Begging for Mercy

This scene in Luke’s gospel ends with praise:

[The blind man] received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God. Luke 18:43 (NIV)

It seems Luke wants his audience to respond with praise. And we should praise God for his mercy and restoring the blind man’s sight.

The adventure in Jericho doesn’t begin with praising God. It begins with confusion. Jesus tells his 12 closest disciples what’s going to happen in Jerusalem. And they don’t understand what he’s talking about. It doesn’t compute for them.

We’ve been tracing Jesus’ journey from Galilee to Jerusalem since Luke 9. Somewhere in the Jordan River Valley, outside Jericho, Jesus pulls the 12 aside and tells them the gameplan for arriving in Jerusalem.

Luke tells us 3x in 3 different ways that the disciples don’t understand any of it. The meaning is hidden from them. They don’t know what he’s talking about.

As he teaches, Jesus uses a lot of parables. Maybe the disciples thought that the talk about Jesus being mocked, insulted, and spit on is a parable. Maybe there’s another layer of meaning when Jesus says that he’ll be flogged and killed. It seems a stretch: could Jesus literally rise again from the grave on the third day?

You and I understand what Jesus is talking about. We’ve heard the rest of the story: all the details Luke carefully researched and recorded in an orderly account.

We know about God’s mercy and deep, deep love for the world. We know that we are trapped in sin and rebellion against God. And sin and rebellion lead to death and damnation. We know that we can’t rescue our selves by hard work or generosity. On our own, we dig the hole deeper.

We know that in his great mercy, Jesus came into his own creation – truly God and truly human – as our substitute. Jesus was mocked, insulted, spit on, flogged, and killed on the cross to free us from sin and the punishment for sin. It’s why we’re getting ready for Good Friday to remember Jesus’ death on the cross.

Luke also tells us that Jesus rose again on the third day to free us from death and allow us to rise to life with him. By putting our faith in Jesus as Saviour and Lord, we gain life and purpose, healing and reconciliation with God and neighbours through Jesus. We respond to God’s love and mercy by devoting ourselves to praising God and thanking our Rescuer in our work and our recreation, our thoughts, words, and deeds.

By reading God’s word and by the work of the HS, we know these things. WE understand what Jesus is saying. We can believe that Jesus’ death and resurrection means life and purpose and hope for us. But the disciples don’t know, understand, or believe all this yet. Jesus’ game plan doesn’t make sense to them. The meaning is hidden. They don’t know what Jesus is talking about … not yet.

So they rejoin the rest of the crowd. They stride out of the Jordan Valley, on the road up to Jericho. The road that leads, up, up, up to Jerusalem.

As they approach Jericho, a blind man catches a glimpse of the kingdom of God. He understands that Jesus has come with mercy and healing. If Jesus is offering hope and healing and a taste of the kingdom of God, the blind man wants in!

Most of us live in small towns or the country; we don’t often walk in large crowds. The only crowds around here are in the malls during the holiday season. But having a large crowd wind its way through the narrow gates into Jericho creates noise and dust and confusion. Yet in the middle of it all you hear the blind man calling out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Even after they try to silence him, he hollers even louder, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

He’s blind. He’s poor. He’s hungry. He’s sitting by the roadside begging for handouts.

All his pride and self-sufficiency have shrivelled up and died. He depends on the mercy of others for food, shelter, and clothing. Then Jesus stops and asks the blind man to come closer, Jesus asks him, “What do you want me to do for you?”

It’s an open-ended question. What does the blind beggar want: Food? Clothing? Money?

It’s simple enough. With such a large crowd, Jesus could ask every person to dig deeply in their purses and drop some big coins into the beggar’s hat. Good old crowdfunding will keep this blind man well supplied for a while!

But that’s not what the blind man is after. Despite his blindness, the beggar sees Jesus as royalty. He calls Jesus, “the Son of David.”

You might recall from the OT that King David ruled Jerusalem during the golden years of Israel. Not only was he king over all Israel and nations all around paid tribute but David was also a man after God’s own heart. He was sinful, but he also devoted to the Lord.

In the opening chapters of his gospel, Luke made a big deal about Jesus being a descendant of King David. On the night Jesus was born the angel of the Lord told the shepherds, “Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord (Luke 2:11 NIV).

As we come to the climax of Luke’s gospel, this blind man reminds us that Jesus is the Son of David. Jesus is King David’s greater son. All through his teaching career, Jesus has announced, “The kingdom of God is near!”

Jesus highlights all the ways that the kingdom of God is different than the way it is in the kingdoms of this world. Leaders and rulers don’t lord over the people they lead. Children are welcome and receive a blessing. Jesus announces, “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”

All through his ministry, Jesus built up enthusiasm and expectation that God himself has come. ‘Way back in Luke 4, Jesus said that his work and ministry fulfilled God’s word through the OT prophet Isaiah:

The Spirit of the Lord is on me,

because he has anointed me

to proclaim good news to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners

and recovery of sight for the blind,

to set the oppressed free,

to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor. Luke 4:18–19 (NIV)

Now, on the last leg of his journey from Galilee to Jerusalem, Jesus encounters a blind man. This blind man keeps hollering through the crowd, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

The blind man sees Jesus as a miraculous source of healing. It’s at the heart of his request: “Lord, I want to see.”

How does Jesus respond?

Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.” Luke 18:42 (NIV)

This miracle of healing is a sign and assurance that Jesus is the Son of David, the Messiah, the Lord. Jesus has come to usher in the kingdom of God.

You can be sure that you too are included in all the mercy, blessing, and benefits of the kingdom of God through faith in Jesus. You too are a citizen of God’s kingdom, a dearly loved child in God’s family, and a member of the body of Jesus Christ.

Like the blind man and all the people who witnessed this miracle, you’re invited to praise God. How?