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Lon Bjornrud
Follow Jesus_The Gospel of Mark  •  Sermon  •  Submitted   •  Presented   •  39:44
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Couple things first of all, just so you guys know we're trying a new presentation software and the remote is my phone. So I'm not texting people. I'm not doing my Christmas shopping on Amazon and not checking scores of football games. I have it right here. And also you should know I turned off all of my notice notifications and all of those things. So try as you might it's not going to interrupt self in advance for that.

Cuz I know some of you are not like me that you would be doing that.

Second thing is as Sarah. It talks about our Advent Conspiracy project or our opportunity this year if if you want some want to track with the the church there in Paradise, California. I can't remember maybe we'll put a link on our church Facebook page. But if you follow their Facebook page, they're giving regular updates and some of the things that God is doing even right now are pretty amazing. And so it'll give you some insight as to how to be praying for them as we are fearfully considering how God might help us come alongside and

And it's interesting. This is no way play endure or anything like this but interesting how we spent the last few few months looking at at the first three chapters in in Genesis and looking forward to how Paradise will be restored and we get to actually tangibly be a part of paradise being restored this admit. So that's pretty cool. Why don't we open up our Bibles to Mark chapter 1 Vs. 35 to 39. I'm going to read this for us and then we'll work our way through it and just make some observations about what is happening here as we're looking at Jesus in The Gospel of Mark and we've talked about how were called to be disciples were invited to to be Disciples of Jesus and his disciples. There's three aspects of being a disciple it is it's being with the rabbi or the teacher. So in this case, especially we want to learn how to be with Jesus then in that process learning to become like the teacher learning to become like Jesus. So as we're spending time with Jesus we want to to absorb into learn and be transformed in such a way that we're becoming more and more like Jesus that has to be a fashion that has to be our goal in the third thing is a disciple. Carry on the work would do the the work do the things that the rabbi did so as Jesus has entrusted us to do his work in the world. We do that as disciples. So as we look at this in as we continue to look through the gospel of Mark, those are the things that we're keeping in mind. So little context here. I remember this is part of the same day that we looked at last week. It's a Sabbath Saturday. Jesus has been in the synagogue. He's been teaching while he was teaching people were amazed because he taught with authority Utah like nobody else they'd heard before.

And then he was interrupted by a man with an imp your spirit man who is possessed by an evil spirit and the spirit tries to exhibit some sort of control over over Jesus. Jesus isn't having any avesis get out of here cast a demon out. They go from there Gathering to Peter's house and discover that Peter's mother-in-law is six and touches her and heals her then that evening as a sun goes down. And as we learned Sabbath is over when the sun's down and you can 3 see three stars in the sky that happened people were lined up from all over town bringing their sick and those who are demon-possessed to Jesus and so late into the night. He had been killing people and casting out demons and doing doing all of these things. And so this that we're going to look at here. This is what happens next. I want you to think about what you would do after a day like that. Looks like it was Jesus does 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 Simon and his compared to look for him and when they found him they explain to everyone is looking for you. Jesus replied. Let us go somewhere else to the nearby Villages so I can preach they're all so that's why I've come so he traveled throughout Galilee preaching and their synagogues and driving out demons.

