Our subject this
morning is "Only Jesus. "
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And so before we go any further
I invite you to bow your heads
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with me as we have a
short word of prayer.
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Our Father in heaven,
thank you, Lord, for bringing us
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here this morning.
And as we open Your Word
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and address a very wonderful
subject: "Only Jesus, "
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I pray that You'll
send Your Holy Spirit
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to speak to our hearts.
Speak through me now I pray.
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In Jesus' name, Amen.
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If you have seen anything
of the news over the past year,
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you will know that
at this very moment
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our world is in a very
unstable economic condition.
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All of you should remember
the economic crisis that
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happened just a few years ago.
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Wall Street has come to
represent a 4-letter word:
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F- E-A-R... fear.
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The world is suddenly
not what it used to be.
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And even though I
personally don't know much about
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money matters, the one
thing that I do know about money
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matters is that it does.
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Everybody is talking about
this crisis because everybody
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is affected by this crisis.
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This isn't like an
isolated natural disaster
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that hits an
isolated corner of our planet.
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This crisis has
affected the world entirely.
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To help illustrate
how global this crisis is
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I catch the train
to Uni every week.
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And when I go on the train
to Uni, I meet a friend of mine
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and we go in together.
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And every time I meet her on
the train I'm always asking her
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"Did you hear about
this? Did you hear about the
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earthquake in China or did
you hear about what Barack Obama
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said about this? " And
every time she sits there,
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she listens to me and she says:
"Charissa, I haven't watched
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the news yet. " And it always
makes me feel really intelligent
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'cause I just sit there and
tell her everything that I know
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all the way to Uni.
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But when the world...
crisis happened in the economy
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even she was
telling me about the crisis.
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So that really made me
realize "Wow! This is bigger
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than we realize. " And
we may not know much about
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what the future holds but...
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Suddenly the future
isn't what it used to be.
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And in a world of
financial upheaval and stress
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there is only one
person who offers to you and I
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hope for our future, and
His name is Jesus Christ. Amen?
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And when I see the headlines
on the television, my mind
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goes back to a wonderful passage
that I find in the book of John.
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And I invite you
to come there with me.
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The words of Jesus ring in my
mind when I see the headlines.
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You've got to see this if
you've never seen it before.
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John 14- Matthew,
Mark, Luke, and John -
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verses 1 to 3.
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These are the words
of Jesus, and Jesus says:
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"In my Father's
house are many mansions.
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If it were not so,
I would have told you.
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I am going to prepare a
place for the New Zealanders. "
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I'm sorry... is
that not what it says?
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"I am going to prepare
a place for you. " Amen?
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"And if I go and prepare a place
for you I'm going to think about
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coming back... " No,
that's not what it says.
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Jesus... He is
certain: "I WILL come again
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and receive you to Myself
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that where I am
there you may be also. "
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Friends, when I see the
headlines I am convinced
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that Jesus is coming
again and He is coming soon!
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Amen.
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Oh come on. You can get more
excited about that than that.
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Jesus is coming
soon. Amen? Amen.
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That's better. But ironically
today I do not want to talk
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to you about a financial crisis.
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In fact, I want to talk to you
about a man who had absolutely
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no money whatsoever.
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And if he lived today, the
financial crisis would have
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no effect on him because
he had nothing to start with
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in the first place.
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However, while we find him
at the beginning of our story
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with absolutely nothing, by the
time we emerge from his story
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we discover that
he has found something
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that not even seven
hundred billion dollars
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could buy. And I
don't know about you
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but a
rags-to-riches story like that
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is something
I've just got to see
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and I've got a hunch you
will want to see it, too.
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So join me now in his
story in the book of Mark.
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Mark chapter 10 and verse 46.
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Says: "Now they came to Jericho
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and as He went out of
Jericho with His disciples
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and a great multitude, blind
Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus,
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sat by the road begging. "
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Now let's hit the pause
button right here because here's
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our man. Please allow me
to introduce you to poor, poor
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blind Bartimaeus.
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Some say it as though
blind were his first name.
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It is true Mark
calls him Bartimaeus,
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but we don't really know
if that was his name because
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Bar means son of
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and Timaeus means unclean.
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So he's the son of
unclean. Not a really nice name.
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And here as we
find him in our story
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he... we are told he is
blind. We don't know how long
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he has been blind...
we just know that he is.
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And as we meet him here
he is doing something that
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he did every
single day of his life.
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He is - well
done - he is begging.
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Now, as I have examined my past
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I have discovered that
I started out as a child.
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Coincidentally,
so did my sister.
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And as I have examined
that past even more closely
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I realize that there were
several times in my childhood
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where I thought about and indeed
tried to run away from home.
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The only reason I tell you
is because I know I'm not alone.
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Who else tried to run
away from home? Anyone else?
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Oh thank you...
the hands are going up.
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Wonderful. Well, I
tried to run away from home.
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And I don't quite
remember the reason why I tried
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to run away from home.
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Maybe it was because my dad
wanted me to do some exercise.
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He said: "do some push-ups,
" and I didn't want to do them.
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Or maybe my mum said:
"Go and have a shower"
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and I didn't want to have one.
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I can't remember
the reason why...
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I just know that every
single time I tried to run away
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from home it was
always the same story.
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I would walk out the
front door of my house
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past my house, and I'd get about
20 minutes away from my house.
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It's not very far. Then
I'd stop and I'd turn around
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and I'd look back at my
house to take this one last
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longing look at my house
because that's what they did
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in the movies. When
two people walk away
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they walk, they
stop, they look back
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and it's the best part of
the movie... so I would do that.
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Walk away... look back. And
when I looked back at my house
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every time my mum would be
there in the kitchen window
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chopping some
vegetables for dinner.
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And I don't know
how, but she'd always
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look up at the right time.
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She'd stop what she was doing
and look up out the window,
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smile at me, and wave.
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And it would be then at
that moment that I realized
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I had nowhere to go
for dinner that night.
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Who was going to feed
me? And so I stayed at home.
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And praise God, I'm
still at home. Amen?
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Amen. Not for the
same reasons though.
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But at least... The point
is: at least I have a home
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to go home to. You see,
poor blind Bartimaeus...
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he didn't even have
a home to go home to.
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Every single day he had
to beg for everything he got.
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And I can't think of a
more demoralizing predicament
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for a man to find himself in.
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I mean, most of us find
it hard to ask for directions
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when we're
trying to go somewhere.
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Can you imagine
begging for food?
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For everything?
Just to live and survive.
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Put simply, it is a
gross understatement to say
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that Bartimaeus
led an unhappy life.
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Every day he would feel his way
to the side of the dusty road
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there in Jericho where he
would beg from sunup to sundown
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hoping that someone would
be kind enough to toss him
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a few crumbs of
bread or even a few coins.
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And believe me, friends,
you experience the world
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a whole lot differently
when you're sitting by the road
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in Jericho. The roads aren't
like the ones you and I drove on
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to get here. They're
dirty and they're dusty.
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So Bartimaeus probably
wasn't the cleanest character
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in town and it's highly likely
that as he sat by the road
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there in Jericho he cupped
a lot more curses and insults
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than he does coins.
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All he needed was for one
thing to change in his life
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so that he could actually walk
upon the road he was begging
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beside. And so that's
all he needed was his sight.
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Of course for that,
he needed a miracle!
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And I don't know how,
but somehow in the darkness
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of his blindness Bartimaeus
kept holding onto hope
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that one day that
miracle would happen for him.
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That one day a
cure would be found.
00:10:04.57\00:10:08.22
It was springtime in Palestine.
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Bartimaeus... he could
smell it. Spring was in the air
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and he knew what that meant.
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That meant that there were
going to be a lot of people
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traveling between
Jericho and Jerusalem that day -
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a 24 kilometer
journey - and he hoped
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that religious pilgrims
on a religious pilgrimage
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they would be generous.
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And so we
continue on in the story.
00:10:32.94\00:10:35.06
Mark chapter 10,
now look at verse 47.
