Allen Jackson - Unfamiliar Paths - Part 2
And Mark chapter 10, Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem. The last city he’ll pass through, the significant city is Jericho. It’s one of the oldest oases in the world, one of the oldest inhabited locations on the planet. It’s a miserable hot place at the north end of the Dead Sea. And Jesus is moving through there on his way to Jerusalem, and there’s a man there who’s a beggar, he’s blind. You know the story, many of you. His name is Bartimaeus. He’s the son of Timaeus. And when he hears that Jesus is coming through town, he starts to scream, «Have mercy on me».
Now, I don’t know how he knew about Jesus. I don’t know if this is nearing the end of Jesus’s ministry. I don’t know if his reputation had grown to the point that he’d heard stories of blind people being healed. I don’t know. There’s enough drama around it that Zachaeus in Jericho climbs the tree 'cause he wants to see Jesus. So, perhaps the reputation is driving this, but when this blind beggar hears that Jesus is coming through town, he decides to be a nuisance. That’s where we step in. «Many rebuked him and told him to be quiet, but he shouted all the more, Son of David, have mercy on me»! The more they tried to shut him up, the louder he got. «And Jesus stopped and said, 'Call him.' So, they called to the blind man, 'Cheer up! On your feet! He’s calling you.' Throwing his cloak aside, he jumped to his feet and he came to Jesus». And Jesus asked him this question, «What do you want me to do for you»?
Now, when you’re reading this, you think, «Well, that’s obvious, » but it isn’t so obvious. I mean, he has the attention of Jesus. «What would you like me to do for you»? I can’t imagine the battle that rages in him. I suspect all of heaven grew a bit still. What will he say? I promise you there was a great battle in his mind and his thoughts. You can’t ask for that. «'Lord, I want to see, ' he said, 'I wanna see.'» He’s been screaming. I suspect he said it with some authority. «I would like to see, sir».
You know what Jesus said next? «Your faith has healed you». And the man could see. You think he was loud before? Whoo-hoo! Game on. Walking around looking at the crowd, «Oh, you don’t look like your voice. You had a young thin voice. You had such a beautiful voice». Well, most of us don’t look like our voices. I want to see. There were many rebukes. There was no meaningful support. There was no support group. They didn’t pry open a hole in the roof and let him down in front of Jesus. They’re trying to shut him down. Jesus initiated the interaction. He said, «Call him, I want to talk to that man». «What is it you want with me»? «Lord, I want to see».
I’ve been praying that lately, «Lord, I wanna see. I want understanding. I would like insight». I’m not content to say I know all the important things. I’ve learned all the things that are really necessary. Lord, I wanna walk unfamiliar paths. I need you to open my eyes. In Luke 24, this is a part of our reading portion. This is after the Resurrection. After the Resurrection, there’s a great debate amongst the disciples. The women go to the tomb and the tomb is empty, and they come back with some story about having seen angels, and the men go look and the tomb is empty, but they don’t see any angels and they don’t believe the women. Gee, that’s never happened since. And now these two men are traveling to a city that’s seven miles beyond Jerusalem and a man joins them and talks to them and they said, you know, «Haven’t you heard what’s happened in Jerusalem? We thought everybody had heard. We had hoped».
They said, «We had hoped that this man Jesus was the Messiah, but the Romans killed him. We had hope, but the Romans killed our hope. And it’s been three days and we’ve left town». And we step into that story. Says, «When he was at the table with them, he took bread, » he is Jesus, «and he gave thanks, he broke it and began to give it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight». To understand that passage, we have to think about something more than the physical dimension because that’s not just about physical eyesight or awareness of Jesus. It’s not their physical eyesight which is limited.
They’re walking along a road, they recognized a stranger, they joined him, they’ve been having a dialogue, their minds are working, but the grief is great, the despair is great. They have limited understanding and awareness. Great enough to… the despair is enough that it’s limited their perception. And it just says in that 31st verse that, «Their eyes were opened and they recognized Jesus». It wasn’t like, you know, he moved his jacket and they saw his name tag. They knew enough about it and they’ve recited his story. It’s there in the Gospel account. It’s not unrealistic to think they had heard him minister or certainly knew about him, but they don’t see, they lack the awareness.
