10.25.20 - Mark 8:23-26, Study Guide
Spiritual Site -- Mark 8:22-26
COMPASSION People brought the blind man to Jesus and begged Him to heal the man (Mark 8:22).
And they came to Bethsaida. And some people brought to him a blind man and begged him to touch him.
Q: What is significant about Bethsaida?
A: Jesus had done many miracles here. Bethsaida is close to where He fed the 5,000.
Q. What can we learn about the people’s compassion.
A: They were attuned to the needs of this man.
Q. Why are we often not attuned to the needs of others?
A: We are absorbed in our own feelings, problems, worries and desires. We overlook the needs of those God puts in our path and ignore the opportunity to help them.
Q: How can you grow in your compassion for others?
A: It is impossible to be annoyed and compassionate at the same time. Frustration, suspicion, irritation, bitterness, dislike and anger are all signs that we may be looking at others without compassion. Ask God to cultivate a spirit of compassion within you.
CONNECTION Jesus took the blind man by the hand (Mark 8:23).
And he took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village, and when he had spit on his eyes and laid his hands on him, he asked him, Do you see anything?
Q: Why is it significant that Jesus took the man by the hand.
A: Touch is an essential human need. When we shake hands or put an arm across a friend’s shoulder, the body releases neurological chemicals like oxytocin and serotonin that feel good, while also inhibiting chemicals that cause stress. But touch doesn’t just feel good; it is vital to being human. When babies and children are deprived of touch, their brain development is permanently impaired, which can destroy the growth of social abilities and result in lower intelligence.
Q: Why did Jesus lead the man out of the village?
A: Such a move may have been due to Jesus judgment on the town for its unbelief. Recall that Jesus refused to give the Pharisees a sign of His identity given their persistent unbelief in the face of His many miracles (vv. 11–13). Since Jesus also condemned Bethsaida for its disbelief even after the people there had seen Him do many signs and wonders (Matt. 11:21; Luke 10:13), His healing the man outside the town confirms His unwillingness to continue performing miracles before those who refuse to accept His teaching about His person and work.
CONVICTION Jesus spit in the blind mans eyes (Mark 8:23).
23 And he took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village, and when he had spit on his eyes and laid his hands on him, he asked him, Do you see anything?
Q: Why did Jesus spit on the blind man’s eyes?
A: Ancient people generally believed that saliva had healing properties. The deaf man would have understood that Jesus’ use of saliva meant He intended to heal him.
CONVERSION The blind man could partially see (Mark 8:24).
And he looked up and said, I see people, but they look like trees, walking.
Q: What is the meaning of this verse?
A: First, it's possible the man hadn’t always been blind. He was able to identify the people around his as people. Second, the man’s healing was not complete. He could discern light and shapes, but he could not see clearly.
CLARITY The blind man finally saw everything clearly (Mark 8:25).
Then Jesus laid his hands on his eyes again; and he opened his eyes, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly.
Q: Why did Jesus heal this man in stages?
A: This miracle was a sign to the disciples. And this is confirmed by the fact that Jesus had already asked them about their vision of Him (v. 18). He was now leading them by the hand to the point at which their sight would become much clearer. They, too, needed the second touch from the hands of their Master.
Q: What is the importance of having spiritual sight?
A1: Looking at our world through our mind’s eyes can bring stress, worry, fear, depression and hopelessness. But Jesus came that we may have life AND light. He gives us spiritual eyes to see!
A2: In Ephesians 1:18, Paul prays for his fellow believers – I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe.
COMMISSION Jesus sent the man home (Mark 8:26).
And he sent him to his home, saying, Do not even enter the village.
Q: Why did Jesus tell the man to not enter the village?
A: As before, Jesus sent him home with a command not to enter the village. No need for a show. No desire to make him a spectacle. This miracle was for his physical eyes, and it was for the disciples’ spiritual eyes. That it accomplished those two purposes was enough.
TAKE AWAYS:
And they came to Bethsaida. And some people brought to him a blind man and begged him to touch him.
Q: What is significant about Bethsaida?
A: Jesus had done many miracles here. Bethsaida is close to where He fed the 5,000.
Q. What can we learn about the people’s compassion.
A: They were attuned to the needs of this man.
