Untitled Sermon (16)

Luke 18:35 ESV

As he drew near to Jericho, a blind man was sitting by the roadside begging.

Luke 18:36 ESV

And hearing a crowd going by, he inquired what this meant.

Luke 18:37 ESV

They told him, “Jesus of Nazareth is passing by.”

Luke 18:47

Luke 18:38 ESV

And he cried out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Luke 18:39 ESV

And those who were in front rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Luke 18:40 ESV

And Jesus stopped and commanded him to be brought to him. And when he came near, he asked him,

Luke 18:41 ESV

“What do you want me to do for you?” He said, “Lord, let me recover my sight.”

Luke 18:36 ESV

And hearing a crowd going by, he inquired what this meant.

Luke 18:42 ESV

And Jesus said to him, “Recover your sight; your faith has made you well.”

Luke 18:43 ESV

And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.

WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO DO FOR YOU?

AS A BOY I LOVED GOING TO THE STORE WITH MY FATHER BECAUSE HE WOULD ALWAYS ASK ME THIS QUESTION: WHAT DO YOU WANT?

· JOSIAH – “CAN I GET WHAT I WANT?”

· WHY – WHEN MY DAD ASKED WHAT DO YOU WANT THAT MEANT THAT I COULD GET ANYTHING (ALMOST ANYTHING THAT HE APPROVED OF)

I. RECOGNIZE WHO HE IS

John 9:39

John 9:39 ESV

Jesus said, “For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.”

· King David was the greatest king in the Old Testament and the Lord told David that there would be one who would sit on his throne whose kingdom would have no end

John 9:40 ESV

Some of the Pharisees near him heard these things, and said to him, “Are we also blind?”

o A king has all authority…he was recognizing Jesus as such

· IF JESUS IS TO ASK YOU THIS QUESTION

John 9:41 ESV

Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, ‘We see,’ your guilt remains.

o Here is this thing: you can’t treat him like a nobody or insignificant and expect His to ask you this question.

o Jesus can’t be you magic genie – calling on him only when you have a need – HE MUST BE ACKNOLEDGED BY YOU AS YOUR KING, SAVIOR AND LORD

II. RECOGNIZE YOUR NEED

· It was not the man’s need

· It was not even the man calling out to him the first time

· It was his passionate hunger for the Lord

o When people tried to shut him up – He cried out all the more Son of David…Son of David –

o HE WOULD NOT BE STOPPED: HE HAD A NEED AND THE KING WAS PRESENT!

· JESUS STOPPED WHEN THE MAN SAID – HAVE MERCY ON ME!

o Asking for mercy means that you have no other options

o It means you cannot do what you know needs to be done because you have found that you are weak and powerless to change your situation

Here is the interesting thing: Jesus knew that the man was blind and ultimately knew that this is what the man wanted. But he asked the question because He wanted the man to acknowledge his limitation – his need.

DO YOU KNOW THAT TRYING TO BE STRONG CAN BE THE WEAKEST THING YOU DO?

REJOICE IN HIS POWER