Jesus stopped on His way to the passover, not for a king, or high-priest, but someone who was looked down on as the lowest of the low. For He had stopped for Blind Bartimaeus, a beggar man. When he cried out for Jesus, saying: Jesus, [thou] Son of David, have mercy on me, those around him corrected him, basically telling him to shut up, as though he was no one to speak to the Lord. But thankfully he didn't listen to his critics.
 |
| Blind Beggar |
This was clearly a once in a lifetime opportunity, and he realized that he must act now, so as not to let it pass him by! Jesus heals! Jesus heals! This must have gone though his mind over, and over again. There was no one that was going to keep him from embracing the most important opportunity of his life!
And so he cried out for Jesus in spite of his critics, and Jesus stopped to address him. And Jesus ask him, What do you want me to do for you? Bartimaeus replied, Lord; I want to receive my site. By saying "Lord", or "Master", he was acknowledging that he believed that He was the Son of God. And therefore in that moment, he was not only healed, but saved! Because the Lord teaches that when we believe on His name, we are saved! And Jesus verifies this as he replied to Bartimeaus saying: Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.
What can we learn from Blind Bartimaeus?
Imagine if Bartimaeus had allowed his critics to shout him down, and cause him not to take action. It would have been a whole different scenario for him, or better put - it would be the same scenario. Life as he knew it would never change. And though we can not say if he believed completely in Jesus as the Savior, before he met Him, there was certainly the chance that he didn't. Therefore allowing him to remain in both physical, and spiritual darkness!
It is the same with all people. We are in a spiritual darkness, until our spiritual eyes are opened, by coming to know Jesus as our Lord, and Savior. When we do this, God sends down His Holy Spirit to dwell in us throughout our lives, and the Holy Spirit causes us to see (understand) what we were once blind to. It will most likely not be an immediate thing. But when we study His word regularly, always asking Him to reveal His truths to us, and we remain in prayer; He will reveal His truths in many ways, and many area's of our lives. But the main point here not to be missed is; we are now saved!! The rest will come in time.
But if we let our critics, or even our own so called "logical" thinking stand in the way of our coming to the Lord, we may be missing our only opportunity to do so. There is nothing that says we will have (many) chances, so if the opportunity does present itself, it may be the only, or last time! You may say; how do I know when the opportunity has presented itself, what does it look like? When ever you have been informed of the truth of the Lord Jesus Christ, that was/is an opportunity! The Lord presents it to us by way of conversations, church, books, this article, music, or sometimes [causes] you to consider Him without any outside help or aid at all. And while it may be the first of several times that the Lord will reach out to you, it may also be the last.
So Bartimaeus teaches us that when Jesus is near, we should ignore all things to the contrary, and take the opportunity that He is clearly offering for salvation. Remember, you are not promised tomorrow, and no one is immortal. There is really only one surety in this life, and that is that WE WILL ALL DIE! So don't let what is possibly the only chance you'll have for salvation, pass you by! Jesus Saves! He is real! He is near! If you are reading this, it may be no accident, because you clicked on this page for 'some' reason; and now that you have this information, AN OPPORTUNITY has been presented. It is now CLEARLY your choice! For your sake, for your SOUL, I pray that you make the right one!
Please understand, KNOW without doubt; God loves each, and everyone of His children. If you go to Him with a sincere heart, and truly repent (turn from your sin), having also ask forgiveness, He will forgive you.
*If you want Jesus in you life, but are unsure weather or not you truly believe; I suggest that you pray, and ask Jesus to reveal Himself to you. If you are still unsure, I suggest you continue searching for His presence (praying), and read the Holy Bible. ( You may want to call a church official for guidance.) It has been suggested by many that the Psalms, or Proverbs are a good way to start the study of God's word. I believe however, if you are both praying, and studying God's word, He will reveal His truths to you, no matter what book you start in.
*If you are ready to except Jesus into you heart, it could not be easier. However; that does not mean it is not serious. You must be sincere in your heart.
*If you are sincere, you could say something like this: Lord Jesus, I come to you with a humbled heart. I know that you were sent from your Father in heaven, and died, in my place, for my sins. Please forgive me for all my sins, and I will therefore turn away from my sins; and I will live for you all the days of my life.
The words you use are not important. God is not looking for fancy words, He is looking for a sincere heart! Just be yourself, and speak to your Father from the heart.
May God bless those of you who are new to the family of God, with a true hunger for knowledge, and understanding of His word! And may He lead those of you who are in doubt, to search for Him.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-- If you need a Bible, and cannot afford one; call your local churches; some churches provide Bibles to those who cannot afford it. Or you may go to http://www.biblegateway.com/ which is a free online Bible. If you do not know where to start, start at the begining by typing in Genesis 1.
-- Or if you want to download a free eBible, you can go here: http://www.biblepath.com/bible_download.html
--Or if you want the Holy Bible free of charge for your Kindle, go here: http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=pd_lpo_k2_dp_sr_sq_top?ie=UTF8&keywords=free%20bible%20for%20kindle&index=blended&pf_rd_p=486539851&pf_rd_s=lpo-top-stripe-1&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=B000FC2KBU&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=1HF8ACFWE63VXYC6XT0V (This may be a limited time.)