00:10:35.26\00:10:38.49
Says: "And when he
heard that it was Jesus" -
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this was Bartimaeus -
00:10:42.53\00:10:43.59
"Jesus of Nazareth, he
began to cry out and say:
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'Jesus, Son of
David, have mercy on me. ' "
00:10:46.94\00:10:50.87
Bartimaeus... he
hears the approaching buzz
00:10:51.37\00:10:55.28
of an unusually large crowd.
00:10:55.48\00:10:57.93
He has never quite heard
a crowd this large before.
00:10:58.13\00:11:02.50
And so he asks a passing
shadow 'cause he can't see
00:11:02.70\00:11:06.01
he says: "What's all
the commotion about? "
00:11:06.21\00:11:07.91
And the stranger stopped and
he says "Well, Jesus of Nazareth
00:11:08.11\00:11:11.28
is passing by. "
00:11:11.38\00:11:12.86
And Bartimaeus
hears that name Jesus
00:11:13.26\00:11:17.06
and it means something to him.
00:11:17.26\00:11:19.63
This wasn't just a man from
Nazareth that was walking past.
00:11:19.83\00:11:23.15
No, this was the Messiah. So
you see, someone had told him
00:11:23.35\00:11:27.11
about Jesus
before... he knew about Jesus.
00:11:27.31\00:11:30.73
Mark doesn't tell us
how he knew or who told him.
00:11:30.93\00:11:34.80
Maybe it was the
leper or the paralytic
00:11:35.10\00:11:38.15
whom Jesus had already
healed in Mark's gospel.
00:11:38.35\00:11:42.10
Maybe the suffering woman.
00:11:42.30\00:11:43.88
How she had stopped
by Bartimaeus one day
00:11:44.18\00:11:47.28
and told him of how she
had just reached out to Jesus
00:11:47.48\00:11:50.55
and managed to barely
touch the hem of His garment
00:11:50.75\00:11:53.93
and she had been healed.
00:11:54.13\00:11:56.08
Or maybe Jairus's daughter,
while she was on her way to the
00:11:56.28\00:12:00.58
markets one day, maybe one
day she stopped by Bartimaeus
00:12:00.68\00:12:04.45
and she said: "Bartimaeus, you
wouldn't believe what's happened
00:12:04.55\00:12:07.48
for me. Jesus! He
raised me from the dead! "
00:12:07.59\00:12:10.72
We don't know how he
knew but somehow he knew
00:12:11.02\00:12:15.23
how all who came into
Jesus' presence had their lives
00:12:15.43\00:12:19.25
radically changed.
00:12:19.35\00:12:21.00
And as Bartimaeus is putting
the puzzle pieces together
00:12:21.03\00:12:24.21
in his head he realizes
that that Great Physician
00:12:24.31\00:12:28.85
whom he has only
ever heard about,
00:12:29.05\00:12:31.43
only ever dreamed about,
00:12:31.64\00:12:34.26
was closer to him now
than He had ever been before.
00:12:34.46\00:12:39.31
And for all he knew,
Jesus might never pass by
00:12:39.61\00:12:42.66
that way again.
00:12:42.86\00:12:44.82
And so question:
how does a blind man
00:12:45.02\00:12:48.50
find a stranger
in a passing crowd?
00:12:48.70\00:12:51.15
How does someone who cannot see
00:12:52.11\00:12:54.39
see the One that
they are looking for?
00:12:54.59\00:12:56.48
I mean, there is Jesus -
his only hope in life - just
00:12:56.68\00:12:59.78
passing him by. But poor blind
Bartimaeus hasn't got a hope
00:12:59.88\00:13:04.14
of seeing Him or finding Him.
00:13:04.34\00:13:06.11
Well friends, like they
say: "Where there's a will
00:13:06.31\00:13:09.09
there's a way. " And he
has a voice and he can use it.
00:13:09.29\00:13:13.24
And friends, when your one
shot a life is passing you by
00:13:13.44\00:13:16.02
and all you've got is a voice,
00:13:16.22\00:13:17.85
you use that voice
like there's no tomorrow.
00:13:18.05\00:13:20.11
Like they say: "If all
you've got is a hammer,
00:13:20.31\00:13:22.48
everything looks like a nail. "
00:13:22.68\00:13:24.15
And so he begins to shout.
00:13:24.45\00:13:27.13
"Oh Jesus, Son of
David, have mercy on me, Lord.
00:13:27.33\00:13:31.07
Over here. Lord, I'm
over here. Have mercy on me. "
00:13:31.27\00:13:35.80
I wish we had an
audio recording of that cry
00:13:36.88\00:13:40.62
because bottled up in that
cry was a lifetime of rejection.
00:13:40.83\00:13:45.50
A lifetime of
depression and loneliness.
00:13:45.70\00:13:48.83
All of that gave
strength to his voice.
00:13:49.03\00:13:53.08
And notice verse 48:
00:13:53.38\00:13:55.31
"Then many
warned him to be quiet
00:13:55.61\00:13:58.92
but he cried out all
the more 'Son of David,
00:13:59.12\00:14:02.19
have mercy on me. ' "
00:14:02.39\00:14:05.17
You know, the funny
thing about common sense
00:14:05.37\00:14:08.18
is that it's
not all that common.
00:14:08.38\00:14:10.05
You would think that
somebody who could see
00:14:10.35\00:14:13.89
they would see the need
of poor blind Bartimaeus
00:14:14.10\00:14:17.23
and see another opportunity to
take someone straight to Jesus.
00:14:17.43\00:14:21.05
After all, this crowd has
seen Jesus heal so many times
00:14:21.25\00:14:26.23
before. But you know what?
00:14:26.43\00:14:28.31
Instead of taking him to
Jesus the crowd turns at him.
00:14:28.51\00:14:32.69
They look at him and
they say: "Shhh, be quiet.
00:14:32.82\00:14:34.92
We don't want to
hear you any more. "
00:14:35.02\00:14:36.92
Now we can't be too hard on
this crowd because let's face it
00:14:37.12\00:14:40.43
this kind of thing
happens every day all the time
00:14:40.63\00:14:43.93
in many different situations.
00:14:44.13\00:14:46.33
I don't know if you've noticed
00:14:46.63\00:14:48.12
but university students
have this gift of being able to
00:14:48.32\00:14:52.12
look like they
know what they're doing
00:14:52.32\00:14:53.60
even if they don't
know what they're doing.
00:14:53.63\00:14:55.28
And to convince people around
them that they have something
00:14:55.48\00:14:58.71
very important to do
they just have to look serious
00:14:58.81\00:15:01.83
and walk fast...
and people respect them.
00:15:02.03\00:15:04.14
Well, I was at
university one day
00:15:04.44\00:15:07.23
looking very serious and walking
very fast to the computer room.
00:15:07.43\00:15:10.77
I got in the computer room
and there were young people
00:15:10.97\00:15:13.51
all over the computers.
And so I found a computer,
00:15:13.61\00:15:16.02
put my bags down, logged on,
00:15:16.23\00:15:18.77
began to do my work.
00:15:18.97\00:15:20.78
And as I was doing my work
00:15:20.98\00:15:22.97
I was interrupted by this
noise and it went like this:
00:15:23.27\00:15:27.13
"Dadumm. " Know what that is?
00:15:27.33\00:15:29.84
No? Yes? No?
00:15:30.14\00:15:32.95
That is a mobile
phone losing battery.
00:15:33.09\00:15:36.61
Now I head this phone
beep and I looked around
00:15:36.81\00:15:40.36
because that's what phone
beeping is for: to get one's
00:15:40.46\00:15:43.36
attention. But do you
know what? Nobody in that room
00:15:43.46\00:15:46.69
moved. Nobody
even batted an eyelid.
00:15:46.89\00:15:49.10
They just kept going,
and I couldn't understand it.
00:15:49.20\00:15:51.80
I thought: "Someone's phone
is losing battery and they're
00:15:52.00\00:15:54.04
not going to turn it off.
" Well, I can handle a phone
00:15:54.14\00:15:57.39
beeping, you
know, once or twice.
