Our paragraph topic is: (The blind men at Jericho) Part 6.
Here is the scene, Jesus was walking along the road that led in front of the two blind men. A crowd followed him. Some were believers. Some were unbelievers. Some were there who wanted to believe, who had heard the word and came to see for themselves if all were true what they had heard. Some were skeptics. And there were those who were against him, those who had been influenced by evil to destroy him.
The crowd followed him in hopes of getting something. Maybe there was something that they could get from him to further their own individual cause. Maybe he would perform another miracle and they would be there to witness. Maybe he would feed them all from one loaf of bread. Maybe he would turn water into wine and they would all drink. They all wanted something. The two blind men wanted something too. They heard the word and they believed. They heard the word and their hearts were opened. They heard the word and sought him as he walked by. And they would not be silenced. Then Jesus stopped.
Jesus stopped walking. Jesus stopped talking. Jesus stopped thinking and heard the cries of the two blind men. He heard their cries over all the other voices in the crowd. More than anything he heard their hearts. He heard their belief. He heard their pain and their sorrow. He heard their faith, and he stopped. For there before him were two souls created by his Father that were locked in a battle for their lives. He was there to help them in their struggle. He was there to lift them up. He was there to give them strength, to give them hope, to give them courage. He was their to give them his Father's love. He stopped.
How often have we cried out to the Lord when we were suffering? How often have we called out his name for help when there was no one else to call upon? He has been our last resort. He has been our last cry. He has been the one that we cry to from deep within our souls. For our souls need relief. Our souls need satisfaction. Our souls need fulfillment and it is the Father who can provide complete and eternal satisfaction. Nothing and no one else can or will be able to provide that which is needed. He is the one who gave us life and we cry in hopes that he will listen, in hopes that he will hear, in hopes that he will come to our rescue.
We live in a realm where we are given to be self sufficient. We can be who we want to be, do what we want to do, or feel the way we want to feel without any consequences. This is the environment that we live in. This is the environment that we are taught, believe in, work in, play in, live in and see in everyday of our lives from the time we are born until the time we die.
We believe that with hard work and some luck, we can reach the top and become like the rich and the famous. This is our goal and objective in life. The thing that we miss is that we are already rich and we are already famous in his eyes. He has given us the world and all its riches. But we trade our most precious gift, our souls, for a trinket, a piece of paper, death. The two blind men wanted something more than life itself. They wanted to be heard. And Jesus stopped and heard them. Will he hear you when you cry out for his help? Believe that he will. Know that he will and you too will see that Jesus will stop for you.
Read the sign of the times! Read the Highlighted New Testament Bible and lift the scales from your eyes that you may see, that you may know, that you may find the truth of who you are in Christ. Read it as though you would read a good book, from cover to cover, and see for yourself. Do not study it in parts reading one passage and then skipping to another, but read it for understanding. Read it for knowledge. Read it for faith. Read it that your eyes may be opened, that your ears may hear, that your heart may be filled with the light of Christ. The Holy Spirit awaits you. Christ seeks to know you. Open the door and let him in.
Our paragraph topic is: (The blind men at Jericho) Part 5.
And so here they were, the two blind men, sitting on the road where Jesus was passing by. Opportunity knocked at their door. Fortune came to favor them. All they had to do was ask for his help. They believed he would save them. So they called out. They shouted out. They yelled at the top of their lungs. They wanted him to hear them. They could not see him. They did not know where he was. But they could hear the others calling out his name.
Jesus, they called. Jesus, Son of David, help us, they yelled. But there were others calling his name also. There were others trying to get his attention. There were others who wanted his help and they were calling too. And when the blind men called, others tried to stop them. Others tried to silence them, but they were determined. They would not be deterred. So they continued to call him. And they were told to be quiet to be silent. But they cried out all the louder, saying, "Lord , have mercy on us, Son of David!"
They knew that their time had come. They knew that they had the opportunity of their lives come right before their eyes, even though they could not see. They saw with their minds eye. They saw with their hearts beating. They saw with their belief, their faith, and their cries.
Often times in our lives we reach a point where we want to give up. We come to think that all is for naught, all is lost, their are no other options left. We come to what we believe is a brick wall with no other choices left. Daily life has brought us to a point where our heads are spinning and we don't know what to do. The bills have piled up and we have no money to pay them. The mortgage payment is past due and the sheriff is knocking at the door to put us out in the cold. We have lost our last job and we do not know how we will survive.
