Jesus’ Private Prayer Life - Mark 1:35-39 Series

Mark 1:35 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.

Should We Imitate Jesus’ Prayer Life?

Review

We left off last time at Peter’s house in Capernaum in the middle of the night. Earlier that day Jesus had preached in the synagogue and then cast out a demon right there in the synagogue. Then he went to Peter’s house and healed Peter’s mother-in-law, and then after it got dark out, the whole city of Capernaum showed up at Peter’s house with all their sick and demonized. And Jesus healed every one of them – but not all at once. Each one, individually, he touched them and healed them and then moved on to the next one. He started after dark, and he kept going until he had healed them all and cast out every demon. And after everyone was gone, he finally went to sleep. But he didn’t sleep long.

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.

Description

So let’s imagine that scene. Everyone in the house is fast asleep, including Jesus. But then Jesus wakes, and he’s got something on his mind – something important. Something that requires more than just thinking it through. It’s something he needs to work through with the Father. This is something that requires intensive prayer.

So Jesus quietly slips out of bed, puts on some clothes, and steps outside. In the days before electric lights, the city is completely dark and quiet. He makes his way through the deserted, pitch-black streets of Capernaum and keeps walking until he comes out into the open fields outside of town. The demons who had been so painfully banished from Capernaum the night before shudder as they see their worst nightmare now coming out where they are. But he’s not coming after them this time.

Beyond the fields are some hills. And as Jesus gets up into the hills, there’s a hollow in the hillside up ahead that’s hidden from view. He sees that and thinks, That’s where I can meet with the Father without anyone interrupting.

Why didn’t Jesus just pray on the walk out there? I’m sure he did, but he needed more time than that. This was an extended time of prayer – the kind you can’t do just lying in bed for 10 minutes, or even going for a long walk.

Meeting God in the Desert

It says he went to a solitary place. That’s the word for desert or wilderness, which is a little strange, because there is no desert in that area. It was lush, green, cultivated land. But Mark uses this word to describe a secluded place because he wants us to connect the dots in our minds between this and the last time Mark used this word which was back in verses 12-13 to describe the place where Jesus was tested by Satan.

The place where God’s presence is most available and the place where Satan attack’s us the most is very often the same place. Israel had a long history with the desert, both as a place of testing, and also a place of meeting with God. It’s where they were tested for 40 years, but it was also the place where they got the 10 Commandments. It was the place where God led them with a pillar of fire and smoke. It’s where Elijah met with God when he was running for his life.

So Jesus is running on very little sleep, but he gets up way before dawn and takes this long walk to a secluded place to pray, because he’s got something really big on his heart that he needs to work through with the Father. What was it? Was on his mind? What did he pray about? Mark doesn’t tell us. Mark doesn’t tell us what Jesus prayed. What Mark wants us to know is that Jesus prayed, and what time it was and where Jesus went to do it. The Holy Spirit didn’t distract us with the content of Jesus’ prayer, because he wanted us to focus on the fact that Jesus prayed, and the circumstances.

The Various Kinds of Prayer

So let’s do that. Let’s see what we can learn about this particular kind of prayer. It’s important to realize that there are different kinds of prayer for different purposes. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 teaches us to pray without ceasing. All through the day your conscious of God and you offer those quick little 10 or 20-second prayers about whatever’s going on - an ongoing conversation. That’s one kind of prayer.