00:15:57.49\00:15:59.12
But when a phone
beeps for 20 minutes
00:15:59.32\00:16:02.05
and nobody does
anything to stop it,
00:16:02.25\00:16:04.91
then it's unacceptable.
00:16:05.11\00:16:06.54
And so I was there
working and this phone continues
00:16:06.74\00:16:10.15
to beep. And so finally
I started getting annoyed.
00:16:10.35\00:16:13.65
And I started looking
at the person next to me
00:16:13.85\00:16:15.84
eyeing them to make
them look at their phone.
00:16:16.04\00:16:18.22
They didn't move. So
I started staring down
00:16:18.33\00:16:20.17
the person on the
computer opposite me.
00:16:20.27\00:16:22.04
Nothing moved. I
looked at this person.
00:16:22.24\00:16:24.33
Nobody seemed to care or notice.
00:16:24.53\00:16:26.71
And so finally I was
just fed up with them all.
00:16:26.91\00:16:30.10
I logged off the
computer, picked up my bag,
00:16:30.30\00:16:32.84
stormed out of the computer room
00:16:33.04\00:16:34.70
muttering to myself how
lazy they all were back there.
00:16:34.91\00:16:37.90
And as I'm storming across
the campus I heard this noise.
00:16:38.10\00:16:41.01
"Dadumm. "
00:16:41.21\00:16:42.26
It had been my phone all along.
00:16:42.56\00:16:45.57
And in the same way that
there I was, sitting in that
00:16:45.97\00:16:49.19
computer room
blaming everybody else
00:16:49.29\00:16:51.64
thinking that
everybody else had the problem
00:16:51.84\00:16:54.05
when I was the one
who had the problem
00:16:54.25\00:16:56.44
so it is with this crowd.
00:16:56.64\00:16:58.47
Friends, they are following
Jesus for all the wrong reasons.
00:16:58.77\00:17:02.83
They think Bartimaeus
has all of the problems
00:17:03.03\00:17:05.51
when really they were the ones
who had a big problem as well.
00:17:05.71\00:17:09.41
They're following Him
for all the wrong reasons.
00:17:09.61\00:17:11.92
Some of the people
are in the crowd that day
00:17:12.12\00:17:14.42
'cause they're
there for the action.
00:17:14.62\00:17:16.39
They have heard that
Jesus is a great miracle worker
00:17:16.59\00:17:19.72
and they want to have a
front-seat spot just in case
00:17:19.92\00:17:22.81
He performs another one.
00:17:23.01\00:17:24.87
Others have heard that
Jesus is a great preacher.
00:17:25.17\00:17:28.08
They love to hear Him teach
00:17:28.28\00:17:30.12
and so they certainly
don't want a worthless nobody
00:17:30.32\00:17:33.96
like Bartimaeus interrupting
Him on their highly deep
00:17:34.16\00:17:37.32
and philosophical
theological discussion.
00:17:37.42\00:17:40.08
Others are there
because their friends are there.
00:17:40.38\00:17:43.03
Others are there because
their parents made them come.
00:17:43.23\00:17:46.45
Others are there because
they're looking for a boyfriend
00:17:46.66\00:17:48.98
or a girlfriend.
They're all in the crowd
00:17:49.08\00:17:51.22
for all the wrong reasons,
and you and I must pay attention
00:17:51.32\00:17:55.16
to this crowd because often
it is a picture of the church.
00:17:55.26\00:17:59.98
Sometimes,
Christians, we crowd Jesus...
00:18:00.18\00:18:02.83
and when we do we build up a
wall that keeps us and Jesus in
00:18:02.93\00:18:07.60
and real people
with real needs out.
00:18:07.80\00:18:10.80
And so the crowd...
they turned to Bartimaeus:
00:18:11.97\00:18:14.07
"Hey you, shhh!
Pipe down; be quiet!
00:18:14.27\00:18:18.94
I wish you could
see what you look like.
00:18:19.04\00:18:21.02
You are an
embarrassment to this community.
00:18:21.05\00:18:23.50
You are just so embarrassing.
Just... we don't want to hear
00:18:23.71\00:18:26.59
you; we don't want to see you.
This is a religious festival. "
00:18:26.69\00:18:29.99
And then in hushed religious
whispers to their religious
00:18:30.19\00:18:33.75
friends: "I can't believe
he would do this at an occasion
00:18:33.85\00:18:37.59
like this. The man is mad! "
00:18:37.69\00:18:39.94
But friends, the Bible
tells us something remarkable.
00:18:41.00\00:18:44.12
That as the crowd
told him to be quiet
00:18:44.42\00:18:47.28
the Bible tells us
the more they told him
00:18:47.48\00:18:50.66
the louder and the
louder his cries became.
00:18:50.86\00:18:54.52
And friends, let's
not gloss over this
00:18:54.72\00:18:57.64
because it takes guts to
sit by the side of the road
00:18:57.84\00:19:01.46
in the darkness of your
blindness calling out to Jesus
00:19:01.56\00:19:04.62
when there is a crowd
threatening to silence you.
00:19:04.82\00:19:07.67
That takes guts.
00:19:07.87\00:19:09.61
I mean I've been in Australian
history classes sometimes
00:19:09.81\00:19:12.57
and, you know, they ask us
when did Captain Cook arrive?
00:19:12.78\00:19:15.50
And nobody wants to say the
answer. We're just too afraid
00:19:15.70\00:19:18.27
to say the answer.
But here is Bartimaeus.
00:19:18.37\00:19:20.69
He's sitting by the side of
the road calling out to Jesus.
00:19:20.80\00:19:23.59
And friends, I'd like
to show you this quote:
00:19:23.79\00:19:26.25
wonderful quote by a
wonderful author. It says:
00:19:26.46\00:19:30.09
The story is
told of Dwight Moody.
00:20:01.32\00:20:04.02
He went to visit a prison once.
00:20:04.22\00:20:06.25
And after preaching to the
inmates he then went and visited
00:20:06.45\00:20:09.76
them all in their cells.
00:20:09.86\00:20:11.52
And as he went
and made his visits
00:20:11.72\00:20:13.74
he asked them all
this one question.
00:20:13.77\00:20:16.57
He said: "What
brought you here? "
00:20:16.77\00:20:18.26
And you know what they
said? He got a whole myriad
00:20:18.46\00:20:21.17
of responses. The
responses he received
00:20:21.27\00:20:23.70
went something like this:
00:20:23.90\00:20:25.40
"I don't deserve to be here. "
00:20:25.60\00:20:26.92
"I was falsely accused. "
00:20:27.12\00:20:28.99
"I was framed; I was
given an unfair trial. "
00:20:29.19\00:20:33.02
Not a single one of the
inmates was willing to admit
00:20:33.22\00:20:36.35
their guilt until finally Moody
reached the end of the corridor.
00:20:36.55\00:20:40.23
He peered into the cell
door there and he saw a man
00:20:40.43\00:20:44.16
sitting down with his
face in his hands sobbing.
00:20:44.36\00:20:47.83
And Moody said:
"What's the matter, friend? "
00:20:48.03\00:20:49.87
And the man said: "My sin
is more than I can bear. "
00:20:50.07\00:20:53.78
And Moody said: "Praise God.
" And he went and he was able
00:20:53.98\00:20:57.24
to introduce that
man to Jesus Christ.
00:20:57.45\00:20:59.95
This quote... I read it to
you because sometimes I wonder
00:21:00.25\00:21:04.18
if we really see
ourselves the way God sees us.
00:21:04.38\00:21:07.42
'Cause perhaps if we
could see our true condition
00:21:07.62\00:21:11.19
our prayers will be so
much more earnest and heartfelt.
00:21:11.39\00:21:15.22
Perhaps if we could see
ourselves the way God sees us
00:21:15.42\00:21:18.52
our calls on Jesus
would be so much more sincere
00:21:18.72\00:21:22.12
like Bartimaeus.
