Early in human history, people learned that sailing the oceans and seas of planet Earth was costly and dangerous. Countless lives were lost as storms, hidden shoals, and other catastrophes awaited the unsuspecting sailors. Yet despite the risks, many persisted because of the advantages of travel and the movement of goods from one place to another.
In the United States, in the early 1800s, along the coast of Cape Cod in the state of Massachusetts, men were appointed as “surfmen.” When a storm approached, these volunteer lifesavers patrolled the beaches of Cape Cod.
In 1806 the Massachusetts Humane Society paid a Nantucket shipwright to design and build a small lifesaving boat, 30 feet long and lined with cork. Volunteer lifesaving crews launched the surfboats into the turbulent waters and rowed to grounded vessels to rescue the survivors. These brave men were sent into the teeth of furious storms because they valued human life.
These “surfmen” eventually adopted the motto, “You have to go out, but you don’t have to come back.” Or as one of them said, “When I see a man clinging to a wreck, I see nothing else in the world, and I never think of family and friends until I have saved him.”
All of us face storms in life. They come in the form of illness or disease, broken relationships, crises of faith, the death of a loved one, and so on. These storms can destroy our faith or make it stronger. Much depends on our response.
As we continue our journey through Mark’s Gospel, we’ve come to the end of chapter six. At first glance, the most memorable part of this section is Jesus’ walking on the water. Isn’t that amazing? However, when you put this event in its larger context, this scene takes on a greater significance in how we understand the life and ministry of Jesus. It also speaks to our lack of spiritual understanding and how slow we are to recognize Jesus for who He truly is.
I’ve titled today’s teaching, “Sent Into the Storm.” Our text is Mark 6:45-56.
This text shows us how God sends storms into our lives to reveal His person and power. There are three examples of being alone in this narrative; let’s examine each of them.
The First Example is,
Jesus Alone
You may wonder where I came up with this idea about Jesus being in a storm. Here is where the context sets the stage for this example.
When I think of a storm, especially a storm at sea, I picture turbulence and chaos, things are out of control! We have the biblical storms experienced by the prophet, Jonah, or the apostle Paul. In both cases, the sailors called upon their gods for deliverance. Sailors of those days were very superstitious. They believed that the spirits of the underworld troubled the waters and were responsible for the violent thrashing of the waves.
The Bible uses the troubled sea as an analogy for the evil that exists in our world (Isaiah 57:20). It was in this storm of violence and evil that Jesus was sent to rescue us sinners. In the previous section of verses Jesus viewed the masses of people as “sheep without a shepherd.” They were fainting and didn’t know where to find help and hope.
So, Jesus cared for them. He taught them the principles of His kingdom and invited them into a relationship with Him and His Father. He healed their crippled and diseased bodies and provided the food they needed. He poured Himself out to the point of exhaustion, not having time to rest or even eat. His disciples saw these things, yet doubted who He was.
Immediately after the miraculous feeding of this crowd of thousands, Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and set sail for the western side of the sea. After they’re gone, He supervises the dismissal of the crowd. Is there significance in this sequence of events? Absolutely! Jesus is left alone.
John’s narrative of this event tells us why Jesus did this. The crowds had become so excited by Jesus’ miracles that they were ready to revolt against Rome and proclaim Him king! Sending the disciples away removed them from this atmosphere of an overwrought political concept of the Messianic kingdom. They too had similar misconceptions about the makeup and purpose of the kingdom.
Fame and the praise of men are powerful stimulants. They have been the downfall of many. (Remember Herod)? A mere man would’ve been swept along in the winds of this euphoria, but Jesus realized this was an attempt by Satan to short-circuit the plan of His Father. This was His storm, a conflict between human desires and God’s plans. How can I say that? The Scriptures are clear, Jesus was tempted in every way we are, yet He did not sin, Hebrews 4:15.
Numerous times the Scriptures tell us that Jesus spent time in prayer. However, only a few of them give us details. In Luke chapter six, before choosing His disciples, Jesus spent all night in prayer. We also have the details of His wrestling alone in prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane, just before His crucifixion.
Here, Jesus left the crowd and went to a mountain nearby to commune with His Heavenly Father. We know from the text that He was on the mountain for several hours. He needed that time to refocus, to reorient His life around His purpose and calling. I imagine Him dealing with the temptation to accept praise and acclaim from men. Anyone who is involved in ministry and has high public visibility will experience this same kind of storm.
Jesus was sent by His Father into the storm of sinful humanity. He didn’t come to eliminate the storm but to provide peace for us during the storm. However, to do that He had to experience storms Himself. Those experiences qualified Him, by experience, to be our Savior.
The Next Example is,
The Disciples Alone
Verse 47 shifts our focus onto the disciples. “Now when evening came, the boat was in the middle of the sea; and He was alone on the land.” Here is our “second” evening. The sun had set, and darkness was falling. In the twilight, the ship was in the middle of the lake. Jesus had come down from the mountain and was once again by the sea. He remained on the shore for several hours.
He saw the disciples straining at the oars because the wind was stubbornly against them. They were rowing like madmen but making no headway. They should have reached their destination long before this. Our English word, straining, comes from the original, bazanizo. It is translated in other places as “torment.” In Jesus’ interaction with the Gadarene demoniac, the man said to Him, “Swear to God that you will not torment (bazanizo) me.” These men in the boat were in deep trouble.
