GETTING HELP FROM GOD

“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” (Mark 10:47 NKJV).

Blind Bartimaeus gives us a good example of how to get help from God. Not everyone who cries to God get helped because they do not cry aright. We therefore want to note four things about the cry of Bartimaeus that made it an effective cry: the listening before the cry, the loudness of the cry, the lauding in the cry, and the lowliness in the cry.

Listening before the cry: “When he heard that it was Jesus of Nazareth.” The attentive listening by Bartimaeus is a good example of using our opportunities. He could not look because he was blind, but he could listen. If we are good stewards of what we have, we will get more. God does not give more to those who do not use what they already have.

Loudness of the cry: “He began to cry out.” The phrase translated “cry out” can be translated scream; it is a strong word. The loudness of the cry demonstrates the earnestness of the appeal. With a great crowd around the Lord Jesus, it was necessary to “cry out” loudly to be heard. If we are not earnest in crying to God for help, we should not expect God to be earnest in giving you help.

Lauding in the cry: “Jesus, Son of David.” This cry honored the Lord Jesus Christ because it called Him “Son of David.” This term meant that the Lord Jesus Christ was the promised Messiah, He was the King of Israel. If we want help from God, we need to honor God.

Lowliness in the cry: “Have mercy on me.” Bartimaeus took the proper position before the Lord Jesus. He did not plead merit, but he pleaded mercy. If we come on the basis of merit, we will not get much; from God’s perspective, we have no merit of note. We will get more from God pleading mercy than merit.

(Adapted from Butler’s Sermon Starters Vol. 2)

Soli Deo Gloria (To God Alone Be The Glory)

Quotation of the Week

“Prayer honors God, acknowledges His being, exalts His power, adores His providence, secures His aid!”

Edward McKendree (E.M.) Bounds (1835 – 1913)

American Author, Attorney, and Methodist Episcopal Church Clergyman

Word Study

Exercise (trained)

In 2 Peter 2:14 read, “Having eyes full of adultery and that cannot cease from sin, enticing unstable souls. They have a heart trained in covetous practices and are accursed children!" (NKJV).

Exercise (trained) is the Greek word gumnázō (γυμνάζω = goom-nad'-zo). It is from the word gumnós which means naked or minimally clothed. We get our English words gymnasium and gymnastics from this word. Thus, gumnázō means to exercise bodily and described an athlete exercising in the gym. Figuratively, it means to exercise so as to discipline oneself. It describes the rigorous, strenuous, self-sacrificing training an athlete undergoes. Further, it was used in secular Greek to refer to an athlete training in the nude, as was done in the Greek games. In New Testament usage it refers to those who by continual practice had trained themselves to a particular way of life. In context, these false teachers had their hearts “trained” in evil practices; they had “exercised’ themselves until they were experts in the art of seduction, overreaching, and every kind of fraud.

“Fear Nots” Found in the Bible

“Be not afraid, ye beasts of the field: for the pastures of the wilderness do spring, for the tree beareth her fruit, the fig tree and the vine do yield their strength” (Joel 2:22 KJV).

Did You Know…

According to Prov. 12:25, an encouraging word is a powerful, glad antidote to anxiety that weighs down the heart - “Anxiety in the heart of man causes depression, but a good word makes it glad.”

Bible Quiz

Which two employees did The Pharaoh throw into jail with Joseph?

**Answer to last week’s Bible Quiz: What happened to the golden calf idol that the Israelites made in the desert? It was burned, crushed, and thrown into a stream (Deut. 9:21).

Names For the Lord Jesus in the Bible

“MAN FROM HEAVEN”

"The first man was of the earth, made of dust; the second Man is the Lord from heaven!” (1 Cor. 15:47 NKJV).

1. Meaning – MAN FROM HEAVEN speaks of the Lord Jesus’ ultimate origin as being from heaven.

2. Insights – Here the apostle Paul is contrasting Adam, the earthly man of dust, with the Lord Jesus Christ, the Man from Heaven. In referring to Adam and the Lord Jesus Christ as types of humanity, the apostle Paul is going back to Gen. 2:7, which states “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground.” Thus, the first man had an earthly origin. The origin of the Second Man is different: the phrase “from heaven” refers to His heavenly origin. Further, the Lord Jesus Christ, the Man from Heaven did not merely become a living being. In His resurrection, the Lord Jesus Christ became something much greater - He became a “life-giving spirit” (1 Cor. 15:45). In other words, as much as Adam was a wondrous creature able to transmit life to his offspring, he did not compare to the wonderful Lord Jesus Christ, who gives eternal life to all who trust in Him.

Did You Know – Christian History

Charles Eugene de Foucauld was born September 15, 1858 in Strasbourg, France. He was a French soldier, explorer, geographer, ethnographer, Catholic priest and hermit.

De Foucauld became an orphan at 6 years old and was raised by his grandparents. Although he received a Catholic education, he lost his faith in his teens and became interested in pagan and atheist thinkers. He entered the prestigious Saint-Cyr Military Academy, becoming a military officer. Bored with garrison service De Foucauld travelled to Morocco, the Sahara, and Palestine. He became a serious student of the geography and culture of Algeria and Morocco. In 1885 the Societe de Geographie de Paris awarded him its gold medal in recognition of his exploration and research.

De Foucauld was brought back to his Catholic roots with the help of his cousin Marie de Bondy, as well as Father Henri Huvelin, curate of the famous Parisian Church of St. Augustin. In 1890, de Foucauld entered the Trappist monastery of Notre-Dame des Neiges. But despite the strict life of the Trappists and their vow of poverty, de Foucauld considered the life of the residents in the surrounding villages to be more desperate.

As time passed, his thoughts turned toward the millions in North Africa who did not know Christ. De Foucauld determined to live a life of love among them to show them what a true Christian is. He then moved to be with the Tuareg people, in Tamanghasset in Southern Algeria. Living close to the Tuareg and sharing their life and hardships, he made a ten-year study of their language and cultural traditions. He translated the Gospel in the Tuareg language and published the first bilingual Tuareg-French dictionary. He also reproduced thousands of lines of Tuareg poetry about their ancestral habits.

His missionary zeal cost him his life. On December 1, 1916, De Foucauld was assassinated by an armed tribal group in Southern Algeria. His inspiration and writings led to the founding of the Little Brothers of Jesus, among other religious congregations.

A Little Humor

The story is told about a woman who bought a dress that she couldn’t afford. When she got home, her husband asked, “Why did you buy the dress, knowing that we couldn’t afford it?” She said, “Well, the devil made me do it.” He said, “Why didn’t you say, Get thee behind me Satan?” She said, “I did, and he said it looks good from back here, too.”

Thought Provoking Church Sign

“How tragic that people pay a high price for being lost when salvation is free!”