- Our cat snuggles has a love/hate relationship with touch
- Hates being forced to take hairball medicine
- Loves being brushed
- Americans are ‘losing touch’ with an important communication skill. with the words
- "Don’t touch me"
- Touch is the earliest sense to develop in the fetus, and the development of infants
- Touch can be thought a basic sense in that most life forms have a response to being touched, while only a subset have sight and hearing.
- Harvard Researchers, America’s "let them cry" attitude toward children may lead to more fears and tears among adults
- Dr. John Holt observed an incredible proportion of infant deaths, the will to live is related to touch
- When held and cuddled the death rate dropped
- Young people who grow up in homes where there is very little touching are often withdrawn in character and personality
- I’ll be in touch
- The handshake
- Holding hands
- Back Rub
- The hand on the shoulder gives encouragement
- The hug most often used as communicating love
- Words are fundamental to communication.
- There are times when words fail, when touch can communicate what the tongue cannot.
- Test - Is you arm on the back of your wife’s chair/pew? - Now let it fall off onto her shoulder
- One of the prime miracle Jesus performed was bringing sight to the blind - 4x in the Gospels
Mt 20:29-34 --- Mk 10:46-52 --- Lk 18:35-43
- Mk 10:46 - Bartimeus = Son of the Highly Prized
1. v. 30 Their Condition — Blind
- Lev. 21:16-24
- Blindness was one of the blemishes disqualifying descendants of Aaron from performing sacrifice to God
- Ignorance to Sp. things — Ephesians 4:18
- Unbelief — 2 Corinthians 4:3-4
2. v. 30 Sitting - Frustrated Dysfunctional, Disabled
3. v. 30 By the wayside - Baggers
4. v. 30 Mk 10:49-50 - Heard - Bartimeus casted away everything that hindered him
5. v. 30 Jesus passed by
- Last time in Jericho- If they missed this opportunity it would never come their way again
6. v. 30, Mk 10:48 - Cried Out --- Shouted
- They were earnest, meaning business
- Desperate people will be serious
- Holding to God we will succeed in prayer
7. v. 30 - O Lord -- Master
- Sensing of His deity, dominion, and power
- He has authority
8. v. 30 Have mercy on us — Pleading — Take Pity — Have Compassion — - Deal kindly
- Have mercy on us is a request.
- It is not owed to the men.
- They simply ask for God’s kind grace.
9. Son of David!
- Jesus is the fulfillment of the prophecy of the seed of David (2 Samuel 7:14-16)
- Professing Jesus to be the Messiah.
- Why was Jesus called a "Son of David"? - So WE can be called "Sons of God"
John 1:12 "As many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God; to them that believe on his name"
10. v. 31 "Hold your peace" “rebuked.” The crowd’s view was that why would Jesus be bothered with someone as unimportant as a blind beggar.
11. v.32 - What will ye that I shall do unto you?
- Beggars have needs,
- Did not ask to be raised from shame or disgrace as nobodies
- They did not ask for silver or gold
- There was no end to their needs food, friends, clothing, home, everything that is needed to survive
- Gave them opportunity fasten their faith upon one chief object of supreme desire.
12. v. 33 - That Our Eyes May be Opened
- Confessed their blindness
13. v. 34 - He had compassion on them
- They were poor blind wretched & miserable
- Rev 3:17
14. v. 34 - He Touched
(Mk 10:52) Go they way : Thy faith hath made thee whole)
(Lk. 18:42) Receive thy sight: thy faith hath saved thee.
15. v. 34 Immediately.”- Cure it was instantaneous
- (Bartimeus’s) “whole.”
- It was complete, including salvation — “thy faith hath saved thee”
16. v. 34 - Followed Him
- Hungered for Him
17. Lk 18 43 - Glorified & Praise to God
- Joy & Testimony
Jesus Touch Will Change Our Life
a. The touch of Jesus opens us up to see God as we have never seen Him before
b. The touch of Jesus gives eyes to see that Jesus is able to meet our deepest needs
