Sunday
Morning Bible Study
November
27, 2016
Introduction
Do people see Jesus? Is the gospel
preached? Does it address the person who is: Empty, lonely, guilty, or afraid
to die? Does it speak to the broken
hearted? Does it build up the church? Milk – Meat – Manna Preach for a decision
Is the church loved? Regular: 2900
words Communion: 2500 words Video=75wpm
Alex & Judy Leon 50th Anniversary Vow Renewal (1st
service only)
Luke was a doctor and a traveling
companion of the apostle Paul.
He wrote this book while Paul was
in prison.
In writing this book about Jesus,
Luke made use of other older documents like the Gospel of Mark, as well as
extensive eyewitness accounts.
Jesus’ ministry is well under way, and the people have been amazed not just
at the things He’s been teaching, but the things He’s been doing.
18:31-34 Death and Resurrection
:31 Then He took the twelve aside and said to them, “Behold, we are going
up to Jerusalem, and all things that are written by the prophets concerning the
Son of Man will be accomplished.
took … aside – paralambano
– to take to, to take with one’s self, to join to one’s self
going up – anabaino
– ascend; to go up
will be accomplished – teleo
– to bring to a close, to finish, to end; to perform, execute, complete,
fulfil, (so that the thing done corresponds to what has been said, the order,
command etc.)
This will be the ultimate
culmination of what the Old Testament prophets has written concerning the
Messiah.
When Jesus hung on the cross, the
last thing He said was,
(John 19:30 NKJV) So when
Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His
head, He gave up His spirit.
:31 all things that are written by the prophets
David wrote about Christ’s humiliation 1,000 years it would happen.
(Psalm 22:7–8 NKJV)
—7 All those who see Me ridicule Me; They shoot out the lip, they shake
the head, saying, 8 “He trusted in the Lord,
let Him rescue Him; Let Him deliver Him, since He delights in Him!”
Isaiah wrote 700 years before of the Messiah’s suffering.
(Isaiah 53:7 NKJV) He was
oppressed and He was afflicted, Yet He opened not His mouth; He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, And as a
sheep before its shearers is silent, So He opened not His mouth.
David wrote described the crucifixion 200 years before crucifixion was even
invented.
(Psalm 22:14–16
NKJV) —14 I am poured out like water, And all My bones are out of joint; My heart is like wax; It has
melted within Me.
15 My strength is dried up like a potsherd, And My
tongue clings to My jaws; You have brought Me to the dust of death. 16 For dogs
have surrounded Me; The congregation of the wicked has enclosed Me. They pierced
My hands and My feet;
:32 For He will be delivered to the Gentiles and will be mocked and
insulted and spit upon.
:32 He will be delivered to the Gentiles
He will be delivered – paradidomi
– to give into the hands (of another); to give over into (one’s) power or
use; to deliver up one to custody, to be judged, condemned, punished, scourged,
tormented, put to death; to deliver up treacherously; by betrayal to cause one
to be taken
the Gentiles – ethnos
– a multitude; a tribe, nation, people group; in the OT, foreign nations
not worshipping the true God, pagans, Gentiles
Jesus was turned over to the Romans
to be put to death.
Even though the Jewish leaders were behind the arrest of Jesus, He would be
turned over to the Roman authorities so they might put Him to death.
:32 mocked and insulted and spit upon
will be mocked – empaizo
(“in” + “to play like a child”) – to play with, trifle with; to mock; to
delude, deceive
insulted – hubrizo
(hubris = “pride”) – to be insolent, to behave insolently, wantonly,
outrageously; to act insolently and shamefully towards one, to treat
shamefully; of one who injures another by speaking evil of him
spit upon – emptuo
(ptuo = “to spit”, we say “ptooieee”) – to spit upon
These things took place when Jesus was put on trial before the Sanhedrin,
Herod, and Pilate.
Matthew records
(Matthew 26:67–68 NKJV) —67 Then they
spat in His face and beat Him; and others struck Him with the palms of
their hands, 68 saying, “Prophesy to
us, Christ! Who is the one who struck You?”
