Reading 1
Jer 31:7-9
Thus says the LORD: Shout with joy for Jacob,exult at the head of the nations; proclaim your praise and say:The LORD has delivered his people,the remnant of Israel. Behold, I will bring them back from the land of the north; I will gather them from the ends of the world, with the blind and the lame in their midst, the mothers and those with child; they shall return as an immense throng. They departed in tears, but I will console them and guide them; I will lead them to brooks of water,on a level road, so that none shall stumble. For I am a father to Israel, Ephraim is my first-born.
Reading II
Heb 5:1-6
Brothers and sisters: Every high priest is taken from among men and made their representative before God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. He is able to deal patiently with the ignorant and erring, for he himself is beset by weakness and so, for this reason, must make sin offerings for himself as well as for the people. No one takes this honor upon himself but only when called by God, just as Aaron was. In the same way, it was not Christ who glorified himself in becoming high priest, but rather the one who said to him: You are my son: this day I have begotten you; just as he says in another place: You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.
Gospel
Mk 10:46-52
As Jesus was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a sizable crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind man, the son of Timaeus, sat by the roadside begging. On hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say,"Jesus, son of David, have pity on me."And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he kept calling out all the more,"Son of David, have pity on me."Jesus stopped and said, "Call him."So they called the blind man, saying to him,"Take courage; get up, Jesus is calling you."He threw aside his cloak, sprang up, and came to Jesus. Jesus said to him in reply, "What do you want me to do for you?" The blind man replied to him, "Master, I want to see." Jesus told him, "Go your way; your faith has saved you." Immediately he received his sight and followed him on the way.
Meditation: Mark 10:46-52
Bartimaeus certainly knew how to stand out in a crowd.
A blind beggar, he was convinced that Jesus had the power to restore his sight. And he was desperate enough to cry out to Jesus over and over again until he received the healing he sought.
We may not be physically blind, but we all have some degree of spiritual blindness. And the answer for us is the same as it was for Bartimaeus: We need to call out to Jesus over and over again.
Bartimaeus threw pride out the window because he wanted to see so badly. He embarrassed himself and his friends, but he didn’t care. He even went so far as to beg Jesus for his sight. He was willing to become a “fool” just so that he could see Jesus (1 Corinthians 3:18). There was no way he was going to miss out on a golden opportunity like this.
Bartimaeus was rewarded for his persistence and foolishness: Jesus healed his blindness. And that’s not all. Bartimaeus was so moved by what he experienced—and by who he experienced—that he became a follower of Jesus.
Do you believe that Jesus wants to show himself to you? Do you believe that he can heal your spiritual blindness? He can, and it begins as you follow Bartimaeus’ example and seek the Lord. Set your eyes and your heart on Jesus. Cry out for him as loud as you can.
It’s not that Jesus is hard of hearing or far away. Rather, crying out like Bartimaeus is a way for us to put our whole heart into our prayer. It’s our way of saying, “With all that I have, Lord, I stand here pleading.”
How will we know if our spiritual sight is being restored? We will know when we are moved to give our lives to Jesus. We will know when our hearts are warmed by Jesus’ love and when we are moved to give our lives to him—just as Bartimaeus did.
“Jesus, open my eyes! I want to see you and know you more than anything else in this world. Please, Lord, let me see.”
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