So, I have a question, what limits our perception? What do you imagine could keep us from seeing and understanding what God is doing? There’s a whole list of things. We can come back and talk about spiritual blindness, but not in this session. In John chapter 3, Jesus is having a discussion with Nicodemus. It’s the born again passage. Most of you know that part. But Nicodemus is a religious leader. He’s a leader of the Jews, but he comes to Jesus at night. He doesn’t want to have the encounter in the daytime. He very much wants to be certain that the conversation remains private. And Jesus says to him, «I tell you the truth, » and you know by now when you see that little phrase, a truth bomb is about to drop. «I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he’s born again».
Now, the word «see» there I suppose could have more than one definition. I suppose you could extrapolate a bit that to see means to enter. You can’t see the kingdom, you can’t enter, but he didn’t say enter. He said see. You can’t see the kingdom of God. Another way of understanding that, perhaps a more literal way is you can’t have awareness of the kingdom of God until you’re born again. It remains opaque to you. It takes a step of faith. «Nicodemus, you know much scripture. You’re an expert in the rules. You even have the heart of a searcher, you’ve come to see me». Said, «No one could do the things you’re doing unless God were with him».
I mean, Jesus chides him. It’s a little bit of an awkward conversation. «How can you be a leader of my people and not understand this?» he said. But he gives us this key about insight. He said, «Until you’re born again, there are things that remain invisible to you». You see, if spiritual things are completely invisible to you, I would encourage you to begin by being certain that you’ve taken that step with Jesus as Lord of your life. I don’t mean a prayer someplace in the distant past. I mean, are you living as if Jesus is Lord of your life? I’m not suggesting you lost anything. I’m suggesting there should be fruit from it. And if we can’t see, I think the place we want to begin is by establishing our participation in the kingdom.
So, I brought you another prayer. It’s a version of one I’ve been praying myself for quite a bit now. Quite a season. It’s really an acknowledgement that I wanna see. I wanna see more than I’ve been able to. Not because I’m nosy, not because I wanna rebuke God. I don’t want to stumble around in the dark. I don’t want to have to fumble. I don’t wanna have to navigate by painful interruptions of things that I don’t see. How do we… I want to engage with as much awareness as the Lord will give to me. Don’t you? Are you asking the Lord for that?
See, I find we have this passive component to our faith. «Well, I’m open for whatever God has for me». That’s not what the Bible says. The Bible says that, «God is the rewarder of those who diligently seek him, » that if we hunger and thirst after righteousness, we’ll be filled. He didn’t say we’ll be filled if we’re just open. We’ve had this passing, «Well, you know, God will do whatever. Just God, whatever your will is».
And we think we’re being so pious. «I don’t wanna be presumptive, so I’m just open to the will of God». How about presume to read your Bible until you can understand enough of God’s will to pray in accordance with scripture. «Well, pastor, I’ve been born again and I’ve been baptized. What are you»? I’m inviting you to serve the Lord. Angels, demons, and you. I brought you a prayer. Let’s read this one together. We’re not done yet. Don’t run for the exits. «Almighty God, We want to see! Open our hearts to see! Grant us wisdom and insight that we might serve You. Deliver us from confusion, deception, and darkness. We choose to turn our attention to You and away from this present world order. Holy Spirit, direct our attention and grant us understanding in Jesus' name, amen».
So, that first direction is I wanna see. I wanna add one more to it. Help my unbelief, and particularly in the context of spiritual power, folks. We’re not gonna outthink evil or outwork evil or out-organize evil. We need a power greater than ourselves. And the good news is it’s available to us, but we don’t control it. It requires us to be submitted to an authority greater than ourselves. If we’re sitting on the throne of our lives, ruling from a carnal position, we should not imagine the power of God will be made evident through our lives. We have to submit to the Lordship of Jesus. We have to put to death our old Adamic, carnal nature, that «I think, I want, I feel, » and decide we will serve the Lord.
In Mark chapter 9, there’s a father that brings his son to Jesus and the disciples are ineffective. And Jesus is a bit frustrated with them, and he turns to the Father and he’s asking for the symptomology, and he said, «Well, there’s something, there’s a spirit that throws him into the fire or into the water, it would destroy him. It happens frequently. It’s happened since he was a child». «Jesus asked the Father, 'How long has he been like this? ' 'From childhood. It’s often thrown him into a fire or water to kill him.'»
