Christian Living

A Discipline of Faith

by Thomas Kirkpatrick
07/04/22
Free to Share
Author requests article critique

  Message Writer
  Hire Writer

Tweet

"And they came to Bethsaida. And they brought a blind man to Jesus and implored Him to touch him. Taking the blind man by the hand, He brought him out of the village; and after spitting on his eyes and laying His hands on him, He asked him, 'Do you see anything?' And he looked up and said, ‘I see men, for I see them like trees, walking around.’ Then again He laid His hands on his eyes; and he looked intently and was restored, and began to see everything clearly. And He sent him to his home, saying, 'Do not even enter the village."' (Mark 8:22-26)

Faith in our Holy God the Father through Jesus is not a microwave religion. Rome was not built in a day, nor was God’s creation. Creation was completed in six blocks of time, referred to as days. Belief began through faith in God’s Word when the Creator breathed His life-giving Spirit into Adam. Faith will not end until we enter eternity to dwell with God in His Kingdom. We only know the measure of time here as seconds, minutes, days, years, and centuries. Time is an infinite distance in the Day of the Lord that never ends. "Wait for the LORD; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the LORD." (Psalm 27:14)

The verses we are looking at today are Mark 8:22-26. After the feeding of the four thousand, Jesus went to Bethsaida. Bethsaida is the hometown of the disciple Phillip, Peter, and Andrew. "Now Philip was from Bethsaida, of the city of Andrew and Peter." (John 1:44-45). Not far from Bethsaida is where Jesus fed the five thousand. (Luke 9:10-17) Not long after that feeding, Jesus performed one of His most famous miracles by walking on water. (Mark 6:45–52). In Bethsaida, the friends of a blind man were brought to Jesus.

The blind man’s friends asked Jesus just to touch him to heal him. It was an arrogant approach to ask the Great Physician to heal in a specific way. I cannot imagine going to the doctor and telling him how the heal me. Why would I go to the doctor if I knew how to be healed? Jesus took the blind man by the hand out of the village. I find that strange if signs and wonders are to reveal who He was and glorify His Father. One must believe in Jesus and have faith He can do what is requested. The blind man didn’t ask Jesus to heal but was brought there by the faith of His friends. We have seen miracles of Jesus around Bethsaida, but the village was not a place of faith.

Bethsaida is a village that has heard the gospel of Jesus’s teaching and understood God’s plan of salvation. Despite their understanding, they rejected Jesus’ teaching. "'Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles had occurred in Tyre and Sidon which occurred in you, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. 'Nevertheless I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.'" (Matthew 11:21-22)

 Jesus then spits in the blind man’s eyes and lays His hands on him. I’ve had illnesses when the cure was more bothersome than the illness. The doctor spitting in my eyes would undoubtedly be one of them. The truth is not all the time cure is a pleasant experience. Sometimes the cure can be bad-tasting castor oil or the removal of parts by the knife, and even simple illnesses require a measure of faith. The cure always takes a long time when one is ill, so it seems. Jesus then asked the blind man if he could see. His answer was not what anyone would want to hear. “I see men, for I see them like trees, walking around.” Most miracles of Jesus are instant; people get up and walk, are healed from leprosy, and rise up from the grave like Lazarus. Not all miracles happen instantly. The miracle of redemption occurs instantly, but sanctification takes a lifetime to complete.

God operates through all time, which is impossible for us to comprehend. When we are looking for a miracle, we hope for a quick result. God will answer in His perfect timing, and that timing may seem long to us. Daniel was perplexed by a vision he had received and prayed for understanding. Daniel waited twenty-one days until an angel stood before him. "Then he said to me, 'Do not be afraid, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart on understanding this and on humbling yourself before your God, your words were heard, and I have come in response to your words. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia was withstanding me for twenty-one days; then behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left there with the kings of Persia.'" (Daniel 10:12-13)

Zacharias, a priest, prayed that his wife Elizabeth would have a child. They prayed for that blessing for many years, and when they had aged, God answered. While Zacharias was in the Temple to burn incense, an angel appeared to deliver God’s answer. “Do not be afraid, Zacharias, for your petition has been heard, and your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you will give him the name John." (Luke 1:13) The Lord is faithful and true to answer our prayers. His answer may be yes or no and could be not yet. The Lord will answer at the perfect time for us to receive. Jesus taught us in the Sermon of the Mount to be diligent with our prayers to Him. "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened." (Matthew 7:7-8)

Since the beginning, faith is absolute in having a relationship with God, as He is a Spirit and cannot be seen. "And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him." (Hebrews 11:6) It is easy to believe what you can see, but to believe in the unseen requires faith. Thomas would not believe Jesus had risen unless he could see with his own eyes. Once Thomas saw Him how did Jesus reply? "Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed." (John 20:29)

To see God, you need to have faith, and like anything else, the more you use faith, the stronger faith becomes. "Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen." (Hebrews 11:2)Faith opens the doors of endless possibilities of what the Lord can do through your life. Faith will enrich your attentiveness to the Holy Spirit who dwells within you. The Holy Spirit will cultivate the character of Jesus in you transforming your mind into likeness with Jesus. As we go down the path of righteousness, our love for God grows, and our love for others increases. We are learning the lesson of the humility of being the creature in the presence of our Creator. As the Spirit works through us, growing us close to sanctification, we know our Savior leads us all the way.

After a short delay, Jesus laid His hands on the man’s eyes and looked at Him intently, and the blind man was healed. Jesus then sent the man home telling him not to enter the village of Bethsaida. Often when Jesus heals us, we are told to turn from our sin. To the sick man at Bethsaida, Jesus said, "Afterward Jesus found him in the temple and said to him, "Behold, you have become well; do not sin anymore, so that nothing worse happens to you.’" (John 5:14) When Jesus freed the adulterous woman, who the Pharisees wanted Him to stone, Jesus said. "She said, 'No one, Lord.' And Jesus said, 'I do not condemn you, either. Go. From now on sin no more.'" (John 8:11)

When Jesus heals us of the ills of this world, we must not return to the city of evil but turn our path to the Kingdom of Heaven. With active faith, we live His promises before the world that they see our Lord through us. In faith, we submit to His word and resist the Devil, and he will flee. We have been delivered from sin and are no longer in sin bondage. To the father of a son who was in bondage to a demon and Jesus answered, "If You can?' All things are possible to him who believes." (Mark 9:23) If we truly believe, He will do all the impossible things through us for the glory of His Father. The Lord will give us faith, and we must live in faith’s discipline.

Thomas N Kirkpatrick

First Baptist Church of Durant, June 16, 2022