What Jesus Came To Do Mark 1:29-39 Sunday, February 5, 2012 The Rev. Sharon Snapp-Kolas, preaching Scripture. Prayer. Opening. There s a story about a father who took his small son with him to town one day to run some errands. When lunchtime arrived, the two of them went to a familiar diner for a sandwich. The father sat down on one of the stools at the counter and lifted the boy up to the seat beside him. They ordered lunch, and when the waiter brought the food, the father said, Son, we'll just have a silent prayer. Dad got through praying first and waited for the boy to finish his prayer, but he just sat with his head bowed for an unusually long time. When he finally looked up, his father asked him, What in the world were you praying about all that time? With the innocence and honesty of a child, he replied, How do I know? It was a silent prayer! Jesus leaves the press of crowds at Peter s house in order to go to a deserted place where he can pray. He has recently come from the synagogue in Capernaum, where he has astounded people with the authority of his teaching and his healing power. The crowds have followed him, being careful not to seek him out on the Sabbath. But as soon as the sun goes down, they come looking for more of Jesus healing and forgiveness, as well as his authoritative teaching. Jesus gives them some of what they want. He heals Peter s mother-in-law; he heals and teaches and casts out demons. He works great miracles, both in the public place of the synagogue and in the private space of Peter s home. Tradition suggests that Jesus stays with Peter at his home for an extended visit. 1
Jesus is our example. In preparation to do God s work, in order to hear and understand and follow the mission God has for him, Jesus goes out to a deserted place to pray. If we are to hear, understand and follow the mission God has for us, both as individuals and as the Church, we must make time for prayer. I. Prayer Jesus went out to a deserted place. If you like a quiet, deserted place to pray, and you can find one, go for it. But don t feel like prayer is off your list if your life is surrounded by noisy children or barking dogs or demanding bosses or never-ending to do lists. Prayer is an attitude of the heart and mind; it does not require a particular time and place. We are called to pray constantly, in the midst of our daily lives, no matter how busy or how empty they are. That being said, a particular time and place can be helpful. Like any good habit, once we have established it in our lives, it becomes a part of what we do. Like brushing our teeth or daily exercise. Daily prayer habits can deeply enhance our spiritual lives. We grow closer to God as we make time for God each day. Barry J. Robinson, in his book, Don t Make Me No Hero!, puts a lighter interpretation on Jesus prayer life. He writes, G. K. Chesterton once mused that Jesus went off by himself in order to laugh. In other words, when he couldn t stand the kind of ridiculous expectations that his friends and followers kept making of him, eventually he went off to laugh just to keep his sanity. Well, maybe. Certainly, everybody seems to want a piece of him in this picture Mark paints. Maybe he went off by himself just to get some peace and quiet for a change. Who knows? Of course, we don t know the content of Jesus prayer; but have you ever thought of the possibility that Jesus went off by himself in order to laugh? God s glorious sense of humor can 2
relieve us of so much of the burden we carry. Just the sheer ridiculousness of the impossible demands life makes on us from day to day. We might as well pause for some prayer-laughter time with God. Or, if we need it, some prayer-crying in the presence of God. God laughs with us. God cries with us. God loves us in the midst of whatever we are facing. Keith Wagner has this to say on the topic, in his book, Help Me, I'm Falling!: We live in a hi-tech, fast pace, workaholic world where no one rests. We are constantly on the road, running errands, going places. We stuff ourselves with fast food, overbook our lives with a myriad of things to do, and at the end of the day we are totally exhausted. We live (and die) by the clock. We are controlled by the need to produce. Time is money, time is how we keep in control of our lives. We resist quiet time by keeping the radios, televisions and computers on. The very thought of being alone, praying, scares us to death. We want professionals to do that for us. We haven t learned that relaxation and meditation breaks will empower us to do even greater things. Thus, we continue to be busy. Consequently we are on a path to self-destruction, unable to help others, let alone help ourselves. I know that I need to build in personal prayer time, time to relax, time to get away. This story has reminded me to make time for myself a high priority. But, I have also learned something more important. The story tells us that Jesus took time away to pray and be refreshed. That is explicit. What we fail to see is that Jesus set aside this time to yield to the power of God. I believe we need to learn to yield to the power of God too. That means being free from all other distractions so that God can empower us and refresh us. Then and only then can we help others as the power of God flows through us. Wagner s comments lead us into the second key point of today s Bible reading. The first key point is prayer make time for prayer. Jesus did it. We should do it, too. 3
