February 12 and 19, 2014
Jesus Loves All
Mark 10:13-31
Jesus Loves Little Children 10:13-16
Jesus Loves Adults 10:17-31
Jesus Continues to Prepare His Disciples 10:32-45
Jesus Always Has Time 10: 46-52
The parents in this lesson wanted Jesus to touch their children, bless their children, and pray for their children. And I think, that we would all agree, that they weren’t the only ones, who wanted to bring their little ones to Jesus…..As parents, that was the desire that Dale and I had before our first child, Mary Kathryn, was even born, and with our other 2, as well-----and I daresay that everyone in this room wants the same thing for their children and grandchildren…I remember when my children were little, we would visit my sister in Charlotte several times a year-----they went to a wonderful Episcopal Church with a precious rector, named Pastor Henry. I loved him and I always was so happy to go up for communion, with my 3 little blonde-haired babies, to have him bless them and pray for them, individually. Our children had all been dedicated, and I loved that, but their was something, so wonderful, about being able to take them to the altar, to be blessed every time we were there. It reminded me so much, of Jesus saying, “Let the little children come unto me.”
And, it reminds me of Jesus telling the disciples, to not hinder the parents from bringing the children. I don’t think there is an age, that’s too young, for a child to come to Jesus, and I believe that the earlier they come to Him for salvation, the longer life, that they have to serve Him. Imagine if Billy Graham had gotten saved when He was a 60 year old man-----imagine all the lost opportunities to be saved, that would have been, because there were no Billy Graham Crusades-----I am one of those, that my faith was made real at a crusade, it might have been me….
I believe, that young children, are the most open, to the Gospel. They believe it with all their hearts, just because, you tell them about Jesus and His love and how He came to die for their sins----they are so trusting and pragmatic, they just believe. I believe that a 3 or 4 year old can understand what they can understand, as well as a 5 or 6 year old, and a 7 or 8 year old, is the same----they start out with a little bit of knowledge and faith----and the Lord grows it in them, spiritually, as they grow physically and cognitively…. I remember that our old pastor, Ron Rowe, used to say that he never turned a child away, when they came to him to talk about asking Jesus into their hearts-----he had learned, through experience, how damaging that could be----a little girl, of 9, came to him one time, and he didn’t think she was ready, so he sent her away with the promise of talking later----and he said that she never came back, and to this day he doesn’t know if she ever got saved-----and he said that he never made that mistake again.
And statistics, gathered over many years, have shown, that generally, more people are saved when they are children, than any other time in life. Not that people aren’t saved as adults, they are, but it usually is a much more difficult process for them….children are such great believers, because they haven’t been jaded by the world, life experience, or even their own emotions, yet….
In our study this week, Jesus declared the value of children and His love for them by His actions….And, He used the receptivity of children as a guideline for the kind of response required of anyone, of any age, who would want to enter the kingdom of God.
I. Jesus Loves Little Children 10:13-16
Last week, we talked about marriage, so it makes sense, that the next thing that Jesus addressed, was the place children have in the Kingdom….because family, is a precious gift He has given us.
The Jews of that day, thought children were a blessing, not a burden, that they were a rich treasure from God, and not a liability-----and not to have children, in that culture, brought the couple, both heartache for themselves, and disgrace, in front of their neighbors.
And it was a customary thing, for parents to bring their children to the rabbis for a blessing, so it was a reasonable thing, that they would bring their little children to Jesus, the wonderful rabbi, that they’d been hearing about. Some were infants and some were walking children, but there must have been a lot of them, for the disciples to think that they had to intervene, by discouraging them from coming. They must have thought that it was part of their calling, to shield Jesus from His public-------they had done it several times before------remember, both times, that Jesus fed the huge crowds, the disciples had tried to get the people to go home, and leave Him alone for a while. So, it wasn’t that the disciples didn’t like the children, it was more, that they wanted to protect Jesus’ time, and to conserve His energy.
