We're told that people's attention span is very short. And if you don't capture it at the beginning, you may never get it back.
So let me give you uh Something that kind of look for, particularly this morning in my preaching. I want you to look for hook. Look. Book And took.
Okay. What's a hook? My hook is to capture your attention at the very beginning so that you don't lose me. And after the hook, we're going to take a look in the book. And then look, we're going to look hard at what's in the text, and I hope as we do, you will see Jesus and be encouraged by him.
and then took We're not interested in a theological exercise. I want to challenge you. To take seriously what you heard and ask the question: so what? What difference should that make? What difference will it make today and this week as I live out my life?
So Hook, look, book, took. Here's my hook. If Jesus You had audience along with Jesus. What is it that you would ask him for? We're going to look at a man who had an audience with Jesus.
And Jesus asked this man a question. What is it that you want me to do for you?
So as you're here this morning, what is it that you would ask? See, that question depends on who's asking it, right? Jesus is the one I'm asking you to consider. If he were to ask you, what is it that you want me to do for you? What would you say?
Is it something temporal? I hear people say, I just want for my children and my grandchildren a better life than I had. Really? That's what life's about. As we think about this man, Bartimaeus, it's instructive in both what he didn't ask for.
and what he did. Because how we answer that question reveals the condition of our heart, because the Bible says, out of the abundance of the heart, The mouth speaks.
So, how you would answer that question reveals something about the condition of your heart. Whether your orientation is vertical or whether it's horizontal, whether it's tied to this world or whether your eye is toward eternity. This man did not ask for status. Or for glory? He was a man who was blind.
And that blindness had reduced him to begging for his sustenance. Yet he did not ask to be delivered from his poverty. His one and only request was to receive sight. Thus Bartimaeus is before us as an object lesson. His physical blindness is a reminder.
That every person born in this world suffers not from physical blindness. but from spiritual blindness. And that blindness is only removed By our Lord. And it's a serious blindness, it's an all-pervasive blindness. Listen to what Paul said in Ephesians chapter five.
Ephesians five. I'm getting there. He says in chapter 5 and verse 1, Therefore be imitators of God as dear children, and walk in love as Christ also has loved us and given himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma. And then he goes on to say. Talks about some particular sins.
Verse 8. He says, for you were once darkness. But now you are light in the Lord, walk as children of light. And I want to draw your attention to the first part of that: for you were once darkness. It doesn't say you were once in darkness.
Your whole life was characterized by darkness. And that was a condition of this man Bartimaeus. We do not know if he was born blind or whether he came about that later on in life, but his life was reduced to blindness. He was absolutely, totally dependent on others. Spiritual blindness is a is something that is only remedied in the gospel.
Well, let's walk through this passage together. And let me beg but begin by Speaking to this. Number one, the approach. The approach of the Savior. The approach of the Savior, verse 46.
And by that, I mean his destination. He was on his way. Jerusalem. He was on his way. with determination.
and with intent. Resolutely. He's 15 miles north of Jerusalem. He's been talking to his disciples about what awaits him in Jerusalem at the hands of the religious leaders. That he will suffer, he will be spit upon, he will be scourged, he will die, and he will rise again.
Again. You recall. How John, or not John, but Mark. utilizes this literary device. constantly uses the word immediately.
Or straightforward, straight with. And it's an action pact. Narrative and gospel account. And we have this sense that Jesus is on a mission. He is on his way to Jerusalem.
He's not going to be deterred. He's determined to do the will of the Father. And that has been made known to him.
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.
So, the approach of the Savior is followed by the company of the Savior. The company of the Saviour. Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem. And who all is in this company? As he, Jesus, went out.
of Jericho with his disciples and a great multitude And then blind Bartimaeus. The son of Timaeus sat by the road Begging. A great multitude. We say, well What's all this about? This was a major trade route.
From Jericho to Jerusalem. Yeah. Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem. and there will be the observance of Passover.
So here are pilgrims making their way to Jerusalem for the Passover. It is a trade route. This large gathering of people. Is explained for that reason, but also for this reason, because robbers took advantage of those traveling this trade route. and people felt safer traveling in groups.
So there's a large group of people that are Following Jesus and His disciples. And then there's one man that we're told about. And what's interesting about this is Matthew doesn't tell us his name. But Mark tells us his name. And I'm told this.
I didn't go back and revisit this on my own, but I was told this. I read this in a commentary, and the commentator said, This is the only miracle recorded in the Gospels where the recipient is named. Bartimaeus. In my mind, when I read that, I started going through my mind thinking of the miracles, thinking, is that true? And I didn't spend a lot of time there, but it's interesting that his name is mentioned.
