What do you want me to do for you? (Matt. 20:32)
WHEN JESUS ASKED A QUESTION, the answer was never obvious and never to be taken for granted. Jesus and the multitude from Galilee were making the final ascent to Jerusalem for the Passover. Within a week, Jesus would be crucified, and the throng of excited supporters who accompanied Him would have changed their heavenly “Hallelujah” into the demonic “Crucify him!”
“Lord, Son of David, have mercy on us!” The blind men sitting by the roadside drew the hostility of the crowd with their loud shouting. To the assembly they seemed to be out of order, and their indecorum was ruining the mood of the moment. But rather than worrying about keeping up appearances, the crowd should have been considering the desperate words of the men and their use of the meaningful title “Son of David.”
Jesus’ question was addressed to the two men but may just as well have been addressed to the crowd: “What do you want me to do for you?” Did they want a conqueror to put down the rule of Rome, to restore the prosperity of Israel, and elevate the status of lowly Galileans? The two men answered as all of us should who are often blind to the larger purposes of God in our lives: “We want our sight.” To see Jesus and to understand His ways is what we need.
Determine what you want Him to do in you today, and ask.
Bill Beck, with wife Lisa and daughter Katie, enjoys life in the Black Hills of South Dakota.