00:21:22.22\00:21:23.73
Let's continue
on. Notice verse 49:
00:21:23.83\00:21:26.60
"So Jesus stood still and
commanded him to be called.
00:21:28.97\00:21:33.17
Then they called the
blind man saying to him
00:21:33.37\00:21:36.79
'Be of good cheer.
Rise, He is calling you. ' "
00:21:36.99\00:21:40.54
Amidst the chaos of that crowd
00:21:41.72\00:21:44.46
a lone plaintive voice
reaches the ear of Jesus
00:21:44.66\00:21:48.96
and the Bible tells
us that Jesus stopped.
00:21:49.16\00:21:52.52
Why does Jesus stop?
00:21:52.72\00:21:54.99
Friends, I think there are
two wonderful reasons why Jesus
00:21:55.19\00:21:57.96
stopped. The first
reason why Jesus stopped
00:21:58.06\00:22:00.91
is because the faith
of poor blind Bartimaeus
00:22:01.11\00:22:04.88
had arrested His attention.
And faith in Jesus Christ
00:22:05.08\00:22:08.69
always does.
Can you say "Amen? "
00:22:08.89\00:22:10.57
Amen. Up until this
point Jesus had been going here
00:22:10.77\00:22:14.09
and going there,
saying this and saying that.
00:22:14.19\00:22:16.48
Mark really hasn't given
us much of an opportunity
00:22:16.68\00:22:20.41
in his gospel to
stop and catch a breath.
00:22:20.61\00:22:23.36
But suddenly a
worthless wretch of a man
00:22:23.56\00:22:27.03
like Bartimaeus... he calls
out to Jesus and the Bible says
00:22:27.24\00:22:30.98
He stopped. And I am so glad
that the Bible tells us that.
00:22:31.18\00:22:34.64
Jesus stopped for Bartimaeus.
00:22:34.84\00:22:36.86
And by the way, if you read
the wonderful commentary called
00:22:37.06\00:22:40.89
The Great Controversy, if
you do some historical research,
00:22:40.99\00:22:44.59
the Bible... I'm sorry, those
books tell us that when John Hus
00:22:44.79\00:22:49.28
who was a Reformer...
when he was dying, burning at
00:22:49.49\00:22:52.27
the stake because he
chose to be faithful to Jesus,
00:22:52.47\00:22:55.62
they tell us
that he died singing.
00:22:55.82\00:22:58.60
Do you remember
what he was singing?
00:22:58.80\00:23:00.21
He sang: "Jesus, thou Son
of David, have mercy on me. "
00:23:00.51\00:23:05.07
Same cry as Bartimaeus.
00:23:05.37\00:23:06.99
And I think that's wonderful
because if Jesus stopped
00:23:07.00\00:23:10.52
for Bartimaeus then we
can be sure that He wasn't far
00:23:10.72\00:23:13.76
from Hus either. Amen?
00:23:13.97\00:23:15.22
That's the first
reason why Jesus stopped.
00:23:16.26\00:23:18.52
Now the second
reason is really something.
00:23:18.82\00:23:21.05
I think it's radical.
I love the second reason
00:23:21.25\00:23:23.99
because, you see, as I
watch the news sometimes
00:23:24.19\00:23:26.48
and I see, you know, the
financial crisis and all the
00:23:26.68\00:23:29.41
other crises that we face today
00:23:29.51\00:23:31.65
the words of Jesus in
Matthew chapter 6:19-21
00:23:31.85\00:23:37.32
come to my mind. So turn there:
00:23:37.52\00:23:39.24
Matthew chapter
6 verses 19 to 21.
00:23:39.44\00:23:43.97
They come to my
mind... the words of Jesus.
00:23:44.17\00:23:46.74
And this of course is taking
us to His Sermon on the Mount.
00:23:47.04\00:23:50.87
Matthew 6 verses
19-21. Jesus says:
00:23:51.17\00:23:55.61
"Do not lay up for
yourselves treasures on earth
00:23:55.74\00:23:58.74
where moth and rust destroy
00:23:58.94\00:24:01.91
and where thieves
break in and steal.
00:24:02.11\00:24:03.93
But lay up for
yourselves treasures in Tyrene
00:24:04.13\00:24:07.17
where neither... "
00:24:07.37\00:24:09.38
I'm just making
sure you're with me.
00:24:09.58\00:24:11.17
"Lay up for
yourselves treasures in heaven
00:24:11.37\00:24:13.77
where neither
moth nor rust destroy
00:24:13.97\00:24:16.13
and where thieves do
not break in and steal.
00:24:16.33\00:24:18.59
For where your treasure is
00:24:18.79\00:24:20.85
there your heart will be also. "
00:24:21.05\00:24:23.44
Now I have read
those verses many times,
00:24:23.64\00:24:26.25
and I've just always
assumed that I knew exactly what
00:24:26.45\00:24:29.38
Jesus was talking about
when He said "treasure. "
00:24:29.48\00:24:32.30
After all, didn't we
begin in John 14: 1-3
00:24:32.50\00:24:35.56
and Jesus told us about
the mansions that are up there
00:24:35.77\00:24:38.59
in heaven? Oh that
must be the treasure.
00:24:38.69\00:24:40.44
Gold... streets of
gold. That's the treasure
00:24:40.58\00:24:42.62
Jesus is talking about.
00:24:42.73\00:24:43.88
But with the
crisis and everything
00:24:44.18\00:24:46.27
curiosity got me studying.
And so I did some research
00:24:46.47\00:24:50.24
and I came across
this wonderful quote.
00:24:50.35\00:24:52.58
It is a long quote but I'll tell
you it is a wonderful quote.
00:24:52.78\00:24:56.21
Let's read it together:
00:24:56.41\00:24:58.16
Don't you think that's amazing?
00:25:49.86\00:25:51.46
When we share
Jesus with somebody else
00:25:51.67\00:25:54.32
we are investing in God's
kingdom because according to
00:25:54.52\00:25:58.21
Jesus treasure is people.
00:25:58.32\00:26:01.03
You and I are God's
treasure. The quote goes on:
00:26:01.23\00:26:03.78
And I love this part:
00:26:25.22\00:26:26.55
Mount of
Blessing pages 89 and 90.
00:27:21.01\00:27:23.81
Why does Jesus stop?
00:27:24.11\00:27:27.56
Because,
friends, He had to stop.
00:27:27.77\00:27:30.69
It was for people like
Bartimaeus that God had
00:27:30.90\00:27:34.17
bankrupt heaven to
save. He sent Jesus for people
00:27:34.27\00:27:37.51
like Bartimaeus. There
was treasure, and so when
00:27:37.71\00:27:40.49
Bartimaeus called out to Jesus
00:27:40.69\00:27:42.74
Jesus had to stop
because he was treasure.
00:27:42.75\00:27:45.79
Day in and day out
this had been the message
00:27:45.99\00:27:49.51
that Jesus was trying to
communicate to His disciples.
00:27:49.71\00:27:52.77
"Listen Andrew,
listen Paul, John, Peter. "
00:27:52.97\00:27:56.19
Not Paul... because
he wasn't a disciple.
00:27:56.39\00:27:57.93
But anyway, you
know what I mean.
00:27:58.03\00:27:59.43
"Listen to Me, " He says.
00:27:59.73\00:28:01.51
"It's not about fame;
it's not about fortune.
00:28:01.71\00:28:04.75
It's all about people. "
00:28:04.96\00:28:06.39
It's all about Jesus
and it's all about people.
00:28:06.59\00:28:09.11
But sadly, His disciples - no
matter how much time they spent
00:28:09.31\00:28:13.43
with Him - they still
didn't quite catch on.
00:28:13.53\00:28:16.75
Because come back to
the book of Mark again.
00:28:16.95\00:28:19.64
Mark chapter 10
verses 36 and 37.
00:28:19.84\00:28:24.56
We find two disciples approach
Jesus right before we meet
00:28:24.87\00:28:29.39
Bartimaeus. And when they do
00:28:29.59\00:28:32.28
Jesus asks them a question.
