GOSPEL OF MARK: GOD’S SERVANT IN ACTION
SEEING BEYOND YOUR CIRCUMSTANCES
A. Mark 10:46-52 (READ)
ILLUSTRATION:
My youngest grandchild is Reanne Sonnefield, Shonda’s younger daughter, who will be turning 14 in June. When Reanne was almost 3-years-old, Shonda and her girls—Shalie and Reanne, my other granddaughter Brianna, and I went to a church conference in Tulsa, Oklahoma called: The Tulsa International Soul Winning Workshop. It was held in March of every year, and is much like the North American Christian Convention, except it is put on by the Churches of Christ.
Our first night in the MOTEL we were all getting settled into our beds to go to sleep—Reanne was in bed with her Mom, Shalie and Brianna were sleeping together, and I was sleeping on a roll-away-bed. Just about the time I was DOZING OFF, I hear Reanne yell out, “I can’t SEE! I can’t SEE! I’m BLIND.”
I raised my head to LOOK over at where she and Shonda were sleeping, and there was Reanne sitting up in the MIDDLE of BED with her EYES CLOSED yelling again, “I’m BLIND! I’m BLIND!” And I said, “Sweetie, open your EYES.” After opening her eyes she looked around and said, “OH!”
1. Not all CIRCUMSTANCES are that easy to SOLVE.
a. Sometimes we feel as if we are STUCK in whatever CIRCUMSTANCE we find ourselves.
b. We’re unable to SEE beyond the CRISIS, TROUBLE, PROBLEM or INACTIVITY in our lives.
2. We desperately look for a SIGN or MESSAGE that tells us everything will be ALRIGHT—that our
CIRCUMSTANCES will CHANGE or IMPROVE.
a. Obviously, there are some CIRCUMSTANCES that may never CHANGE, but our ATTITUDE
toward those CIRCUMSTANCES certainly can.
b. One thing I know for sure is, yours and my CIRCUMSTANCES will never get BETTER until we take STEPS to make it BETTER.
B. This is what Bartimaeus DISCOVERED in our Gospel story today.
1. Let me take a moment to sketch out for you the CIRCUMSTANCES that this man was in.
a. Firstly, he was BLIND. A blind man in the first century couldn't work. He couldn't read or write. There was no Braille writing. He couldn’t even get around without help.
b. Secondly, he was reduced to BEGGING. A man in his condition, unless he had family to support
him, could do little else but sit near a popular thoroughfare and cry out, “Alms, Alms for the poor!”
c. Thirdly, he was an object of PITY. I say that because of the way he made his LIVING. It was only by SOLICITING the PITY of others that he could SURVIVE. And he probably got pretty GOOD at what he did.
d. Finally, for the most part, his life was reduced to those last few words of verse 46: “sitting by the ROADSIDE.” These were his circumstances: BLIND. BEGGING. PITIED. SITTING BY THE ROADSIDE. For most people such OBSTACLES would be considered INESCAPABLE.
2. However, Bartimaeus, even though BLIND, was able to SEE BEYOND HIS CIRCUMSTANCES,
and DO SOMETHING about them!
COMMENT:
As Jesus passed by the ROAD where Bartimaeus was BEGGING, this BLIND MAN took a LEAP of FAITH that led to his HEALING. Had he NOT taken the STEPS he did, his CIRCUMSTANCES would never have IMPROVED. There are at least four ACTIONS that Bartimaeus did that will also help us in dealing with life’s CIRCUMSTANCES.
MESSAGE:
I. BELIEVE THAT YOU CAN MOVE BEYOND YOUR CIRCUMSTANCE
A. Sometimes we don’t MOVE beyond our CIRCUMSTANCE because we believe NOTHING can be
done to make it BETTER.
1. With Bartimaeus’ SITUATION, he could certainly be subject to such REASONING. I’m sure he
would have no trouble finding those who would SUPPORT him in his thinking.
COMMENT:
Okay, so REPORTS have filtered down to Jericho about a man named Jesus who can HEAL the BLIND. Probably FANTASY! Although Bartimaeus hears that Jesus is in TOWN and is coming down the very ROAD where he SPENDS his time BEGGING, Jesus is probably a BUSY man and doesn’t have time for him even if the REPORTS about His HEALING power is TRUE.
2. This is what Bartimaeus could be THINKING, but instead he looks at Jesus’ COMING as a once
in a lifetime OPPORTUNITY to CHANGE or IMPROVE his present SITUATION.
a. “When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to shout, ‘Jesus, Son of David, have
mercy on me!’”- v. 47
b. We will never MOVE beyond our CIRCUMSTANCE unless we BELIEVE that God can make
it BETTER.
