Matthew

Jesus heals the blind and mute, 9:27-34

Matthew now records two miracles, the healing of two blind men and the healing of a man who could not speak. First, we learn that Christ, in the power of his coming kingdom, gives sight to the blind. Then, in the healing of the man who could not speak, we learn that Israel's religious authorities are the ones who are truly blind, and this because an understanding of the truth alludes them; they view Christ as an agent of darkness rather than light. Unlike the blind men who exhibit faith, the religious authorities exhibit an unbelief that blinds them to the truth.

v27. Jesus is ministering in Capernaum and has just raised from the dead the daughter of one of the leaders of the local synagogue. On leaving the house he is confronted by two blind men who incessantly shout out to Jesus, "Have mercy on us, Son of David."

v28. Jesus continues on his way with the two blind men following on behind, probably both still shouting out after Jesus. On reaching the house where he is staying, Jesus enters, probably along with his disciples. The blind men find their way to the house, and they also enter. Jesus then confronts them with a question; he asks them whether they really do believe that he is able to heal them. They respond in the affirmative.

v29. Establishing a personal link between the two blind men and himself, Jesus touches their eyes and announces "you beleive, so you have it."

v30. Immediately their sight is restored, but Jesus instructs them that they must keep their healing secret. Popular belief in the coming of a warrior king to overthrow the Romans is an idea that Jesus does not want to promote. Yes, Jesus is a king, but before his glorification there lies the way of the cross, so he presents as the suffering servant, not the Davidic warrior.

v31. Enthusiasm drives the blind men to tell everyone about their healing, but their unwillingness to comply with Jesus' instructions aligns them with those who are amazed, but uncommitted.

v32. On leaving the house where they were staying, a man who is possessed by an evil spirit and unable to speak is brought to Jesus for healing.

v33-34. On driving out the spirit, the man speaks and the crowed responds in amazement, but some Pharisees watching on correct the crowds view that nothing like this has ever been seen in Israel. Amazing things happen in black magic all the time; Jesus exorcises control over the demons by the power of Beelzebub, the prince of the demons - so they think!

There are great moments in history which seem like good ideas at the time. Hitler's invasion of Russia - it seemed like a good idea - at the time. The numerous invasions of Afghanistan over the last two hundred years, all seemed like good ideas at the time. These were ideas that proved the rule: the only thing we learn from history is that we learn nothing from history.

The invasion of Iraq seemed like a good idea at the time, certainly to George Bush, Tony Blair and John Howard, although not necessarily all the citizenry! Bombing the Gadafi government of Libya out of existence seemed like a good idea at the time, although many of those now living in what is virtually a failed state may not agree, but at the time, it did seem like a good idea to some of our political masters.

So what about you, have you done something that seemed like a good idea at the time, but now, in retrospect, you wonder where in the name of all that's good and holy you got the crazy idea from? I recently thought it would be a great idea to own a four-wheel drive vehicle so I purchased a Mazda Bravo with 140,000 klm. on the clock. That was five years ago, and since then I have spent over $12,000 on repairs. Even on the day before I was to pick up my new car the thermostat in the ute seized and blew up the radiator costing another $600. It did seem like a good idea, at the time!

In our Bible reading we are introduced to the Pharisees for the first time in negative mode. They have come up with an interesting idea, which, at the time, seemed more than reasonable. This man from Nazareth, who is going about healing the sick, raising the dead, exorcising the demon possessed, is into black magic - Oh yes! They had him pegged; at the time, it seemed like a good idea. It explained everything.

We live in an information age, more properly described as an information overload age. Within this overload of digital informaion, of good ideas tweeted, bloged, and rehashed infinitum, there lies a rather strange idea, particularly from the perspective of secular humanity. For some, the idea is akin to black magic, a new age thought bubble for the weak minded. This idea, once dominant in Western civilization, but now discarded as irrelevant, is that it is possible to possess a form of divinity, what the Bible calls holiness, by entering into a relationship with the person of Jesus Christ, or put more simply, by trusting him for the gift of eternal life.

Two men received their sight. They had a good idea, to tell everyone what had happened even though Jesus had asked them not to. And what of us, are we willing to stick with all that Jesus says of himself and all that he promises, or have we got a few other good ideas that we would like to try out instead? The choice is ours.

1. In the New Testament, giving sight to the blind often carries a metaphorical sense. What is it?

2. In what sense are the Pharisees blind?

3. Discuss how best to communicate the gospel in a world of information overload.