Walking The Road With Jesus (Mk. 10:46-52) (Part 7)

Conclusion:

Jesus doesn't want you to be disillusioned by your walk with Him. From Bartimaeus we discovered realistic expectations for walking with Jesus.  When you walk with Jesus, you can expect . . .

• Difficulty (Jn. 16:33).
• Division (Lu. 12:51-53).
• Denial (Lu. 9:23).
• Discomfort (Mt. 8:20).
• Dependence (Jn. 15:5).
• Death (Lu. 9:23).

That's not a very good sales job, is it? If I were selling cars, I'd be fired for trying to talk a potential buyer out of a deal. To some, it might seem as if I'm talking people out of following Jesus.  No, that's not the case at all.  

Since the cost of following Jesus is high, you should evaluate why you do it.  I just think you should know that walking with Jesus is not the cake walk some false prophets said it would be.  I just think that if you're going to follow Jesus, you should do it for the right reasons.

• Reason #1:  It is the natural continuation for those who have repented of their sins and asked Christ to forgive them.  Repentance is the start, not the finish. Those who receive Christ, Colossians says, should walk in Him.
• Reason #2:  Jesus heard your heart's cry, touched you, made you whole and changed you. You should follow Him because you are transformed by grace, overwhelmed by mercy, compelled by gratitude, and don't want to ever go back to your old life.

Walking The Road With Jesus (Mk. 10:46-52) (Part 6)

BARTIMAEUS' WALK WAS A DEPENDENT WALK.

If there was ever an example of a faith walk, Bartimaeus is it. Consider what Bartimaeus didn't have when he started walking with Jesus.

• He didn't have his cloak (Mk. 10:50).
• He didn't have any food or water (at least that we know about).
• He didn't have any guarantee of safety.
• He didn't have any spending money (at least that we know about).
• He didn't have time to say goodbye to those who mattered most in his life. (Perhaps that is a good thing, since discussing matters with his family might have discouraged him from following Jesus.)

Is there anything that Bartimaeus did have when he started walking with Jesus?  Yes. Bartimaeus had trust.

• He trusted that the One who healed him could still help him.
• He trusted that the One who performed one miracle could perform another.
• He trusted that the One who touched him once (Mt. 20:34) could touch him again.
• He trusted that Jesus had more grace, mercy, forgiveness and wisdom to give.

Remember, Christians don't walk by comfort, convenience or logic; rather, “ . . . we walk by faith, not by sight . . .” (2 Cor. 5:7). The faith walk is a walk of dependence.

BARTIMAEUS' WALK WAS A DELIGHTFUL WALK.

What made his walk delightful?  The Company – He was walking with King Jesus!

Pastor, I thought you said earlier that Bartimaeus' walk was difficult? How can it be both difficult and delightful? (Jn. 16:33)

“Turn your eyes upon Jesus,
Look full in His wonderful face;
And the things of earth will grow strangely dim
In the light of His glory and grace.”

Walking The Road With Jesus (Mk. 10:46-52) (Part 5)

BARTIMAEUS' WALK WAS A DEFINED WALK.  His input about the route, incline and pace wasn't solicited.

There was a specific road that Bartimaeus walked.

• It was an uphill road.  Remember, it was a 15-mile ascent to Jerusalem.
• It was a dangerous road.  We know this from Jesus' story about the Good Samaritan (Lu. 10:30-37). “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among robbers, and they stripped him and beat him, and went away leaving him half dead.” (Lu. 10:30)
• It was a chosen road. Bartimaeus didn't choose the road; Jesus did.

There was a specific pace that Bartimaeus walked.  He kept in step with the pace that Jesus set. Whatever else you do, stay close beside Jesus!

• Don't get ahead of Him. That's how you end up with regret.
• Don't lag behind Him. That's how you end up with discouragement.
• Do walk alongside Him. That's how you end up with joy.

When you walk side by side with Jesus, you'll be . . .

• Close enough to experience His blessing.
• Close enough to hear His teaching.
• Close enough to receive His wisdom.
• Close enough to discern His will.
• Close enough to sense His direction.
• Close enough to know His heart.

There was a specific destination to which Bartimaeus walked.  He was going where Jesus was going. Where, exactly, was Jesus going? He was going to Jerusalem.

• He was not going to an oasis, a campground or a spa.
• He was not going there to get pampered but to get pummeled.

Walking with Jesus is an invitation to die! “And He was saying to them all, 'If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me.'” (Lu. 9:23)

Walking The Road With Jesus (Mk. 10:46-52) (Part 4)

BARTIMAEUS' WALK WAS A DIVISIVE WALK.

By following Jesus, Bartimaeus had to leave behind certain people, places and preferences. He couldn't stay where he was and walk with Jesus at the same time. He knew that motion and inertia cannot coexist.