When Jesus realized what was happening, He apparently let the disciples have it with both feet----the word that He used, in the Greek, was much stronger, than just being displeased---it was more that He was indignant (which implies, that He was so taken aback by their behavior, that He felt a deep pain, in His heart)----this is the only place in scripture where indignation is ascribed to Jesus. Jesus heart was broken for the children who were being turned away, and for their mothers, and for His poor misguided disciples, who meant well, but still, just couldn’t quite get it…..He loved them all, so He gave the disciples two commands: 1.) “Let the little children come unto me” and 2.)“Do not hinder them, any of them, from coming to me.”
Then, He went on to say, that adults, need to pattern themselves after the little children, when we come to Him, because if we don’t-----we can never enter the Kingdom of God. Meaning, that we all have to come to Jesus, and I trust that we all have, with simplicity, sincerity and the eager believability that little children have…think about how we all love to take little children to see Santa Claus…even the most skeptical of children, can’t resist the temptation of climbing up onto Santa’s knee to tell him, so solemnly, all of the things they want for Christmas. We know it’s not real, but we like the magic of it. so we go along with it. And we bask in it----we take pictures and just smile, because we’re so proud….
Just think about how much more eager we should be, to bring our little children to Jesus-----He’s the only reason we even have Christmas, in the first place----He’s the only one who can really satisfy our heart’s desires. But not just our children, do we need to bring to Him----we need to bring ourselves-----as grown up, and sophisticated, and worldly-wise, as we think we are-----we need to lay everything aside, and come to Him, with the same simplicity, sincerity, eager believability, and childlike trust, that children do.
Those mothers were not sent away empty----one after the other, Jesus, spoke to each child, then He took them up on His knee and blessed them with His precious hands----the mother’s hearts must have been bursting with pride and gratitude-----and it was an experience that the children would never have forgotten----when they were old and gray, they must have still been telling their children and grandchildren----I remember…… one time….. Jesus touched me…..
I read a beautiful illustration, written by a mother, I don’t know her name, that teaches us all, this lesson, in a powerful way….
It goes like this:
( I sat down on the bed and picked up my crocheting to learn a couple of new stitches, before our long flight to New Zealand on Monday. The girls had just gone outside to play and I had a few minutes to get some details about our trip sorted out in my mind. My husband was already there, he had left 3 weeks earlier to begin his preaching itinerary, and I couldn’t wait to be with him, we all had missed him so much.
My thoughts were interrupted by the loud screeching of tires. I waited to hear the collision, but there wasn’t any sound of impact. So I figured that somebody on our street had just dodged a bullit. Within seconds, my 10 year old came running into the house and yelled up the stairs, “Tanya’s been hit by a car.”
Mary, my neighbor, met me on the porch and said, “hurry!” I felt like every second was an eternity as I sped toward the little knot of people surrounding Tanya in the road----fear gripped my heart as I imagined what my baby must be feeling. I knelt over Tanya, as the off-duty fireman from across the street put a blanket over her. She was unconscious, and the neighbor told me that that was a good thing, because if she was out, she couldn’t feel any pain. I didn’t see any blood or broken bones, if only she would wake up and tell me where it hurt. I didn’t dare move her till the EMS got there, but they were taking such a long time, it was nerve-wracking.
I picked up her tennis shoe that had been knocked off, and looked at her face. I talked to her, but I didn’t think she could hear me. She breathed a heavy sigh and then turned her little head to the side. I began to cry and asked the fireman how he thought she was----he checked her pulse and assured me that she was still breathing….Deep inside, I told myself, “she couldn’t be badly hurt, because she looks so normal, if only she would wake up, it would all be ok.”
Finally, the ambulance arrived---it only had been about 5 or 6 minutes, but it seemed much longer. “If only my husband were with us, instead of halfway around the world”, I thought. As we backed into the emergency entrance, the staff was waiting for us at the door. I felt relieved to finally be here. Now, everything would be ok. Tanya was in good hands, and I would soon know what injuries she had sustained.
