And he withdrew himself into the wilderness, and prayed.
After the report of the leper's healing drew dense crowds seeking miracles, Jesus withdrew from the cities and multitudes to lonely, secluded places in the wilderness to pray. He did this regularly whenever He had opportunity, often through the night and morning by morning when the daytime press left Him no time, then returned to His active work. Sharing human need, weakness, and dependence on God, He found this communion essential to strengthen His human nature against daily temptation, opposition, and Satan's power, and to seek energy, wisdom, and power for duty and trial. His experience is the example for His followers, for if prayer was necessary even for the Son of God, finite, sinful people with no strength in themselves have still greater need and cannot live without earnest prayer. God's workers especially must take time alone with God to ask and receive spiritual strength, grace, and renewal, which opens the mind to the Holy Spirit and revives the heart with fresh life that makes their efforts successful.
Setting and Withdrawal
After the report of the leper's healing spread, dense crowds gathered to see miracles, and the press of people forced Jesus to pause His work for a time. Their excitement made withdrawal necessary, so that He hid Himself lest the leaders use the assemblies to stir Roman fears of insurrection. He withdrew from the crowds and the cities to lonely, quiet, secluded places in the wilderness. Those retreats were mountains and desert places, fields and the quiet settings of nature. He withdrew there to pray, regularly and whenever He had opportunity. He set aside time for communion even in the quiet hours after the day's work and cares were over.
Because the daytime press left Him no time, He often claimed the night for prayer while the world slept. He went into the mountains as into a sanctuary and often spent entire nights in prayer and meditation. He also sought those solitary places at daybreak and early in the morning, morning by morning. After these peaceful hours He returned to His active work and duties.
Purpose of His Prayer
Sharing human needs and weakness and depending on God, He found communion essential to strengthen His human nature against daily temptation, opposition, conflict, and the power of Satan to overcome Him. His continued connection with divine power kept Satan from overcoming Him, and prayer strengthened Him for His work and conflicts. In those hours He sought strength for duty and trial — energy, perseverance, steadfastness, wisdom, and power. These hours of prayer were a source of wisdom and power in His earthly life.
After days spent ministering to the pressing crowds and exposing deceptive teaching, He was left utterly wearied so that His mother and brothers and even His disciples feared His life would be sacrificed. The hours of prayer that closed the toilsome day restored Him, and He returned with peace marked on His face. In prayer He found comfort and joy. While apart He interceded with the Father for mankind, often spending entire nights in prayer and meditation while the world slept. He joined prayer with meditation and Scripture study, seeking quiet places to pray, meditate, and study the Bible.
This continual communion sustained Him to give life to the world and to come forth morning by morning to bring heaven's light to men. His disciples could hear His earnest appeals to God and see where His strength came from. Through prayer He showed His disciples the source of His energy, perseverance, and steadfastness.
Pattern for Believers
His withdrawal to pray is the pattern for all who follow Him, and stands against any teaching that His life is not to be imitated. Though He shared human need and weakness and lived in dependence on God, He still sought strength in solitary prayer, which shows that prayer was necessary even for the Son of God in carrying out His work. Finite human beings, prone to error and drawn away from God, and sinful people with no strength in themselves, have still greater need to pray and cannot live without earnest prayer.
The record of His works for spiritual and physical needs holds lessons for all who serve others. As He made time to be alone with God whenever He had opportunity, so those who work for God must take time to be alone with Him to ask and receive spiritual strength for their work. That asking brings the grace and efficiency, help and renewal that God alone can give.
Such prayer opens the mind to receive the impressions of the Holy Spirit and revives the heart with a fresh supply of life, and this is what makes efforts for others successful. It means setting aside quiet times for communion at dawn and twilight and turning the heart to God throughout the day. It belongs even in the quiet hours after the day's work and cares are over, with frequent prayer and watching in prayer to seek strength to resist the devil.
He found joy in solitude with God and in nature, seeking quiet places to pray, meditate, and study, often at daybreak, then returning to His duties as a model of patient work. His withdrawal from crowded cities to the fields while training His disciples followed this same pattern and gave a fitting setting for teaching simplicity, faith, and self-denial.
