What Do We Want?

 

[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered on the 3rd Sunday in Lent, the 7th of March, 2021, at Pilgrim Reformed Church.  This was an abbreviated service due to constraints put in place from the COVID-19 pandemic.  Our YouTube streaming channel is:

http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDIz4WuP8igQstkEOq1AMTg.  Look for the video of our recorded services on our Vimeo channel:  http://vimeo.com/pilgrimreformedchurch.]

Today is the 3rd Sunday in Lent, as we continue our walk with Jesus so we can remember all He did for us.  We’re just a few weeks away from the days when Jesus was arrested, tortured, nailed to a cross, died, was buried, and then rose again from the dead.  So I’ve been trying to look at this time frame when Jesus experienced it, the last weeks before His death and resurrection.

Now, Jesus knew what was coming.  We’ve seen how He has been preparing His disciples for those terrible days ahead.  But He still had work to do, advancing the kingdom of God, leading the lost sheep to salvation.  He basically continued His mission on earth as if nothing was about to happen.

Please listen and follow along to one incident that occurred during this time.  This is one of my favorite stories, about Bartimaeus.  The Apostle Mark saved this for us in chapter 10 of his Gospel account, verses 46 through 52, and I’ll be reading from the New King James Version of our Holy Bible this morning…

46 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.

--Mark 10:46-52 (NKJV)

Let us pray…  Father God, we have so many things to thank You for.  Thank You for Your Son Jesus who gave of Himself that we might be saved.  Thank You for the gift of faith that we might believe and be made well.  And thank You for everything You give us in our Bible, saved for us for our benefit.  Please help us better understand all these gifts and how best to use them.  Help us recognize what we truly want and need.  And Father, please keep us safe from Satan’s temptations and his evil works.  Please keep us strong in our faith, of one mind and purpose in our love and worship, and healthy and safe through these trying times.

Speak to us now, Father, that we might hear Your voice through Your Spirit and better understand the message You have for us this day.  Show each of us how we can glorify You.  This we pray in the blessed name of Your Son, Christ Jesus our Lord.   Amen.

Thomas A Kempis wrote that, "A wise lover values not so much the gift of the lover as the love of the giver."

A mother once approached Napoleon seeking a pardon for her son. The emperor replied that the young man had committed a certain offense twice and justice demanded death. 

"But I don't ask for justice," the mother explained. "I plead for mercy." 

"But your son does not deserve mercy," Napoleon replied. 

"Sir," the woman cried, "it would not be mercy if he deserved it, and mercy is all I ask for." 

"Well, then," the emperor said, "I will have mercy." And he spared the woman's son.

Aren’t we like that woman’s son?  Aren’t we guilty of offenses against God that would demand our death?  And by “death” I mean our eternal death, everlasting separation from God, unending punishment and pain?

But God does not seek justice against us.  Instead, He offers mercy, even though we don’t deserve it.  All we have to do is accept and acknowledge His Son as our Master, and we are spared.  That mercy, while indeed being a gift, truly shows the love of the Giver.  We must value that love even more than the gift.

There are a couple things to point out in our scripture reading.  The blind man knew exactly who Jesus was, with an insight greater than what other people seemed to be able to see with their eyes.  Jesus, born of the house of David; the Messiah of scripture and prophecy.  And then, when he addressed Jesus face-to-face, he used the term “Rabboni”, which in this context literally means "My Great One”.

When asked, Bartimaeus immediately responded with what he wanted Jesus to do for him: to give him sight.  And then, when Jesus granted that request, He told Bartimaeus that his faith had made him well.  And again in context, Jesus literally said, "your faith has saved you."

“Your faith has saved you.”  Bartimaeus knew what he wanted and he knew exactly who to ask, acknowledging Jesus as the Christ, and as his own, personal, Great One.  Do we always know what we really want of Jesus?

The Apostle Luke tells of ten lepers who, like Bartimaeus, knew what they wanted and acknowledged Jesus as their Master.  Listen to their story as recorded by Luke in his Gospel account, chapter 17, verses 11 through 19…

11 Now it happened as He went to Jerusalem that He passed through the midst of Samaria and Galilee. 12 Then as He entered a certain village, there met Him ten men who were lepers, who stood afar off. 13 And they lifted up their voices and said, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”

14 So when He saw them, He said to them, “Go, show yourselves to the priests.” And so it was that as they went, they were cleansed.

15 And one of them, when he saw that he was healed, returned, and with a loud voice glorified God, 16 and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan.

17 So Jesus answered and said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? 18 Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner?” 19 And He said to him, “Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well.”

--Luke 17:11-19 (NKJV)

Ten were given what they wanted, what they asked for, but only one returned to glorify God.  Only one came back to say, “Thanks!”  Only one valued the love of the Giver more than the gift of the One who loved them.  And Jesus again said, “Your faith has made you well.”  “Your faith has saved you.”

Family, what do we want?  What do we want Jesus to do for us?  Whatever it is we ask, He’ll do – He promised that – as long as we ask in His name.  And that means we must truly believe in Him as the Son of God, must fully accept Him as the Christ, our Master, doing as He commands us.

Did you notice in our scripture reading that Bartimaeus threw aside his garment, his cloak, to go to Jesus, and then followed his Great One after being given his sight?  As a blind man forced to beg, his cloak would have been pretty much all he owned.  It represented his livelihood, as he would spread it out before him for people to toss coins onto.  And yet he cast it aside to go to Jesus.  He gave it all up just to follow the Lord, and everyone present would have seen this all take place.  What are we willing to give up?  What do we do to show that we have truly accepted Jesus as our Lord?

Family, let’s make sure we know what we really want before we go to Jesus to ask.  Then, let’s be willing to let go of anything that is holding us back from reaching Him.  Let’s always thank Jesus for granting our request, or even just for listening, so that God our Father is glorified by the works of His Son.  And let’s value the love of the Giver.

In the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord, the one true Son of God, our Savior and our Redeemer.  Amen.

Let us pray…  Father God, we thank You for loving us enough to send Your Son into the world so that we might be saved.  Through Him and His example we can see how we should live.  Thank You, Father, for giving us love, mercy, and faith.  May we always value Your love.  Father, please help us keep our faith and belief strong and active.  Help us be more obedient to Jesus and do as He commands us.  Help us trust Him in everything He says.

Please hear us now, Father, as we pause for just a moment to speak to You through Your Spirit within us, promising to be more faithful and true, putting all our trust in You and Jesus, and seeking Your help as we do so…

Lord Jesus, You gave sight to the blind.  You made the lame to walk.  You cleansed lepers and healed all manner of illnesses.  And for each, You saved them by their faith.  Thank You, Jesus, for saving us by our faith.  Please, Lord, help us recognize what we truly want and need from You.  Help us free ourselves of anything holding us back, keeping us apart from You.  And help us always remember to thank You, to glorify God.  And Jesus, please help us keep our sights on the needs of others rather than on anything this life might offer us.  This we pray in Your blessed name, Christ Jesus our Lord and our Savior.  Amen.