The Priority of Jesus

Introduction

Have you ever said something like: “I’m too busy that I just don’t have time for _________”? Busyness is one of our favorite excuses to use when it comes to justifying what we have done and what we have not done. However, busyness does not necessarily mean that you are doing the right things. You may be doing many good things in your busyness, but you see, good things become bad things when they keep us from doing the best things. Busyness is about doing many things with a sense of urgency due to time constraints. Your agenda is controlled by the urgent or immediate. There’s just not enough time in the day to do what needs to be done, we claim.

Often we believe we have a time problem. But our problem isn’t usually a shortage of time. It is most often what we do with our time; with how we use it. The true issue we have actually has to do with our priorities, not with our time and busyness.

What are our priorities? Are we merely doing many good things by being busy? Or are we doing the best things because our agenda is controlled by our priorities rather than by our busyness?

Jesus Christ was unbelievably the busiest person in human history. Despite Jesus’ busyness, He kept His priorities straight. This is abundantly evident in the verses we’ve looked at over the past couple of Sundays we spent in Mark’s Gospel and with the verses we will consider today as we continue in chapter one. Starting in verse 21, we’ve been following Jesus as He faces a long day, which is about to get even longer. Between verse 21 and verse 38 of Mark chapter 1, Mark takes us through a very busy 24 hours in the life of Jesus. It began on the morning of the Sabbath in the synagogue, where Jesus taught and then cast out a demon. The day continued into the afternoon as Jesus went into Peter’s home and healed Peter’s mother-in-law of her fever. And in the passage we will consider today, this day will continue on late into the evening and then on into the early hours of the following morning.

So, open with me to Mark chapter 1 verses 32 to 39. It’s in these verses that we see Jesus’ agenda driven by His ministry priorities.

The Word of God reads:

Mark 1:32–34 ESV

32 That evening at sundown they brought to him all who were sick or oppressed by demons. 33 And the whole city was gathered together at the door. 34 And he healed many who were sick with various diseases, and cast out many demons. And he would not permit the demons to speak, because they knew him.

Mark 1:35–37 ESV

35 And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed. 36 And Simon and those who were with him searched for him, 37 and they found him and said to him, “Everyone is looking for you.”

Mark 1:38–39 ESV

38 And he said to them, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out.” 39 And he went throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons.

In his recording of this busy day in the life of our Lord, Mark draws our attention to three priorities of Jesus’ early ministry in Galilee. People, preaching, and prayer.

We’ve considered already how Jesus has prioritized people in His ministry. In the synagogue, He delivered a man who was possessed by an unclean spirit. And two Sundays ago, we saw Him compassionately care for a woman suffering from a fever. This compassionate care for the sick and suffering continues on into the later hours on that Saturday in Capernaum, as the sun sets and the Sabbath is officially ended. It was a rabbinical law that on the Sabbath no Jew could work or carry any sort of burden, even if it was for a good cause: like carrying your sick loved one to a physician. So, once the sun sets, people from all over the city flock to Peter’s home to be healed from their diseases, minor or major, or to be freed from demon possession. It’s safe to say that one of Jesus’ priorities in ministry was people. He showed people compassion by curing many from diseases and casting out many demons.

We’ve also considered already how Jesus has prioritized preaching in His ministry in Galilee. Jesus preached the gospel from God continuously in Galilee.

Mark 1:15 ESV

15 and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”

And in verses 21 and 22, we saw Him teach the Word of God in the synagogue on that Sabbath morning with authority, which left people thunderstruck. The following day, Sunday, we read at the end of our present text in Mark that He desired to go and preach throughout the rest of Galilee, “for that is why [He] came out.” I take that to mean, not just why He left Capernaum that morning, but why He came into this world. Yes, He came to serve and He came to suffer to ransom many. But, Jesus came also to preach. Before Jesus purchased salvation on the cross for sinners, He came preaching it to sinners.

These two priorities of Jesus, people and preaching, repeatedly show up in Mark’s Gospel. Almost every part of Mark’s Gospel involves Jesus attending to people or preaching the gospel to people. Jesus, again and again, pours Himself out on others. Early that Sabbath day and then late into the evening, Jesus emptied Himself for the sake of others.

