As Jesus went on from there, two blind men followed him, crying loudly, “Have mercy on us, Son of David!” When he entered the house, the blind men came to him; and Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They said to him, “Yes, Lord.” Then he touched their eyes and said, “According to your faith let it be done to you.” And their eyes were opened. Then Jesus sternly ordered them, “See that no one knows of this.” But they went away and spread the news about him throughout that district.
After they had gone away, a demoniac who was mute was brought to him. And when the demon had been cast out, the one who had been mute spoke; and the crowds were amazed and said, “Never has anything like this been seen in Israel.” But the Pharisees said, “By the ruler of the demons he casts out the demons.” Matthew 9:27-34
Watch what happens when we walk through the 9th chapter of Matthew…
It opens with Jesus in a boat, coming back to town. When he gets home some men come, carrying their paralyzed friend on a stretcher. Jesus heals him and the religious onlookers accuse Jesus of blasphemy.
Then Jesus walks by Matthew at his tax collector. Jesus invites Matthew to follow and then invites himself over to Matthew’s house for dinner. A crowd of Matthew’s friends, sinners and tax collectors, also show up. And the religious onlookers criticize Jesus for eating with such a crowd of ne’er-do-wells.
After dinner a few of John the Baptist’s disciples show up. They question Jesus too, asking why they have to rigorously follow religious disciplines that Jesus’ disciples freely ignore. Jesus answers: “The wedding guests cannot mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them, can they? The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast. No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old cloak, for the patch pulls away from the cloak, and a worse tear is made. Neither is new wine put into old wineskins; otherwise, the skins burst, and the wine is spilled, and the skins are destroyed; but new wine is put into fresh wineskins, and so both are preserved.”
Then another religious leader shows up. Not to criticize Jesus but to seek his help. The man’s daughter just died and he is wondering if Jesus can do anything. Jesus starts walking to the house where the little girl lays but is interrupted by a woman who has been bleeding (and thereby rendered ritually unclean and socially ostracized) for 12 long years. By the end of the paragraph the woman is healed and the daughter is raised from the dead.
Only then does Jesus run into the two blind men in today’s Bible reading. He, of course, heals them. And the religious leaders, of course, criticize him for it.
So here are your two questions for today. 1) Why do religious people get so bent out of shape when scandalous people come to realize that God’s love is for them too and are then freed to stand up for themselves in fresh new ways? And 2) Who are the truly blind people in this chapter?
Let us pray: Dear Jesus, your compassion and your power take our breath away. Why are we so slow to bring our problems to you? Why do we try to do so much on our own power, in our own ways, rather than trusting you to take care of us? Why are we so blind? Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on us! In Jesus’ name. Amen.
Daily Devotions 
December 14, 2016 at 7:03 pm |
Excellent question!!