Get behind Me, Satan! For you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men

 

 Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town." 

 

Now Jesus and His disciples went out to the towns of Caesarea Philippi; and on the road He asked His disciples, saying to them, "Who do men say that I am?"  So they answered, "John the Baptist; but some say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets."  He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"  Peter answered  and said to Him, "You are the Christ."  Then He strictly warned them that they should tell no one about Him. 

 

And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.  He spoke this word openly.  Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him.  But when He had turned around and looked at His disciples, He rebuked Peter, saying, "Get behind Me, Satan!  For you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."  

 

- Mark 8:22-33 

 

Yesterday we read that the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.  But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign?  Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation."  And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.  Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.  Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread?  Do you not yet perceive nor understand?  Is your heart still hardened?  Having eyes, do you not see?  And having ears, do you not hear?  And do you not remember?  When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  They said to Him, "Twelve."  "Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?" And they said, "Seven."  So he said to them, "How is it that you do not understand?"   

 

  Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."  My study Bible comments that the people of Bethsaida were unbelieving (Matthew 11:21); so, therefore, this is why Jesus leads the blind man out of the town to heal him.  Additionally, in this way the people would not scoff at the miracle and then bring upon themselves greater condemnation in so doing.  That this blind man was healed in stages, my study Bible further explains, shows that he had only a small amount of faith (hence another reason to take him out of the town) -- for healing occurs according to one's faith (Mark 6:5-6).  But this little faith was enough, and it increased with the touch of Christ.  Jesus' command not to return to the town, my study Bible notes, symbolizes that we must not return to our sins once we have been forgiven.  

 

 Now Jesus and His disciples went out to the towns of Caesarea Philippi; and on the road He asked His disciples, saying to them, "Who do men say that I am?"  So they answered, "John the Baptist; but some say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets."  He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"  Peter answered  and said to Him, "You are the Christ."  Then He strictly warned them that they should tell no one about Him.  Here Jesus brings the question to the disciples of His true identity.  My study Bible comments that, "Who do you say that I am?" is the greatest question a person could ever face, for it is the question that defines Christianity.  Peter's correct answer to this question (on behalf of all the disciples) prevents the Christian faith from being seen as merely another philosophical system or path of spirituality.  He is the Christ, and the one and only Son of the living God (Matthew 16:16).  This is a position, my study Bible says, which excludes all compromise with other religious systems.  Peter's understanding is related to the heart (as discussed in yesterday's reading and commntary), and it cannot be achieved by human reason, but only by divine revelation through faith (1 Corinthians 12:3).  Christ means "Anointed One," and it's equivalent to the Hebrew title "Messiah."  My study Bible also asks us to note that Christ first draws out erroneous opinions about Himself.  This is done so that these incorrect ideas may be identified, as a person is better prepared to avoid false teachings when they are clearly identified.

 

 And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.  He spoke this word openly.  Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him.  But when He had turned around and looked at His disciples, He rebuked Peter, saying, "Get behind Me, Satan!  For you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."  My study Bible comments here that, after Peter's confession, Jesus reveals the true nature of His messiahship:  the mystery of His Passion.  It was expected that the Messiah would reign forever, so the idea that Christ would die was perplexing to Peter, and remained scandalous to the Jews even after the Resurrection (1 Corinthians 1:23).  St. Peter unwittingly speaks for Satan, my study Bible explains, for the devil did not want Christ to fulfill His mission and save humankind through suffering and death. 

 

