Holy Chutzpah – Bartimaeus
Holy Chutzpah – Bartimaeus.
“Jesus said to Bartimaeus, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ The blind man replied, ‘My Master, please, that I may receive my sight!’ Jesus responded, ‘Your faith heals you. Go in peace, with your sight restored.’ All at once, the man’s eyes opened and he could see, and he began at once to follow Jesus, walking down the road with Him.” (Mark 10:46-52).
Chutzpah (hoots-pah) is a Yiddish word that long ago entered English usage. It is from the Hebrew word, “hutspah,” which means insolent or audacious. Chutzpah is a neutral word that can be either positive or negative. Chutzpah can be righteous or unrighteous, holy or unholy. It is an idea difficult to define, so there are a lot of synonyms for it, especially in the biblical sense: spiritual audacity; brazen gall; tenacious stubbornness; headstrong persistence; outrageous guts; shameless nerve; feisty assertiveness; brazen impudence; unyielding boldness; courageous spine; expectant defiance. The Holy Scriptures, both the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament, are overflowing with examples of holy chutzpah. One wonders not only if it’s a job requirement for saints and prophets, but also a faith requirement for all believers. In fact, God seems to love chutzpah in us when it is based on our ultimate trust in Him and His character, our unselfish motives, our yearning for justice and mercy. Chutzpah in front of others becomes holy when it is done in obedience to the Lord and is an outworking of our faith in Him. As Rabbi Schulweiss once said, “Spiritual audacity toward God finds a place of honor in Jewish religious thought.” The rabbis of old have always insisted that chutzpah is a valid expression of faith. Just a quick glimpse at the Gospels reveals that Jesus and His followers fully embraced the ancient Jewish ethic of holy chutzpah. When Jesus saw chutzpah in action, He usually said things like, “Great is your faith!” Maybe Christian scholar Dr. Brad Young said it best. “True faith requires bold perseverance. Sometimes it is expressed by brazen impudence. Faith can be defined as chutzpah. Persevere with unyielding tenacity.” (Brad Young, Jesus the Jewish Theologian).
Bartimaeus is a blind beggar pleading for food or money outside of Jericho (Mark 10). We don’t know his real first name, because Bartimaeus simply means “son of Timaeus.” We do know his biblical name ironically means “highly prized” or “esteemed.” He is outside the city gates, by the side of the road, an uncomfortable embarrassment to the town folk. Jericho is a wealthy resort town run by the Romans, and they all find him repulsive. He is also a living reminder that by Jewish law he shouldn’t even have to beg. The Mosaic Law (Lev. 25) states clearly that the Jewish people should take care of anyone in their midst with a disability. God didn’t like the idea of one of His chosen begging to survive.
Hope. Bartimaeus has probably heard that this roving healer/rabbi named Jesus is coming through town, and that He has already healed a blind man in Bethsaida (Mark 8). Bartimaeus thinks He may be the Messiah we’ve all been waiting for, so if he makes himself known by the side of the road, maybe this Jesus will see him. The dust in the air is so thick, he can barely breathe. There must be a big crowd with Jesus. It doesn’t help that all the town dogs are barking in excitement as they scamper around all these people. Bartimaeus surely hears them as they approach nearby.
Faith. Even though he is now covered in dust, and swallowed up by the noise, Bartimaeus figured out how to get Jesus’ attention. In his chutzpah, Bartimaeus decided to make a scene. He decided to give loud voice to his little bit of faith. He acclaimed Jesus as the long-awaited Messiah, and did so without shame or embarrassment. So he shouts those words that he hopes will stop Jesus in His tracks: “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” The people around Bartimaeus lost patience with him. “Those in the crowd were indignant and scolded him for making so much of a disturbance.” (Mark 10:48).
Messiah-Mercy. All the Jewish people knew that the anticipated Messiah, the Savior of the world, would come from the family line of King David. So, Son of David meant Messiah. They also knew that one of the main signs telling of the Messiah would be that He would bring sight to the blind (Isaiah 29, 35, and 42). The Messiah would heal blindness, which was considered maybe the most spectacular miracle. Bartimaeus didn’t stop with calling Jesus the Messiah, though. He followed up with those two words that will stop Jesus every time: “Have Mercy!” Jesus loves to show mercy wherever He goes, and when you ask Him for it, it’s almost like you’ve put a wall in His way and He can’t go around it till He shows mercy. You ask Jesus for mercy, and you definitely have His attention.
