A simple question, one that used to be asked in the service industry and similar questions in restaurants “How may I help you”
What if Jesus had asked you this question? He did ask one man this question let’s see his story so we can understand where we need to be to have Jesus ask us as well
Mark 10:46 – 52
Now they came to Jericho. As He went out of Jericho with His disciples and a great multitude, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the road begging. 47 And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”
48 Then many warned him to be quiet; but he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”
49 So Jesus stood still and commanded him to be called.
Then they called the blind man, saying to him, “Be of good cheer. Rise, He is calling you.”
50 And throwing aside his garment, he rose and came to Jesus.
51 So Jesus answered and said to him, “What do you want Me to do for you?”
The blind man said to Him, “Rabboni, that I may receive my sight.”
52 Then Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus on the road.
Jesus said to Bartimaeus…..”what do you want me to do for you?”
Wow! How would you answer that question? Think about it carefully…think about if all the prayers you prayed throughout your life were answered the way you wanted them answered, what would that look like. How many points of growth would you have missed? How many real blessings of God would you have missed because you avoided some conflict or struggle, some battle where you overcame
What is it really that you want the Lord to do for you?
Why did Bartimaeus get his prayer answered….the key is right her in the narrative …. Go your way; your faith has made you well.”
What kind of Faith did he have that caused this direct and quick answer?
This is part of what the Lord is looking for in the church
- The minute he knew it was Jesus, he pursued him
- Too many in America are not pursuing him they expect Jesus to come to them, and he does but he wants us to hunger and thirst for righteousness
- To hunger for him, his righteousness, his love compassion, holiness, Jesus is our buddy, our friend, the one who loves us the most and the one who is closer than a brother but he is also God…the one we are to seek with all of our hearts, to love with everything within us.
Here are a few of the many scriptures that I’m referencing
- Hebrews 11:6 And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him.
- Jeremiah 29:13 And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart.
- Matthew 7:7,8 “Keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks, receives. Everyone who seeks, finds. And to everyone who knocks, the door will be opened.
This seeking is not about works but instead about love…
- He would not allow the opinion of others, the popularity of the day stop him
Our world has become so divisive, even in the church we have allowed so many things to divide us…so many opinions, so many ways of being offended…offenses are a sign of immaturity and they are a wedge the enemy uses to show the world Jesus is not one..
In the real Lord’s prayer Jesus challenges the church John 17: 23
I am in them and you are in me. May they experience such perfect unity that the world will know that you sent me and that you love them as much as you love me.
Too many times Jesus is calling us to love, to be a peacemaker, to be His heart and the other voices search for ways to divide….can we be like Paul and singularly focused
1 Corinthians 2:1,2
And I, brethren, when I came to you, did not come with excellence of speech or of wisdom declaring to you the testimony of God. 2 For I determined not to know anything among you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.
So many other things have invaded the church and the world can’t be healed because we are influenced by all of these other voices…can we shut them up until all have heard the saving and powerful life-giving message of Jesus…
We can’t have God accomplishing great things for us and through us if our message is polluted by all of the other voices no matter how good or how bad they seem…everything must come and bow at the cross then it can be dealt with
Too many voices want to hold us down, they may seem right but sometimes so does sin but the answer to all of the world’s problems is still Jesus…
Bartimaeus put seeking Jesus, going after him completely above every other voice from outside, so he could be healed
- He set aside that which defined him (his garment)
We must also shut up the voices inside us that are not God too…Bartimaeus was defined by his cloak….it was the cloak of a beggar
- It didn’t matter what he said…if he was wearing the cloak of a beggar it defined him
- It didn’t matter what he did…if he was wearing a beggar’s cloak he was judged by it
- It didn’t matter if he was in the hall of the King surrounded by royalty…if he was wearing the beggar’s cloak that is all people saw
Too many things define us, outside things we can stand against, but the lies we believe about ourselves, the boxes we put ourselves in they are harder to shed…they can become like old friends that we allow to define us….
Yes bad things happen to us and we allow them to define us but that should only be for a season
Yes, people criticize or are critical of us but we need to remember how God defines us
Yes I know the traumas in life are real and physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual challenges will come but they don’t have any right to define us and keep us trapped in a lie…
We need to throw off our cloaks and put on Christ!
Romans 13:10 – 14
Love does no wrong to others, so love fulfills the requirements of God’s law.
11 This is all the more urgent, for you know how late it is; time is running out. Wake up, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. 12 The night is almost gone; the day of salvation will soon be here. So remove your dark deeds like dirty clothes, and put on the shining armor of right living. 13 Because we belong to the day, we must live decent lives for all to see. Don’t participate in the darkness of wild parties and drunkenness, or in sexual promiscuity and immoral living, or in quarreling and jealousy. 14 Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And don’t let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires.
Paul is telling us any sin that we live is something we are putting on! When we are fearful, insecure, carry unforgiveness, are worrisome, when we feel less than how God defines us that is unbelief and that is called sin….
Please I am not beating you up here I am lifting you up to stop believing the cloak you are wearing to stop allowing it to define you…
I am sure everyone of us has allowed something or someone to define us…some of those definitions are good, they are godly and they are right but some are not they are lies we have chosen to believe above God’s word
Bartimaeus had to throw off that cloak and put on the way Jesus saw him…it wasn’t because his situation changed it was because he trusted by faith
See we want God to quickly change things for us but as Jesus says to Timaeus “Go your way, your faith has made you well! It was Timaeus’ faith that made him see, not faith in faith but faith in Jesus….he believed because of Jesus that he was no longer going to be a blind man
Do you believe today that you are no longer…broken, unlovable, no longer a second class citizen, no longer a victim?
You have been set free in Christ…Galatians 5:1
You have been blessed with every spiritual blessing Ephesians 1:3
You have been chosen and are holy and blameless Ephesians 1:4
You are God’s workmanship created to produce good works Ephesians 2:10
You have been chosen by God and are holy and the beloved Colossians 3:12
You are a new creation in Christ 2 Corinthians 5:17
You are the temple of the Holy Spirit (God dwells in you) 1 Corinthians 6:19
You are God’s child John 1:12
You are not only God’s child but an heir of the Kingdom with Jesus Romans 8:17
These are just a few of the things from the NT that you are, by God’s definition… I know they all take faith to believe because if it didn’t we would all easily be walking in them
To get the answer what do you want me to do for you, today we have to recognize what has already been done for us and walk in it…otherwise we can’t see all that Jesus wants to do for us
He wants to…believe me, there is a world out there that needs us to be salt and light and change it but we have to believe what he has already said about us then we can have the faith to believe for all he has for us and what he wants to do through us
Are you ready? Just begin to believe!
Will you run to him?
Will you let go of all the opinions and right that are not Jesus that hold you back?
Will you through off the cloak that you have allowed to define you?
If you are willing that he is willing to say as Jesus said to Bartimaeus
…..”what do you want me to do for you?”
Let’s begin to see the miracles happen!