“Something rather notable”
By Rev. Michael Stonhouse
Meditation – Friday, August 18, 2023
Mark 10:46-52 (Forward, p. 20) CEV p. 1042
There is a curious ‘something’, a little detail, that crops up on numerous occasions throughout the Gospels. It is a kind of detailed remembrance from times long past—in the form of a recalled name. There were many people who were healed by Jesus and many who ‘encountered’ Him in some way or another, so why did some names stand out, why were some names remembered and recorded in the gospel accounts? Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea make sense, for we know that they became followers of Jesus, albeit somewhat late in the game. Likewise, Zacchaeus (Luke 19:1-10), for he too probably continued on as a disciple. But why then Simon of Cyrene (Mark 15:21), the man who assisted Jesus in carrying His cross? Was he so moved by this encounter and by what happened there on that Good Friday that he too decided to throw in his lot with Jesus? We will probably never know, at least, on side of heaven.
So, then, what about the fellow, Bartimaeus, in today’s story? At the conclusion of the account we are told that, after he was healed, ‘he went down the road with Jesus’ (verse 52). Maybe he continued ‘going down the road’ with Jesus for the entire rest of his life. That would have been notable, and then, make his name more memorable.
However, even with this speculation, I would assert that there are other things in this encounter that set him up as even more notable. Let’s take a further look at the passage to see what I mean:
First of all, though his sight was impaired, his other senses were
notably acute, and so, when Jesus passed by, he was immediately
aware of the disturbance, the increase in the crowd noise. And
he was not one to simply sit there unresponsive, simply vegetate.
He wanted to know the cause of the noise and so asked those who
were around him about it.
Secondly, he had somehow heard of Jesus and His doings, and
hearing the news that He was nearby had somehow raised his
expectations. “If Jesus had done such great things for other people,
surely He might do the same for me.” And so, he cried out, “Jesus,
Son of David, have pity on me.”
Here, however, we see something else that was notable about him.
As he shouted out to Jesus, the people around our blind man tried to
silence him, tried to shush him up. But, at this rebuff, he cried out all
the louder, and Jesus heard him. Jesus stopped in His tracks, as it
were, and asked the crowd to call him over. To me, this persistence, this perseverance in the light of such obvious setbacks, is particularly
notable—and noteworthy.
With Jesus now affirming the man’s request, the crowd changed its
tune, and encourage the man to go to Jesus. Indeed, the poor man
was not about to waste any time in doing so. I threw off his cloak,
jumped and ran to Jesus. Pretty good for a blind man, but such was
his determination.
However, here we run into a slight hiccup. Jesus immediately asks
him what he wants. I mean, shouldn’t that be obvious? But then,
Jesus often has people name out loud what they want from him. It
is as if naming, identifying, their need, amplifies or gives substance
to the request. Certainly, if nothing else, it manifests and gives
evidence to their faith. Anyway, the man is immediately healed, and
the man continues down the road with Jesus.
So, what has this to say to us? Is there anything here that is particularly notable? I would suggest his faith and his persistence, his unwillingness to be deterred from meeting up with Jesus and being healed. He was unwilling to let either his own infirmity or the attitudes of the crowd deter him from that. And, in that, I think that he is a great example and inspiration for all of us. Amen.
Forward notes: “So throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus” (verse 50).
“Throughout my ministry, the most troubling dilemma has been the chronic nature of problems, personal and collective. When I was a young priest, I wondered why people didn’t get well. I applied the best methods of counseling, problem-solving, and attention. Some people got better; some didn’t. I was frustrated at what seemed like a never-ending stream of suffering people.
“Then I heard the story of Bartimaeus. He was a chronic suffered, blind, sitting by the roadside. We don’t know how long he sat by the road, waiting for relief, or attention, or sight. One day, when Jesus passes by, Bartimaeus decides to make one more attempt and cries out, ‘Jesus…have mercy on me!’ When Jesus hears him and calls to him, the beggar’s friends say simply, ‘Take heart; get up; he is calling you.’ So, this poor man, chronically stuck by the roadside, throws off his cloak, springs up, and comes to Jesus. And I realized that it is the ‘getting up’ that leads to healing. It is springing up that changes us. We need not be stuck. Listen for the voice of Jesus and get up.”
Moving Forward: “Whenever you are stuck, in chronic suffering or discouragement, listen for the voice of Jesu. Get up and follow his voice.