The third priority of Jesus’ ministry, which we see in verse 35, is prayer. Unlike the other priorities of people and preaching, interestingly there are only three instances in Mark’s Gospel where we find Jesus praying. The first instance is here in Mark 1:35, where Jesus’ ministry is being defined. The second instance is in Mark 6:46, right after the feeding of the five thousand. John’s Gospel tells us that at this moment Jesus:

John 6:15 ESV

15 Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.

It was there on that mountain where He would spend the late hours of the day praying.

And the third instance is in Mark 14:32-42, where Jesus was in Gethsemane the night of His betrayal. All three prayers are recorded by Mark at crucial points in Jesus’ life. The setting for each prayer time was in a secluded place while it was dark. And each prayer time either immediately follows or precedes a clash with the demonic, with the desires of man, or with the distress of impending death.

Because of the rarity of Jesus praying in Mark’s Gospel, I want us to focus entirely on this priority of Jesus today. The other two priorities, people and preaching, will keep popping up again and again, but Jesus’ prayer life is unique in this Gospel, therefore it is worth considering at length today.

It is important that we understand that Jesus was busy pouring Himself out for the sake of others. Yet, despite His busyness with people and preaching, Jesus prioritized prayer. He has emptied Himself out for the good of others, but now we will see that He filled Himself up in the presence of His Father through prayer. At the core of our passage today, we see that:

Theme: Jesus’ priority was to draw near to His Father in prayer.

Jesus was extremely busy in His ministry. Despite being so busy, He prioritized prayer. He understood, as we too must understand, that He was too busy not to pray.

Although Mark does not go into great detail concerning the content of Jesus’ prayer, with the help of the surrounding context, as well as the other prayers of Christ, I believe we can answer two important questions that will help us understand why Jesus prioritized prayer and why we should too.

1. When Did Jesus Pray?

The first question we may ask and can answer is: When did Jesus pray?

Mark tells us:

Mark 1:35 ESV

35 And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed.

Aside from the obvious, that it was way early in the morning before sunrise, probably between the hours of 3 am and 6 am on Sunday morning, there are four observations I want you to see, which will help us see that Jesus prioritized prayer and at the same time answer when Jesus prayed.

A. Jesus prayed when He was tired.

Number one, notice that Jesus prayed when He was tired. He has just had a busy Sabbath without a moment to Himself. He has spent and emptied Himself caring for people. From personal experience, I know that Jesus was probably exhausted just from teaching in the synagogue. But I cannot imagine how weary He would have been having cured many diseases and cast out many demons! In Mark chapter 5, a woman merely touches the hem of His cloak and He feels power leave His body. Now multiply that by hundreds of cases that were coming to Him for deliverance from pain or demon possession. Certainly, Jesus was tired. Certainly He deserved a good night’s sleep. We’d expect Him to even sleep in the following morning, wouldn’t we?

However, that is not what He did. He arose early in the morning in order to pray. And this was precisely when Jesus knew He needed to pray. Instead of sleeping in to find rest and be rejuvenated for ministry, Jesus woke up early and went out to pray, for that was how He knew He could be renewed to face the pressures and strain of His ministry.

B. Jesus prayed when He was triumphant.

Number two, notice that Jesus prayed when He was triumphant. He has just had a successful day of ministry. A day where He cured many diseases of various kinds and cast out many demons. He was a hit with the masses for His marvelous words and miraculous works.

It was on the coattails of this success that He chose to pray. Instead of allowing success to get to His head, He went to His knees. Before pride could swell in His chest, Jesus humbled Himself in prayer.

C. Jesus prayed when He was tested.

Number three, notice that Jesus prayed when He was tested. This isn’t as obvious from the text, but in all probability Jesus was tested and tempted as a result of His successes and victories. Remember that Jesus Christ is fully God. “In Him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily,” Paul wrote in Colossians 2:9. But Jesus is also fully man. As such, Jesus was temptable. Temptation doesn’t just come during seasons of drought and failure, in the low valleys when things are going bad. Many times, temptation comes during or following successes and triumphs, on the mountain top when things are going good. Jesus’ popularity was growing and no doubt this was tempting His commitment to God and His mission.

What did Jesus do? Did He take His success and run with it? Maybe publish an instant bestseller entitled: “Miracle Worker: An Autobiography of the Greatest Healer and Most Powerful Man”? Did He set up a booth outside Peter’s home with a sign that read: “Healing and Exorcisms” with a menu that broke down the cost of the services He provided? 5 denarii to heal a fever, 7 for a head cold, 20 to cast out a single demon, 50 for multiple demons? No! Jesus left the city, got away from the place of temptation, and found a spot to pray, not resting in His own laurels but desiring to find rest in the presence of His Father.

