Bathed in Prayer

The mountains of Idaho are a favorite place for me to 
away -- read, study, and pray. 

Scripture:

Luke 6:12   Now during those days he went out to the mountain to pray; and he spent the night in prayer to God. ¹³ And when day came, he called his disciples and chose twelve of them, whom he also named apostles: ¹⁴ Simon, whom he named Peter, and his brother Andrew, and James, and John, and Philip, and Bartholomew, ¹⁵ and Matthew, and Thomas, and James son of Alphaeus, and Simon, who was called the Zealot, ¹⁶ and Judas son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor.

Observation:

This section either concludes the previous, or begins the next, the commentators are not sure. We’ve had opening scenes of Jesus’ ministry and the criticism of the Pharisees. Now, we will move into the ministry that he does with his disciples. We’ve had mention of those who were following him, but now, it all becomes clear. Luke emphasizes the importance of prayer in preparation for all ministry. He shows us that Jesus regularly went out by himself to pray. He uses a medical term to mean the whole night or throughout the night, Jesus was in prayer to God. 

After bathing his work and ministry in prayer, Luke tells us that Jesus calls the twelve. We know that some had already been following him but there is special importance here to Luke to place this in the middle of the introduction to Jesus’ work. Jesus, prays — Jesus calls — and twelve are chosen. Specifically, Luke mentions the names of the twelve, so that the names of others cannot be added to this list. He also points to the fact that Judas will eventually become a traitor. Luke already knows the end of the story, but he is showing that Jesus did too. While Jesus knew what Judas would do, he intentionally chose him to be a part of his intimate group of followers. 

Application:

Prayer is a regular feature of the life of Christ. An intimate relationship with the Father is necessary for him to be able to complete the ministry placed before him. Every major decision is bathed in prayer and the results are not always what would have been expected.

The disciples are chosen from the normal walk of life. These are not the people that one might imagine would be selected in service to God. Yet, they are the right people for the job, because God knows who they are and how they will respond. This rag-tag group of followers, quite literally, changed the world. Every one was used in ministry, even Judas. 

When we spend time in prayer with the Father, we learn much about the heart of God. Driven by God’s leading, our decisions may not always make sense in the eyes of the world. If Jesus needed to bathe his decisions in prayer, how much more do we? The leading and guidance of the Holy Spirit will take us into spaces of ministry, and into decision making that may make people wonder. That is okay, because our lives are to be shaped and formed by the life of Christ. He is the greatest example that we have, the One that we are to follow. 

A life that is shaped and formed by prayer will look more and more like the life of Christ. Think about where we spend our time and energy and what consumes our thoughts. It’s easy to fill our heads with whatever we find on the internet or the latest news on television. Jesus chose to intentionally fill his minds with thoughts from the Father. I can only begin to imagine how different our lives would be if we were driven by the mind of Christ. This can only happen when we get to know the mind of Christ, when filled with the Holy Spirit, and in prayer. Our lives, actions and decisions, must be bathed in prayer. 

Prayer:

Lord, may the work of this day be yours.  Amen.