And I had to stop and ask, well, why would Why would Mark choose to give us his name?
Now There's a bit of literary redundancy going on here. He's called blind. Bartimaeus, the son of Timeus. Bart is a prefix that means son of.
So there's redundancy here. Bar Son of Timaeus, the son of Timaeus, you see, there's redundancy here. Let me share, you know, Jesus said. Blessed art thou, Simon Barjonah. Barr, son of He was the son of Jonah.
Simon.
So there's a bit of redundancy here. But I think for me, this is what I glean from this. We've just been told. that Jesus came The Son of Man, verse 45, did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life. A ransom.
For many. To give his life a ransom for many. I want you to understand this morning that Jesus didn't die for a faceless humanity. He died for men and women and boys and girls by name. And here is a recipient of the gospel message, and his name is.
Timaeus Blind. Bartimaeus. So, two things we're told directly about him. His life is characterized by blindness. Anytime you were to think of Bartimaeus, you would associate his name with blindness.
Blind Bartimaeus. And that blindness had reduced him to being a beggar. One other thing we know about him by implication. is that he had some prior knowledge of Jesus. He either heard about him directly.
Or indirectly, perhaps from some friend who perhaps had been blind and had received his sight. There are a number of things going on here. Of all the miracles that Jesus performed. The the one that is most mentioned Restoring sight to the blind. We said, well, why is that so prominent?
Why is that? emphasize so much.
Well, do you remember the occasion when John the Baptist was in prison, and he was confused? The very John the Baptist who had baptized the Lord Jesus, who had said, Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, And yet he sent two of his disciples to ask Jesus Are you the coming one? Or in other words, are you the Messiah? Or do we look for another? That's recorded in Luke chapter 7.
And this is what we find. Then, this is right after this question's been asked. Then they also brought infants to him. Uh let me. You see here.
No, I'm in the wrong chapter. I knew I'm looking. I'm like, no, wait a minute here. Luke seven. Again.
These two disciples of John Ask in verse 20, are you the coming one, or do we look for another? In verse 21 of Luke 7 says, And that very hour He cured many. Of infirmities, afflictions, and evil spirits, and to many. Blind, he gave sight. Too many blind.
He gave sight. Jesus answered and said to them, These two disciples, go back with this message and tell John. Go and tell John the things that you have seen and heard. that the blind see. The lame walk.
The lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear. The dead are raised from Are raised, the poor have the gospel preached to them, and blessed is he who is not offended because of me. This is what the Messiah will do. This is how you'll know who the Messiah is. and one of the chief characteristics is he will give sight to the blind.
So, there are three positive. aspects in Bartimaeus's situation. Three positive Aspects and what are they?
Well, number one, his location. His location. Mark doesn't get into the detail here, but I think it's helpful to hear. Luke's account in Luke chapter 18.
So let me You just listen as I read. We're reading the same account, only from Luke's perspective. Luke says, Then it happened as he was coming near Jericho that a certain blind man sat by the road begging. This was his lot. This is what he did.
This was his. As we could say, occupation. His life had been reduced to begging. And here he is. and he's an opportunist.
We might even call him a businessman. Because he is beside a well-traveled road, a thoroughfare. And he's there. And the implication is That this is what he did. This was what he did day in and day out.
So that's the first thing that's going for him, his location. He is stationed beside the road. The second thing is, Jesus is passing by. Jesus is passing by. And this is going to change his life completely.
And what is the third thing? His location, Jesus is passing by, and the simplistic nature of his existence. He was a beggar. He knew it. Everyone else knew it.
He was not going to be mistaken for a mover and a shaker. That wasn't who he was.
So he had these things going for him. He didn't think more highly of himself than he ought to. He was a beggar. His life had been reduced to that. And that made him a good candidate for the gospel.
Number three. The appeal. to the Saviour. The approach to the Savior, the company of the Savior, and number three, the appeal. to the Savior.
And there it is in verse 47. And verse forty-eight. And when he, that is, Bartimaeus Heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth. He began to cry out and say, Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me.
Now, the account is that he is beside the road, and again, he can't see. But he hears increased activity, whether it's The footsteps of people, or an increased number of people talking, he knew that something significant was happening and he asked. What is happening? What is going on? And he's told, Jesus of Nazareth is coming by.
