Cheer Up!

You’re downtown at one of the stops waiting for the trolley to come to take you across town, when a crowd appears, walking down the middle of the street coming your way. It’s a very busy crowd, but not threatening, not protesting. People at the trolley stop are trying to figure out what’s going on, and finally someone says, “It’s Jesus and His followers.”

You have been wanting to see this Jesus you’ve heard about because you have a question you want to ask Him. Even though everyone else is also trying to get His attention to even just look at them, you shout out, “Jesus of Nazareth! Jesus! I have something to ask You!” Everyone around you tells you to shut up - don’t bother Him with questions - He has better, more important things to do.

To your surprise, Jesus stops. The crowd around Him stops, kind of bumping into each other because they didn’t expect it. Jesus tells His closest followers, “Go bring that one here” … and He pointing directly at you.

You hesitate. Me? The people at the bus stop change their tune and say, “Go! Go! He’s asking for you!”

So you hop up, walk over to Jesus in the middle of the crowd, everyone watching you. You get right up to Jesus, and He says, “What’s your question?”

You get one shot at this, one question to ask Jesus. What’s your question?

This kind of thing actually did happen in Jesus’ day, and it happened to one of the least likely people.

Turn to the Gospel of Mark, chap 10.

OneKC

++Cities

Kansas City

Hong Kong

Accra, Ghana

Singapore

South Korea

Indonesia

Idea

Churches in all these cities and several others are beginning today to preach through the Gospel of Mark together

Same passages, different messages, one purpose - Gospel engagement

Parts

Sermons

Video

Audio

Passage: Mark 10:46-52

Context:

Setting:

Ch 8:

Peter confesses JC as the Christ

JC: suffering, killed, raised 3 days later

Peter: never!

JC: Get behind me, Satan.

Ch 9:

Xfiguration

D’s can’t cast out demon

JC: All things are possible to him who believes

Cast out, “only by prayer”

JC: death and resurrection, not understand, afraid to ask

Which is the greatest? “1st shall be last”

Receive a child = receive Me

Other people casting out demons - “whoever is not against us is for us”

JC: If eye/foot/hand causes you to stumble

Ch 10

Divorce

Permit the children

RYR (leave everything to follow me)

1st shall be last

Death + resurrection —> who’s the greatest?

JC: Are you able to be baptized with My baptism?

JC: Whoever wishes to become great among you shall be your servant

JC: The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many

Summary:

Predicting his DBR

Children

1st/last - servant

The Cross is going to happen within the week

This psg

Jericho: 15 miles from Jerusalem … for Passion week

Big, pressing crowd RE this Jesus

Encounters a blind beggar named Bartimaeus (literally, “son of Timaeus”)

2 adjectives: blind + beggar

Side of the road day after day - people going to Jerusalem to worship, almsgiving is a virtue, there’s a blind beggar right there along the way …

After this: Triumphal Entry

Blindness

Sin? cf. Jn 9:1; “who sinned, this blind man or his parents, that he was born blind?”

Wrong adjectives: “blind” + “beggar” (~poor/homeless, ~illegal immigrant?, ~ethnicity/race, ~elderly, any adjective that gets you marginalized other than “Christ follower”)

Marginalized (how do you feel about beggars you see? not guilt, but they didn’t have any more respect then than they do now)

Least prominent citizen

No idea what Jesus looks like:

Mark 10:46–52 NASB95

Then they came to Jericho. And as He was leaving Jericho with His disciples and a large crowd, a blind beggar named Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the road. When he heard that it was Jesus the Nazarene, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” Many were sternly telling him to be quiet, but he kept crying out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him here.” So they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take courage, stand up! He is calling for you.” Throwing aside his cloak, he jumped up and came to Jesus. And answering him, Jesus said, “What do you want Me to do for you?” And the blind man said to Him, “Rabboni, I want to regain my sight!” And Jesus said to him, “Go; your faith has made you well.” Immediately he regained his sight and began following Him on the road.

Son of David (Mark 10:47-48)

47 When he heard that it was Jesus the Nazarene, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

48 Many were sternly telling him to be quiet, but he kept crying out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Repeated, so pay attention

Who is SoD?

Son of the most prominent citizen of Israel: *

According to Prophecy: The Messiah, King, Savior

What will the Messiah do?

Gonna bring in Israel’s glory days like never before

++ Isa 61:1-2 (LXX), which Jesus later quotes about Himself in Luke 4:16-21

The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me; he has sent me to preach glad tidings to the poor, to heal the broken in heart, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and recovery of sight to the blind; to declare the acceptable year of the Lord.

++ Isaiah 35:5 RE when Messiah comes

“Then the eyes of the blind will be opened

And the ears of the deaf will be unstopped.”

