11/02/12

The miracle which caused problems for Jesus

Mark 10:52 - And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.


When we really get into the depth of the background of times of Jesus, Jesus grew not only in the favour of God but also in the favour of man. One should realize there is a scripture which states if we walk in the ways of the Lord we will have favour even with our enemies and this was true even for Jesus.

If it was not the rebukes through His teachings or the miracles Jesus did, He would have never been in bad books of neither the religious Jews nor the Romans. The Jews lived under the rule of the Romans and therefore had limited rights.

Until this miracle of Bartimaeus Jesus was in the good books of the Romans and thus caused all the evil planes of the Jewish religious leaders to not be fruitful. This man Bartimaeus was not a Jew but was a Roman and that too a son of a very senior person of the Roman army. His father Timaeus was like a general in the army. He lived in Jericho which was a haven for the richest of the rich at that time. It was a very beautiful city with cottages having their own exotic gardens and also had all the various religious temples together between the two bordering walls of the city gates. It was between these walls that beggars and unclean people lived.

Bartimaeus although being a rebel was not killed (which was the usual punishment to rebels) because of his father. He was not born bind but was made blind by Caesar as a punishment and also made an outcast to live between the walls of the city as an unclean person. People were forbidden from helping him and were to treat him as a beggar by the rule of Caesar.

When Bartimaeus called out to Jesus, Jesus had the choice to ignore him and continue the favour He had with the Romans or help this man and let the scriptures about Him be fulfilled. Jesus chose the latter and let Bartimaeus be healed. By this healing Jesus challenged Caesar, lost the favour He enjoyed with the Romans and landed making them His enemies.

The Lord is asking us today, how many times have we compromised with God just to satisfy people? We may think we are doing good or trying to help people.

Think about it, had Jesus also thought the same way and said I will heal more people and reach out to more people and go more places and thus ignored the cry of Bartimaeus than do you think we would be saved? He would have enjoyed the favour of the Romans and the Jews would not have touched Him and thus He would have not been our Lamb of God.

We may something need to do things which may not seem wise in the eyes of man but if it surely is from the Lord, just do it. If God said it, then stop using our using our wisdom or find better ways. His wisdom is beyond our imagination and He knows what is best.


[ Prayer Starter ]
Lord, many use their thinking and their minds to do your work and therefore have made the Kingdom to suffer. Lord, it would have not been necessary for You to give us your Spirit if man was capable to do all things right. Holy Spirit teach us to listen to You and to abide by your Will. Let not what we want or think right come to pass but what You want and desire in us...

This prayer we make in Jesus' Name, Amen.


[ Reference Scriptures ]
Mark 10:45-52
45 For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.
46 And they came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging.
47 And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me.
48 And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me.
49 And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee.
50 And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus.
51 And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight.
52 And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.

Proverbs 16:7 - When a man's ways please the LORD, he maketh even his enemies to be at peace with him.


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