Do you understand the purpose of Satan is to kill you. He’s not content just to tempt you. He intends to destroy you. When you entertain him, when you cooperate with him, when you give him a place, his objective is destruction. «'But if you can do anything, take pity on us and help us.' And Jesus said, 'If you can? '» There’s a bit of incredulity in Jesus. «If I can? I speak to the wind and the waves. Is this the first meeting you’ve been to? Have you not seen? If I can»? I don’t know if that’s the tone in which Jesus said it or not, to be honest, there’s many ways it could be understood, but when I read it, it’s the way I hear it. «And Jesus said, 'Everything is possible for him who believes.'»
And the boy’s father responded with the cry of a father’s heart. He said, «Oh, I believe. If you can help my son, I believe. You tell, I believe it. If you can help my boy, I believe». And then his brain overrode his emotions. And he said, «You better help my unbelief. Oh, if you could help my boy, I believe, but help my unbelief». So, I think we need to have enough humility to pray that prayer, «Lord help my unbelief». Folks, we’ve had such little, we’re like Peter. Are we really that dull? Yeah, we have been. Do you still not understand Jesus would say to the disciples? You know, on two occasions he fed thousands of people with a happy meal. I mean, in essence. And he’s climbing into the boat with the disciples one day and he said, «Beware the yeast of the Pharisees, » and they start having an argument. «He’s mad at us 'cause we don’t have enough bread».
And Jesus just shakes his head and he says, «Do you still not understand»? And the answer is no, they really don’t. And I feel like I fit right in with them. So oftentimes I go, «Lord, I feel like I’m in the slow group. I want to understand. Help my unbelief». Look at John 5, and verse 28. Jesus, «Don’t be amazed at this, there’s a time coming when all who are in their graves will hear his voice and they’ll come out, those who have done good will rise to live, and those who have done evil will rise to be condemned».
It’s fashionable right now to try to diminish judgment, that God would never condemn anyone. Folks, the scripture is very clear he will, but the passage is a statement about the power of God, a power greater than death and decay. There’s a day coming when God will raise those who have died. He’ll bring life to our physical bodies. Do you know God has that kind of power? Do you live like it? «Well, what do you mean»? I mean, how do… I’m not sure. We haven’t really spent much time thinking about it. I’m not asking you to be weird. Weird does not make you spiritual. There’s much we don’t understand. A good scientist will readily tell you there’s much they don’t understand. That’s why they continue to posit a hypothesis and do the test and try to learn and observe and understand more fully.
Surely as Christ followers, we could have the same humility of a learning community. We’d like to learn and grow. We will seek, we’ll do studies, we’ll engage in careful enough behaviors that we could call it research. «Holy Spirit, teach me, open my eyes». We act as if belief is something mystical like fairy dust, that somebody’s gonna sprinkle on us and we’ve gone from being an unbeliever to a believer. In my life, it’s emerged when I’ve been willing to trust the Lord and obey the truth that I know and stand in an uncomfortable place and go, «I don’t know exactly how this is gonna turn out, but I believe God will meet me here». «Help my unbelief. Oh, I wanna believe. I’ll spend more time with your Word, I’ll spend more time with people that encourage me to believe. I wanna see».
We have minimized spiritual power and authority. We’ve acted as if another study would fix it. Most of us are educated way beyond our level of obedience. We ignore warnings regarding disruptive spiritual things. He said, «Well, I don’t, you know, I don’t know. I’m not sure I believe that. I wish my lack of belief would eliminate the devil».
Look at Matthew 26. I know we gotta go. This is Jesus in Gethsemane. He’s being arrested. The disciples aren’t really sure what to do. Peter draws a sword, some are ready to run. It’s a very confusing time. They’re not prepared for this, and I understand that. If Jesus can speak to the wind and the waves and raise the dead, and they’ve seen him walk through angry mobs that wanted to kill him, they’re totally unprepared for a group of soldiers that could lay hands on him. They have had no experience like this, and they’re having a hard time processing it. Jesus has told them some things are gonna happen, but they can’t believe it. It’s beyond the realm of possibility.
