One of the things the passage reminds us of is what we call the corporate dimension of sin. So often when we speak of sin in the church we deal with it at an individual level, “me and my sins.” For the prophets of old sin was much more often to do with the nation, with justice and equity and truth in public life, with honesty and probity in economic dealings, with the treatment of the poor and needy in the society. So the people lament that “justice is turned back, and righteousness stands at a distance; for truth stumbles in the public square”. Into this seemingly desperate situation which appears to have no human solution the Saving God intervenes “putting on the breastplate of righteousness and the helmet of salvation”, imagery used so powerfully in the Epistle to the Ephesians. Hope comes in the form of the Saving God who is the source of all righteousness and justice and truth.

This grand passage sets the stage for the Gospel reading from Mark, the healing of Blind Bartimaeus. For this passage is also about restoration: not the restoration of God’s people but the restoration of a man’s sight. Or is it just about the latter and not about the former? For as ever with Mark there is much more to the incident than first meets the eye. Once again we need to think about the whole context of this healing miracle. This passage stands in contradistinction to the gospel two Sundays ago about the rich man who came to Jesus asking: “What must I do to be saved?” You will remember that Jesus instructed him to “sell what you own, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and then come follow me.” But the man turned away grieving for he had many possessions. To the disciples outraged question of Jesus: “Then who can be saved?” (if this pious rich man cannot make it who can?), Jesus answered them: “for mortals it is impossible, but not for God; for God all things are possible.” It can be said about that passage that what matters most is not what we do, as if our efforts can gain us salvation, but rather our recognition of who God is and what God has done for us; that Salvation is primarily Gift, a gift which we receive with joyful and thankful hearts.

Like the incident about the rich man today’s Gospel also takes place in the midst of the journey of Jesus and his disciples: “Jesus and his disciples came to Jericho”; “As he and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho….” The previous two chapters of Mark are all about what it is to be a disciple of Jesus. The disciples themselves again and again despite the teaching of Jesus seem to miss the point. So much so that in last Sunday’s Gospel we found them arguing about issues of precedence in the Kingdom, who was to have the best seats with Jesus in his glory, as if that mattered. Jesus patiently taught them about the life of service, “for the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many”, a life which he embodied in his ministry and in his death.

So we come to blind Bartimaeus, “sitting by the roadside”, not on the journey or in the Way. But the remarkable thing is that it is this blind beggar, who cannot see and who has next to nothing, who in fact “sees” and who gains all. In the story Bartimaeus makes a real nuisance of himself. He shouts out, he draws attention to himself, he will not give up when he is ordered to be quiet. He is like one of those people who regularly try and get a hearing on some public occasion; a constant nightmare for security staff and organizers. I can well remember the demonstrations by indigenous Australians during the well-rehearsed ceremonies to mark the bi-centenary of the landing of the First Fleet in 1788 in Sydney. Many were angry and embarrassed at this perceived lack of taste and timing. But the demonstrations were a powerful reminder that the events being celebrated were at huge cost to the indigenous people. Bartimaeus was certainly an embarrassment. But his loud cries were full of truth and meaning. “Jesus Son of David, have mercy on me!” A cry repeated more loudly when those about him sought to silence him.

In this extraordinary moment Bartimaeus became the model for the person of faith. He not only recognized Who Jesus is: God’s Messiah, the Son of David; but he also recognized his total dependence on God’s mercy and forgiveness. “Son of David, have mercy on me” is itself a confession of faith. That cry “have mercy on me” echoes that ancient Greek prayer which we know by its Greek name, the Kyrie Eleison, which we use especially in Lent and Advent in place of the Gloria. It is an ancient prayer which embodies the cry of the faithful throughout the ages, a prayer which in Eastern Orthodoxy is known as the Jesus Prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, have mercy on me, sinner that I am”. If you use no other prayer that prayer says it all: who God is and our need of his mercy and forgiveness. In this remarkable moment Bartimaeus recognized Jesus and that in him alone is his salvation.

We are told by Mark that “Jesus stood still”; the procession stopped. This is a powerful moment; you can sense the tension in the crowd. What will the Master do to this loud, intrusive character? “Call him here” says Jesus. “And they called the blind man saying to him, “Take heart he is calling you”. Jesus took the initiative, he reached out to this insightful, but desperate man. We are told that Bartimaeus “throwing off his cloak” sprang up and came to Jesus. By dramatic contrast to the rich man, Bartimaeus cast aside everything he owned, the one item that gave him dignity, his cloak, the one thing to cover his body and to keep him warm at night. Like the woman with the two copper coins, the widow’s mite, who gave her all, the blind man does the same, for he knows as the widow knew that Jesus is the source of Life itself and is worth everything. Bartimaeus like the widow are powerful figures for us to consider as we reflect on our Stewardship. What is Jesus worth to you and to me?

Then Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” The blind man said to him, “My teacher, let me see again.” Jesus said to him, “Go your faith has made you well”, which can be equally translated “Go your faith has saved you”. Immediately he regained his sight. Yes he was made well, his sight was restored, but also his eyes had been opened to salvation itself. With this restored physical and spiritual vision Bartimaeus followed Jesus on the way. In other words he becomes a disciple, modeling for men and women of all time the way of discipleship, to follow the one who is truly Savior and Lord, and in whom all our deepest needs including the forgiveness of our sins are met.

There is a beautiful story told of one of St Francis’ young followers coming across the master in the woods. He observed that Francis was deep in prayer reciting the name of Jesus. Hours later the young man returning along the same path only to discover Francis in the same place with tears streaming down his cheeks, saying over and over again “Jesus, Jesus, my Jesus”.