Blind men following

As Jesus went on, two blind men followed Him, crying out as they went. But Jesus continued on His way until He came into a house. The blind men came to Him, and then Jesus addressed them. He asked them if they believed He could heal them. They said they did; He then touched their eyes, and their eyes were opened. Jesus urged them not to tell anyone, but they went and told everyone in that area.

What is at first odd is that Jesus did not stop along the way to heal these two blind men. Obviously it was difficult for the blind men to follow someone they could not see, down a road that they could not see either. They cried out to Him to have mercy, but Jesus did not stop.

These two blind men must have sustained themselves by begging, sitting beside a travelled road, crying out for mercy from those that they heard walking past. When they heard that Jesus was passing by, they cried out to Him, just as they cried out to others for alms.

But Jesus did not address them in that place; He forced them to leave what was familiar to find Him. They may have followed the noise of the crowd; they must have asked directions to find the house He was in. But beggars would have not gone into a house to ask for alms; they left their familiar role of beggars. Jesus came to them, not addressing them as beggars, but as men of faith.

They had asked Him to show mercy; the tacit implication is that they did not know if He would show mercy. But in the house He asked them if they believed He was able to give them sight. Jesus was leading their faith down a path. They said "yes"; they believed He was able. That response still did not address whether they believed He was willing to heal them. Then Jesus touched their eyes, and said "Be it done according to your faith." By touching them, Jesus addressed His willingness to heal them. They then believed He was willing; and their sight was restored. Their faith had been made complete.

These men did not believe Jesus was willing to heal them when they first cried out to Him; they were only begging. But after leaving their familar place, they began a journey that led to faith.

His disciples watched what Jesus did, seemingly ignoring these men's cries, but then later addressed them as men, not beggars. Jesus had made blind men follow Him; He had given beggars faith. Jesus had led them on a journey of faith.

We may not understand His silence at times, or His failure to act. He does not seem merciful to us at times. Yet He is the same today as He was then. He may be trying to lead us away from our familiar place in life; He may want to take us from the familiar into faith.

"Go forth from your country, and from your relatives, and from your father's house..."