Jesus has this resolved. He has his priority in his heart. And I know for for me I think about an intense weekend or day of ministry a lot of times what I'm thinking about and I don't think I'm Not Unusual is I'm calculating I do I get to sleep in a little bit. Can I get a little bit of extra sleep because after time like that you're tired if you ever join us for a youth retreat or or conference or something like that, you know that feeling like this was so intense this was so incredible. I am going to sleep for 12 hours if I can because that seems to be the thing we need most and in taking care of yourself. That's that's a great thing. But what is Jesus do? Jesus has this resolved. It is resolved is to get up very early in the morning. Probably about three or four in the morning based on the way that Mark describes it against up at 3 or 4 in the morning. Everyone's sleeping capernum is quiet. There's no distractions and he goes off to a solitary place to place not just a room in the house, but he leaves town in and I'll show you where he probably went in a few minutes here, but he goes off to this place because for Jesus his priority is is intentionality as he knows that after a time like that he needs to spend time with his father. He needs to spend time in prayer and that he needs that more than he needs sleep. And one of the things that Jesus is is doing here is in his resolve. He is is showing this heart of prayer that seems to be even at the center of the Psalms for one who seeks God in Psalms Psalm 5 verses 1 through 3. It says listen to my words Lord consider my limit Hear My Cry for Help my king and my God for to you. I pray in the morning Lord. You hear my voice in the morning. I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly. And then in Psalm are in Hebrews 5:7. Says this about Jesus during the days of Jesus life on Earth. He offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Jesus had this resolved to you to pray. One of the things that I think we see here with Jesus is this principle that the things that are most important in our lives we will make the time do it will make time to spend time with the people that matter most to us. We will set other things aside for what matters most. It's not always that we give the most of our time to do what matters most to us, but we will do whatever we can. To make sure that we have time for the things that matter most for us and this is what Jesus said he knew at the time that he had for this was where you wouldn't be interrupted. Where he could have this uninterrupted time with his father was for him to to sacrifice a few hours of sleep evidently prayer was more important than sleep for him in this case. It's a go up to Aramis. The prey Heroes is what they call the place that they sink that Jesus went to pray up the hill just west of capernum. They found this little cave. On the side of the hill and they call it air MOS.

So as Jesus was in this this cave, he could have sat there. This is what it looks like if people in it he could have sat there and spent that time alone. With his father in prayer and being on the west side of the lake you could see the sun rise and that light would probably feel that cave for Jesus. It was a priority for him to get off to this place. And to spend time alone with his father. It was a priority for him to no matter what it took whether it was sacrificing sleep after a long hard full day to see cotton to look for direction to look for.

For his father's heart. So he doesn't get done praying. He gets interrupted. Finally as you can imagine Simon the rest of the guys wake up and probably getting ready for breakfast and no Jesus yet. Maybe they're thinking he needs a little extra sleep. So we're not going to bother him, but eventually he doesn't show up. So they go check on him. He's not there. It's so they start looking for him to start searching all over the place because people are coming to the house again and they're looking for Jesus and you can imagine this seems like like tyranny of the Urgent Care these these people are here. So this is what we've got to do in this is awesome. We got a great thing going here. Everybody's excited about this so they run and they find Jesus in his place of Prayer. And they say everybody's looking for you that the insinuations you got to come back down. There's some great stuff for us to do here. It's going to be another big day. We got to help people. This is what we're here for. And Jesus says let's go. Not down the hill that way let's go that way. Let's just get out of here.

cuz

we're going to go to the nearby Villages so I can preach the good news there because that's why I came. It would have been really tempting for for Jesus. I think to just stick around. And to let everything come to him to stick around and and keep going with this good thing that was happening. But in that time of prayer seeking directions seeking his purpose he was reminded and he was directed by his father. No go to the other Villages and continue to preach the gospel.

And so he went out any preach the gospel not some thoughts as we look through all this. First of all, if we look back at Mark chapter 1 verses 21 through 3 for the verses that come before this your ministry begins at home where you're at. All of this started for Jesus at the synagogue and at Peter's house. This was Jesus home base.

And you see everything kind of starting their for Jesus and that's a great reminder. I think for the rest of us. the ministry that God calls you to whatever it is it first of all starts at home it first of all starts in the place that God has put you right now it starts with your family. It starts with your neighbors. It starts with the people that you're naturally rubbing shoulders with Your first Ministry of disciple-making if you are an adult if your married it's with your spouse if you have children, it's your children. If you have children, you know, they're bringing people in so you get opportunities with their friends as you go to work you have opportunities there. This is the place that God put you it starts there. Your ministry begins at home. Where You Are in Deuteronomy chapter 6 you want to take a look back here? This is at the heart.

of what it means to be God's people in Deuteronomy chapter 6 God says this to the nation of Israel, and I think it's still Applies to us today as he talked about how to how to love being in right relationship with God as he talked about how to live their lives out of his his people. He says this hear o Israel the Lord Our God. The Lord is one love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength these Commandments that I give you today are to be on your parts. Other words you're supposed to always be thinking about them. You're supposed to always be processing. How can I do this? How can I love my God with all my heart soul mind and strength. So they're supposed to be on your heart's then impress them on your children. So share these things with your children, let these priorities be something that you're intentional about passing on to your kids talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road when you lie down and when you get up tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads write them on the door frames of your houses and on your Gates. So couple things are talking about them when you sit at home. So when you're at home. It doesn't mean that you have to like to start every conversation with so let's talk about how we can love God with all your heart soul mind and strength. What does that inform? Whatever you're talking about. Are you intentional about helping your children to think about how and everything that they can do? It's about first and foremost loving God with all your heart soul mind and strength.

