Alright, the lesson this morning
will be taken from Luke chapter 18 and verses 35 through the
end of the chapter. My title and the subject of these
verses is Mercy for Blind Beggars. Let's read these verses together.
Luke chapter 18 beginning with verse 35. And it came to pass that as he
was come nigh unto Jericho, a certain blind man sat by the wayside
begging. And hearing the multitude pass
by, he asked what it meant. And they told him that Jesus
of Nazareth passes by. And he cried, saying, Jesus,
thou Son of David, have mercy on me. And they which went before
rebuked him, that he should hold his peace. But he cried so much
the more, Thou son of David, have mercy on me. And Jesus stood,
and commanded him to be brought unto him. And when he was come
near, he asked him, saying, What wilt thou that I should do unto
thee? And he said, Lord, that I might
receive my father. And Jesus said unto him, Receive
thy sight, thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his
sight and followed him glorifying God and all the people when the
solid gave praise unto God. I was a little wearied as I read
a lot of debate from the commentators about Matthew, Mark, and Luke's
account of this miracle. Matthew says there were two blind
men. Mark speaks of only one and tells
us his name. And Luke only calls him a blind
beggar. One talks of Christ coming into
Jericho, the other talks about him leaving Jericho. And some say there were four
different men, some three, some two, and others just the one.
Matthew plainly tells us that there were two. There were two
blind men. I don't see the reason for all
this debate. There were two blind men. Mark
and Luke speak of the most prominent of the two, the one that caught
everybody's attention, the one that was speaking out, crying
out loudly, the most noticeable. But I fear we lose the glory
of what took place on that day when we start debating about
all these things. What's the difference if there
was one or four? What's the difference? The point
is, that he saved him, and how he saved him, and what he said
to him after he saved him. That's the point of the miracle.
The miracle had nothing to do with how many. He could save
a thousand as easy as he could save one. And yet they get lost
in debates about these things, and that's the problem with intellectualism. You get caught up in all these
things, and you miss the glory of why it was given. So what
do we really know about this miracle of Christ? What is it
that God the Holy Ghost intends for us to see? Well, let me give
you five things. First of all, He means for us
to see a divine arrangement. He wasn't there by accident.
He was there on purpose. He didn't do anything by accident. Chance didn't dictate His steps. Divine providence. dictated his
steps. An arrangement. And this arrangement
is present in the salvation of every sinner. God has an arrangement. He's going to save that man.
He's going to cross paths with his preacher, with whoever it
is he intends to save. It's going to happen. It happens
with all. Listen to this. Paul said whom
he did predestinate Them he also called. Who did he call? Them he predestinated. In Ephesians chapter 1 verse
11, having stated all the means by which were saved, he said,
we have obtained an inheritance being predestinated according
to the purpose of him who worketh all things after the counsel
of his own will. Did he work that arrangement
after the counsel of his own will? Well, sure he did. He worketh
all things. Is what he's saying here have
anything to do with his calling? Well, sure it does. That's what
he said. We've obtained an inheritance. How do you know that you're an
heir? If he don't call you, you're not an heir. But he calls his
people with an effectual call, and in that calling they understand
that they're heirs. Not only did he predestinate
according to the purpose of him who worketh all things after
the counsel of his own will, but he did it in such a way that
all the praise of the glory goes to him who first trusted in Christ,
which is the Father. in whom you also trusted after
that you heard the word of truth. God's sovereign, unchangeable
providence arranged this whole thing. Looking at God's providence
is like staring into the vast universe on a clear night. You
can just take in so much, can't you? You can't get it all in.
And even if you could, that ain't a drop in the bucket to all of
it. You can just see a portion of
it. You can't even take in a portion. But if you did, it would still
just be the beginning of the universe. And I cannot begin
to calculate the events, the circumstances that led up to
this meeting, and neither can I on any day take in all that's
unfolded before my eyes in His providence. Everything, everything
in this universe, all working to this end. So this is the picture set before
us. He was a blind man. And my friend, you can see the
ever-changing circumstances, events, and situations on any
given day, yet God so arranges all these variables to a sure
end. Isn't that something? We need to pause and consider
that. That's what he wants us to see in this. There was a blind
man out there. How come him to be out there?
Well, he put it on the heart of somebody to carry him out
there. Did reason enter into it? Well, yeah, that was the
main thoroughfare. We're going to take him out there
and surely somebody passing by is going to give him some alms.
