Be Persistent, Be Prayerful, Put Aside Old Stuff, and Use Your Gifts for the Kingdom

First, I want to acknowledge that tomorrow is Priesthood Sunday! While all of us are called to live our baptismal covenant, some men are called to ordained ministry. These men serve the needs of the Church — Christ’s body on earth. Many dedicated priests offer their time and talent to lead the people of God to Jesus Christ.

Priests, like our very own Fr. Mike, ask each of us, “What do you want me to do for you?” Like Bartimaeus in today’s gospel, we long to have our eyes opened, our blind spots healed, and our faith strengthened. Ultimately, ordained priests help all of us, despite our human weaknesses and imperfections, to deepen our faith, grow in hope, and share in the gifts of Christ's love and mercy.

And we need mercy! We need to know that God cares. We need to know that He is active and involved in our lives. We need to know we are not forgotten. We need to know that we are loved! We need to know that no matter who we are and no matter what we have done, God is just a prayer away at all times! The priest’s presence and his service to us helps us fulfill these needs. Later in today’s mass, we, as a parish will bless Fr. Mike in recognition of our appreciation for his service to us.

Now, turning to today’s gospel, we find Jesus and His disciples passing through Jericho. They can see Herod’s winter palace located there. They see large crowds traveling through town on their way to Jerusalem for the high holy days. Try to visualize that surging mass of people moving toward Jerusalem. They were on a long journey! They were hot and sweaty! The dust clung to them! Jesus was at the height of His popularity and the crowd pressed close to Him. They were jabbering endlessly; asking questions; seeking favors. They could be heard a mile away!

The disciples see desperate beggars on the side of the road, sitting and begging in the dust. A pitiful person, named Bartimaeus is one of those desperate beggars. His blindness is a pity, and his having to beg is a greater pity. Being reduced to nothing more than a beggar was heartbreaking; he must have felt hopeless. Day in and day out he would wake up with the same plaguing thought, “Another day of the same old thing! I wonder if anyone will recognize my pitiful plight, and help me out today?”

Then Bartimaeus hears the commotion and asks, “What’s the noise all about?” Someone tells him that it is Jesus passing by. "You mean Jesus of Nazareth, the man they claim can heal the sick and the blind?" "Yes, that’s the One”, they tell him. And as the crowd came closer and closer, his excitement grew. The noise became intense! "This is it," said Bartimaeus to himself. "I may never see Jesus again. I want to be healed." So, seeking to drown out the noise of the crowd, Bartimaeus yelled at the top of his voice, "Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me!"

And as he cried out, verse 49 tells us Jesus Stood Still! Those are three powerful words! JESUS! STOOD! STILL! Jesus, who is on an eternal errand from God. Jesus, the Lord of the Universe, the Creator of Heaven and Earth, God in the flesh. JESUS! STOOD! STILL!

Jesus was stopped in his tracks by this plea from someone He could not even see. Ever since Chapter 8 of Mark’s gospel, the disciples had been missing the point of Jesus’ teachings; and, here, Jesus found a man who recognized him as the “son of David”. Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, actually saw who Jesus was more clearly than the disciples and the crowd who had been with Jesus all along! Bartimaeus saw Jesus the way we need to see Jesus – with the eyes of our hearts!

Not only does Bartimaeus see that Jesus is a giver of mercy, he sees that he should not be discouraged by the crowd. Many in the crowd were saying “Be quiet! Jesus has too many other things to do to get involved with a beggar like you!” But Bartimaeus thinks to himself “I don’t care what these people say. This may be the only chance I ever get to talk to Jesus Christ. He may never pass this way again! I can’t back down just because a few people are giving me grief. After years of being blind, and years of being poor, and years of being marginalized, one thing I can see is that I need Jesus! I need healing! I need mercy!”

So Bartimaeus throws his cloak aside and all the money that was in it. That garment was likely the only security he had. It probably also was his home. It had kept off the heat by day and the chill by night. It would not be easy for him to return and find it. Neither would it be easy to find the coins it held after they were cast to the ground. He didn’t care! He was pinning all his hope on Jesus!

Then, when asked by Jesus what he wants, he boldly states: “Master, I want to see!” Begging by the roadside had been his way of life. He had been surviving in this manner for years. His usual cry was “alms for the blind? alms for the blind?”. But, is that what he wants from Jesus? No, he was not about to ask for what man can give. He wanted only what God could give. He wanted to see!

Eyesight is such a precious gift. Bartimaeus was astute enough to ask for that gift instead of more tangible things. But, after gaining that gift, rather than turning to savor it by himself – to see his loved ones, to drink in the beauty of nature, to marvel at the wonders about him – Bartimaeus follows Jesus! He follows Jesus on the last leg of his mission here on earth and with his new gift he will “see” that which no one would want to see – the cruel death of his Master. He used the gift given to him by God in complete service to God!

So, what does the Lord want us to take from this Gospel message? First, we must learn to SEE WITH OUR HEARTS. We need to “walk by faith, not by sight”. We need to trust in the mercy and compassion of Christ!

Second, we need to learn to BE PERSISTENT. We can’t let anyone discourage us from reaching out to God for the healing and the mercy we need.

The third thing we need to learn is to BE PRAYERFUL. PRAYER HAS THE POWER TO STOP GOD and center His attention on you, just you all by yourself. God is willing to stop what he is doing to respond to the heartfelt cry of His people.

Fourth, we need to PUT ASIDE OLD STUFF. Casting away his garment, Bartimaeus rose and came to Jesus. When we are called by Jesus, one thing we have to do, is cast away our garment, cast away that which keeps us from getting to where Jesus is?

And finally, we need to USE THE GIFTS God gives us for the betterment of His Kingdom. They are not given to us so that we can better enjoy the attractions of this world.