About the fourth watch of the night, sometime between 3 am and 6 am, Jesus approached that beleaguered boat with its exhausted crew. And the text says something astounding to me; “he intended to pass by them.” What? Jesus loves these men deeply and has committed Himself to be their teacher and He’s going to pass right on by them? In our minds, there’s something wrong with this picture.
This phrase may, at first, seem insignificant, but I believe otherwise. Why would Jesus intentionally pass by these men in their struggle? Furthermore, why does God seem to pass us by in some of our struggles in life?
Go with me for a few moments back to the book of Exodus, chapter 33. Here, God is commanding Moses to lead the children of Israel away from Mount Sinai and onto the Promised Land. Moses wants to make sure that God will go with them on this journey, so He says “Now therefore, I pray, if I have found grace in Your sight, show me now Your way, that I may know You and that I may find grace in Your sight. And consider that this nation is Your people.”
God reassures Moses of His presence which leads Moses to respond, “Please, show me Your glory.” Now I want you to pay close attention to what God says next. And the Lord said, “Here is a place by Me, and you shall stand on the rock. So it shall be, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock and will cover you with My hand while I pass by. Then I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back, but My face shall not be seen.”
I believe that Jesus’ purpose in “passing by” the disciples was to show them His glory. Think about this with me. Jesus had just performed a notable miracle in the feeding of the multitude, a miracle the disciples participated in. However, despite all the things they saw Jesus do, they were blind to who He was.
Earlier in chapter 4, we have the account of Jesus stilling the storm. There, He was in the boat with them. In this scene, Jesus seems to be walking on the sea much like you and I might take a stroll along the shore. And He intends to pass by them as they labor at the oars. However, they all saw Him, and they shrieked in terror because they thought they were seeing a ghost. They had never seen anyone walk on water before and they didn’t recognize Him in the darkness.
Jesus knew they were struggling, and He left them to struggle for several hours. He didn’t immediately come to their rescue like He did in the previous experience in the storm. Why? There was something they needed to learn. What they needed to learn is that He is God.
Have you ever been in a storm where it seemed God was nowhere to be found? You cried out to Him, but He seemed to be silent. You needed His help, but He seemed not to care. In those times, you can be sure that God has something He wants you to learn.
The Final Example is,
God Alone
Notice with me how Jesus responds to their cries of terror. “Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.” There is something very interesting and very important in Jesus’ statement. In the Greek language, two different words express the quality of being or existence. They are ego (from which we get our English word, ego), and eimi. Most places only use one form. However, in this text, both are used.
You’re wondering what is significant about that, aren’t you? Do you remember when God met Moses at the burning bush? In his conversation with God, Moses asked, “Indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they say to me, ‘What is His name?’ what shall I say to them?” And God said to Moses, here’s what you tell them; “I AM WHO I AM.”
That is what Jesus is saying to the terror-stricken disciples. “Take courage, the I AM is here. There’s no need to be afraid.” What other conclusion could they have come to? They knew that no human being could walk on water. That was the sole domain of Yahweh; Job 9:8, “He alone spreads out the heavens, and treads on the waves of the sea.” The disciples knew this.
Picture the scene. The sea is boisterous, Jesus is standing there on the boiling waves talking with the disciples. Then He climbs into the boat and immediately the wind stops. “And they were greatly amazed in themselves beyond measure, and marveled.” God is here.
Why did Jesus respond to the disciples in this way? We don’t have to wonder because the very next verse gives us the answer. “For they had not understood about the loaves, because their heart was hardened.” Mark implies that they were excessively amazed because they failed to comprehend the full significance of the miracle of the loaves and fish. Their reasoning process was calloused. Who else could take a few loaves and fish and feed a multitude of thousands? Instead of seeing the presence of God Almighty, they reduced Him to a leader who could deliver them from the power of Rome. Who else could walk on water? Who else was “ego eimi?”
It would be easy for us to criticize the disciples for their lack of belief, but perhaps we would benefit from a look in the mirror. Jeremiah reminds us “The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked; Who can know it?” When people don’t accept the identity of Jesus, it’s not because they’re stupid or unintelligent. It’s because their hearts are hardened.
Finally, the wind-driven boat arrived on the plain of Gennesaret, several miles south of their original destination. There, they tied up the boat. As they disembarked, the people recognized Jesus and they ran excitedly through the whole region and began to carry on mats those who were sick to the place where He was. And there, the whole illustration of who Jesus was began to be repeated.
I am so grateful today that Jesus was sent alone into the storm of our sinful humanity. I am thankful for these glimpses in the Scripture of His humanity and the recognition of His need for time alone with His Father. It is encouraging to see Him wrestle with the same temptations that I face. Because He was victorious, I can be too.
I’m glad Mark gave us the details of this account of the disciples being left alone in their boat to struggle in the storm. And while I never like the storms that come to me in life, I am grateful for the work that God does in my heart through them. I pray that my heart won’t be hardened like the disciples by my focus on earthly things.
Finally, I’m thankful that God alone can meet our needs in every situation. And when we know His presence, we stop straining at the oars. We are removed from our torment, and we are left in a state of awe and reverence before Him.
I don’t know what storms in life you’re facing at the moment, but Jesus does. He’s been through them before you. He is praying to His Father for you to endure and be faithful. He is saying to you, “Take courage, the I AM is here.” So, don’t fear the storm, hold onto the hand of the One who walks on the water.
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