SERMON TITLE: Jesus, will you do what I want?
TEXT: Mark 10:32-52 (ESV)
SPEAKER: Josh Hanson
DATE: 9-26-21
You can watch the sermon here.
You can find the sermon notes here.
It’s a joy to be with all of you this weekend at Gateway Church. And there’s one thing I always want you to know — and this is true if you’re worshipping with us for the first time or are joining us at our North Main campus — the one thing I want you to know is that God loves you and that I love you too.
Each week — in this series in the gospel of Mark — we’re seeing people ask Jesus a variety of questions. And their questions are what we’re focusing on — because — we’ve all got questions. Questions about life, about spiritual things, about relationships. And the questions — we see people asking Jesus — are questions we’re still asking today.
So if you have your Bible please turn with me to Mark chapter 10. We’ll be looking at verses 32-52. And the question Jesus will be asked this week is a question we all want to know the answer to because it’s a question — if we’re willing to admit it — it’s a question we all ask. What’s the question? Jesus, will you do what I want? Jesus, will you do what I want you to do? Christian or not — all of us — at some time or other — have tried to get God — or whatever your view is of the supernatural — but we’ve all tried to see if we can get some spiritual help on our side. And that’s what our question for today is all about.
Here are the words found in Mark chapter 10. Beginning in verse 32.
“And they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them. And they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. And taking the twelve again, he began to tell them what was to happen to him, 33 saying, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles. 34 And they will mock him and spit on him, and flog him and kill him. And after three days he will rise.”
35 And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came up to him and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” 36 And he said to them, “What do you want me to do for you?” 37 And they said to him, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” 38 Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” 39 And they said to him, “We are able.” And Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized, 40 but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.” 41 And when the ten heard it, they began to be indignant at James and John. 42 And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 43 But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
46 And they came to Jericho. And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. 47 And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 48 And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 49 And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart. Get up; he is calling you.” 50 And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. 51 And Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to him, “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.” 52 And Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.” (Mark 10:32-52 ESV)
On January 20, 1961, John F. Kennedy was sworn in as the 35th president of the United States. And it was in his inaugural address that he said, “Ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.” (John F. Kennedy, “Ask Not What Your Country Can Do for You,” https://www.jfklibrary.org/learn/education/teachers/curricular-resources/elementary-school-curricular-resources/ask-not-what-your-country-can-do-for-you) Words meant to urge Americans to fight against entitlement and pride — “it’s all about me and what I think I deserve” — words meant to inspire Americans towards humble service.
Regardless of whether or not you like Kennedy — his point is a good one. But it’s not original to him — and — it’s not a message solely for Americans. The message is actually found in the Bible — in Jesus’ words — “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”” (Mark 10:45 ESV)
And as followers of Jesus — we’re to recognize that we’re following the One who came to be a servant — not to be served — and thus — to follow him — is to be a servant of others. But is this the posture that we — God’s people today — have? Is this the posture you have — if you’re a Christian. “Wherever I go — wherever I am — no matter who I’m surrounded by — I am a servant.”
“Well Josh, I serve in other places. I serve the people I work with. I serve in the community. And so on....” Fantastic! I’m thankful that you’re serving in those areas of your life. But — if I may — are you following what Jesus modeled? Meaning, did he only serve those he worked with — the twelve disciples? Did he only serve folks in his community? Or did Jesus view himself as a servant always?
A few weeks ago, we had an all volunteer training for people who are servants here at Gateway. Here’s something I told them. I said, “We’ve got many folks who come and attend and are served by our ministry. But you are my partners in ministry — specifically you are partners with me and my preaching ministry.” Then I told them how we are partners. But partners in ministry — fellow servants — people who come to serve others and not just be served by others— this is the goal for every follower of Jesus. Are you a partner in ministry — a servant of others — here?
Now — I bring all of this up — because we live in a day and age where we try to massage and manipulate who Jesus is — as if he’s made of clay or something — in order to appease our conscience. And this all ties back to our question for today, “Jesus will you do what I want?” Because sometimes we want him to approve of our sexual behavior. Or approve of our greed. Or approve the way we treat our kids or spouses. Or — relevant to our topic for today — approve the limits we set as to where and when we’ll be a servant and where and when we won’t.
