Jesus Stood Still

"Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called." -- Mark 10:49

Three precious actions are seen here in that 1) Jesus "stood still", 2) He commanded Bartimaeus "to be called", and 3) He healed him of his blindness. Prior to this, Jesus had gone out of Jericho with his disciples and a "great number of people" (46). It is said the Bartimaues the son of Timaeus was a blind beggar sitting by the highway (46). When he heard that is was Jesus, he began to cry out, "Jesus, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me" (47).

What trains the heart to cry out to the Savior? (see John 6:44) The reputation of Jesus of Nazerth for healing the sick must have preceeded Him, so that when He passed by, Bartimaeus cried out (47). He was admonished by those around him, but he cried out the more (48). "Have mercy on me." Though he was a beggar (46), it must have been a humbling experience to cry out in front of so many people. What was the response?

Jesus "stood still". Jesus was often thronged in His goings (see Mark 3:9, Luke 8:45 for examples). How easy it would have been to have passed this man by and simply press through the grind of life. How easy, but for grace, that we should all escape the notice of the Savior! How many times do I pass by the needs of others through apathy, inconsideration, or selfish disregard?

But the Lord stopped. He "stood still". He paused to consider the blind man. If this were the only thing the Son of God had done, it should have been amazing enough to witness such particular condescension.

Jesus "commanded him to be called". The command of the Lord is the sweetest sound of grace! It is a holy calling. Though Batimaeus cried out (47,48), the call was not of "works", but according to God's own purpose and grace (2 Ti 1:9). The blind man is powerless to see God, much less to stop the Savior in His tracks.

Bartimaeus was not merely called, but called to come to the Lord! "Be of good comfort," they said, as a result,"He calleth thee" (49). He cast away his garment (50) -- no doubt filthy with the grime of the highway (46) and unfit for the presence of the King of Kings (compare Matt 22:11) -- and came to Jesus.

“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.” Mark 10:51, KJV.

He could have asked for wealth and power, great strength, or great wisdom. None of these things would have profited a blind man. But when Jesus asked what He should do for Bartimaues, the response was: "Lord, that I might receive my sight." (51). Bartimaeus asked, and immediately, he was given his sight (52, Matt 7:7).

How Bartimaeus must have marveled at the light! The miracle of sight is now a brief moment in ancient history. But for the rest of his days, Bartimaeus surely went about observing with awe the colors of Creation and the grace that procured such a possibility (Eph 2:8).

It should give us pause to think of God, Who before the world began, spent a moment in eternity to command our salvation and calling in Christ Jesus. "And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called." Not according to our sickness or sin, but according to His own purpose and grace.

Let us now follow Jesus "in the way" (52).

References

“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. 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. 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. 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. And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus. 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. 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.” Mark 10:46-52, KJV.

“No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.” John 6:44, KJV.

“Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.” John 14:6, KJV.

“And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment:” Matthew 22:11, KJV.

“Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began,” 2 Timothy 1:9, KJV.

“Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:” Matthew 7:7, KJV.

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:” Ephesians 2:8, KJV.

“And he spake to his disciples, that a small ship should wait on him because of the multitude, lest they should throng him.” Mark 3:9, KJV.

“And Jesus said, Who touched me? When all denied, Peter and they that were with him said, Master, the multitude throng thee and press thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me?” Luke 8:45, KJV.

Confer Not with Flesh and Blood

"... when it pleased God, Who separated me from my mother's womb, and called me by His grace, to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the heathen; immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood: Neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were apostles before me; but I went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus." -- Gal 1:11-17 (See also, Acts 9.)

From the excerpt above, we learn that, after his conversion, the Apostle Paul first went into isolation, presumably to study and mediate and receive instruction from Christ (1 Cor 11:23, 15:3). For us it is also a lesson on where the authority of pure religion begins -- not with flesh and blood, but rather with Jehovah Himself.

Mankind turns religion into a perversion of what God has decreed (Rom 1:17). The Pharisees of Christ's day were more concerned with procuring the praise and recognition of their fellow man and with the rituals of the Law of Moses than faith in the Most High God they professed to serve. But God is not in the mere practice of religion or ritual. If He has not instituted an ordinance, then of what value is the practice of it?

The Lord Jesus said: "For laying aside the commandment of God, ye hold the tradition of men, ..." (Mark 7:8) "...If there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law." (Gal 3:21) but " by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified." (Gal 2:16)

"Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law." (Gal 2:16)

Consulting with "flesh and blood" has sent an untold number of "Christians" to Hell. But "Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven." (Mat 16:17)

Reader, with whom have you consulted concerning the state of your soul? Are you relying upon the inventions of "flesh and blood" or do you believe in the atoning work of Christ crucified for the salvation of your soul?

"O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?" (Gal 3:1) "Beware lest anyone lead you away through philosophy and empty deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ." (Col 2:8)