SPEAKER_00: This sermon was recorded at Faith Evangelical Free Church in Grand Forks, North Dakota.
SPEAKER_01: How many of you are following the images that come back from the James Webb telescope?
SPEAKER_01: Some of you are, and some of you are thinking, I have no idea what that is.
SPEAKER_01: James Webb, I think it's the James Webb, it's the Webb telescope anyway, giving us brand new images of never before seen places in space.
SPEAKER_01: Amazing pictures of galaxies that are beyond our imaginations in how far away they are.
SPEAKER_01: Beyond our imagination in their beauty and their complexity.
SPEAKER_01: What do you do with a with a God who put those stars in place?
SPEAKER_01: What do you do with with a God that designed that and calls each one of those stars by name?
SPEAKER_01: What do you do with him?
SPEAKER_01: What do you do with a man who gives sight to the blind?
SPEAKER_01: What do you do with a man who touches blind eyes and immediately restores their sight?
SPEAKER_01: You can't just walk away from that.
SPEAKER_01: You can't remain unchanged after observing formerly blind beggars following Jesus with brand new eyes.
SPEAKER_01: Open your Bible with me to Matthew chapter 20.
SPEAKER_01: This morning our text is Matthew 20, verse 29, through the end of the chapter, right before the recounting of the triumphal entry.
SPEAKER_01: Matthew 20, verse 29, Matthew records for us that as Jesus and the disciples went out of Jericho, a great crowd followed Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: And behold, there were two blind men sitting by the roadside, and when they heard that Jesus was passing by, they cried out, Lord, have mercy on us, son of David.
SPEAKER_01: But the crowd rebuked them, telling them to be silent.
SPEAKER_01: But they cried out all the more, Lord have mercy on us, son of David.
SPEAKER_01: And stopping, Jesus called them to him and said, What do you want me to do?
SPEAKER_01: They said to him, Lord, let our eyes be opened.
SPEAKER_01: And Jesus, in pity, touched their eyes, and immediately they recovered their sight and followed him.
SPEAKER_01: Amen.
SPEAKER_01: I've told you about my eyes before.
SPEAKER_01: I remember having poor vision, at least as far back as 1981.
SPEAKER_01: Maybe before that, I just can't remember.
SPEAKER_01: By 2009, my vision was, my wife reminded me, worse than I thought.
SPEAKER_01: She reminded me that she had recorded that it was 20 over 550.
SPEAKER_01: I wasn't blind.
SPEAKER_01: I wasn't blind, but my eyes were not in good shape.
SPEAKER_01: I had to have a book about six inches away from my face to be able to read it.
SPEAKER_01: So I was incredibly privileged to have LASIK surgery.
SPEAKER_01: And the first indication of the seriousness of the procedure was when I received a form to sign that absolved the surgeon of all responsibility about the end result of my vision.
SPEAKER_01: I couldn't hold the doctor responsible for how my vision turned out.
SPEAKER_01: But my vision was so bad that I was willing to take the chance.
SPEAKER_01: I knew what to expect from the surgery.
SPEAKER_01: I didn't let Allison watch the video, but I watched the video.
SPEAKER_01: So I knew going into this procedure exactly what to expect, but as is often the case, experiencing the procedure is something else.
SPEAKER_01: But it was worth it.
SPEAKER_01: But it was different.
SPEAKER_01: Part of the procedure involves blindness.
SPEAKER_01: There's a period in which a flap of your eye is removed and pulled back, and you lose your vision.
SPEAKER_01: It's gone.
SPEAKER_01: It's nothing.
SPEAKER_01: It's a blackness that is unnerving.
SPEAKER_01: But it's worth it.
SPEAKER_01: Because no sooner had I gotten home and taken a nap than I opened my eyes and I was able to read that small print on the bottom of the television.
SPEAKER_01: Without glasses.
SPEAKER_01: It was amazing.
SPEAKER_01: Took about a month to fully recover, and when I was fully recovered, my vision was better than 2020.
SPEAKER_01: About five years later, my vision starts degrading again.
SPEAKER_01: But perhaps you might think insanely, I trusted a doctor I did not know to take a laser and burn off a part of my eye for the chance to see better.