But — this kind of thinking — isn’t godly thinking — it’s not Christian thinking. This is the thinking of the world. We see this in how people chase after their own desires no matter the cost to others. We see this in how people use others to get what they want. We see this in how power is desired and admired — not humility. I mean — no one wants to be a servant — that’s for chumps, right? We want to be the served. And — if it’s either serve or be served — if it’s either use others or be used by others — if it’s either have power or be humble — well — it’s hard not to look out for ourselves, right?
While preparing for this sermon — just to see if my hunch was right — I did what we all do — I went to Google. This won’t be nearly as humorous as the last time I mentioned my Google results. This time I googled “How to achieve power” and “how to achieve humility.” My search for power had 851 million results — my search for humility had 18 million results. “How to be served by others” had 628 million results — “how to be a servant of others” had 186 million results.
We value power over humility — being served over being a servant. And this is dangerous ground to be playing on. Because it's the ground where we turn our relationship with Jesus into a transactional relationship. “Jesus, I’ll do this if you’ll do what I want.” And what a transactional relationship with Jesus lacks is eternally dangerous — for it lacks an interest in actually knowing Jesus. In a transactional relationship — an “if I do this, Jesus, will you do that” relationship — Jesus becomes the means to something more important to you than him.
Yet — what the gospel shows us is that — believing in Jesus — following him — leads to a life of knowing and experiencing him — not just at the moment of our conversion — but for all our days. The gospel shows us that instead of approaching Jesus like James and John do — expecting Jesus to do what we want — the gospel shows us that those who Jesus is gracious to — those whom he serves — are those who come to him like the blind beggar in our story — they humble themselves before Jesus knowing that what we’re asking him — what we need — is something we haven’t earned. Thus we don’t come to him with our demands — “Jesus, serve me!” — we come to him amazed by his graciousness and mercy — amazed that he’s already served us and met our greatest need.
So a warning. This text is going to jolt all of us — but sometimes we all need a jolt to wake us up to reality as we’re so often caught up in daydreaming our lives away. It’s going to jolt us awake to whether our relationship with Jesus is about what we get out of it or is it about knowing him. The gospel shouts at us that it’s not about, “Jesus, what can you do for me” — the life of faith is a response to what Jesus has already done for us — the life of the Christian is a response of a servant, “Jesus, given what you’ve done for me — what can I do for you?”
Let’s go back to verse 32. “And they were on the road, going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking ahead of them. And they were amazed, and those who followed were afraid. And taking the twelve again, he began to tell them what was to happen to him, 33 saying, “See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles. 34 And they will mock him and spit on him, and flog him and kill him. And after three days he will rise.”” (Mark 10:32-34 ESV)
Jesus and his disciples start heading to Jerusalem. And — on the way — he tells them — what’s going to happen to him when they get there. He’s going to be handed over to the authorities to be killed. But then he’ll rise from the dead. And they’ve heard all of this twice before.
Now the disciples are amazed that Jesus — knowing that all of this is gonna happen — is wanting to go to Jerusalem. Most people avoid trying to be killed, right? And the disciples are afraid — because — if Jesus is going to be killed in Jerusalem — then what’s going to happen to them?
One person has observed, “The first time [Jesus told them about his death], the disciples reacted violently. The second time, they didn’t understand what he meant, and were afraid to ask him for an explanation. Now, the third time, Mark records no reaction to Jesus’ announcement, except that an argument about who would be the greatest in the kingdom followed immediately. Clearly the disciples did not comprehend what was coming...” (Thomas Constable, “Notes on Mark,” https://planobiblechapel.org/tcon/notes/pdf/mark.pdf.) Clearly.
Which leads us to verse 35.
“And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came up to him and said to him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.” 36 And he said to them, “What do you want me to do for you?” 37 And they said to him, “Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.” 38 Jesus said to them, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” 39 And they said to him, “We are able.” And Jesus said to them, “The cup that I drink you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized, 40 but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.” 41 And when the ten heard it, they began to be indignant at James and John. 42 And Jesus called them to him and said to them, “You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. 43 But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, 44 and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. 45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”” (Mark 10:35-45 ESV)
So James and John ask Jesus to do something for them and — I think this is obvious — they’re not gonna get what they want. But isn’t this all kind of crazy sounding? I mean — Jesus just said that he’s going to die — and James and John are all like, “Yeah, you’re gonna die. But — first — can you do us a favor?”