(Luke 23:11 NKJV) Then
Herod, with his men of war, treated Him with contempt and mocked Him,
arrayed Him in a gorgeous robe, and sent Him back to Pilate.
(Matthew 27:29–31
NKJV) —29 When they had twisted a crown of thorns, they put it on His
head, and a reed in His right hand. And they bowed the knee before Him and
mocked Him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” 30 Then they spat on Him, and took the
reed and struck Him on the head. 31 And when they had mocked Him, they took the robe off Him, put His own
clothes on Him, and led Him away to be crucified.
:33 They will scourge Him and kill Him. And the third day He will
rise again.”
:33 They will scourge Him
scourge – mastigoo
– to scourge; from mastix – a
whip, scourge
The Romans whipped their prisoners with a device called a “flagrum”. It was a handle with long leather straps of
various lengths attached. Imbedded in
the straps were jagged pieces of bone and lead.
Dr. C. Truman Davis, a medical doctor who has studied crucifixion from a
medical perspective, describes the effects of the Roman flagrum used in
whipping:
The heavy whip is brought down with full force again and again across a
person’s shoulders, back and legs. At first the heavy thongs cut through the
skin only. Then, as the blows continue, they cut deeper into the subcutaneous
tissues, producing first an oozing of blood from the capillaries and veins of
the skin, and finally spurting arterial bleeding from vessels in the underlying
muscles. The small balls of lead first produce large, deep bruises, which are
broken open by subsequent blows. Finally the skin of the back is hanging in
long ribbons and the entire area is an unrecognizable mass of torn, bleeding
tissue. When it is determined by the centurion in charge that the prisoner is
near death, the beating is finally stopped.
Eusebius, a third-century
historian, confirms Dr. Davis's description when he writes: “The sufferer’s
veins were laid bare, and the very muscles, sinews, and bowels of the victim
were open to exposure.”
This next video is a bit graphic. If
you don’t like the sight of blood, you may want to close your eyes for the next
minute and a half.
:33 and kill Him
kill – apokteino
– to kill in any way whatever
He would be crucified.
Crucifixion was invented by the Persians, used by the Greeks, and perfected
by the Romans.
Crucifixion was designed to be both humiliating and extremely painful.
The criminal was stripped naked, nailed to a cross and placed in a public
place where everyone could see. There
would be a sign above the criminal’s head proclaiming his crime.
It served as a warning that you don’t ever want to do what this person did.
This next video is also a little bloody.
Isaiah told us why this had to happen:
(Isaiah 53:5 NKJV) But He was
wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, And by His
stripes we are healed.
He endured these things to pay for our sin.
Paul wrote,
(2
Corinthians 5:21 NLT) For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our
sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.
Listen to me – Jesus loved you so much that He paid the ultimate sacrifice
to pay for your sins.
God’s greatest desire is that you would turn from your sins and trust in
Jesus to forgive your sins.
:33 the third day He will rise again
He will rise again – anistemi
(“up” + “stand”) – to cause to rise up, raise up; raise up from laying
down; to raise up from the dead; to rise, stand up; of the dead
Jesus wouldn’t stay dead. He conquered death.
:34 But they understood none of these things; this saying was hidden from
them, and they did not know the things which were spoken.
:34 they understood none of these things
they understood – suniemi
(“with” + “to send”) – to set or bring together; to put (as it
were) the perception with the thing perceived; to set or join together in the
mind; i.e. to understand
Aorist tense, this particular thing
Jesus was saying they didn’t understand.
The disciples had a hard time
putting all this together.
the saying – rhema
– that which is or has been uttered by the living voice, thing spoken,
word; subject matter of speech, thing spoken of
was hidden – krupto
– to hide, conceal, to be hid; escape notice; metaph. to conceal (that it
may not become known)
perfect passive participle
know – ginosko
– to learn to know, come to know, get a knowledge of perceive, feel; to
know, understand, perceive, have knowledge of; a knowledge grounded on personal
experience.
Imperfect tense.
There was an ongoing sense of not
knowing what Jesus was saying as well.
were spoken – lego
– to say, to speak
Even though Jesus told His disciples several times that He would be
arrested, beaten, crucified, and resurrected, when it happened it still caught
the disciples off guard.