SPEAKER_01: And I would go back to that doctor and do it all over again if I could.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus reached out and with his fingertips touched the eyes of two men.
SPEAKER_01: And instantly their eyes were restored.
SPEAKER_01: Just like that.
SPEAKER_01: A simple touch, and two blind men had their vision filled with Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: What do you do with that?
SPEAKER_01: Seriously, what do you do with that?
SPEAKER_01: There's no liability waiver.
SPEAKER_01: There's no uncertainty.
SPEAKER_01: Just a touch.
SPEAKER_01: They're two hopeless men with no remedy for their blindness.
SPEAKER_01: Maybe they'd attend, obtained all the medical help that they could for that time, but we're not told that.
SPEAKER_01: We are only told that they are blind, and as blind men, they would be relegated to begging along the well-traveled and well-trafficked routes of Jericho.
SPEAKER_01: We also know from our context that the Passover is near.
SPEAKER_01: And with the Passover comes hordes of travelers on their way to the royal city to celebrate.
SPEAKER_01: And among them are Jesus and his twelve disciples.
SPEAKER_01: And as we see so often, they are surrounded by crowds.
SPEAKER_01: Maybe in answering the question, what do you do with that?
SPEAKER_01: Maybe you would be among those in the crowd.
SPEAKER_01: Put yourself in the shoes of someone in the crowd that day.
SPEAKER_01: What might you be thinking?
SPEAKER_01: Let's think for a moment about the crowd's perspective.
SPEAKER_01: We know from the crowd's perspective that Jesus was famous.
SPEAKER_01: He was like a movie star.
SPEAKER_01: Matthew uses this term crowds all throughout the gospel.
SPEAKER_01: In fact, in chapter 4, at the very beginning of Jesus' ministry, in verses 24 and 25, Matthew specifically says that Jesus' fame was spreading through the crowds of people.
SPEAKER_01: He was famous.
SPEAKER_01: Chapter 7, verse 28, the crowds are astonished at Jesus' teaching.
SPEAKER_01: They just can't, they can't grasp about the authority with which he was teaching.
SPEAKER_01: And when they marveled at him, chapter 9, verse 33 says, they followed him over and over again.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus couldn't get away from the paparazzi.
SPEAKER_01: And so in chapter 15, beginning in verse 29, Matthew tells us that the crowds started bringing people to him.
SPEAKER_01: Not just individual family members, but crowds were bringing the sick and the lame and the hurting to Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: If you flip over a page from our text into chapter 21, crowds in chapter 21, verse 8 will lay their coats on the ground for Jesus and shout, Hosanna, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
SPEAKER_01: Chapter 21, verse 11, they did all of this because ultimately they believed that he was a prophet.
SPEAKER_01: As Jesus and his disciples leave the city of Jericho, the crowds gather around him, surround him, because he is famous.
SPEAKER_01: And who doesn't want to be around famous people?
SPEAKER_01: I don't know if they collected autographs back then, but I'm sure they would have if they could have.
SPEAKER_01: In fact, the leaders of Israel are so concerned about Jesus primarily because of his popularity.
SPEAKER_01: In chapter 14, verse 1, it says, Herod the Tetrarch heard about the fame of Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: The crowds gathered around Jesus because he was famous.
SPEAKER_01: Do you treat Jesus like a movie star?
SPEAKER_01: Is that why you come and you sing songs and you listen to prayers and preaching?
SPEAKER_01: Is it because Jesus is famous?
SPEAKER_01: The crowds also believed that Jesus was their king.
SPEAKER_01: John tells us in his gospel that the crowds of people had already at this time tried to make Jesus the king by force.
SPEAKER_01: They were so excited about him, and he was so popular, they wanted to take him by force and make him king.
SPEAKER_01: And Jesus is just a handful of miles from the city of the great king, from the royal city.
SPEAKER_01: Many among the crowds of people had followed Jesus, had walked with him for miles over the dusty roads, and by the time they arrive in Jerusalem in the next chapter, they are ready to anoint him as king.
SPEAKER_01: They're prepared for Jesus to lead them out of oppression from Rome and into freedom as God's people.
SPEAKER_01: There's a brand new exodus going on.
SPEAKER_01: They're all excited about Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: But when it comes to two blind men, they weren't so kind.
SPEAKER_01: The blind men were intrusions.