They took her into a treatment room and closed the door. I filled out some papers and realized, when I wrote that I was her mother, in an almost illegibile handwriting, I realized that I was under severe emotional stress. I started crying and praying over and over again for the Lord to take care of my little 7 year old. I felt confident that He was there, so I never felt like I was alone.
After about half an hour, a young nurse came over to me and took my hand. I wasn’t ready for what she told me. She said that Tanya’s condition was very serious---she had brain damage and she wasn’t breathing on her own. I asked her if Tanya could die and she quietly answered me , “yes she might.”
I was completely numbed with the possibility that Tanya’s life might be taken from me. I was truly thankful, that God is a God of miracles, because I was going to ask Him for a big one. It would be hours before my husband got home, I couldn’t imagine going through the loss of a child without Him. My parents got there and they were already crying before I even told them what the nurse said….so I just blurted out the possibility of her dying.
It wasn’t long before the doctor came in---he introduced himself as a neurosurgeon, and I breathed a little sigh of relief, because I thought surely he could fix what was wrong with Tanya. But his assessment of her condition was totally pessimistic. She had sustained a blow to her brainstem, her brain had been shaken like a bowl of jelly-----which meant that she didn’t have much hope for recovery, only about 5%, he told us.
When he left, we all dropped to our knees and begged the Lord to heal her.
That night was long and hard. I clutched her sneaker all night long---there was nothing else to do with it and it was good to have something of hers, to occupy my hands. Every time a nurse walked in our direction, I was afraid she was coming to tell us that Tanya was gone and I would stiffen, until they walked on by to do some other task.
The doctor’s reports grew steadily worse and after about 24 hours, he told us that her little brain was just damaged too badly----she could remain on the life –support machines, but she would never recover----there hadn’t been any brain activity, from the time we had gotten to the hospital.
I decided to go sit with Tanya till my husband got there---I prayed over her, and sang to her and rubbed her little hands and feet. I begged God, as I sobbed, to restore her to us.
I kept crying out to God, but after about an hour, I was to the place where I was ready to accept God’s will, no matter what. I told God that I didn’t want Him to take her, but if He was going to, I was at peace.
Our family physician came by and tried to explain exactly what had happened-----I interrupted him, and asked him was Tanya still here, or was she with the Lord, and he told me, with the Lord----her body was still working, thanks to the machine, but she was gone on to Jesus.
I remembered what I had just said to the Lord, “have your will Lord, not mine.” Friends told me later, that I was radiant, as I said, “I will not forsake my Lord, because if I do, then it would mean that I’ll never see Tanya again. I will do what King David did when his child was taken, he washed his face, changed his clothes, and went about his business, satisfied, that God knew best.”
I returned to her room to say good-bye and promise her that I would see her again. There would be no more begging God to bring her back. It was then, that I realized, that I’d seen her go----when she had breathed that sigh in the street and turned her head to the side, she had stepped into heaven. And suddenly, I remembered what she had been praying in her nightly prayers over the last few months-------“Lord I want to go and be with you while I’m young.” When I had asked her why she was praying that----she said, “because, I want to sit on Jesus lap when I get there, and I don’t want to be too big.”
“A new assurance flooded my sorrowful soul, and I was refreshed with the joy, that God was in control, and we were in His hands, and that He would never harm us, He loves us, and He only wants what’s best for us.)
II. Jesus Loves Adults 10:17-31
Of all the people who ever came to the feet of Jesus, the rich young ruler was the only person, who ever came away in worse shape when he left, than when he had arrived. But it seemed like he had so much going for him. He was a young man with great potential: He was respected by others, because he held some kind of ruling office, maybe as head of the synagogue or as a member of the Sanhedrin. He had manners and morals, and there was enough desire in his heart, for spiritual things, that he ran up to Jesus and bowed at His feet. In every way, he was an ideal young man, and when Jesus looked him in the eye and held his gaze, Jesus loved him, the scripture says. Jesus could see the man’s heart. He knew what the young man was going to do, and He still loved him.