ILLUSTRATION:
A COUPLE screams, “Our MARRIAGE is on the ROCKS and there is absolutely
nothing that can be done to RE-IGNITE the SPARK!”
A STUDENT wines, “I’ll never get a GOOD GRADE in that CLASS, so what’s the use
TRYING?”
CHURCH MEMBERS lament, “There’s no LIFE, no SPIRIT, no GROWTH in this
congregation. It’s only a matter of time when we’ll CLOSE our DOORS.”
COMMENT:
Bartimaeus was in a DIRE situation. But he BELIEVED that something could be DONE to CHANGE it, so he took the INITIATIVE and called out to Jesus.
B. Then there are those who don’t necessarily like the CIRCUMSTANCE where they find themselves,
but they RESOLVE to STAY where they ARE because they find it SECURE.
1. Do you know people like that?
COMMENT:
I have taught Debt Management classes using Dave Ramsey’s Money Makeover material. Those who take class are in DEBT and need help to manage their MONEY. Much of our DEBT comes from Credit Cards. So, there is a time in the class when I ask people to CUT UP their credit cards. Most do, but some will not because to them their Credit Card means SECURITY.
2. Bartimaeus could have FELT the same way in his CIRCUMSTANCE.
COMMENT:
No, he didn’t particularly enjoy SITTING there beside the road BEGGING, but he was CONTENT. It was something he KNEW and did WELL. Being DEPENDENT upon others wasn't the most REWARDING lifestyle, but at least he KNEW what he would be DOING
TOMORROW and the NEXT DAY and the DAY after that.
Yet Bartimaeus DREAMED of more. He wanted to SEE, but that took something called FAITH?stepping out into the UNSEEN.
3. Many people are FEARFUL of moving BEYOND something they KNOW (even though it’s not
working for them) and EXCHANGE it for something UNTRIED.
a. Bartimaeus did, and Jesus told him, “Go, your FAITH has HEALED you”- v. 52.
b. We will never WIN over our CIRCUMSTANCES in our PERSONAL lives or as a CHURCH unless we MOVE from our COMFORT ZONES and step out on FAITH toward the UNSEEN!
II. CLARIFY WHAT IS REALLY NEEDED
A. Notice that Jesus asked Bartimaeus, “What do you want Me to do for you?”- v. 51
1. Why did Jesus ask that?
COMMENT:
Didn’t Jesus know that he was BLIND and needed to SEE? Couldn’t He read the man’s MIND? You see, the question wasn’t asked for Jesus’ BENEFIT. It was asked for Bartimaeus and those who watched on.
2. Seldom do any of us do anything about our CIRCUMSTANCES until they are FORCED into our
AWARENESS.
ILLUSTRATION:
It’s when a police officer RETURNS your teenager HOME after RUNNING AWAY that
you realize that you need to spend more TIME with your son or daughter.
It’s when you are THREATENED with being FIRED that you REALIZE your JOB
PERFORMANCE LEVEL needs to drastically INCREASE.
It’s when you are THREATENED with FORECLOSURE that you take better CONTROL
of your FINANCES.
It’s when you have a HEART ATTACK that you decide to take better CARE of your HEALTH.
B. We need to ask ourselves the question: What do we need Jesus to do FOR US so that we can take
greater CONTROL of the CIRCUMSTANCE that we often get ourselves into?
1. When Jesus asked Bartimaeus that question, without hesitation he said, “Rabbi, I want to SEE.”
2. What do you NEED?
COMMENT:
What do you need to improve your PHYSICAL, EMOTIONAL, and SPIRITUAL LIFE? What do you need to make your FAMILY LIFE better? What do you need to INCREASE your PERFORMANCE at WORK? What do you need to do to get out of DEBT?
By honestly CONSIDERING and ANSWERING that question, we’ll be well on our way to MOVING BEYOND our CIRCUMSTANCE.
III. STOP WORRYING ABOUT WHAT OTHER PEOPLE WILL SAY
A. Something that keeps many of us from MOVING forward is the fear of DISAPPROVAL from others.
1. We PLAN, we PRAY, we set our GOALS but then someone comes along and throws COLD
WATER on us, so we STAY in our RUTS.
ILLUSTRATION:
A forty-year-old man plans to go back to COLLEGE and finish his DEGREE, but after being MOCKED by some of his FRIENDS he decides it’s a STUPID IDEA.