00:28:32.38\00:28:34.27
He's about to ask
Bartimaeus... Notice verse 36
00:28:34.47\00:28:37.90
of Mark chapter 10.
00:28:38.10\00:28:39.38
"He said to them: 'What do
you want Me to do for you? ' "
00:28:39.58\00:28:43.04
And verse 37...
watch what they say:
00:28:43.24\00:28:45.69
"They said to Him:
'Grant us that we may sit
00:28:45.89\00:28:48.68
one on Your right hand
and the other on Your left
00:28:48.88\00:28:51.43
in Your glory. ' "
00:28:51.63\00:28:53.54
Fascinating.
00:28:53.74\00:28:55.05
After spending so
much time with Jesus -
00:28:55.35\00:28:57.96
walking with Him, talking
with Him, eating with Him -
00:28:58.16\00:29:00.58
they still hadn't
caught His passion for souls.
00:29:00.78\00:29:04.98
And so Jesus
spelled it out for them
00:29:05.18\00:29:07.71
as He spells it out for
every successive generation:
00:29:07.92\00:29:11.40
for you and I today.
00:29:11.60\00:29:13.46
He spelled it out in verse 45:
00:29:13.66\00:29:15.97
Jesus says: "For even
the Son of Man did not come
00:29:16.18\00:29:20.12
to be served but to serve
00:29:20.32\00:29:22.58
and to give His
life a ransom for many. "
00:29:22.79\00:29:26.39
It was all about people and
it's still all about people.
00:29:27.36\00:29:30.80
And friends, I know people
and I know that you know people
00:29:31.01\00:29:34.69
who don't know Jesus.
00:29:34.89\00:29:36.63
They're sitting by the side
of this life like Bartimaeus.
00:29:36.83\00:29:40.37
And they may not know it,
but deep down they're calling
00:29:40.57\00:29:43.39
out. They're looking, they're
searching for something more
00:29:43.49\00:29:46.15
to this life. God
forbid that like that crowd
00:29:46.35\00:29:50.23
you and I would turn around
and tell them to be quiet.
00:29:50.43\00:29:52.90
If there was ever a time
in history where our treasures
00:29:54.16\00:29:57.26
were not just well
spent but best spent
00:29:57.46\00:29:59.97
in advancing the everlasting
gospel - the gospel of Jesus -
00:30:00.18\00:30:03.50
it is today. Amen?
00:30:03.70\00:30:05.13
Amen. Because, look,
the treasure is everywhere
00:30:05.33\00:30:07.76
to be found. I
slept in one morning...
00:30:07.87\00:30:10.84
it happened. And when
I woke up my mum said:
00:30:11.04\00:30:15.74
"Look Charissa, you've missed
the bus. you're going to have
00:30:15.94\00:30:17.84
to... I'm going to have
to drive you to the train
00:30:17.94\00:30:19.49
if you're going to
get to Uni today. "
00:30:19.52\00:30:21.23
So I got up and I jumped
around and I cleaned my teeth
00:30:21.43\00:30:24.18
and I ate my
breakfast. The other way around.
00:30:24.38\00:30:26.17
And jumped in the car and
we went to the train station.
00:30:26.37\00:30:30.42
And as I got out of
the car I saw the train
00:30:30.62\00:30:33.53
coming in the
distance. So I ran up the steps
00:30:33.73\00:30:36.65
and I ran down the steps
and I pressed a few buttons
00:30:36.85\00:30:39.68
on the ticket machine and
it spat out a ticket for me
00:30:39.78\00:30:42.32
and then I
jumped onto the train.
00:30:42.52\00:30:44.17
Sounds very dramatic?
It wasn't that dramatic.
00:30:44.37\00:30:46.53
And I got on the
train and I sat down
00:30:46.73\00:30:49.25
and usually what I do is I just
put my train ticket in my purse
00:30:49.45\00:30:52.95
and then I don't think about
it for the rest of the day.
00:30:53.15\00:30:55.50
But for some reason on
this particular morning
00:30:55.70\00:30:58.34
I chose to look at my ticket.
00:30:58.54\00:31:00.54
As I looked down at my
train ticket I realized
00:31:00.74\00:31:03.01
that I had
bought the wrong ticket.
00:31:03.22\00:31:05.19
I had bought a
return ticket to the station
00:31:05.39\00:31:07.67
and I didn't want to return to
this station in the afternoon.
00:31:07.77\00:31:10.65
I wanted to go on
much further to get home.
00:31:10.85\00:31:13.30
But I'd bought the wrong
ticket, so I thought well maybe
00:31:13.50\00:31:16.01
I'll just put it away
and I'll forget about it.
00:31:16.21\00:31:18.10
You know, everything will be OK.
00:31:18.30\00:31:20.38
I'll put it away in my
purse, and I kept sitting there
00:31:20.58\00:31:23.20
on the train. But it was like
a broken recorder was going on
00:31:23.40\00:31:26.43
in my head: "You have bought
the wrong ticket; you have
00:31:26.53\00:31:29.00
bought the wrong ticket. "
00:31:29.11\00:31:30.40
I get to Uni. I'm
sitting in my lectures
00:31:30.60\00:31:33.34
and I can't hear a word
that the lecturer is saying.
00:31:33.54\00:31:35.84
All I can hear is: "You
have bought the wrong ticket.
00:31:36.04\00:31:38.06
You have bought
the wrong ticket. "
00:31:38.26\00:31:39.70
So I go to my tutorial
and I'm trying to listen in on
00:31:39.90\00:31:43.23
the discussion and trying
to contribute, but I can't
00:31:43.33\00:31:45.64
because all I can think
about is this ticket that I have
00:31:45.74\00:31:48.04
in my purse... and
it's the wrong ticket.
00:31:48.14\00:31:50.03
I get on the train and I'm going
home again and I'm thinking
00:31:50.23\00:31:52.93
"Lord, I know I
bought the wrong ticket
00:31:53.13\00:31:55.54
but do You think just this
once I could cheat my fare? "
00:31:55.74\00:31:58.73
I'm asking God if I
can break His commandments.
00:31:58.93\00:32:00.89
But anyway...
don't ever do that.
00:32:01.09\00:32:03.34
And I felt impressed: "No
you can't. You've got to get off
00:32:03.54\00:32:05.67
the train because you've
bought the wrong ticket. "
00:32:05.77\00:32:07.72
So I got off the train at the
station I didn't want to get off
00:32:07.92\00:32:11.38
at. I bought the right ticket.
It was mid-day, so the trains
00:32:11.48\00:32:15.08
don't come very frequently.
00:32:15.18\00:32:17.13
So I went and I sat on a
seat that looked something like
00:32:17.33\00:32:20.08
that and I began
to eat my sandwiches.
00:32:20.18\00:32:23.14
It's a pretty pitiful
sight. I was the only one
00:32:23.34\00:32:25.38
at the train station. Anyway,
as I'm eating my sandwiches
00:32:25.58\00:32:28.92
and as time is going because
the train's not going to come
00:32:29.12\00:32:31.89
for a little while, people
slowly began to come and join me
00:32:31.99\00:32:35.64
there in the
station. And as I was eating
00:32:35.75\00:32:38.18
I looked over and this
lady came and she sat down
00:32:38.28\00:32:40.64
on a seat like
that just opposite.
00:32:40.74\00:32:42.81
And I looked at her and smiled
and kept going eating my food.
00:32:43.01\00:32:46.67
And then I looked back again
and I noticed she was reading
00:32:46.77\00:32:49.66
a book... a book
called Daily Meditations.
00:32:49.76\00:32:53.42
And it was like a little
light bulb went on in my head:
00:32:53.72\00:32:56.65
"Oh, that lady
must be a Christian.
00:32:56.85\00:32:59.28
You must have bought the
wrong ticket so that you can
00:32:59.48\00:33:01.99
talk to her. " Now, I thought
"Well that's a wonderful idea...