SPEAKER_01: They're at the front row of the concert, and somebody comes and sits right in front of them, and they're so tall that they can't see around them.
SPEAKER_01: They're just an intrusion.
SPEAKER_01: And they just want to get them out of the way.
SPEAKER_01: Look at verse 31.
SPEAKER_01: What do they do?
SPEAKER_01: They rebuked the two blind men.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, be quiet.
SPEAKER_01: Get out of the way.
SPEAKER_01: Go back and sit down in your corner.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus is coming.
SPEAKER_01: We don't want to bother with you right now.
SPEAKER_01: The last time this word was used in Matthew is chapter 19, verse 13, where Jesus rebuked the disciples for bringing children to him.
SPEAKER_01: There's a correction involved.
SPEAKER_01: There's a correction that involves a redirection.
SPEAKER_01: Stop doing what you're doing and go in a different direction.
SPEAKER_01: Stop bothering us and bothering Jesus and go in a different direction.
SPEAKER_01: See, the crowds were so focused on Jesus, on his popularity, they didn't want the blind men to interrupt.
SPEAKER_01: Which tells us they lacked compassion.
SPEAKER_01: The crowds were likely very familiar with this cultural image.
SPEAKER_01: Just go to our major cities, anywhere in our country or anywhere in the world, and you will see the poor and the destitute sleeping on the sidewalks, in camps, asking for money.
SPEAKER_01: The same way the blind, the lame, and others like them would place themselves at strategic locations to beg for money and food.
SPEAKER_01: That was all they could do.
SPEAKER_01: Not only is this a strategic location, but it's also a significant time of year to give alms, to give gifts, to be charitable to the poor.
SPEAKER_01: Passover was a major time for that.
SPEAKER_01: Hundreds, if not thousands, of Jewish people are making their way from Galilee south along the desert roads to Jericho, and once they get to Jericho, they would turn west and head up into the hills to Jerusalem.
SPEAKER_01: Everyone would know that beggars of all kinds would be here and at similar locations asking for alms, and they knew that God was pleased when people supported the poor.
SPEAKER_01: Except this time.
SPEAKER_01: This time there are two blind men.
SPEAKER_01: They're not asking for money.
SPEAKER_01: They're not asking for food.
SPEAKER_01: They want to talk to Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: The crowds are on the road to triumph, to celebrate God's freeing of his people from the Egyptians.
SPEAKER_01: And it was also a victorious road because they were going with Jesus, their future king.
SPEAKER_01: Who cares about two blind men?
SPEAKER_01: When victory is over the hill.
SPEAKER_01: They're distracted by the popularity of Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: What do you do with a man who touches blind eyes and restores their sight?
SPEAKER_01: Consider if your vision is like that of the crowd.
SPEAKER_01: Consider if you give priority to politics over people.
SPEAKER_01: If you give priority to societal expectations over spiritual needs, if you give priority to physical perceptions instead of obeying the word of God, you might be more blind than you think if you are like the crowd.
SPEAKER_01: Let's think about the blind men.
SPEAKER_01: What are they thinking, processing, imagining?
SPEAKER_01: Well, they too understood that Jesus was famous.
SPEAKER_01: But in a different way.
SPEAKER_01: The crowds believed that Jesus was famous and they wanted him to exercise his power to bring about another Exodus.
SPEAKER_01: Not so much with these blind men.
SPEAKER_01: There's no record that they had ever met Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: This may even be the only time that Jesus had ever traveled through Jericho.
SPEAKER_01: But these blind men know of him.
SPEAKER_01: They cannot see with their eyes the people around them.
SPEAKER_01: They cannot see the crowd, but surely they can sense, they can feel, they can hear the commotion of the crowds.
SPEAKER_01: Perhaps they can smell the dry, sandy dust in the air being stirred up by the feet of the travelers.
SPEAKER_01: And they get all excited when they hear murmuring of Jesus, of Nazareth coming by them.
SPEAKER_01: And they begin to cry out.
SPEAKER_01: See, they know who Jesus is.
SPEAKER_01: They've probably never met him.
SPEAKER_01: But they've listened to the stories.
SPEAKER_01: Who in Israel hasn't heard of this mighty healing prophet?