D. Jesus prayed when it was timely.

And number four, notice that Jesus prayed when it was timely. That is to say, Jesus prayed at an opportune time. No one else in Simon’s house was awake yet. The city had gone back to their homes. Before the day began, Jesus carved out a portion of time to pray while He had the time.

Jesus didn’t make any excuses. I’m too tired to pray. It’s too early to pray. I’m too busy to pray. There isn’t time to pray. The house is too full of people to pray. No, Jesus made time to pray. No excuses. It was a priority to Him and necessary for His ministry. It meant that He had to lose a couple of hours of sleep, but to Jesus prayer was worth it.

Before we move on from this first question, let me address this question to each of us here. When do you pray? Do you prioritize, as Jesus did, when you pray? Allow me to offer four applications for you.

First, pray when you are weary, worn out, and tired. There is no better opportunity for you to be refreshed and renewed by God! After a hard day of work, a long day with your kids, or a day full of helping other people, rest in the presence of the Lord through prayer. As Isaiah says,

Isaiah 40:29–31 ESV

29 He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. 30 Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; 31 but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

Second, pray when you are experiencing success. Don’t neglect your prayer life simply because nothing bad is happening to you at the moment! Pray when things are all well and good for you. Go to the Psalms and see how many times one of the psalmists would pray during or on the heels of great success. Pray when the sun is shining and when the birds are singing! Pray when all is well with your soul.

Third, pray when you are being tried or when you are being tempted. Recognize your need to pray. You are never more in need of prayer than when you are experiencing success and great victories in life. When things are going well for this church— the building is full on Sundays, people are being baptized, and the saints are maturing— that is the time to prioritize prayer. When things are going well in your home— your marriage is growing strong, your kids are growing in grace, your family is prospering— take time to pray. When your financial situation is positive— your checkbook is balanced, your bank account is in the green, or you’ve paid off a recent debt— go to the Lord in prayer. When you are experiencing the blessings of your relationship with the Lord— your Bible reading is sweet, your prayers are being answered, or your awareness of God’s goodness is heightened— prioritize prayer.

Church, if we do not respond to our successes with prayer, then our successes are likely to ruin us. Success will skew your perspective and will lead to compromise in your faith. Success can give you a sense of self-sufficiency, pride, and irreverence as God is pushed to the outskirts of your life. You’ll start living a comfortable life rather than a Christ-centered, cross-driven life. All of this can happen because we will have a false sense and source of identity. The antidote to arrogance, to irreverence, and faith-less living is to pray. Prayer on the heels of success, reminds us of our insufficiency.

And fourth, pray when it is timely. In other words, take time to pray because it is always timely to pray! Prayer is never out of season. Be intentional in your drawing near to God’s presence through prayer. Whether that’s at a specific, scheduled time in your day or sporadically throughout your day, take the time to pray. Don’t make the excuse that you’re too tired, you don’t have enough time, you’re too busy, or it isn’t the right time.

Martin Luther once said, “I have so much to do that if I didn’t spend at least three hours a day in prayer, I would never get it all done.” Martin understood the priority of prayer for the vitality of his ministry, just as Jesus did. In fact, I would go so far as to say that your ministry to people in need and your proclamation of the gospel to the lost will only go as far, wide, deep, and high as your prayer life. The question for us Christians to answer is not, “Do you pray?” The question we must answer is, “When do you pray?” If we do not prioritize prayer we will find ourselves forced to pray. We will pray. The question is when will we pray? Prayer is a priority. It is the Christian’s true worship and real work.

2. For What Did Jesus Pray?

Now onto the second question we may ask and answer: For What Did Jesus Pray?

This question is not as easily answered as the first. Mark does not offer us a glimpse at the content of Jesus’ prayer time that early Sunday morning. We don’t have a copy of Jesus’ prayer journal and the list of requests He made. But, based upon the surrounding context of verses, I believe we can construct a pretty good framework of three requests Jesus might have prayed for as He knelt in dark seclusion.

A. He prayed for power.

The first request Jesus probably made was for power. Remember, He’s just had a very long day of ministry. He’s drained physically, emotionally, perhaps spiritually. He needed to renew His strength in order to continue His ministry for the coming day.

