0120 WHAT DO YOU REALLY WANT?

WHAT DO YOU REALLY WANT?

In this chapter, there are many important events and teachings. Jesus gives this amazing teaching on people hired to work in a vineyard. Some work a partial day and others work a full day. But everyone was paid the same (for a full day). Some became offended by the master’s generosity. The mother of James and John comes to Jesus asking him to let her sons sit at his right and left hand in his kingdom. He says it is not his to determine such things. Then Jesus heals two blind men. And as our Lord does so, he asks a very significant question that would be easy to skip over.

Let’s set up the context (verses 29-34) “And as they went out of Jericho, a great crowd followed him.” And behold, there were two blind men sitting by the roadside, and when they heard that Jesus was passing by, they cried out, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!” They called him the son of David, which is a valid title telling of the authority of Jesus. They do not call out demanding anything, but they ask for him to have mercy on them. This is the central prayer for any of us, when we don’t know what else to pray: “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on us.”

This prayer is a central part of Orthodox Christian worship. I read a famous book that called it the pilgrim’s prayer. You say, “Lord, have mercy” as a constant part of the mental backdrop or silent soundtrack of our lives. We invite him to have mercy on our enemies, on ourselves, in every circumstance. So these men start a solid tradition of prayer for the world.

“The crowd rebuked them, telling them to be silent, but they cried out all the more, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!” They could not easily cut their way through the crowd to find Jesus, but they could get his eventual attention if they continued to make a loud noise. Sure enough, in spite of the rebukes from the others in the crowd, they get the attention of Jesus.

“And stopping, Jesus called them and said, “What do you want me to do for you?” This is the central question I want us to focus on today. 

You might say, “Duh! We’re BLIND! What do you THINK we want you to do for us?” But Jesus wants them to say specifically what it is that they seek from him.

But if we were asked that same question, we might not be quite as quick in our reply. What do I really want? More specifically, what do I want Jesus to do? 

It might seem obvious to all of us that the men wanted to see. But did they perceive that as being their greatest need, or immediate request? Sometimes a person has an unclean spirit. Sometimes he wants to know what good thing he can do to inherit eternal life. Sometimes he hasn’t thought clearly enough about it to know exactly what he is seeking. I want forgiveness. I want freedom. I want you to tell me I am loved. I want you to let me know the truth and have it set me free.

I have a few dad jokes always at the ready, just in case someone words a question just the right way. Bear with me a moment.

At the drive-thru fast food joint, if the person asks me, “What do you want?” I will answer, “World peace. . . . But if I can’t have that, I’ll have something from your menu.” If they ask, “What can I do for you?” Then I will answer, “You can sell me food from your menu here.” If I go to a restaurant, and the host asks, “How many of you are there?” I will answer, “Let’s see, there’s one of me, and (turning to the others) one of you, yes, and one of you?” Then I turn to them and say, “There’s one of each of us.” If they say, “Is there anyone else?” Then I will say something like, “Yes. About eight billion. But they aren’t eating with us right now.” They have to be careful about how they word a question when I am in Dad Joke Mode.

Okay. Back to the question. Jesus says, “What do you want me to do for you?”

They said to him, “Lord, let our eyes be opened.” And Jesus in pity touched their eyes, and immediately they recovered their sight and followed him.”

I heard of a weekend retreat recently, in which one question is asked over and over to help each participant get to the center of their need. The question is: What do you really want? 

WHAT do you really want? What is it, exactly?

What DO you really want? Let me think about it again. Is that what it is?

What do YOU really want? Not what I think other people want me to want.

What do you REALLY want? This is not just a practical exercise. If I could truly have what I seek, what would it be?

What do you really WANT? Not just wistful, wishful thinking. My genuine desire.

By the end of the retreat, most people have found that their true center is quite different from what they started pursuing at the beginning of the weekend.

Jesus asks you and me today: “What do you want me to do for you?” 

How will you and I answer?