Indomitable Faith
Mark 2026 • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Transcript
And they came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me.
And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me. And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee.
And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus. And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight.
And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.
Introduction
Introduction
What does it take for you to stop calling out for help from God? Does your faith carry you until you obtain your object? This passage shows us the faith of a man who would not be stopped from getting to Jesus and being healed by Him.
Mark was likely the first Gospel written. Under the inspiration of God, he writes with an intent to point his readers toward the Cross and the Empty Tomb. Those who read are faced with a question: who is this Jesus? All of the miracles of Jesus point to the answer that He is God Himself come as the Suffering Sacrifice for the sins of the world.
As we grow in our walk with God this year, we want to be Following in the Life of Faith. The Life of Faith begins with salvation through the Gospel and carries on toward the daily life of service to Jesus. Mark gives us the message of Jesus to all people.
Now after that John was put in prison, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.
Will you look to Jesus for your salvation today? Will you live as a faithful disciple of Him? Will you look with eagerness to His return to establish His earthly kingdom? Let’s Follow in the Life of Faith this year and see God do something amazing!
Blindness is a terrible malady in a person’s life. We rely so much on our eyes that when we have trouble seeing, it affects our actions and our attitudes. Spiritual blindness affects how we trust what God says in His Word.
One of the challenges that I have sometimes is ocular migraines. They are like squiggles on your vision that make it hard to see. The doctors say that no one knows what causes them. The only thing they had to say to me was that I shouldn’t drive when I get one. The condition is a result not of something in the eye but something that is affecting the nerve that runs from the eye to the brain. It makes it hard to see when I get them.
How much more for a man to not be able to see at all! Only God can bring sight to the blind. Only God could solve the condition that this man had in his life.
We all have things that we are praying for. We want to see God do something for ourselves or for someone else. We long to hear of the amazing things that God has done in answer to prayer. Yet, we give up praying when we ought to continue to live by faith.
Butler says it this way,
Sermon Starters, Volume 1 Fifth—Pray Persistently
Our lack of persistence in praying often exposes our lack of sincerity in praying.
Are you sincere about seeing God do something in answer to your prayers? Do you believe that God will show mercy? We see here a man that could not be stopped in his calls to Jesus for help!
Declaration
Declaration
Bartimaeus would not be discouraged from believing God. He kept calling out until God responded. Today, we need faith that cannot be shaken as we bring concerns to God and follow Him.
This faith had four manifestations in these verses.
1. Faith Begins with Facts
1. Faith Begins with Facts
And they came to Jericho: and as he went out of Jericho with his disciples and a great number of people, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the highway side begging. And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out, and say, Jesus, thou Son of David, have mercy on me.
The first example of this faith is seen in how Bartimaeus reacts to the arrival of Jesus in his area. Jesus, His disciples, and a great crowd are in the highway near Jericho. Bartimaeus’ faith begins with facts. Our faith is not in what we think or hope but it what the Bible says!
Jesus has been traveling and healing for over three years now. His reputation has been spreading throughout the entire area. Along the way, there have been many signs that this is the coming of the kingdom. Isaiah prophesied,
Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be strong, fear not: Behold, your God will come with vengeance, Even God with a recompence; He will come and save you. Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, And the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, And the tongue of the dumb sing: For in the wilderness shall waters break out, And streams in the desert.
This is the Word of God. He promised that there would come one who would give sight to the blind. Bartimaeus is not just trusting here in conjecture but in the fact of what the Bible says. When we fail to believe the Bible, we miss the security that God has provided for us in His Word.
Thy word is true from the beginning: And every one of thy righteous judgments endureth for ever.
With this knowledge, we can better understand what occurs in verses 46-47. Jesus and those with Him are traveling up to Jerusalem for the feast of the Passover. This was the greatest feast of the Jewish calendar as it reminded them of the Exodus from Egypt. It pictured the coming Lamb who would die and put His blood over the people.
As they are traveling along, word arrives to Bartimaeus that Jesus is coming. He must have heard of Jesus and known who He claimed to be. Bartimaeus is begging for someone to give him money to live, the only occupation that he could have with his condition. Now, he decides to ask for help from the only One who could change his life.
Jesus is the One who can do the impossible in your situation as well. We have seen throughout the book of Mark that Jesus is come to make all things new. He is restoring what was fallen to how it was at the beginning before the effect of man’s sin. Bartimaeus hears that Jesus is available and he calls out to Him.
