The Desolate Place, v.35

Consider your longest, most difficult day in recent weeks. When it was all said and done and you put your head on the pillow that night, were you hoping to sleep in the next morning, or were you hoping to “rise very early in the morning, while it was still dark” in order to “go out to a desolate place to pray”?

Recall Jesus’ long day in verses Mark 1:21-34. The busiest Sabbath of all! And the very next morning, before the sun even rose, He was out there alone and praying—something we’ll see him doing throughout his ministry.

Does that sound like you? During these difficult times, I’m sure we’re all experiencing bursts of activity and spurts of laziness. One week, in fact, I wrote thousands or words and read four books to boot, but then the very next week I got caught up in board games and didn’t write or read more than a few pages. Your habits may differ from mine, but whatever your habits are during this pandemic, consider this with me: how often have I stepped away to pray? It’s precisely what Jesus would have done.

You know, the Bible is filled with “wilderness experiences,” those times of forced or intentional desolation, like what we see in v.35. At the beginning of this pandemic, a friend of mine wrote to me about some such examples from both the Old and New Testaments, noting that these wilderness experiences had been learning examples for the Jews and growth or recovery opportunities for Jesus. Then he concluded, “How we respond to this time of social distancing and sheltering in place will say a lot about us.”

I don’t know about you, but what it’s saying about me is that I have not been following the prayer example of Jesus very well. And I wonder why? I feel like I’m getting so much done! I’ve crafted lists of activities for people to do while stuck in their homes, and I’ve been doing them myself. But I haven’t been praying more often or more deeply, despite that fact that I know I must. So when I see Jesus here never seeking an excuse to pray less, I’m convicted.

Jesus’ Purpose, v.36-39

The passage then tells us that Simon and the rest of his followers came looking for Jesus, as if by praying alone He was ignoring his real ministry: “Everyone is looking for you,” they say in verse 37, with the implied, “They want you back out there teaching and healing!” But don’t you think Jesus knew better? If Jesus weighed the options of prayer v. ministry and He chose prayer, doesn’t that say a lot about the importance of prayer over active ministry? Again, I’m convicted.

These followers of Jesus weren’t the Twelve, since they hadn’t all yet been called (see Ch. 2), yet Jesus takes those who are willing “to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out” (v.38). This highlighting of Jesus’ purpose is one of several in the Gospels. With our 20/20 hindsight, we know why Jesus came, yet to these followers at this early stage, it was still all a great mystery.

When you think of Jesus’ purpose in life, perhaps you think of his redemptive work, and obviously that’s the capstone to it all. But here He tells us that He came to preach (v.38). We’ve already considered His message of “repentance and the Kingdom,” and for this I’ve got to give a plug to The Bible Project (videos and podcast) for their development of what this Kingdom of Heaven is all about. This insight will help you understand Jesus’ preaching and parables more thoroughly, especially in realizing that “it’s not about me: it’s all about Christ.”

But let’s put the focus on us for a moment. Jesus had a calling and a purpose in life, and whether we want to believe it or not, so do we. People often ask, “Why am I here?” as they seek their purpose in life, but I’ve always gained more by asking, “Why am I still here?” With as much death as there is in this world, why have I survived so long? If God’s desire in saving me is to be with me forever, then why didn’t He bring me Home immediately after He brought me into His family? Why am I still here?

Why are you still where you are? Why haven’t you caught COVID-19? And if you have, why did you recover? Why have you come and gone safely from work all these years? Why haven’t any of the other billions of viruses and brain-eating amoebas killed you yet? God has a plan and a purpose for your life, and it’s not to binge on Netflix or to sleep into the afternoons. What you’re purpose in life? Why does God still have you here?

The Leper, v.40-45

Weeks and months have passed by now for Jesus and his followers. Following seventeen verses that took up a single 24-hour period, Mark fits into one verse Jesus’ preaching ministry “throughout all Galilee” (v.39), and during that time he meets this leper. We’ve learned a lot about this nerve-disease over the centuries, but back then it was a serious and deadly condition.

