A Life in Focus: The Blind Man of Bethsaida

And he looked up and said, “I see men like trees, walking.” Mark 8:24 Recommended Reading Mark 8:22-26 Jesus never does anything half-way, but sometimes He does work in stages. In Mark 8, the disciples only partially understood His teachings and they didn’t fully grasp what He was saying. “How is it you do not understand?” He asked (verse 21). In verse 22, Jesus taught them a lesson. Meeting a blind man in Bethsaida, Jesus healed him in stages. At first, the man saw people as trees walking. Then Jesus put His hands on his eyes again, and his sight was completely restored. This two-stage miracle is very encouraging. When we’re confused about some aspect of Bible study, when life seems blurry, or when we’re bothered by events we can’t explain, we’re seeing trees walking. But how wonderful to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior! As we walk with the Lord day by day, we find that our focus improves, our knowledge grows, our wisdom increases. And even if things are still a little blurry just now, we can be assured that with the Great Physician we’ll understand it better by and by. The simplicity of the Gospel gives what the complexity of human wisdom promises but never delivers. John MacArthur