It Was Jesus Of Nazareth

Then they came to Jericho. As Jesus and his disciples, together with a large crowd, were leaving the city, a blind man, Bartimaeus (which means son of Timaeus), was sitting by the roadside begging. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth he began to shout, Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me! 

Mark 10:46,47 

How had Bartimaeus heard of Jesus of Nazareth? We may speculate a little. Perhaps he had heard because Christ was an exciting figure in Israel at the time and news of His activities were common conversation. Possibly someone who was related to Bartimaeus had seen and heard Jesus elsewhere and returned with stories of His miracles. It is even possible that someone else whom Christ had healed had returned to tell Bartimaeus of what Jesus of Nazareth had done for them. Therefore, when he heard, that it was Jesus of Nazareth Who was passing by, he realized his opportune moment was at hand. He began to cry out and say, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’ How have we heard of Jesus of Nazareth? Perhaps we heard of Him as children from godly parents. Maybe a workmate or even some stranger told us of Him. We may know someone whose life Christ utterly transformed, who spoke passionately of what difference Christ had made in their life. We have heard of Him and realized He can do us good as no one else can. We have cried out for Him to have mercy upon us. We have every reason, on the basis of what we have heard to have the utmost confidence in Him. 

Our Good and Gracious God, 
we rejoice at who You are. 
We praise you that we can have confidence in You, 
that You will do us good.  

Tomm Tice
Where the Bush is Burning