“Immediate Rest” 1-2-22

Overview

Immediate Rest: Beginning the Day with the Father

Mark is rightly called the "action gospel." The Greek word eutheōs—"immediately"—appears 41 times in Mark alone (out of 84 occurrences in the entire New Testament), often paired with kai ("and") to push the narrative forward with breathless urgency. Unlike Matthew, who carefully traces Jesus' genealogy Matthew 1:1, Luke, who composes an "orderly account" beginning with John the Baptist's birth Luke 1:1-4, or John, who opens with the eternal Word John 1:1, Mark simply announces "the beginning of the good news of Jesus Christ, the Son of God" Mark 1:1 and tells us to buckle up.

Yet even Mark pauses for one preparatory note: John the Baptist, calling people to repentance Mark 1:4-5. This is no detour. Without the recognition of sin, the good news has no traction—we cannot rejoice in being saved if we do not know what we are saved from. With that foundation laid, the action begins: the heavens tear open at Jesus' baptism Mark 1:10, the Spirit immediately drives him into the wilderness Mark 1:12, Simon and Andrew immediately leave their nets Mark 1:18, James and John follow suit Mark 1:20, an unclean spirit is cast out, and Jesus' fame spreads through Galilee Mark 1:28. Three years of public ministry leaves no room for wasted time.

And this is precisely what makes Mark 1:35 so striking: "In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed." Surrounded by lines of people needing healing, disciples needing training, and a message needing proclamation Mark 1:38, Jesus' first urgent act of the day was not labor but communion with the Father. Before dawn broke, before the crowds gathered, the Son sought the Father's strength and will. The most urgent work of his ministry—going to the cross to take our sin upon himself—was sustained by this rhythm of prayer.

If Jesus, fully God and fully man, sought the Father's strength before his work, how much more do we need it before ours? At the start of a new year, our planners are full and our to-do lists feel pressing. The temptation is to wake and reach immediately for the phone, the inbox, the news, the next task. The invitation here is different: lay the day before the Father first. Bring your urgency to him, ask for his strength and guidance, and then go out into the day with a deeper urgency still—that everyone you meet would know forgiveness of sins and the love of God in Christ. Begin every day immediately resting in the Lord.

Transcript

If you would please open your Bibles to the Gospel of Mark the first chapter, the Gospel of 2s

Mark the first chapter. 10s

We are beginning a new sermon series today on Mark, an highlighting what is the action gospel. 12s

It's a new year who among us has already made goals and plans and started working through 23s

a planner and making a list of what we want to do and what we want to get done over the 30s

year. 36s

Okay, thank you. 37s

I didn't want to be alone here. 38s

So we always have so many things that we need to do that can be done that should be done, 40s

that won't be good done. 48s

And there's a constant barrage of things happening and really in 2022, we live a life that 49s

is busy, busy busy busy busy busy busy busy busy. 60s

We always have somewhere to go, things to do, people to see plans to make places to 63s

travel. 68s

We always have something that needs to get done and we live our lives according to our 69s

plans in a planner, in a very urgent sort of manner. 75s

And this is why I love that we are jumping into the Gospel of Mark today because really 82s

it is known as the action gospel. 87s

There is no time to be wasted when we are reading Mark. 91s

It moves so quickly. 95s

There is a word that comes up several times in the Gospel of Mark immediately. 97s

Immediately, the Greek word for this is Yutheos. 106s

Yutheos. 112s

And Yutheos comes up 84 times in the New Testament. 113s

41 times of those 84 are in the Gospel of Mark. 120s

41 of the immediate are in the Gospel of Mark. 126s

A lot of times it is combined with the word Kai, Ka, and that is and. 133s

And immediately and forthwith and straight on, it's just this very urgent sort of feel that 141s

we get. 147s

In fact, there are times where Yutheos is used that the English translation kind of 148s

gives over it and they just say and a great example of that is in the Gospel text 155s

verse 10 of our text today or of Mark one where it says and just as he was coming up out 162s

of the water in the Greek, it says immediately as Jesus was coming up out of the water 168s

of the Thales immediately and it has this sense of of forward action of urgency in it. 176s

So we have not only the word immediately throughout the Gospel of Mark but where we 185s

don't read it in our English translation, it's very possible that it's implied and that 192s

it's there in the Greek translation. 199s

The urgency of this Gospel, the urgency is expressed throughout, throughout all of Mark. 203s

And it really propels us forward into the ministry of Jesus. 213s

It's this feel that we have that the ministry that Jesus was about, wasn't a matter to 221s

be set aside or to be lazy about but he had an urgency. 228s

He had three years, three years of public ministry that is not a lot of time to squeeze 234s

in everything that he needed to get done, everything that he needed to proclaim. 241s