Faith is once again the great subject behind all things we read in today's Gospel passage.  The passage shows us the various ways in which faith works, how it works in us, and how we cooperate with and find that faith -- even the struggle to continue in our faith and keep it.   There is first of all the story of the blind man healed by Jesus.  As my study Bible explains, his faith starts as "little" but it grows gradually through contact with Christ.  Jesus does everything He can to shore up and strengthen that faith -- taking the blind man out of the town and away from the scoffers in order to heal him, and even teaching him not to return so as to maintain his faith.  These teachings remain important for each of us.  As with many in Twelve Step programs, often it is only by removing oneself from a particular familiar environment that the destructive habit can be left behind.  Patterns of thinking (called λογισμοί/logismoi in the Greek language of theology and historical monasticism) affect us at many levels; so often we inherit them from an environment or adopt them through social contact.  They can be destructive and tempting, or they can help us -- and oftentimes in order to build up our lives in ways that are truly needful and helpful we need to be mindful of how we can shore up what is good for us, and remove away from ourselves the things that tear us down and tempt us in ways that seem to promise good but are really destructive.  Again, addictions of all kinds form an example:  the promise to reduce pain or anxiety is a trap which leads only to worse enslavement to such pain, anxiety, and other problems.  So, Christ's action to shore up faith for healing remains one of the most significant teachings we can receive in our lives, for modern problems of today as well as for Christ's time.  Perhaps today, with our exposure to so much and an unlimited sense of freedom through the internet, we have need of this teaching more than ever before.  Then there is the confession of St. Peter (made on behalf of all of the disciples, as St. Peter so often speaks for all of them) that Jesus is the Christ.  Again, my study Bible emphasizes faith and the state of the heart as the root of such perception.  For this reason, we guard our hearts from the destructive thought patterns that do not help us find the faith we need, to see the spiritual truth of the reality of God which gives us strength to live a productive and good life -- and to see the reality of what is harmful even when it looks "good."  We observe that in the case of the healed formerly-blind man, and also in the case of the disciples after Christ's identity is revealed to them, in both circumstances Jesus warns them to tell no one.  This, again, is not to tempt scoffers -- neither to entertain their destructive mindset which may be destructive, but also to protect such people from further condemnation, as my study Bible said.  Finally, there is the moment when Christ reveals what His ministry will entail, contrary to all of the expectations about the Messiah and the kingdom the Messiah would initiate.  This is something terribly hard for the disciples to take in, let alone to accept.  St. Peter's response is something which you and I can completely understand:  he rebukes even the thought that Jesus should suffer and perish.  But Jesus responds in a stark and even harsh way, even calling Peter "Satan" in his rejection of the news that Christ will suffer and die.  St. Peter's reaction, while naturally understandable to all of us, is in fact a worldly way of thinking which the Crucifixion will stand on its head.  For God will use even this worst of all scenarios for the redemption of the whole world, leading to salvation for us all, and in so many ways teaching us what God's love is and does, and continually giving to us in the ongoing ministry of the Church the power of Resurrection at work.  In this St. Paul's word is true, that " all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose" (Romans 8:28).  For now, let us consider the power of faith, how important and essential it is to us, what a difference in makes in our lives.  For all of these stories illustrate its importance, and our need to guard it to keep it strong, and keep ourselves on that good path, the good part.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

How is it you do not understand?

 

 Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.  But He sighted deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign?  Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation."  

And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.  Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.  Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread?  Do you not yet perceive nor understand?  Is your heart still hardened?  Having eyes, do you not see?  And having ears, do you not hear?  And do you not remember?  When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments  did you take up?"  They said to Him, "Twelve."  "Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He said to them, "How is it you do not understand?"

Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."

 

- Mark 8:11–26 

 

Yesterday we read that, in those days, the multitude being very great and having nothing to eat, Jesus called His disciples to Him and said to them, "I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat.  And if I send them away hungry to their own houses, they will faint on the way; for some of them have come from afar."  Then His disciples answered Him, "How can one satisfy these people with bread here in the wilderness?"  He asked them, "How many loaves do you have?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground.  And He took the seven loaves and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and they set them before the multitude.  They also had a few small fish; and having blessed them, He said to set them also before them.  So they ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets of leftover fragments.  Now those who had eaten were about four thousand.  And He sent them away, immediately got into the boat with His disciples, and came to the region of Dalmanutha.

 

  Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.  But He sighted deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign?  Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation."   What is a sign from heaven?  My study Bible explains that such a sign that is sought here would be a spectacular display of power.  It says that the time of the Messiah among the Jews was expected to be accompanied by signs.  But these hypocrites (Matthew 16:1-3) have not recognized the many signs already being performed by Jesus.  Their hearts were hardened, meaning they have rendered themselves incapable of understanding -- and they ignored the works happening all around them.  Jesus seeks followers capable of faith.  These men only demand to test Him.  Such tests set their own standard, and have nothing to do with the desire to perceive the things of God.

And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.  Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.  Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread?  Do you not yet perceive nor understand?  Is your heart still hardened?  Having eyes, do you not see?  And having ears, do you not hear?  And do you not remember?  When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments  did you take up?"  They said to Him, "Twelve."  "Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He said to them, "How is it you do not understand?"  My study Bible explains that the leaven of the Pharisees is their doctrine (Matthew 16:12) and their hypocrisy (Luke 12:1).  In Scripture, it says, "leaven" is used both positively (as in the parable at Matthew 13:33) and negatively, as Jesus does here.  In either case, leaven is symbolic of a force which is powerful enough -- and frequently subtle enough -- to permeate and affect everything around it (see St. Paul's usage at 1 Corinthians 5:6-8). 

Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."  My study Bible points out that the people of Bethsaida were unbelieving (Matthew 11:21); and so, Jesus takes this blind man out of the town in order to heal him, away from the people who would scoff at the miracle and thus bring greater condemnation upon themselves.  (See also the healing of Jairus' daughter, in which Christ put those who ridiculed outside; He shored up the faith of her parents with His exhortation, "Do not be afraid; only believe" and with the presence of His three closest disciples.)   Moreover, it explains the healing of this blind man in stages as showing that he had only a small amount of faith.  Healing occurs according to one's faith (Mark 6:5-6). But this little faith was enough, and it increased with the touch of Christ.  In addition, my study Bible states that Christ's command not to return to the town is symbolic of the need not to return to our sins once we have been forgiven. 

