OUR GREAT NEED
OF...
PRAYER
First and always
Jesus opened His public mission at His baptism with fervent prayer and this example makes plain the fact that prayer is necessary in order for us to lead a successful Christian life, and to keep us connected with heaven.
Luke.3.21
"Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened...."
After that He was constantly communicating with His Father through prayer thereby presenting to us the perfect pattern which we are to imitate if we would be flourishing Christians.
1 Peter 2:21
"For even hereunto were you called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps".
Christ appreciated the privilege of prayer more than any other and His work shows the result of such a communion. Examining the record of His life, we find that upon all important occasions He retired to the grove, or to the solitude of the mountains, and engaged in earnest, persevering prayer. He frequently devoted the entire night to prayer just before He was called upon to work some mighty miracle or important event.
Luke 6:12-13
"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. And when it was day, He called unto Him His disciples: and of them He chose twelve, whom also He named apostles..."
[Disciples are they who come to a master to learn (their choice) - apostles are they who are sent by a master to work (his choice).]
When He needed companionship His disciples and were asleep He said, "What, could you not watch with Me one hour? Watch and pray, that you enter not into temptation". Matthew 26:40-41. It is idle hands (and minds) that get into trouble!
When His disciples needed comfort and encouragement He asked for something to help them and was told of a special work He could do.
Matthew 14:23-25
"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. But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary. And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea".
During these nightly seasons of prayer, after the labours of the day, He would often compassionately dismiss His disciples that they might return to their homes for rest and sleep, while with strong crying and tears He continued to pour forth earnest petitions to God in behalf of humanity.
But should we do less than He?
Hebrews 5:6-8
"As He [the Spirit] says also in another place, 'You are a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec'. Who in the days of His flesh, when He had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears to Him that was able to save Him from death, and was heard in that He feared; though He were a Son, yet learned He obedience by the things which He suffered..."
Another time, through being overcome by sleep, the disciples did not hear what Christ and Moses and Elijah discussed. Jesus had warned them of a special event which was soon to happen.
Luke 9:27-31
"But I tell you of a truth, there be some standing here, which shall not taste of death, till they see the kingdom of God".
"And it came to pass about an eight days after these sayings, He took Peter and John and James, and went up into a mountain to pray, and as He prayed, the fashion of his countenance was altered, and His raiment was white and glistering. And, behold, there talked with Him two men, which were Moses and Elijah: who appeared in glory, and spoke of His decease which He should accomplish at Jerusalem".
Through being overcome with sleep, the disciples heard little of what passed between Christ and the heavenly messengers. Failing to watch and pray, they had not received that which God desired to give them, - a knowledge of the sufferings of Christ, and the glory that should follow. They lost the blessing that might have been theirs through sharing His self-sacrifice. Slow of heart to believe were these disciples, little appreciative of the treasure with which Heaven sought to enrich them.
Are we any better than they?
Yet they received great light. They were assured that all heaven knew of the sin of the Jewish nation in rejecting Christ. They were given a clearer insight into the work of the Redeemer. They saw with their eyes and heard with their ears things that are normally beyond the comprehension of men. They were "eyewitnesses of His majesty", and they realised that Jesus was indeed the Messiah, to whom patriarchs and prophets had witnessed, and that He was recognised as such by the inhabitants of the universe. 2 Peter 1:16.
A busy universe
The Bible shows us God in His high and holy place, not in a state of inactivity, not in silence and solitude, but surrounded by ten thousand times ten thousand and thousands of thousands of holy intelligences, all waiting to do His will. Daniel 7:10. Through channels which we cannot discern He is in active communication with every part of His dominion. But it is in this speck of a world, in the souls that He gave His only-begotten Son to save, that His interest and the interest of all heaven is centered. God is bending from His throne to hear the cry of the oppressed. To every sincere prayer He answers, "Here am I", and He will send a fellow human to help, if He can find one! Job 33:23.
