Daily Devotional for Friday 31st May
Seeing clearly
The healing of the blind man is an interesting passage to delve in to. On the surface level we have another miraculous healing, similar to the one at the end of Mark 7. We have a blind man brought to Jesus by his friends, begging Jesus to touch him. Jesus then heals the man, restoring his vision, and sends him on his way with an instruction not to go into the village or tell others.
But if we look a little deeper, there are some possible things we can learn from this encounter. Firstly, notice that Jesus takes the blind man outside of the village of Bethsaida. Perhaps this was to show the man that He heals on a personal level. It wasn’t for show. It wasn’t even in front of the man’s friends. It was between Jesus and the man. But it’s interesting that Jesus takes him outside of the village, rather than just taking him to one side (as he did with the man in Mark 7:33). In Matthew 11:20-22 we read that Jesus despaired over the unwillingness of villages, including Bethsaida, to repent. It’s been suggested that by taking the man outside of the city, it was symbolic of the fact that the people of Bethsaida were spiritually blind and wouldn’t witness this sign or miracle.
Secondly, this miracle happens in two stages. After Jesus spat on the man’s eyes, the man could see, but only in part. He says, ‘I see people; they look like trees walking around’ (v.24). This man experiences complete healing after Jesus puts His hands on his eyes. His eyes are opened, and he now sees everything clearly. This could be symbolic of the spiritual blindness of the disciples. Yesterday we read how they had witnessed the miracles of provision, but still didn’t understand. Jesus said, ‘Do you have eyes but fail to see, and ears but fail to hear?’ (Mark 8:18). The disciples were like the man after the first part of his healing - they could see some things, but the rest was blurry. Their eyes hadn’t been fully opened. In a way, we now have fully opened eyes because we know what was to come. We know God’s amazing salvation plan, the big picture. It’s been made clear to us and we can be thankful for that.
Time to reflect…
• What stands out to you from today’s reading?
• Have you had a personal encounter with Jesus? Spend some time reflecting on it.
• Imagine what it would have been like to be one of Jesus’ disciples. We know the end of the story, but they didn’t. Things are clearer for us but would have been so blurry for them. Are there any parts of faith that still seem blurry for you?
Pause to pray…
Thank God for His salvation plan that has been made known to us. Pray that your eyes would be opened to see how He is working around you; and pray that you would have greater understanding of who He is and what He’s done for you.
