THE WEEK AHEAD: WHAT DO YOU WANT?

Well hello and good morning. Thank you my name is Mark I want to say good morning to the balcony as well and good morning to all of you who are joining us on our live stream and what a gift already just to be surrounded by so many beautiful voices in worship that was just amazing so thank you church for blessing me and it is a great joy to be with you.

I've been primarily working behind the scenes for the better part of a month had some things that I needed to focus on and at the same time I was doing that chemo treatment on my face you ever hear that before it's a it's a preventative for skin cancer and it's not really a good look okay you basically nuke your face and to the extent that René Val our weekend team thought that I would have a negative impact on church attendance so I've been in a cubicle.

But you know I got the thinking that I probably could have picked a better time of year like perhaps like October as it leads into Halloween because at first this stuff it makes your skin so sensitive to sunlight I became a vampire. I was like I mean just two minutes would just feel like two hours and then about three four weeks into it after my face melted off I became a zombie so either way I would have been set up but here I am too much information I sense an A B so what do you say with that intro we move right into the message time today.

We are kicking off a new series called seven days it's about the final week of Jesus and there's an overview in your message notes I really encourage you to check that out so you know what you expect and anticipate be praying about each weekend but man I am super excited about this journey that we are about to embark on.

In fact if you're new to Twin Lakes or you're new to the Christian faith you really couldn't be here at a better time in fact that's true for all of us because think about this there's only two Gospels Matthew and Luke that tell us anything about the birth of Jesus wonderful as it is but in Matthew, Mark and Luke the final week of Jesus takes up a third of their Gospels and when you get to John's gospel it's nearly half that's how important this is.

Now of course everything that the Gospels contain is important but we are entering the core the heart of why Jesus came and how that is infinitely eternally significant to every single one of us and with that in mind with all that we have ahead of us I would just like to take a moment to ask the Lord to bless today and the weekends to come let's pray.

Heavenly Father we thank you for the opportunity that we have to place ourselves before you and your word and as we follow your son during the days leading to his death and resurrection fill us with wonder gratitude and humility as we peer into the depths of your love on full display in Jesus Christ it's in his name we pray and all his people said amen.

Now to get our bearings today we're actually going to look at the week ahead of the final week of Jesus where Jesus tries to prepare his disciples and he's not entirely successful but he tries to prepare them for what is about to happen and it's during this week this week ahead of the final week that a question rises and that question is what do you want specifically what do you want from Jesus.

And we're gonna see two radically different answers they're just miles apart and both of them are really emblematic of what we want from either God or life or our own ambitions and before we get to that I thought it'd be fun because you know kids little children they really have no problem answering that question especially even with God they have no problem telling God exactly what they want.

So I gather together a couple prayers from actual third graders telling God what how they would answer that question and here's the first one it says dear God thank you for the baby brother but what I prayed for was a puppy you know just saying okay this one is timely especially this weekend it says dear God please put another holiday between Christmas and Easter there is nothing good in there now you know presidents day just doesn't cut it.

We want more I appreciate this one just for its honesty dear God if you give me a genie lamp like Aladdin I will give you anything you want except my money and my chest set yeah that what dude you got a genie lamp you can replace those things anyway I digress this last one is more about asking for permission than anything else did you really mean do unto others as they do unto you because if you did then I'm gonna fix my brother I bet she fixed him good.

All right now let's see what the grown-ups have to say shall we because in Mark's gospel chapter 10 two times Jesus asked the exact same question which is what do you want me to do for you and as we're gonna see it is a revealing question because it exposes exactly what's going on in our hearts and here's the context Jesus is leading his disciples and a large group of followers to Jerusalem and the disciples especially are getting nervous.

And why is this well because they know there's two very powerful groups waiting for him in Jerusalem the first are the religious leaders the chief priests the Pharisees the scribes teachers of their religious laws and some of them have already come up to Galilee where Jesus was gathering quite a following he's become quite popular they hear the news they go up there check him out for themselves but as you know Jesus has a habit of rubbing these guys the wrong way.

