Hearing Healing

The Rev. Whitworth Ferguson III
The First Presbyterian Church
Washingtonville, New York
October 24, 2004

Hearing Healing
Psalm 34:1-7, 17-18
Luke 18:35-43

A man is healed by Jesus as if by magic.
In Mark’s rendition of this story
we learn the man’s name is Bartimaeus, son of Timaeus.
In Matthew’s version of the story,
Jesus doesn’t heal one man; he heals two.
Sight is restored.
The one who was once blind now sees;
The one who once sat by the roadside,
who let the world pass him by, now follows.
Follows without question.
Follows the healer, the miracle man.
And all the people who witnessed the healing, all praised God.

As with all of Jesus’ parables,
there is a lot going on in a short, simple story.
A blind man is reduced to begging by the side of the road
as his only means of eking out a few shekels to buy food.
He hears about Jesus,
hears about the man people think might be the Savior.
He cannot see this man, but he is aware of him.
Through his sense of listening he knows.
And he waits, and waits, each day, sitting by the side of the road,
as he calls out to all who pass,
“spare a few coins for a blind man.”
The sympathetic place a coin or two in the cup;
the more hard-hearted walk by the filthy beggar,
offended by his smell, offended by his very presence.
The mean-spirited mock the man,
perhaps even kick him around a little.

But he does not lose heart.
He keeps his faith,….and he hopes.
for he has heard, heard about the man who heals,
heard about the man who performs miracles.

And the day finally comes when the healer, the miracle man walks through town.
walks through Jericho, one of the oldest cities in all of Judah.
The city’s roots trace back to long before that day when
Joshua and his army walked around its walls and blew their shofars,
ram’s horn trumpets, to knock down the walls,
the walls that kept the Israelites out,
and the Canaanites safely in.
The walls came a-tumbling down
the city was sacked, and the Israelites killed every person and every animal.
No one was spared.
But after the city was destroyed,
Joshua uttered a curse against anyone who tried to rebuild the city.
(Joshua 6:26)
It was to be left for all time as a sign of God’s power.
But we’ve never been very good at listening to God,
and so the curse was quickly forgotten,
and the city was rebuilt and re-settled.

More than a thousand years later Jericho was a prosperous town
in the Jordan river valley just northeast of Jerusalem,
a town that was on the road that led to Jerusalem,
where Jesus was headed to the fate he knew awaited him.
Bartimaeus may have been blind, but he saw in ways that others could not.
He knew that Jesus was the Messiah and came bringing healing.
He knew because of his hearing, because he had listened.

And so on that day he cried out to Jesus in faith,
cried out even as other around him tried to shut him up;
cried out because of what he had heard:
what he had learned from all those days, day after day,
week after week of sitting by the side of the road.
Roadways were the communication links in Jesus’ day.
To sit on the side of the road was to sit quite literally
on the information highway.
As travelers walked or road past,
they’d share news as well as a coin or two.
And Bartimaeus would listen.

There is something about us that makes us not want to listen;
we don’t like to listen.
We hear something and we are skeptical.
But if we see something with our eyes we are quick to believe.
Magicians count on this to perform their illusions.
The mind will accept what it sees even if it defies logic.
Only when Thomas saw the scars on Jesus’ hands and feet did he believe.
But Bartimaeus didn’t have that luxury.
He lived in a world of darkness.
His world was defined by sounds and smells;
Neither light, nor images, nor color entered his world.
Still, he knew about Jesus;
And he waited;
waited patiently, waited in hope,
listening for the day when he might hear that the Messiah
was coming through town.
And then one day Jesus did come through.
Healing was in his hands, his touch, and even in the hem of his garment,
but Bartimaeus knew that there was even more healing in his words.
Healing of all kinds,
healing for all kinds of afflictions.
Healing for the maladies that are even worse than not being able to see,
Illnesses that can drain us of our very lives,
things like worry, anxiety, fear,
hopelessness, loneliness, despair.
Jesus came with healing in his touch,
but Bartimaeus knew that Jesus came with healing
in his every word.

Jesus traveled through the countryside preaching and teaching,
using words to tell of God’s kingdom and God’s glory.
As he spoke, many would listen but and some would follow.
But when he performed a miracle, especially a miraculous healing -
that got people’s attention.
Restore sight to a blind beggar along the side of the road,
and glory alleluia: Praise the Lord!

We hear the words of Jesus Christ preached on Sunday,
and we respond leadenly, stiffly, even sluggishly.
But if we were to bring in a faith healer some Sunday morning,
one of those Benny Hinn or Peter Popoff types,
and let them work their sleight of hand,
we’d have to park the cars on the front lawn.

