Misc. - "Praying Like Jesus" - Mark 1:35-39, Hebrews 5:7

“Praying like Jesus”

Mark 1:35-39.

Straight into opening illustration.

A burglar broke into a house one night. He shined his flashlight around looking for valuables, and when he picked up a CD player to place it in his sack, a strange, disembodied voice echoed from the dark saying, "Jesus is watching you,"

He nearly jumped out of his skin, clicked his flashlight out and froze. When he heard nothing more after a bit, he shook his head, promised himself a vacation after the next big score, then he clicked his light back on and began looking for more valuables.

Just as he pulled the stereo out so he could disconnect the wires he heard, Jesus is watching you."

Freaked out, he shinned his light around frantically, looking for the source of the voice. Finally, in the corner of the room, his flashlight beam came to rest on a parrot.

"Did you say that?" He hissed at the parrot.

"Yep, " the parrot confessed, then squawked, " I'm just trying to warn you."

The burglar relaxed. " Warn me, huh? Who are you?"

"Moses " the bird replied.

"Moses? " the burglar laughed. " What kind of stupid person would name a parrot Moses?"

The bird promptly answered "Probably the same kind of people that would name a Rotweiler "Jesus."

just like that bird, I’m hear to deliver a message.

tonight’s message may seem elementary.

It may seem convicting.

But it also points us to a man named Jesus.

Unpack the context of this chapter in Mark.

Lead into the outline:

1. Point One/ Adopting the Pattern of Jesus // Aligning to His Standard/ Jesus Standardizes Prayer//Discipline that was Modeled

Set this up with an illustration.

Michael Phelps, one of the most decorated athletes in Olympic history had an insane routine.

- 12,000 calories per day

- 13 km of swimming a day… that’s 8 miles.

that’s like swimming from here to the Food Lion in Pelzer… every day!

What i’ve learned is that I discipline is attaching my habits to a standard.

We say we want to do everything around here with excellence, so my habits here can’t be to take a siesta right after

My standard is: ______. It

It was standard for Jesus to pray… what were His habits though?

Discipline is aligning your actions to a set standard.

Michael Phelps’ standard was his diet and workout...

What standards did Jesus set?

a. Set the Standard of Patterned Prayer

He prayed in the morning

Mark 1:35 “35 And in the morning, rising up a great while before day, he went out, and departed into a solitary place, and there prayed.”

He prayed in the evening...

Matthew 14:23 “23 And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone.”

He prayed all night...

Luke 6:12 KJV 1900

12 And it came to pass in those days, that he went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.

Jesus follow a disciplined pattern of prayer, and didn’t buy into the lie of:

I have ministry to do.

I am too busy.

I have to sleep.

i don’t have time...

Why? Because obedience was more important than convenience.

So Jesus models what it looks like to have a disciplined prayer life by have a specific time and then also:

b. Set the Standard of Private Prayer

After Jesus woke up, the Bible says that He went to a “solitary place.”

Of the Scripture we have of Jesus praying, they have a common variable: Jesus went to a desolate, wilderness.

What does solitary place or wilderness mean?

The Greek word is “eremos” which means “quiet place.”

Why did Jesus go to a quiet place?

So that there would be no distractions!

Two things threaten our prayer life:

(1) Hurry

(2) iPhones - did you know that a study was done and the average smart phone user looks at their phone 262 times a day?

that’s once every 5.5 minutes

80% of people check their phone within the first 10 minutes of getting up

83% feel uneasy when they leave their phone somewhere else.

Think about what it’s doing to our souls, brother.

The idea of a private prayer life is to be present with God!

c. Set the Standard of Passionate Prayer

You may think I’m crazy, but one of my favorite things to do when I go to a sporting event is watching my team and my favorite player warm up.

It shows how good they really are.

In the warm ups, our favorite players can really put on a show!

Going to Can we pause for a minute?

Jesus prayed.

I believe He really put on a show when He prayed!

What did Jesus pray about?

He prayed for little children.

