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And Jesus, the heart of the Christian faith is the wildest, most radical guy you'd ever come across. Bear Grylls
SCRIPTURE & DEVOTION: Mark 10:46-52
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!” Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” So they called to the blind man, “Cheer up! On your feet! He’s calling you.” Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and came to Jesus. “What do you want me to do for you?” Jesus asked him. The blind man said, “Rabbi, I want to see.” “Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you.” Immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.
What do you want me to do for you?
This is the question that Jesus asked the blind man. Bartimaeus believed that Jesus was the Messiah. He believed that Jesus had the power to heal. He called out to Jesus and Jesus called out for him. Now he is face to face with Jesus and Jesus asks him this question:
What do you want me to do for you?
One of the steps I go through when I study a passage of scripture is to study the verses around it to get the context. The different stories have been arranged by the Holy Spirit to work together. In the verses just before this James and John had come to Jesus to make a request and Jesus asked them the same question.
“What do you want me to do for you?”
They replied, “Let one of us sit at your right and the other at your left in your glory.” Despite all that they had seen they were still deaf and blind to what Jesus had been trying to teach them. Jesus is headed to the cross. He is going to die. The next week for His disciples was going to be exciting, then horrible, then wonderful. The disciples did not see it. Jesus had told them three times that he was going to Jerusalem to die but they were still arguing about seats in the throne room. They did not hear it. They were still deaf. They were still blind.
Jesus told them, “Whoever wants to become great among you must become your servant and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served but to give his life as a ransom for many.” This was not the kind of greatness they were asking for.
And then along comes a blind man. Jesus asks the same question:
“What do you want me to do for you?”
Bartimaeus responds, “Rabbi, I want to see.”. Jesus asks no other questions. “Go,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you. Bartimaeus says nothing else, but he follows Jesus. He followed the man who healed him.
What would I do if I was face to face with Jesus? What if I have been calling out to Jesus every day and he called me to come near and asked:
“What do you want me to do for you?”
Right now, I would say that I would want the coronavirus crisis to be over. I would ask Him to eliminate this disease from the face of the earth so that no more people would die and we could get back to normal. But the question is not “What do you want me to do for the world?” it is:
“What do you want me to do for you?”
I can easily think of many requests for myself. I could ask Jesus to preserve my health and my job, to keep me free from worry and anxiety. I could ask Him to protect my loved ones. These are all good things to pray for and I have been praying for them. It would not occur to me to answer as the blind man did: “Rabbi, I want to see”. I would not ask this because I am not blind. I can see. At least I think I can.
In Revelation Jesus says to the church in Laodicea, “You say, ‘I am rich, I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing. But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked.” We may not even realize when we are blind. Jesus is talking about a different kind of blindness.
I know that since I became a Christian I see the world differently. Even so, I do not always see like Jesus sees. I don’t fully see people as Jesus sees them. I don’t fully see the world as Jesus sees it. I am sure that I don’t see the coronavirus as Jesus sees it. In order to go where Jesus would have me go and do what Jesus would have me do and be who Jesus would have me be, I need to see as Jesus sees.
“What do you want me to do for you?”
To even answer that question we need the help of the Holy Spirit. When James and John received the Holy Spirit they understood the things they had heard and seen from Jesus in a new way. Ultimately the prayer that Jesus gave them was that God’s will would be done on earth as it is in heaven. For us to be part of this we must see as Jesus sees.
“What do you want me to do for you?
Prayer: Lord, I want to see. I am not able to bear everything that you see but open my eyes that I may see what you want me to see, go where you want me to go, do what you want me to do and be who you want me to be. In these difficult times help me to trust in you. Open my eyes to see you at work in the world. In times of life and death open my eyes to see that you are ultimately in control of my life and that you are still on the throne and that your kingdom is bigger than life and death.
What to you want me to do for you?
Dave Morris