This was a good place for him to be, so they carried him out
there. As luck would have it, somebody
said, Jesus of Nazareth passed by. No. No, he passed by because
God arranged for him to pass by. There was a certain beggar. A certain beggar. So I see on
this day a divine arrangement. I believe that's what the Holy
Ghost wants us to see in this. And perhaps the reason for His
only speaking of the one blind sinner was to show us that God's
salvation is an individual work. The second thing I see here is
the reality of the situation. This man was blind. He was a
blind beggar. Now these miracles all have a
two-fold meaning. First of all, they were performed
as evidences that Jesus of Nazareth was a son of God. God did these
miracles by him in our midst, ratifying who he was. This is
my son. This is my son. Peter said, Jesus
of Nazareth was a man approved of God among you by miracles
and wonders and signs which God did by him in the midst of you
all. And then secondly, there are
pictures of how God saves sinners. That's why they're there. There's
no one picture that can picture the sinner. He's not just blind. He's demon possessed. He's not
just demon possessed. He's in a coma. He's paralyzed. He's laying there. He can't do
anything. Without me, you can do nothing.
That's what our Lord said. And all of these things have
a spiritual application. I attended church services when
I was just a young man and I thought I knew God. I thought I at least knew a few
things. A few things about God. Thought I knew some things about
his person. And then one day he was pleased
to bring me to see the reality of the situation. What reality? I was a blind baker. I knew nothing. I knew nothing. I was totally
dependent on God for everything. Every scrap of information that
he gave me was by his mercy and by his grace. I had no heavenly vision, no
spiritual insight. I wasn't just confused a little
bit. Bartimaeus, if this is who he's
talking about here, which I believe he is, he wasn't just a little
confused, he was blind. He was blind. Well, what's that mean? That
means you're totally 100% dependent on what somebody tells you. Is
that right? He could see no color. He couldn't
see anything. He was blind. Yvonne's legally blind. And she
has problems. But blind boy DeMaios was all
getting blind. He couldn't see anything. He
couldn't see a shadow. He couldn't see a stick. He didn't
see anything. He was blind. He was totally. What's all the fuss about? Huh? Well, can't you see? No, I can't. what Jesus of Nazareth was passing
by. A divine purpose was unfolding
all around that congregation and they couldn't see it. They
was as blind as he was spiritually. Deity was at work, sinners being
saved. And here's the reality, every
natural man is a blind beggar. Now that's just it. That's just
it. If you've got visions of yourself
higher than that, you've got too high of a vision. You need
to come down. Blind Bartimaeus was in a world
made subject to vanity by reason of him who subjected the same
in hopes, Expectation. All creation, the
expectation of it. What's it here for? Why is it
here? The expectation of creation waits
for the manifestation of the sons of God. Everything in creation
was being preserved that this man might hear the gospel. And the glory of the living God
being manifested and all I can think about sometimes is what
I'm going to eat after church. God was walking among men, and
men were blind to it. And he tells us we're two or
more gathered together, there am I in the midst, and we're
blind to it. And I have no doubt in my mind
that this blind man had some concept of God. Most everybody
does. But in reality, his eyes were
not his problem. It was his heart and his mind. We are as blind spiritually as
he was naturally. Many a beggar died on his blanket. Many a beggar still dies on his
blanket. But this was a certain beggar.
A beggar for whom God had made arrangements and made provisions. So think of the reality of the
situation. Somebody carried him out to a
place where a lot of folks might see him and give him some alms. And there God was pleased to
teach him a few things about his son. They could have come
by. They came by me for years telling me lies. And I was too
blind to know it. I didn't know if they were telling
me a truth or a lie. They were telling me things that they saw,
things that they felt, things that they knew. And I believed
them. I believe you. But I'm blind. I'm blind. God could have let
anybody come by and talk to him, and maybe some of them did. But
somebody came by and told this man the truth about Jesus of
Nazareth. He gives eyes to the blind. He
cleanses lepers. He raises the dead. They told
him, this is the Christ. This is the Christ. He listened to the pastors by
and he gleaned a little here and a little there. No doubt
through some conversations concerning Jesus of Nazareth he learned
some things. He was shut up to those that
God arranged to speak to him. And if all you ever hear is lies
and deceit, that's all you're ever going to know. Isn't it? That's all you're ever going
to know. But God arranged for this man
to hear the truth. Mercy was already being shown.
Prevenient grace was already being manifested in this blind
man's path. And then thirdly, I believe the
Holy Ghost wants us to see in this miracle the call of a desperate
sinner. And you can go on and on with
God's eternal deity and predestination and all of these things, and
he has a people from the beginning, and I believe every bit of that.
