SCRIPTURE: Mark 8:22-26
First of all, why spit; and second, why did it take two times for the man’s vision to become clear?
I am not sure about the spit, nor about the two-step healing process… but I can relate to the process itself.
This is not instant healing, for some reason it takes a bit of time for the healing to take hold.
For me and my spiritual journey, I feel like it has taken many steps, sometimes three steps forward and two back.
When it comes to seeing God and people in a healthy way, I feel like it is still blurry.
I mean this in a figurative sense, but the blurriness of this man’s vision relates to the blurriness of my own spiritual healthy and perspective.
This man needed to admit the incompleteness of his healing, before Jesus could continue.
Until we admit that we still need greater clarity, greater understanding, greater healing, we will not experience the full healing that God has in mind.
When we think we’re fine, we don’t ask for more help, and we remain stuck, limited, blind.
I need to admit to God where my faith, my vision, my hope, my love, etc. is blurry, and I need to allow Jesus to spit in my heart to clean it up.
What do you sense the Lord saying to you?
PRAYER
Lord, I know my heart and life are fuzzy, blurry, limited. Thank You for the reminder to name the reality of my spiritual condition to You today… open the eyes of my heart that I may see and know You better!
Story within a story.
I am trying to imagine that I am there with Jesus. The people bring him a blind man. Jesus had healed many people in front of the crowds, which would have created more crowds due to the excitement. In this case, Jesus takes the man out of town. He then does the two part healing as Norm has pointed out.
After the healing, he instructs the man to go home, and not to go back into the village. We are not told why Jesus healed this man in this manner, nor are we told why he went out of town, or why the man was instructed not to go back. Lots of unanswered questions have been raised for me.
What I do see in this story, is that the man could see perfectly when Jesus was finished with him. This process must have been exactly what this man needed. The miracle was for him, not the people in the village. He could rejoice, knowing that Jesus took the time for him, without the need for public admiration.
I thank God that He is a God of individuals. Not only does He care more mankind as a whole, but He cares for me. He provides for me, and gives me what I need specifically.
Observation/Application
The healing took place outside the village because . . . the the people’s unbelief? The first time the blind man had partial sight. Partial faith? I wonder if this miracle man can really do it? And that faith grew when he could partially see until after the second time, total sight was restored. The man’s faith became sight. He was told to go home because . . . the village people were stubborn and wouldn’t listen or understand?
And what about me?
Partial vision?
A doubting Thomas?
Do I see God’s miraculous power each day?
Do I understand the building of His kingdom which will come in full.
I remember the yeast of yesterday’s reading and the lack of understanding. Once again, a repeat. No partial faith. It is the main ingredient for total vision and understanding. That I need to see and understand and live in my daily life. Living for Jesus in His SonShine to make me SpiritStrong.
Prayer
Open my eyes Lord.
Open our eyes, Lord
We want to see Jesus,
To reach out and touch Him,
And say that we love Him.
Open our ears, Lord
And help us to listen.
Open our eyes, Lord
We want to see Jesus.