But in spite of all his fine qualities, , the young man was immature and very superficial in his views about spiritual things. Especially about salvation, because he thought that he could do something to earn his way to eternal life. Thus was a very common idea then, and it’s still a very common one. Most unsaved people believe that God will one day add up their good works and their bad works , and if their good works exceed their bad ones, then they’ll get into heaven.
And behind this good-works approach to salvation, is a shallow view of sin, man, the bible, the Lord Jesus, and about salvation. Sin is rebellion against God. It isn’t just an action; its an inward attitude that exalts man and defies God. It seems like the young man actually thought, as did many of the Jews, both then and now, that he could do a few religious works, and his account with Almighty God, would be settled.
His view of the Lord Jesus, was also very shallow. He called Him Good Teacher, but we get the impression that he’s only doing it to flatter Jesus. Because the Jewish rabbis never allowed themselves to be called good. Only God was good, and they only allowed that word used when referring to Him. In asking the young man the question, “why do You call me good?” He certainly wasn’t denying the truth that He was God, He was affirming it. He was just trying to make sure that the young man really understood what he was saying, and if he was willing to accept the responsibilities that came with it.
That’s why He pointed the young man to the 10 Commandments. He wanted to make sure that the young man knew that he was a sinner, and that his only hope was to yield himself to his holy God. We know that keeping the law can’t safe us from our sin, it was designed to tell us what sin is, so that we’re aware of it, and don’t yield to it. The Law is a mirror that shows us how dirty we are, but it can’t wash us clean. Only Jesus can do that. Another purpose of the Law, is to bring us to the Jesus----that’s what it did for the young man. The Law can bring the sinner to Jesus, but it can’t make the sinner accept the Lord and His truths. Only God’s grace can do that.
The young man had a shallow view of the Law, so he didn’t see himself as a condemned sinner before Almighty God. When he said he had kept the commandments, he was showing how he measured obedience by his external behavior not by his inner attitude. As far as he could figure out, he was blameless.
The commandments that Jesus had cited, were all the ones that deal with other people-----but there was one he didn’t lump with the group, He dealt with it separately, because He knew that was the one that was eating up the young man’s heart----and as we learned from our lesson, if you break one commandment, you are just as guilty as if you’d broken them all.
“Thou shall not covet”-----until this lesson, I thought that covetousness, meant, “wanting something that someone else has, and it does”-----but according to the dictionary and the context of this scripture, it also means….”inordinately or wrongly desirous of wealth or possessions, greedy. “ Covetousness is a terrible sin it is subtle and difficult to detect; it is insidious and eventually, it takes over a person’s whole life. 1Timothy 6:10 says “for the love of money is the root of all evil.” It isn’t the money that’s the culprit, it’s how a person allows money to control them, that’s the problem. Looking at the young man from a human perspective, you would think that he had everything-------but Jesus could see his heart and He knew what was lacking----which was a trust and belief in God, and an understanding, that if he gave himself to Him, then the Lord would always take care of the young man, and would make sure that he always had what he needed. But, unfortunately, money was the young man’s god: he trusted it, he worshiped it and he got his fulfillment from it. He used his morality and his good manners to conceal a covetous heart, even from himself.
Telling him to sell all he had, and give the money to the poor, is not what God requires from everybody, but it was what the rich young ruler specifically needed. And telling him to take up his cross and follow Him, would have been humbling for the young man, but it would have gained him eternal life. But, unfortunately, to the young man, what he had, was more important to him, than what he would gain, so he turned Jesus down. Its hard to accept a gift when your hand is clenched around money and the things it can buy. He wanted salvation on his own terms, not in the way the Lord wanted to give it to him, so he walked away in disappointment.
But one thing I loved, that the commentary in our book said, that made me feel better about him, even though I didn’t find it anywhere else----- is that the rich young ruler might have been Mark himself, because as our commentator said, how would Mark have known about Jesus’ look of love, if it hadn’t been directed at him, and in my mind, Mark says it so emphatically, that it makes sense that it could have been him. Even though it’s just speculation, it’s still nice to think that the rich young man eventually came into a salvation relationship with the Lord Jesus.
