The Healing Heart of Jesus

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Healing is a controversial issue among believers, and most of the contention is around whether it is God’s will to heal, or whether He wants to or not. Many people question God’s heart when it comes to healing, thinking that He only heals in certain circumstances or at certain times. But I want to share with you a different perspective. It comes from Mark chapter 10, and it shows us an amazing picture of Jesus’ heart for healing if we stop and take a look at it.

Why is it important to see Jesus’ heart for healing? Some people would think that it is superfluous; some people would think it’s not important… they relegate healing off into the territory of a curiosity… but for the many people who are sick, in-need and even dying in their physical bodies, the healing of Jesus is very much center-stage – and God knows it. That’s why these pictures of Jesus are in your Bible., not merely to fill pages, but to show you the life that is available to you through Jesus Christ.

So let’s begin by taking a look at Mark 10:46-52:

“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, you 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, You son of David, have mercy on me.

And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying to him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calls you.

And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus.

And Jesus answered and said to him, What will you that I should do to you? The blind man said to him, Lord, that I might receive my sight.

And Jesus said to him, Go your way; your faith has made you whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.”

There are a lot of amazing things here. This is as Jesus was leaving Jericho… in a short time, Jesus was going to die – His life-mission was going to be fulfilled, and He knew it. Keep this fact in-mind as we continue in the text.

Here we see Bartimaeus, a blind beggar sitting on the side of the road. But something amazing is about to take place… you see he heard that no ordinary traveler was passing by… he heard that this was Jesus, specifically the Jesus of Nazareth. Now what specifically do you think came to his mind when he heard that it was Jesus passing by – if He was listening to the preachers of today, he might’ve heard that Jesus is thrice holy and you can’t approach Him until you get all the sin out of your life and clean-up your act! There are many books out there today saying that you have no right to ask Jesus for any blessing (least of all a physical healing) if you have sin in your life or your faith isn’t perfect… however that isn’t what Bartimaeus heard about Jesus – and that’s a good thing to.

We see in verse 47 that Bartimaeus began to cry aloud: Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me! There were no grand words, no special phrases, no standing on ritual or ceremony… just an impassioned cry for mercy! A cry for the grace of God, and there is nothing more simple and beautiful than that. You would think people would appreciate and understand that… however look at verse 48:

Many people… not just one or two… but many people charged him that he should hold his peace… Be quiet! Shut up! How dare you a blind beggar with no status bother the Master Jesus! And there are a lot of people today placing the same false and artificial barrier between Jesus and people today. They put an emphasis on His holiness, and they elevate Him on a pedestal so high that no-one can reach Him. Yet they forget that after Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount, it was He who stepped down off of the mountain in Matthew 8:1. Thank God that Jesus is able to meet us at our level, and doesn’t require us to climb up to His! Bartimaeus the blind man, saw Jesus clearer than those who had physical sight, because he cried all the more: Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!

Here’s the beautiful part…look at verse 49: Jesus stood still. Take that in for a minute… let that float around in your mind and sink down into your spirit. This simple cry for mercy from a blind beggar on the side of the road, made Jesus stop in His tracks. Now remember that Jesus was close to fulfilling the mission of His life. His divine purpose was about to be completed, yet He has both the time and the heart stop stop right here, and minister to Bartimaeus. And Jesus commanded that Bartimaeus be brought to Him. Then the people called to the man, saying Be of good comfort, rise; He calls you. How quickly the message of the people changed from shut-up, to be of good comfort.

Then in verse 50, Bartimaeus throws aside his garment… the thing he would use to cover, hide and protect himself, and also which would slow him down, and he rose up, and came to Jesus.

Now Jesus gets right to the point in verse 51… He says “Now examine your life, see which of your sins has caused you to become blind. Make sure you’re not holding onto any secret sins or bitterness!”

Oh wait… Jesus didn’t say any of that!

I guess Jesus didn’t have the books and articles our Christian culture publishes today in His pocket when He talks to Bartimaeus. Look at what Jesus simply says: “What do you want me to do for you?”

Do you know that it actually offends some people that Jesus asks this question? Jesus is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords! We need to serve Him and honor Him!

I agree. And do you know how we honor Him? By allowing Him to be God and let Him serve us. Only foolish arrogance says that we can give to the One who created everything from nothing. This was the very lesson that Jesus taught Peter when He washed the disciples feet in John 13.

Bartimaeus, didn’t stand on any false-pretense or fake humility, he just came right out and said what he wanted. He didn’t think “Gee, I really want my eyesight, but I can’t ask for that first, so I’ll ask for something more holy first to prove my righteous intent to Jesus.”

Nope. He simply said “Lord, that I may receive my sight.”

And guess what? You may not believe it, but look what happened in verse 52: Bartimaeus is healed immediately! Jesus told him to go his way and that his faith is what made him whole. Now what faith is this? It is the faith, in the healing heart of Jesus. The faith that Bartimaeus had, was the understanding and trust that he could make a simple request for his sight, based on nothing other than the mercy of Jesus, and that is exactly what Bartimaeus received.

This is your God. This is the Healing Heart of Jesus.