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![What Do You Long For?](http://imgur.com/UhI2C.jpg)

***What Do You Long For?***  
**Notes from a talk presented by [Jonathan Singh](mailto:jonathansamuelsingh@gmail.com)**

*(Activity: List out 5 things that you most long for in your life)*

###James & John
####Reference: [Mark 10:35-45](http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark%2010:35-45&version=NIV)

**What did James and John long for?**
> They longed to sit at the right and left of Jesus in his Glory (Kingdom).

**What do you think they meant?**

Jews hold the view that the Messiah will be a King from David's line associated with a specific series of events that have not yet occurred, including the return of Jews to their homeland and the rebuilding of The Temple; an era of peace and understanding during which the knowledge of God fills the earth.

James and John, I presume, were expecting the same and wanted to be neIxt to him. They thought that God’s kingdom would begin on earth immediately. It was like a request for an important job in government.

But Jesus replies saying: "**You do not know what you are asking for**". Jesus says: "**Can you drink?**", and they replied: "**We can**". They asked this with all there heart even though they didn't understand the true meaning of what Jesus said until after Jesus' resurrection. But they just wanted to be with Jesus after hearing from Him and seeing all that he had done. They didn’t even ask what he meant.

Then Jesus said to them: "**You will drink the cup I drink and be baptized with the baptism I am baptized with, but to sit on my right and left is not for me to grant.**"

**The image of the cup is important.**
[Psalm 23](http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=psalm%2023&version=NIV) - (Cup of Joy and Favor) 
[Jeremiah 25](http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=jeremiah%2025&version=NIV) and [Matthew 26](http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=matthew%2026&version=NIV) - In the Garden of Gethsemane and in 
Jeremiah (Cup of Wrath and Death).

Christ is going on with his undertaking for the salvation of mankind. He was, is, and will be the wonder of all his disciples. Worldly honor is a glittering thing, with which the eyes of Christ's own disciples have many times been dazzled. Our care must be that we may have wisdom and grace to know how to suffer with him; and we may trust him to provide what the degrees of our glory shall be. Christ shows them that dominion was generally abused in the world.

If Jesus gratifies all our desires, it would soon appear that we desire fame or authority, and are unwilling to taste of his cup, or to have his baptism. But he loves us, and will only give his people what is good for them and much more than they expect. The image of the cup here is life and suffering and death. James and John both did suffer ultimately. James dies a Martyr ([Acts 12:2](http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts%2012:2&version=NIV)). 
John was forced to live in exile.

***They both suffered and were heavily persecuted but at the same time 
they had the favor of God.***
***

Next you see the disciples angered with James and John and they get 
into a squabble. But Jesus tells all of them that they are missing 
the point. If they want to follow him, they cannot lord it over 
others, they cannot dominate others, and they cannot try to be in 
control or make their authority felt like emperors or generals or 
presidents.

If you want to share my life, Jesus says, you have to become a 
servant, and serve people 
Matthew 16

In other words, Jesus asks us to Long to serve people, to give our 
lives in proclaiming the Gospel.

C. Bartimaeus : Mark 10:46-52

1.	What did Bartimaeus long for? Bartimaeus longed to see…(There’s an 
irony here. He could see even though he physically couldn’t) 
2.	Do you think Jesus didn’t know that?

Look at Bartimaeus's perseverance in verse :48

Bartimaeus knew Jesus was the messiah as we can read…. 
He believed and he had faith …which comes from….hearing the Word of 
God (Romans 10:17)

We are Justified by faith - Romans 5 & Gal. 2:16, 
Ephesians 2 :8 and 9

Romans 10:17 - Faith comes through the word of Christ. 
From this passage we can understand that Bartimeaus longed to hear the 
Word of God.

We must Long to hear the Word of God. We must long to SEE, no matter 
how much people put us down.

D. Romans 12:2 
Paul focuses on one essential means of transformation—“the renewal of 
your mind.” “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by 
the renewal of your mind.”

•	Paul says, “Do not be conformed to this world.” But at the same time 
Paul says, please everyone

1 Corinthians 9:22 -To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have 
become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might 
save some. 
1 Corinthians 10:32&33 - Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, 
Greeks or the church of God ,even as I try to please everybody in 
every way.

•	Andrew Walls, in his book, The Missionary Movement In Christian 
History says, We are INDIGENOUS (Native)-we are in the world yet 
we are PILGRIMS (Strangers)-not of the world 
John 17 :14-16

We can even look at it this way, we accept the Gospel no matter what 
our culture is. The Gospel is accepted all over the world in different 
places, different cultures but once we accept it and begin to 
understand it , we realize that it corrects us and shows us the 
various aspects that are not right with just our culture but also 
ourselves. We soon begin to feel like we are strangers in this world 
made for another Kingdom.

•	We ADAPT yet we CONFRONT

1 Thess 4:11and 12 
Ephesians 5:6

Romans 12:2 is!

•	If you long to break loose from CONFORMITY to the world, 
•	If you long to be TRANSFORMED and new from the inside out, 
•	If you long to be free from mere DUTY-DRIVEN CHRISTIANITY and do 
what you love to do because what you love to do is 
to do what you ought to do. 
•	If you long to offer up your body as a LIVING SACRIFICE so that your 
whole life becomes a spiritual act of worship and 
displays the worth of Christ above the worth of the world. 
•	If you long to BE WITH CHRIST

Then give yourself with all your might to pursuing this—the RENEWAL OF 
YOUR MIND. Because the Bible says, this is the key to transformation.

Titus 3:5 
The Holy Spirit renews the mind. It is first and decisively his work. 
We are radically dependent on him.

E. Now go back to your sheet and check again if you really Long the 
things you listed out.

Do you long to become a leader, to out do your friends in college or 
to outperform your colleagues at work? Do you long to be cool…hang out 
with friends who are cool in the eyes of the world or do you long to 
serve God, hear from His word and just be with Him?

(Photo by [stuckincustoms](http://www.flickr.com/photos/stuckincustoms/2288245961/))

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