Equal Before God

In this passage, the crowd following Jesus and His disciples rebuked the two blind men on the roadside when they called out. The blind men knew that Jesus was the Messiah and reached out to Him in faith. These men were sitting at the margins of society, both literally and figuratively. Sitting by the roadside, hearing the world move past them, they were invisible until they made themselves known and called out to the Lord. When the crowd saw the two blind men, they saw dirty, smelly, and loud men—the type of people who should remain invisible.

But Jesus didn’t care about how “respectable” someone appeared by society’s standards. His compassion comes from a place in which all are equal before the throne of God. He saw their faith and offered them the same compassion He would give to earthly kings. This passage lays out a vision of heaven in which God’s faithfulness and kindness are equally accessible to all people of all races, socioeconomic statuses, abilities, and cultural distinctions. Through God, we can look past the trappings of society’s preconceived notions and embrace each other for who we indeed are: daughters and sons of God.

Think: What words or phrases do you think the crowds in this story would have used to describe the blind beggars? What people or groups in our world are seen similarly to how the crowds viewed these men? In comparison, how do you think God views these people?

Pray: Take time to reflect on those who are often overlooked in our world. Ask God to show you any people or groups of people you have been ignoring or disregarding. Then, ask Him to show you how you might view these people through His eyes.

Respond: Jesus took the time to humanize Bartimaeus by simply noticing him and asking him a question. How can you emulate Jesus this week as you interact with the people around you, particularly the people that might naturally fade into the background? It can be as simple as just asking them a question!

Author: Christina Chen Wang, Community Groups + Culture Lead