Desperation: a doorway to faith

 

    “Desperate times call for desperate measures.” Usually this phrase is used to explain radical action taken because of extreme circumstances. But what if desperate times called for desperate prayer, perseverance, and dependence? This is what we see in the story of Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, in Mark 10:46-52.

    Jesus, nearing the end of His ministry, has set his face toward Jerusalem. He knows what awaits Him there, even if those following Him anticipate something different. On His way to Jerusalem, He comes to Jericho. There, a blind man, hearing the crowd and discovering that Jesus is passing by, calls out for the Son of David to have mercy on him. Many around him sternly tell him to be quiet, and yet refusing to heed their warnings, Bartimaeus “kept crying out all the more” (Mark 10:45). Jesus hears him and instructs those around him to call the man to Him. Those who previously were trying to silence him now encourage Bartimaeus with the words, “Take courage, arise! He is calling for you.” Throwing off his cloak, Bartimaeus draws close to Jesus and hears these wonderful words, “What do you want Me to do for you?” (Mark 10:51). Bartimaeus asks for his sight, and Jesus, moved with compassion, grants him his sight saying, “Your faith has made you well.” 

    The Scriptures tell us that Bartimaeus being blind is a beggar. In those days, blindness meant an inability to work and provide for oneself, and so Bartimaeus sits at the entrance to the city begging for others to show compassion. His blindness shaped his whole life, and leaves him in a desperate situation day by day. But when he hears that Jesus is passing by, he realizes his desperate situation can be drastically altered and so he cries out to the One who has the power to transform him. We each have those things in our lives that we have no power to change, thus they can give rise to feelings of desperation. The salvation of a child. The healing of a marriage. Overwhelming financial straits. Does our inability, like Bartiameus’ blindness, cause us to cry out in desperation to our Savior? When feelings of desperation mount in our hearts, do we turn to Him in prayer and cry out for His mercy and help? “Son of David, have mercy on me!” (Mark 10:47).

    After Bartimaeus begins to cry out to Jesus, those around him discourage him, sternly telling him to be quiet. His response is not to cower. He does not silence his cries for help because of their opinion. He does not give up. Instead, showing persistence and perseverance, Mark tells us, “he kept crying out all the more” (10:48). “Nothing can silence Bartimaeus; indeed opposition only fans the flame of his persistence” (James Edwards). I love that. In our own desperate circumstances, we can grow discouraged. When circumstances, length of years, or others ‘rebuke’ us for continuing to cry out, that is when we must in faith persevere and cry out ‘all the more.’ Sometimes the Lord gives a clear answer to our request. The door is obviously closed or the request granted. But many other times, He calls us to wait and continue to pray and not give up. Are we persevering in our prayers? Or have we felt circumstances or time telling us to give up? Perhaps, like Bartimaeus, we must respond by crying out all the more.

    Jesus hears Bartiameus’ cries and responds. He has those around Him call Bartimaeus to Him. The same people who tried to silence Bartimaeus now say to him, “Take courage, arise! He is calling for you.” Bartimaeus throws off his cloak and immediately comes to Jesus. “On the narrator level, the act of casting [the cloak] aside may signify his forsaking dependence on anything else and trusting only in Jesus” (IVP Bible Background). Again, Bartimaeus leaves us an example to follow. Sometimes it is these desperate circumstances that cause us to realize we have nothing else on which to depend. All other resources have been dried up. No one else can do what needs to be done at our point of need. Only Jesus. Why do we often wait until all else fails before we rely wholly upon the Lord? On the contrary, let’s cast off all our problem-solving, all our scheming, all our own efforts, and recognize that we must first come to our Lord and depend on His will and His power to be at work in our desperation. He will not pass us by. “Even on the way to the cross, He will not let the cry of the needy go unheard” (Hagner). His words to us are the same as those to Bartimaeus, “What do you want Me to do for you?”

    The culmination of the story is that Jesus grants Bartimaeus his sight. Bartimaeus follows Jesus glorifying God, and the people see it and praise God.

    Take courage, friend. Our Savior, filled with compassion, calls for us to bring our requests to Him, crying out in faith and perseverance, depending wholly upon Him. In our desperation, we will not be disappointed that we have taken refuge in Him.