At the very heart of prayer is the idea of dependence. Prayer is the acknowledgment that I am not sufficient, that I am not able to independently do something, that I need something from God. Prayer is the confession of need, the admission of weakness, and the declaration of dependence. Jesus, because He took on human flesh, needed to depend upon His Father for everything. Because He took on flesh, Jesus was susceptible to fatigue, emotional, physical, and spiritual strain and exhaustion, as well as discouragement. That’s why He went out to pray.

Jesus depended upon His Father for strength. If He was going to press on in His ministry and continue to preach, heal, and cast out demons, He needed His strength to be renewed. Jesus knew that He had to draw near to His Father to find the power He required for further ministry. So Jesus probably prayed for power.

B. He prayed for perspective.

The second request Jesus might have made was for perspective. I gather that from verses 36 and 37, where the disciples are looking for Him.

Mark 1:36–37 ESV

36 And Simon and those who were with him searched for him, 37 and they found him and said to him, “Everyone is looking for you.”

On the surface, it appears that these disciples are doing a noble thing by searching for Jesus as if they desired to be in His presence, to enjoy His fellowship because they missed Him. However, digging a little deeper, we discover that their intentions were not as noble as we might think.

First of all, the verb translated “searched” at the end of verse 36 carries negative connotations. The word has a sense of hostility and implies impatience as it means “to hunt or pursue”. It’s as if the disciples woke up that morning, saw that Jesus wasn’t on the couch where they left Him, and now they are in a panic because He has left without telling them where He went.

Additionally, verse 37 clarifies that their intentions for seeking Jesus really were not so noble. The city had started to awake, the crowds were returning to Peter’s home, and people were demanding to see Jesus the Miracle Worker. Look carefully at what the disciples say to Jesus: “Everyone is looking for you.” This is not them saying, “Lord, we miss you. We want to be with you. Teach us so that we can learn something today.” No, this was essentially a complaint from these panicked men. “Jesus, don’t you know you’re needed back in the city? You’re a pretty popular guy now. You can’t just wonder off like that! You gave us a heart attack! Don’t let this moment go to waste! If you come back with us and keep performing miracles you’re sure to see more people flock to you! Don’t embarrass us in front of everyone.”

The disciples, to say the least, had a pretty skewed perspective of Jesus and His ministry at this point in time. But, Jesus’ response to them in verse 38 sets them straight.

Mark 1:38 ESV

38 And he said to them, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out.”

In other words, the disciples are not the ones who get to dictate the direction of the Kingdom of God. The King has the only right to do that. And that is what I suggest Jesus prayed to His Father for. He prayed for perspective. He prayed for direction.

In the midst of success and celebration by others, this early on in His ministry, Jesus could have easily been tempted to lose His focus on His Father’s mission for Him. Or even worse, Jesus could have been tempted to lose sight of His Father. At that point, He might have been tempted to do His ministry His own way, by His own strength, and cast His own vision for His rapid growing ministry. But, instead, Jesus taught His disciples about His dependence upon His Father and His Father’s will. We can see this in John’s Gospel,

John 8:28–29 ESV

28 So Jesus said to them, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me. 29 And he who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to him.”

Jesus didn’t allow success or popularity to skew His perspective. He went to His Father in prayer to depend upon Him and to seek His direction for the future of His ministry. He wanted everything He did to please His Father.

C. Jesus prayed for perseverance.

And the third prayer request that Jesus might have made was for perseverance. This has to do with Jesus’ devotion to His Father’s mission for Him. He needed perspective to align the direction of His ministry with the Father’s desires, but Jesus also needed perseverance in His devotion to fulfill His Father’s desires and stick to His priorities. Simply put, Jesus prayed that He would keep on keeping on.

Let me show you how it is very plausible, if not certain, that Christ prayed for perseverance on that early Sunday morn.

First, consider what Jesus told His disciples once they found Him.

Mark 1:38 ESV

38 And he said to them, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out.”

So, at this point, Jesus’ prayer request for perspective is answered by His Father. He is not going to be distracted from His true mission. Staying in Capernaum to be a Miracle Worker would have done some good for those in the city, but the Father’s purposes were bigger than one small city receiving health benefits. Jesus is determined to press on throughout the rest of Galilee, proclaiming the gospel to the lost. Whatever doubts or distractions that would have slowed or stopped Jesus from accomplishing His Father’s mission at this point in His ministry are removed. Jesus’s devotion is intensified.