00:33:02.09\00:33:05.91
that makes sense. "
But I'm a very shy person,
00:33:06.01\00:33:08.46
you see, and so I
thought "There's no way I could
00:33:08.56\00:33:10.97
ever talk to that lady on
that seat. " And so I just
00:33:11.07\00:33:12.97
kept sitting there feeling
very convinced that I needed to
00:33:13.18\00:33:15.96
talk to this lady. So
the train finally came.
00:33:16.06\00:33:19.35
We hopped on the train together
and I thought: "No, I'm too shy
00:33:19.55\00:33:22.95
to sit next to her. " So I just
sat in the cabin and I watched
00:33:23.05\00:33:25.46
her where she
went from the cabin.
00:33:25.57\00:33:27.80
I said: "Lord, I feel
very impressed that You want me
00:33:28.10\00:33:31.98
to speak to this lady
but I'm too shy to do it.
00:33:32.19\00:33:34.44
So look, if she goes to my
station and if she walks to
00:33:34.54\00:33:39.15
my platform at the
station where I'm going,
00:33:39.26\00:33:41.49
then I'll talk to her. "
00:33:41.69\00:33:43.01
So OK, that's good;
I'll leave it at that. "
00:33:43.21\00:33:45.21
The train pulls
up at my station.
00:33:45.41\00:33:47.53
She didn't get off
at any previous station
00:33:47.63\00:33:49.66
and she got off at my station.
00:33:49.86\00:33:51.69
I thought: "Well
that's one test down. "
00:33:51.89\00:33:53.86
And as I'm following her
up the steps of the station
00:33:54.06\00:33:56.65
I'm watching to see
which way she will go.
00:33:56.85\00:33:58.93
And sometimes when you
think people are following you
00:33:59.13\00:34:01.91
maybe they are. And so I
followed her up the steps
00:34:02.11\00:34:05.29
there at the
station and I watched.
00:34:05.32\00:34:07.23
Which platform will she go to?
00:34:07.43\00:34:08.85
And would you believe it? She
made a beeline for my platform.
00:34:08.92\00:34:12.55
So I thought to
myself: "Well, this is it.
00:34:12.75\00:34:14.46
It's now or never. "
00:34:14.56\00:34:15.72
And so I ran up behind her
and I tapped her on the shoulder
00:34:15.92\00:34:18.59
and I said: "Excuse
me. Are you a Christian? "
00:34:18.79\00:34:21.85
And she looked at
me kind of shocked
00:34:22.15\00:34:24.55
and she said "No. "
Now when she said that
00:34:24.85\00:34:28.93
I had no idea what to say next.
00:34:29.13\00:34:31.12
Because in my mind the
only reason why I was chasing
00:34:31.32\00:34:35.16
this woman was
because she was a Christian.
00:34:35.26\00:34:36.94
And so when she said
"No" I said: "Oh, I'm sorry. "
00:34:37.14\00:34:39.21
And she looked at
me as we walked down
00:34:39.51\00:34:42.28
the steps again and we
sat on another seat that looks
00:34:42.48\00:34:45.49
just like that.
And she said to me:
00:34:45.59\00:34:47.85
"So why did you
think I was a Christian? "
00:34:48.05\00:34:49.63
I said: "Oh, because I
saw you reading that book
00:34:49.93\00:34:52.68
back there at the station. "
00:34:52.78\00:34:54.45
And she smiled and she
took it out and she showed me.
00:34:54.65\00:34:57.10
Yes, it was a book
called Daily Meditations
00:34:57.30\00:34:59.97
but it was all about how
people meditate on the trees
00:35:00.17\00:35:02.80
and on grass and on nature.
00:35:02.90\00:35:04.33
I didn't know people
do that, but they do.
00:35:04.63\00:35:06.85
And I said: "Oh, that's why
I thought you were a Christian
00:35:07.15\00:35:09.97
because they read
devotional books as well. "
00:35:10.17\00:35:13.56
And she smiled and she could
say "Are you a Christian? "
00:35:13.86\00:35:16.67
I said: "Yes, I'm a Christian. "
00:35:16.87\00:35:18.50
She said: "Well what
kind of a Christian are you?
00:35:18.71\00:35:20.14
Are you a Buddhist Christian?
00:35:20.34\00:35:21.76
Are you a
Presbyterian Christian?
00:35:22.06\00:35:23.75
What kind of a
Christian are you? "
00:35:23.95\00:35:25.21
I said: "Well I'm a Seventh-
day Adventist Christian. "
00:35:25.41\00:35:27.63
She said: "Ah, yeah,
and what do you believe? "
00:35:27.83\00:35:29.82
Now I always get very
excited when people ask me
00:35:30.02\00:35:32.61
that question... so excited
I never know where to start.
00:35:32.81\00:35:35.55
And so I thought: "Well,
OK. This is where I'll start. "
00:35:35.86\00:35:38.47
I said: "We believe that
the Bible is the inspired Word
00:35:38.67\00:35:41.70
of God. And in the Bible
we are told that God created
00:35:41.80\00:35:45.67
this world in six days
and then He rested the seventh
00:35:45.87\00:35:48.99
and He invites
us to do the same. "
00:35:49.19\00:35:50.89
And she said: "Yes,
I believe that too. "
00:35:51.09\00:35:53.16
I said: "You do?
" She said: "Yes! "
00:35:53.36\00:35:55.19
She said: "I believe that God
created this world in six days
00:35:55.39\00:35:58.17
as well. " I said: "Oh. "
00:35:58.37\00:35:59.89
I said: "Well that's why
we call ourselves Seventh-day
00:36:00.09\00:36:03.28
Adventists. " And the
second part of our name
00:36:03.38\00:36:05.64
Adventists... well we
call ourselves Adventists
00:36:05.85\00:36:08.09
because we believe
that Jesus is coming again.
00:36:08.29\00:36:10.16
You know, we see signs
round us and we are pretty sure
00:36:10.36\00:36:13.02
that it's not going
to be very far away;
00:36:13.22\00:36:15.13
Jesus is coming soon. "
00:36:15.23\00:36:16.52
And she said: "Yes, I
believe that as well. "
00:36:16.72\00:36:18.84
I thought to myself: "really? "
00:36:18.87\00:36:21.76
She said: "Yes, I
have read Matthew 24. "
00:36:21.97\00:36:24.50
She's now telling
me about Matthew 24.
00:36:24.70\00:36:27.22
And she says: "And I read there
that Jesus says that there will
00:36:27.52\00:36:30.18
be earthquakes and
famines and pestilences
00:36:30.28\00:36:32.57
and yes I believe Jesus
is coming again soon too. "
00:36:32.77\00:36:35.65
I said: "But
you're not a Christian? "
00:36:35.85\00:36:37.70
She said: "No, but I
read books of all religions
00:36:37.90\00:36:39.99
and I read that in the Bible. "
00:36:40.19\00:36:41.63
I said: "Wow. " She
said: "I also believe in
00:36:41.83\00:36:44.07
the universal principles
of thou shalt not kill
00:36:44.17\00:36:46.77
and thou shalt not steal. "
00:36:46.97\00:36:48.37
And she starts quoting
the Ten Commandments to me.
00:36:48.57\00:36:50.71
I said: "This is incredible! "
00:36:50.91\00:36:52.85
She says: "You know I believe
that our bodies are the temple
00:36:53.06\00:36:55.74
of the Holy Spirit and
that we need to look after them"
00:36:55.94\00:36:58.74
and she said "So I look after
my body and I'm a vegetarian. "
00:36:58.84\00:37:02.44
I said: "Really? " She
said: "Yes, you know it's better
00:37:02.74\00:37:06.24
for you. " I
said: "Yes, I know. "
00:37:06.34\00:37:07.93
And we kept talking like
this and I'm thinking to myself
00:37:07.96\00:37:11.42
"Wow! This lady's a Christian
- she's a Seventh-day Adventist
00:37:11.52\00:37:14.77
Christian - and she
doesn't even know it. "
00:37:14.87\00:37:16.48
And I thought to myself:
"I've got to get her number.