Do you believe in the healing power of Jesus Christ?
If you are like most Christians, your answer is probably,
“well….I want to…
but I need to see some evidence first.”
The dilemma that leaves for the preacher – any preacher -
is that in order to convince you of the healing power of Jesus Christ,
I ought to stand up here and perform some miraculous cure.
“As seen on TV: the limp body that falls back in the waiting arms
of burly assistants as the preacher says
‘sister you are cured’
and all the people respond with arms raised
and voices crying out, ‘Glory! Praise the Lord!’”

If I were to do that, I would start with my own mother
who has been struggling for years with rheumatoid arthritis.
Her illness last year seemed to trigger a flare-up
of the arthritis in her knees
and she has been in constant pain for months.
She has prayed for relief from the pain,
She wasn’t looking for an answer, looking with her eyes.
Like Bartimaeus, she was listening
listening for answer, an answer from God.
And God heard and God answered her prayers.
Answered her prayers by guiding her to a wonderful orthopaedic surgeon
who will replace her knee tomorrow with an artificial knee:
a healing that is truly miraculous when you think about it.
This is a miracle, a miracle that we can do something like that.
Through science and medicine and engineering,
we’ve developed incredible artificial joints
that can replace those that time and disease wear out.
God is at the foundation of the miracle:
God has called men and women into medicine and science and engineering;
God has given men and women skills and gifts in metals and math
and health care.
God has answered my mother’s prayers for healing
just as surely as God answered Bartimaeus’ prayer.

In last week’s lesson, Jesus reminded us of the importance of
praying constantly, and not giving up hope.
Jesus reminded us that God hears our every prayer
and answers our every prayer.
Our task is to listen, listen for the answer,
listen for the answer that can bring healing.

The Psalmist reinforces our faith:
“When the righteous cry for help,
the Lord hears and rescues them from all their troubles…….
Many are the afflictions of the righteous,
but the Lord rescues them all.” (Psalm 34)

We all have our afflictions.
And we all seek healing.
But in these times of instant gratification,
what we look for is an instant miracle.
Something quick, effortless, painless.
There is healing that takes place in this building every week.
In fact twice each week, on Wednesday and Sunday evenings,
when a large group of men and women gather in the Overfield Room.
They are members of Alcoholics Anonymous.
These are folks who have realized that alcohol is running their lives
and alcohol is ruining their lives.
They know they need to do something
each person knows he or she needs healing;
and through AA they find it.
There is no one dramatic miracle of healing:
“be cured of the demon of alcoholism!”
No, the healing comes through countless small miracles:
the voice of a friend or loved one who says, “Go to a meeting.”
the inner voice that says to the frightened alcoholic,
“I will be with you.”
the welcome a stranger hears when he or she walks in
for the first time.
The miracle occurs in the support the alcoholic hears from others in the group
at every meeting as he or she works to get through each day without alcohol.
The healing is real.
The healing is truly miraculous.
And every member of this congregation helps that healing,
helps make those miracles occur
by the simple act of providing space for the group.

We each have our afflictions,
our pains, things that get in the way of our growth and faith.
We look for healing,
we look for miraculous cures.
But as we busy ourselves looking,
we may well miss the words that lead us to healing.
We may well miss the words of assurance, the words of guidance,
the words of encouragement,
the words of instruction that will lead us to the path of healing.
Jesus’ ministry was not based on miraculous cures,
it was based on words.
He was a healer, yes; but more important,
He was the Word of God,
the Word revealed,
The living Word who came to bring the word of God
to all who would hear.
How often did he say,
“let anyone with ears to hear, listen.”?

Our very faith lives are built on words,
words in texts, words in sermons, words in prayers, words in hymns,
words of welcome, words of support, encouragement,
words of teaching, words of guidance,
words of mercy, words of forgiveness,
words of love.

Where do you want healing in your life?
What is your pain, what are you struggling with?
What is weighing you down?
What makes your world as dark and colorless as Bartimaeus’?
The words of the psalmist instruct us:
“I sought the Lord and he answered me,
and delivered me from my fears.
Look to him and be radiant.
The poor soul cried, and was heard by the Lord.” (Psalm 34)

Jesus asks Bartimaeus, “what do you want me to do for you?”
Our Lord Jesus Christ asks each of us the same question.
He will deliver you,
he will take your pain,
and he will lead you to healing.
Not instantly, not through some miraculous cure.
No, the path may be long and arduous.
But it will be a path to healing.

Paul reminds us that we are to walk by faith, and not by sight
Bartimaeus knew this even before Paul did.
The man whose eyes saw nothing
may well have seen more than you or I.
Amen.