THE MERCY OF GOD

And as they went out of Jericho, a great crowd followed him. And behold, there were two blind men sitting by the roadside, and when they heard that Jesus was passing by, they cried out, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!” The crowd rebuked them, telling them to be silent, but they cried out all the more, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!” And stopping, Jesus called them and said, “What do you want me to do for you?” They said to him, “Lord, let our eyes be opened.” And Jesus in pity touched their eyes, and immediately they recovered their sight and followed him. (Matthew 20:29-34 ESV)

What may we learn from this event? It is obvious that the two men were serious about their present condition and their request. They readily acknowledged the authority and power of Jesus when they called Him “Lord” and recognized Him as the Messiah when they said He was the “Son of David”. The two men begged for mercy knowing they were owed none. When Jesus asked them what they wanted, they specifically asked Him to open their eyes so they could see. Jesus had pity on them, touched their eyes, and they were immediately healed. Having received such a great gift, the formerly blind beggars followed Him.

We all are blind beggars before God. “The god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” (2 Corinthians 4:4 ESV) God has to open our eyes to our true nature. We are spiritually blind sinners, and the only way we can come to Him is by His mercy.

Faith in Jesus Christ may be described as the certain confidence that He is able and willing to help when our circumstances seem to deny all possibility of relief. We are unclean, dead in sins, in bondage to Satan, and blind to the truth of God. In spite of this – Christ makes us clean, forgives our sins, releases us from the bonds of the evil one, heals our blindness and opens our eyes to the way of salvation.