According to your faith let it be to you

When Jesus departed from there, two blind men followed Him, crying out and saying, "Son of David, have mercy on us!" And when He had come into the house, the blind men came to Him. And Jesus said to them, "Do you believe that I am able to do this?" They said to Him, "Yes, Lord." Then He touched their eyes, saying, "According to your faith let it be to you." And their eyes were opened. And Jesus sternly warned them, saying, "See that no one knows it." But when they had departed, they spread the news about Him in all that country.

As they went out, behold, they brought to Him a man, mute and demon-possessed. And when the demon was cast out, the mute spoke. And the multitudes marveled, saying, "It was never seen like this in Israel!" But the Pharisees said, "He casts out demons by the ruler of the demons."

- Matthew 9:27-34

Yesterday, we read about the healing of the ruler's daughter. The ruler came and worshiped Jesus, asking Him to restore His daughter, who had "just died." On the way to the ruler's house, a woman secretly touched His hem. She was healed of a hemorrhage that had lasted twelve years. Jesus responded by displaying her before all, saying, "Be of good cheer, daughter; your faith has made you well." Jesus then continued to the ruler's house, where a crowd is already wailing and mourning. He tells them that the girl is merely sleeping, but they ridicule Him. Jesus puts the crowd out of the room, He took her by the hand, and she arose. The report of this healing "went out into all the land."

When Jesus departed from there, two blind men followed Him, crying out and saying, "Son of David, have mercy on us!" And when He had come into the house, the blind men came to Him. In this cry we see reflected so much of Scripture, Old and New Testament. It is the cry of prayer as we know it and it has supplied us with our repeated phrases of prayer in the liturgy and in personal prayer throughout the centuries. "Have mercy on us!" is the cry for all of us. We'll see this expression in other gospel stories, but here it is two blind men crying out to Jesus. So, we encounter again the "doubling" found in Matthew, and we recall that this mission is for all, Gentile and Jew. "Son of David," says my study bible, is an indication of their faith that Jesus is Messiah.

And Jesus said to them, "Do you believe that I am able to do this?" They said to Him, "Yes, Lord." Then He touched their eyes, saying, "According to your faith let it be to you." And their eyes were opened. It's interesting here that Jesus knows what they want Him to do. He just asks about their faith in Him. We often encounter faith in the gospels, but if we think about what this means in the context of these encounters, we may find a different situation than we assume. Jesus is quite famous by this time, and the people also await and expect a Messiah. But faith is a kind of immediate understanding, a response to a presence, a trust in Him. It is a connection, a relationship. To restore sight to the blind is a sign of the messianic age, as predicted by Isaiah, who wrote, "Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped." The statement "let it be to you," my study bible indicates, "somewhat echoes the command of God at Creation (Genesis 1:3)." But here, we note, it is "according to your faith."

And Jesus sternly warned them, saying, "See that no one knows it." But when they had departed, they spread the news about Him in all that country. Jesus makes an apparent effort to protect His messianic identity, in the certain sign of the Messiah's presence. But, of course, they can't help but spread news that can't be contained. We will see the effects of this news.

As they went out, behold, they brought to Him a man, mute and demon-possessed. And when the demon was cast out, the mute spoke. And the multitudes marveled, saying, "It was never seen like this in Israel!" But the Pharisees said, "He casts out demons by the ruler of the demons." A second Messianic sign is done by Jesus: the healing of a mute. And the report goes out everywhere, so that the multitudes marvel that never before has this been seen in Israel. It is the call of an era opening up, a signal of the messianic age. And we see a good reason for Jesus not to reveal His own identity until it is His time to do so; immediately there is conflict with the temple leadership. Even though He does "good things" as predicted in prophecy, and casts out demons, the Pharisees make a charge that Jesus eloquently refutes elsewhere in the gospels. But here, the obvious is left unstated for itself. My study bible puts it this way: "The aim of the devil is to consolidate the power of demons, not destroy it. Further, Jesus cleansed lepers, raised the dead (see yesterday's reading), and remitted sins -- works which demons could not perform." A clash with the leadership now begins to be known and understood. Their desire to stop Him will grow, and His disciples will have to learn the value of fearless witness.

Why must it be so? We can ask ourselves why must it be that the leadership is against Him. Of course, we know from the gospels also that not all of the leadership was against Him. Some will be believers. But He is shaking up the norm, displacing - in some sense - the faith invested in them. Perhaps they simply don't want to relinquish their positions of power and control. Perhaps it is the inevitability of His expansive ministry, which needs new wineskins for new wine, and includes "offenses" such as sitting at table with sinners and tax collectors that will mount up. But Jesus will focus on faith. And that focus will be on every heart that is capable of receiving the word and nurturing it. He will speak soon of the "plentiful harvest" in need of laborers. He will send out His Twelve on their first mission, as "sheep among wolves." He will teach them about conflict because of Him and the faith He compels, that He did not come to bring peace but a sword. Soon after will come the arrest of John the Baptist by Herod. And so, we have the whole issue of faith presented to us. What does it mean, and how does it work? What gets in the way? How do we know who and what to trust? The power of prayer is a sure way to go to relationship, to ask for guidance and discernment. The willingness to give up what we might need to, to God -- the quality of humility in prayer -- is essential. What are our stumbling blocks? Let us understand His call, and those who answer it. How do we receive our sight? How are our mouths truly opened? There is a parallel here between the two kingdoms of the spiritual realm, and "the rulers of this world" who seek to oppress and do away with this light coming into the world. What do we hang onto that we think gives us power and control? Of what might we be willing to let go, in order to be led into the new, and to have our eyes be opened?