Matthew 19:13 “13 Then were there brought unto him little children, that he should put his hands on them, and pray: and the disciples rebuked them.”

He prayed for Peter’s faith to be strong

Luke 22:32 “32 But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.”

He prayed for His followers, and for those who believe in him (US!)

John 17:20 “20 Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;”

How did Jesus pray?

Hebrews 5:7–8 KJV 1900

7 Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared; 8 Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered;

He prayed with strong crying and tears...

Why? So that He would become the sympathetic High Priest.

Can you hear Jesus?

Please, Father, let these little children who sat in my lap… PLEASE let them get it!

Please, Father, don’t let the healed not know the Healer.

Please, LORD, let them

When is the last time you prayed with passion?

2. Prayer makes a Difference

Jesus, Jesus! All men seek for thee! All men are looking for You!

at this point, Jesus and the disciples were in a city called Capernaum. (Side note, every time I say this city name, I can feel my family giggling at me. One time I called it Cap-er-na-um… never gonna live that down :D )

He had healed a demonic man.

He healed Peter’s mother in law

The night before He preached and healed many (verse 34)

The disciples, Peter, didn’t exactly know what to do but

what difference does it make?

a. Makes a difference on my Expectations

Peter fully expected for them to stay in Capernaum.

“Let us go into the next towns...”

Spiritual things are greater than temporary things.

We can expect to live a long life, work hard, make a lot of money, and then retire at a beach somewhere.

While that may make sense for the way of the Lord, what if God has different plans for you?

Prayer will reveal that… prayer will change your expectations about your plans, but it will also change your expectations about people.

“Too often our prayers revolves around asking God to reduce the odds in our lives. We want everything in our favor. But maybe God wants to stack the odds against us so we can experience a miracle of divine proportions.” - In a pit with a lion on a snowy day

b. Makes a difference in my Participation

1. In Jesus’ earthly work.

Jesus says, “let’s not stay here, but let’s go to another town so i can do what the Father sent me to do.”

Why did Jesus say that?

He didn’t come to be crowned earthly king, He came to save the lost.

Isaiah 61:1–2 KJV 1900

1 The Spirit of the Lord God is upon me; Because the Lord hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; He hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, To proclaim liberty to the captives, And the opening of the prison to them that are bound; 2 To proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord, And the day of vengeance of our God; To comfort all that mourn;

In order to cooperate in the Lord’s work, we have to comply the Lord’s Word.

“Lewis went as far to say that someday we’ll be more grateful for the prayers that didn’t get answered than the ones that did. The reason for this is simple: many of our prayers are misguided. We pray for comfort instead of character. We pray for an easy way out instead of the strength to make it through.” - In a Pit with a lion on a snowy day

Hayden, I don’t know how to participate with Him.. idk what God is calling me to do yet. Have you tried starting with praying Scripture?

2. in Jesus’ Eternal work

What does Jesus do now?

The Bible says that Jesus is making intercession for us as our Advocate:

1 John 2:1 KJV 1900

1 My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:

Revelation 12:10 KJV 1900

10 And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.

We pray to God the Father, by God the Holy Spirit because of the authority of Jesus!

I heard a pastor use this illustration, but it hit home when Beckett did something similar a few weeks ago.

I try to get up around 5-5:30 each morning so I can spend time with the Lord, but that particular morning I got up and spent the first 15 minutes scrolling through emails and social media.

I went from that to a devotion on my phone for about 5 minutes… finished it, and then went right back to my phone… spent a little bit of time in prayer, and then the house started waking up.

Beckett was awake, so i went into his room as he was opening his eyes… then my man looked at me and said, “hold on pops, let me check social media.”

“Hold on dad, I need to run an errand.”

“Wait a sec, I’m really needed to return some texts.”

Nah… he looked at me and said, “Hey dada...”

As a dad, those words melted my heart… why should our heavenly Father deserve something different than us starting our day with “Good morning Father, I praise you!”

Conclusion:

Do you have a discipline of Prayer?

Do you have a relationship with Jesus?