The disciples, who had been observing Jesus’ interaction with the young man, the whole time, were shocked at what the Lord then said to them about wealth, because most Jews believed that the possession of great wealth was the evidence of God’s special blessing. There are a lot of people today, like the Joel Osteen’s of the world, who believe this same way-----but they are kidding themselves-----the Lord blesses us, whether we have a lot or a little----because He is the blessing. That’s what the rich young man couldn’t understand, that he was choosing to walk away from God’s greatest blessing, which was being with the Lord on earth and being with Him, in eternity.
Warren Weirsbe says that, “money is a wonderful servant, but its a terrible master.” If you possess money, be grateful, and use it for the good of the kingdom, and for God’s glory-----but if money possesses you, you need to ask the Lord to help you reevaluate your priorities, and then, obey what He tells you to do. It’s good to have the things that money can by----we like beauty and comfort and fashion and entertainment, and since everything we have comes from the Lord, we need to understand that the Lord wants us to enjoy those things. But it’s not good to lose the things that money, cannot buy, in the process.
Salvation is beyond purchase, it’s beyond price; and it’s beyond all human standards of religion, of morality, of good works and of self- effort.
Jesus was trying to teach the disciples, that they should have known from the OT scriptures, that the basic principle of salvation rests on something other than money. It rests on Him, and Him alone. Salvation was God’s idea, planned by Him, from before time began, provided by Him, at infinite cost, and offered to everybody, who will accept it, as the gift of His grace. What is impossible with man, is possible with God.
Suddenly, Peter had a light bulb go off in his brain-----the rich young ruler had not been prepared to give everything up for the Lord Jesus-----but the disciples had. And it had never occurred to them, until now, that there was anything special about what they had done, it had just been the right thing for them to know, there was never a question. And they had already been blessed, beyond measure, by their relationship with Jesus.
Jesus assured His disciples that no one who follows Him will ever lose what is really important, either in this life or the life to come. Each one of us will be rewarded for the service we’ve given to the Kingdom. But our motives have to be right -----if we sacrifice, for the Lord, and for other people, just to get rewards, we will never get those rewards. The Lord will reward us, according to what is in the overflow of our hearts, when we serve others, in Jesus name.
And Jesus also, promised, that in this world, besides their blessing, His followers will also suffer persecutions. He had already told them, what both the Jews and Gentiles, were going to do to him in Jerusalem, and He must have felt like it was time to start preparing the disciples for what was ahead of them. They were going to have to learn, the same thing we know, that if we’re going to share in Jesus’ glory, then we’re going to also share in His suffering. God balances our blessings with our battles, so that we can grow and mature in our faith, and so that we can encourage someone else, who is going through something difficult, that we’ve already faced.
On the surface, at first glance, the rich young ruler was first and the disciples were last. But God sees thing from the perspective of eternity---where the first will become last and the last will become first. The people who are first in their own eyes will be last in God’s eyes, but those who are last in their own eyes will be rewarded first. Jesus said this, to encourage all true disciples, of every age.
(Nicholaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf was born into one of Europe’s leading families in the year 1700. He grew up in an atmosphere of prayer, bible reading and hymn singing. He excelled in school and seemed to possess all the qualities for National Leadership. After finishing his studies in Wittenberg, Germany, Zinzendorf embarked on a grand tour of Europe, attending lectures, and visiting museums, palaces and universities.
It was while he was visiting the art museum of Dusseldorf that the young count had a deeply moving experience that stayed with him the for rest of his life. Seeing Domenico Feti’s, Ecce Homo (Behold the Man) a portrait of the thorn-crowned Jesus, and reading the inscription below it ---“I Did This For Thee! What Hast Thou Done For Me” Zinzendorf said to himself, “I have loved Him for a long time, but I have never actually done anything for Him. From now on, I will do what He leads me to do.