Today's reading once again takes us back to the essential issue of faith, and how important it is to our lives.  But we go into some details here, in the few stories offered, and so the reading gives us to examine various issues about faith and what it does, and how we need it.  All of these issues remain pertinent to us today, regardless of when they first occurred, or the ancient context of the Gospel.  Taking the stories in today's Gospel reading in order, we first come to the Pharisees, powerful religious leaders from Jerusalem who seek themselves to regulate the faith.  They come yet again to Jesus, after having engaged in an open confrontation (and challenge from Jesus) which subsequently sent Him temporarily into Gentile territory, where He wished to remain hidden.  This time, they come to Him with their own challenge, which we can see as a sort of line drawn in the sand.  They demand of Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.  Let us consider what testing Jesus means.  First of all, this is a test of their own devising.  But Jesus is in the world not to please human beings, nor effectively to offer proofs on others' terms, but to follow the will of God the Father.  In terms of the works of God, it's up to these men, and all the rest of us, to seek to discern that same will -- not to impose tests upon God.  For this reason, and likely many others, Jesus will not offer proofs on demand.  His mission is to seek and find the lost sheep of the house of Israel, who will come to Him by faith.  These men test Him out of envy for their positions.  This is "the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod," which comes in the form of desire for proofs on demand, essentially a way to test power, and a dangerous game of finding fault.  But we can see that even the disciples are in some way affected by this, for they are effectively blinded to it.  They don't understand when Jesus tells them to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod, this type of gain-saying that sets traps by demanding proofs that cannot be delivered.  If we look around, we can still see today similar sorts of traps set by those whose real desire is to reject God and faith for themselves, proofs that can't come, straw men which in fact prove nothing.  These are forms of heresies asserted, such as claiming that if God is good there would be no evil in the world, or even echoing the taunting of the Pharisees at the Cross, that if Christ were really holy or divine He would not die on the Cross.  These are very human ways to doubt God, whose thoughts are not our thoughts, and whose ways are not our ways (Isaiah 55:8).  As such, they can become temptations for us, too.  Here, the disciples are so set in thinking a particular very "earthly" way that they cannot understand what Jesus is talking about, and assume that He's upset because they've forgotten to bring bread with them.  Apparently, they've also forgotten that Jesus has, in recent times, fed five thousand people in the wilderness out of a few loaves, and subsequently four thousand on another occasion in the same manner.  Even Jesus seems to be perplexed at their lack of comprehension:  "How is it you do not understand?"  If ever we needed an example of how "proofs" do not work when it comes to questions of lack of faith, this is it.  Nonetheless, such examples of the failure of Jesus' personally chosen disciples to understand are in the Gospels for a reason, and they are instructive to us for our own journeys of faith.  Finally, there is the story of the blind man and his healing.  It's most important that we pay attention to Christ's open efforts to find ways to shore up the man's faith -- first of all, in order to facilitate his healing to begin with, and second of all, in order to retain his faith and his well-being.  My study Bible points out that the man begins with a little bit of faith, but this increased with the touch of Christ.  The emphasis for us has to be on the recognition of the importance of taking steps to shore up our faith, even daily.  For while some would seem to suggest that be "saved" means simply a one-time declaration which we can then take for granted, this isn't the story of faith the Gospels reveal to us.  In fact, we really cannot take things for granted in the sense that, while God always extends love to us, we, however, have to do a little work.  We must "work the works of God" (John 6:29).  We need to work at shoring up our faith,  including perhaps avoiding those who seek to tear it down when necessary, and finding ways for Christ to "touch" us, in worship services, in prayer, through our friends who help to shore up our faith, the communion of saints, good studying materials and literature that helps us, and so many other helpful things, even the beauty of nature or the goodness of a kind gesture.  This remains essential for us to remember, not to take our faith for granted, but to remember how important it is to feed, nurture and protect it.  Moreover, like the blind man and like the disciples, faith is not a one-time declaration, but a journey in which we're meant to grow throughout our lives.  It remains of the greatest significance for us to remember that the joy of the Lord is our strength, as Scripture tells us (Nehemiah 8:10).  Let us feed and nurture that joy, guarding our hearts and protecting the faith that makes us see, doing all we can so that we grow in that light.

Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation

 

 Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.  But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign?  Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation."

And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.  Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.  Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread?  Do you not yet perceive nor understand?  Is your heart still hardened?  Having eyes, do you not see?  And having ears, do you not hear?  And do you not remember?  When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  They said to Him, "Twelve."  "Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He said to them, "How is it you do not understand?"  

Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch Him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."