Here’s how another Bible translation describes the scene. “James and John, Zebedee’s sons, came up to him. “Teacher, we have something we want you to do for us.” 36 “What is it? I’ll see what I can do.” 37 “Arrange it,” they said, “so that we will be awarded the highest places of honor in your glory — one of us at your right, the other at your left.”” (Mark 10:35-37 MSG)
Can you imagine the self-centeredness and pride needed to ask Jesus this question right after he’s just told them he’s going to be killed? Even when Jesus asks them if they think they can drink from the cup and endure the baptism he’s about to endure — the cup being God’s wrath — and the baptism — being death — “Jimmy and Johnny — let me get this straight — you think you can endure God’s wrath and that — given the choice — you’re gonna choose to die with me in Jerusalem and not run away like cowards?” And they’re all like, “Sure...why not?” (Mark 10:39a MSG) It sounds ridiculous, right?
So what’s their motivation? One person writes, “It’s not a desire to be near Jesus at the moment of triumph — [Jesus’ moment of triumph will be on the cross — when James and John and the rest of the disciples all abandon him] — they simply want for themselves the highest posts in the new kingdom. It’s ambition, not loyalty, that motivates them.” (R. Alan Cole, The Gospel According to Mark (reprint, 1989, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2002), 242.)
What does this tell us? It tells us that — in this moment — James and John display self-centeredness. But Jesus’ words — about their future — that both of them will suffer for him — will come true. And they’ll remain faithful to him. James will be killed by the sword. John — though he lives longer than the other disciples — finds himself in exile at the end of his life — history indicating that he too was eventually killed for following Jesus. But — in this moment — James and John are focused on themselves.
So that’s James and John — what about the other disciples? Have you ever wondered why none of them ask Jesus more about his death? They all seem to be indifferent about him saying he’s going to be killed. And not only do they not ask Jesus about his death — all of them — all of them show that they’re just as hungry for power and prestige as James and John. They’re just upset that James and John got to Jesus first.
They all want to be in charge. They all want to rule with him in his kingdom. “Let’s put the Romans in their place — Jesus — let’s teach them what it means to submit and be ruled. We’ll show them what it means to have power. We’re tired of being the lower-class. We’re sick of being the outcasts. We’re done with being ruled — let’s be the rulers!” Political power has always been a dangerous temptation that lures people away from following Jesus — the One who came to serve and not be served. And the desire for more and more power — especially political power — always causes division. Whereas following Jesus — by being a servant to all — brings unity.
Which do you think our country is in desperate need of in our day? Which do you think our world needs the people of God to be displaying? Should we be reaching and striving for more political power or choosing to be servants of all? Which did Jesus choose — did he choose political power or to be a servant? What might this mean for those of us who are following him?
And — our greatest foe — in being the servants we’re called to be — our greatest foe is our pride. Pride divides — it’s what we demonstrate when we blame others for our sin. Pride divides — it’s what we display when we’re unwilling to listen to others. Pride divides — it’s what we express when we’re always right and they’re always wrong. With pride comes disgrace. (Proverbs 11:2) With pride comes destruction. (Proverbs 16:18) With pride comes deception. (Obadiah 1:3) And God opposes the proud. (James 4:6; 1 Peter 5:5) Why? Because pride is sin. (Proverbs 21:4) And the result of pride is always division. And the more prideful we are — the more divided we are.
Maybe an example on the lighter side of things will be helpful. Have you ever wondered why a package of hot dogs has ten hot dogs in it while a package of hot dog buns only has eight buns? Apparently hot dog packages go by weight while buns go by baking pan size. And the two groups have refused to come to an agreement. According to the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council — and I quote — “It’s pretty much always been this way and neither the bun folks nor the dog folks want to change.”
Enter — who else — but Heinz Ketchup. Heinz has started a campaign on change.org to break down the pride and walls of hostility between the two groups. The goal is to get the two groups to agree on an equal number of hot dogs and buns sold in their packages. As of this week, over 32,000 people have signed the petition. (https://www.change.org/p/hot-dog-lovers-heinz-hot-dog-pact)
Ok — so that’s a pretty silly illustration of two groups digging in their heels — standing their ground — being unwilling to change — or — in one word — pride. But isn’t this what pride causes us to do? The next time you buy a package of hotdogs or buns — let it remind you of the division that pride causes — division that your pride causes.
