Mark 10:52
Notice if you will the method of this miracle. There is no method. Jesus doesn’t touch Bartimaeus, or put something on him. He just simply says, you’re healed. Why is this? Why in other cases does he do things? And why here do we see him just tell Bartimaeus he is healed?
The difference has everything to do with Bartimaeus’ faith. Unlike many of the others that Jesus did miracles for, Bartimaeus was quite confident that Christ could do this thing. There was no question in Bartimaeus’ mind of Jesus’s ability, or his willingness. In other words, his faith was strong.
Now, Jesus says that it was Bartimaeus’ faith that healed him. So does that mean that if anybody will just believe hard enough they can be healed of anything? The answer is no. And why? What did Bartimaeus have faith in? A better question, who did he have faith in? The answer is that he had faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. And it was this, faith in Christ, that healed him. Faith is giving credence to something or someone. When we give credence to what Jesus has said, and the power and authority of his person, we have faith in him. So Jesus healed Bartimaeus. But, had Bartimaeus not had faith in Christ, he would not have been healed.
Jesus tells Bartimaeus to go his way. Does this mean Jesus didn’t know the Bartimaeus was about to follow him? Of course not. But the choice to follow Christ must be a personal choice. This is not to say that God has no part in the choice. In fact, without the influence of God no one would choose Christ. But God gives us the ability to choose for ourselves.
Heavenly Father, thank you for this glorious Easter morning! Thank you for the mercy, grace and love that bring to us the amazing reality of eternal life. You have pulled off the shackles of darkness in our hearts and brought us to live in the light of day. Your great resurrection miracle still stirs us to see the facts of your Almighty power. You cannot be destroyed. You cannot be degraded. You cannot be deceived. May we ever live in the light of your glorious face! To know you is a joy too wonderful to explain and too great to measure. Thank you! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise you, Amen.