Matthew 20:29-21:22 - Lord, Have Mercy on My Eyes



As Jesus made His way to Jerusalem for the final week before His crucifixion, He encountered two blind men. These men exhibit great faith and great persistence. They cry out and demonstrate that they believe Jesus is the Messiah, and that He has supernatural power. They ask for mercy and call Him, "Lord." The crowd tries to hush them, but the prospect of being treated by the 'Son of David' is too much for them to be silent. Jesus wants them to say specifically what they desire. "We want to see!"

With compassion, Jesus gives the men the sight they asked for. He touched their eyes and more  - now they are following Him. They are following Him into the most intense week of His life. And they will see it all. I wonder if Matthew puts this healing story here for a special reason. It isn't unique - Jesus has done many other healings before, including restoring sight. These men are nobody special and the circumstances are fairly insignificant. Except, this is the beginning of that final week. It's almost like Matthew wants to say to his readers, "Open your eyes now. Cry out for clear vision now. Don't miss any of what I'm about to show you."
Matthew lets these men model for us the prayer he is encouraging us to pray - "Lord, have mercy on my eyes."

If our eyes have been opened and we are following Jesus, what is it the writer says we will see?

1. That Jesus' life is a fulfillment of prophecy. God promised us Christ the King, and He delivered.
2. When we follow Him, Jesus will immediately place us in the midst of what He is doing. (It's quite possible that the 'two disciples' He sent for the donkey were the two He had just healed of blindness!)
3. Jesus is One to celebrate over; to give entrance to with a joyful heart.
4. Jesus is intense about the church getting it's priorities straight: prayer and worship - number one!
5. Jesus prefers innocent praise over indignant 'piety.'
6. Jesus is hungry for us to bear fruit.
7. Jesus wants us to pray in faith; ask, believe, receive.

When you follow Jesus with fresh eyes, there's a lot to see! Stay alert. Don't blink.

Pray: Lord, you know how blind I am. Open my eyes to see You wherever You show up this week. Help me to perceive Your Word correctly, to recognize opportunities to celebrate You in public, to see the importance of prayer and worship, to identify my pride and judgmentality and seek a simpler, more innocent way of honoring You. Help me to see my way through to fruitfulness and faithfulness.