SPEAKER_01: And we can tell that that is another of their perspectives.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus was not merely famous to them.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus was a healer.
SPEAKER_01: When they finally get Jesus' attention, they are asked by him, What do you want me to do for you?
SPEAKER_01: Do you want money?
SPEAKER_01: Do you want food?
SPEAKER_01: What is it that you want?
SPEAKER_01: Ironically, the very same question was asked in our previous section by the mother of James and John.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus asked her, What do you want me to do for you?
SPEAKER_01: And she said, Give my sons the priority in your kingdom.
SPEAKER_01: Her request was prideful and arrogant.
SPEAKER_01: The two blind men could have asked for alms to be given to them.
SPEAKER_01: They could have asked for financial provisions for the rest of their lives, so they didn't need to come out and beg every day.
SPEAKER_01: They could have requested some food.
SPEAKER_01: But instead they asked, Lord, let our eyes be opened.
SPEAKER_01: There's a humility there, there's a submission that Jesus can decide.
SPEAKER_01: And the decision that Jesus makes will be right.
SPEAKER_01: There appears to be a knowledge here of what others have received from Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: And there's a belief that if Jesus has healed others, maybe including other blind men that they know of, he can also heal them.
SPEAKER_01: There is a trust in the power of Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: They went all out to get his attention.
SPEAKER_01: They didn't care about the crowds.
SPEAKER_01: So there's a demonstration here of faith in the power and the person of Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: There's another blind man in John's gospel who said, Who has ever heard of the eyes of a blind man being opened?
SPEAKER_01: Why would they have that trust?
SPEAKER_01: Why would these two blind men believe that if they can just get Jesus' attention, they'll be able to see?
SPEAKER_01: They believed it because they believed that Jesus was their Messiah.
SPEAKER_01: They call out twice after Jesus, the Son of David.
SPEAKER_01: This isn't just any miracle worker.
SPEAKER_01: This isn't just any rabbi, any teacher traveling the roads on the way to Jerusalem for the Passover.
SPEAKER_01: No, this is the Messiah.
SPEAKER_01: You don't see the disciples saying this.
SPEAKER_01: You don't see the crowds saying this.
SPEAKER_01: You see those who can't see, grasping.
SPEAKER_01: This is the Messiah, the Son of David.
SPEAKER_01: God promised to restore David's kingdom and its people, and with that, a hope of power to restore their sight.
SPEAKER_01: So Matthew's getting us ready for this traveling up the hillsides through the desert to Jerusalem at the pinnacle.
SPEAKER_01: He's getting us ready to hear of the entry into Jerusalem, down the Mount of Olives, where these same people, most likely including the two formerly blind men, would proclaim Jesus' Messiahship.
SPEAKER_01: But we need to pause for a moment before we get there and understand something very integral to these two men.
SPEAKER_01: The crowds didn't care about them.
SPEAKER_01: They didn't care about the crowds.
SPEAKER_01: It was worth it to them to ignore the crowd in order to get to Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: Do we ignore the trials of Sunday morning regularly in order to get to Jesus?
SPEAKER_01: It's not the same, of course, but it is.
SPEAKER_01: Can you imagine that?
SPEAKER_01: The first thing you see after feeling fingertips on your eyes, the first thing you see is the one who gave you sight.
SPEAKER_01: Verse 34 tells us that their recovery of sight was immediate.
SPEAKER_01: Just like that.
SPEAKER_01: Instantaneous.
SPEAKER_01: And as a result, they followed Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: They followed him.
SPEAKER_01: That could be a simple statement telling us that they joined the crowd following Jesus on the way to Jerusalem, but I think there's something more to it than that.
SPEAKER_01: Because Matthew often uses this word follow to refer to those who become disciples, those who take up their cross and follow Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: So here are two physically blind men who were able to see the light of Christ.
SPEAKER_01: It's a picture of John chapter 1, verse 5, where Jesus, where John says of Jesus, the light has shined in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.
SPEAKER_01: John was speaking spiritually, but here in Matthew 20 are two men who live in physical darkness.
SPEAKER_01: It's not just that somebody turned out the light, it's that it's ultimately black.
SPEAKER_01: There's nothing.
SPEAKER_01: They live in darkness.