Well what's gonna happen when he's in Jerusalem on their turf and not only that group but there's a second one they're even more scary that's the Romans the Romans do not take kindly to anyone who tries to upset their system in fact in the years of preceding Jesus and for some decades following them there were a number of kind of wannabe messiahs self-professing messiahs and the book of Acts chapter 5 actually mentions two of them by name Theodos and Judas the Galilean both of them kind of gathered a following both of them led insurrections against Roman rule both of them were executed.

So now the disciples these followers they are convinced that Jesus is the Messiah which means they fully expect that when he enters Jerusalem he's gonna overthrow the Romans and he is going to set up his own kingdom the seed of which is you guessed it in Jerusalem and so with every step this tension starts to mount because they're anticipating a battle.

So Mark says they are both astonished and afraid and that's when Jesus calls his 12 disciples aside he kind of calls him into a huddle and Jesus previews the week ahead for them starting at verse 32 it says again he took the 12 disciples aside and began to tell them what was going to happen to him now this is the third time that Jesus is going to tell his disciples what will happen to him in Jerusalem and with each telling he adds more and more detail as if to kind of drive the point home clearer and clearer.

And so in verse 30 he says behold I don't hear some old English choir going be oh right no this means pay attention guys okay get this into your skulls we are going up to Jerusalem and the Son of Man will be delivered to the chief priests and the scribes and they will condemn him to death and hand him over to the Gentiles they will mock him and spit on him and scourge him and kill him and three days later he will rise again.

Pretty clear and yet not exactly the script that they have in mind so I don't know if they're just like not listening not listening Jesus or perhaps they're just kind of predisposed to go wait he's talking in parables you know he does that a lot so maybe metaphorically speaking there's gonna be some setbacks in this conflict but we all know the Messiah wins and so they just they just don't hear it for all intents and purposes what he has just told them goes in one ear and out the other.

This is followed by two requests two requests for Jesus and the first one just goes to show how entirely off message the disciples are in this moment it says then James and John the sons of Zebedee came to him teacher they said we want you to do for us whatever we ask like like there's no Lord we're devastated what you just told us we don't we don't even know what to do we're overwhelmed no there's no evidence of that at all there's not even this acknowledgement like you know it's kind of an awkward moment but we just thought that you might grant us a favor here none of that just give us what we want.

And amazingly Jesus is not off-put doesn't take offense Jesus asked what do you want me to do for you well Jesus we were just thinking that you could let one of us sit on your left and the other one on your right in your glory and to be clear they're not talking about you know some day off in some distant heaven they're talking about when he goes into Jerusalem and conquers the Romans and establishes his throne.

We would just like it if like well I could sit on your left and my brother could sit on your right that's all he'll be killed well I could be your prime minister and my brother well he could be your other prime minister so in other words what each of these guys is asking is give me power give me power give me a platform give me influence and then you do that Jesus man your will take your kingdom we will take it far and wide in fact my brother and I we will promote the people who support you and we will put down the people who don't all in your name of course.

Now let me ask you does that sound just a little bit familiar various points in the history of the church or even now in our country in this cultural moment so many Christians concerned with power authority politics visibility influence convinced that their motives are entirely pure but you know Jesus sidesteps this.

Jesus turns away and rejects it and not because power is intrinsically evil power used in a good and godly way can accomplish many good things but as Henri Nouwen writes we're fallible when it comes to this we who is immune to the lust for power the lust for power that corrupts the human spirit damages relationships perverts institutions calcifies religions destroys nature in trenches inequalities multiplies wars and leads to all kinds of evil and aren't we seeing that around our globe even now the lust for power.

And it's the same lust for power that is in the heart of James and John in this moment just as it will be in the heart of Judas and the chief priests and the Roman soldiers and Pontius Pilate and many others during that final week it's the same thing that's in the heart of tyrants and corrupt leaders and yes it is the same thing that is in the hearts of domineering aggressive angry Christians if we're honest to one degree or another it's in all of our hearts.

Say well I'm not trying to overthrow some country or something like that yeah but what is it that drives us when we want to control manipulate talk over look down on other people and this may be the way of the world but it is not the way of Jesus it's his word that calls his servants to serve him not by might nor by power but by my spirit says the Lord Almighty Amen Church.

