Bartimaeus: Real Positivity

Mark 10:46-52

10/25/09

Albertville

Rev. Michael A. Trask

 

 

I like this guy, this beggar named Bartimaeus, I like him because of the way he was able to ignore everything around him and just focus on Jesus. I like this because that’s what we really need to do sometimes. We need to ignore everything else and just focus on Jesus. There is so much around us; so much that happens to us; so much that shouts at us to divert our attention to things we can really do nothing about. And sometimes as a result, we feel quite helpless. Have you been feeling helpless lately? Many people do in these times. Much of what we hear seems to reinforce the idea that there is really no hope for us or our future.

That’s why I like this blind beggar so much. If there’s anybody that had a reason to simply give up and resign himself to his plight, it would be him. But he refused to do that. Just consider his situation. He was blind and most of the religious crowd of that day incorrectly thought he was blind for a reason....they thought his parents had done some horrible sin and that God was meting out punishment on them by blinding his son. In other words the prevailing opinion that Bartimaeus heard all during his life is that he must be under a curse. Just think of how this weigh you down! With everyone telling you that you were cursed, you would feel like giving up. But that just didn’t seem to be an option for Bartimaeus.

And furthermore, since there was no such thing as a safety net or welfare he was reduced to sitting by the busy streets each day and begging. Think of how humiliating that would be. Already people thought he was cursed. Now he would have to beg like a dog. How demoralizing! All sense of dignity would be flushed away as he held out his hand to passers by. But that was not the case, Bartimaeus soldiered on and seemed to have quite a bit of dignity still intact.

For when Jesus came by, he was bold to shout out. This was not a man who was resigned to his fate! This was not a man who was ready to give up. That becomes clear. When he started shouting, many in the crowd said “Shut up Bart!....Who do you think you are, calling to the teacher like that!” But that didn’t stop him! He got louder and shouted all the more! This guy is energized! What is driving him? So many hurdles, so many road blocks, so many reasons to quit and yet he punches through. How?

What he was shouting reveals his secret. He shouts “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” This is profound! David lived and died hundreds and hundreds of years before, but this man sees Jesus as the Son of David. What’s so special about that? Well, you got to remember that God promised David that his throne would last forever and that it would eventually be occupied by the Promised One, the Messiah, the Christ. So this blind man saw Jesus as the Messiah! At sometime in his life he had no doubt heard what Isaiah had said about him, Isaiah said that the Son of David would “Open the eyes that are blind” (Is. 42:7). He heard the promise in the word and now he held God to it. So the secret to this guys tenacity and amazing sticktoitiveness was his faith.

Some would say he just has a positive attitude. It’s true that he did. But it wasn’t some nebulous positivity that was based on a vague notion of success. Nope. This was a positive attitude that was based on the reality of a God who has promised to heal and to bless; the positive attitude was directed at the person of Jesus Christ who embodied that promise.

And his positivity was not misplaced! For Jesus stopped in his tracks, and says to those who were near him, “Call him!” The blind man scrambles to his feet, leaves his precious cloak behind and quickly felt his way to Jesus. I imagine the crowd, at last parting. He stands before Jesus and Jesus asks that most wonderfully open question “What do you want me to do for you?” Bart replies “Rabbi, I want to see!” And Jesus says “Your faith has healed you.” He received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.

Bart is a marvelous example of how faith can cut through the clutter and clatter of life in this broken world and live according to God’s positive assurance. He heard the word and he believed it.

So how about you? Are you living according to God’s positive assurances? Or do you instead get caught up in all the stuff that is hitting you. Perhaps you need more proof that God will do right by you don’t you? Well just a few days after he restored Bart’s sight he gave you that proof. He gave the world all the proof they needed to know that God was willing to bless: He went to the cross to die for us all.

Paul explains to the Romans 5 about the hope that is ours and it’s basis in Christ’s willingness to die. He says “and hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by his holy Spirit.....God demonstrates his love for us in this, while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Rom 5:5 &8) You can probably think of a lot of reasons why God wouldn’t care for you or love you, But the scripture is clear....his love is demonstrated, you cannot escape it, he died for sinners, he died for you.

Then in Chapter 8 of Romans Paul applies it to us even further he says “He who did not spare his own son, but gave him up for us all, how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things.” (Rom. 8:32) So you see, in the Person of Christ Jesus, you have every reason to be positive and to get past all the negative things you might see all around you. He will do right by you no matter what.

But there’s more, Jesus is now risen and lives and reigns from the right hand of God the Father. He is our great high priest who intercedes for us and now stands before each of us saying exactly what he said to Bartimaeus “What do you want me to do for you?” A marvelous, wonderful, gloriously open question. Made open for you by the full atonement for your sins. You are a child of God now. He will take care of you. He will bless you. He will do right by you. There is nothing you cannot ask him. “Ask anything in my name!” Says he. So do it. Perhaps you asked before and you didn’t get what you thought you might need. Rest assured, Jesus has something better in store for you; rest assured that he will do right by ou. You have been given everything you need to be like Bart and to become energized in your life. Every reason to shed off those dark feelings of helplessness and instead live by faith. AMEN