked him, “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?”
A man, like this was viewed as spiritually, deficient, unworthy, and beneath the attention of a respected teacher.
Their message was clear:
“You’re not important enough for Jesus.”
“You don’t belong in this crowd.”
“Stay in your place.”
History is filled with people the world tried to silence or sideline, because of perceived weakness-only for God to use them in the ways no one expected.
Fanny Crosby is a great example. Blinded as an infant through a preventable medical mistake, she was pitied and dismissed throughout her life. People assumed her blindness would limit her, sideline her, or disqualify her from doing much for the Lord.
But she once said:“Do not pity me. If I had been given sight, I might not have learned to sing God’s praise.”
The very thing others thought would silence her became the place where God magnified His grace. She went on to write more than 8,000 hymns and gospel songs — many of which exalt the mercy of Christ.
In Jericho that day, the crowds assumptions about this blind man or every bit as wrong.
Notice how he responds:
…But he cried out all the more…”
The more they tried to silence him, the louder, he cried. Not because he was stubborn, but because he was convinced. He knew who Jesus was, and he knew Jesus Christ his only hope. The crowd may have thought he had no right to cry out, but he knew he had no reason not too.
He didn’t come on the basis of merit, or with credentials; He came with need – and that is exactly what draws Christ near.
Application: This man shows us that every sincere cry for mercy is heard and welcomed in the ears of Jesus.
There will always be voices that whisper around us:
“You don’t belong.”
“Jesus doesn’t have time for you.”
“Your past disqualifies you.”
“You’re too sinful, too broken, too late.”
Hear me this morning, faith doesn’t wait for the crowds approval; it calls out to the Savior, who hears.
3. A Savior Who Restores Sight and Gives Salvation (vv. 40–43)
3. A Savior Who Restores Sight and Gives Salvation (vv. 40–43)
Look what happens when the blind man refuses to be quiet.
40 And Jesus stopped and commanded him to be brought to him. And when he came near, he asked him,
A. Jesus receives the very ones others disregard.
The same people who told him to be silent now escort him to Jesus.
This is more than just social reversal. It’s grace in action.
Grace does not merely show pity. It deals honestly with sin and draws sinners near.
It reverses the verdict that stood against us.
Grace rewrites the story sin tried to end and brings near those the world pushes away because God first brings near those who were far from Him.
The blind man who sat forgotten in the dust now stands in front of the King of Kings because God delights to receive sinners who come in humble, dependent faith.
B. His request begins with a confession of Jesus’ identity: “Lord…”
40 …And when he came near, he asked him, 41 “What do you want me to do for you?” He said, “Lord, let me recover my sight.
Notice, he acknowledges Jesus as “Lord”. That’s more than polite formality, it’s spiritual sight before physical sight.
Lord (Kurios)- Is the title of authority, ownership, power, rules, and divine identity.
The blind man used the very title that scripture reserves for God himself. His confession is both submission and recognition.
By calling Jesus “Lord”:
He submits to Jesus’ authority.
He trusts in Jesus’ power.
He acknowledges Jesus’ identity.
He appeals to Jesus’ mercy.
This is why the New Testament ties salvation, to the confession of Jesus, as Lord:
9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
And one day:
11 and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
This blind man’s heart bowed before his eyes were opened. His faith sees what his sight cannot yet confirm.
C. Jesus gives immediate sight and immediate salvation; two miracles in one moment.
Notice Jesus response:
42 And Jesus said to him, “Recover your sight; your faith has made you well.” 43 And immediately he recovered his sight…
“Made you well” cold also be translated as “Saved.”
There are two amazing works of God’s grace taking place simultaneously:
1. Jesus restores what sin and suffering had taken.
In an instant this man site was healed, fully and unmistakably.
The one who spoke creation into existence, spoke light back into his blind eyes.
Friends, true healing from Jesus is not partial or progressive. He speaks, and reality obeys.
