What do you want me to do for you?

If Jesus came to you and asked you, “what do you want me to do for you?” what would be your request?  What would you ask for or desire from the Lord?  Would it be for yourself, for other people or ministries?  It is a question that reveals the needs we perceive as well as the motivation of our heart when we express our request.  In Mark 10 this question is asked by Jesus on two occasions.  The first involved two disciples, James and John.

Mar 10:35  And James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came up to him and said to him, "Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you."

Mar 10:36  And he said to them, "What do you want me to do for you?"

Mar 10:37  And they said to him, "Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory."

Mar 10:38  Jesus said to them, "You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?"

Mar 10:39  And they said to him, "We are able." And Jesus said to them, "The cup that I drink you will drink, and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized,

Mar 10:40  but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared."

The two disciples were in what is referred to as the “inner circle” of the twelve disciples.  They possibly had a closer relationship with Jesus than the other disciples and were participants in some ministry that the others were not a part of. It seems that they thought they had a special in with Jesus and could ask him for something that would distinguish them from the other disciples.  Their petition was presented with somewhat of a demand, expectation or entitlement that Jesus should do something for them without even considering whether it was good or bad.  They were asking Jesus for a blank check signed by him.  There was a presumption on their part that their position or relationship with him would give them access and receive whatever they asked of him.  So their approach to Jesus seems to be filled with pride and there is not much humility in the way they presented their request. It was also presented as being something very selfish. “We want you to do for us…”  Did they think Jesus owed them something or that they deserved to have whatever they would ask of him?  Jesus did not rebuke them for asking, he gave them the time to make their request rather than chastise them for their attitude and approach to him. Jesus had much more patience that I would have had with a request like this.

Their request was very selfish and reflected their desire to be recognized as someone very important, powerful and worthy of honor and being honored by the other disciples and everyone else. To be seated at the right and left side of a person of honor was a special honor.  They were not asking for something trivial, it really was a big request. 

Jesus responded by stating that what they were asking for had a price they would have to pay to be even considered for this position of prestige, power, authority and privilege.  We use the expression “right hand man” to indicate someone who is very important and useful to us. 

Jesus questioned them asking if they were able to pay the price of drinking from the same cup he would drink and be baptized with the same baptism.  The cup was a reference to the cup of suffering that he would take and the baptism was the baptism of fire, another reference to the extreme suffering he would face.  Jesus had just informed them for the third time what he was going to face in Jerusalem.

Mark 10.32 They were on their way up to Jerusalem, with Jesus leading the way, and the disciples were astonished, while those who followed were afraid. Again he took the Twelve aside and told them what was going to happen to him. 33 “We are going up to Jerusalem,” he said, “and the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death and will hand him over to the Gentiles, 34 who will mock him and spit on him, flog him and kill him. Three days later he will rise.”

I am not sure if they had this in mind when they gave their reply. They were confident that they could do both of them.  Jesus only confirmed that they would be experiencing both of these but he did not predict how they would respond. 

Jesus turned down the request because it was not in his power to give them this position.  His father would make that decision. Only the Father could determine who would meet his qualifications to be in these positions.

There are several things we can learn from the request of James and John.  Matthew claimed that it was the mother of them that made the request while Mark claims it was not the mom but the two men who made the request.  James and John were the authors of it no matter who presented it.

Wrong Motivation.

We at times are not any different from them as we often bring our request to the Lord with wrong attitudes and selfish desires.  We like recognition, power and authority.  It makes us feel important. Requests like this will not be given as they will do more damage than good.  I think at times God is being merciful to us by not giving us what we ask for.

 James the brother of Jesus made it clear that we do not receive what we ask for because our motivations are not correct.

James 4.3 When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.

James and John were known as the “Sons of Thunder” .  You have to wonder what they would have done given this power.

Proximity does not give privilege.  James and John had been walking with Jesus for some time and they were close to him.  We can get messed up with this idea and we see it happen in relationships especially with people who have influence or power because of their position.  We think that because we know someone or are with someone they will do something for us.  Our proximity to them does not merit them doing anything for us.  We basically are trying to milk the relationship to get something out of it that others would not be considered qualified or worthy.  We have expectations that are based on a false idea.  Sometimes it is the proximity of another person we know who is closer to the person that we are that we try to go through them to get something.  We find someone who can get the attention and the ear of the person and use them to get something for us.

Expectation of entitlement will lead to disappointment. James and John appear to have had an entitlement mentality.  For whatever reason thought they were entitled to these positions more than any of the other disciples.  The request was denied and I am sure there was some disappointment and perhaps a feeling of foolishness thinking that they were entitled to receive something this important.  Their request has a negative impact on the relationship with the other disciples when they found out what they had asked of Jesus. An attitude of entitlement keeps many people from living with a healthy work ethic.  People owe them something. Perhaps this was James and John’s thoughts as well. When I was in the military we had a Catholic chaplain who drank and smoked.  He felt he was entitled to do these things because he had taken a vow of celibacy.  Entitlement gets us into trouble in many areas of our life.

