PROUD PARENTS
NOTE: I looked up articles on Bartimaeus. He was not born blind, but became blind at a young age, between 5 and 10. His blindness was either caused by a fall off a horse or an illness. Some articles quote the scriptures as “restore my sight.” I could not find that in any version of the Bible. What I looked up all said, “I want to see.”
PROUD PARENTS
They were so excited. A baby. They were having a baby. The father wanted a son. The mother wanted a healthy baby. They would have to wait nine months. Nine months…such a long time when you want to meet the child that is wiggling and kicking. The mother knew it would not be too long now. She was beginning to feel different.
It was time, and a baby boy came into the world,
into a family. Ten toes and ten fingers. Ears and eyes. A mouth.
He was perfect. They named him
Bartimaeus, (which means “son of Timaeus”).
Their child, the son the father had such dreams for, became
blind. Their joy turned to sadness. Although they would teach him all they could,
they knew their blind son would become a beggar.
Bartimaeus realized a crowd was forming. He wondered why. He heard a large number of people coming. He could hear them talking among themselves. He had trouble making out what they were
saying until he heard one name: JESUS. He
had heard about Jesus. There were those
that said he was a trouble maker. There
were those that said he was a healer. A
healer. How could he be seen by Jesus? He could not tell which direction to go. The crowd got louder. Bartimaeus decided the only option he had was
to yell.
Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a
large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (which means “son
of Timaeus”), was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth,
he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but
he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” So they called to the blind man, “Cheer
up! On your feet! He’s calling you.” Throwing his cloak aside,
he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus.
“What do you want me
to do for you?” Jesus asked
him. The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want
to see.” “Go,”
said Jesus, “your faith has
healed you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed
Jesus along the road.
Mark 10:46-52
The crowd started getting quieter and he took advantage of the quiet …. “SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME.”
Those around him told him to be quiet. Bartimaeus did just the opposite. At the top of his lungs, he yelled … “SON OF DAVID, HAVE MERCY ON ME.”
He could feel people staring at him. He heard someone tell him to come forward. Jesus was calling him forward.
“What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him. The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.” “Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you.”
Wow. What a story. Only one request: I want to see. Ohhh, can you even imagine what that was like? Bartimaeus saw colors again. He saw the faces of those around him. He would see the faces of his parents. He would now be able to be something other than a beggar.
AND he immediately knew what Jesus looked like. He saw Jesus’ eyes and his smile and his hands. Can you imagine being blind and opening your eyes to see the Son of God?
Bartimaeus could see. He walked away from being a beggar. He followed Jesus!
