Have You Asked?

Introduction

A man once told a young boy the story of Jesus healing blind Bartimaeus. When he got to the part where Jesus asked Bartimaeus what he wanted, the man telling the story stopped and asked, "What would you have asked for if you were blind?" The answer seemed easy for the little fellow whose face lit up as he quickly said, "I would have asked for a nice little dog with a collar and a chain to lead me around." Mark 10:46-52 teaches us about prayer and faith. Study the passage to learn more about how to pray with faith.

Observation

Pray

Ask God to speak to you through His Word and change you.

Read Focus Verses

Read Mark 10:46-52 and pay attention to the man's persistence.

Where?

Where was Jesus coming from?

Who?

Who is the main character of this story besides Jesus?

Problem

What was the man's most obvious physical problem?

Hear

What did Bartimaeus hear?

Do

What did Bartimaeus do when he heard that Jesus was coming by?

The Crowd

What did others say in verse 48?

Even More

How did Bartimaeus respond to the crowd telling him to stop and be quiet?

Request

What was his request while he was calling out to Jesus?

Jesus

What did Jesus do in verse 49?

The Call

What did the people who told Bartimaeus that Jesus had called for him say to him?

Eager

What does verse 50 tell us about Bartimaeus and his faith?

Question

What did Jesus ask Bartimaeus?

Answer

What did Bartimaeus ask Jesus for?

Healing

What did Jesus do for Bartimaeus?

Response

How did Bartimaeus respond to being healed?

Keyword - Jesus

The Gospel of Mark is a biography of Jesus. As we would expect, He continues to be the main Character. Marking His Names helps us visually see everywhere He shows up.

Jesus Christ

Mark the Names of Jesus and references to Him in Mark 10:46-52.

Interpretation

Jericho

On this map you can see where Jericho was in the land of Israel in Jesus' day. At the top of the map you can see Capernaum where Jesus has spent so much time in the accounts in Mark. Further south along the route, almost to Jerusalem (where Jesus and the disciples are headed at the point in the story where we are in today's passage), is Jericho.

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Jesus of Nazareth

If you've been doing the other Inductive Bible Study plans from the book of Mark or know some of the accounts the Bible tells about Jesus, then stop and think about what kinds of things this blind man might have heard about Jesus. What are some of the miracles he might have heard about?

Title

What title does Bartimaeus use for Jesus when he calls to Him for help?

Son of David

By calling Jesus "Son of David," Bartimaeus was saying he believed that Jesus was the promised Messiah and Savior. This post explains more of the significance of that title.

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Confess the Lord Jesus

Just like Bartimaeus showed his faith by openly confessing that he believed Jesus was the Messiah, Romans 10:9 says that people who believe in Jesus today should confess Him openly as Lord.

Jesus Christ is Lord

What does Romans 10:9 say those who believe in Christ specifically confess about Him?

Hushed

The crowd tried to silence Bartimaeus as he was calling out to Jesus for help. What are some of the ways people today try to silence those who believe in Jesus and call out to Him for help?

Might Have Been

What do you think would have happened if Bartimaeus had given up because of what the people said or because he was embarrassed?

Time for Bartimaeus

What does it tell us about Jesus that in the middle of the huge crowd of people who were following Him and paying attention to Him, He not only noticed Bartimaeus, but stopped and made time for him?

Time for You

How could you use this story to help someone who didn't know whether God cared about them and their needs and requests?

Be of Good Cheer

In Mark 6:45-51 Jesus said the same things to the disciples when He greeted them that the people said to Bartimaeus in today's story when Jesus called for him. In fact, it is often given as instruction when Jesus comes to help.

Take Heart

Take a look at the word used to describe the reaction to Jesus' presence.

Cheer Up

What does it tell us about Jesus that His presence brings comfort and cheer?

Like Jesus

If Jesus being around brought comfort and cheer to people, what should a Christian's presence bring to the people around them?

Fun

So should a Christian try to scare, mock, or take advantage of people even for "fun"?

Why?

What are some of the reasons you think Jesus might have asked the man what he wanted instead of assuming what he would want?

What Do You Want?

In 1 Kings 3:5-14 God asked Solomon a similar question.

What We Want…

Just before today's passage, two of Jesus' disciples had made a request in Mark 10:35-45. Notice how different it is from Solomon's request.

The Difference

James 4:2-3 helps us understand the difference between these requests.

Two Reasons

What are the two reasons that most people don't have the things they want? (Of course, sometimes we do pray for something with good motives and God says wait or knows it wouldn't be best for some reason. That's why we always pray for God's will to be done even if it isn't the same as ours. Other passages explain this, but many of our desires fall under the two categories in James 4:2-3.)

Ask

Are there things that you want God to do for you that you haven't asked Him for in prayer?

Selfish

Are there things you've asked for and haven't gotten that now when you think about it were really selfish or sinful requests?

If Jesus Asked You

If Jesus asked you the same question He asked the blind man, what would you request?

Test

Apply the test from James 4. Is your request a godly to desire?

Praying

If it is, are you praying regularly and consistently for it like the man kept calling until Jesus called for him?

Faith

When Jesus healed people, He often mentioned their faith. How does prayer demonstrate faith?

The Only Way

Ephesians 2:8-9 shows how important faith is.

Impossible

Hebrews 11:6 adds to our understanding.

Important

How important is faith?

How Quickly?

How quickly was the man healed? Do you obey Jesus' words that quickly?

Real or Fake?

James 2:14-26 shows us how to tell the difference between real and fake faith.

What's the Difference?

What is the difference between real and fake faith?

Faith and Works

So, these verses say that works can't save you, only grace through faith can, but they also say that works do play a role. What role do works play in a Christian's life?

Bartimaeus' Faith

What did Bartimaeus do after Jesus healed him?

Follow Jesus

Some people just want Jesus to give them what they want so they can do their own thing their own way. Other people are ready to follow Him. How could you use today's story and the verses you've studied to explain the difference between these people?

Once More

Read Mark 10:46-52 once more in light of what you've studied in God's Word.

Jesus

What do these verses teach you about Jesus?

Prayer

What do these verses teach you about prayer?

Application

Real Faith

Bartimaeus wanted to see again, but he also believed in Jesus and wanted to follow Him. Have you confessed that Jesus is Lord and started following Him? If not, won't you start today?

Pray

What do you need to ask God for in prayer? How will you make sure you remember to pray for it faithfully?

Wrapup

Closing

We hope this study plan has encouraged you to believe in the Lord Jesus and pray in faith knowing that He can and wants to answer.

Feedback

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