SPEAKER_01: There's no light in their eyes, but the light of Christ shone through their darkness, and the darkness could not overcome the light of the Creator.
SPEAKER_01: In contrast, the crowds, though able to see physically, were spiritually blind.
SPEAKER_01: They illustrate John 1.10.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus was in the world, and the world did not know him.
SPEAKER_01: He was in the world and he made the world.
SPEAKER_01: His fingertips were involved in creating everything that is, but they didn't know him.
SPEAKER_01: Augustine, one of the church fathers, wrote, Great are you, Lord, and greatly to be praised.
SPEAKER_01: For great is your power, and your and to your wisdom there is no end.
SPEAKER_01: And man, being a part of your creation, desires to praise you.
SPEAKER_01: You move us to delight in praising you, for you have formed us for yourself, and our hearts are restless till they find their rest in you.
SPEAKER_01: Here were two blind men who could not see, but they knew they needed the touch of their creator, because in his touch they would find rest.
SPEAKER_01: I believe that I will meet these two blind men in glory someday.
SPEAKER_01: And I would really like to know what it was like to see Jesus as the first ray of light entered those newly created eyes.
SPEAKER_01: I delighted to be able to read the small print on the bottom of the television.
SPEAKER_01: What was it like to feel the touch of his fingertips and see him?
SPEAKER_01: If you are among the crowds who follow Jesus because it's popular or because you think it's the right thing to do, I'm sure these two men would tell you you still need to cry out to Jesus for sight.
SPEAKER_01: Cry out to him to remove your blindness so that you might see him.
SPEAKER_01: If you want true sight, Jesus can give it to you.
SPEAKER_01: Let's think then for a minute about Jesus' perspective.
SPEAKER_01: From his viewpoint, it was time to be focused on the cross.
SPEAKER_01: We've been seeing this building from chapter 16 on, where Jesus told the disciples he was headed to Jerusalem, and at the end of that road there was going to be suffering and death.
SPEAKER_01: We've noted several times about how Jesus redirects the disciples' thinking to the cross.
SPEAKER_01: And here in chapter 20, verses 17, 18, and 19, we see the third time Jesus does that.
SPEAKER_01: He takes the disciples aside on the road to Jerusalem and he warns them of what's to come.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus is a mere fifteen miles from Jerusalem when the blind men cry out to him.
SPEAKER_01: He is just a few days from the darkness and the agony of the cross.
SPEAKER_01: In about a week's time, the darkness that the blind men experienced would be the darkness that Christ endured on the cross.
SPEAKER_01: And the disciples are to be focused on Jerusalem, and what Jesus has warned them will take place there because Jesus himself has a firm determination to walk those 15 miles and to endure a week of trials and to endure beatings and to be hung upon a cross and to die for two blind men.
SPEAKER_01: But even though that is Jesus' focus, there is always time for compassion.
SPEAKER_01: James and John, in our previous section, wanted the positions of honor in Jesus' kingdom.
SPEAKER_01: They wanted the recognition.
SPEAKER_01: They wanted to be on his right hand and on his left hand.
SPEAKER_01: And they tried to beat the other disciples to the punch by asking Jesus if they could have those places of honor when he became king.
SPEAKER_01: But Jesus told them that greatness comes by serving.
SPEAKER_01: Whoever would be first among his disciples must be the servant of everyone.
SPEAKER_01: Here is Jesus, the movie star, the famous person.
SPEAKER_01: People clamoring for his attention.
SPEAKER_01: Focused on what's coming up.
SPEAKER_01: But what does he do?
SPEAKER_01: He makes time for compassion.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus has compassion for two poor blind men sitting in the dust of the desert, hoping and praying that someone will hear them.
SPEAKER_01: When Jerusalem and the chief priests and the scribes and the mocking and the floggings and the beatings and the being hung on a tree to bear God's wrath for sin are in the forefront of his thinking, Jesus still has compassion on two poor blind men sitting in the dust, hoping that someone will hear them.
SPEAKER_01: When the disciples rebuked the people for bringing children to Jesus, Jesus rebuked them, telling them, let the little children come.
SPEAKER_01: Now the crowd is rebuking the blind men.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus doesn't get after the crowd, however.
SPEAKER_01: Perhaps he understands that they don't know any better, but for the disciples, this is instruction on compassion.