 

- Mark 8:11-26 

 

Yesterday we read that, in those days, the multitude being very great and having nothing to eat, Jesus called His disciples to Him and said to them, "I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat.  And if I send them away hungry to their own houses, they will faint on the way; for some of them have come from afar."  Then His disciples answered Him, "How can one satisfy these people with bread here in the wilderness?"  He asked them, "How many loaves do you have?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground.  And He took the seven loaves and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and they set them before the multitude.  They also had a few small fish; and having blessed them, He said to set them also before them.  So they ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets of leftover fragments.  Now those who had eaten were about four thousand.  And He sent them away, immediately got into the boat with His disciples, and came to the region of Dalmanutha.  

 Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.  But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign?  Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation."   My study Bible explains that a sign from heaven means a spectacular display of power.  The time of the Messiah among the Jews was expected to be accompanied by signs, but the Pharisees have not recognized the signs already being performed because their hearts were hardened; they ignored the works happening all around them.  Let us note also that Jesus refuses to give a special sign on demand as proof of His authority for His ministry; His life is an expression of the Father's will, and His identity as Son.

And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.  Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.  Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread?  Do you not yet perceive nor understand?  Is your heart still hardened?  Having eyes, do you not see?  And having ears, do you not hear?  And do you not remember?  When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  They said to Him, "Twelve."  "Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He said to them, "How is it you do not understand?"   My study Bible says that the leaven of the Pharisees is their doctrine (Matthew 16:12) and their hypocrisy (Luke 12:1).  In Scripture there are many uses of leaven as an image:  it is used both positively (as in Matthew 13:33) and negatively, as it is here.  In either case, leaven is a symbol of a force which is powerful enough (and frequently subtle enough) to permeate and affect everything around it (see 1 Corinthians 5:6-8).  

 

 Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch Him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."  Matthew's Gospel tells us that the people of Bethsaida were unbelieving (see Matthew 11:21).  Therefore, my study Bible explains, Jesus leads this blind man out of the town in order to heal him, so that the people would not scoff at the miracle, which would bring greater condemnation upon themselves.  That this blind man was healed in stages ("I see men like trees, walking" . . . he was restored and saw everyone clearly) shows that he had only a small amount of faith; for, according to my study Bible, healing occurs according to one's faith (Mark 6:5-6).  Nevertheless, this little faith was enough, and it increased with the touch of Jesus.  Christ's command not to return to the town, my study Bible says, symbolizes that we must not return to our sins once we have been forgiven.

As we continually read in the Gospels, faith is an indispensable condition for Christ's healing.   Without it, there is seemingly no "connection" to Christ; there is no conduit for His healing power to work within a person.  It is as if we ourselves need to give permission, to say our own "Yes" to the acceptance of this power of God, in order for God to be able to work in us.  This condition is often tied to our freedom of will with which God has endowed us.  God loves us more than we can imagine, for love is the very nature of God (1 John 4:8).  Like the father of the Prodigal Son in the parable found at Luke 15:11-32, God awaits our return with great desire; so much so, that in the parable describing this love, the elderly man runs to meet his son from afar off, an act considered undignified -- even inappropriate -- in the culture in which Christ first told this parable.  But this is the love of God and God's desire for us simply to return that love.  But God, like the father in the parable, will not force us to return God's love.  God does not compel us to love God.  Thus, this is what we call our free will, and accept that this is part of God's freedom established for us.  So, one may consider the act of faith to be a consent to the working of God within us.  Somehow, for Christ to be able to perform miracles, faith must be present first.  It makes sense in the context of today's reading, in which Christ will not provide miracles on demand for those who challenge Him to prove His identity and divinity, the authority that comes from God for His ministry.  Just as God does not force or compel us to love God, God also does not force faith -- this communion through which we have relationship with God -- upon anyone.  Faith must come from a willing "yes" somewhere within us to God's love and action, to God's mercy and grace.  It simply does not work without our consent.  Sometimes, it seems to me, we are unaware of the depths within our own spirits, which may long for God and God's presence even when our conscious minds would shut God out.  Nonetheless, there are depths to us through which work love and faith, our own ties to the Mystery of God.  See, for example, Jesus' exclamation at the confession of Peter that He is the Christ:  "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven" (Matthew 16:17).  I would submit that it is doubtful that in Peter's confession of faith, Peter was consciously aware of having had a revelation or communication from the Father; nevertheless Christ tells us that it is so.  Clearly, there was a depth in Peter that responded to God the Father with an affirmative reception to this communication or revelation.  And so it might be with each one of us, where the depths within us accept faith in some mysterious way unknown and misunderstood even by us in a conscious sense.  But nonetheless, our acceptance is there accompanying faith.  So it works with the healing miracles and other signs performed by Christ:  there must be some level of faith present for God's power to be at work, not a challenge for a proof.  As my study Bible points out about this healing of the blind man, even a little faith will do to start.  We could consider it just a crack in the opening of the door at which Christ always knocks ("Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me" - Revelation 3:20).  The Holy Spirit can get through our own walls in surprising ways; all it takes is a chink in the armor with which we surround ourselves.  The importance of faith is made very clear in the fact that, as in other circumstances (such as with those who ridicule at the healing of Jairus' daughter -- see Mark 5:40), Jesus seeks to separate the newly-healed man with his restored sight from the townspeople who scoff.  For those of us who come to faith all of these centuries later, these lessons still remain.  Let us not surround ourselves needlessly with people who scoff at our faith, or who would challenge the things we know through some mysterious process at work in our lives.  We are made of much more than simply conscious memory, "facts" at hand, efforts at proofs of things which exist far beyond our capacity to know in some objective or scientifically measured way.  We nonetheless have parts to ourselves with which God may communicate, and we may receive the things of God, knowing their mysterious effect in our lives, the capacity to heal, a guidance we can't explain in a conventional sense.  Let us be aware of how precious that faith really is, and make every effort to protect it just as Jesus does, following His instructions just as He guides the formerly blind.