After the report of the leper's healing drew dense crowds seeking miracles, Jesus withdrew from the cities and multitudes to lonely, secluded places in the wilderness to pray. He did this regularly whenever He had opportunity, often through the night and morning by morning when the daytime press left Him no time, then returned to His active work. Sharing human need, weakness, and dependence on God, He found this communion essential to strengthen His human nature against daily temptation, opposition, and Satan's power, and to seek energy, wisdom, and power for duty and trial. His experience is the example for His followers, for if prayer was necessary even for the Son of God, finite, sinful people with no strength in themselves have still greater need and cannot live without earnest prayer. God's workers especially must take time alone with God to ask and receive spiritual strength, grace, and renewal, which opens the mind to the Holy Spirit and revives the heart with fresh life that makes their efforts successful.
Setting and Withdrawal
After the report of the leper's healing spread, dense crowds gathered to see miracles, and the press of people forced Jesus to pause His work for a time. Their excitement made withdrawal necessary, so that He hid Himself lest the leaders use the assemblies to stir Roman fears of insurrection. He withdrew from the crowds and the cities to lonely, quiet, secluded places in the wilderness. Those retreats were mountains and desert places, fields and the quiet settings of nature. He withdrew there to pray, regularly and whenever He had opportunity. He set aside time for communion even in the quiet hours after the day's work and cares were over.
Because the daytime press left Him no time, He often claimed the night for prayer while the world slept. He went into the mountains as into a sanctuary and often spent entire nights in prayer and meditation. He also sought those solitary places at daybreak and early in the morning, morning by morning. After these peaceful hours He returned to His active work and duties.
Purpose of His Prayer
Sharing human needs and weakness and depending on God, He found communion essential to strengthen His human nature against daily temptation, opposition, conflict, and the power of Satan to overcome Him. His continued connection with divine power kept Satan from overcoming Him, and prayer strengthened Him for His work and conflicts. In those hours He sought strength for duty and trial — energy, perseverance, steadfastness, wisdom, and power. These hours of prayer were a source of wisdom and power in His earthly life.
After days spent ministering to the pressing crowds and exposing deceptive teaching, He was left utterly wearied so that His mother and brothers and even His disciples feared His life would be sacrificed. The hours of prayer that closed the toilsome day restored Him, and He returned with peace marked on His face. In prayer He found comfort and joy. While apart He interceded with the Father for mankind, often spending entire nights in prayer and meditation while the world slept. He joined prayer with meditation and Scripture study, seeking quiet places to pray, meditate, and study the Bible.
This continual communion sustained Him to give life to the world and to come forth morning by morning to bring heaven's light to men. His disciples could hear His earnest appeals to God and see where His strength came from. Through prayer He showed His disciples the source of His energy, perseverance, and steadfastness.
Pattern for Believers
His withdrawal to pray is the pattern for all who follow Him, and stands against any teaching that His life is not to be imitated. Though He shared human need and weakness and lived in dependence on God, He still sought strength in solitary prayer, which shows that prayer was necessary even for the Son of God in carrying out His work. Finite human beings, prone to error and drawn away from God, and sinful people with no strength in themselves, have still greater need to pray and cannot live without earnest prayer.
The record of His works for spiritual and physical needs holds lessons for all who serve others. As He made time to be alone with God whenever He had opportunity, so those who work for God must take time to be alone with Him to ask and receive spiritual strength for their work. That asking brings the grace and efficiency, help and renewal that God alone can give.
Such prayer opens the mind to receive the impressions of the Holy Spirit and revives the heart with a fresh supply of life, and this is what makes efforts for others successful. It means setting aside quiet times for communion at dawn and twilight and turning the heart to God throughout the day. It belongs even in the quiet hours after the day's work and cares are over, with frequent prayer and watching in prayer to seek strength to resist the devil.
He found joy in solitude with God and in nature, seeking quiet places to pray, meditate, and study, often at daybreak, then returning to His duties as a model of patient work. His withdrawal from crowded cities to the fields while training His disciples followed this same pattern and gave a fitting setting for teaching simplicity, faith, and self-denial.