It is at these times in our lives that we become open to influence. Our minds are open to whatever comes to us to turn our lives around. Some will turn to suggestions that come to mind that will change their plight. Others will break with themselves and accept evil thoughts to turn themselves around. The influence of evil becomes present. But then their is the other choice. We could cry out to our Father to let him know our pain, to let him know the pressure that we feel. We could ask him for his help. Father, please help us!
The two blind men got their opportunity for help. He walked right past their door. Will you cry out when you come to your wits end? Will you ask your Father to help you when you have fallen and do not know how to continue? He wants to help. He wants to provide. He wants to take care of you, if you let him. Faith is the key. Trust is the door that opens unto those who call his name. And knowledge of his love is the foundation upon which you can build the rest of your life. For we can know with certainty that he will hear us. We can know without doubt that he will answer. We can experience miracles in our lives if we are patient in his will for us. The choice is ours. Cry out to the Lord and let no one or nothing silence you!
Read the sign of the times! Read the Highlighted New Testament Bible and lift the scales from your eyes that you may see, that you may know, that you may find the truth of who you are in Christ. Read it as though you would read a good book, from cover to cover, and see for yourself. Do not study it in parts reading one passage and then skipping to another, but read it for understanding. Read it for knowledge. Read it for faith. Read it that your eyes may be opened, that your ears may hear, that your heart may be filled with the light of Christ. The Holy Spirit awaits you. Christ seeks to know you. Open the door and let him in.
Our paragraph topic is: (The blind men at Jericho) Part 4.
Opportunity knocked at their door. Fortune favored their call. The word spoke to them and they were overwhelmed with the joy and happiness that comes with the fulfillment of a dream. For Christ was coming to their village. He was coming to their town. He was near and would soon be walking down the road where they sat begging for their survival. They were blind.
The two blind men knew that this was their one time to ask the one person they believed could help them, Messiah. They had heard the stories. They had heard of the miracles. They believed all were true and wanted to have their opportunity to ask the Lord for his help. What did they want? Was it gold? Was it silver? What was it that they wanted more than anything else in their lives. They wanted to see. More than life itself they wanted to be able to see and this was their opportunity. They would not be silenced. They would not cease their begging. They would not pass on this opportunity to have their eyesight because others wanted them to stop. "And the crowd angrily tried to silence them."
What will you do when your opportunity knocks? What will you want? What will you need more than anything else in your life? Will it be fame? Will it be fortune? Will it be riches? Will it power? Will it be influence? What is it in your life that you desire? And what will you sacrifice to obtain your dream?
We live in a world where we are bombarded daily, hourly with the things that make us want. We make minimum wage and live from paycheck to paycheck. But we see commercials on TV about owning a luxury car, buying a dream house, having money to buy expensive clothes. All this comes to us in the guise of advertising. All these things comes to us through the media that drive us to want, drive us to strive, drive us to be more, drive us to do more, drive us to want more. We can be all that we want to be, but at what price.
The two blind men sat by the roadside begging, as they did everyday, for their needs. We sit in our cubicles working in our daily grind to provide for our needs. We want more because we are given to want more. We are bored, dissatisfied, unhappy because that is what we are given to be. We see all the happy people who have it all and that is where we want to be. And for those who are given to extremes, they will seek to take what they want at any cost.
Christ came to the two blind men. They did not know, until they heard, that he was coming. Christ comes to us also. He comes to let us know that we are loved. He comes to hear our sorrows, our pain, our wants and our desires. He cares for us. He knows what we want, what we need. But we do not know what it is that will satisfy our hunger. We do not know what will fulfill our happiness and our joy eternally. We do not know that we are the children of our Father and he will provide.
God will provide. God has provided. He has given us more than we could ever want. He has given us his love. We were once dead. But now we live. The life we have is given to us through the sacrifice of our Lord and Savior Christ Jesus. And it is through his sacrifice that we are blessed beyond imagination. We recognize the things of the world. But we need to recognize the things of the spirit. For this recognition opens our eyes and our hearts to that which is within us. To know the love that the Father has for each and everyone of us will fill the heart for all eternity. And beyond his love nothing else exists that can or will satisfy.
Read the sign of the times! Read the Highlighted New Testament Bible and lift the scales from your eyes that you may see, that you may know, that you may find the truth of who you are in Christ. Read it as though you would read a good book, from cover to cover, and see for yourself. Do not study it in parts reading one passage and then skipping to another, but read it for understanding. Read it for knowledge. Read it for faith. Read it that your eyes may be opened, that your ears may hear, that your heart may be filled with the light of Christ. The Holy Spirit awaits you. Christ seeks to know you. Open the door and let him in.