A HOUSEWIFE starts a new DIET and EXERCISE REGIMENT to LOSE some weight, but after her HUSBAND’S incessant JOKES she finally GIVES UP and returns to her old HABITS.
A man starts a SPIRITUAL-BASED TWELVE-STEP program to help him quit DRINKING, but then his BUDDIES at WORK begin to DERIDE him for not being as FUN as he used to be. So, he QUITS the PROGRAM and takes up the BOTTLE again.
A TEENAGER accepts Christ as His Lord and Savior and really turns his LIFE around, but after being incessantly RIDICULED by his UNBELIEVING Father he leaves the FAITH and returns to his old LIFE STYLE.
2. Bartimaeus got his share of people who DISAPPROVED. After CRYING to Jesus, “many REBUKED him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me.’”- v. 48.
COMMENT:
He was determined not to allow what others THOUGHT or SAID to keep him from taking the necessary ACTIONS to get him out of the RUT. Had he LISTENED to them, he would spend the rest of his LIFE on that street corner BEGGING.
B. No matter what PLANS are made to GET OUT of a RUT either PERSONALLY or as a CHURCH, there will be somebody to DISAPPROVE.
1. If we sit back and DO NOTHING out of FEAR that we will UPSET somebody, we’ll never GET
OUT of the RUT.
COMMENT:
MARRIAGES have ended in DIVORCE because somebody TALKED the husband or wife
or both out of getting COUNSELING.
Job PROMOTIONS have slipped through the fingers of many EMPLOYEES who listened
to the PESSIMISTIC remarks of others.
Churches have gradually DWINDLED down to nothing because of a few COMPLAINERS.
2. Let’s be more like Bartimaeus and not allow the DISAPPROVAL of others to HINDER us from MOVING BEYOND our CIRCUMSTANCES.
IV. DO SOMETHING BOLD AND DRASTIC
A. Believing that CHANGE is possible, CLARIFYING what is NEEDED, and REFUSING to listen to the NEGATIVE remarks of others are GREAT, but you still can’t WIN over your RUT until you take ACTION.
1. Bartimaeus was tired of his CIRCUMSTANCES, so when he heard that Jesus was coming, he took
a BOLD and DRASTIC move by crying out, “Jesus, have mercy on me.”
COMMENT:
Bartimaeus was a RISK-TAKER. He had no idea how Jesus would RESPOND, or if He would RESPOND at all. He only knew that if he didn’t MAKE a MOVE now, he would never be anything more than a BLIND BEGGAR.
2. “Jesus told His DISCIPLES to CALL him”- v. 49
COMMENT:
His BOLD and DRASTIC move paid off. What a great feeling it must have been for Bartimaeus to hear the words, “Cheer up! On your feet! He’s calling you.” Immediately he JUMPS to his FEET, throws off his CLOAK, and goes to Jesus.
3. After telling Jesus that he wanted to SEE, Jesus said, “‘Go, your faith has healed you.’ And
immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus”- v. 52.
COMMENT:
Faith always requires ACTION. Bartimaeus put everything on the LINE. He made a BOLD and DRASTIC move knowing that he might be rejected by Jesus and RIDICULED by the people around him. But he did it anyway because he wanted something BETTER.
B. We’re talking about RISK here aren’t we?
1. It’s SCARY to LEAVE the SECURITY of what we KNOW.
a. There are too many “What ifs!”
COMMENT:
“WHAT IF she says ‘No’ when I ask her to MARRY me?”
“WHAT IF I can’t make the GRADE in college?”
“WHAT IF my boss FIRES me when I ask for a RAISE?”
“WHAT IF she gets UPSET when I TALK to her about Jesus?”
“WHAT IF someone gets ANGRY and leaves the congregation if we implement this new
OUTREACH ministry?”
b. We can WHAT IF ourselves to our GRAVES.
2. What RISKS do you need to take to MOVE BEYOND your CIRCUMSTANCE?
a. Do you need to go back to school and finally get your DEGREE?
b. Do you need to get up a little earlier and start that EXERCISE PROGRAM? (talking to me)
c. Do you need to muster up enough COURAGE to ask your BOSS for a RAISE?
d. Do you need to take a DEBT MANAGEMENT class to get a better handle on your MONEY?
e. Do you need to seek COUNSELING to get your MARRIAGE back on TRACK?
f. Do you need to finally step out during the INVITATION SONG and give your life to Christ?
3. FAITH ALWAYS REQUIRES RISK!