His life was never again the same, and he went on to found a Christian community on his property, Herrnhutt, which provided hundreds of Moravian missionaries over the next several decades and sparked the modern missionary movement.
He was a rich young ruler, too, and when he came face to face with the Lord, he didn’t hesitate to answer His call. The difference in the two young men, is a lesson for us all.
III. Jesus Continues to Prepare His Disciples 10: 32-45
Jesus and the disciples and a huge crowd of people, were steadily moving forward, toward Jerusalem. We can’t help but marvel, at Jesus walking steadily, toward Calvary, knowing what waited for Him there. And we can’t help but be humbled, when we know that the only reason He did it, was for us…
When we look at the disciples, as they got closer and closer to the cross, we have to try and understand their confusion and their fear….this was difficult for them, because nothing was turning out like they had expected, or had planned for. They were expecting a physical, political kingdom, and they were going to get, Jesus’ death on a cross…and a life of submission and sacrifice…and the promise of a far-off spiritual kingdom… They just could not wrap their minds around it----every time Jesus explained it to them, and even though, He did it clearly each time, it only perplexed them even more…He had already told them what was going to happen, and in this passage in Mark, He tells them where it’s going to happen, He wanted them to know that it was rushing toward them fast. He wanted them to be prepared…He told them that He WOULD rise again, but they were in no frame of mind, to fully understand, that concept at all.
And in light of the Lord’s announcement of His death, we are embarrassed for James and John, and ashamed, that they would pick that moment, to ask for thrones next to Jesus, in the kingdom.
Until we realize, that Salome’, their mother, was Mary’s sister, and Jesus’ aunt, and James and John were His first cousins…so they would naturally think that they should be closest to Jesus, in the kingdom, because they were family….plus, we find out in Matthew 19:28 that Salome’ and her 2 sons were actually revealing their faith in Jesus, and the reality of the kingdom, by asking for the thrones, because they were actually claiming what Jesus had already promised all 12 of the disciples-----that their would be 12 thrones surrounding His, that they would occupy, when the time came. The fact that they asked Him for the thrones, after He reminded them of His impending death, shows that they did, on some level, believe that, somehow, He would be alive to rule the kingdom…they were acting on His word and presuming on their family ties, and they couldn’t see any reason why Jesus shouldn’t grant their request.
But their requests were selfish, and Jesus needed to help them see that they would have thrones in the kingdom, but those thrones would not come without a price, they would not be free ----Jesus would have to suffer and die for them…
He compared His suffering and death to the drinking of a cup and the experiencing of a baptism…It was going to be a devastating experience, but James and John assured Jesus that they could suffer it with Him----little did they know how true their words would become----because in later years, James was the first disciple to be martyred for the Gospel and John was greatly persecuted during his long life….
Because of their immaturity and the selfish ambition of all the disciples, the conversation stirred up disunity among the group. And Jesus had to step in and remind them, one more time, what kind of person will be important in the kingdom.
Just like people today, the disciples were making the mistake of following the wrong example. Jesus should have been their role model, instead, they were admiring the glory and the authority of the r
Roman leaders and their government---men who loved position and power.
While there is nothing wrong with ambition or aspiring to leadership, we have to be careful that our motivation is correct…we have to define, to ourselves ,what greatness is and why we want to achieve it-----because in Mark 10:43-44, in the most pivitol verse in the book----Jesus said, the mark of a truly important person is that they live their lives understanding that, “Whoever wishes to be great among you shall be your servant; and whoever wishes to be first among you shall be slave of all. “ Businesses, organizations and institutions measure greatness by personal achievement. But in God’s kingdom, service is the way to please the Lord. The desire to always be on top will hinder us, not help us. Instead of always trying to figure out ways to get ahead, and to have our needs met, we need to look for ways that we can minister to the needs of other people.
