Member-only story
Take your coat off
Concord United Methodist Church, Oct. 24, 2021
Mark 10:46–52 (CEB)
Jesus and his followers came into Jericho. As Jesus was leaving Jericho, together with his disciples and a sizable crowd, a blind beggar named Bartimaeus, Timaeus’ son, was sitting beside the road. When he heard that Jesus of Nazareth was there, he began to shout, “Jesus, Son of David, show me mercy!” Many scolded him, telling him to be quiet, but he shouted even louder, “Son of David, show me mercy!”
Jesus stopped and said, “Call him forward.”
They called the blind man, “Be encouraged! Get up! He’s calling you.”
Throwing his coat to the side, he jumped up and came to Jesus.
Jesus asked him, “What do you want me to do for you?”
The blind man said, “Teacher, I want to see.”
Jesus said, “Go, your faith has healed you.” At once he was able to see, and he began to follow Jesus on the way.
The great commentator William Barclay notes that Mark lays out Jesus’ journey to Jerusalem in stages. At the beginning of the journey, Jesus was in the north, in the areas around Caesarea Philippi. Then, he began heading south. He stopped in Galilee for a while. Then, he passed through the hill country and crossed over for a while…