Get behind Me, Satan! For you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men

 

 Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."

Now Jesus and His disciples went out to the towns of Caesarea Philippi; and on the road He asked His disciples, saying to them, "Who do men say that I am?"  So they answered, "John the Baptist; but some say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets."  He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"  Peter answered and said to Him, "You are the Christ."  Then He strictly warned them that they should tell no one about Him.

And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.  He spoke this word openly.  Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him.  But when He had turned around and looked at His disciples, He rebuked Peter, saying, "Get behind Me, Satan!  For you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."

 

- Mark 8:22-33 

 

Yesterday we read that the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Jesus, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.  But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign?  Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation."  And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.  Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.  Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread?  Do you not yet perceive nor understand?  Is your heart still hardened?  Having eyes, do you not see?  And having ears, do you not hear?  And do you not remember?  When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  They said to Him, "Twelve."  Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He said to them, "How is it that you do not understand?"

 

  Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."  My study Bible says of this passage that the people of Bethsaida were unbelieving (Matthew 11:21); therefore Jesus leads this blind man out of the town to heal him, so that the people would not scoff at the miracle and bring upon themselves greater condemnation.  (It's not unusual for Christ to separate those being healed from scoffers; see, for example, Mark 5:40.)  That the blind man was healed in stages, my study Bible notes, shows that he had only a small amount of faith, for healing occurs according to one's faith.  Yet this little faith was enough, and it increased with the touch of Christ.  My study Bible adds that Christ's command not to return to the town symbolizes that we must not return to our sins once we have been forgiven.  Possibly not to go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town is a way to continue to shore up his faith and stay away from those who would ridicule.

Now Jesus and His disciples went out to the towns of Caesarea Philippi; and on the road He asked His disciples, saying to them, "Who do men say that I am?"  So they answered, "John the Baptist; but some say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets."  He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"  Peter answered and said to Him, "You are the Christ."  Then He strictly warned them that they should tell no one about Him.  My study Bible tells us that  "Who do you say that I am?" is the greatest question a person can ever face, as it is the question that defines Christianity.  Peter's correct answer to the question prevents the Christian faith from being seen as simply another philosophical system or path of spirituality.  In Matthew's Gospel, he names Jesus as the one and only Son of the living God (Matthew 16:16).  This position excludes all compromise with other religious systems, my study Bible says.  Peter's understanding cannot be achieved by human reason, but only by divine revelation through faith (1 Corinthians 12:3).  Christ means "Anointed One," and is equivalent to the Hebrew title "Messiah."

And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.  He spoke this word openly.  Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him.  But when He had turned around and looked at His disciples, He rebuked Peter, saying, "Get behind Me, Satan!  For you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."  My study Bible comments that after Peter's confession, Jesus reveals the true nature of His messiahship:  the mystery of His Passion.  It was expected that the Messiah would reign forever -- so the concept that Christ would die was perplexing to Peter.  It would remain scandalous to the Jews even after the Resurrection (1 Corinthians 1:23).  Peter unwittingly speaks for Satan, as the devil did not want Christ to fulfill His mission and save mankind through suffering and death.