So we're going to look first through the first chapter of Mark. 250s

We won't read every bit of it. 254s

But we're going to look at this immediacy that's propelling us forward and straight into 256s

the Gospel. 262s

So at the very beginning, the very first verse, we have the beginning of the good news 264s

of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. 270s

So immediately Mark is setting up that this is what's going to happen. 273s

We're going to have the story of Jesus Christ. 279s

You're going to hear the good news of Jesus Christ. 282s

This is very, very different than how it begins in Matthew, where in Matthew, Matthew takes 286s

his time getting into it. 294s

With the genealogy of Jesus, he says, an account of the genealogy of Jesus, the Messiah, 296s

the Son of David, the Son of Abraham. 302s

And he proceeds to go through the genealogy of Jesus. 305s

And so he's setting up, he's taking his time getting us into the proper place of who 310s

Jesus is with his genealogy and how he is descended directly from Abraham. 317s

In Luke, we have Luke who writes, since many have undertaken to set down an orderly account 324s

of the events that have been fulfilled among us, just as they were handed on to us by those 332s

who from the beginning were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. 337s

I too decided after investigating everything carefully from the very first to write an orderly 342s

account for you, most excellent, the awfulest. 348s

So Luke is going about this in a very, very ordered way. 351s

He wants to lay out, investigated, that he wants to lay out the story of Jesus Christ. 357s

And so he's going about, and he begins at the beginning of Christ's birth. 364s

He begins with with Zechariah and Elizabeth and John the Baptist. 369s

And he goes into the birth of Christ. 372s

And so we see how Jesus came to be. 374s

We get a picture of Jesus when he was at the temple at 12 years old. 378s

And so Luke works his way into Jesus and Jesus life. 382s

In John, we immediately get hit with this depth of theology. 388s

John does not waste any time in going straight to the divine nature of Christ, where he says, 396s

in the beginning was the word. 405s

And the word was with God and the word was God. 407s

And he takes this time to develop who Christ is as the Son of God, as the second person, 410s

of the Trinity. 418s

But Mark doesn't do any of that. 420s

He just wants to jump in and say, this is going to be the good news of Jesus Christ. 424s

Sit down, buckle up, we're going. 429s

And yet, he begins with John the Baptist. 432s

He begins with John the Baptist. 439s

So he says, this is going to be the good news of Jesus Christ. 442s

John the Baptist came for giving sins, calling people to repentance. 447s

And he gives us an overview of John. 452s

Why would he do that? 455s

If he is all about getting into the story, why would he take a moment to tell us 457s

of John the Baptist? 463s

Because John is the precursor to the Messiah. 465s

John is the one who is preparing the way. 470s

John is the one that people are going to the wilderness to see. 473s

And what is he telling them? 478s

You're a sinner. 480s

Repent. 481s

Repent. 483s

Repent. 485s

And there's a very important purpose for this. 486s

Because without knowing that we are sinners, 491s

what are we being saved from? 499s

Jesus, the ministry of Jesus, the forgiveness we have in Jesus is lost. 502s

If we don't think or know or believe that we have something to be saved from. 510s

And so, though Mark takes a moment to introduce us to John the Baptist. 517s

It's with very important purpose. 525s

Because he's saying we're going to have good news of Jesus Christ. 527s

And the good news of Jesus Christ, ultimately, is that we are saved from our sins. 532s

And John, John is the one to point out sin to the Judeans, 540s

to those in Jerusalem. 548s

He is the one who points out their sin to them. 550s

So, Jesus is going to set out on His ministry. 554s

We're going to look at this immediate, this propelling forward. 558s

We have that verse where where Jesus is being baptized. 562s

And immediately, he comes up out of the water. 566s

That's Mark 110. 569s

And just as he was coming up out of the water, 570s

he saw the heavens torn apart and the spirit descending like a dove on him. 573s

And then after he is baptized, verse 12, 578s

and immediately, or the spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. 581s

He was in the wilderness for 40 days tempted by Satan. 586s

And he was with the wild beasts and the angels waited on him. 590s

In verse 16, as Jesus passed along the sea of Galilee, 595s

he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net into the sea for they were fishermen. 599s

And Jesus said to them, follow me and I will make you fish for people. 605s

And immediately, they left their nets and followed him. 609s

And he went a little farther and saw James, Son of Zebidi, 612s

and his brother John, who were in their boat, 615s

mending the nets. 617s

Immediately, he called them and they left their father's 618s

Zebidi in the boat with the hired men and followed him. 621s

In verse 23, just then there was, and that is, that, 625s

Bethelus, just then there was in the synagogue a man with an unclean spirit. 630s

And we have the healing of the unclean spirit. 635s

Immediately, the spirit leaves him as Jesus rebukes the spirit. 638s

And then we get to verse 28, where at once his fame began to spread throughout the surrounding 643s

region of Galilee. So Jesus is going about these things are happening. 648s

He's not wasting time in any of his ministry. 652s

He's not wasting time calling his disciples. 656s

There is no real chronology in the beginning of Mark. 659s

But a lot of important stuff happens in the beginning of Mark. 667s

And we know that Jesus is in action, that Jesus is calling his disciples, 672s

that he's casting out demons, that he's healing people. 680s

And because of all of that, very quickly, his fame spreads. 685s

And people are coming to him from all throughout the region. 692s

There is a lot happening in these three years of ministry for Jesus. 699s

What's interesting is as quickly as Mark begins with that 708s

that urgency of Christ's ministry is quickly as he begins with that. 713s

As we get on in the gospel, you'll find that we don't hear that word immediately, 719s

quite as much until passion week. And then that urgency and that sense of urgency 727s

starts to pick up. And there's again this time that cannot be wasted. 734s

But we have something that we have to get to. 739s

So Jesus is born. Jesus is baptized. 746s

Jesus is sent out into the wilderness. 751s

Jesus comes back. He begins proclaiming his message. He begins calling his disciples. 756s

