As he approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard a crowd going by, he asked what was happening. They told him, ‘Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.’ Then he shouted, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’ Those who were in front sternly ordered him to be quiet; but he shouted even more loudly, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’
Jesus stood still and ordered the man to be brought to him; and when he came near, he asked him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ He said, ‘Lord, let me see again.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Receive your sight; your faith has saved you.’ Immediately he regained his sight and followed him, glorifying God; and all the people, when they saw it, praised God.
Rather than focus on the persevering faith of the blind man or on the power of Jesus in performing the cure, I would like to highlight another feature of this passage. Notice how the people who were traveling with Jesus felt disturbed by the cries of the blind man. They essentially told him to shut up. They were annoyed and bothered by his presence. He was a nuisance to them. Yet Jesus doesn't consider him to be an annoyance. He's very precious in Jesus' eyes.
The same is true for us. Too often, we experience rejection or a sense of inadequacy when dealing with other people. We have the impression that we're not good enough, that we need to impress people, and we need to be more witty, more attractive, and more intelligent, more athletic, more wealthy, more powerful. The result is that we live in fear, insecurity and distress. Sometimes it's unconscious. We don't even realize that we are living our lives to impress others.
In in this passage of the Gospel of Luke, we see how Jesus sees so much more than other people. He delights in you and longs to spend time with you. You are worth so much to Him. Even though He calls you to grow in perfection, He still loves you as you are today.
"You mean he loves me despite all my sins?" Yup. You better believe it.
We need to remind ourselves of this truth so that we don't become insecure, depressed or dejected. Everybody wants to be loved. Fortunately, everybody is loved by Christ.
Don't let anybody convince you of the opposite. Don't let anybody's insults make you believe that you're useless and unwanted. You are unique in an unrepeatable. And you have an exclusive role to play in this world that nobody else can fulfill. You are a key player in God's plan for the salvation of the world.
You are someone very special and nobody can claim otherwise.
Take care.