2. Jesus grants what only God can give: salvation.
When this man acknowledged his need and confessed, Christ is Lord, his salvation, like his physical healing, was instantaneous.
There was no probation.
No halfway acceptance.
No “almost saved.”
No spiritual waiting period.
Jesus rescued his soul as surely, as immediately as he restored his eyes!
Look, what happened next:
…and followed him, glorifying God…
This isn’t just a footnote at the end of the story, it’s evidence of saving grace. Physical healing changed his condition, but salvation changed his direction.
He doesn’t return to begging. He doesn’t fade back into the crowd. He attaches his life to the one who saved him.
Understand, following Jesus, doesn’t create salvation; it reveals the salvation that God’s grace has already produced.
The man who once sat in darkness along side of the road now walks in the light of Jesus.
Look at the rest of vs.43
…And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.
This man’s salvation became a testimony.
Mark’s gospel gives us his name, Bartimaeus, which the gospels only seem to do when their original audience would have recognized them.
The man who once sat unnoticed on the roadside apparently became a memorable disciple in the early church.
Application: This moment on the Jericho road reminds us how Jesus meets people. He does not draw near because we are impressive or worthy, He draws near because we are needy.
Bartimaeus didn’t come with anything to offer. He simply cried out for mercy and confessed Jesus as Lord. And Jesus did what only He can do: He opened his eyes and rescued his soul.
That’s the pattern of grace. It deals honestly with our sin. It brings us to acknowledge Jesus for who He is. It restores what sin has shattered. And it leads us into a new life shaped by worship, obedience, and growing love for the One who saved us.
You may not see everything clearly today. You may be walking through uncertainty or confusion, unsure of what God is doing.
But the Savior who opened this man’s blind eyes sees you perfectly, knows exactly where you are, and invites you to draw near in humble, dependent faith.
Conclusion:
Conclusion:
This passage is about far more than physical healing.
It’s about seeing Jesus rightly and confessing Him as Lord.
It’s about grace that meets us in our deepest need and draws us all the way near.
The disciples had missed the meaning of Jesus’ mission. The crowd had misjudged this man’s worth. But the blind beggar saw what mattered most.
He saw Jesus with the eyes of faith before he ever saw Him with the eyes in his head. And when Jesus opened his eyes, the first face he ever saw was the face of the Savior who stopped for him.
On this first Sunday of the Advent season, we remember that this is precisely why Christ came — to bring hope to those who sit in darkness. Bartimaeus waited in the dark, and Hope Himself walked down his road. Advent is the proclamation that Jesus still comes near to those who cannot see their way forward.
And for everyone who comes to Him in humble, dependent faith — the same Hope still shines today.
Invitation:
Invitation:
For believers
For those already in Christ, this passage calls us to deeper trust and clearer vision.
Where have you stopped calling out to Him?
Where have you been relying on what you can see instead of what He has spoken?
Where do you need to submit again to His Lordship?
Grace doesn’t leave us where it finds us.
It leads us into worship, obedience, and a life shaped by the One who opened our eyes.
For unbelievers
If you have never trusted Christ, this passage shows you the very heart of the gospel.
You do not come because you are worthy. You come because you are needy.
You come because Jesus is Lord—the One who died for our sins, rose from the grave, and calls sinners to Himself.
Like Bartimaeus, all you bring is your need. Jesus brings the mercy, the forgiveness, and the salvation.
Call out to Him today. He hears. He stops. He saves.
Invite people to stand in quiet reflection and response.
Prayer:
Prayer:
Father, thank You for the mercy You have shown us in Your Son. Thank You that Jesus stops for sinners, that He hears our cries, that He saves completely and instantly. For those who do not yet know Christ, open their eyes today. Draw them to confess Him as Lord and trust in His finished work.For Your people, deepen our faith. Help us follow Jesus with renewed devotion and clearer sight. We ask this in the name of the One who opens blind eyes—our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
Amen.
