In the previous passage (Mark 8:14-21) the disciples could not understand who Jesus was.  They obeyed His call to follow but did not trust His sovereignty.  They were blind to the truth.  Now, a blind man's friends believed that Jesus could bring new sight.  It happened away from the glare of publicity, and was not to be celebrated in the village afterwards - because Jesus wanted a personal encounter with the man, and with His faithless, trainee apostles.  So Jesus led the man away from his friends and the crowds: but the disciples were there to witness a miracle that needed to happen inside their own hearts.

Sometimes Jesus simply spoke a healing command, and the sick person was healed although nowhere near Jesus (John 4:50-53).  On this occasion Jesus was very 'hands on'.  Note all the ways in which Jesus touched the man (took him by the hand … led him … spat on the man's eyes … put his hands on his eyes twice).  He could not see Jesus, but he was willing to be in His hands.  It is the only way to start a relationship with the Saviour.

This two-phase miracle is not a weakness in Jesus' healing power.  As Jesus touched the blind man, his faith grew.  At first, the disciples looked to the man like moving trees, but when Jesus had finished with him, he had 20/20 vision.  Seeing is the Bible's metaphor for understanding.  The Twelve were as spiritually wooden as walking trees (Mark 8:17).  Although they had witnessed Jesus' miracles, they did not fully entrust themselves to Him.  They had observed the feeding of 5,000 (Mark 6:30-44), and then of 4,000 more (Mark 8:1-10), but were still worried that they did not have enough bread for their next boat journey.  The first miracle should have started to open their eyes and the second confirmed that Jesus was the Lord who could do anything.  But Jesus said that they were unable to see: their hearts were as hard as the religious legalists (Mark 6:15-16).

The blind man knew that he was unable to see and was willing to be led to Jesus; and for Jesus to lead him where he could not see, until he saw clearly.  The man may have been blind, but he trusted Jesus.  By contrast, the disciples had physical sight but could not see how they could trust their Master for everything.  They may have thought of themselves as helping Jesus: they did not see how much they needed Him to open their eyes.  Religion still obscures the person of Christ.  Music can blind us to worship, activity can substitute for devotion, study can leave our hearts cold and legalistic; even prayer can become a mechanical habit.  However, when you allow yourself to be in the hands of Jesus, simply trusting Him for mercy and forgiveness for the past, and grace and strength for the future, your whole outlook will change.  The unknown is no longer frightening, and the present is no longer daunting.  Today and tomorrow is equally safe when you let Him lead.  Letting Him change you, can be really eye opening - as you find the loving power of the real Jesus.