When you walk along the road as you're going about your daily business.

Does this inform your conversation does this inform your thinking?

When you lie down and when you get up so all day long tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads, not Jewish people and some of them to this day still tie these these little boxes with this to their foreheads and on on their hands these phylacteries they call them because they take this very literally but a lot of scars look at this in the what they're thinking that that's being said here is when you tie them as symbols on your hands with whatever you do with your hands. Let It Be shaped by this

on your forehead Whatever you think Let It Be shaped let it be processed through this.

Write them on the door frames of your houses. And on your Gates as you go in and as you come out always being reminded. App where you are and that it's about loving God with all your heart soul mind and strength. All of these are reminders that it begins at home.

And then moves from there.

Secondly a prayer must be a priority. is frustrating to me when I think about myself and think about how for me way too often prayer is one of my last resort options. It's not one of the things that I think about first. And foremost it's not something that as soon as something comes up. I'm thinking okay. Let's pray about it. And then let's decide what to do.

I try to think of all the options and then when I can't think of anything worthwhile. I'll say Okay God, what do you want me to do or I'll think of something that seems right and good and I'll basically if I pray about it. I'll committed to God and say God you bless this. What's this thing that I'm which is say nice things pray, but who's in charge?

We desperately need for prayer to be a priority. Remember the things that our priorities in our lives we make time for those things.

We figure out a way for it to happen.

That's one of the ways that we we express that thing as is a value in our lives.

We need time alone with God. We need time with God with others.

Because that that coming to God together in community is so vitally important. So I'd love to see you all here tonight at 6 little advertisement.

But we've idling in that time alone with God.

We need to get away from everything else and and be there with God. And as Jesus did that we see. What we need that time alone with God for we need it for reorienting ourselves. It's so easy for us to lose our focus and start to orient our lives around ourselves.

the Orient our lives around our kids

it's easy for us to orient their lives around their work. It's easy for us to orient our lives around certain people and what they think about us or what we're thinking about then. And the crazy thing with this is we can get so caught up in these things. That they can be destroying us. They can be wearing us down. They can be pulling us away from having Christ at the center. And we don't even notice.

Because we're just all caught up in it. And we need to take this time alone with God to reorient ourselves around God to to do the work of realigning our hearts and Minds with Christ at the center remembering and reminding ourselves that it's about God. I want to love you with all my heart with all my soul with all my mind and with all my strength.

I want to know who you are. And in that time we find refreshing.

it might seem kind of strange to us that Jesus would decide that he needed this more than he needed sleep because if you're anything like me the most refreshing thing that you can think of is sleep before Jesus he knew that it was going to be more refreshing. To spend time with his Heavenly Father spend time with his father in prayer. Not just probably to remind himself of who his father was but so that God the Father could remind Jesus of who he was. See that's something we start to lose as well.

at the time of refocusing for For Jesus, we see this refocusing he'd had this full day. And there were these opportunities right in front of him and they were good things. Nobody would have spoken an ill word of Jesus. Jesus would have said the same when you're absolutely right. Let's go back down that hill and let's do God's work. Because Jesus came for that too.

But in that time with with the father, he was refocus and he said I need to go and I need to preach. Any other towns these other places around here because this is why I came. This is what I'm here for.

And we need that too.

everything that Jesus did Was out of the Overflow of this. It was out of the Overflow of his relationship. with God the Father

everything he did.

Came out of that. And so he kept going back to that.

another Thought about this reason that we need. time we need to be intentional about spending time with God In Prayer is for finding in Discerning direction to kind of see that in the focusing the reorienting but but again, asking God seeking God for for Who We Are and for what he's placed in front of us and how he wants us to go go about it how he wants us to move forward that Jesus. Did this very early in the morning.

What I'm about to say, I need to tell you I am not a morning person. I don't even really want to talk to people for the first hour that I'm awake. I will do it. I have to but I'm not a morning person.