The address that he used identified Jesus as the coming King. He cries “thou son of David, have mercy on me.” David’s descendent was the Messiah to come.
And when thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever. I will be his father, and he shall be my son. If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men: But my mercy shall not depart away from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee. And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: thy throne shall be established for ever. According to all these words, and according to all this vision, so did Nathan speak unto David.
He heard that it was "Jesus of Nazareth" but he cried "Jesus, thou Son of David". Bartimaeus began with the facts of what he knew about Jesus and he chose to believe Him. In verse 47, he calls out for mercy.
Have mercy upon me, O Lord; for I am weak: O Lord, heal me; for my bones are vexed.
Brother, do you begin with the facts of who God is, what He has done and what He has promised and then believe Him? We cannot obtain mercy from our efforts. We cannot obtain mercy from other’s generosity. We need mercy and only He can give it. The Christian life is a life of fellowship and growth with Him alone. We need the patience of God about our sin. We need the help of God in our challenges as a result of our sin. We need Him. And all we can do is start with from the Bible and believe Him. So Bartimaeus cries for mercy. So should we. Butler reminds us,
Sermon Starters, Volume 2 Fourth—The Lowliness in the Cry
When we appeal to God on the basis of merit, we will not get much. We must come to Him on the basis of mercy.
2. Faith Supports Consistency
2. Faith Supports Consistency
And many charged him that he should hold his peace: but he cried the more a great deal, Thou Son of David, have mercy on me. And Jesus stood still, and commanded him to be called. And they call the blind man, saying unto him, Be of good comfort, rise; he calleth thee.
Bartimaeus calls out to Jesus. He has heard of what Jesus has done and he has chosen to believe these facts. But, when we need something from God, faith supports consistency.
We live in a world with challenges to our faith. We are distracted and discouraged by people and objects. There are so many other ways that we are told we can find peace and help. What we do in the moments of discouragement and challenge gives others the measure of our faith. God brings us each day tests and trials for our faith. What we do in each event will either be a testament to carrying the cross or trusting ourselves.
Bartimaeus is crying out loudly to Jesus. Imagine the many people talking and walking along. There are the sounds of the city and the sounds of the pilgrims going up to the city. Some people tell him to be quiet and stop his crying. But what does he do when told this? Verse 48 tells us that “he cried the more a great deal.”
There will always be those who are so bitter against God and convinced of God’s apathy that they will tell us to give up!
Think of the story of Job. Job has lost everything. His possessions have been taken. His children have died in a tragic accident at one of their houses. In a second round of trial, his health is gone and he is in great pain. He has nothing seemingly to be thankful for. Everything is setup for a emotional breakdown.
To make things worse, his wife speaks to him to give up on God.
Then said his wife unto him, Dost thou still retain thine integrity? curse God, and die.
What would you do in the midst of this trial? What have you done when you are faced with a hiddenness of God in your life? What about when those around you say to give up?
But he said unto her, Thou speakest as one of the foolish women speaketh. What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? In all this did not Job sin with his lips.
Job chose to believe that God is still in control even when all of his circumstances said the opposite. He would not allow even his wife to convince him to give up on God. What we do when our faith is discouraged tells us how much faith we truly have.
Bartimaeus continues to cry out even louder and more often. He is consistent in asking God for help. In verse 49, we see that the prayers of the blind man stopped Jesus and caught the ear of God Himself. When we are wondering what God is doing, we can be sure that He is doing something to strengthen our faith. Paul says,
Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:
Jesus calls for the man to come to Him. Those around him now tell him to be encouraged that Jesus is calling for him. His faith caused him to continue to call until Jesus answered him. This is the importunity or the consistency of the faith of a believer.
And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves; For a friend of mine in his journey is come to me, and I have nothing to set before him? And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee. I say unto you, Though he will not rise and give him, because he is his friend, yet because of his importunity he will rise and give him as many as he needeth. And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you. For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?
What will it take for you to stop believing God? What will it take for you to give up on His help? Bartimaeus would not stop until Jesus answered him. What faith!
3. Faith Includes Pronouncement
3. Faith Includes Pronouncement
And he, casting away his garment, rose, and came to Jesus. And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight. And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.
The third characteristic of this faith is that it was clear. Faith includes pronouncement. God wants us to pray specifically what we want and need from Him. He knows our needs but God commands us to pray for them in His Word.