00:37:16.78\00:37:19.30
I've got to
invite her to church. "
00:37:19.50\00:37:20.76
And so I asked her... I
said: "Do you go to church? "
00:37:20.96\00:37:23.58
She says: "No, I
don't go to church
00:37:23.78\00:37:25.48
but I meet with a group of
friends every Saturday afternoon
00:37:25.68\00:37:28.43
and we pray. We pray to
God. We don't know who He is
00:37:28.53\00:37:31.34
or where He is but we
believe there is a God
00:37:31.55\00:37:33.94
because when we pray
good things happen. "
00:37:34.15\00:37:36.55
Don't you think that's amazing?
00:37:36.85\00:37:38.74
Here is someone I just
bump into at a train station
00:37:38.94\00:37:42.45
and she believes that
Jesus is coming again.
00:37:42.65\00:37:45.32
She believes that God
created this world in six days.
00:37:45.52\00:37:48.45
She believes that she
should look after her health.
00:37:48.66\00:37:51.00
She believes that she can
pray to God and she prays to God
00:37:51.20\00:37:54.87
every seventh day, and she
doesn't even know who she is.
00:37:55.07\00:37:58.11
And there's a group of people
that are out there that are
00:37:58.31\00:38:00.32
just like her. And
so I thought to myself:
00:38:00.42\00:38:03.05
"I've got to get her number. "
00:38:03.15\00:38:04.75
I was too shy to
ask so I said to her:
00:38:04.95\00:38:07.39
"Do you know I'm part Chinese?
" And she was an Asian lady
00:38:07.59\00:38:11.42
and she said: "Oh, can
I get your phone number? "
00:38:11.62\00:38:13.82
So we swapped numbers
there in the train station.
00:38:14.02\00:38:17.08
And friends I tell you that
story because it's an unfinished
00:38:17.28\00:38:20.87
story. Because I believe
that there are people like this
00:38:21.07\00:38:24.01
everywhere. They're in
your community; they're in your
00:38:24.22\00:38:26.66
workplace;
they're in your schools.
00:38:26.76\00:38:28.82
People who are on
the verge of the kingdom.
00:38:29.02\00:38:31.78
People who are so close to Jesus
but they just can't see Him.
00:38:31.88\00:38:35.17
And they are waiting
for someone like you and me
00:38:35.37\00:38:38.12
to take them straight
to Jesus Christ. Amen?
00:38:38.32\00:38:41.08
Now we haven't
finished our story yet.
00:38:42.03\00:38:44.50
That was a nice diversion.
We must keep going because
00:38:44.70\00:38:47.88
something incredible has
just transpired in our story.
00:38:47.98\00:38:51.14
Jesus is calling
Bartimaeus and I love that.
00:38:51.44\00:38:56.20
All this time Bartimaeus
has been calling out to Jesus.
00:38:56.33\00:38:59.25
Jesus has stopped and He tells
the crowd to go and get him.
00:38:59.45\00:39:03.13
And I love how Jesus does that
because nothing quiets criticism
00:39:03.33\00:39:06.86
like involvement. And
so the crowd... they turn
00:39:07.06\00:39:09.84
to Bartimaeus and they
say: "Hey you, get up; rise.
00:39:09.95\00:39:13.48
Jesus is calling you. "
00:39:13.68\00:39:15.40
And I want you to notice
what happens in verse 50.
00:39:15.60\00:39:18.97
"And throwing aside his garments
he rose and came to Jesus. "
00:39:19.91\00:39:24.70
Friends, that verse
might seem highly insignificant
00:39:24.84\00:39:29.05
to you and I
today. You might think
00:39:29.25\00:39:31.56
"OK, he left his jacket
behind. Let's keep going. "
00:39:31.76\00:39:34.13
But it's not insignificant...
it is highly significant
00:39:34.33\00:39:38.36
because of the three gospels
- Matthew, Mark, and Luke -
00:39:38.66\00:39:41.92
Mark is the only gospel
writer who includes this detail.
00:39:42.12\00:39:46.78
And it is significant because
that coat that he leaves behind
00:39:46.98\00:39:51.74
that was probably the most
valuable thing that he owned.
00:39:51.94\00:39:55.96
But when Jesus called
him to come, Bartimaeus...
00:39:56.36\00:40:00.58
he counts the cost and
he wants to follow Jesus.
00:40:00.68\00:40:03.44
He wants nothing to hold
him back, and so he makes
00:40:03.65\00:40:06.08
an immediate sacrifice so
he can go straight to Jesus.
00:40:06.29\00:40:09.90
He probably extended that
coat to people as they passed by
00:40:10.10\00:40:14.32
so they could toss
him bread and coins.
00:40:14.52\00:40:17.23
But when Jesus calls he
is willing to pay the price.
00:40:17.43\00:40:20.88
Wants nothing to hold him
back and he goes to Jesus.
00:40:21.08\00:40:23.83
His actions of immediate
sacrifice... they speak volumes
00:40:24.13\00:40:28.89
to you and I today because
sometimes you and I struggle
00:40:29.09\00:40:32.42
to find time, to make time,
to spend with Jesus, don't we?
00:40:32.52\00:40:35.54
We live in a very busy world.
00:40:35.64\00:40:37.90
We have been like a family,
whom a pastor went to visit.
00:40:38.10\00:40:41.54
He went there and he sat
down, he was talking with them.
00:40:41.74\00:40:44.79
And then he looked up at
the clock on the mantelpiece and
00:40:45.00\00:40:47.29
realized that time has just
flown and he has to be going.
00:40:47.39\00:40:50.73
So he stood up and he said:
"Look, I've got other people
00:40:50.93\00:40:52.89
to see. I'll see
you again soon. "
00:40:52.99\00:40:55.47
And the six-year-old in
the family piped up and said:
00:40:55.67\00:40:58.93
"Oh, don't worry about the
clock pastor. Dad put it forward
00:40:59.03\00:41:02.15
a whole hour when
he saw you coming. "
00:41:02.26\00:41:04.01
You know, sometimes we are
like that with God as well.
00:41:04.82\00:41:07.37
We don't want to make
time to spend time with Jesus.
00:41:07.57\00:41:11.25
And that's of course
very significant: this leaving
00:41:11.45\00:41:13.97
behind of the coat. And of
course it is also significant
00:41:14.07\00:41:17.13
of another transaction that
happens when we come to Jesus
00:41:17.33\00:41:20.08
isn't it? Because the Bible
tells us that our righteousness
00:41:20.28\00:41:23.56
our goodness, our good deeds...
they're like filthy rags.
00:41:23.76\00:41:27.94
But when we come to
Jesus the Bible tells us that
00:41:28.24\00:41:31.36
Jesus offers to us
His perfect righteousness.
00:41:31.56\00:41:35.65
And in light of an exchange
like that, why would you and I
00:41:35.85\00:41:38.89
ever want to hold
onto our own? Amen?
00:41:39.09\00:41:41.90
Now let's keep going
because we're nearly there.
00:41:42.20\00:41:45.26
"So Jesus
answered and said to him:
00:41:48.45\00:41:51.45
'What do you want
Me to do for you? '
00:41:51.65\00:41:54.56
And the blind man said to Him:
'Rabboni, that I may receive
00:41:54.76\00:41:58.36
my sight. ' "
00:41:58.56\00:42:00.22
I imagine as Jesus asks
Bartimaeus this question
00:42:00.42\00:42:04.70
Bartimaeus... he falls
on his knees before Jesus.
00:42:04.80\00:42:08.55
With tears streaming down
his cheeks he says: "Lord,
00:42:08.75\00:42:12.10
I want to receive my sight. "
00:42:12.30\00:42:15.16
And how this request must have
thrilled the heart of Jesus.
00:42:15.36\00:42:19.76
At this man... seeing
him on his knees before Him.
00:42:19.96\00:42:23.10
And you and I read
this text today and we think
00:42:23.31\00:42:26.10
"Well Lord, surely You knew
what was wrong with the man.
00:42:26.30\00:42:29.30
Surely You can see his problem.