Healing blind people is exactly the sort of thing that the OT said Messiah would do, so expect it

“Son of David” (most preminent citizen) meets Son of Timaeus (least prominent citizen)

By calling Jesus the SoD, Bart: “Jesus, Son of David, save Israel, but also save me” (from blindness)

The title SoD is particularly relevant to what Jesus is about to do in the very next passage …

Enter Jerusalem (the City of David) as the Son of David, the Messiah King , (cf. Mk 11.1-11),

Cleanse the temple with the authority only the Son of David could have

Pronounce woes against the religious leaders, as only the Son of David could do

Then the Cross, as the Son of David, the Messiah, dying for our sins according to the Scriptures, and rising again on the third day, according to the Scriptures

This will be the last healing miracle in Mark

“Have mercy on me!” (Mark 10:47-48)

47 When he heard that it was Jesus the Nazarene, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

48 Many were sternly telling him to be quiet, but he kept crying out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Repeated, so pay extra attention

Like in the Psalms, “Have mercy on me, O God,” crying out in deep need with a problem only God can resolve

Society has not given Bart much mercy (no XYZ)

No CCVI school for the visually impaired, like for Caleb; with a Trolley Run fundraiser (Apr 25)

No classes to learn how to read in Braille (so illiterate if he was born blind)

No crosswalks that talk to you to protect you and tell you when to walk in which direction

"Have mercy on me” is the cry …

of someone in need who knows he can’t help himself

of someone who doesn’t really have anything to offer as a reason to be helped other than the mercy of the person he’s asking for help

But he hasn’t said exactly what he wants, yet - he still hasn’t asked Jesus his one question

"Don’t bother Him” (Mark 10:48)

47 When he heard that it was Jesus the Nazarene, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

48 Many were sternly telling him to be quiet, but he kept crying out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Bartimaeus is a problem … for the crowd

Wrong adjectives: only takes, takes, takes

Annoying

Jesus is the most prominent citizen, but you’re among the least

He’s too important for you. He’s not too important for us, but He’s too important for you. We have the right adjectives.

Too important for people in the margins with the wrong adjectives.

Politically dangerous!

Don’t draw attention! Don’t be shouting out that He’s the Son of David who’s going to take over the role of king.

Herod’s people are listening. Caesar’s officials are listening. The Pharisees are certainly listening.

Don’t you understand? You’re going to get Him killed! []

Persistence (Mark 10:48)

47 When he heard that it was Jesus the Nazarene, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

48 Many were sternly telling him to be quiet, but he kept crying out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Used to it

Beggars are used to being pushed aside, requests for mercy rejected

Beggars are used to persisting anyway

ST: Gypsies in Rome

And Jesus is going to interpret this persistence as “faith.”

(Believe: can’t vs. can vs. must vs. would)

Phars ^blv can

Some in crowd might blv can but ... won’t really

We see some today: blv must - just because I asked him

Bart: blv this is the sort of thing Jesus would do —> persistence but not insistence

What we believe about God determines what we pray, how we pray it, and how often we pray it

Jesus interrupts Himself (Mark 10:49)

And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him here.” So they *called the blind man, saying to him, “Take courage, stand up! He is calling for you.”

The most prominent citizen of Israel —> least

… stops, stops the crowd’s momentum, turns His attention to the least prominent citizen of Israel, and says, “Tell him I want to talk with him.”

He’s about to parade into Jerusalem on what we call Palm Sunday under the cries of Hosanna! (Mark 11:9-10)

9 “Hosanna!

Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord;

10 Blessed is the coming kingdom of our father David;

Hosanna in the highest!”

But He interrupts Himself

in order to give them one last wordpicture of faith before the Sanhedrin makes Him lower than the least prominent citizens of Israel.

Cheer up! (Mark 10:49)

And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him here.” So they *called the blind man, saying to him, “Take courage, stand up! He is calling for you.”

Some translations say, “Cheer up”,

but “take courage” is more accurate.

(I’m going with this sermon title just to collaborate with the 150 churches.)

IOW: “There’s good news for you, person with the wrong adjectives!”

How many times has this guy heard, “Hey, you … I want to talk to you, and I want to give you some good news”?

The people around him changed their tune

“We’re used to stepping over this guy, but this Jesus … He’s not stepping over Him”

“Jesus is gonna say something or do something really cool”

[buzz, “what’s Jesus gonna do now?”]

The Cloak (Mark 10:50)

Throwing aside his cloak, he jumped up and came to Jesus.

Why mention the cloak?

Haste

Likely his coins (~dropping nets)

The only thing that’s important in this moment is Jesus

Not his protection from the cold

Not the money

Jesus!

