23. Pray One More Time

Mark 8: 22-26

 

22 When they arrived at Bethsaida, some people brought a blind man to Jesus, and they begged him to touch the man and heal him.

23 Jesus took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village. Then, spitting on the man’s eyes, he laid his hands on him and asked, “Can you see anything now?”

24 The man looked around. “Yes,” he said, “I see people, but I can’t see them very clearly. They look like trees walking around.”

25 Then Jesus placed his hands on the man’s eyes again, and his eyes were opened. His sight was completely restored, and he could see everything clearly. 26 Jesus sent him away, saying, “Don’t go back into the village on your way home.”

 

▣ People brought a blind man to Jesus.

After Jesus spit in the man's eyes and prayed, he asked the man, “What do you see?”

“I see people,” he said.

Tree-like things seem to be walking around."

It can be seen, but it is not clearly visible yet.

 

Jesus put his hands on the man's eyes once more and prayed.

The man looked intently and finally regained his sight and was able to see everything clearly.

 

This part is a little different from Bartimaeus the blind in Mark 10.

To Bartimaeus, Jesus immediately opened his eyes when he said, “Your faith has saved you.”

You did.

 

But this blind man spit in his eye and prayed twice before he opened his eyes.

Jesus was able to open this man's eyes at once with just a word.

But why did you use this method for this person?

This is so that we can know that the sovereignty of answering all prayers is only with the Lord.

People pray, but the sovereignty of answers rests only with the Lord.

 

Whenever the answer to prayer is delayed, we need the courage to pray once more.

People pray, but the Lord answers them.

Let's trust the Lord's answer and pray one more time.

 

The time when you want to give up on prayer is the threshold for answers.

 

1. The sovereignty of answering prayers rests with the Lord.

 

25 Then Jesus placed his hands on the man’s eyes again, and his eyes were opened. His sight was completely restored, and he could see everything clearly. (Mark 8:25)

 

The blind man thought that when the Lord prayed for the first time, his eyes would be opened at once.

But it was only faintly visible.

The Lord prayed one more time, and my eyes were completely restored.

He did not blame the Lord for not solving the problem once, but the Lord twice.

He did not give up his faith while waiting for a prayer.

 

People pray to the Lord when problems arise.

We give up easily if our prayers are not answered immediately.

The Lord answers prayers.

The Lord is sure to answer the prayers of the saints.

 

Bartimaeus opened his eyes at once, but Bethsaida's blind man was restored after two prayers.

The problem lies with people, but it is the Lord who solves the problem.

Prayer is not hoping that a problem will be solved, but rather having faith that the Lord will solve the problem.

The blind of Bartimaeus and the blind of Bethsaida seem to have the same problem outwardly, but the spiritual

 Only the Lord knows the content.

 

The spiritual secret of a Christian is known only to the Lord.

The flesh knows the flesh, and the spirit knows the spirit.

Ultimately, deepening your faith means that you deepen the level of the spiritual realm.

 

2. Answering prayers makes us realize our shortcomings.

 

24 The man looked around. “Yes,” he said, “I see people, but I can’t see them very clearly. They look like trees walking around.” (Mark 8:24).

 

He said that when the Lord laid his hands on him and asked the blind what he could see, he said that things like trees seemed to be walking around.

This means that things are not yet clearly visible.

It looked faint, but it wasn't accurate.

 

The blind man was honest about his own condition.

You may think that this condition is perfect because the Lord prayed.

You might be satisfied with this.

However, he said it is not yet fully visible.

Being honest about his own condition allowed him to recover more fully.

 

He cannot make spiritual progress without an awareness of his spiritual condition.

A Christian must see spiritual truth beyond what he sees with his physical eyes.

He needs to see the reality of his own reality every day

The blind man confesses his shortcomings, believing that the reality is dim right now, but the Lord will completely open his eyes.

Man is weak and imperfect, but the Lord is the perfect healer.

Prayer answers come from the total sovereignty of the Lord.

 

3. Prayers are answered through faith.

 

25 Then Jesus placed his hands on the man’s eyes again, and his eyes were opened. His sight was completely restored, and he could see everything clearly. (Mark 8:25).

 

The Lord prayed a second time, and the blind man looked again at things.

He believed the Lord would work at the moment the Lord prayed again.

He looked ahead, noticing that his own sight would be restored.

He looked intently. The blind man could not see in his own strength.

But when the Lord laid his hands on him, he trusted in the Lord's power and used his eyes.

When he used his eyes, his eyesight was restored.

When we respond with faith, we can enjoy the joy of answering.

 

In Matthew 9, two blind men appear before the Lord.

They say, “Have mercy on us.”

The Lord asked them if they had faith.

When they answered yes, the Lord said to them, “According to your faith, let it be done.” Their faith opened their eyes.

Faith is the substance of things hoped for (Hebrews 11:1).

Instead of looking at the phenomenon, we must look beyond it with the eyes of faith. Amen