Ordinary Time Week 22

Psalm: Psalm 34:1-8, 19-22 or Psalm 126

Old Testament: Job 42:1-6, 10-17

 or Jeremiah 31:7-9

Gospel: Mark 10:46-52

Epistle: Hebrews 7:23-28

I have been discussing the reading from Hebrews and the other passages for a few weeks so I think it is time to return to the Gospel reading today. The passage in Mark is the healing of blind Bartimaeus on the road from Jericho. I am glad that the Lectionary has us reading this story from Mark because it seems like the writer of Mark, or his audience, had some intimate knowledge of Bartimaeus or maybe his family. I want to include a Gospel parallel so you can see what I am talking about this week, but Mark's version of this account is quite different than the other two Synoptic Gospels. You can find that link to the other two accounts HERE.

The first obvious detail that Mark gives us, that the other Gospels don't, is Bartimaeus' name. He then throws out the comment that he is the son of Timaeus. First, this type of comment is unnecessary if he was writing to a Jewish speaking audience. It would be obvious that his name literally means, "Son of Timaeus." So, I wonder why Mark told us this man's name and not other people's name Jesus came in contact with. I also wonder why Mark let us know that he is the son of Timaeus. Perhaps Bartimaues later became a leader in the church or was somehow so well-known by Mark's audience that this detail would mean something to them. Presumably, some of these people Jesus healed and interacted with later became leaders in the church even if they are never mentioned in Acts or Paul's letters. We only get little snippets of Jesus' life and the early church, but there is so much more to the story that is never told in detail. One thing we do know is that after Bartimaeus received his sight, Mark tells us that he "followed [Jesus] on the way." (vs. 52)

There are some more things we can learn from this story other than the fact that he may have later become a leader in the church. Bartimaeus knew what he wanted and he knew Jesus could offer it. I remember a sermon I heard in high school by Rick Rigbsy about not missing your moment when it comes to God. If there was one thing Bartimaeus did right, it was taking the opportunity he had to get near to Jesus. He yelled out to get Jesus' attention and those around him tried to rebuke him. (I don't quite get that here. Jesus healed before, so why did they try to shut Bartimaeus down? Had Bartimaeus done something to make people mad at him? We will never know.) But Bartimaeus yelled even louder so Jesus would hear him. Even in Bartimaues' call, he recognized who Jesus was. He called him the "Son of David," a messianic title, and he asks for mercy, which is strange thing to ask of a normal teacher. Bartimaeus did not miss his moment. I remember Rick Rigsby yelling out (in reference to getting a blessing), "I don't care if you have to put you own hand on your own head (to get a blessing), don't miss your moment!" Don't miss the moment of God's invitation.

This lesson wasn't lost on me then, and it is still relevant today. Too often we miss not what only God wants to do in our lives but other opportunities as well. We're too scared, too busy, too tired. Somebody else will take care of it, so we wait. I'm not qualified. Etc., etc., etc. The excuses we make are endless, but they prevent us from joining God in what he is doing. Bartimaeus not only yelled out to get Jesus' attention, when Jesus called him, Mark and only Mark, tells us that he threw away his cloak to run to Jesus. We have probably all sermons referencing the importance of people's cloaks or robes in biblical times. It's not like today where we have tons of clothes and we can just buy more if we need to. His cloak might have been one of his few possessions. But Bartimaeus knew that what Jesus had to offer was way more important than a cloak.

This type of behavior from Bartimaues is possible only because he recognized the great need he had and that only Jesus could meet that need. That is the place we need to get to as well if we are going to see the change Bartimaeus saw. We may not be physically blind, but spiritually, without Jesus, we are just as blind.  We have to get to that place in our lives where we understand that Jesus is the only solution to our problems and we are willing to throw-off anything that hinders us to get to him.

So, don't miss your moment! Don't miss the moment when God calls you something greater than yourself. Don't be too distracted and busy that you miss the voice of the Holy Spirit. This is a message that I need to hear, and I think some of you may be here as well. This week, through the help of God's Spirit, may we recognize both our need and God's ability to meet that need.

Grace and Peace.

Also, here is a really cool link that tells you some of the named people in Mark and then other people he doesn't name that other Gospels do, for example, Joseph the husband of Mary.