Our Gospel passage this morning is a really inspiring one; full of joy and promise and overall one that can remind us of the power of faith.
There are echoes of this in the other scriptures:
Job who declares “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted”
A rather succinct affirmation of faith, that comes from the heart, and is part of a life-long focus of Job’s trust in the Almighty.
The psalm, of course, is a hymn of praise, celebrating the opportunity to be people of faith throughout our lives:
I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall ever be in my mouth
The Letter to the Hebrews culminates this affirmation that we, as humans, do the best we can, but are fallible; yet are known and loved by Jesus: our high priest, holy, blameless, undefiled, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens
…and this Jesus desires to know us - and for us to know him.
And the Gospel passage: the richness and depth and beauty of this passage!
It seems simple – Jesus and his friends, travelling; a blind man, begging. A chance encounter, that is life-changing… for the blind man, of course, but also for his community, and for the disciples: and for all of us who can hear it today.
For this short passage is one gorgeous example of how being close to Jesus changes US.
The ordinary is made EXTRAordinary
The worldly is made divine.
Because God wills it.
Poor Bartimaeus – he’s sitting there, and even in how we first hear of him, we know this is not a fortunate individual. Because even before we learn that he’s a beggar, we learn that he is despised. He is introduced as SON OF TIMEAUS: a name that can mean “the defiled one”.
So: this son of the defiled one, is lonely, dependent on the kindness of strangers, accustomed to being ignored and rejected and neglected.
And from this place of need, he calls out to Jesus for help.
For he sees Jesus – not with his eyes, obviously – but with his heart. He calls:
Son of David, have mercy on me.
“Son of David” a powerful statement in those days; acknowledging the lineage of the divine, the promised Messiah.
(For we remember, Jesus’ earthly dad was called Joseph – a carpenter)
Son of David, have mercy on me.
And the people do what people often do; they try to minimise distractions and interruptions; so they try to quiet him.
But the power of God will not allow it:
How beautiful it must have been for him to hear Jesus’s voice saying “Come Here! I want to see you.”
To Bartimaeus, that was not a statement of hoping for the future – it was a celebration of the present.
I want to see you means that I already see your existence: I recognise your humanity; I honour your being.
I delight in the presence of God’s love and light that is manifest before me in your personhood.
I see you.
And so: possibly for the first time, Bartimaeus was seen: not as the societal outcast that his blindness made him, but as a child of God.
For the first time, the other meaning of the word Bartimaeus was known.
For while society was happy with considering this man as the son of “the defiled one”, the other meaning of his name is “the honourable one”.
After his encounter with Jesus, the world sees Bartimaeus: not as one to be ignored; but as one that Jesus has loved, Someone that has been honoured by God.
The life-changing aspect of this encounter is not just that Bartimaeus has had his sight restored – but he is someone who has had his dignity restored.
This one encounter – the beginning of his relationship – with Jesus.
The Jesus who did not presume to change Bartimaeus without first engaging him in conversation.
Then Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?”
This is the response of relationship – of connection – of truly seeing.
It comes from knowing and being known.
It is what Jesus taught then; it is what Jesus invites us to today:
To see love in the everyday
To build community
To help others
To find opportunities to share grace
To be followers of Jesus: followers in the pathway of love.
The power of faith is life-changing:
Baptism does the same thing:
It takes us away from the ordinary world, into the arms of a loving God.
It celebrates the relationship that is already there with God, and with the church;
It shows the world the power of grace
It demonstrates to community the potential of connection.
So we celebrate: the move from what the world thinks is good enough
To the amazing assurance of God’s promises:
The promise of being seen; and known, and sought out: forever.
The promise of eternal life; with all those who have gone before, and all those who will come after.
The undeniable and unforgettable reminder of being part of a community that is called to love, to see, to know, and to celebrate each individual; helping them to come to know the special gifts and blessings that will be lavished upon them by the Spirit.
The power of prayer: to hold this all together, in ways that are bigger than we can comprehend; in that divine presence that stays with us all our lives.
So as we give thanks to God for today’s baptism with little {NAME}, we also remember and give thanks for every connection we have that reminds us of love: for this reminds us of God, and the privilege and joy of being truly and perfectly known by our ever-loving Saviour.