Well in short Jesus tells James and John that they have no idea what they're asking for like guys this is beyond your pay grade and then when the other disciples hear what James and John have done they get entirely ticked off like I can't believe you guys did this and not because they're offended by the ask they're offended because John and James thought of it before they did.

Okay and so there's this kind of dust up between them and then Jesus he's got to pull them together again verse 42 it says Jesus called them together and said you know that those who are regarded as rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them and their high officials exercise authority over them not so with you instead whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant and whoever wants to be first must be slave of all.

For even the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many don't miss this little word right here even even the Son of Man even the creator of the universe even the one who is entirely worthy did not come to be served but to serve.

And so what will we see during the final week of Jesus we'll see him stripping down to the garb the appearance of a slave and kneeling as he washes the feet of his disciples we'll see him praying fervently for the future of his followers including you and me and we will see him suffer and die as he lays down his life for their sins and for our sins.

Let me tell you something this is true power this is the power of self-giving sacrificial divine love and let me tell you this is the power that can soften the hardest heart like mine this is the power that can turn the most wretched sinner like me you know what sheer force can't do any of those things but the power of love can and does many of you are living testimony to this the power of God's love.

And it's the same love that compels us to love others as we've been loved for example I'll just give you one and you're not gonna see this on the nightly news by the way but right now we have brothers and sisters in Christ in the church in Aleppo who are reaching out with food blankets jackets to earthquake victims refugees who are terrified to go indoors or the indoor option doesn't even exist anymore and they are doing this why for the notoriety no because they're not getting any notoriety but they're serving Christ in this this time of tremendous need exactly as Jesus has called us to do.

And you know what we have had the privilege in the last couple weeks the privilege Twin Lakes through our disaster relief fund to support their efforts the money's all already been given to them so they can do exactly what they're doing here in these pictures now I don't say that to pat us on the back I say that because some of you have been asking how can I help well you can help by going to TLC dot org slash relief the main thing I want you to see is this is greatness in the kingdom of God right here this is what it means to be great.

And so you want to have a great week you want to have a great year a great life forget about seeking power even if it's in just subtle ways seek instead to serve in the power of love.

This brings us to the second request and this is a request that you're only gonna ask if you understand your need for grace because until you do you will ever and always ask for the wrong things but this next guy he gets it and so when Jesus says to him what do you want me to do for he basically says give me grace do for me what I could never do for myself and I want you to watch this picking up at verse 46 it says then they came to Jericho as Jesus and his disciples together with a large crowd were leaving the city a blind man Bartimaeus that is the son of Tameas was sitting by the roadside begging.

When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth he began to shout Jesus son of David have mercy on me but many rebuked him and told him to be quiet gotta love the compassion there right you know it's like hey we're marching to Jerusalem Jesus is awesome we love him he's the best hey be quiet you miserable beggar doesn't he know he's interrupting our parade what a dork anyway Jesus you're the best but Bartimaeus shouted all the more son of David have mercy on me.

And when Jesus heard him he stopped I love that because there's something about the cry of mercy that stops Jesus touches his heart what do you want me to do for you Jesus asked the blind man said rabbi I want to see.

James and John asked for power Bartimaeus cried out for mercy they seek acclaim and he just seeks a cure that they seek honor he seeks healing they seek luster he seeks light and so while they're asking for stardom Bartimaeus he just want to see some stars the first time ever so go Jesus said your faith has healed you and immediately he received his sight and followed Jesus along the road.

Wow what a difference now let's bring this home let me ask you this question what do you want from Jesus today what do you want Jesus to do for you maybe it's forgiveness well good news is he abounds in grace maybe it's healing comfort solace scripture says that he is near to the brokenhearted and that his mercies are new every morning.

Maybe you don't even know why you're here something just got you here a friend or you just decided today was the day and you're wondering well I don't even know what Jesus would do for me or even what I want him to do I've been praying for you I've been praying that Jesus will actually get a hold of your heart and change your life because that's what he does.

