They were on their way to the cross (Matthew 20:17-19).  Within a week or so, Jesus would die and yet He continued to train His apostles as He allowed all kinds of ministry opportunities to invade His last days. These proved to be important lessons for the leaders of the Early Church to understand.  This tutorial was all about mercy - as two blind men who were sitting by the roadside, presumably to beg, heard that Jesus was coming and they called out loudly for Him to help them.
 
Blind people had no rights in those days; they were not protected from social abuse, neither was any public welfare provision or medical help available for them.  The blind were not given jobs.  They scraped a living by begging.  Their disability was thought to be a specific curse from God for their sins, or the sins of their parents, so they were despised.  But Jesus did not accept that popular view (John 9:1-4).  Yes, there is a curse – but it is not any disability – it is God’s promise to judge all sin … and that applies to everybody (Romans 3:23).  That is why Father God sent Jesus to be punished instead of us all, so that He might have mercy on whoever believes in Him.  Everybody needs His mercy, but few seek it humbly.
 
Mercy is what these blind men craved.  Their blindness was an obvious problem.  However, the sighted crowd also had a problem, but they could not see it … they were blind to the truth about being under God’s curse because they had failed to completely keep His law.  The two blind men were desperate to be released from that curse which they felt, and to see again.  They believed that Jesus had the power to do that.  The crowd did not think they had a problem, and had no interest in being healed.  Their two stories were also a parable.  Jesus died to accept the curse which falls on every sinner (Galatians 3:13), so that He might have mercy and bring 'blind' people into the light if they ask Him (2 Corinthians 4:4).
 
In the face of a major problem, only proud people refuse to appeal for mercy.  Wise people understand that they need God's mercy, and they are not embarrassed to desire it and cry to God for it.  Mercy is not just being nice or kind; it is the deliberate choice not to punish somebody who deserves it.  The punishment which Jesus received on the cross satisfied God's justice and enabled Him to be merciful and righteous at the same time.  In calling for mercy, the blind men were setting the scene for millions of acts of mercy to those who feel the weight of their sins and call out to God in their darkness.  The work of God’s people is to announce this mercy to a dark world.  And for ourselves: don't just assume that sins will be forgiven automatically; confess them and deliberately appeal to God to release you through His mercy.