THE BARRIER OF PERCEPTION
Barriers to Bridges - Part 7
Sunday, February 23, 2020
Mark 7:31-8:26
Taking the blind man’s hand, Jesus led him out of the village. After spitting on his eyes and laying his hands on the man, he asked him, “Do you see anything?”
The man looked up and said, “I see people. They look like trees, only they are walking around.”
Mark 8:23-24
Our problem is not with sight. With today's advancements in eye-care technology, most of us can see.
Our problem is not with vision. We've all got a "vision", a dream, a goal of what we think things ought to look like.
Our problem is perception. We see, but we do not perceive. We have vision, but our dreams are far too small.
Like the blind man in Bethsaida, we have been touched by Jesus, we have the faith to see, but the people still look like trees. We cannot perceive the truth of what we are seeing. When people look like trees, we begin to use them like trees, as natural resources to serve our own purposes. Rather than stopping to consider their needs, we only see people for what they can do for us, how they can help us, how they build us up or encourage us, or how they make us feel loved and important. When we see people as trees, they become less than us. Their value depends on their function rather than their identity, on what they can provide or contribute rather than on who God created them to be.
The blind man could see, but his vision was blurry. Compared to the darkness he had known all his life, he may have been quite content with this new blurry vision. People may look like trees, but at least he wouldn't have to feel his way around to keep from running into them.
How often do we walk away after this first touch? We see things well enough. We see enough to know everything that is wrong with the world and how to avoid bumping into them, or so we think.
This blurry vision wasn't enough for Jesus. He placed his hands on the man's eyes again, and then with his eyes wide open, the man's sight was restored and he saw everything clearly (Mark 8:25).
We may be able to see, but we are still in need of a second touch. We must learn to perceive the truth in what we see. We must learn to recognize people as people and not as trees.