The 500th Anniversary of the New Testament in the Language of the People 1522 – 2022
The Bible in 3-D
Jesus Heals the Blind Man
What do you see?
Luke 18:35-43 Jesus Heals the Blind Man
35 As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. 36 When he heard the crowd going by, he asked what was happening. 37 They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.” 38 He called out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”
39 Those who led the way rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 40 Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him. When he came near, Jesus asked him, 41 “What do you want me to do for you?” “Lord, I want to see,” he replied. 42 Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has healed you.” 43 Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God.
The Miracle of Christ Healing the Blind Man by El Greco (1560)
Although Bartimaeus was born blind, blindness was a metaphor showing people had no faith. Isaiah and Paul speak of the unbelief of the people in Israel and Asia Minor as not seeing or understanding the revelation of the Messiah or Jesus Christ.
The life of a blind person was awful as the blind were forced to beg and frequently taken advantage of. Blindness, other than a natural condition associated with age, was mostly likely the result of infection from unsanitary conditions or trichinosis from pork.
Therefore, in this picture, El Greco demonstrated the great mercy of Christ in curing his blindness and filling him with the Holy Spirit. It is interesting that El Greco illustrates several people in his painting who appear to be oblivious to the miracle that is happening.
Martin Luther wrote that the book of the Acts of the Apostles is to emphasize the importance of how both Gentiles and Jews must be justified by faith without doing any merits or good works. The big picture of all the stories and events in Acts is how the Gospel or good news of the resurrection and salvation of Jesus Christ makes everything right for us. It is not about the faith of the apostles but it is about faith in Jesus Christ as our personal Savior. We do not need to do anything else – just trust God!
Comments: hbitten@reverendluther.org
Bible 500 