He couldn't see him, but he was told this. When he heard, verse 47, that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, Jesus, son of David, Have mercy on me. Then many warned him to be quiet, but he cried out all the more, Son of David, have mercy on me.
Now Matthew says that he cried out, Lord. Not son of Not Jesus of Nazareth, but Lord. Have mercy on me. And I'm not sure. Certain why There's that variation, but In essence, it's pretty much the same thing.
Jesus, son of David, have mercy on me. Think of the soundness of this man's theology. He knows that the Messiah The long-promised deliverer of Israel would come from the lineage of David. that he would be David's greater son. That he would be David's son, and yet, at the same time, David's Lord.
Now think of the irony. Most of the nation of Israel, and especially the religious establishment. was blind. blind to the presence of the Messiah in their midst. Yet this blind man, Bartimaeus, Has been given spiritual sight to recognize and acknowledge Jesus.
as the Messiah. His appeal. What is he appealing for? He appeals to him. For mercy.
Jesus, son of David, have mercy. On me. And when the crowd tried to silence him, it says he cried out all the more.
Son of David. Have mercy on me. Verse 48. We can learn from this man, can't we? That must be our cry.
We must plead not for merit. but for mercy. Because we're all debtors to mercy. We have nothing to commend us to God. In Luke's Gospel.
In the same chapter that this account is recorded, There is the account. of the parable of the Pharisee. and the tax collector. Luke chapter 18. That's where this account of Bartimaeus is recorded.
And again, I want you to understand. that the Gospels are not arranged chronologically. The human authors have put together the narrative according to. the object of the audience in which they're writing.
So there's a purpose and a mindset.
So we shouldn't be surprised that we would find in the same chapter this occasion of Jesus teaching by parable. And this is it. Verse 8, chapter 18, verse 9. And he spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous and despised others. Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee, the other a tax collector.
The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. I fast twice a week. I give tithes of all that I possess. And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven. But beat his breast, saying, God be merciful to me, a sinner.
And Jesus says, I tell you, this man went down to his house. Justified rather than the other, for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be. Exalted. This man is humble. This man is not.
boastful nor prideful. He is not full of self-righteousness. His only appeal is to the mercy of the Lord. That leads us to the compassion of the Savior. We've thought about the approach of the Savior, the company of the Savior, the appeal to the Savior.
the compassion of the Savior. Back to chapter 10 of Mark. Verse 49. Mark records it this way: So Jesus stood still. Jesus stood still.
Think of the contrast. Between that statement And this literary device employed by Mark throughout his gospel, immediately, straightforward. Just rapid succession activity. Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem. But here is a blind man who's crying out to him for mercy, and we are told by Mark.
So Jesus stood still. Hmm. 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. I want to remind you of what Jesus said in John 6, verse 37. He said, all that the Father Gives me will come to me. And the one who comes to me, I will by no means. Cast out.
Blind Bartimaeus Jesus of Nazareth, have mercy on me.
Son of David, have mercy on me. And he wouldn't be turned away. Jesus stopped. commanded him to be brought. Verse 49 tells us: They called the blind man, saying to him, Be of good cheer.
Rise. He is calling you. I've got to stop and linger at this point. This is too rich. Is one thing.
For us to call on the Lord. It's something else when he calls on us. And in theological terms, we refer to this as the effectual call. This is where our true hope lies. When God the Holy Spirit Takes particular notice of us in our lostness, in our blindness, in our hopelessness, and calls us.
And the crowd has it right. Bartimaeus has good cause for cheer. Because Jesus was calling him. Be of good cheer. They said to him, They must have known something about Jesus in his heart for the unfortunate.
Be of good cheer. Rise. He is calling you. It's interesting to position yourself on the platform and notice. Who gathers for worship in this place?
Many of you, I know. Wave Known each other for years, and others I don't know you very well at all, and there's even some visitors with us. Nobody's here by accident. No one.
So, my question is: Have you? Heard. The call The effectual call this morning. Perhaps you've been indifferent to your lostness. You haven't been bothered by it at all.
You haven't been troubled by it at all. But something has happened this morning. The Spirit of God has come to you and has spoken to you. And it is my prayer that that effectual call that reached out to Bartameha, that he could not resist, he could not refuse, that he had to respond to, would come to you. And those of us who are saved here this morning, they know, you know.
We know what that effectual call is, right? It's a wonderful thing. Let's think. Further. Concerning the response.
to the Saviour. How did Bartimaeus respond? Rise, he's calling you. Verse 50 says, and throwing aside his garment, he rose and came to Jesus. There's a mental picture comes to my mind.