Jesus tells Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan!  For you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."  Jesus statement affirms for us what is also written by Isaiah in the Old Testament:  "'For My thoughts are not your thoughts, nor are your ways My ways,' says the Lord" (Isaiah 55:8).  Our rational reduction of expectations down to theories and abstracts and rules will never fit the God of unexpected dimensions, the God who heals in ways that are hard for us to accept (as in the healing of the blind man in the first part of today's reading), and who comes to us in ways that are unimaginable -- such as in the human Jesus of Nazareth.  How can God be human? we might as well ask ourselves.  Why would God become human to die a horrible death of crucifixion?  The ways in which God works to solve problems are illumined to us through Scripture as ways which defy human expectation and reasoning.  And yet, we accept these things as true, and our theologians come to answer these questions as well.  There are so many profound realities that come from these unexpected manifestations of God's work and God's will that their myriad blessings to us answer the questions themselves.  How could God become human?  Let us ask what it does for us that God becomes human, instead.  It shows God's love, God's willingness to sacrifice and suffer for us, God's desire to be close to us, to reclaim us, to find us as "lost sheep" who need a Shepherd.  As my study Bible says, this identity of Christ separates Christianity from being just another philosophical tradition, because it opens up a truly personal understanding of and communion with Creator, in a way that is impossible to achieve otherwise.  Christ's suffering and death on the Cross truly teaches us that He was willing to share completely in our own pains in this imperfect world, even experiencing human death -- and He even stated that we are in this together with Him, expecting us to take up our own crosses and go through life in this world just as it is, but with Him (Luke 9:23).  His life, death, and Resurrection confirms to us that we are in this together, in a communion, and He invites us in to His saving mission; our participation is a necessary part of His mission for this world.  Given all of these meanings that we derive from His life, and even from His death, what questions are then left to be answered, opened up, and asked in light of what we can understand?  And that is the mystery that opens up for us as well, a kind of journey into the future -- both for "the world" and for our own immediate personal lives -- that teaches us that Christ's mission into this world offers us not just a belief system, but a way of life, and one that continues to open up during our lifetimes.  His ministry did not last one day, did not consist of one mission statement, but for three years continued with the disciples, as they went through town after town, in all the regions of Israel and among Gentile areas (such as Caesarea Philippi in today's reading), as they met with receptivity and condemnation, belief and unbelief.  And that is a mirror of our lives and our faith journey as well.  His life opens up so many more questions for us, but the answers are to be found in faith, and through experience of that faith working itself out as we meet the challenges in our own lives, in prayer and in communion with Him and His saints seeing and helping us through it.  Like the blind man, there may be times when we need to withdraw to shore up our faith; like Jesus and the disciples we may need to find an isolated place where we can receive the surprising ways our faith might ask us to proceed, even the hardships we may be asked to endure which are seemingly impossible to understand without hindsight.  Yet, this is our surprising way, for we are to be always mindful of the things of God, and not simply the things of men.

 

 

Get behind Me, Satan!

 Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."

Now Jesus and His disciples went out to the towns of Caesarea Philippi; and on the road He asked His disciples, saying to them, "Who do men say that I am?"  So they answered, John the Baptist; but some say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets."  He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"  Peter answered and said to Him, "You are the Christ."  Then He strictly warned them that they should tell no one about Him.

And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.  He spoke this word openly.  Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him.  But when He had turned around and looked at His disciples, He rebuked Peter, saying, "Get behind Me, Satan!  For you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."

- Mark 8:22-33

Yesterday, we read that the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Jesus, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.   But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign?  Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given to this generation."  And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.  Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.  Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."   But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread?  Do you not yet perceive nor understand?  Is your heart still hardened?  Having eyes, do you not see?  And having ears, do you not hear?  And do you not remember?  When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  They said to Him, "Twelve."  Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He said to them, "How is it you do not understand?"

 Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."  My study bible points out that we know from Matthew's Gospel (Matthew 11:21) that the people of Bethsaida were unbelieving.  So, Jesus leads the blind man out of the town to heal him, so that the people would not scoff at the miracle and ring upon themselves greater condemnation.   A note says, "That the blind man was healed in stages shows that he had only a small amount of faith, for healing occurs according to one's faith; yet this little faith was enough, and it increased with the touch of Christ."  Jesus' command not to return to the town symbolizes that we mustn't return to our sins once we've been forgiven.  As we've seen in recent readings, the emphasis is on faith as the necessary ingredient for God's power to work together with us and in us.

Now Jesus and His disciples went out to the towns of Caesarea Philippi; and on the road He asked His disciples, saying to them, "Who do men say that I am?"  So they answered, John the Baptist; but some say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets."  He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"  Peter answered and said to Him, "You are the Christ."  Then He strictly warned them that they should tell no one about Him.  Jesus first draws out opinions about Himself; the various opinions that "men say that" He is, the opinions of the crowds.  My study bible points out that this is so erroneous ideas are labeled as incorrect.  People say He is Elijah because the belief was that Elijah would return before the Messiah.  Peter is the one who speaks for the apostles, and he speaks from faith:  Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, the "Anointed One."  My study bible says that Peter's understanding can't be achieved by human reason, but only by divine revelation through faith (1 Corinthians 12:3).

And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things, and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and after three days rise again.  He spoke this word openly.  Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him.  But when He had turned around and looked at His disciples, He rebuked Peter, saying, "Get behind Me, Satan!  For you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."  Immediately upon identification as the Christ or the Messiah, Jesus lays out for the apostles what is going to happen to Him:  He will suffer.  My study bible calls it "the true nature of His messiahship:  the mystery of His Passion."  It was expected of the Messiah that He would reign forever; this idea is not only perplexing but scandalous.  Even after Resurrection, it remained so for the Jews (1 Corinthians 1:23).  My study bible says, "Peter unwittingly speaks for Satan, as the devil did not want Christ to fulfill His mission and save mankind through suffering and death."