But — instead of pride — God’s people are to be humble — like the One we follow. Someone has said, “Jesus comes not as a glorious one, but as a humble Son of Man, one who comes to serve rather than be served ... Jesus comes not merely to offer just any sort of service but rather to offer the greatest service of all to humankind – to give his life.” (Ben Witherington, The Gospel of Mark: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2001), 288.)If anyone deserves to be served — to not be a servant — it’s Jesus. Not you. Not me. Jesus. And — yet — he came to serve you and me. He gave his life — in loving humble service — so that we might find life. What kind of life? A life of loving humble service to others. Not asking to sit at Jesus’ right or left in his Kingdom. Not seeking power. A life seeking to know and follow Jesus.
Which leads us to the story of another man who also asks Jesus to do something. Verse 46.
“And they came to Jericho. And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside. 47 And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” 48 And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 49 And Jesus stopped and said, “Call him.” And they called the blind man, saying to him, “Take heart. Get up; he is calling you.” 50 And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus. 51 And Jesus said to him, “What do you want me to do for you?” And the blind man said to him, “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.” 52 And Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has made you well.” And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.” (Mark 10:46-52 ESV)
Jesus doesn’t do what James and John ask him to do, but he does do what this man asks. And did you notice that Jesus asks this man the same question he asked James and John? “What do you want me to do for you?” (Mark 10:36, 51 ESV)
Not only that — did you catch where the question falls in this man’s interaction with Jesus compared to James and John’s interaction with Jesus? With James and John, Jesus asks his question in response to them saying, “We want you to do whatever we ask of you.” They initiate the request. But what about this blind beggar and Jesus — who initiates the question? Jesus does.
The man is blind — he’s a beggar — sitting by the road. There’s a great crowd surrounding Jesus — this is about as opposite of a situation as you can get from James and John and their easy access to Jesus. But the blind beggar hears that Jesus is passing by — that’s the reason for the crowd and the commotion. So he cries out, “Jesus, have mercy on me!” And the crowd tries to shut him up.
But he keeps crying out, “Jesus, mercy! Jesus, I need your mercy! Have mercy on me!”
Now — do you think this blind man expects Jesus to actually stop? Probably not. Think of all the people who pass by him every day without stopping. He’s used to people ignoring him. He’s used to — though he can’t see — he’s used to not being seen — not being heard. So he’s not crying out demanding to be heard. He’s not crying out demanding to have a seat of authority in Jesus’ Kingdom. He’s crying out for mercy — not even expecting to be heard or noticed. And that’s humility.
Now — he knows that what he needs most is for Jesus to be merciful towards him. He may be physically blind — but he’s not spiritually blind. He knows he’s a beggar and that he has nothing to offer Jesus. Though blind — he sees Jesus more clearly than the disciples do even — though they’ve spent way more time with Jesus. One last thing about this blind man — he isn’t proud. “Well, how can you be sure about that, Josh?” Look at how he responds when the people tell him Jesus is calling for him.
He throws off his cloak — which most likely was laid out over his lap to catch coins that people threw at him (Ibid., 291.) — he throws off his cloak — he springs up on his feet and hurries to Jesus. He doesn’t care what everyone else thinks of him — he just wants to get close to Jesus.
And this is the moment. Jesus asks him, “What do you want me to do for you?”
And the man asks Jesus to heal him — he wants to see. And Jesus tells him that his faith has made him well. And he’s healed — he can see — and what does he do? He begins to follow Jesus.
The man is humble and he has faith. Twice the blind man calls Jesus the “Son of David.” He also calls Jesus “Rabbi” — and based on the context — what the man is saying with these words is “Jesus, you are my Lord and my Master.” (Robert H. Stein, Mark (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2008), 497.) He believes that Jesus is the promised Son of David — the Messiah that God’s people have been waiting for. (James R. Edwards, The Gospel According to Mark (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2002), 329-330.) And he’s eager to follow Jesus wherever he may lead — no matter the cost.
