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Message Notes
“And they came to Jericho. And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’ And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’ And Jesus stopped and said, ‘Call him.’ And they called the blind man, saying to him, ‘Take heart. Get up; he is calling you.’ And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. And Jesus said to him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ And the blind man said to him, ‘Rabbi, let me recover my sight.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Go your way; your faith has made you well.’ And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.” —Mark 10:46-52
Spiritual blindness results from our choice to live the natural (carnal) life above the Christ-centered (Spirit-guided) life!
We live with spiritual blindness when we choose not to surrender ourselves to Jesus Christ! The call of the Lord upon our lives is simple and basic: “And he said to them, ‘Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.’” —Matthew 4:19
Our mission here at West Ridge is purposeful, and if followed, it will lead us away from spiritual blindness, “leading people to become fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ.”
“Thus it is written, ”The first man Adam became a living being’; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit.’ But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual. The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. As was the man of dust, so are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so are those who are of heaven. Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven.” —1 Corinthians 15:45-49
We live with spiritual blindness because our entire existence before Christ is dominated by our carnal flesh!
None of us have to live with spiritual blindness!
“Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared, but we know that when he appears, we shall be like him because we shall see him as he is.” —1 John 3:2
When we surrender our lives to Christ, these three things are true!
- We are God’s children now!
- We are becoming like Christ (what we will be has yet to appear).
- When Christ appears, we shall be like Him because we will see Him as he is!
Episode 1 – Living without Spiritual Blindness
“And they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them. And they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. And taking the twelve again, he began to tell them what was to happen to him, saying, ‘See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles. And they will mock him and spit on him and flog him and kill him. And after three days, he will rise.’” —Mark 10:32-34
Jesus gives us a clear, real-life demonstration of what it’s like to live our lives with spiritual insight (vision)!
Episode 2 – Spiritual Blindness Revealed
“And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came up to him and said to him, ‘Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.’ And he said to them, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ And they said to him, ‘Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.’” —Mark 10:35-45
James and John’s request reveals their spiritual blindness: the all-too-human desire for honor, power, and prestige.
Episode 3 – How to Overcome Spiritual Blindness
“And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. And Jesus said to him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ And the blind man said to him, ‘Rabbi, let me recover my sight.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Go your way; your faith has made you well.’ And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.” —Mark 10:50-52
How to Overcome Spiritual Blindness
- Come to Jesus (verse 50).
- Tell Jesus what you need – Spiritual Vision (verse 51).
- Follow Jesus by faith (verse 52)