SPEAKER_01: It's Jesus who stops.
SPEAKER_01: It's Jesus who calls out to the blind men.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus has pity, we're told, on these blind men.
SPEAKER_01: It's a word that means a compassion that's felt in your gut.
SPEAKER_01: It's not just something you know you need to do, it's something that you feel you need to do, and that drives you to act.
SPEAKER_01: This could easily be a moment for Jesus to make it all about him.
SPEAKER_01: I don't have time for this.
SPEAKER_01: I'm on my way to Jerusalem.
SPEAKER_01: I'm sorry, guys, that you're blind, but you know what?
SPEAKER_01: I gotta get going.
SPEAKER_01: It's his time, it's his moment.
SPEAKER_01: But there's always time for compassion.
SPEAKER_01: And in that compassion, we see that physical ministry for Jesus is an opportunity for spiritual ministry.
SPEAKER_01: Way back in chapter 9, verse 35 and 36, we read that as Jesus was going along, he saw the crowds and he had compassion for them.
SPEAKER_01: The same word.
SPEAKER_01: He had this gut pity for them.
SPEAKER_01: Why?
SPEAKER_01: Because they were harassed and helpless like sheep without a shepherd.
SPEAKER_01: I think that Matthew intends us to read something similar here by his use of the same word.
SPEAKER_01: Here are two blind men.
SPEAKER_01: They're like sheep without a shepherd.
SPEAKER_01: They're being harassed by the crowds.
SPEAKER_01: And Jesus has compassion.
SPEAKER_01: They have no clue what is ahead for Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: They ought to be feeling for him.
SPEAKER_01: And yet he feels for them.
SPEAKER_01: But is this really about restoring sight to the blind?
SPEAKER_01: Is it really about that?
SPEAKER_01: Because I'm not so sure it is.
SPEAKER_01: Mark chapter 10 is where Mark records this same miracle, and Mark highlights one of the blind men named Bartimaeus.
SPEAKER_01: And in Mark chapter 10, verse 52, Jesus says to Bartimaeus, one of these two blind men, after he could see now, he says, Go on your way.
SPEAKER_01: Your faith has made you well.
SPEAKER_01: And he recovered his sight, and immediately he followed Jesus on his way.
SPEAKER_01: See, this was not merely to restore the sight of the blind.
SPEAKER_01: This is to impart the light of Christ to ones who by faith were born of God.
SPEAKER_01: Mark reveals us that this is a faith-filled healing that results in discipleship.
SPEAKER_01: In a man seeing Jesus and saying, I want to follow him.
SPEAKER_01: What are you going to do with a man who touches eyes and restores sight?
SPEAKER_01: These blind men had spiritual insight to follow Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: But the seeing crowd was spiritually blind.
SPEAKER_01: We know that because Matthew regularly highlights crowds as those who follow Jesus out of popularity, out of what they can get out of him, not out of genuine belief.
SPEAKER_01: And the crowd thought they were in charge.
SPEAKER_01: They believed that the end thing was following Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: They were ready to go to Jerusalem and to make him king.
SPEAKER_01: They were on their way to a celebration.
SPEAKER_01: But it's the blind men who really see who Jesus is.
SPEAKER_01: How ironic is it that it was the blind men who could see.
SPEAKER_01: Having no sight, the blind men see, yet seeing those with sight were blind.
SPEAKER_01: Sadly, I think we have many religious people today that fill our churches because they believe it's the thing to do.
SPEAKER_01: It's the right thing, it's what they should do.
SPEAKER_01: But the reality is they're only part of the crowd.
SPEAKER_01: They think they see, but they're blind.
SPEAKER_01: This situation where the dust from hundreds of feet on a desert road is settling down around the Savior teaches us that we must first recognize that we are all blind because of sin.
SPEAKER_01: We may have physical sight, but that physical sight may trick us into believing that we can see spiritually.
SPEAKER_01: But if you have not come poor in spirit to Jesus, crying out, Lord, give me sight.
SPEAKER_01: You may still be blind.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus has already told the Pharisees that just as a doctor helps the sick, Jesus came not for those who think they're right for God, but for those who realize I'm blind and I need the Savior to give me sight.
