We have a driver’s education instructor in our congregation. In his car, I presume, is an extra steering wheel and an extra brake. If a student is nervous – as I’m sure most of them are – when they drive the first time, he tells them, “Don’t worry. I’ll help you steer and brake.” A driver’s ed instructor can take over the car at any time.
Prayer helps remind us that God is in control of our lives, if we will let Him. When we allow God to take control, He will manage our lives much more efficiently than we ever could.
As we study the prayer life of Jesus in this lesson, I want to remind you that God can strengthen us as we struggle with keeping our priorities in order and as we – especially our young people – struggle with grasping God’s purpose for their lives.
THE CONTEXT OF MARK 1:35:
Mark only records three references to Jesus praying. This is the first one. The second is in Mark 6:46, after He feeds the 5,000 and just before He calms the first of two storms. The third is the famous prayer in the garden of Gethsemane, recorded in 14:32-39.
The context of Mark 1:35 begins back in verse 21. Jesus has called a few of His disciples, specifically Peter, Andrew, James, and John (1:16-20). These all go into Capernaum, where Jesus does a considerable amount of His miracles and teaching, and on the Sabbath day, He heals a man of demon possession. In a very tightly constructed chronology, in verse 29, Mark says that Jesus and His disciples left the synagogue and went into the house of Peter and Andrew, where Jesus heals Peter’s mother-in-law (1:29-32).
Notice at verse 32 that “evening came.” So the healings recorded in verses 32-34 all happened that very night. Then, the next morning (ver. 35 – our text), Jesus arose early in the morning, while it was still dark, and He left the house, went to a secluded place, and was praying there. We do not know what Jesus was praying for; His words are not recorded, again. But, He has been busy. He’s shown His power over Satan, through the exorcism. He’s shown His power over disease by healing Peter’s mother-in-law and various other people.
WHAT MIGHT JESUS HAVE PRAYED FOR?
I want to suggest two things for which Jesus may have prayed, but I really want to focus on how we can and should pray for these things in our lives and in the lives of our spouse and our friends…
- Might Jesus have prayed for His priorities? What was Jesus’ priorities? Was His priority to heal the sick? Well, in fact – no. Verse 38 (Mark 1) relates that Jesus came to earth to preach. It would have been easy for Him to get caught up in the hub-bub and popularity of healing people who were sick! We know from John’s account that after He fed the 5,000, the people wanted to take Him by force and make Him king! (6:14-15) Now, someone who was ruled by the flesh could have easily have accepted that popularity and run with it!
So, let’s pray for our priorities. Men, pray for our wife’s priorities. Because your wife – as you know – will often put others before herself. And that will drain her physically, emotionally, mentally, and even spiritually.
- Might Jesus have prayed about His purpose? Jesus said, “For I did not speak on My own initiative, but the Father Himself who sent Me has given Me a commandment as to what to say and what to speak” (John 12:49). Jesus came to do the will of the Father. That was His ultimate purpose and I suspect that Jesus prayed on a regular basis to keep His proper purpose in front of Him at all times.
We need to pray that we will be what God created us to be. And that we can and will change as we need to change. We know we need to change sometimes and we know it’s going to be hard. But we need to pray that God will work in our lives and help us to change so we can fulfill that purpose for which God has created us.
Pray God will help you have the right priorities in life and that you will fulfill the purpose God has designed you to fulfill.
Paul Holland
