GREAT THINGS ENTERPRISE
CLAUDE BLACK
Mark 10:51
What Do You Desire?
It is interesting to see a situation from so many different perspectives. This week, many spectators are caught up in Super Bowl fever. Part of that excitement centers on sports betting. One televised commercial promotes betting, telling viewers where to place wagers and even providing the website address. Then, in a fleeting, one-second disclaimer, the announcer says, “If you have a gambling problem, call …” The announcer spends most of the commercial celebrating the thrill of sports betting—the excitement, the dancers, the singers—but concludes with the brief warning: “If you have a gambling problem, call …”
Jesus was leaving the city of Jericho on his way to Jerusalem when, as Mark records, a blind beggar called out to him. “And answering, Jesus said to him, ‘What do you want that I should do for you?’ And the blind man said to him, ‘Rabboni, that I may see.’” (Mark 10:51)
Depending on the observer, his need might be perceived differently. A philanthropist might see a need for clothing. Another might see a need for coins to fill his cup. Still another might see a need for food. All these needs were important to the man—and are to people in similar circumstances today—but Jesus asked what he truly desired. The man went straight to the heart of the matter: that he might see. The word Mark used can also be rendered “that I might see again.”
There are many wonderful philanthropic (philos, love + anthropos, mankind) programs today: Gamblers Anonymous, Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), food banks, clothing drives, and housing organizations. When Jesus asked what he needed, the answer was clear: he needed sight—he needed the intervention of divine power, a need that remains today.
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