00:42:29.50\00:42:31.40
He's blind; he
wants to see again. "
00:42:31.60\00:42:33.42
But friends, sometimes
God asks those questions
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not to get information but
to get us to admit our need
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of Him. And when you and
I are all wrong and willing
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to admit it
then we're all right.
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And notice what happens
in the next verse - verse 52-
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it is absolutely
loaded. "Then Jesus said to him:
00:42:50.52\00:42:54.20
'Go your way; your
faith has made you well. '
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And immediately
he received his sight
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and followed
Jesus on the road. "
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Friend, there are several days
in my life which I will never
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forget for as long as I live.
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I will never forget the day
when I was sitting in a primary
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classroom... I
was in kindergarten
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and the teacher had
just explained addition.
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1 + 1 = 2
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And I remember sitting
there and I remember thinking
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"that is just amazing! " I
walked out of that classroom
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and I looked at the playground
and I just didn't see trees.
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I could count them. There were
four trees on the playground.
00:43:33.02\00:43:36.26
I'll never forget that day.
00:43:36.46\00:43:38.03
I will never forget the
day when I was sitting on the
00:43:38.23\00:43:40.75
kitchen floor. My mum
had just got off the phone
00:43:40.85\00:43:43.66
to a friend. And
I asked her, I said:
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"Mom, you know how you
call Joan Joan and Susan Susan?
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Well who are you, you
know? Do you have a name? "
00:43:50.36\00:43:53.16
And she said to
me: "My name is Gail
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and your dad's name is David. "
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And I remember just thinking
that was just revolutionary.
00:43:58.14\00:44:01.40
My parents had names like
everybody else in the world.
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I'll never forget that day.
00:44:05.26\00:44:06.65
I will never forget the day
when in my primary classroom
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I got my homework back and I'd
been getting it back like this
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for a while. And it said:
"Charissa, this is not how
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you write a complete sentence.
This is not how you write
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a complete sentence. "
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And I remember thinking
to myself: "How do I do it? "
00:44:21.26\00:44:23.36
And my friend... she
turned to me and she said:
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"Charissa, this is how you
write a complete sentence. "
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And I've been
writing them ever since.
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I'll never forget those 3 days.
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But friends, on that
day when Bartimaeus...
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he opened his eyes and he looked
straight into the loving face
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of Jesus, not only was
that the first face he ever saw
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but it would forever
be the most beautiful face
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he ever would see.
00:44:50.91\00:44:52.88
He would never forget that
day for as long as he lived.
00:44:53.08\00:44:57.60
And friends, this
word here. Jesus says:
00:44:57.73\00:45:00.19
"Your faith has made you well. "
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In the Greek that word is sozo
and it also translates as saved.
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This means that Jesus is
literally saying to Bartimaeus
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"Your faith has saved
you. It has made you well
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and saved you.
" And I am so glad
00:45:14.75\00:45:17.46
that Jesus says
that to Bartimaeus.
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He doesn't say:
"Your friends saved you;
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your fortune saved you... "
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because he had nothing.
"Your education saved you. "
00:45:24.34\00:45:27.15
He said: "Your
faith has made you well. "
00:45:27.35\00:45:30.55
But friends, Jesus
prefaces this wonderful news
00:45:30.85\00:45:34.85
with three words. He
said: "Go your way. "
00:45:35.05\00:45:39.21
Friends, that was a test.
00:45:39.51\00:45:41.35
He had his sight now; he
could do whatever he wanted.
00:45:41.55\00:45:44.89
He could go and see Palestine.
00:45:45.09\00:45:47.05
He could go and marvel
at the gardens in Jericho.
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He'd probably never
seen a flower before
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and Jericho means smell
because of the beautiful gardens
00:45:52.02\00:45:54.89
they had there. But friends,
the Bible doesn't leave us
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guessing as to what
Bartimaeus does next.
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Actually Mark is so excited
about what he chooses to do
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he slips the end of the
story in right there at the end
00:46:05.92\00:46:09.24
of verse 52. The Bible tells us
00:46:09.34\00:46:12.06
that he followed
Jesus on the road.
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You say: "OK, big deal.
00:46:16.42\00:46:18.74
He's on the road
between Jericho and Jerusalem. "
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But friends, it is a big deal
00:46:22.17\00:46:24.23
because this is the last healing
miracle in Mark's gospel.
00:46:24.44\00:46:28.32
And it is significant
because not only was that road
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the road between
Jericho and Jerusalem.
00:46:32.03\00:46:34.56
It was the road that took
Jesus straight to the cross
00:46:34.76\00:46:38.07
where He would die
because He loved Bartimaeus...
00:46:38.38\00:46:42.37
because He loved us. Amen?
00:46:42.57\00:46:46.05
And Bartimaeus... he
followed Jesus down that road.
00:46:46.45\00:46:49.57
Faith is always personal
but it is never private.
00:46:49.77\00:46:53.28
And friend, all of us
have things in our lives
00:46:53.48\00:46:55.55
that try and make
us not call on Jesus.
00:46:55.76\00:46:58.34
To stay with what's comfortable
and don't change and,
00:46:58.54\00:47:01.50
you know, don't follow.
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But friends, there is
something wrong with a person
00:47:02.99\00:47:05.78
who knows the right thing
to do and they still want time
00:47:05.99\00:47:09.08
to think about it. Following
Jesus hasn't gotten any easier
00:47:09.28\00:47:12.56
over time. There are still
people today that will make it
00:47:12.76\00:47:15.79
hard for you. It's
hard to follow Jesus
00:47:15.90\00:47:18.21
but friends, follow Him anyway.
00:47:18.41\00:47:20.57
Follow Him as Bartimaeus
did and you will be blessed.
00:47:20.77\00:47:24.10
If Bartimaeus had sat by
the roadside and not called out
00:47:24.23\00:47:27.59
and done nothing, no
one would have blamed him
00:47:27.69\00:47:30.12
but no one would have
remembered him either.
00:47:30.32\00:47:32.64
In closing I would like
for you to notice this quote:
00:47:32.84\00:47:35.46
How many? All...
00:47:55.88\00:47:58.43
Friends, the heart of our
message today is simply this:
00:48:12.93\00:48:16.05
a blind man by a dirt road
00:48:16.35\00:48:20.41
hears that Jesus is passing by.
00:48:20.61\00:48:22.92
He calls out to Jesus.
Jesus stops and calls him.
00:48:22.95\00:48:27.05
And Bartimaeus...
he rose, risked all,
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and followed Jesus.
The question is: will you?
00:48:31.58\00:48:34.83
Will we follow Jesus as well?
00:48:35.13\00:48:37.23
Friends, if you have listened
to the Word of God today
00:48:37.43\00:48:40.12
and you feel impressed that
you want to follow Jesus as well
00:48:40.32\00:48:43.97
would you stand with
me as we close in prayer?
00:48:44.07\00:48:46.31
You want to say:
"Lord, I want to follow Jesus
00:48:46.41\00:48:48.80
as Bartimaeus did wherever
that road may take me. "
00:48:49.00\00:48:52.13
Would you stand
with me as we pray?
00:48:52.33\00:48:54.06
Let's pray.
00:48:59.87\00:49:01.29
Our loving Father in
heaven, we thank you, Lord,
00:49:01.59\00:49:03.70
for the story of Bartimaeus...
00:49:03.90\00:49:05.44
a blind man who came
to Jesus and left seeing.
00:49:05.64\00:49:08.95
And Lord, in his story
we have found ourselves.
00:49:09.15\00:49:12.25
Like him we
choose to follow Jesus.
00:49:12.45\00:49:15.12
We know that it's not
easy to follow, but today
00:49:15.32\00:49:17.67
we want to follow. Please
give us grace to follow You
00:49:17.87\00:49:21.21
wherever the road may take us.
00:49:21.41\00:49:23.03
And we thank you,
Lord, for hearing our prayer.
00:49:23.23\00:49:25.46
We believe You are coming soon.
00:49:25.66\00:49:27.17
Bless us now in
Jesus' name, Amen.
00:49:27.37\00:49:30.28