Passage: Mark 10:46-52

The Big Idea

Everyone has faith; the question is who it’s in. Blind Bartimaeus sat begging by the road outside Jericho, and when he heard Jesus was passing, he cried out for mercy and wouldn’t be silenced. His faith had nothing to do with how good he was. It was humble, convinced Jesus is the Messiah, stubborn against every discouraging voice, unashamed, and simple in its request. Jesus gave him his sight, and Bartimaeus followed Him on the road. A moment of faith became a lifestyle of faith. That’s discipleship.

Faith in Whom?

“Keep the faith.” “Just have faith.”

By themselves, those phrases don’t make sense. Faith is trusting in something or someone. The important part is who or what you put your faith in.

Everyone has faith. When you board an airplane, you’re trusting the manufacturer, the pilot, the air traffic controllers, the maintenance crew and the weather. That’s a lot of faith! We choose to trust airplanes because their track record is pretty good.

(When my kids were young, I once asked a flight attendant to change my seat because of a crying baby next to me. Turns out you can’t do that if the baby is yours.)

Everyone has faith. But in what? Who do we trust with the important things in life?

We need to understand who we have faith in.

Faith isn’t a magic word that makes life easy, like an “easy button.” But faith in Jesus is the one thing in this universe that all powers, seen and unseen, bow to.

Faith in Jesus turns aside God’s judgment.
It calls the powers of heaven to heal, give and act.
Everything good and eternally valuable we’ll ever do will be done by faith in Jesus.

So today our example is Bartimaeus (let’s call him Bart). Our Teacher is Jesus. And our lesson is this: a disciple of Jesus has determined, stubborn, unquenchable faith in Jesus.

The Story (Mark 10:46-52)

They came to Jericho. As Jesus was leaving Jericho with His disciples and a large crowd, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the road begging. When he heard it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” So they called the blind man: “Take heart! Get up; He’s calling you.” Throwing off his cloak, he jumped up and came to Jesus. Jesus asked, “What do you want Me to do for you?” The blind man said, “Rabboni, let me recover my sight.” Jesus said, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” Immediately he recovered his sight and followed Jesus on the road.

Faith is the point of discipleship. We’re all learning to trust Jesus more than we do now. That’s the whole plan: trusting Jesus more and more and more. Trust can be scary, and our faith goes through fires and trials to be purified. Bart shows us what it looks like when we get it.

1. Faith Has Nothing to Do with How Good You Are

“Blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the road begging.”

Look at Bart’s condition: blind, poor, not exactly living his best life.

Maybe you wonder, “Will God accept me? I’ve done too much wrong. I’m broken. I’m lost. I’m blind. I’m indifferent. I’m not what I should be.”

No problem for faith! Because faith isn’t in me; it’s in Him. And Jesus is none of those things.

2. Faith Is Linked to Humility

“Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Bart didn’t think God owed him. He didn’t complain that life was unfair. He came to God in humility.
He asked for mercy. Mercy is not getting what I deserve.
Bart knew he didn’t deserve anything good from God.
And he was right. That’s hard to accept, but vital. We’re sinners, and our sin deserves judgment. A righteous God can’t simply ignore it.
But God doesn’t want to punish us. He wants to show mercy! That’s why Jesus went to the cross: to take the judgment we deserved so God could be both just and merciful (Romans 3:26).
So ask Him for mercy!

That’s the attitude of humility: “God, I know I don’t deserve anything good. But I ask for mercy.”

3. Faith Is Convinced He’s the Savior

“Son of David, have mercy on me!”

“Son of David” is a messianic title. It names the Messiah, the One God promised would come and save His people (2 Samuel 7:12-16).
By calling Jesus the Son of David, Bart was saying, “I believe You’re the One who can save!”
Blind Bart saw more clearly than many with perfect eyesight.

4. Faith Ignores Everything Else

“Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he cried out all the more.”

Many voices tried to silence his cries and his faith.
But Bart cried out even louder. Determined. Stubborn.
“I’ll trust Jesus no matter what you say. I’ll cry out to Him until I die. I have no other hope.”

What discourages you from praying? What convinces you to give up before you have an answer from Jesus?

May God help us set our hearts never to stop trusting Him. Never turn away. Never look to something else. Never give up.

5. Faith Isn’t Afraid to Be Exposed

“Jesus stopped and said, ‘Call him.’ … Throwing off his cloak, he jumped up and came to Jesus.”

Bart had no shame stumbling toward Jesus in front of everyone. He didn’t need to hide his poverty or brokenness.
A beggar’s cloak might have been nearly all he owned. He threw it aside.
You may not want to be embarrassed, but don’t let that keep you from Jesus.
It’s pride that doesn’t want anyone to see who we really are. Don’t let pride keep you from His grace!

6. Faith Simply Asks for What’s Needed

“Jesus asked, ‘What do you want Me to do for you?’ The blind man said, ‘Rabboni, let me recover my sight.'”

Bart didn’t try to impress Jesus with important-sounding theology or fancy words.
Pray simple prayers. It’s good for your faith.
Ask simply, then keep asking. Persevere. Don’t get more complicated; get more simple.

Spurgeon said, “Rest assured that those are the best prayers in all respects, if they be earnest and sincere, which go most directly to the point. You know there is a way of praying in the closet, and praying in the family, in which you do not ask for anything. You say a great many good things, introduce much of your own experience, review the doctrines of grace very thoughtfully, but you do not ask for anything in particular. Such prayer is always uninteresting to listen to, and I think it must be rather tedious to those who offer it.”

The Result of Faith

“Jesus said, ‘Go your way; your faith has made you well.’ Immediately he recovered his sight.”

Bart received grace in response to his faith.
Grace is God’s hand reaching out to help us. Faith is our hand reaching out to receive it.

Jesus gave him exactly what he asked for. But why is this story in the Bible? So you can get whatever you want?

No. So you can learn to have Bart’s faith, real faith:

It has nothing to do with how good you are.
It’s humble.
It’s convinced Jesus is the Savior.
It ignores every discouraging voice.
It isn’t afraid of being exposed.
It simply asks for what’s needed.

On the Road

“And he followed Jesus on the road.”

Bart became a disciple, a Jesus-follower, walking with Jesus and depending on Him for everything.

That’s the goal. Jesus is making followers, and He invites us to be His followers. We can only follow Him by faith.

And notice which road. Jesus was heading up to Jerusalem, to the cross. The first thing Bart’s new eyes saw was Jesus, and he followed Him all the way.

A moment of faith becomes a lifestyle of faith. That’s what discipleship is: learning to trust Jesus moment by moment. And after a long time, you look back and find you’ve been on a road of faith in Jesus, following Him for many miles and many years.

And at the end of that road, you’ll hear, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21).

Grace Takeaway

Bartimaeus had nothing to offer Jesus but a desperate cry for mercy, and that was enough. His faith wasn’t in his own goodness; it was stubbornly fixed on the Son of David. Whatever voices tell you to be quiet, keep calling out to Jesus. Throw off whatever you’re hiding behind, ask Him simply for what you need, and then follow Him down the road. A moment of faith becomes a lifetime with Him.

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Bartimaeus: A Picture of Discipleship