On November 30, 1991, fierce winds from a freakish dust storm triggered a massive freeway pileup along Interstate 5 near Coalinga, California. At least 14 people died and dozens more were injured as topsoil whipped by 50 mile-per-hour winds reduced visibility to zero. The afternoon holocaust left a three-mile trail of twisted and burning vehicles, some stacked on top of one another 100 yards off the side of the freeway. Unable to see their way, dozens of motorists drove blindly ahead into disaster. (Today in the Word, August 16, 1992)
Blindness was one of the great medical curses of the Middle East. We find Jesus taking a blind man by the hand and leading him out of town so He could deal with him privately. The healing of this person is recorded only in the book of Mark and it is the only miracle that Jesus performed which happened gradually. In this miracle the blind man’s sight came back in two stages. After the first touch he had only limited vision, but after the second touch his eyesight was restored completely.
There is symbolic truth here. No man sees all of God’s truth all at one time. One of the dangers of a certain type of evangelism is that it encourages the idea that when a man has made his decision for Christ he is a full-grown Christian. One of the dangers of Church membership is that it can be presented in such a way as to imply that when a person becomes a member of the Church he has come to the end of the road. This is so far from the truth because becoming a Christian and Church membership are only the beginning of the road.
From this city of Bethsaida on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee, Jesus and His disciples traveled about twenty-five miles north to the village of Caesarea of Philippi. Caesarea of Philippi was outside Galilee altogether. It was not in the territory of Herod, but in the territory of Philip. It was on His way here that Jesus asked His disciples, "Whom do you say that I am?’ and Peter answered by saying, "Thou art the Christ."
APPLICATION:
Ask - When were my eyes opened spiritually? What stages of spiritual sight have I passed through? Who do I know that needs help in this area? How can I help those who are spiritually blind?