Following Jesus causes division (Lu. 12:51-53). One of the hardest things about following Jesus is that you might have to lose some friends (2 Cor. 6:14-15). Now that you have met Jesus, you can no longer do what your friends do, go where they go, think what they think, and talk like they talk. The difference that Jesus has already made in you causes them severe internal agitation.

Does this mean that you, as a believer in Jesus, must sever all relationship with unbelievers?

• If it is a dating or engagement relationship, yes.
• If it is a marriage relationship, no.
• What about other relationships?
• How will an unbeliever hear about Jesus unless a believer tells him? (Rom. 10:14).  Just make sure that you are influencing the unbeliever and not vice versa.  Just make sure that you are giving your testimony, not losing it.

Walking The Road With Jesus (Mk. 10:46-52) (Part 3)

BARTIMAEUS' WALK WAS A DIFFICULT WALK.  What made his walk so difficult?

The first thing that made Bartimaeus' walk so difficult was that he experienced an incline.  Bartimaeus realized quickly what we disciples of Jesus today also realize early on – that walking with Jesus is profitable though not always pleasurable. The journey from Jericho to Jerusalem was a 15-mile ascent.  Though Jesus is always excellent company, walking with Him is consistently not easy.  Jesus Himself warned about persecution that would arise “because of the Word” (Mt. 13:21). When you walk with Jesus, you are on the stairmaster; there is no escalator. (That is, until the Rapture happens!)

The second thing that made Bartimaeus' walk so difficult was that he saw decline. Many people followed Jesus out of Jericho. I wonder, “How many of those who started the walk finished it?” No doubt, some of them did finish and were involved welcoming Jesus into Jerusalem during the event we know as 'The Triumphal Entry'. Sadly, some who welcomed Him on Sunday would call for His crucifixion later that week.

In case you haven't experienced this yet, it is a disappointing and painful thing to watch people start enthusiastically with Jesus, only to fade out when more convenient options come along. When this happens, what is a journeyman with Jesus to do? Exactly this – keep your eyes on Jesus and follow Him wherever He goes. If you don't keep your eyes on Jesus, then you will become angry, bitter and disillusioned.

Walking The Road With Jesus (Mk. 10:46-52) (Part 2)

BARTIMAEUS' WALK WAS A DETERMINED WALK.

When did Bartimaeus begin to walk with Jesus? “Immediately he regained his sight and began following [Jesus] on the road” (Mk. 10:52b).

• For Bartimaeus, it was only natural to walk with the One who had healed him.
• For Bartimaeus, it was only natural to keep his eyes on the One who had given him sight.

While Bartimaeus' miracle was physical, your primary miracle is spiritual. Never forget that your salvation is a miracle!

• Unless God Himself had intervened, you could never be saved.
• Unless God Himself had intervened, you would never see clearly.

Before Jesus encountered you, your heart was darkened (Rom. 1:21) and your understanding was too (Eph. 4:18).  Not only that, but “you were dead in your trespasses and sins” (Eph. 2:1). 

Bartimaeus teaches us that motion follows the miracle. In other words, those who receive from Jesus should walk with Jesus (Col. 2:6-7). You could also state it this way: discipleship follows decision. Jesus has too many self-professed “followers” who have made Him an occasional Sunday morning hobby but not a lifestyle. He has too many who have shown an interest but not much determination.

Have you received Christ Jesus as Lord? Then walk, brother, walk! Walk, sister, walk! You will not walk with Jesus if you will not.

Walking The Road With Jesus (Mk. 10:46-52) (Part 1)

Introduction:

Context: Read Mark 10:46-52.

I'm going to deal specifically with thoughts that stem from the second half of verse 52. More exactly, thoughts about walking with Jesus.

In California two litters of mountain lion kittens were discovered recently.¹  What happens to their cuteness once they are fully grown? For ranchers and farmers, mountain lions can be a nuisance and detriment.

Did you ever have a thought or reaction to something, only to change it later? There are people who had an initial idea about walking with Jesus, only to have that concept be radically redefined in short order. Some weren't prepared for the smack of reality that would uppercut them. Walking with Jesus stopped being "cutesy" in a hurry!

I want to write on this subject: expectations of walking with Jesus. Exactly what kind of walk is it? Let's lean in to God's Word this morning as we consider six things that can be said about Bartimaeus' walk with Jesus.

• If you are a believer in Jesus, then you should resonate with what you're about to hear.
• If you're not yet a believer in Jesus, then you need to know that He isn't out to sucker you. He wants you to know exactly what's what when it comes to serving Him.

1Trib.al/C8ZoN23  (accessed 7.9.16)