There is a price tag we must be willing to pay to receive what we desire. Places of honor, privileges, positions, power all come with a price.  Salvation is God’s gift to us but it cost him dearly.  Few things in life come without a price that we have to be willing to pay.  As missionaries one of our challenges is to learn the language and the culture of the people we minister to.  It takes time, effort, sacrifice and dedication to get to the point where we can communicate at a level of understanding.  We have the example of many missionaries who ventured into people groups that were difficult to reach yet they were willing to pay a heavy price to minister to the people. 

 Many never achieve their potential because they are unwilling to pay the price required.  James and John thought they could pay the price but it was much more costly than they really understood.  They saw the glamour and prestige but not the price they would have to pay. Eventually they did experience what it meant to truly follow the Lord and the price that is required.  James was beheaded (Acts 12) and John was sent to the isle of Patmos and was possibly also martyred later in life.

The positions they requested were not in Jesus prerogative to reward.  It was only to be granted by the Father.  Jesus submitted himself to the will of his Father as was reflected in his response to their request.  A lesson for all us when people ask something of us and we are not in a position to grant it. You can’t give what you don’t have.

In spite of their misguided request we do see in both James and John that they understood that Jesus would set up a kingdom and he would reign over it.  They knew in the end he would be victorious even after he had just told them that he was going to die.  They had faith in his mission and wanted to be a part of it.

The second person to make the same request was Bartimaeus, a blind beggar.

Mar 10:46  And they came to Jericho. And as he was leaving Jericho with his disciples and a great crowd, Bartimaeus, a blind beggar, the son of Timaeus, was sitting by the roadside.

Mar 10:47  And when he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth, he began to cry out and say, "Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!"

Mar 10:48  And many rebuked him, telling him to be silent. But he cried out all the more, "Son of David, have mercy on me!"

Mar 10:49  And Jesus stopped and said, "Call him." And they called the blind man, saying to him, "Take heart. Get up; he is calling you."

Mar 10:50  And throwing off his cloak, he sprang up and came to Jesus.

Mar 10:51  And Jesus said to him, "What do you want me to do for you?" And the blind man said to him, "Rabbi, let me recover my sight."

Mar 10:52  And Jesus said to him, "Go your way; your faith has made you well." And immediately he recovered his sight and followed him on the way.

A blind beggar’s life in that day had to be very difficult.  Levitcus 19.14 prohibited putting stumbling blocks in the way of the blind.  Yet this did happen as it was a source of entertainment for sick minded people.  Begging for people with a conscience has to be one of the most humbling acts.  I can’t think of too many other things that will make a person feel like low life than begging.  But for Bartimaeus it perhaps was his only way of staying alive and he was forced to do it.  Regaining his sight would radically change his life.

His petition was granted while the petition of James and John was denied.  Bartimaeus had a real need, his blindness was a hindrance and forced him to live a difficult life.  But I wonder if his true desire was to see Jesus and follow him.  Perhaps his request went way beyond meeting a human need.  There are many things we can learn from him regarding his request.

First, Our requests should be based on a true need and bring glory to God.

 Blindness made life very difficult for him and his request was not considered selfish but a true necessity. It was also a request that had even greater significance in that it enabled him to follow Jesus something he probably would not have been able to do. Whatever it is that we ask of Jesus must be based on a true need and when given will give glory to him.  I am sure his testimony was on his lips wherever he went and God was glorified through it.

Secondly Determination and persistence get God’s attention.

We see in Bartimaeus a strong determination to get the attention of Jesus in spite of those who tried to silence him.  Bartimaeus would not be denied.  When he was told to be silent he cried out even louder.  He was not going to miss this opportunity and the reality was that Jesus never passed that way again.  For him it was now or never and he was not going to let others determine his destiny.  He knew Jesus as Rabbi and the son of David and he had obviously heard of his miracles.  Jesus was not going to pass him by but stopped and had him brought over to him and then asked him what he wanted. He was not going to be denied, he was persistent.  Prayer is often like that.  We need to be persistent and not let anything or anyone keep us from asking for something we know is needed.  At times we need to ask and keep on asking, not because God does not hear but because God is testing us to see if this is really something we want or desire. 

Thirdly, God honors faith.  he had faith that Jesus could and would do what was asked of him.  Faith is based on knowledge and Bartimaues had heard about the miracles of Jesus and he believed he could heal him.  Why bother to ask if you do not have faith to believe it can happen?  His faith was based on what he knew to be true about Jesus.  He had enough knowledge about him that gave him confidence that his request would be heard and granted by him.  Our prayer must also be like this, full of faith in the character of our God.  He is not a God who says ‘No’ all the time.  He delights in hearing and responding to our prayers as a loving Father.   God responds to faith filled prayers. It is prayer of faith that is not double minded that gets results (James 1.8).  It is the prayer of faith that brings healing (James 5.15). It is prayer the prayer of faith that speaks forth what is desired specifically to happen in the situation (Matthew 17.19). God honors prayers of faith.  It demonstrates our confidence in him to do what we know he is both able and willing to do for us.

As we begin a new year all of us have things we want to ask from the Lord and he invites us to ask just as he did for James, John and Bartimaeus. We can base our request on selfish, vain glorious things like James and John and be denied. Or we can ask as Bartimaeus did based on true need, bringing glory to God, faith filled confidence in God’s desire to respond favorably, determination and persistence to not be denied and expressing specifically what it is that we want.

Jesus is asking each one of us tonight, “What do you want me to do for you?”