He begins casting out demons. 761s

He has a lot to do. He has a lot of people to see. 766s

He has a lot of places to go. He has a lot of things to do. 772s

His to-do list is very, very long and very, very important. 776s

He needs to get all of it done. 782s

And so this is where we get to our text this morning. 788s

Verse 35, in the morning, while it was still very dark, 793s

he got up and went out to a deserted place. And there he prayed. 800s

He had a to-do list. He had a list of people 811s

that he needed to call that he didn't administer to. 817s

He had words he needed to preach. 822s

He could have gotten up any day of the week and gotten right to it and never 826s

never slowed down. And yet what do we see from Christ? 834s

In all of the to-do's, in all of the people who are clamoring to see him, 841s

in all of the responsibilities that he has, that he can focus his time and energy on. 847s

He wakes up in the morning and that's not 856s

early morning. That's middle of the night. It is still appearing as night. 859s

So early, early, early while it's still dark. Dawn has not broken yet. Dawn is not even on the horizon yet. 866s

And what does he do? He wakes up. He goes out where he can be alone 873s

and he communicates with the father. He prays. 882s

That is what Jesus does in his urgency. 890s

That is what Jesus does first and foremost with his time. 897s

In the morning while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place 909s

and there he prayed. 916s

Remember, in the gospel of Mark, there is no time to waste. There is absolutely no time to 921s

spare. Jesus has to get going because he has a lot to do. And yet the first thing that he has to do 931s

is to rest in the father immediately. He doesn't even wait for the break of dawn. 948s

He immediately, in the middle of the night, goes to speak with the father. 961s

We have so many things on our plates. So many things that we have to get done. There is absolutely no time to waste. 971s

And so when we wake up, we're going to check the stock market. 990s

There is absolutely no time to spare. We have so many things to do on our list. And so when we wake up, 996s

we are going to check our social media. We have to get going. Do you know how many things are in your 1011s

plan or that you have listed things to do that need to be done? People to see appointments to make. And so when you wake up, 1024s

you check your emails. You check your emails. Check your to-do list. 1032s

The urgency of our days is overwhelming. So much important business to attend to. 1040s

What was the urgency of Jesus? He had lines of people that were constantly coming to him, 1054s

asking for him to heal them, to cast out demons. He had these men that he needed to train so that they 1065s

could carry on the ministry. And yet he begins his day immediately resting in the father. 1076s

Jesus had one main purpose in his public ministry. We read in verse 38. He says, 1097s

let us go on to the neighboring towns so that I may proclaim the message there also for that 1108s

is what I came out to do. What is the message that he needed so urgently to proclaim? 1114s

It was the message of salvation in him. It was the message of God's love for his people. 1126s

That is what he needed to proclaim. That is what he needed to do. 1135s

And he went to the source of strength first. He went to the father. 1145s

We don't know what words he shared. We don't know what prayers, 1154s

what communication the father and the son, two persons of the Trinity. We don't know what 1161s

communication they shared. But we know that he had time with the father, that all of the urgent 1168s

ministry that laid before him began in prayer with the father. And Jesus did nothing 1177s

without first communicating with the father, without first going and seeking the father's will. 1190s

Jesus had a very urgent work to do. And the most urgent work that he had comes in the end of 1204s

the dark when he's heading toward the cross. The urgent work that he had to do 1221s

was to take your sin upon himself. Was to cleanse you holy and completely making you 1232s

righteous by his blood. And he needed the strength of the father. 1243s

Now Jesus, the second person of the Trinity fully God, fully man. 1258s

If he needed the strength of the father, if he sought the father's will, what does that mean for us? 1267s

Can we look at this and say, maybe maybe when I wake up, maybe I immediately need rest 1287s

in the father. And we can take our planners, we can take our to do lists, 1303s

we can take all of the must get to's for the day. And we can lay it before the father. 1312s

And we can seek the father's will. And we can seek the father's strength. 1323s

And we are promised that we will receive it. We're at the start of a new year. And there's so much 1333s

so much that lays before us, so much for us to look forward to. So much that we can 1347s

do and get accomplished and people to see, I want to encourage you at the beginning of this year. 1356s

I want you to be encouraged that we too can begin this year. We can begin this month. We can begin 1368s

every single day seeking the father, praying for his strength, praying for his guidance, 1381s

praying for his will to be done. And then we can live that sense of urgency 1394s

in Christ. Urgent that all would know the love of the Lord, urgent that all would know 1403s

that sins are forgiven through Christ. Urgent, urgent to make the mercies and grace of God 1414s

known because we began our day immediately resting in the Lord. 1426s