“What do you want Me to do for you?” (Mark 10:51)

And answering him, Jesus said, “What do you want Me to do for you?” And the blind man said to Him, “Rabboni, I want to regain my sight!”

IOW: * 2

“Why are you coming to Me?”

“Which of the two adjectives are you identifying with when you come to Me?”

Beggar?

Needs money, can’t work, victim

Blind?

Needs to see, not a perpetual victim

Will he ask for something safe, or will he go big and ask for something that no one else can do for him?

JC asks this question of others, too - you’ve got your one question - what is it going to be about?

When you come to Him ...

Why are you coming to Him? What are you asking for?

Which adjectives are you identifying with when you come to Him?

The adjectives we choose for ourselves when approaching Jesus in prayer will determine what we pray for

I’m a fairly righteous person - but I’m not yet financially set —> money

I’m a Christ follower who believes in grace, but I know I’m still not doing enough to earn God’s favor —> “I’m sorry, God, for not doing XYZ enough”

I’m a sinner in need of a Savior, but I haven’t put my trust in Christ yet —> “Are you willing and able to save a sinner like me?”

I’m a sinner saved by grace, and Jesus owns my life —> “Here is my request, but your will, not mine, be done in my life.”

The ask (Mark 10:51)

And answering him, Jesus said, “What do you want Me to do for you?” And the blind man said to Him, “Rabboni, I want to regain my sight!”

“Rabboni”

Used only 1 other time (Jn 20:16) - unusual, stands out

“Master”

Someone of high standing in society

Bart couldn’t see that JC looked quite average

But he did “see” that JC was better than all of us

“I want to see” -

That’s the adjective I’m choosing - I’m identifying more as a blind man than as a beggar

A beggar would just ask for money and then still be a beggar tomorrow; but if I can see, tomorrow I won’t have to beg

Another wordpicture of His faith: he goes big with his ask

But he also asked for less than salvation

This is not the biggest ask he could have made

It’s not the ask that we all need to ask in order to have forgiveness of sins and eternal life

But don’t miss this: JC still honored his request and commended his faith

Sure, it’s less than the ideal ask of Jesus

But Jesus commends the ask for what it was

Now there’s even more reason for the bigger ask

Your faith has saved you (Mark 10:52)

And Jesus said to him, “Go; your faith has made you well.” Immediately he regained his sight and began following Him on the road.

Faith is the point, especially now

It’s what the passage hinges on

Shown by:

Who he believed Jesus is

What he believed Jesus could do

His persistence in asking

What he does immediately after being healed (follow)

“Saved” = rescued

… from anything, such as blindness (not salvific)

“Go your way” (Mark 10:52)

And Jesus said to him, “Go; your faith has made you well.” Immediately he regained his sight and began following Him on the road.

He used to sit by the road going nowhere

Now he’s following Jesus on that same road

More of his persistence

++Road to where?

Jerusalem, the capital, the City of David

Triumphal Entry as the Son of David

As the Suffering Servant who will be crucified

Bart gets just one week to see Jesus with his new eyes - but he gets a week to see Jesus

OneKC

We all were born as blind beggars

Unable to see Jesus

Begging for the world to satisfy us, just sitting by the side of the road never really going anywhere

We have the wrong adjectives to be in the Kingdom of God

The Gospel is the GN we need - Cheer up! Take courage! There is good news for us!

When we put our faith in Christ

He opens our eyes and we can see and we can follow Him on the road

No longer beggars, we now have the deed to a fantastic inheritance in the Kingdom of God

But our unsaved friends and neighbors are still blind beggars

Not to be insulting - it’s a metaphor that we also embodied

They need Jesus to open their eyes

They need Jesus to give them the same inheritance

They need Jesus to save them

They need someone to say, “Cheer up! Take courage! Jesus is calling for you. It doesn’t matter what your adjectives are!”

The only thing that’s really important in this moment is Jesus

Not our cloaks

Nor our coins

Jesus

We have good news for everyone who has the wrong adjectives! “Cheer up! ...”

CR: (Would you consider…)

Would you consider asking at least one person to join you:

To attend any of the 150 churches?

To follow the watching plan and discuss?

To follow the listening plan and discuss?

Would you consider as a small group to be a watching group for this series through Easter?

Would you consider forming a watching group with your kids?

Resources

Website: https://www.fellowshipofgrace.org/resources/onekc/

Ways to engage

Prayer

Open (online won’t be able to hear, so pray silently at home)

D-Groups

Chairs

Onsite - prayer group in room 1

Notes

Isaiah 11:1-2; Jeremiah 23:5-6; Ezekiel 34:23-24; Matthew 1:1, 2:23, 9:27

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