I wonder how many times we miss the things that God is wanting to say to
us, things that God is wanting to prepare us for.
18:35-43 Bartimaeus
:35 Then it happened, as He was coming near Jericho, that a certain blind
man sat by the road begging.
:35 as He was coming near Jericho
was coming near – eggizo
– to bring near, to join one thing to another; to draw or come near to, to
approach
Video: Jericho map
The city of Jericho is in the Jordan River valley, north of the Dead Sea.
Travelers coming from the north in Galilee would travel down the Jordan
River Valley and pass through Jericho on their way up to Jerusalem.
Jericho is 850 feet below sea level
while Jerusalem is 2,000 feet above sea level.
Today Jericho is under Palestinian control, so the closest you’ll get is
seeing the turnoff to Jericho from the bus.
In Jesus’ day, there were two Jerichos.
The older, main city of Roman Jericho was mostly inhabited by poorer Jews.
Around 35 BC, Herod the Great began building three winter palaces about a
mile west of the poorer Jericho. His
newer complex contained a palace, fortress, and houses for Herod’s wealthy
friends.[1]
Herod’s complex was also called Jericho.
When you compare Matthew, Mark, and Luke’s accounts, you will find there
are some differences.
Matthew records that the healing took place as they were leaving Jericho.
He also records that there were two blind men.
Mark records that the incident took place as they came out of Jericho.
He only mentions one blind man, a man named Bartimaeus.
Luke records that the event took place as they were entering Jericho.
He only mentions one blind man.
All sounds confusing, huh?
Illustration
Three blindfolded men were asked to describe an elephant.
One man was brought to the front of the elephant, and described an elephant
as long, shaped like a garden hose, but about six inches in diameter, and moves
like a snake.
One man described the elephant as large thick pillars. He had been led to the feet.
The third man was put on top of the elephant and described it as a large
leathery ball.
Which is the elephant like? It’s
like all three, and them some!
They all described what they encountered, from a different perspective.
Could Matthew, Mark, and Luke all be describing the same event?
There were two blind men, but one of them was either louder or just better
known – Bartimaeus.
The event took place between the two Jerichos, so they were leaving one
Jericho and about to enter the other Jericho.
(Matthew 20:29–34 NKJV) —29 Now as
they went out of Jericho, a great multitude followed Him. 30 And behold, two blind men sitting by the road, when they heard
that Jesus was passing by, cried out, saying, “Have mercy on us, O Lord, Son of
David!” 31 Then the multitude
warned them that they should be quiet; but they cried out all the more, saying,
“Have mercy on us, O Lord, Son of David!” 32 So Jesus
stood still and called them, and said, “What do you want Me to do for you?” 33
They said to Him, “Lord, that our eyes may be
opened.” 34 So Jesus had
compassion and touched their eyes. And immediately their eyes received sight,
and they followed Him.
(Mark 10:46–52 NKJV) —46 Now they
came to Jericho. As He went out of Jericho with His disciples and a great
multitude, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the road begging. 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!” 48
Then many warned him to be quiet; but he cried out
all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!” 49 So Jesus stood still and commanded him to be called. Then they called the blind man, saying to him, “Be of good cheer.
Rise, He is calling you.” 50 And
throwing aside his garment, he rose and came to Jesus. 51
So Jesus answered and said to him, “What do you want
Me to do for you?” The blind
man said to Him, “Rabboni, that I may receive my sight.” 52
Then Jesus said to him, “Go your way; your faith has
made you well.” And immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus on the
road.
:35 a certain blind man
Mark tells us the man’s name, Bartimaeus, meaning either “son of Timaeus”
(Mark 10:46), or “son of unclean”
unclean – tame’
– (Aramaic word) unclean, impure
(Mark 10:46 NKJV) —46 Now they
came to Jericho. As He went out of Jericho with His disciples and a great
multitude, blind Bartimaeus, the son of Timaeus, sat by the road begging.
blind man – tuphlos
– blind; mentally blind
:35 sat by the road begging
sat – kathemai
– to sit down, seat one’s self; to sit, be seated, of a place occupied; to
have a fixed abode, to dwell;
Imperfect tense – continual sitting
in the past.
