This past summer, I had the opportunity to go boating out of Whittier, AK. If you have traveled to Whittier, you know that to get to the small harbor town nestled amongst the mountains and glaciers, you must first travel through the longest highway tunnel in North America. It’s 2.5 miles of damp, stony darkness. Each time we went through the tunnel this summer, I would anxiously look for and anticipate seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. After several minutes of driving in the darkness, that tiny light at the end of the road gave me peace and comfort that I would not be crushed by the weight of the massive mountain looming above me.  

Before we accept the salvation that God so freely extends, our lives reflect that damp and dark tunnel. We live under a mountain of sin with the weight of guilt and shame crushing down on our souls. In the darkness, the enemy takes that shame and guilt and shapes it into shadows of doubt, fear, and insecurity.  It is there that he mocks us, lies to us, and tells us there is no hope.    

In Mark 10:46-52, we read the story of a man who lived in physical darkness for much of his life. Bartimaeus the Beggar is best known as the blind man who was healed by Jesus. However, do you remember that this healing did not come by accident or just because Jesus bumped into him in the road? No – in verse 47 we see that Bartimaeus, upon hearing Jesus was there, “…began to cry out and say ‘Jesus, Son of David’ have mercy on me!” Despite being rebuked, ridiculed, and told to be quiet by the bystanders, Bartimaeus boldly calls out again, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” Jesus responds calling Bartimaeus to Him and asking “What do you want me to do for you?” Bartimaeus responds asking Jesus for his sight to which Jesus replies, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.”  

A beautiful piece of this story is Bartimaeus’s persistence in the face of doubt. We see a man who is living in darkness, a man judged by society and considered an outcast, boldly cry out to the Son of God for healing. The enemy used the men and women around him, to try and silence Bartimaeus. If he had listened to the mocking and ridicule of the bystanders and fell prey to the lies of doubt, insecurity, and fear, he would have succumbed to a lifetime of living in physical and spiritual darkness.  

But because Bartimaeus had faith and believed in the truths preached by the Lord, not only was his eyesight restored, but he was given a new life in Christ Jesus. “And immediately he recovered his sight and followed Him on the way.” A blind beggar living in darkness turned servant of the Most High – what a story of redemption!