Q. Why are we often not attuned to the needs of others?
A: We are absorbed in our own feelings, problems, worries and desires. We overlook the needs of those God puts in our path and ignore the opportunity to help them.
Q: How can you grow in your compassion for others?
A: It is impossible to be annoyed and compassionate at the same time. Frustration, suspicion, irritation, bitterness, dislike and anger are all signs that we may be looking at others without compassion. Ask God to cultivate a spirit of compassion within you.
CONNECTION Jesus took the blind man by the hand (Mark 8:23).
And he took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village, and when he had spit on his eyes and laid his hands on him, he asked him, Do you see anything?
Q: Why is it significant that Jesus took the man by the hand.
A: Touch is an essential human need. When we shake hands or put an arm across a friend’s shoulder, the body releases neurological chemicals like oxytocin and serotonin that feel good, while also inhibiting chemicals that cause stress. But touch doesn’t just feel good; it is vital to being human. When babies and children are deprived of touch, their brain development is permanently impaired, which can destroy the growth of social abilities and result in lower intelligence.
Q: Why did Jesus lead the man out of the village?
A: Such a move may have been due to Jesus judgment on the town for its unbelief. Recall that Jesus refused to give the Pharisees a sign of His identity given their persistent unbelief in the face of His many miracles (vv. 11–13). Since Jesus also condemned Bethsaida for its disbelief even after the people there had seen Him do many signs and wonders (Matt. 11:21; Luke 10:13), His healing the man outside the town confirms His unwillingness to continue performing miracles before those who refuse to accept His teaching about His person and work.
CONVICTION Jesus spit in the blind mans eyes (Mark 8:23).
23 And he took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the village, and when he had spit on his eyes and laid his hands on him, he asked him, Do you see anything?
Q: Why did Jesus spit on the blind man’s eyes?
A: Ancient people generally believed that saliva had healing properties. The deaf man would have understood that Jesus’ use of saliva meant He intended to heal him.
CONVERSION The blind man could partially see (Mark 8:24).
And he looked up and said, I see people, but they look like trees, walking.
Q: What is the meaning of this verse?
A: First, it's possible the man hadn’t always been blind. He was able to identify the people around his as people. Second, the man’s healing was not complete. He could discern light and shapes, but he could not see clearly.
CLARITY The blind man finally saw everything clearly (Mark 8:25).
Then Jesus laid his hands on his eyes again; and he opened his eyes, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly.
Q: Why did Jesus heal this man in stages?
A: This miracle was a sign to the disciples. And this is confirmed by the fact that Jesus had already asked them about their vision of Him (v. 18). He was now leading them by the hand to the point at which their sight would become much clearer. They, too, needed the second touch from the hands of their Master.
Q: What is the importance of having spiritual sight?
A1: Looking at our world through our mind’s eyes can bring stress, worry, fear, depression and hopelessness. But Jesus came that we may have life AND light. He gives us spiritual eyes to see!
A2: In Ephesians 1:18, Paul prays for his fellow believers – I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance in the saints, and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe.
COMMISSION Jesus sent the man home (Mark 8:26).
And he sent him to his home, saying, Do not even enter the village.
Q: Why did Jesus tell the man to not enter the village?
A: As before, Jesus sent him home with a command not to enter the village. No need for a show. No desire to make him a spectacle. This miracle was for his physical eyes, and it was for the disciples’ spiritual eyes. That it accomplished those two purposes was enough.
TAKE AWAYS:
- God has created human beings with two sets of eyes, or two vision systems. There are your physical eyes so that you can see physical things, and spiritual eyes - or the eyes of the heart - so that you could perceive spiritual things.
- Sin blinds! And it so fundamentally blinds us that it blinds us to our blindness! This passage really is about this dynamic of spiritual blindness.
- The fact that Jesus may work in a manner that seems slower in some cases than in others—such as the blind man in Bethsaida—is encouraging. It tells us that we should not give up on those who seem to be hardened the most against the gospel. God may yet change their hearts, so we should continue praying for them and preaching the gospel to them as we have the opportunity.
- We need to allow the Holy Spirit to be our glasses through which we see life differently than the world sees. We need to develop our spiritual eyesight by spending time with God through being in the Word and prayer.
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