God’s pattern in scripture has always been that a person needs to be a servant first before God will promote him to be a leader. Unless we learn how to obey orders, we have no business giving orders. And before a person can lead, with authority, he has to first learn how to yield, to authority. The Lord Jesus, lived His life, following this pattern, all the way to death , resurrection and ascension-----how can we not, then recognize, that this is the only pattern for us to follow, that will enable us to live our lives, in the way that God has designed for us to.
IV. Jesus Always Has Time 10: 46-52
Do we ever feel like life is passing us by? I know there are times that we do…. That’s how Blind-Bartimaeus must have felt. He was just sitting on the sidelines, as life went on around him. He was a beggar, because that’s the only thing he could do, there was no other recourse open to him. It was the only way that he could do anything that even resembled a living.
That day that Jesus came through his down----he knew it was Passover time, and he knew that people were getting ready to make the trip to Jerusalem to celebrate the most holy of celebrations, in the Jewish holiday calendar. The people were excited as they bustled around him, as you would have expected them to be, like we are when we’re going home for Christmas…..
But there must have been some extra element of joy in the air, that he could sense----he could hear it and he could feel it, but he wasn’t a part of it----as the crowds surged and swelled around him, he must have begged someone to tell his what was going on; what was creating the extra energy, that he was feeling------when he realized it was because Jesus was passing by----he didn’t hesitate----he must have heard about Jesus, about His teachings, and His healing miracles----and it’s clear that He believed He was the Messiah, by the title he used to call out to Him….because only a believer would have used that title-----he started yelling, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!!!, over and over again----and that outpouring of his heart, which prompted him to call out to Jesus, is the moment that changed his life forever.
We need to see the life of Bartimaeus as an example of what our response should be when Jesus is passing by our way---which He is doing right this minute….
The first thing is, that the Lord rewards those who are persistent with him….when Bartimaeus started calling out to Jesus, a lot of people tried to hush him up-----they must have wanted to silence him to keep a nondescript beggar from delaying their journey---they knew, given Jesus’ past behavior, that he would stop if he heard the man calling him…but they didn’t want anything interfering with trip to the holy city. And they must have been annoyed by the thought of anything slowing them down or marring their journey, in any way. But Blind-Bartimaeus would not be discouraged and he did not pay them any attention---in fact, he just cried out louder to Jesus, and he kept crying out until the Lord Jesus heard him-----he was determined that he was not going to miss the Lord’s blessing, if he could help it.
But the sweetest thing about the whole story is what Jesus did----when He caught the sound of the blind man’s voice, He stopped in His tracks----when He heard Bartimaeus’ voice----He heard his desperate cry over all the other voices in that huge crowd….and Jesus, as He always does, didn’t just hear with His ears, He heard with His heart…and He didn’t go any further till He met the need that Bartimaeus had…Jesus called for Bartimaeus to come to Him----and Bartimaeus threw off his cloak, so that nothing, could hinder him, and ran to Jesus…
Bartimaeus’ persistence paid off in a big way….because, if he had allowed the people around him to silence him, he would never have been healed but more importantly, he would never have met his Savior, and received a spiritual healing, that was infinitely more important, than being healed physically.
If Bartimaeus had not been persistent, and called for Jesus, until He heard him, then Jesus would have passed him by and there would have been no change in his heart or his life.
In Luke 18:1 Jesus taught us, that ….”we should always pray and not give up…”the Lord will always answer the prayers of children---He always answers yes, no or wait…but if we don’t ask, the answer will always be no… And we give up asking, way too many times, too soon, because we don’t persist in our asking…We have to keep calling His name, no matter who, or what, tries to discourage us-----we have to believe that Jesus is who He says He is, and that He always will keep His promises, like He said He would and we have to blindly trust Him just like Blind-Bartimaeus did, and He will always hear us, and will never pass us by.
This was the last recorded healing miracle, in Mark. And it is precious that we clearly see just how much Jesus loves us, because He stopped on His way to the cross, to serve the need of someone who was suffering…the depth of His mercy and His grace is unfathomable…..
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