What Would Your Answer Be?

“And Jesus answered and said unto him, What wilt thou that I should do unto thee? The blind man said unto him, Lord, that I might receive my sight.” (Mr 10:51 AV)

What a question.  The blind man approached Jesus for a miracle.  One would think the answer to the question would be self-evident.  Yet the LORD asks anyway.  We do this to our children.  We require that they ask before their need is met.  This keeps the relationship within proper boundaries.  But this also begs another question.  Even though the answer to the question would seem self-evident, the answer was not a given.  Jesus asked a question that could have been answered with a multitude of responses.  The blind man could have asked for wealth.  He could have asked for long life.  He could have asked for more than his sight.  He could have asked for the privilege to follow Him.  The blind man could have asked for many different things.  Yet he sought only one desire.  Most of all, he wanted his sight.  This stirs a thought in the heart of the saint.  If the LORD asked us the same question, what would be our response?

This exercise is even more effective if we limit our answer to only one thing.  It only works if we examine our hearts while we produce that answer.  Instead of answering it as we know the LORD would have us do, answer it according to the honesty of our heart.  We know the right answer would be something like perfect Christlikeness.  But let's face it.  Most of us have more pressing concerns.  Some would ask for better health.  Some would ask for a financial windfall.  Others might ask for repaired relationships.  Still others might seek better accommodations.  There are careers to consider.  There is concern for our missionaries, our churches, and our country.  The list we compile is long.  All these things are not necessarily wrong to seek.  Some are commanded from scripture.  We are to pray for our leaders.  We are to pray for the lost.  We are to seek the LORD for forgiveness, wisdom, and humility.  The LORD teaches us to seek our daily bread, the heart to love others, and for God’s perfect will to be accomplished.  The list is a long one.  The blind man was asked, and only one answer came to his lips.

One might say that such an exercise is not productive or downright unfair.  Not really.  By asking, the LORD did not limit the answer to only one thing.  Jesus did not insert the words “one thing” in the question.  He asked a simple question.  What is it that I can do for you?  By asking, Jesus is requiring the blind man to prioritize his needs.  He is requiring the blind man to evaluate his needs and present the most pressing one at the moment.  In other words, if the LORD asked us that same question, where would our priorities fall?  What would be the most important thing to us?  This may change depending on present circumstances.  When a recovering patient is laying in extreme pain, his priority differs from the saint with a migraine who is sitting in a pew.  Their needs may be the same.  But to different degrees.  Therefore, if Jesus asked you that question, what would be your priority?