This man implores Jesus, “If you will, you can make me clean!” (v.41) and I absolutely love that plea. It echos Jesus’ own prayer in the Garden, “Father, if it be possible let this cup pass from me. Nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will” (Matthew 26:39). It’s a plea that  must season all of our prayers, trusting during our prayers and supplications (with thanksgiving) as we make our requests known to God, that He knows better than we do (Philippians 4:6). “If you will…” There’s a world of trust and submission in those words.

And Jesus responds: He’s willing and He heals. “Moved with pity, He stretched out his hand and touched him and said to him, ‘I will; be clean.’ And immediately the leprosy left him, and he was made clean” (v.41-42). What a miracle!

We all wish the same for the COVID-19 patients and others out there, but sometimes, healing simply isn’t God’s will. Faith healers out there will try to convince you otherwise, but don’t be fooled! If physical health were God’s priority, then why has the U.S. death toll surpassed 60,000? Why is there a pandemic at all?

If spiritual healing were a matter of faith and physical touch, then why aren’t Benny Hinn and others fixing this pandemic? And why weren’t they visiting the ICUs before this whole thing started, instead of making people pay to come see them? Why did Paul leave sick Trophimus at Miletus instead of simply healing him (2Tim 4:20)? Why did he tell Timothy to take a little wine for his stomach’s sake, instead of saying, “Just have faith! And also smack yourself in the forehead while you’re at it!” (1Tim 5:23)?

Jesus’ compassion on this leper and his healing of the disease does not equal a lack of compassion on those whom He didn’t heal. Recall Jesus’ purpose: to preach repentance and to usher in the Kingdom of God. Think of how many thousands of people throughout the region and the world whom Jesus didn’t heal during those three years. For more on that, Google Joni Eareckson Tada. If you need a better perspective on God’s purpose in suffering, there’s no better teacher.

After Jesus healed this leper, He said, “See that you say nothing to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing what Moses commanded, for a proof to them” (v.44). People often wonder why Jesus would charge people not to tell anyone about Him (or why He would silence the demons who declared his identity), yet verse 45 offers some insight into why. When the former-leper spread the news of Jesus and his healing, “Jesus could no longer openly enter a town, but was out in desolate places”, and even still “people were coming to Him from every quarter.”

We could say that the man disobeyed, but as He always does, Jesus turned even this offense to His own good and glory. Without being driven from the towns, He’d not have met the people He did. He’d not have caught the attention of the religious leaders so quickly. He’d not have bought our redemption in such a timely manner as He did. Jesus took even the failures of man and turned it to His glory. That’s a God worth serving.

Action Points:

1) Are you responding to this pandemic with more focused, intentional prayer?

• Jesus found a desolate place and time to pray, and He made prayer a priority even over ministry.
• This week, follow Jesus’ example by waking up earlier than normal, finding a place to be alone, and making your requests known to God.

2) What’s your purpose in life?

• Why are you here? Write out two insights each for why God gave you the parents He did, the spouse He did, and the children He did.
• Why are you still here? Write out five reasons each for why God has kept you on this planet since saving your soul.

3) Do you season your prayers with, “If you will”?

• This week, make a point to consider your requests in the grand scheme of God’s will.
• If it helps you to form the habit of trusting God’s wisdom over your own, memorize and repeat this after each request: “Nevertheless, not my will but yours be done.”

4) Are you concerned about your health or that of others?

• Each day this week, pray for the nation’s healing.
• Place your health and that of your loved ones into the hands of the Great Physician.
• Tell Him yours needs, but submit to the possibility that physical healing and comfort may not be His will.
• Add to your prayer list also that through this pandemic, God would destroy the Health-and-Wealth lies that have poisoned His Church.

See Also:
Mark 1:1-8 – “The Beginning”
Mark 1:9-15 – “How to Fight Temptation”
Mark 1:16-20 – “Follow Me”
Mark 1:21-34 – “A Day in the Life of Jesus”
Mark 1:35-45 – “A Time for Prayer and Healing”
Mark 2:1-12 – “Through the Roof”
Mark 2:13-17 – “The Sinner’s Friend”
Mark 2:18-22 ‘ “Inside and Out”

©2020 E.T.