Psalm 37: 3-7; Mark 10: 46-52
by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
October 28, 2018
Trust in the Lord, and do good;
so you will live in the land, and enjoy security.
Take delight in the Lord,
and he will give you the desires of your heart.
Commit your way to the Lord;
trust in him, and he will act.
He will make your vindication shine like the light,
and the justice of your cause like the noonday.
Be still before the Lord, and wait patiently for him;
do not fret over those who prosper in their way,
over those who carry out evil devices. - Psalm 37: 3-7
They came to Jericho. As [Jesus] and his disciples and a large crowd were leaving Jericho, Bartimaeus son of Timaeus, a blind beggar, was sitting by the roadside. When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout out and say, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!’
Many sternly ordered him to be quiet, but he cried out even more loudly, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’
Jesus stood still and said, ‘Call him here.’ And they called the blind man, saying to him, ‘Take heart; get up, he is calling you.’
So throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. Then Jesus said to him, ‘What do you want me to do for you?’ The blind man said to him, ‘My teacher, let me see again.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Go; your faith has made you well.’ Immediately he regained his sight and followed him on the way. - Mark 10: 46-52
The mark of a good teacher is one who creates a trusting space to ask questions. And the asking is always reciprocal. The teacher asks questions of the students to encourage their curiosity and understanding, as well as challenge their thinking. And the students ask questions of the teacher to gain clarity and insight.
Jesus was such a teacher. He asked more questions than he gave answers for.
And in the tenth chapter of Mark’s Gospel, Jesus asks a particular question in two back to back settings; first to James and John and then to Bartimaeus. Jesus’ question implies he is curious to know the desires of the heart for all three. But more so, Jesus is curious to hear that desire named out loud.
Jesus asked the brothers of Zebedee, “What do you want me to do for you?” when they had asked a favor of Jesus (Mark 10:26). The brothers said they wanted to sit in Jesus’ glory at his right and left hand (Mark 10:37). The brothers want the power that Jesus has. And yet the Teacher knows they do not fully understand.
Jesus had just foretold for the third time about his coming death and resurrection (Mark 10: 33-34). Jesus could see that “deer in the head lights” look in his disciples eyes. He reminds his disciples God’s kingdom is contrary to Rome’s kingdom; the world knows powerful rulers lord their power over the people but this is not so among you (Mark 10: 42-43).
And yet Jesus ultimately uses the cross to instruct the disciples the core concept of his servant leadership. To be last and not first…to serve and not be served because Jesus will give his life as a ransom for many. For Jesus the work of the cross is to lay down God’s power in self-giving, unconditional, sacrificial love for all humanity (Mark 10: 44-45).
The disciples needed to hear Jesus ask Bartimaeus the same question, “What do you want me to do for you?”
The future is at stake. At the end of Mark’s Gospel, the disciples would be sent with Jesus’ Easter power to proclaim the good news to the whole creation and work with the Lord (Mark 16: 15, 20).
The disciples needed to be embraced by a teaching moment with Bartimaeus because the Christian life as a disciple of Jesus is never about having power over another. The Christian life is not about telling others what they need to feel or do in order to experience God’s saving grace. The Christian life is about sharing Jesus’ power with others.
Jesus and the disciples come to Jericho and the crowd is mesmerized by Jesus’ teaching. The crowd followed Jesus and the disciples oh so closely to learn more about the One who teaches in God’s authority.
As Jesus walked the streets of Jericho a man named Bartimaeus could hear all the chatter. We don’t know how or when he first heard of Jesus. But Bartimaeus’ actions that day imply that he had an understanding of how powerful Jesus was.
Mark does not reveal what had caused Bartimaeus’ blindness or how long he had struggled with it. But it certainly brought isolation, exclusion, and powerlessness to Bart’s life.
The beat on the street was that Jesus reached out to those with a similar story. Jesus healed those who wrestled their demons (Mark 1: 21-28; 5: 1-20); he chose to touch and cleanse lepers (Mark1: 40-42) ; he empowered women to share their stories of pain and exclusion in light of God’s powerful healing and grace (Mark 5:32-34) ; he healed the sick and welcomed children (Mark 1: 29-34; 6:53-56; 9: 25-27; 10:14); he cured the deaf and the blind (Mark 7: 31-37; 8:22-26).
And Bart was desperate to be healed too. He knew that Jesus was the One who could do it.
So just as Jesus and the disciples were about to head back to Jerusalem, Bart cold not let this moment pass. He shouted to grab Jesus‘ attention.
This is where that teaching moment begins. The crowd tried to silence Bart. They tried to exert a level of power over him. Those in the crowd standing near Bartimaeus said to him – keep quiet. Not now. And as the crowd tried to shut out Bartimaeus, he shouted out all the more loudly.
