The Place of Prayer 1

Leaving there, he went, as he so often did, to Mount Olives. The disciples followed him.
Luke 22:39

Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and you say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship. Jesus said to her, Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you shall neither worship the Father in this mountain nor yet at Jerusalem. But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such to worship Him.

John 4:20-21,23 

Saturday, December 15. Spent much time in prayer in the woods and seemed to rise above the things of the world.

~David Brainerd’s diary

Where should I pray? What is the example and teaching of the Christ on the place of prayer?

We catch glimpses of him praying in a usual place. On that passionate night, we see him at a place of his habit, a customary place- Gethsemane. Luke testifies that Jesus’ withdrawal to the Mount of Olives was not a flash in the pan. He did it often. As he was wont. As usual. His withdrawal to Gethsemane was so predictable that even though Judas the betrayer did not finish the meal with him, Judas knew where he would be.

Dotted through the gospels, we see Jesus consistently in prayer on mountains. After successful ministry, we read the record of John Mark in Mark 6:46. ‘And when he had sent them away, he departed into a mountain to pray.’ Before selecting the 12 apostles who would carry his mantle and pioneer the church, we read the record of Luke in Luke 6:12. ‘And it came to pass in those days, that he went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.’ In Luke 9:28, Jesus leaves the crowds for a mountain. ‘And it came to pass about an eight days after these sayings, he took Peter and John and James, and went up into a mountain to pray.’

The mountains were his usual place. The pattern and lesson here is that the discipline of prayer requires regular prayer in a usual place free from distraction. The Mount of Olives and the garden of Gethsemane were out of town; away from the noise of Passover preparations, away from the Jerusalem crowds at the feast, away from the lulling comforts of the upper room.

Where is your mountain?