That being said I don't think you have to get up very early in the morning to do it unless that's the only time it will work is to do a very early, but I would say can we start our day? with this priority

what are ways that we can prioritize this like Jesus so that we know that we're going to start everyday with this to focus our minds to focus our hearts right away. We could say what you just done this whole day on your own and now you're you're refocusing and going to sleep. What if we started our days like Jesus did we refocus our hearts first thing in the morning and just found a way to do it? I don't have any remotes in my home. There's people there for me. They are most is to go into my office and hopefully for there not to be anybody else there.

It in first thing when I get there in the morning to spend that time before that to try to in this sometimes backfires. I need to tell you this as I'm trying to practice this to 4 I get out of bed. to to engage with God In Prayer Sometimes I get into the conversation and find out I fell asleep on him. That's how it backfires. I think he's gracious with that and gets a kick out of it when I'm scrambling.

But how can we be intentional about starting our days with this refocusing this reorienting because it was important for Jesus and this is the Jesus question about all of this for us. I think we need to really wrestle with If Jesus believed that prayer was a necessity for his life.

How much more should we? if there was anybody who ever walked this Earth He probably didn't need to get up early in the morning to go and pray. It was probably Jesus.

And we would have been like yeah, I mean I get it. But it was in the society for his life.

He believed that for his life. How much more do we need that for arms? If we're committed to being Disciples of Jesus. Being with Jesus learning to become like Jesus and doing the things that Jesus did. Well, here you go. This is something that was a part of Jesus life and Ministry. This is what he did. It was a priority for him.

And then another thought.

your ministry starts at home Wherever You Are

But like Jesus we must go. We must go out from home. It can't stay there. We need to go beyond our walls. Now one of the things that you're probably going to see in the gospel of Mark. And if you do any reading in the gospels already studying their Jesus keeps coming back home. And doing Ministry at home, but then they keep going out doing Ministry preaching the gospel serving others and then they come back. So there's this this going out and there's this coming back going out and coming back.

Jesus was reminded of him what Jesus did and we come back to this Isaiah 61 verse one again. Jesus knows who he is and knows what his purpose is our Isaiah 61 when it's spoken him said this the spirit of The Sovereign Lord is on me because the Lord has anointed me to Proclaim good news to the poor. He sent me to bind up the Brokenhearted to Proclaim freedom to the captives and release from Darkness for the prisoners. He knew that that one of his purposes was to go out and proclaim the good news to go out and preach the gospel.

So we did that then again, it could have been really easy and it could have been really Justified to just say hey, we've got a good thing going here. If we if we do this people will keep coming. We can build a hotel over here for people to stay in it'll be good for the economy all of those things. But Jesus knew no I need to go out. There are other people who need to hear about this.

It's interesting. Matthew chapter 28 verses 18 through 20. So this Jesus gives this commission after his death and his resurrection and he gives it to his disciples. Now. I'm going to come back here a little bit to you Mark chapter 1 last week. We talked about this idea of the authority that Jesus had Jesus had Authority in his teaching he had authority over the spirits and the powers over sickness and disease.

Matthew chapter 20 verses 18 through 20. Jesus says all authority in heaven and on Earth has been given to me. So he's talking about that Authority. and he's about to transfer that authority to you and I to the disciples to those who would Answer Jesus call to follow him to those who would choose to Apprentice themselves to Jesus to introduce themselves to Jesus to spend time with Jesus to learn to be like him to be transformed by do the things he did. So what did he give us Authority first and foremost to do. Therefore go and make disciples. of all Nations

got a story. That's that's spoken of in Mark chapter one that Mark reveals to us a Jesus. Jesus gives you and I that Authority

And I'm not going to say that he doesn't give us Authority. So if you have that, he's never going to use you to be a part of somebody being healed or cast the demons. Could totally happen. but first and foremost authority they gives us The shares with you, and I said that we would go make disciples. It just like Jesus we would have. the passion to go that word go

actually describes this action of as you are going. Is there going about you everyday normal life. Is you're going to work cuz you're interacting with people around town as you're traveling here. And there as you're going Make Disciples of all Nations baptizing them in the name of the father and the Son and the Holy Spirit in teaching them to obey everything. I have commanded you and surely I Am With You Always to the very end of the age. Every single one of us can do this every single one of us. Is united in Christ for salvation, we have the authority to do this you have this authorities do this and it sounds complicated, but it's not to baptize in the name of the Father the Son and the Holy Spirit. You don't have to go with water in hand. Does people to see fit Justice idea baptizing is this idea of immersing a fabric in a die until it comes out looking like what it was immersed in? immerse people in the life of God

smt to know God the Father God the son and God the spirit and in to learn to live in relationship with them to live a god saturated life. About teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you cuz you you haven't gone to Seminary.