But Wagner alludes to the second point, this idea of yielding to the power of God. Jesus goes off to a deserted place to pray. His purpose in prayer is not, primarily, to rest and relax after a busy day of healings and exorcisms. His purpose is to center himself in God, and to find the power and the guidance to continue on the path to which God is calling him. Jesus goes off to pray about his mission, the mission for which God has sent him into the world. II. Mission The disciples are concerned that Jesus is planning to leave the quiet serenity of Peter s house in order to hit the road again. Their tone is mildly hostile. Everyone is searching for you! Peter scolds. They all want Jesus back in town at Peter s house, so they can get back to eating and talking and receiving Jesus healing power and forgiveness. But Jesus insists on moving on. He defines his mission: Not teaching Not healing Preaching! Jesus prays in preparation for his mission, which is to proclaim his message throughout Galilee. He says, Let us go on to the neighboring towns, so that I may proclaim the message there also; for that is what I came out to do (v. 38) And this is Jesus message, from verse 14: The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news. The mission is to share the good news which is that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, our Savior, the Son of God. And this is good news to the poor and the rejected and the outcast. In his book, God's Downward Mobility, John A. Stroman writes: Burnout is not the result of too much activity. It is the result of the wrong kind of activity. Jesus is 100% focused on the right kind of activity. His mission is clear, and he plans to fulfill it. 4
If we prayerfully follow him, we accomplish at least two very important things: 1) we avoid burnout, 2) we use our time for the right kind of activity. Our lives have purpose and meaning and focus. This is what life in Christ provides. It s two sides of a coin. On the one side we have prayer; on the other side we have mission. On the one side we have reflection and meditation and seeking the will of God; on the other side we have action and ministry and serving others. It is a cyclical practice of actionreflection. Jesus follows such a practice. We might want to consider it for our own lives. William Loader reminds us that, Jesus did not have the need to respond to every need. I have always found it odd that people imagine Jesus met every need. When Jesus was in Capernaum, he was not in Bethsaida! People in Bethsaida could have been healed. When he was in the wilderness, people back in town were suffering. Jesus might have met the needs of one or two per cent of the needy in Palestine of the day. Coming to terms with our human limitations in time and space and energy is crucial if we are to survive in ministry and Jesus was no exception. Jesus did not exercise his ministry on the basis of his need to be needed, but on the basis of what he could do as a bearer of the Spirit, nothing more. That is always enough and never enough to meet all needs. Failure to acknowledge our limitations often leads to denial of the immensity of human need, because we are afraid of not being in control. Jesus practice of the cycle of prayer and mission is an example to us of how to focus our energies and accept our limitations. Closing. Being in mission means working with people, encountering people, interacting with people. It means opening ourselves up to pain to the pain of others and to our own pain. Henri Nouwen writes eloquently on this topic in his book, Reaching Out: 5
When we think about the people who have given us hope and have increased the strength of our souls, we might discover that they were not the wardens or moralists, but the few who were able to articulate in words and actions the human condition in which we participate and who encouraged us to face the realities of life. Those who do not run from our pains but touch them with compassion bring healing and new strength. The paradox is that the beginning of healing is in the solidarity with the pain. In our solution oriented society it is more important than ever to realize that wanting to alleviate pain without sharing it is like wanting to save a child from a burning house without the risk of being hurt." In that deserted place of prayer, wherever we can find it in our busy-yet-isolated modern lives in that deserted place of prayer, we find the strength and the clarity to be in solidarity with the pain of hurting people. It is here that we find ourselves the closest to God and the most aligned with his purpose for us. As we come to the Table this morning, may we continue to seek after Jesus and his practice of prayer and mission. Amen. 6