Compassionate, Praying Jesus - Mark 1:30-39 Series

Mark 1:30 Simon’s mother-in-law was in bed with a fever, and they told Jesus about her. 31 So he went to her, took her hand and helped her up. The fever left her and she began to wait on them.

32 That evening after sunset the people brought to Jesus all the sick and demon-possessed. 33 The whole town gathered at the door, 34 and Jesus healed many who had various diseases. He also drove out many demons, but he would not let the demons speak because they knew who he was.

35 Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed. 36 Simon and his companions went to look for him, 37 and when they found him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!” 38 Jesus replied, “Let us go somewhere else—to the nearby villages—so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.”

39 So he traveled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons.

40 A man with leprosy came to him and begged him on his knees, “If you are willing, you can make me clean.” 41 Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” 42 Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cured. 43 Jesus sent him away at once with a strong warning: 44 “See that you don’t tell this to anyone. But go, show yourself to the priest and offer the sacrifices that Moses commanded for your cleansing, as a testimony to them.” 45 Instead he went out and began to talk freely, spreading the news. As a result, Jesus could no longer enter a town openly but stayed outside in lonely places. Yet the people still came to him from everywhere.

Introduction

Last week we saw Jesus’ awesome, staggering, absolute authority over everything and everyone. Is it a good thing or a bad thing to be under an authority like that? It depends. It depends on how wise he is and on how loving he is. If you have someone in charge who is foolish, or who is cruel, that’s a bad thing. But if the one who is in authority over you is loving and wise, that’s the best possible life. And when I say “best possible” – I mean that. It’s a lot better than being your own authority. Most people think they would be happiest if they could just be their own authority. They think, “If I could just call all my own shots in life, that the ideal situation.” That is dead wrong.

The fact is, we need a king because we are incapable of ruling ourselves. I am incapable of being my own king because I’m utterly unqualified for the position. I don’t have enough wisdom, I don’t know the future, I don’t control the future, I don’t love people enough, I don’t prize God’s glory enough, I make mistakes, I do dumb things – I’m a terrible candidate for the role of king over my own life. I’ve proved that a million times.

And yet what do I do? What do we all do? We all keep trying to climb up onto God’s throne and be king of our own lives. Why are we impatient and short with people? Why do we retract into ourselves and become oblivious to the needs of the people around us? Why are we so often selfish? It’s because we’re immersed in our own kingdoms.

Why do we get so uptight when someone stands in the way of what we’re trying to do? Is it because we’re concerned about God’s kingdom? No. If we’re honest, we’ll admit that most of our anger has absolutely nothing to do with God’s kingdom. Our anger has to do with our kingdom. I don’t want people to be obstructionist and hinder the agenda of king me.

I’m constantly jumping back and forth between two kingdoms: the kingdom of God and the kingdom of Darrell. The kingdom of Darrell is a place where Darrell Ferguson sits on the throne and expects his wife and kids and all the people around him – and the weather and circumstances and everything else to serve him and accommodate his preferences, and to adjust to his comfort and convenience.

And here’s the thing – the kingdom of self is not a happy place. The truth is, I hate my time in the kingdom of Darrell. Every hour I spend in that kingdom is miserable. The whole time I’m up on that throne, I’m annoyed. Somebody or something isn’t falling in line, and I feel slighted. There is momentary pleasure in that kingdom sometimes, but there’s no real happiness because when you fall into thinking that everything should go according to your will, it’s nothing but aggravating because the world doesn’t cooperate. And I don’t belong on the throne of anything because I don’t have omnipotent power to control things.