What did Jesus command? We have something we call the great commandment, right? That Jesus said something to them all out. What is it? Love the Lord your God with all your heart soul mind and strength and love your neighbor as yourself. Can you teach people? How to love God is everything is God. Demolish this isn't new. Is it Toronto me chapter 6

are you sitting at home?

As you're walking along.

For you go to bed and get up. Impress these things. Each other's Hearts to love the Lord your God with all your heart soul mind and strength in. Jesus is with you. We must go. We are being sent.

To all of the places that God is putting us in a normal day in and sometimes we're being sent beyond that.

Without a sortie that Jesus is put on display.

so Couple questions where does prayer fit into your life is prayer a priority? Or is it an afterthought is prayer in your mind. Is it something that other people do who are more mature or and those rest of us just kind of hold on for dear life.

Prayer is something that we can all do something that Jesus my love for us and invites everyone of us to do it's just a conversation with god.

Observed all of us long enough to know that you guys know how to have conversations.

since you're talking to God

where does prayer fit into your life do you? Carve out this time.

Every day to be alone with God to reorient to refresh. 3 Focus where does prayer fit into your life and then what adjustments do you need to make to follow Jesus in this way?

Do you have your own are most maybe it's a kitchen table? Maybe it's a comfy chair in the living room. Maybe it's the street in your neighborhood as you walk along it. Did you go for a walk every morning or something like that? Maybe maybe your Heroes is in your car in the commute, but you just turn the stereo off.

And you use that time with your eyes open totally cool to pray with your eyes open actually doesn't really say anything in there about you having to have your eyes closed for it to work.

Where's your air? Most find one?

And be intentional maybe you need to to carve out that time. I know for me one of the things that I had to do because my brain can go all over the place is I had to put together a prayer Journal that would guide me through the people that I was praying for that and things that I wanted to pray because my mind's going all over the place. I had to have something that would keep me on task.

But also would remind me of the way the gods answered prayer.

What adjustments do you need to make to follow Jesus in this way?

To follow him off to that place to get away to reorient refresh and refocus. If it's important for Jesus, it's important for us as his disciples. Let's pray. so encouraging and so challenging that you would give us this example. in Jesus Time After Time After Time After Time in the gospels, you're going off the places away from everybody so you can be alone with the father in prayer and we can fast that that's something we

we don't prioritize like we should vote. What can happen if we did? I pray for myself and I pray for each person in this room that you would help us. Prioritize prayer to let it become something that's at the core of who we are and how we lived at. This would be one of the first ways that we would seek to not only be with you, but you become more like you Jesus.

Got one in a meeting thing. It would be to know.

There's a community of people who get a get away with you every morning. SECU to entrust themselves to you to entrust their circumstances to you too and trust their families to you. Maybe even just maybe to entrust us to you.

what an awesome thing, it would be to know that there's 100 some people

Who everyday are getting away with you to pray? Seek your heart. That may be a lot of those times that they're bringing us up. They're interesting us to you. Got to I know that I need that. I know that each of us needs that. I pray that you would make a way for us to be a people. prioritize time with you to prioritize prayer

not as we venture into that Jesus we know. that your choice it's so worth it.

So by your spirit be at work in our hearts, give us the place. Give us time. Give us the consistency. So that we might know you better so that we might trust you more and said Jesus we might become more and more like you.

For Your Glory and for the blessing of this community

Your kingdom come your will might be done here as it is in heaven. Real these things in your strong and powerful name. amen Will Brothers and Sisters of the Living Hope Family is you go from here. May your life be shaped by intimate time alone with God In Prayer. And out of that may everyone around you experience the grace and peace of Jesus Christ. This is only possible. Someone who's been there? Go with him. And have a great week. God bless.

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