In today's reading we get a further affirmation of faith:  the lack of faith in Bethsaida means that the blind man seeking healing must go outside of the town to receive it.  In a similar manner, the people who ridiculed Christ at Jairus' house, the ones who were mourning the death of his daughter, had to be put outside of the house for Jesus to raise her.  (See Do not be afraid; only believe.)   The blind man's gradual healing is a kind of study of what happens with faith, as we begin to trust in it, faith grows and becomes stronger -- we see more clearly and more is given and revealed to us.  This is an image of a faith journey with Christ.  Sometimes we will need to separate ourselves from the faithless, the scoffers and ridiculers, in order for our faith to grow stronger and so that we may learn what it is to live a life of faith.  Faith makes it possible for Peter to know that Jesus is the Christ, but it is only a strengthened faith that can come to terms with the nature of His Messiahship:  His suffering and death on the Cross.  That is the tough part of a life of faith, following in His footsteps and taking up our own crosses in life.  But that is the true strength of faith.  When Peter denies that this should happen to Jesus, Jesus' response is "Get behind Me, Satan!"  Although Peter's sincere, he's "mindful" "of the things of men," but not of "the things of God."   The Gospel doesn't say that Christ was tempted here, but we know even the agony Christ will experience in the garden of Gethsemane, as He struggles in prayer with what is about to happen.  Peter is making it tougher here, with "the things of men."  God calls us to a higher, bigger plan, one that is not easy to see without the understanding of faith, the transcendence of the reality of the Kingdom, a knowledge of a greater purpose for mankind.  All of these things play a role here, not only in Jesus' mission for the salvation of the entire world - past, present, and future, but also for each one of us as we are called also to participate in that mission in our own lives.  Faith makes us a part of a unified whole, even as it draws us closer to the understanding of Christ's singular place in the cosmos and in our world, even at the center of our lives.  This is not a Messiah who reigns as absolute monarch on human or worldly terms; He's the suffering servant, the One who will lay down His life for His friends.  If we wonder about this mission (and we almost certainly will wonder), we must look at the love that it teaches us, the love that is at the center of what it means to great on Christ's terms.  He is the greatest, and the greatest, He has taught, "must be the servant of all."   The God who reigns is a God of absolute love; if we are to understand but one thing of the mystery of Christ's Passion, we must understand that.  Let us go forward with Him and find the will of the loving God for ourselves.

How is it you did not understand?

 Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.  But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign?  Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given this generation."

And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.  Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.  Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread?  Do you not yet perceive nor understand?  Is your heart still hardened?  Having eyes, do you not see?  And having ears, do you not hear?  And do you not remember?  When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  They said to Him, "Twelve."  Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He said to them, "How is it you did not understand?"

Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."

- Mark 8:11-26

Yesterday, we read that at this point in Jesus' ministry, the multitude being very great and having nothing to eat, Jesus called His disciples to Him and said to them, "I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat.  And if I send them away hungry to their own houses, they will faint on the way; for some of them have come from afar."  Then His disciples answered Him, "How can one satisfy these people with bread here in the wilderness?"  He asked them, "How many loaves do you have?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground.  And He took the seven loaves and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples to set before them; and they set them before the multitude.  They also had a few small fish; and having blessed them, He said to set them also before them.  So they ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets of leftover fragments.  Now those who had eaten were about four thousand.  And He sent them away, immediately got into the boat with His disciples, and came to the region of Dalmanutha.

 Then the Pharisees came out and began to dispute with Him, seeking from Him a sign from heaven, testing Him.  But He sighed deeply in His spirit, and said, "Why does this generation seek a sign?  Assuredly, I say to you, no sign shall be given this generation."   A sign from heaven would be some spectacular kind of display of power, something that will "convince" others to believe, beyond a doubt.  But this isn't the way that faith works, at least not the kind of faith that Jesus wants people to have in Him.  That's not the kind of trust that faith implies, and not the type of relationship Christ offers.   Love and trust work in other ways.  In addition, we already know the signs that are happening within the ministry:  the healings and His miraculous feeding of the many in the wilderness.  What the religious leadership wants is to define the terms in which Christ would be recognized, to frame His ministry in their vision of what His holy power and authority is and how it should work.

And He left them, and getting into the boat again, departed to the other side.  Now the disciples had forgotten to take bread, and they did not have more than one loaf with them in the boat.  Then He charged them, saying, "Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "Why do you reason because you have no bread?  Do you not yet perceive nor understand?  Is your heart still hardened?  Having eyes, do you not see?  And having ears, do you not hear?  And do you not remember?  When I broke the five loaves for the five thousand, how many baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  They said to Him, "Twelve."  Also, when I broke the seven for the four thousand, how many large baskets full of fragments did you take up?"  And they said, "Seven."  So He said to them, "How is it you did not understand?"  My study bible explains that "the leaven of the Pharisees is their doctrine (Matthew 16:12) and their hypocrisy (Luke 12:1).  In Scripture, leaven is used both positively (as in Matthew 13:33) and negatively, as it is here.  In either case, leaven symbolizes a force powerful enough (and often subtle enough) to permeate and affect everything around it (see 1 Corinthians 5:6-8)."  Again, Mark's Gospel repeatedly seems to give us hints as to how Jesus is thinking and what He is thinking.  Here, Jesus is rather incredulous as to why His own disciples still do not perceive the miraculous nature of the feedings in the wilderness, and instead believed that Jesus' real concern in remarking on the "leaven of the Pharisees" was with the fact that they hadn't brought bread!