This is where the guy had a
practice of hanging out.
by the road – hodos
– properly a way; a travelled way, road
begging – prosaiteo – to
approach one with supplications; to ask alms.
Present participle, continuous
action.
The word used in the New Testament for “alms” is:
alms – eleemosune – mercy,
pity; a donation to the poor, alms
(Acts
3:2 NKJV) And a certain man lame from his mother’s womb was carried, whom
they laid daily at the gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask
alms from those who entered the temple;
Usually most people meant this to mean that the beggar was
asking for money.
:36 And hearing a multitude passing by, he asked what it meant.
the multitude – ochlos
– a crowd; a casual collection of people; a multitude
hearing – akouo
– to be endowed with the faculty of hearing, not deaf; to hear
passing by – diaporeuomai
– to cause to pass through a place; to carry across; to journey through a
place, go through; to travel through
He hears the crowd passing him on
the road between the two Jerichos.
he asked – punthanomai
– to enquire, ask; to ascertain, by enquiry.
Imperfect tense, he was continually
asking everyone that got close what was going on.
Bart is used to just a few people passing by at a time. He’s wondering what all the noise is about.
:37 So they told him that Jesus of Nazareth was passing by.
they told – apaggello
– to bring tidings (from a person or a thing), bring word, report; to
proclaim, to make known openly, declare
passing by – parerchomai
– to go past, pass by; of persons moving forward; to come near, come
forward, arrive
:38 And he cried out, saying, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”
he cried out – boao
– to raise a cry, of joy pain etc.; to cry, speak with a high, strong
voice; to cry to one for help, to implore his aid; to cry out as a
manifestation of feeling, esp. a cry for help
He is making a big noise to get
Jesus’ attention.
:38 Jesus, Son of David
Jesus’ ministry has been going for a couple of years now and word has
gotten out as to who Jesus might actually be.
When Bart calls Jesus the “Son of David”, he is saying that Jesus is
royalty, and specifically that Jesus is the Messiah, the “anointed” one, the deliverer.
Jeremiah said,
(Jeremiah 23:5 NKJV) “Behold, the
days are coming,” says the Lord, “That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness; A King shall reign and prosper, And execute judgment and righteousness in the earth.
Isaiah described what life would be like when Messiah showed up:
(Isaiah 35:5 NKJV) Then the
eyes of the blind shall be opened, And the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped.
:38 have mercy on me!
have mercy – eleeo – to
have mercy on; to help one afflicted or seeking aid; to feel sympathy with the
misery of another; showing sympathy through actions
It’s the cry of a person who is needy.
Do you remember the word for “alms”?
It is based on this word.
“Alms” are acts of mercy.
In one sense, Bartimaeus could just be asking Jesus for a few coins.
When people are needy, money may not be the thing they really need.
Jesus will respond with something more than money.
The actual form of the word (2nd person singular, aorist active
imperative) in the Greek is eleison
For those of you who have a background in classical music or perhaps grew
up in the Catholic church, you might have heard the phrase:
Kyrie eleison
This is Greek for “Lord have mercy”
We’ll be learning a new Chris Tomlin song soon that will
have these words in it. It’s Biblical,
asking God for mercy.
The actual Greek
in our text is Ἰησοῦ
υἱὲ Δαυίδ,
ἐλέησόν με
There has been a history of people making this same request of Jesus.
It was used by two blind men earlier in Jesus’ ministry:
(Matthew 9:27 NKJV)
When
Jesus departed from there, two blind men followed Him, crying out and saying,
“Son of David, have mercy on us!”
A pagan, Canaanite woman used it on behalf of her daughter:
(Matthew 15:22
NKJV) And behold, a woman of Canaan came from that region and cried out
to Him, saying, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! My daughter is
severely demon-possessed.”
A father used it on behalf of his son:
(Matthew 17:15 NKJV)
“Lord,
have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and suffers severely; for he often
falls into the fire and often into the water.
