Whom do men say that I am?

Christ’s power to heal blindness proved that He was Israel’s Messiah. Isaiah predicted that when the glory of the Lord would appear on earth ‘then the eyes of the blind shall be opened’, Isa. 35. 5. When the faith of John the Baptist wavered and he sent two of his disciples to ask the Lord, ‘Art thou he that should come, or do we look for another?Jesus answered and said unto them, Go and shew John again those things which ye do hear and see: The blind receive their sight’, Matt. 11. 3-5. This blind man at Bethsaida might have suffered from two separate eye pathologies. Christ healed the first instantly; a second touch cured the man’s severe short-sightedness which caused him to see ‘men as trees, walking’, Mark 8. 24.

The Saviour was unafraid of scrutiny and, when appropriate, acted powerfully before large crowds. However, when public display was unwarranted He acted in private. Christ had taken the blind man tenderly ‘by the hand, and led him out of the town’, v. 23, and having cured the blind man, said, ‘Neither go into the town, nor tell it to any in the town’, v. 26. Such modesty on the part of the Son of God is worth emulating. Whenever possible, avoid shining the spotlight on your service.

The crowds recognized that the Lord Jesus preached repentance (like John the Baptist), worked miracles (as Elijah), and spoke with divine authority (much like an Old Testament prophet), but they fell short of recognizing Him as the Christ. Nevertheless, despite their shortcomings, the disciples knew in their hearts that He was the Christ, God’s anointed Prophet, Priest, and King, v. 29.

Even though the Lord Jesus foretold His suffering and subsequent resurrection, v. 31, the disciples failed to grasp this important teaching. Peter went so far as to rebuke Him, v. 32. Christ in turn ‘rebuked Peter, saying, Get thee behind me, Satan: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but the things that be of men’, v. 33. The very suggestion of avoiding the cross was satanic in nature.

Following Christ is difficult. It demands rigorous self-denial and living as though dead to this present world, vv. 34-38.