30 Days In The Gospel Of MarkSample

Thought:

Notice how Jesus prioritized time in prayer. He thought it was very important to pray. In the midst of His busy ministry schedule, which was full of Him doing good things, He intentionally made space to pray. He even got up really early so He could pray. However, He did not spend all His time praying. Jesus knew His purpose was to preach the gospel to the world. He compassionately ministered to everyone He came into contact with, spreading the good news in many places.

1. How did Jesus start His day in this passage?

2. What reason does Jesus give for why He came?

3. Who was Jesus preaching to in Galilee? (hint: who would go to synagogues?)

4. What attitude did Jesus have towards the man with leprosy?

People commonly ask, “Why didn’t Jesus want anyone to share about how He healed them?” Most Bible experts agree that Jesus strictly instructed those He healed not to spread the news because of logistical reasons. Jesus’ primary purpose was to share the gospel, which involved but was not only about healing people. When many people heard about His miracles, they flocked to Him in such large numbers that He could not enter villages anymore but had to stay in the wilderness (see Mark 1:45).

Engage:

Write about when and where you make space to pray. If you don’t pray regularly yet or want to pray more, set a goal of specifically when and where you will pray this week. Take a few minutes to follow Jesus’ example and pray now. Tell a friend, mentor, or parent how it felt!

Deeper Waters:

Jesus, who was the Son of God, thought that prayer was important enough to wake up very early to do it. If prayer is so important to Jesus, it should be important to us, too! One helpful structure for prayer is the ACTS model (see below). Take a few minutes to pray through the ACTS model of prayer. Consider committing to pray through this model every day when you wake up, when you go to bed, or at a mealtime.

Adoration—praise God and tell Him why you love Him

Confession—confess your sins to God, ask for His forgiveness, and rejoice in His grace

Thanksgiving—thank God for specific things (ex: things in your life, things about God, etc.)

Supplication—ask God for His help with specific requests (ex: healing, provision, freedom from selfishness and shame)