Questions and Answers – Viewpoint

In Mark 8:22-25, why did Jesus heal the blind man in two stages and not in just one as He had done in prior instances?

“They came to Bethsaida, and some people brought a blind man and begged Jesus to touch him. He took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village. When he had spit on the man’s eyes and put his hands on him, Jesus asked, “Do you see anything?” He looked up and said, “I see people; like trees walking around.” Once more Jesus put his hands on the man’s eyes. Then his eyes were opened, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly.”

We can be sure there is a very good reason why Jesus did things in the manner He did. Instead of glossing over the incident above, as just another miracle, the question (above) should set off a signal for us to try to see if there was some special lesson that Jesus desired to convey by His two-step process in giving sight to this blind man.

Could there be a lesson hidden here? Is it possible that when some came to Jesus they did so with only a superficial faith, a half-hearted belief, that a miracle would take place in their lives? The context shows that it was not the blind man that sought Jesus’ help, but the people who were with him and Jesus, graciously, rewarded the faith of those seeking this man’s restored sight. When the Lord performed the first step in healing this blind man, the man saw things he had never seen before, but they were unclear and fuzzy. Now having experienced this hopeful beginning of seeing, he desired to have clearer vision and perhaps began to realize more deeply the power of Jesus to bring about this miraculous restoration to him. Thus, his half-hearted faith in Jesus became stronger and then, through His wonderful grace, Jesus completely opened this man’s eyes; and he instantly sees things clearly, not only physically but spiritually as well; a gift that his strengthened personal faith in Jesus brought to him.

Perhaps the first step in this miracle was meant to be a sign of reproof from Jesus to the many people of His day who were always seeking the gift ~ the miracle, before fully believing in the gracious Giver of such gifts. They were ever seeking a sign before their faith would become active, and even with so many miraculous signs, the religious leaders of Jesus’ day not only failed to believe, but imputed His miracles to the Devil. True faith never requires visible signs or physical manifestations. We read in Hebrews 11:1, “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” May this describe our faith in our Lord and Savior!

E. Weeks