The ten lepers used it:
(Luke 17:13 NKJV) And they
lifted up their voices and said, “Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!”
This is a prayer that Jesus pays attention to. Jesus pays attention to those who are truly
needy.
Jesus said,
(Matthew 5:7 NKJV) Blessed are
the merciful, For they shall obtain
mercy.
:39 Then those who went before warned him that he should be quiet; but he
cried out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”
:39 those who went before
those who went before – proago
– to lead forward, lead forth; to go before; to proceed, go forward.
These are probably disciples walking ahead of Jesus, acting as crowd
control.
:39 warned him that he should be quiet
Literally, they “rebuked” him.
warned him – epitimao
– to show honour to, to honour; to tax with fault, rate, chide, rebuke,
reprove, censure severely; to admonish or charge sharply
Earlier in the chapter, the disciples “rebuked” (same word) the parents who
were bringing children to be blessed by Jesus (Luke 18:15).
(Luke 18:15 NKJV) Then they also brought infants to Him that He might touch them;
but when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them.
he should be quiet – siopao
– to be silent, hold one’s peace
They simply want the man to shut
up.
We should probably be careful about how we treat people that we consider to
be “annoying”.
Some of those people may be the ones that Jesus wants to touch.
:39 but he cried out all the more
all the more – literally, “much more”
he cried out – krazo
– to croak; of the cry of a raven; hence, to cry out, cry aloud,
vociferate; cry out aloud, speak with a loud voice; in contrast to boao
(vs. 38), this means to cry out harshly, often of inarticulate and brutish
sound
Bartimaeus isn’t going to let anyone keep him from Jesus.
He turns up the volume.
Are there people that have become your “excuse” for following Jesus?
Are there “Christians” that you find offensive and you don’t want to become
a Christian because you don’t want to be like they are?
Don’t let anyone keep you from Jesus.
:40 So Jesus stood still and commanded him to be brought to Him. And when
he had come near, He asked him,
stood – histemi
– to cause or make to stand, to place, put, set; to stand
Jesus has been walking along the
road, and now He stops and stands still.
:40 commanded him to be brought
commanded – keleuo
– to command, to order; designates verbal orders, coming usually from a
superior
I wonder at what point Jesus might get frustrated at how the disciples kept
people from coming to Him.
to be brought – ago –
to lead, take with one
come near – eggizo
– to bring near, to join one thing to another; to draw or come near to, to
approach
He asked– eperotao
– to accost one with an enquiry, put a question to, enquiry of, ask,
interrogate; to address one with a request or demand; to ask of or demand of
one
At this point, Mark records,
(Mark 10:49–50 NKJV)
—49 So Jesus stood still and commanded him to be called. Then they
called the blind man, saying to him, “Be of good cheer. Rise, He is calling
you.” 50 And throwing
aside his garment, he rose and came to Jesus.
Some commentators note that this was his outer garment, and that it was a
type of “badge” or “uniform” that identified him as a beggar.
He knows he isn’t going to need to beg anymore, so he takes his “uniform”
off.
:41 saying, “What do you want Me to do for you?” He said, “Lord, that I may
receive my sight.”
:41 that I may receive my sight
Lord – kurie
(kyrie)
receive my sight – anablepo (“again”
+ “to see”) – to recover lost sight.
All through this passage in verses
41, 42, and 43 this word is used for “receiving sight”.
Subjunctive. “that I might see again”
Bartimaeus was not a man who had been born blind.
He’s lost his eyesight and he wants to see again.
:42 Then Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight; your faith has made you
well.”
Receive your sight – anablepo
(“again” or “up” + “to see”) – to look up; to recover (lost) sight
:42 your faith has made you well
faith – pistis
– conviction of the truth of anything, belief; in the NT of a conviction or
belief respecting man’s relationship to God and divine things, generally with
the included idea of trust and holy fervor born of faith and joined with it;
fidelity, faithfulness
made you well – sozo
– to save, keep safe and sound, to rescue from danger or destruction; to
save a suffering one (from perishing), i.e. one suffering from disease, to make
well, heal, restore to health; to save in the technical biblical sense
It’s hard to know just how Jesus
means this. Certainly the man is saved
in the sense of his healing.