Jesus Stopped. Despite all the noise and confusion, Jesus heard his cries, and He stopped. All of a sudden, the crowd grew a bit quieter, wondering why the whole train of people have stopped too. What did all the people around Jesus start to say? They kept telling Bartimaeus to be quiet, for He was considered a big sinner who was cursed by God with blindness, unworthy to approach Jesus. So they kept saying things like, “Shush, shush! Jesus is a busy man and doesn’t have time for a cursed blind man, a sinner like you!” But Bartimaeus was tenacious and determined, and he ignored them. After all, this was the chance of a lifetime for him! He will not be denied. He will holler at the top of his lungs, forever, if that’s what it takes to get Jesus’ attention. But Jesus heard, and He stopped. That in itself is a miracle.
Trust. Because Bartimaeus hoped in Jesus, he kept shouting. He didn’t give up. He trusted somehow that Jesus would actually heal him. Even though he never saw Jesus or any of His miracles, he believed in Him. He didn’t hold back, he kept making a scene. He trusted Jesus even though he didn’t see Jesus. Think about that. So he then heard Jesus call out to him, and his friends brought him to Jesus. Bartimaeus was so excited that he threw off his tattered and filthy coat and jumped up onto his feet in hope and joy. And then, there he was, standing right in front of Jesus, perhaps the first person Bartimaeus had ever seen in his life.
Interruption. Jesus was walking along, and then He stopped. He stopped in the road to talk to a blind beggar. It seems Jesus was always ready to be interrupted. He was patient and observant in His kindness. Here He was, walking steadily down the road, probably thinking about His coming Passion in Jerusalem, and He still was ready to change His agenda. Jesus, always interruptable.
Healed. Amazing! Jesus stopped to heal Bartimaeus, and He didn’t even have to touch him. He just gave the word, and Bartimaeus could see! Isn’t that just like in creation, when all that was needed was a word, and it was done? Well, this is a new world for Bartimaeus, that’s for sure. Despite the jostling crowd, He surely looked at Bartimaeus as if he was the only person in the world.
Up Close and Personal. The closer Bartimaeus got to Jesus, the more personal Jesus became to him. Bartimaeus went from stating a general statement of belief, “You are the Messiah,” to a personal statement, saying “My Master.” A general belief statement was not good enough. Bartimaeus wanted a personal relationship, he wanted more of a friendship with Jesus, not accepting a merely abstract acceptance of Him. The closer Bartimaeus got, the more personal Jesus became to him. To Bartimaeus, Jesus was generally the Lord, but He was also specifically MY Lord. To believe in a creed is one thing, an important thing,but having a personal relationship with Jesus is another thing entirely. And now, because the general Lord is his personal Lord, Bartimaeus does feel, finally, highly prized and esteemed.
Style. It’s fascinating that Jesus healed the blindness of Bartimaeus with just a word. Not long ago (Mark 8), He used quite a process to heal another blind man. He literally spit on the man’s eyes, and then touched them. The healing still wasn’t completed, so Jesus touched his eyes once again, and finally the healing was done. Then another time (John 9), Jesus healed a blind man by spitting on the ground, making mud, and then spreading the mud on the man’s eyes. Jesus then asked this man to wash off the mud in a nearby pool of water. Finally, that blind man could see. And then again (Matthew 9), Jesus simply touched the eyes of two blind men who were following Him everywhere. So that’s four scenes of Jesus healing the blind, and he healed those men in four different ways. Apparently, there is no one formula for His healing work. God is creative in His healing style, and so we shouldn’t expect all His miracles to look the same. He loves to do the unexpected. Do we sometimes put God in a box?
Following Jesus. After Bartimaeus was healed, he immediately started following Jesus as they all walked down the road. The healing was not the end of the story. He started a new life of friendship with Jesus, following Him, obeying Him. He was healed in order to follow. Without his chutzpah, one wonders if Bartimaeus would have ever been healed. Jesus probably would have healed him regardless, but the persistent, stubborn shouts of Bartimaeus certainly helped the process along. And now with his new sight, he knew the right direction to walk in. Right at Jesus’ heels. Did he follow Jesus all the way to Jerusalem? Did he find other healed blind men on the road? Was he at the Cross when Jesus died? We don’t know. When Jesus heals us of our blindness, let’s be like Bartimaeus and follow Jesus down the road, to wherever that takes us.