And they came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me. And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me. And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee. And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus. And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight. And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way."
Todays lesson is another confirmation of the power of faith. Bartimaeus, a blind man, knew that if Jesus simply made the command, he would receive his sight.
If the "Christians" of today were to demonstrate even one whit of the amount of faith that was demonstrated by those who Jesus healed during His ministry, what a wonderful world we would be living in.
The New Testament is full of promises divinely inspired, and assured, to those who believe in Jesus Christ. The promise of eternal salvation is the greatest, "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9)
We find the explanation of how faith works to justify the sins of the flesh in Romans 4:4-8, "Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man, unto whom God imputeth righteousness without works, Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin."
Most of today's "Christian" religions insist that once a lost soul has placed their faith in Jesus, they must also live a "sin" free life. As Paul tells us in the above quote, salvation comes through FAITH not through the "good" works men/women do.~
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