The Power of Testimony

“As Jesus approached Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard the crowd going by, he asked what was happening. They told him, ‘Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.’ Jesus stopped…Jesus said to him, ‘Receive your sight…’ Immediately he received…and followed Jesus, praising God. When all the people saw it, they also praised God.” Luke 19:1-10

When our children were little we would take them to the Christmas Parade to see Santa. We would line up early and secure a spot that would most likely give us the best view. When the kids would see my expression of the upcoming characters they would start screaming, ‘What does it look like? Who is it?’ Since they were little they could only hear the crowd’s excitement before they saw what the crowd was seeing.

The same was with our dear beggar in this story. He sat on the side of the road much like everyday I am sure depending on the assistance of others to be his eyes. He heard the hustle and bustle of the crowd and the excitement of what they were experiencing. He knew all he could do was to depend on the testimony of others to experience the event.

This story is so dear as we have played the role as beggar sometimes in life and as the witnesses other times in our lives. We have cupped our tiny hands and begged for deliverance from our situations and searched for anything to comfort us. We have sat on the sideline and felt as if we were watching the lives of others go by unaffected and unencumbered. We have asked through our darkness ‘What is it like to...?’

Other times we play the role of the witness who has received sight from their blindness, and been healed from their sufferings. In a courtroom the testimony of a witness can be the difference between life and death for the accused. Spiritually speaking the same is true as exemplified in the story of the blind beggar receiving life through sight. It was only through the testimony of ‘those who could see’ that he was able to recognize the Lord and Savior of his life. He shouted out to the Lord who stopped in His tracks. Jesus didn’t keep going or continue with His teachings. He stopped. My commentary says ‘Jesus stood still.’ I love the image of the parade stopping, the crowd growing silent and Jesus turning to the blind beggar to perform a miracle upon request. Jesus will never be too busy to stop the parade of miracles. He marches from street to street and home to home. We must take the time to share our testimonies with those who cannot see.

Those who are blind will experience Jesus no matter where they are through the eyes of those with sight. Once they recognize Jesus they too will be given the awesome sight of faith.

“…and Jesus stopped.”