Do you understand that God will put us on a path that is beyond the realm of what we can imagine? You know, we think of that in terms of blessings, that God would give more to you than you could ever imagine he would give, and gratefully, he often does that, but he also puts us on paths where we walk through things that are more difficult than we thought they could be. When the challenges are so real and the battle is so in the open and we’re like, «I don’t know». I mean, well the disciples are in that place. They’ve come to arrest Jesus, they’ve done it at night in a private place. They’re afraid of the crowds. The disciples understand Judas is betraying him. It feels, I mean, how can this be? Jesus looks at him and says, «Do you think I cannot call on my Father, and he will at once put at my disposal more than twelve legions of angels? But how would the Scriptures be fulfilled? It has to happen like this. They’re not taking me away because I don’t have options. I need to go with them, fellas». «Why would you need to do that»?
See, I want to leap from victory to victory, triumphant point to triumphant point. I don’t ever want to be anxious. I don’t want to ever have a need. I don’t ever want to be faced with a challenge. I don’t. I want one unbroken crescendo of «Yea, God, » don’t you? That’s what faith is. No, that’s really not what the Bible describes. We have these amazing breakthroughs, remarkable breakthroughs, but we also walk through shadowed valleys. We better learn how to walk through them. «I can call legions of angels, » Jesus said, «these clowns with swords from the temple guard, but I need to go with them».
There’s something more powerful than soldiers that’s available. There’s something more powerful than political forces that is available. There’s something more powerful than the kingdom of darkness that’s orchestrating this arrest. We need to look at our world and understand there are forces at work beyond the ones the secular culture sees. If the church does not embrace the truth with greater courage and greater boldness and greater speed than our political leaders are, we will forfeit the freedoms that are gained. It requires us to be salt and light. We have received the mercy, we had better choose the truth.
One more passage, Acts 12. This is Peter. He’s been arrested, «The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers». Wouldn’t that be fun? «Bound with two chains, sentries stood guard at the entrance». This is the same Peter that cut off the guy’s ear in Gethsemane. «I can call legions of angels, » Jesus said, but he’s been in prison for days. «And suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. 'Quick, get up! ' he said, and the chains fell off Peter’s wrist. And the angel said to him, 'Put on your clothes and sandals.' And Peter did so. 'Wrap your cloak around you and follow me, ' the angel told him. Peter followed him out of the prison, but he had no idea what the angel was really happening».
He thought he was seeing a vision. «They passed the first and second guards, and they came to the iron gate leading to the city. It opened for them by itself, they went through it. When they’d walked the length of the street, suddenly the angel left him». The backstory matters and the verses immediately preceding this. James, one of the disciples, one of the apostles has been arrested and beheaded. And it caused, the poll numbers went up for Herod. When he beheaded James, his approval rating went up, so he arrested Peter.
«Let’s see if we can maintain the trend». But it’s a holiday, so he said, «Well, let’s not behead him in the midst of a holiday, » and Peter sits in prison. His fate is predetermined. He is going to lose his life. And he’s asleep in the prison chained between two guards. And it says, «An angel of the Lord appeared and struck Peter on the side». That makes me smile. The angels struck him, he didn’t shake him awake. He didn’t say, «Pete»! He kicked him. Sometimes God intervenes and spares our life and says, «I’ve got a different plan this time».
Angels, demons, and you, what do we know about spiritual forces and spiritual power? Are we willing to learn? Are we willing to grow? I want to. We’re gonna put some of these things into practice. We’re gonna pray together a bit more. I brought you one last prayer, that’s three. Why don’t you stand with me for this one? There’s an urgency in0 me for the church. I don’t just mean our congregation, but for the church. We have to have a new kind of awareness. We have compromised with darkness for too long. We’ve looked the other way, we’ve pretended like it didn’t matter, we’ve been whatever, I don’t know. There’s a… doesn’t matter to me really. I just wanna begin to say to the Lord, «Lord, I wanna see. I want to see. Help my unbelief». Let’s pray this prayer together:
Heavenly Father, I have tolerated the intrusion of evil for too long. Forgive me for my lack of awareness. I choose to seek You daily, to read Your word, to gather with Your people, and to walk in obedience. Now grant me an understanding heart, give me a hunger for Your kingdom, and a desire for truth. Holy Spirit, help my unbelief, in Jesus' name, amen.