He uplifts the distressed and downtrodden. In all our afflictions He is afflicted. [Isaiah 53:4.] In every temptation and every trial the angel of His presence is near to deliver. 1 Corinthians 10:13.
Satan's anger against God leads him to hate every object of the Saviour's care. He seeks to mar the handiwork of God, and he delights in destroying even the dumb creatures. It is only through God's protecting care that any are preserved. But He does not forget even the sparrows and Jesus used this as a comfort for us. "Fear you not therefore, you are of more value than many sparrows", He said. Matthew 10:31.
Witnesses for Christ
One day our LORD spoke to His disciples and said words like these:
"As you confess Me before men, so I will confess you before My God and the holy angels. You are to be My witnesses upon earth, channels through which My grace can be seen to be flowing. I will be your representative in heaven. Then our Father will not behold your faulty character, but see you as clothed in My perfection. I am the avenue through which Heaven's blessings shall come to you. And every one who confesses Me by sharing My sacrifice for the lost, shall be confessed by Me as a sharer in the glory and joy of the redeemed". See Matthew 10:32-33 and Romans 10:8-11.
It is "Christ within"
But if we would witness for Christ, we must have Christ abiding in us, for we cannot communicate that which we have not received. We may speak fluently on doctrines, we may repeat the words of Christ Himself;
but unless we possess Christlike meekness and love, we are not confessing Him. A spirit contrary to the spirit of Christ denies Him, whatever the profession.
Imagine a Christian who, after reading a portion of Scripture and offering prayer, almost as soon as he has risen from his knees, begins to growl at his children. How could God answer the prayer he has offered? And if, another time, after scolding his children, a father offers prayer again, does that prayer benefit the children? No! Not unless it is a prayer of confession to God.
We may deny our Saviour by evil-speaking, by foolish talking, by words that are untruthful or unkind. We may deny Him by shunning life's burdens, by the pursuit of sinful pleasure. We may deny Him by conforming to the world, by uncourteous behaviour, by the love of our own opinions, by justifying self, by cherishing doubt, borrowing trouble, and dwelling in darkness. In all these ways we declare that Christ is not in us. And "whosoever shall deny Me before men", He says, "him will I also deny before My Father which is in heaven". Matthew 10:33.
Problems at home
The Saviour then told His disciples not to hope that the world's enmity to the gospel would be overcome, and that after a time its opposition would cease. He said, "I came not to send peace, but a sword". Matthew 10:34. However, this creating of strife is not the effect of the gospel, but the result of opposition to it.
Of all persecution the hardest to bear is variance in the home, the estrangement of dearest earthly ties. Jesus Himself suffered under that. At first in heaven when Lucifer, His brother, rebelled against the rule of God and again on earth when His earthly relations would not support Him. But Jesus declares, "He that loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he that loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he that takes not his cross, and follows after Me, is not worthy of Me". Matthew 10:37-38. This shows that the mission of Christ's servants is a high honour, and a sacred trust. "He that receives you," He says, "receives Me, and he that receives Me receives Him that sent Me". Verse 40.
When the Saviour ended His instruction He paired off the chosen twelve and they went out as He had, "To preach the gospel to the poor ... to heal the broken-hearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised, to preach the acceptable year of the Lord". Luke 4:18-19.
This is normal Christian behaviour.
WHAT IS PRAYER?
Prayer is part of "rest"
On returning from their missionary tour, the apostles, reported in.
Mark 6:30-31.
"[They] gathered themselves together to Jesus, and told Him all things, both what they had done, and what they had taught. And He said to them, Come you yourselves apart into a desert [or lonely] place, and rest awhile: for there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat".
The garden of prayer
The disciples came to Jesus and told Him "all things". Their intimate relationship with Him encouraged them to lay before Him their favour-able and unfavourable experiences, their joy at seeing results from their labours, and their sorrow at their failures, their faults, and their weak- nesses. They had committed errors in their first work as evangelists and as they frankly told Christ of their experiences, He saw that they needed much instruction. He also saw that they had become weary in their labours and that they needed to rest. But where they then were they could not obtain the needed privacy; "For there were many coming and going, and they had no leisure so much as to eat". The people were thronging after Christ, anxious to be healed and eager to listen to His words. Many felt drawn to Him for He seemed to them to be the fountain of all blessings.