AMEN.
There are echoes of this in the other scriptures:
Job who declares “I know that you can do all things, and that no purpose of yours can be thwarted”
A rather succinct affirmation of faith, that comes from the heart, and is part of a life-long focus of Job’s trust in the Almighty.
The psalm, of course, is a hymn of praise, celebrating the opportunity to be people of faith throughout our lives:
I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall ever be in my mouth
The Letter to the Hebrews culminates this affirmation that we, as humans, do the best we can, but are fallible; yet are known and loved by Jesus: our high priest, holy, blameless, undefiled, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens
…and this Jesus desires to know us - and for us to know him.
And the Gospel passage: the richness and depth and beauty of this passage!
It seems simple – Jesus and his friends, travelling; a blind man, begging. A chance encounter, that is life-changing… for the blind man, of course, but also for his community, and for the disciples: and for all of us who can hear it today.
For this short passage is one gorgeous example of how being close to Jesus changes US.
The ordinary is made EXTRAordinary
The worldly is made divine.
Because God wills it.
Poor Bartimaeus – he’s sitting there, and even in how we first hear of him, we know this is not a fortunate individual. Because even before we learn that he’s a beggar, we learn that he is despised. He is introduced as SON OF TIMEAUS: a name that can mean “the defiled one”.
So: this son of the defiled one, is lonely, dependent on the kindness of strangers, accustomed to being ignored and rejected and neglected.
And from this place of need, he calls out to Jesus for help.
For he sees Jesus – not with his eyes, obviously – but with his heart. He calls:
Son of David, have mercy on me.
“Son of David” a powerful statement in those days; acknowledging the lineage of the divine, the promised Messiah.
(For we remember, Jesus’ earthly dad was called Joseph – a carpenter)
Son of David, have mercy on me.
And the people do what people often do; they try to minimise distractions and interruptions; so they try to quiet him.
But the power of God will not allow it:
How beautiful it must have been for him to hear Jesus’s voice saying “Come Here! I want to see you.”
To Bartimaeus, that was not a statement of hoping for the future – it was a celebration of the present.
I want to see you means that I already see your existence: I recognise your humanity; I honour your being.
I delight in the presence of God’s love and light that is manifest before me in your personhood.
I see you.
And so: possibly for the first time, Bartimaeus was seen: not as the societal outcast that his blindness made him, but as a child of God.
For the first time, the other meaning of the word Bartimaeus was known.
For while society was happy with considering this man as the son of “the defiled one”, the other meaning of his name is “the honourable one”.
After his encounter with Jesus, the world sees Bartimaeus: not as one to be ignored; but as one that Jesus has loved, Someone that has been honoured by God.
The life-changing aspect of this encounter is not just that Bartimaeus has had his sight restored – but he is someone who has had his dignity restored.
This one encounter – the beginning of his relationship – with Jesus.
The Jesus who did not presume to change Bartimaeus without first engaging him in conversation.
Then Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?”
This is the response of relationship – of connection – of truly seeing.
It comes from knowing and being known.
It is what Jesus taught then; it is what Jesus invites us to today:
To see love in the everyday
To build community
To help others
To find opportunities to share grace
To be followers of Jesus: followers in the pathway of love.
The power of faith is life-changing:
Baptism does the same thing:
It takes us away from the ordinary world, into the arms of a loving God.
It celebrates the relationship that is already there with God, and with the church;
It shows the world the power of grace
It demonstrates to community the potential of connection.
So we celebrate: the move from what the world thinks is good enough
To the amazing assurance of God’s promises:
The promise of being seen; and known, and sought out: forever.
The promise of eternal life; with all those who have gone before, and all those who will come after.
The undeniable and unforgettable reminder of being part of a community that is called to love, to see, to know, and to celebrate each individual; helping them to come to know the special gifts and blessings that will be lavished upon them by the Spirit.
The power of prayer: to hold this all together, in ways that are bigger than we can comprehend; in that divine presence that stays with us all our lives.
So as we give thanks to God for today’s baptism with little {NAME}, we also remember and give thanks for every connection we have that reminds us of love: for this reminds us of God, and the privilege and joy of being truly and perfectly known by our ever-loving Saviour.
AMEN.
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