SPEAKER_01: My friends, it takes the faith of a child to come to Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: It takes the humility of a servant to follow Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: And it takes the self-realization of the blind to see Jesus for who he really is.
SPEAKER_01: And that is what Matthew wants us to see.
SPEAKER_01: We've considered the crowd's perspective and the blind men's perspective and Jesus' perspective, but what about Matthew's perspective?
SPEAKER_01: He's the one writing this gospel for us.
SPEAKER_01: He's the one wanting to lead us along.
SPEAKER_01: And Matthew's perspective is that it's not about the crowds.
SPEAKER_01: They're just blind anyway.
SPEAKER_01: They're just there for the popularity.
SPEAKER_01: They're there to get the food for their bellies that Jesus can provide out of nothing.
SPEAKER_01: They're there for the autograph.
SPEAKER_01: They're there because it's the fun thing, it's the end thing to do.
SPEAKER_01: It's not about the crowds, Matthew says.
SPEAKER_01: And you know what?
SPEAKER_01: Really, it's not about the blind men either.
SPEAKER_01: It's not about the blind men.
SPEAKER_01: That's a nice story.
SPEAKER_01: It's a great, great witnessing account.
SPEAKER_01: It's a great illustration of those who cannot see, receiving sight, true sight, the sight that believes in Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: But ultimately, it's not about the blind men for Matthew.
SPEAKER_01: If we go away from this passage seeing this as about the blind men, then we might still be blind to what Matthew's wanting to accomplish.
SPEAKER_01: Because in Matthew's perspective, it's all about Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: This is about who Jesus is.
SPEAKER_01: We got a hint of it in the blind men, didn't we?
SPEAKER_01: Jesus, son of David.
SPEAKER_01: He's the savior of God's people.
SPEAKER_01: He's the anointed one.
SPEAKER_01: He's the promised one.
SPEAKER_01: But Matthew goes even further than that.
SPEAKER_01: Matthew says, this is God in the flesh.
SPEAKER_01: This is the savior of God's people.
SPEAKER_01: How do we know that?
SPEAKER_01: We know that because Jesus is demonstrating the mercy and the compassion of God.
SPEAKER_01: Echoing Exodus chapter 33.
SPEAKER_01: God said there to his people, I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will show mercy to whom I will show mercy.
SPEAKER_01: Crowd didn't want to show mercy.
SPEAKER_01: But Jesus says, I'm going to show mercy.
SPEAKER_01: But it's more than that.
SPEAKER_01: You see, in the Old Testament, there is no record of a prophet healing the blind.
SPEAKER_01: It didn't happen.
SPEAKER_01: There's a reason that the blind man in the Gospel of John said, Who's ever heard of this before?
SPEAKER_01: No one's ever heard of this before.
SPEAKER_01: There's no record of Elijah healing the blind.
SPEAKER_01: There's no record of Elisha healing the blind.
SPEAKER_01: There's no record of Moses healing the blind.
SPEAKER_01: There's no record of anybody healing the blind.
SPEAKER_01: But these men believe, Lord, you can heal our eyes.
SPEAKER_01: Why?
SPEAKER_01: Why is this the most common miracle in the gospel record?
SPEAKER_01: Oh, you didn't know that?
SPEAKER_01: Healing the blind is the most common miracle in the Gospels.
SPEAKER_01: Why is that?
SPEAKER_01: Well, the Old Testament gives us an example.
SPEAKER_01: The Old Testament does not record an instance of the blind receiving sight, but it speaks an awful lot about healing the eyes of the blind.
SPEAKER_01: For example, in Exodus chapter 4, verse 11, Yahweh says to Moses, Hey, hey, Moses, you're complaining about me and my mission for you, but who's made man's mouth?
SPEAKER_01: You did.
SPEAKER_01: Who makes man mute, unable to speak?
SPEAKER_01: You do.
SPEAKER_01: Who makes him deaf?
SPEAKER_01: You do.
SPEAKER_01: Who makes him seeing?
SPEAKER_01: You do.
SPEAKER_01: Who makes people blind?
SPEAKER_01: You do.
SPEAKER_01: Is it not I?
SPEAKER_01: Yahweh?
SPEAKER_01: In the great Exodus.
SPEAKER_01: God begins with Moses saying, Moses, I'm the one who does these things.