Jesus stood still and spoke to the men and women who were standing as a barrier between Bart and Jesus. And Jesus said, “Call him here” (Mark 10:49).
And the disciples saw something take place that would change them forever. The ones who tried to silence Bart did not push back against Jesus but had a change of heart.
Those in the crowd followed Jesus’ instruction and looked at Bartimaeus saying to him, “Take courage. Rise up. He is calling you” (Mark 10:49). Those individuals in the crowd shared Jesus’ power with Bartimaeus; they helped him rise up; they helped him get to Jesus.
And it is there that James and John and the disciples heard Jesus ask Bart the same question, “What do you want me to do for you?” The Greek renders a more faithful reading, “What do you desire that I do for you?”
I can’t help but wonder as Bartimaeus heard that question if Psalm 37:4-5 filled his mind, “Take delight in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lod; trust in him and he will act.”
I love Bartimaeus’ answer. He wanted to receive Jesus’ power to see again but to see in a new way – to experience God’s mercy, amazing grace, and blessed assurance that Jesus was his Lord too.
And after being touched by Jesus’ merciful power Bartimaeus followed Jesus on the way (Mark 10:52). Bartimaeus became a disciple too.
And I know as the circle of Jesus’ students grew, their view of God’s kingdom grew too.
Have you ever felt silenced? If so, who or what silenced you? Who listened to your pain and the desires of your heart? Who helped you take courage and rise up in Jesus’ merciful love, healing, and rise up a little closer to your God-given potential?
Holy Spirit is on the move as the Advocate to teach us to be like our Teacher and Savior. Jesus came to proclaim the good news of God (Mark 1:14).
But the good news Jesus brought came through loving God and loving neighbor. The good news Jesus brought was walking beside those who had been silenced. God hears all our pleas and prayers, but God is particularly close to the powerless and the marginalized. The good news Jesus brought shared God’s power to redeem humanity physically, emotionally and spiritually and to join God in changing the world.
As disciples of Jesus Christ, we too are sent to proclaim the good news too….. But if the good news that we proclaim does not include loving God and loving neighbor then we are not proclaiming Jesus.
We are to proclaim the good news by sharing Jesus’ power of mercy and grace with others. To share Jesus’ power is not about being theologically right or determining who is inside or outside of the circle of God’s grace. Sharing Jesus’ power is to lay down ours power for the sake of living in in relationship with God and one another like Jesus did.
It is to listen for our sisters and brothers who are shouting out because society is silencing their voices. The history of humankind has long silenced whole groups of people, and lest we forget – the Church – has a long history even through the present day of silencing voices too.
The Spirit is on the move to lead us to confess our spiritual blindness and to empower us to spiritually see in a new way. And so life becomes a classroom of faith to encounter new insights from the Teacher and to learn from one another.
We are collecting Dimes for Hunger this month so that we may share God’s abundance with our sisters and brothers who live near the poverty line here in Lancaster County and even all the way to Guatemala and Honduras. This ministry has been asking the question, “What do you want Jesus to do for you?” and many reply they want to know God will always provide daily bread and fill the gap that they cannot.
We will be baking cookies these next few weeks for the Kairos ministry to take a dozen homemade cookies to 1,500 of our brothers serving time in the Kershaw prison. That ministry has been asking the question, “What do you want Jesus to do for you?” and many have replied they want to know the truest gift of God’s forgiveness – that we are more than the worst thing we have ever done. And those cookies convey a prayerful action of unconditional love and mercy that is tangible.
We are praying for American Leprosy Missions this week as one of our own travels with the team to Napal to learn from and serve our sisters and brothers who struggle today with leprosy. And this ministry asks, “What do you want Jesus to do for you?” and one man said, “People look down on me because of this sickness.” He wants to be healed, to experience belonging, and to find the hope of making a difference in his community.
Our Jewish sisters and brothers in Pittsburgh are shouting out because violent hatred has once again tried to silence them. How will you and I respond?
In our daily living – at school, at work, in the community and wider world- when we walk beside our sisters and brothers who are hurting, who have been silenced, and we listen to their stories – even when God takes us out of our comfort zone - that my friends is holy work.
When we listen and help others to rise up in Jesus’ power to reach their desire and God-given potential, when we work together to right the wrongs, when we see each other through eyes of mercy, and when we serve humbly then that is doing what the Lord requires of us….to do justice, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with God.
Who is God calling you and me to listen to? Who might God place in your path and mine this week that has been silenced? Will we listen?
May we remember the blessed assurance of belonging to Jesus is God’s desire for all.
In the name of our Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer, Amen.
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