So how do we respond to Jesus like this man? It begins by cultivating humility in our lives. And humility begins with seeing God’s bigness. What do I mean by God’s bigness? (See Erik Raymond’s The Path to Humility, https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/blogs/erik-raymond/the-path-to-humility/) God has been, is, and will always exist— that’s big. He’s not dependent on anyone or anything. He’s perfect and holy. He only does what is right. He’s not tempted to sin, he shows no favoritism, and he is the definition of beauty. He’s loving and kind and generous. He’s merciful and just and tender. He knows everything. He’s everywhere. He’s all powerful. And he’s the creator of everyone and everything. God is big and humility begins with seeing God’s bigness.
Additionally, humility is cultivated by looking away from ourselves. One person has said, “The tendency to be preoccupied with ourselves is a sure sign of pride. A heart inverted upon itself is sure to cultivate suffocating pride. It expresses itself in a fixation on ourselves. This selfishness is expressed in terms of worry, anxiety, thin skin, gossip, slander, lying, being afraid of what others think of you, laziness, being a workaholic, harshness, and a relentless clinging to your rights (just to name a few).” We must cultivate humility in our lives by looking away from ourselves.
Finally, humility is cultivated by looking to Christ and his cross. You will never give up more — in service to others — than what Christ has given up for you on the cross. And his call — to follow him — is a call to serve others as he has first served you. It’s been said that, “When we sit in the shadow of the cross we learn that nothing is beneath us in terms of service. We have been served by Christ in this glorious way — he laid down his life for us! We then need to walk in humility, which is, at its core, what it means to follow Jesus.” (Ibid.) We — God’s people — need to cultivate humility in our lives by looking to Christ and his cross.
James and John — along with the other disciples — ask Jesus to give them a place of glory, honor, and power in his Kingdom. The blind man asks for mercy.
The disciples are caught up in a desire for power — they want to see themselves in authority. The blind man just wants to see.
He discards what’s most likely the only possession he has — his cloak used to collect coins — he throws it to the side when Jesus calls him to come to him. He asks — not for power — not for authority — not for a seat at Jesus’ right or left — he asks for mercy. He knows he needs to be healed by the One who came to serve and not be served. And he wants to see God’s servant. He wants to see Jesus so he can follow him — which is what we find him doing at the end of our verses — he follows Jesus.
Compare him with the rich young ruler from a few weeks ago — a man who walked away from Jesus because the cost was too high. Contrast this blind beggar with James and John who want power and prestige. He only desires one thing from Jesus: mercy. Mercy was enough. Is mercy what you want most from Jesus? Is his mercy and kindness and love towards you enough for you — enough to follow him when following him means being a servant? We’re all blind beggars desperate for the mercy of Christ. He’s offering you mercy today. Mercy to heal you of your spiritual blindness so you might see Jesus’ love for you and respond to his call to follow him. Mercy to heal you of your pride so you humbly follow him as a servant to all. Let’s pray.
Heavenly Father, we come before you humbled as we think of who you are. It’s humbling to think that you have and will always exist. You are not dependent on anyone or anything. It’s humbling to think of your perfection and holiness. That you always do what is right, are never tempted to sin, show no favoritism, and are the definition of beauty. You’re kind, generous, merciful, and just. You know everything, are present everywhere, and are all powerful. And you love us. We are humbled by your love.
Jesus, you came to serve and not be served. And you have served us in your life, death, and resurrection. And — in believing in you — you call us to follow you. To follow you in being servants to all. We confess that often — maybe even more than often — we live to be served — not to serve. Remind us that we are called to be servants. Convict us of our selfish desires to be served. And lead us to repentanceand change for there is no negotiating with this call to service — it’s what it means to believe and follow you.
Spirit of God, empower us and swell up inside us a joyful desire to serve others. Serving others in our own strength is draining because our flesh is too selfish. Thus, we need your supernatural power to strengthen us so our service is done not in our flesh, but by the power of God in us. And what joy there is for your people as they follow their serving Savior. It was for the joy set before him that Christ headed to the cross — his greatest act of service for us. And there is great joy for those who follow him — great joy for the servants of God. We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
May you go with eyes to see the mercy Christ is offering to you. Mercy that gives you reason to respond to his love for you. Mercy from the One who’s served you and calls you to be a servant to others. Amen.
God loves you. I love you. You are sent.
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