Jesus has called for Bartimaeus. His crying has been answered. Bartimaeus gets up, throws off his outer garment which would have been his warmth when he slept, and ran to Jesus. He believed he was never coming back!
Not people or garment could keep him from Jesus. He left it all when he came to the Master. He was ready to ask for what he needed from God. Wiersbe reminds us,
The Bible Exposition Commentary Mark 10:46–52
Desperate people do not permit the crowd to keep them from Jesus (see
Arriving in the presence of Jesus, Bartimaeus changes his title of address. The man addresses Jesus as his teacher or master. Only Mary Magdalene at the garden tomb uses this word otherwise in the Gospels. He makes this encounter with Jesus a personal one. Our personal Saviour wants to hear from our hearts today.
What God wants to hear is that we need and He wants to hear it from His children. Are you a child of God? Those who have placed their faith in Jesus alone for salvation are the only ones who are the children of God.
Many people will say that all of us are the “children of God.” But the truth is that, while God created us, we as the human race have fallen into sin. We are instead sinners, the children of the devil. Jesus teaches this in the book of John.
Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
We must believe in the sacrifice of Jesus for our sin and we will be the children of God. He loves us and He sent His only Son to die for us. Will you cry out for salvation today?
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.
For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:
Bartimaeus comes to Jesus and Jesus asks him a question. What would he want Jesus to do? Jesus knows that the man wants mercy and specifically his sight. But, God wants us to ask Him specifically. James tells us that we do not have because we do not ask. Jesus wants us to be clear and come to Him with our needs.
From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not.
Jesus wants the man to verbalize the specific request that he has in verse 51 and 52. He asks this blind man what He asked the two disciples, James and John before. This man has a better answer. He needs not some of God’s glory but some of God’s grace.
Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.
Jesus hears his request. The man asks for sight. Jesus grants his request and tells him that “thy faith hat made thee whole.” The man is healed and the word “hath made whole” is both a physical and a spiritual healing.
The Lord openeth the eyes of the blind: The Lord raiseth them that are bowed down: The Lord loveth the righteous:
There are times in our life that God will say yes to our prayers. Other times, He will tell us no or to wait. Always, God hears but He wants us to be specific trusting that He alone can provide what we need.
4. Faith Follows Jesus
4. Faith Follows Jesus
And Jesus said unto him, Go thy way; thy faith hath made thee whole. And immediately he received his sight, and followed Jesus in the way.
The faith of Bartimaeus was more than just a saving faith or a healing faith. He knew that Jesus was the One who would come and he wanted to be with Him in the way. For Bartimaeus, his faith was a living faith because faith follows Jesus.
In verse 52, Jesus commands Bartimaeus to “Go thy way.” There is freedom from blindness and freedom for living. Jesus has released him from what bound him to begging on the side of the road.
What does he do in response to the command of Jesus? The end of the verse tells us. He chose his way to be behind Jesus. He could have gone anywhere but he “followed Jesus in the way.”
If you have faith in Jesus, you will be following Him! What are you doing with your faith? Where are you living in your spiritually healed condition? Jesus is going forward, follow Him!
Conclusion
Conclusion
Bartimaeus would not be discouraged from believing God. He kept calling out until God responded. Today, we need faith that cannot be shaken as we bring concerns to God and follow Him.
Faith is challenged by God to see what faith we have. How are we doing with our faith today? I can pray for something once. I can pray for something twice. I can pray and hope for God to do something. But I show my faith when nothing can stop me from calling out and believing God.
It has been said that “the measure of a man is what it takes to stop him.” What is stopping you from believing God? The faith of Bartimaeus was based on the fact that God is a promise keeping God. He was sure that Jesus would hear and he did not stop when discouraged. Bartimaeus was clear about what he needed from Jesus. And, when Jesus answered, he chose to faithfully follow Jesus.
This is the character of a person changed by the Saviour. Is this your character today? Will you believe God? Will you have the faith? Will you be faithful?
Each of us have a choice and others will see what our choice is in the trials of our faith. What will they see in your life? God is listening, cry out to Him!
Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much. Elias was a man subject to like passions as we are, and he prayed earnestly that it might not rain: and it rained not on the earth by the space of three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth brought forth her fruit.
May our faith be indomitable today! God wants our faith to grow. Let’s grow each day as we pray for help from Him!