 Then He came to Bethsaida; and they brought a blind man to Him, and begged Him to touch him.  So He took the blind man by the hand and led him out of the town.  And when He had spit on his eyes and put His hands on him, He asked him if he saw anything.  And he looked up and said, "I see men like trees, walking."  Then He put His hands on his eyes again and made him look up.  And he was restored and saw everyone clearly.  Then He sent him away to his house, saying, "Neither go into the town, nor tell anyone in the town."  My study bible explains that the people of Bethsaida were unbelieving (see Matthew 11:21).  Therefore, Jesus leads the blind man out of the town in order to heal him, so that "people would not scoff at the miracle and bring upon themselves greater condemnation.  It adds that the fact that the blind man was healed in stages indicates a small amount of faith, because healing occurs according to one's faith (Mark 6:5-6).   But a little faith was enough -- and it increased with the touch of Christ.  My study bible also notes that Jesus' command not to return to the town symbolizes that we mustn't return to our sins once we've been forgiven.

 Of course, the first thing we notice about today's reading are all the parallels in the stories.  The Pharisees are surely blind to what Jesus has been doing in His ministry.  In Monday's reading we read about a deaf and mute man who was healed, and about the attendant "publicity" which Jesus didn't want.   (He commanded them not to tell others, but of course, "the more He commanded them, the more widely they proclaimed it.")  The healing of the deaf and mute man is a sign of the Messiah, as proclaimed by Isaiah, and today's reading confirms yet another one of those signs -- that "the eyes of the blind are opened" (see Isaiah 35:5-6).   So the Pharisees, in demanding a great sign of proof of identity and authority from Jesus, are also showing a great blindness themselves.  And then there are the disciples, who take Jesus' remark about the need to "beware the leaven of the Pharisees" and decide that He must be upset because they'd forgotten to bring bread with them.  It's really amazing to read Jesus questioning His disciples regarding the two feedings in the wilderness.  Don't they remember how He fed five thousand on one occasion?  Or more recently, when He'd fed four thousand -- with just a few loaves and fishes that were on hand?  How is it they don't know what He's talking about?  Don't they have eyes to see?  Don't they have ears to hear?  Don't they remember?  How is it they didn't understand?  Once again, it's remarkable to consider all the glimpses that Mark gives us into Jesus' thinking.  He's baffled by the lack of understanding and recognition even in His disciples.  There is a lot of blindness going around!  And so, then we come to His tremendous healing of the blind man.  We have to understand what kind of powerful and potent sign this really is of the presence of the Kingdom, and the Messiah in their midst.  But this isn't a kind of overwhelming sign in which Jesus would come into the world and "prove" to everyone who He is.  His power doesn't work that way; His power works via faith, and that's the key, really, to understanding what all of these intersecting threads are really about.  What's happening with the faith of the Pharisees, or how about His own disciples, whose hearts are still too hardened to understand about the feedings in the wilderness?  The blind man is taken out of the town, because (as my study bible explains) there just isn't enough faith there for Jesus to do His holy work.  Rather than creating some overwhelming sign for the world to be convinced, Jesus takes this man away from the town.  And then his healing comes in stages.  "I see men like trees, walking" is a sign of growing awareness, yet still not clear sight.  It's the way we are when we can't quite grasp something, but we edge a little closer even though we don't have the full picture.  And it's the great metaphor that makes the difference for us between the people of the town who have no faith, the Pharisees who demand a sign -- and the disciples.  The disciples have a little faith.  There are things that even Jesus finds hard to grasp that they haven't understood yet.  But they are on a road going somewhere.  They have started the journey of faith.  They're like this man who can't quite see, and can only make out "men like trees, walking" -- something that doesn't make much sense at this point.  But "a little" faith is the great difference here; with "a little" we are on our way somewhere and we have a chance to go further down that road and truly see where He is going and where He is leading.  But it takes discipline and persistence.  It also takes the courage to steer clear of those who'd seek to destroy that faith, and to persist in the commands of the Teacher.  That's the lesson we take for the day, the difference between a little faith and no faith.  Remember the parable Jesus gave us of the mustard seed, or the first parable we were given, that of the sower.  What really matters is what we do with the seed of "a little" faith, and how we continue on the journey with the Teacher, the One who's sown the seeds.  Are we ready to take the steps we need today?  Can we follow His teaching in discipleship?