This man He's on the ground. He's got a hat or a cup or something to collect coins in. And he's probably the only thing he's got beside that cup or hat or and the rags on his back is a garment. To protect him against the cold, and it says. and throwing aside his garment, He rose and came to Jesus.
There was haste. In that man. And that's always the response of a helpless sinner to the effectual call. That sinner will rise and come to Jesus. And his act symbolizes genuine faith.
And what is that? Abandoning all to follow Christ. He left his garment. He threw it off. To heed the call.
and come to Jesus, which he did.
So, so far, we have seen the approach of the Savior. The company of the Saviour. The appeal to the Savior. the compassion of the Savior, the response to the Savior. Number six, and there's only seven, so we're getting toward the end here.
The inquiry. of the Saviour. The Inquiry of the Saviour. Bartimaeus? Is risen, he's come to Jesus.
And verse 51 tells us.
So Jesus answered and said to him, What do you want me to do for you? Does that sound familiar? Does that question sound familiar? If you've been With us in this exposition of the Gospel of Mark, last week we heard the same question. James and John come to Jesus.
And said Will you give us anything we ask for? And Jesus said, what is it that you want? What is it that you want me to do for you?
Those were the words. And they said, well, we want you to give us A position on your right and on your left. Jesus says, that's not for me to give. That's been determined by my Father in heaven. What do you want?
me to do for you.
So I think at this point it's good to stop and think. Jesus did ask that question of Bartimaeus, but. Could I ask you again this morning, what is it that you would want Jesus to do for you? If it's Some earthly ambition, something related to position or prestige or power or. Achievement.
That reveals something about the condition of our heart, doesn't it? Because What shall it profit a man? If he shall gain the whole world. And loses soul. Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?
Perhaps some of you would say. It's not what I would ask him to do for me, it's what I would ask him to do for my children. My grandchildren. Ask him. Beg him.
Intercede on behalf of your children, your grandchildren. But again. How we answer that question. Is a litmus test. It's a barometer of the condition of our heart and what it is that drives us, what we are living for.
What do you want me to do for you? Which leads us to my last point, number seven: the commitment to the Savior. The blind man said to him, that is to Jesus, Rebonai. that I may receive My sight. Raboni.
I don't know if this is accurate, but there's only one other person that I can recall in the Gospels who addressed Jesus by that. Title, Raboni. Who was it? It was Mary. on resurrection morning.
When the man who she thought was the gardener with Jesus revealed himself to her, and she looked and she said, Rabboni! Raboni. It's a title with intense personal Nature to it. It's a confession of faith.
Now, again, in Luke's account of this very incident, it is recorded that he said, Lord. that I might receive my sight. What was Bartimaeus saying? He was saying, My Lord and my Master, let me see. Mark is giving us a portrait of a true disciple.
Bartimaeus is a portrait of a true disciple. He's acknowledging that Jesus was his Lord and his master, and he was gladly owning his place. as a servant. Masters are served. Bartimaeus was glad to be a servant.
of Jesus Something that James and John. and the other disciples were having a very hard time with, right? Verse fifty two. Then This is the commitment to the Savior. Then Jesus said to him, Go your way.
Your faith has made you well. Go your way. Go is in the present imperative. It's a command. Go your way, that is, start going and keep on going and keep on going to the rest of your life.
That is the posture. of a Christian. We are a follower of Christ. And we continue to follow him wherever that leads, and for as long as our life on this earth endures. What a change.
The blind man no longer sat by the road begging. He became a child of light. and a follower of Jesus Christ. Go your way. Your faith.
has made you well. Faith that was non-existent. Faith was Faith is the Reception of God's benevolent mercy and kindness. And he says, and immediately they're marks back to that literary device and immediately He received his sight. Think about that.
This man who had been blind and dependent on others to describe things to him. All of a sudden, His blindness is gone and his sight is restored to him. or now he's maybe saying for the very first time You would think the natural tendency would be to run around and begin to look at everything that previously he'd only known through the description of someone else. But when his sight was restored to him, the only person he saw was Jesus, and that's all that mattered to him. That's all that mattered.
And immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus. On the road. His only boast was in the Lord. He was a new creature in Christ Jesus. His eyes have been opened, dispelled as darkness.
And his mercy had been Dispense toing. And Luke adds this. Mark doesn't say this, but Luke adds. And he began to glorify God. What a change, right?
Well Some lessons.
