Mark 1:36-39 “Simon and his companions went to look for him, 37 and when they found him, they exclaimed: "Everyone is looking for you!" 38 Jesus replied, "Let us go somewhere else-to the nearby villages-so I can preach there also. That is why I have come." 39 So he traveled throughout Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving out demons.”
This passage is a very revealing look at the priority system of Jesus. He is not attracted to the crowds for the sake of His identity. He is not addicted to His own fame. When His disciples come and tell him that everyone is looking for Him this is not a source of excitement, nor something that compels Him to feel the need to respond to their demands. It is obvious by this response that it is not just the gathering of crowds that moves Jesus to action. He is driven by a clear sense of the purpose of God behind His actions.
When the disciples come with the news of the pressing crowds Jesus’ answer is “let’s go somewhere else!” He doesn’t rush out to meet His fans, nor does He feel the pressure of their needs driving Him to some heroic, pressure filled sense of responsibility. Jesus understands that their real needs are deeper than one ministry opportunity can ever fulfill. The Lord is clear about His purpose and is able to place the larger scale goals of His life above the immediate sense of need that is reaching out from the crowds of people.
If Jesus fails in His primary mission of introducing the kingdom of God to every town and village and of laying the foundation for the local church to be established that will endure long beyond His own natural life span then the real purpose of His coming will be defeated in the name of a false sense of heroic responsibility for the needs of the moment. This passage so clearly establishes the fact that we must live according to our long term priorities not our sense of immediate needs.
Do you think the disciples in their emotional appeal to Him to meet the needs of the moment were shocked or offended initially by His response? Consider this: the disciples come saying, “the people need you” and Jesus responds by saying “let’s move on to the other towns that I haven’t been to yet!” What a lesson for His young disciples in the reality of living a purpose centered life. Throughout His ministry Jesus emphasized two priorities: introducing the kingdom of God and building the local church that would be the structure through which the kingdom of God would be demonstrated. This was His mission. Because He understood this He was able to walk away at times from the needs of the now for the sake of the greater vision.
There was so much need in each local community that Jesus could have easily gotten caught up in just touching every person within one local community and then slowly moving to another community. The work would have gone deeper in one area for one generation but He would not have built something that touched the entire earth for all generations. Jesus informs His disciples that He has come to touch every community not a community. He clearly states “that is why I have come.” Are you clear about your purpose? Can you say no to the urgent for the sake of the important? Are you secure enough in who you are that you can be at rest even when the circumstances and needs are pressuring you to do something and you have to say no and walk on to your real priorities? Learn from this moment in the life of Jesus and focus on the high priority goals of your life.
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