Matthew 9:27-34 (ESV)

²⁷ And as Jesus passed on from there, two blind men followed him, crying aloud, “Have mercy on us, Son of David.” ²⁸ When he entered the house, the blind men came to him, and Jesus said to them, “Do you believe that I am able to do this?” They said to him, “Yes, Lord.” ²⁹ Then he touched their eyes, saying, “According to your faith be it done to you.” ³⁰ And their eyes were opened. And Jesus sternly warned them, “See that no one knows about it.” ³¹ But they went away and spread his fame through all that district. ³² As they were going away, behold, a demon-oppressed man who was mute was brought to him. ³³ And when the demon had been cast out, the mute man spoke. And the crowds marveled, saying, “Never was anything like this seen in Israel.” ³⁴ But the Pharisees said, “He casts out demons by the prince of demons.”

Matthew records Jesus’ healing of two blind men and the deliverance of a mute man, the ninth and tenth of ten miracles found in these two chapters. Clearly, Jesus has power and authority over all of creation, so it is important that people listen to and obey what he taught. Jesus wants people to follow him for the right reasons. The two blind men followed Jesus because they desperately wanted sight. They addressed Jesus as the “Son of David,” a title used for the Messiah as the Messiah was to be a descendant of King David. Interestingly, the text says Jesus didn’t acknowledge the blind men until they entered a house. Then he healed them. After Jesus restored the eyes of the blind men, he ordered them not say anything about what had just occurred. Didn’t Jesus want people to know he was the Messiah? Why was he hiding who he was from the people?

It seems Jesus didn’t want people seeing him as a political Messiah who was there to overthrow the government, so he waited until he and the blind men had entered a house before engaging with them. He also didn’t want people coming simply to get a physical healing. He came to set people free from sin. The supernatural healing and deliverance that took place were to confirm the truth of the claims he made. What is your motive for coming to Jesus? Do you want your marriage fixed, your finances ordered, or a bad habit overcome? Though all these things may be byproducts of obedience to Christ, they shouldn’t be the reason for our faith. Instead, we must see our desperate need for spiritual forgiveness. We can improve our marriages, get our finances in order, and overcome all our bad habits, but still remain in our sins. And the opposite may be true too. We could come to Jesus and still have problems in our marriages, finances, or even new hardships to deal with in life. But if we are delivered from the penalty of our sins, our daily difficulties pale in comparison to the pardon we have freely received. Make sure your motive for following Jesus is right. If it’s not, recognize your deep need for his forgiveness and turn to him in full surrender today.