SPEAKER_01: It's not you.
SPEAKER_01: It's not anybody else.
SPEAKER_01: I do this.
SPEAKER_01: We go forward to Psalm 146.
SPEAKER_01: It says, Yahweh sets the prisoners free.
SPEAKER_01: Yahweh opens the eyes of the blind.
SPEAKER_01: Just as he told Moses, he's now speaking to the people of Israel through the psalmists in their songs that they sing.
SPEAKER_01: Yahweh opens the eyes of the blind.
SPEAKER_01: What are you going to do with a man who touches eyes and gives sight?
SPEAKER_01: That's not all.
SPEAKER_01: Isaiah 29, verse 18, in that day the deaf shall hear the words of a book, and out of their gloom and darkness the eyes of the blind will see.
SPEAKER_01: Speaking of the day when God will come and minister to his people in unique and wonderful ways, Isaiah 35, verse 5, the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.
SPEAKER_01: And who does it?
SPEAKER_01: Yahweh.
SPEAKER_01: Is it not I, Yahweh, who does this?
SPEAKER_01: In Isaiah 42, verse 7, speaking of the Messiah, God says, I will give him as a covenant for the people, as a light for the nations, to open the eyes that are blind.
SPEAKER_01: What do you do?
SPEAKER_01: What do you do with a man who touches the eyes of the blind so that they see?
SPEAKER_01: What do you do with him?
SPEAKER_01: If you hear what Matthew's saying, you say that this man who's touching the eyes of the blind is Yahweh who led Israel out of Egypt.
SPEAKER_01: Because he alone opens the eyes of the blind.
SPEAKER_01: And it's not the seeing crowds who grasped this truth.
SPEAKER_01: It's the blind beggars, the poor in spirit.
SPEAKER_01: What will you do?
SPEAKER_01: What do you do with the fingers that hang the stars in space?
SPEAKER_01: What do you do with the fingers that touch eyes and make them see?
SPEAKER_01: Well, I would think that one of the first things that you would do is check your sight.
SPEAKER_01: Check your sight.
SPEAKER_01: What brings you to Jesus?
SPEAKER_01: What brings you to his church?
SPEAKER_01: Is it his popularity?
SPEAKER_01: Is it his power?
SPEAKER_01: Is it his love?
SPEAKER_01: Those are great things.
SPEAKER_01: But you can still be blind and perceive those characteristics.
SPEAKER_01: Are you truly seeing Jesus?
SPEAKER_01: Check your sight.
SPEAKER_01: But don't just stop there.
SPEAKER_01: Check your heart too.
SPEAKER_01: Why is it that you follow Jesus?
SPEAKER_01: Is it because of his benefits or because of him?
SPEAKER_01: Has his light become your light?
SPEAKER_01: Do you now see Jesus as he truly is?
SPEAKER_01: And do you see him and say, I want to follow him and I want that light to be known?
SPEAKER_01: For you are a light who is on a hill, your city on a hill whose light cannot be hidden.
SPEAKER_01: Does his light shine in you to give light to others?
SPEAKER_01: Because it's that light that the darkness cannot overrule, and it's that light that gives life to the world.
SPEAKER_01: My friends, the fingertips that fashioned the stars and hung them in place touched eyes and instantly gave them sight.
SPEAKER_01: What impact will you let those fingertips have on your eyes and your soul?
SPEAKER_01: Would you pray with me?
SPEAKER_01: Lord Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: Give us eyes to see.
SPEAKER_01: Give us eyes to see because of who you are.
SPEAKER_01: Thank you for what we've seen here, so that through what Matthew's written, we can see with these blind men that you are God.
SPEAKER_01: Who else but you?
SPEAKER_01: Who else but a holy God could do these things?
SPEAKER_01: And in a few days later, pay the price for our sin so that our eternal darkness might turn to light.
SPEAKER_01: Open our eyes to see, give life to our hearts, to bring eternal praise to the Lord Jesus Christ.
SPEAKER_01: Amen.
SPEAKER_00: That concludes this sermon from Faith Evangelical Free Church.
SPEAKER_00: Our mission is to declare the Word of God and disciple believers into mature, devoted followers of Jesus.
SPEAKER_00: You can learn more by visiting our website at faithfree.com.