Second, if you study the other prayers of Jesus in the four Gospels, you’ll find that perseverance, determination, and devotion are at the center of most. One prime example of such a prayer can be found in Christ’s prayer in the garden of Gethsemane. Mark records Jesus conversing with His disciples that night.

Mark 14:34–36 ESV

34 And he said to them, “My soul is very sorrowful, even to death. Remain here and watch.” 35 And going a little farther, he fell on the ground and prayed that, if it were possible, the hour might pass from him. 36 And he said, “Abba, Father, all things are possible for you. Remove this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”

Basically, Jesus prayed for perseverance in His Father’s will despite the imminent future that was distressing Him to the point of sweating drops of blood. Matthew’s Gospel account of this same prayer in Gethsemane adds further clarification.

Matthew 26:42 ESV

42 Again, for the second time, he went away and prayed, “My Father, if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.”

The emphasis of Jesus’ prayer request in both instances in the garden was that God’s will would be done and that He would be fully devoted to God’s will.

It seems that whenever Jesus prayed, the cross was always looming on the horizon for Him. Certainly at the night of His arrest was His most intense vision of the cross as He prayed. But, even back in Mark chapter one, outside of Capernaum, Jesus’ eyes, as He prayed for proper perspective, were directed to the cross to come.

Once Jesus’ prayer time ended, what do we see Him doing next?

Mark 1:39 ESV

39 And he went throughout all Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and casting out demons.

In other words, Jesus continued to press on closer to the cross. His proclamation of the gospel, not His miraculous works, would ultimately get Him killed. From Capernaum to the cross, Christ persevered in full devotion to His Father’s will without wavering. It is at the cross where the Father’s will for Jesus’ ministry would come to a climax. On the cross, the Father would forsake His own Son as Jesus took the place of sinners, who through faith have their sins imputed to Him and His righteousness is imputed to them. And then, in His final breath on the cross, Christ would pray to His Father saying, “Into Your hands I commit My Spirit.” The perfect summation of how Jesus prayed throughout His entire life. Then He died on that cross. He was buried. But on the third day, Jesus would rise again from the dead, and later ascend into heaven to intercede and advocate on behalf of His people. Even in heaven, Jesus is still saving sinners today. And a major reason for this is all because He prayed early in the morning, while it was still dark, outside the city of Capernaum.

Because of the cross of Christ, you and I have the privilege to pray today.

What should we be praying for? Well, I can think of no better prayer requests for which to pray than those of Jesus.

Pray for power. Run to the Lord Jesus in prayer depending upon His strength to give you strength, to grant you humility in times of success, to guard your heart from sin, and to ground you in His ways.

Pray for perspective. Ask the Lord for insight into your identity in Jesus Christ that you might know who you are, what direction your life should take and what His purpose for your life is. As you pray this, be sure to spend time in God’s Word, for it is there that God will reveal to you the direction you should go. It is in His Word that the Lord answers your prayers for aligning your perspective and priorities with His will.

And pray also for perseverance. Don’t just pray for power. Don’t just pray for perspective. Pray for perseverance that you would use the power God gives you and the direction He reveals to you in order to devote yourself completely to pursuing His will. Pray that you would stay committed to Christ. Pray that as you take up your cross to follow after Him that you would be like Jesus in this matter. Determined and devoted to the Father’s purposes no matter what the outcome.

Conclusion

How busy are you really? What are your priorities? Are you too busy to pray? Jesus pretty well shatters any excuse you could make. The problem isn’t busyness or a shortage of time. It’s an issue of priorities.

Jesus was busier than you’ll ever be and yet He stuck to His priorities. His priorities controlled His agenda. And thus, He prayed because it was a high priority to Him despite His busy schedule, despite His tiredness, despite His victories, despite all the distractions that would have yanked Him away and sidetracked Him from His true purpose and mission to serve and to save sinners.

The disciples that day learned a valuable lesson regarding priorities. And we too learn that when we prioritize prayer we are being conformed to the image of our Master. What a privilege we have to pray. What a priority prayer ought to be to us! Because through prayer we can “draw near [to God] with a true heart in full assurance of faith” (Heb. 10:21); a faith that is trusting in Jesus Christ.

Let us never make the excuse that we are too busy to pray. In reality, we are too busy not to pray.