Men As Trees Walking

Men As Trees Walking

And he looked up and said, “I see men as trees, walking.”

Mark 8:24

Today, context sets before us a unique situation, peculiar to Mark’s Gospel. After Christ has taken spittle, and anointed the eyes of the blind man, with His Touch, He asks him if he sees anything. The blind man responds that he sees, ‘men as trees walking.’ This is a rather singular circumstance. Having said that, we see in this, because of the context, an apt illustration of the rise and progress of spiritual understanding in those of us with whom Christ deals. Certainly, this would have been an appropriate lesson for the disciples. In the previous portion of the chapter, Christ had, rather forcefully and sharply rebuked them for their slowness to apprehend spiritual truth, and to think primarily in carnal, as opposed to spiritual ways. Now Christ has touched the man once, and it appears to have only wrought rather limited ability to His vision. He, as yet, can only see, ‘men as trees walking.’ So it was with the disciples; and so it is with us. Christ brings light to our darkness. He enables us to see some truth, however vaguely, but He will have to continue to work with us until we can see the truth before us clearly.  This ought to produce in us great humility. How often, in spiritual matters, do we only ‘see men as trees walking.’ In order for us to see things in focus, it will require more contact with Christ. He and He alone can enable us to see things as we ought.

Our Gracious, Healing, Savior,
we praise You that You enable us to see clearly what we,
without You, would not be able to see.

Where the Bush is Burning
Tomm Tice