Some lessons to conclude this message. Lesson number one in how we can learn from this text, and how to respond to those who are troubled by life's trials. Everybody's busy. And we can get so preoccupied and so consumed with what is on our plate. that we don't have time for other people.
We don't see the needs of other people. But we need to learn from Jesus because Jesus, if there was anybody on a mission, it was Jesus on his way to Jerusalem. But here was a man in desperate need. And the text tells us Jesus stopped. He stopped, and that's what we need to do.
We need to pray for grace to stop, take notice. Be mindful, be compassionate. and find some tangible way to meet the needs of another. Be a servant to other people. Lesson number one.
Lesson number two. Jesus is in our midst. Where two or three are gathered in my name, Jesus said, I will be in the midst of them. Jesus is in our midst. It is as if he were passing by.
And the admonition is to seek the Lord while he may be found and to call on him while he is near. Perhaps he's never been any more nearer to you than he is right now if you're a lost person. Jesus wasn't coming back by this way again. This was Bartimaeus's one and only chance. Jesus wasn't coming back this way.
Seek the Lord while he may be found. Call on him while he's near. And with this Confidence, all who call on him, he will in no wise cast out. Lesson number three. This passage is very clarifying about what a Christian is.
A Christian isn't a person who's made a decision. A Christian is not a person who's had a religious experience. A Christian is a person who's had an encounter with the Lord Jesus Christ. And his life is never the same again. If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation.
Old things pass away, behold, all things become new. A Christian, boil it down to Grassroots, bottom line. Common denominator: a Christian is a follower of Jesus Christ. That's why Jesus Commanded him, it's in the present imperative, go. and keep on going and go until Life is over.
We follow Jesus all the way. to the end of our life. Shouldn't be hard for us to identify with this man, Bartimaeus, because all of us were blind. Spiritually blind, we could not see. And if God hadn't given us sight, we would have remained blind.
We're all debtors to mercy alone. We can read this and say, well, that's the prayer for a sinner. Lord, be merciful to me. And yes, it is a plea for the sinner.
Son of David, have mercy on me, but let me remind you. That the penman in the Hebrew penman says. that we have a great high priest. Who's seated in the heavens, who's touched with the feelings of our infirmities, and therefore he says, there is a throne of grace whereby we might what? Come boldly.
And receive what? Mercy. and grace to help in time of need. You never will come to the end of your need for mercy in this life. We're debtors to mercy.
His mercies are new every morning, and that's good news, isn't it? What's interesting is. This man was singled out. Think about this. This narrative.
We're told about Jesus. We're told about a large multitude. We're told about the disciples. And then this is added. There is a man by the name of Bartimaeus.
And this is. Preserve for us in Holy Script that we might understand that this is the way the gospel works. The Spirit of God comes to a man or woman or boy and a girl, brings them under conviction. Brings them to a place where they're aware of their lostness, brings them to a place where they call out for mercy. And they're rescued, they're changed, they're made a child of God.
We're told. That he followed on the road.
Well, where was Jesus going? Where was this entourage going? It was going to Jerusalem, and he was following Jesus to the cross. He's nowhere again mentioned. You got to believe he was in the crowd.
with all the activities that are going to take place during Passion Week. But he's never singled out. He takes his place. among the company. But We're told in this passage that he was singled out by our Lord because he had a saving purpose in that man's life.
And I recall God's dealings with me on several occasions. A call to the ministry. A call to salvation. It didn't matter if there were thousands of people around me. It was as if I was the only person.
God was dealing with me and me only. And perhaps that's you this morning. God is dealing with you. You're here. This message is for you.
And my confidence is not in my literary skills. Nor my homiletical skills, not in my hook, book, look, took. My confidence is in the Spirit of God. Who in His providence brought us to this passage on this day. in the life of our church during these circumstances.
Death has visited us, folks. on two occasions in the last week and a half or two. And death has a way of preparing hearts. and preparing men and women. Brings a soberness to us, doesn't it?
So let's pray and ask the Lord to use His Word. Father, thank you for this. This narrative or this preservation of this man named Bartimaeus. A man, when we get to eternity, we'll come to know. We'll meet him.
We'll hear his story firsthand. And we'll know the rest of the story. Because he seems lost in the pages of Scripture after this point. But, Holy Spirit of God, we ask you to deal with everyone in this room today. And any who are listening through live stream, Particularly those who are lost and undone and spiritually blind.
Would you awaken them to their lost condition? Would you give them spiritual sight? Would you? Effectually call them that they might become a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. For those of us who have Cause our hearts to rejoice in the mercy of God.
We pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Hmm.