And you may doubt that you may go not me man you mark you have no idea and I I struggle man I I'm kind of stuck I get into these ruts I can't get out of them whatever the case is what are you of worries or you have habits you can't shake or or whatever the case he is in the business of changing lives and maybe you feel like a guy you know there's a guy who says back in Mark 10 one day Jesus I believe now help me with my unbelief kind of split minded on this and if that's you hey you can just say the same thing help me in my unbelief there's no shame in that.

And may I just say for those of us who aren't so new to this and we know the stories going into Easter in the last week we know the traditions we know the rhythms of it all my prayer for all of us is that this year we won't just take another lap around Easter you know what I mean but that we will have a sense of expectation that we will we will be asking Jesus expecting Jesus to surprise us maybe even disrupt us but to continue to draw us and transform us by the power of his grace and his love.

And in this regard I just want to share with you three prayers very simple and in fact I got these from Bartimaeus I stole them from him about ten years ago and they become very personal to me honestly I pray these three prayers almost every single day far more often than not and the first prayer goes like this Lord have mercy Lord have mercy I mean I don't know what you brought in with you here today but I know we all brought something we brought our struggles we brought our anxieties we brought any number of burdens with us there is incredible power and potential and simply saying Lord have mercy have mercy on me have mercy on someone I love and like I said Jesus knows the cry of your heart and that cry touches his.

The second prayer is this open my eyes open my eyes to who you are open my eyes to who you created me to be your vision for me Lord open my eyes to my blind spots you know my weaknesses and vulnerabilities my selfishness my pride and open my eyes Lord to the needs of those around me.

And then finally help me follow help me follow you wherever you lead you know the last thing that we're told about Bartimaeus is that after receiving his sight he followed Jesus along the road now I would love that to be on my tombstone Sunday after Mark received his sight he just followed Jesus wherever he led.

And so may God empower us may we ask him to empower us to follow him wherever he leads and may he fill us with love along the way because I'm sure this is true of you I know it's true for me because you know sometimes man we long to be so much more than we are I get that we long to be farther down that road than we are man that's me and so that's perhaps why I've been praying the same prayer for the last decade and what's at the core of it is I don't merely want to know more about Jesus my harsh desire and I'm sure it's yours is to become more like Jesus in the loving and magnificent ways that he is.

And so I don't know how you start your day if you set aside some time for prayer or you feel like you have no time for prayer but I'm pretty sure that all of us have time to pray at least nine words Lord have mercy help me fall open my eyes and help me follow and if you're like me what you'll start doing is just start filling in between those lines all sorts of prompts that that come from that.

And so finally I just want to leave you with this final encouragement because again my goal today is not to go oh well look at us this is where we should be man we're really lagging no my goal is that we would see God's heart for us and the potential that he has for our lives.

I mean think of James and John we saw them in today's text and one of their worst moments right not very flattering but you know what that didn't define their lives they did not stay that way James became the first of the twelve to lay down his life he was executed for serving Jesus for telling others about Jesus he was killed talk about being faithful.

And then his brother John you know give me power this is the same guy who penned the words for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son and in the gospel that he would write that contained those very same words he's so humble he doesn't even name himself simply calls him something that's more important to him than anything else the disciple Jesus loved.

And then eventually he would be banished exiled by Rome to a barren island called Patmos and why well for the same reason his brother James was because more than anything what grew in his heart was this desire to know and love and follow Jesus and help other people experience the same in fact he wanted that so bad he wanted it to be true for me and for you too and that's what he gave his life for.

And so with all this in view all that's ahead of us in the weeks to come let's come before the Lord one more time and ask him to accomplish his purposes in our lives.

Heavenly Father we thank you so much for your goodness and grace to us and Lord I pray that in this moment whether here in this room or in living rooms or other spaces through our live stream I pray Lord that you would give us this sense that you want to meet us that you want to make a difference in our lives that you you want us to experience the power of your love and that Lord we would be living in a sense of anticipation here in these weeks to come and during this season of Lent.

Lord I pray that you would accomplish your good purposes in each of our lives and within our lives together here at Twin Lakes I pray this in the name of our blessed Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and all God's people said amen.