Now Christ longed for a quiet place, that He might be alone with His disciples for He had much to say to them. On their journey they had passed through the test of conflict and had encountered opposition in various forms. Before this they had been able to consult Christ in everything, but while on their trips they had been alone, and occasionally they had been troubled to know what to do. They had found much encouragement in their public work, for Christ had not sent them away without His Spirit, and by faith in Him they worked many miracles, but they needed now to feed on the Bread of life for personal advancement. They needed to go to a place of retirement, where they could hold communion with Jesus, and receive further instruction for future work.
Not sacrifice, but mercy
Therefore "He said to them, Come you yourselves apart into a desert place, and rest awhile". Christ is full of tenderness and compassion for all in His service. He would show His disciples that God does not require sacrifice, but mercy. Matthew 9:13. They had been putting all their energy into labour for the people, and this was exhausting their physical and mental strength. It was their duty to rest.
Also, as the disciples had seen the success of their labours, they were in danger of taking credit to themselves, in danger of cherishing spiritual pride, and thus falling under Satan's temptations. A great work was before them, and first of all they must learn that their strength was not in self, but in God. Like Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, like David among the hills of Judea, or Elijah by the brook Cherith, the disciples needed to come apart from the scenes of their busy activity to commune with Christ, with nature, and with their own hearts.
The resting place
Near Bethsaida, at the northern end of lake Galilee, was a lonely region, now beautiful with the fresh green of spring and this offered a welcome retreat to Jesus and His disciples. Accordingly, they set out, going in their boat across the water. Here they would be away from the thoroughfares of travel, and the bustle and agitation of the city. The scenes of nature were in themselves a rest, a change grateful to the senses. Here they could listen to the words of Christ without hearing the angry interruptions, the retorts and accusations of the scribes and Pharisees. Here they could enjoy a short season of precious fellowship in the society of their LORD.
Rest is re-creation
The rest which Christ and His disciples took was not self-indulgent rest. The time they spent in retirement was not devoted to pleasure-seeking. They talked (that is, prayed) together regarding their work with God, and the possibility of bringing greater efficiency to it. The disciples had been working for some time with Christ and could readily understand Him.
To them He need not talk in parables. He simply corrected their errors, and made plain to them the right way of approaching the people.
He opened more fully to them the precious treasures of divine truth in the Scriptures. They were vitalized by divine power, and inspired with hope and courage. This was literal, practical prayer.
More labourers
Though Jesus could work miracles, and had also empowered His disciples to work them, He directed His worn servants to go apart into the country and rest. Matthew 10:1, 5-8. This ability was not to be used for oneself or one's group, no matter what the urgency. When He said that the harvest was great, and the labourers were few, He did not urge upon His disciples the necessity of ceaseless toil, or to pray for more strength. He said, "Pray you therefore the Lord of the harvest, that He will send forth [more] labourers [whom we may be able to recognise] into His harvest". Matthew 9:38. He would have us understand that the work does not depend solely on us. God has already appointed to every man or woman their work, according to their ability, and He would not have a few taking the responsibilities, while others appear to have no burden, no travail of soul.
Ephesians 4:7-13
"But unto every one of us is given grace according to the measure of the gift of Christ...
Wherefore He [the Spirit] says, 'When He ascended up on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts to men'. (Now that He ascended [or went up], what is it but that He also descended [or came down] first into the lower parts of the earth? He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that He might fill all things.) And He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ [the church]: till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ".
He already has many that we do not see and this prayer will help us in this regard. He told Elijah, "Yet I have left Me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal [the god of force], and every mouth which has not kissed him". 1 Kings 19:18. We may ask if we can help them in their work.
Rest awhile
The following words of compassion spoken by Christ to His workers apply to-day just as surely as they were spoken to His disciples.