Sermon Tone Analysis

Scripture Reading

Introduction

As we’ve worked our way through the Gospel of Luke, one of the common phrases that you’ve heard me say in my introductions, at least since chapter 9, is that Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem.

Well, in our text today, we find that He’s still on His way to Jerusalem.

He will eventually make it there!!! Just a couple more events that Luke records along the course of this journey to Jerusalem.

In fact, by the middle of Luke 19, we will find the record of His arrival in Jerusalem.

In today’s passage, however, we find Jesus in Jericho.

This would not have been precisely the same Jericho that the Israelites entered as they came in to the promised land.

The Jericho of Jesus day was slightly to the South of that, although situated very close by.

The miracle we read of here is the fourth and final miracle in Luke’s journey section.

When we consider the miracles of Jesus in the Gospel accounts, we do need to keep in mind some of the purposes behind the miracles that are performed.

Certainly, Jesus didn’t just come into the world in order to perform miracles without further intent.

All that God does as He works out His purposes in this world is intentional.

God is intentionally seeking the glory and honour of His name through the salvation of a people that are to be called by His Name.

The miracles that Jesus performs are thus not random.

If we think of the blind man in John 9, when the disciples asked Jesus who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind, the response of Jesus was…

There was purpose behind the miracles.

Beyond this, the miracles also served to demonstrate something of the power of Jesus.

They were a demonstration of the fact that Jesus was the promised Messiah.

That’s essentially what Jesus told John’s disciples back in Luke 7:22…

But there is also a spiritual picture behind most of the physical conditions afflicting the people that Jesus heals.

Richard Phillips points this out.

He writes:

“Leprosy shows sin’s corrupting power and condemning presence.

The lame show sin’s debilitating power.

The dead proclaim the wages of sin; the demon-possessed show the destructive domination that is always the result of our bondage to sin and to Satan.”

All of the physical afflictions that we read of in the Scripture are very real afflictions.

They are not merely stories.

But while the physical miracles were just that - physical miralces - we find also that they pointed to deeper spiritual truths.

In this account, the blind man that Jesus encounters is struggling with a very real and dibilitating condition.

But as we work through this, we should not allow the specific instance of a physically blind man to lose sight of the importance of its implications to us today.

Yes, there was a physical malady here.

A man (who in Mark’s Gospel is given the name Bartimaeus) was really physically blind, and was also a beggar.

A physical healing takes places.

But beyond this, we are reminded through this account of the spiritual blindness that plagues the world.

In 2 Cor 4:4 we read…

The Gospel is veiled, apart from the gracious work of God through Christ.

And so, as we work our way through this miracle account, I will draw the parallel to our own spiritual blindness, and the desperate need that we have for the opening of our eyes in order to see Christ, and behold Him for who He truly is.

As we turn to the text then, notice firstly with me…

1.

A Wretched Condition (vv.35-37)

We read in verse 35…

As Jesus approached Jericho…

Note that Jesus is appraoching Jericho.

(Note there is a difference between Luke’s account and the other synoptic Gospels).

This Jericho in Jesus’ day was slightly to the South of the Jericho of the Old Testament where the walls were broken down.

The city of Jericho was one through which many Jewish Pilgrims would travel on their way to Jerusalem in order to observe the various feasts that were required.

And so the scene here would be that of many travellers along the way, heading towards Jerusalem for the Passover feast.

A Blind Man .... Begging…

As Jesus travels along the road, we read of this blind man sitting along the side of the road.

This is the man’s first real struggle - his blindness.

We are not told in this account if he was blind from birth, but that is the most probable scenario.

Either way, this man was blind, and could not participate in society as any normal person could.

This comes out clearly as we read that he was not only blind, but also a beggar.

He would not have been in a position to provide for himself through productive labour.

And so he was here relegated to sitting along the side of the road, calling out for mercy to those who were passing by.

Just picture the scenario for a moment.

Given this time of the year, as things were building up to the time of the Passover feast, this would have been an opportune time for beggars to receive handouts from the pilgrims on their journey.

Given the increased number of travellers at the time of the Passover, this would have been an opportune time for beggars to gain an income.

But as this beggar sits begging for money, he hears a particularly loud throng.

Notice verse 36…

Clearly, this was not your ordinary, run-of-the-mill crowd of people going past.

This blind man could discern that there was much hype in this crowd.

There was something peculiar that was distinguisable to Him.

We’ve seen all along through the Gospel account that there were large crowds of people that would follow Jesus as He walked along His way.

Here we see this truth from another perspective, from the perspective of the blind man.

You can almost sense this man’s curiosity here as the crowd is going by.

As he asks the question, the answer provided to him is found in verse 37...

We don’t know who the “they” is, but probably it was just a number of those that were part of the large crowd, that were in the vicinity of this man as he posed the question.

Notice their reply, that “Jesus of Nazareth” is passing by.

They refer to Jesus in terms of the place from which He came.

You will recall the discussion bewteen Philip and Nathanael, as recorded in John 1:45-46

Nathanael’s perception of “Jesus of Nazareth” was not great.

Indeed, he questioned if anything good could come out of Nazareth.

But clearly, by this time, the word has spread concerning this Jesus of Nazareth.

No longer is “Jesus of Nazareth” looked upon with any kind of scorn or contempt, but rather, word has spread concerning this Jesus, and it has come to this blind man… We will see in a moment how he responds, but before we look at that, I want us to note the connection to us today… all humanity really...

Applied to us...

Before we move on, we must link this to the plight of the human race.

For those who are participating in our mid-week bible study, you’ll know and understand just how serious the plight of man apart from the grace of God is.

Indeed, the Scriptures are very clear that man is spiritually blind, and that no one seeks after God.

In the Old Testament, we find the prophets speaking out against the people of Israel due to their spiritual blindness, and their ears that do not listen.

Notice Psalm 135:16-18, which begins in verse 16 in speaking about the idols that people have created.

And then note what verse 18 says about those who worship such idols...

Essentially, God warned that these people would become just like the idols that they worship - having eyes but not seeing, having ears but not hearing.

The prophet Jeremiah then addresses this very problem with Israel in Jeremiah 5:20-23

Here were the Israelites, being prophesied against due to their own stubborn and rebellious hearts, even though God had worked great wonders among them.

In the New Testament, Romans 3 brings across that picture with great clarity.

Romans 3:18

The spiritual blindness of the natural man, apart from the grace of God, causes man to turn away from God and not seek Him as they ought.

This is not to say that they know nothing of God, or they do not even agree with certain truths and facts concerning God.

Rather, it means that they do not acknowledge God for who He truly is.

They do not confess and submit to Him as God.

Romans 1:21

That is spiritual blindness.

It is the condition where a person (who may even know a good deal about God) does not honour God through submission to Him, and walks in spiritual blindness according to their own lusts and desires of the flesh.

This is the natural state of man.... of you and I...

Notice then, as we go on...

2. A Desperate Cry (v.38)

Two important things are worth noting here.

Firstly, this man saw his desperate condition, and knew his need for help.

He also wanted this help.