Jesus could also be talking about
the man’s eternal salvation from his sins.
He did call Jesus the “son of
David”.
The Greek here is literally, “your faith has saved you”
Lesson
Faith that’s seen
It’s not that the man’s faith had power in and of itself.
Jesus had the power.
Yet as the man is learning to trust Jesus, Jesus in turn heals the man.
This is how salvation happens.
Jesus is the one who actually saves you.
But you need to trust Him, and it’s your trusting Him that brings your
salvation.
Paul encountered a man at Lystra who had been born a cripple…
(Acts 14:9–10 NKJV)
This
man heard Paul speaking. Paul, observing him intently and seeing that he had faith
to be healed, 10
said
with a loud voice, “Stand up straight on your feet!” And he leaped and walked.
There is something in Bartimaeus that Jesus sees as “faith”.
Perhaps it was in his calling Jesus the “son of David”.
Perhaps it was because he was willing to leave his garment to come to
Jesus.
Earlier, the “rich young ruler” came to Jesus, but Jesus
sent him away “empty”. He wasn’t willing
to leave his “stuff” to follow Jesus.
When Mary became pregnant, she prophesied:
(Luke
1:53 NKJV) He has filled the hungry with good things, And the
rich He has sent away empty.
Are you ready to trust Jesus?
:43 And immediately he received his sight, and followed Him, glorifying
God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.
immediately – parachrema
– immediately, forthwith, instantly
he received his sight – anablepo
(“again” or “up” + “to see”) – to look up; to recover (lost) sight
followed – akoloutheo
– to follow one who precedes, join him as his attendant, accompany him; to
join one as a disciple, become or be his disciple; side with his party.
Imperfect tense.
The man began to follow Jesus. He was continually following Jesus.
glorifying – doxazo
– to think, suppose, be of opinion; to praise, extol, magnify, celebrate;
to honor, do honor to, hold in honor; to make glorious, adorn with luster,
clothe with splendor
praise – ainos
– a saying, proverb; praise, laudatory discourse
(Matthew 5:16 NKJV) Let your
light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your
Father in heaven.
:43 he received his sight, and followed Him
When this man received what He asked Jesus for, his life changed.
He didn’t just say “thank you” and keep on begging.
He responded by following Jesus.
For us, when we choose to trust Jesus, life changes.
We leave the old beggars clothes behind.
:41 What do you want Me to do for you?
do you want – thelo
– to will, have in mind, intend; to be resolved or determined, to purpose;
to desire, to wish; to love; to like to do a thing, be fond of doing; to take
delight in, have pleasure
Lesson
What do you want?
We’re entering that time of year when sometimes we are faced with that
age-old Christmas question, “What do you want?”
What you didn’t know was that what you really wanted was a
new Volvo to sit in and write down your thoughts…
Sometimes we aren’t always happy
with the gift we actually receive.
Some of us approach the idea of
asking God for things as if we are learning to wave a magic wand.
Prayer is not
about magic. It’s about having the
attention of the God who wants to show you mercy.
Some of us don’t really care what we get, as long as it’s made by Apple.
Sometimes it takes a little time to clear away the noise and think about
what we really want, what we really need.
One night young King Solomon was visited by God in a dream. In the dream, God said, “Ask! What shall I
give you?”
I imagine that if God said this to some of us, we might respond with things
like new Volvos, or the latest iPhone.
But young King Solomon was in a different place in his life.
He was overwhelmed with his own inadequacy and the responsibility of
leading a nation. He needed mercy. He
finally responded by asking…
(1
Kings 3:9 NKJV) Therefore give to Your servant an understanding heart to judge Your
people, that I may discern between good and evil. For who is able to judge this
great people of Yours?”
God was overjoyed that Solomon had asked for something
deeper than just “stuff”.
Bart’s request started with, “Lord have mercy”.
If God were to be merciful to you, what would that look like?
What do you truly need?
For some of you, the greatest thing you could ask God, is for salvation,
the forgiveness of your sins.