But I also believe this, ain't nobody gonna be saved till they
call on him. Now that's just so. That's just
so. And that's part of his eternal
counsel. This is the will of him that
sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing,
I'll raise it up again at the last day. And this is the will
of him that sent me, That everyone who seeth the Son and calleth
on him, he's going to be saved, and I'm going to raise him up
at the last day. Both of those people are the same. They're
the same. God's elect will all call on
him, every one of them. And know this. And maybe you've looked at this
passage and wondered about it. He said, the kingdom of God suffereth
violence, and the violent take it by force. And I've heard a
lot of explanations for that, but I see it demonstrated here. Here's some men who were very
close to Christ. They were the twelve. And they
were walking with Him, and everybody recognized them for who they
were, and recognized their closeness with the Savior. And these men
ran out and told this blind beggar to shush, then hush, the master's
passing by. Did he listen to them? Huh? They held the highest office
in the church. They were apostles. Did he listen to them? Uh-uh. He looked around him like they
wasn't even there. He couldn't even see. Blind eyes
and he just cocked his head sideways. Jesus, thou son of David, have
mercy on me. Actually, scripture said he cried
out the more. They said Jews. He cried out
even louder. And David's offspring were many,
but this one was particular, and this one is the Messiah,
the Christ, the Redeemer of Israel. And when a sinner knows the reality
of the situation, and the fact that the Son of God is passing
His direction, a desperate call is going to be borne. And this
man may never have another opportunity to call on Him, and he knew it.
He knew it. I see men today, I've only seen
one or two desperate sinners in my lifetime. I mean desperate. Desperate. The truth is his sight had already
been restored, though he was yet without vision. He could
already see, he just didn't know it. He could see what multitudes
couldn't see. Listen to what our Lord said
to the Pharisees. This was also after He healed
a blind man. Now listen to this. Our Lord
said to the Pharisees, for judgment might come into this world that
they which see not might see. And they which see might be made
blind. And they said, are you saying
we're blind? And the Lord said, if you were
blind, You should have no sin. But now you say, we see. Therefore,
your sin remaineth. The call of a desperate sinner.
And importantly, I see in these verses, sovereign mercy dispensed. The Lord of glory, nothing could
stop him, Russell, nothing. They were going to take him physically
by the hands and throw him off the brow of the hill. And he
passed right through his men, right through their men. They
couldn't stop him. They said, if you go up to Jerusalem, if
you go up to that temple, they're going to kill you. Did he fear
what man was going to do to him? No. He told the highest authority
in the land, he said, I could right now call on my father,
and he'd send 10,000 legions of angels down here. But my kingdom,
not others' were. He couldn't be stopped, but He
stopped with the cry of the sinner. He stopped. Now listen to these words carefully.
Luke 18 verse 40. Look at it with me if you will. Jesus stood and commanded him
to be brought unto Him. Shrouded in mystery. Lies, tradition,
false witness. How come this poor blind beggar
to find his way to the Savior? He was commanded to be brought. Is that right? Ain't that what
they say? He commanded Him to be brought. And our Lord gave
thanks to His Father, John 17, 2, for giving Him power over
all flesh that He should give eternal life to as many as the
Father has given Him. Does he give it to them? You
bet he does. His lordship is unique in that
his power is for the salvation of sinners. And when they came
as a mob to take him away, they demanded his name. He said, I
am, and they all fell back on the ground. But here he exercises his power,
commanding a chosen sinner to be brought to him. And then lastly,
I see in these verses a declaration of hope. He said, Thy faith hath
saved thee. Thy faith hath saved thee. Now
let me tell you something. The Bible says, By grace are
you saved through faith, and that not of yourselves. It is
the gift of God, not of works, lest any man should boast. Blind
men see, Ephesians 2.7. when God shows to them the exceeding
riches of His grace and His kindness toward them through Christ Jesus.
And when everything's said and done, we are His workmanship
created in Christ Jesus unto such faith and repentance and
gifts. He finds us where we are on the
beggar's blanket. He sends us a witness of the
truth and then brings Himself within the earshot of the sinner. within the hope of a hearing.
And faith is the gift of God. It's not of works, lest any man
should boast. But where faith is given, when
God gives faith, it's real faith. And it belongs to the believer. He didn't say, my faith hath
made thee whole. He said, your faith hath made
thee whole. When he gives faith, it's yours.
It's real. It's in you and you believe.
He don't believe for you. Christ died as our substitute
and redeemer. He obeyed as our representative
and federal head and his obedience and death on the cross were done
for us. But faith is a work done in us. It's done in us. Christ don't
believe for us, He enables us to believe. And believing, He
says to us, Thy faith hath saved thee. Huh? Thy faith hath saved thee. Now let me close with this. Immediately
he received his sight, and followed Him glorifying God, and all the
people when they saw it gave praise. unto God. The salvation
of sinners always leaves men glorifying God. If it don't, it's not of God. These people were not enamored
with places and times. They were lost in the wonder
of sovereign grace. And all those given such a faith
and filled with divine wonder, they follow after The Christ
of God singing his praise, telling his story. He is the God of their
salvation. Salvation for blind beggars.
Blind beggars. Can you take your place as a
blind beggar? Oh, you bet I can. I have and
I will. Blind beggars made to see.