Take Courage!
Last week we saw a sort of mixed bag from being rejected in his own hometown to a miraculous feeding of a multitude with practically no food. Chapter six continues with a great story of our Lord showing great compassion for people in need, including his disciples.
Jesus commanded his disciples get into their boat and launch out onto the Sea of Galilee while he dismissed the crowd and then had time to pray by Himself. Before we read the section in Mark, let’s think about prayer in quiet. Quiet time with the Lord is so refreshing. It doesn’t have to be formal conversation with all the thee’s and thou’s! Just a simple talk with your best friend. Remember the acronym ACTS as sort of an organizing concept for prayer.
- A = Adoration. Begin with recognizing God for who he is and what he means to you.
- C = Confession. Confess your short comings (sins) and ask for forgiveness and a chance to do better the next day.
- T = Thanksgiving. Always give thanks for people and/or things that are significant in your life.
- S = Supplication. Now it’s time to ask for something. Notice it’s last.
Read Mark 6:45-56
Water is a basic substance of life. Without it you will die. But with too much or under the wrong circumstances, you may be in “deep trouble.” The disciples found themselves in the middle of the lake and fighting the wind for their lives. Once again, the Lord comes to their rescue but the manner in which He appeared was frightening as if they saw a ghost.
Biblical Watches: The Jewish watches were three in number while the Romans watches numbered four. Jewish watches: 1st: Sunset to 10P; 2nd: 10P to 2A; and 3rd: 2A to sunrise. During Roman times, the watches were four in number each beginning: 1st: 9P; 2nd: 12MN; 3rd: 3A and 4th: 6A. Thus we can assume this was very early in the AM.
Put yourself in the boat with the disciples. You’ve had a very long day feeding all those people after having returned from a mission trip. Now you’ve spent the night on the water fighting the wind. Then a person comes walking by your boat. What would you think? How does Mark describe their fear?
Jesus can calm a stormy sea, but first he calms the troubled disciples. What were his words? How does the phrase, “Take Courage, It is I,” provide solace to you?
Jesus not only calms their troubled hearts but then “climbs into the boat” with them. Jesus climbed into my life when I was brought to the waters of baptism and received his Holy Spirit and faith that Jesus is my Lord and Savior. He calms my every fear. Sometimes we forget that we have an indwelling of the Holy Spirit (in the boat) with us. God is never away from us and yet we still have daily fears and trepidations. Did Jesus have to do anything to calm the wind/storm? No, he can calm anything in His creation including nature itself.
Well, the disciples were amazed! Mark reminds his readers that they didn’t get the miraculous feeding yet. Why?
Water: Water is vital to all forms of life on earth. Water covers 71% of the earth surface. Approximately 96.5% of all the earth’s water is found in seas and oceans with 1.7% each in ground water and glaciers. The balance is vapor and clouds. The human body contains 55 to 78% water based on size and other factors. Humans require water every day to prevent dehydration. Consumption can range between one and seven liters per day depending on activity, size and other factors. Water is found in all three physical states – liquid, solid and vapor (steam). Water also is subject to pressure, for example water boils at 68 C on Mt. Everest while we normally recognize boiling at 100 C (212F). Over one Billion still lack access to safe water and is likely to get worse in the next 20-30 years.
The balance of the section begins with their landing at Gennesaret.
Gennesaret: A town of Naphtali, called Chinnereth, sometimes in the plural form Chinneroth. In later times the name was gradually changed to Genezar and Gennesaret. This city stood on the western shore of the lake to which it gave its name. No trace of it remains. The plain of Gennesaret has been called, from its fertility and beauty, “the Paradise of Galilee.” It is now called el-Ghuweir.
What transpired when they landed at Gennesaret? Could a political rally of today even begin to draw so many people in such a short period of time? Our Lord’s compassion continues to show from healing to even touching his cloak.
Questions for the Day
- Spiritual blindness can occur with a Christian. True or False. Explain your position. If you said, yes, then how can we seek to remove the blinders so that our walk with Him is not encumbered?
- Prayer life is something that you have to work at. It’s not something that comes easy. You have to set aside a time when you and your Lord can talk. But . . . we often throw it aside when the hustles and bustles of the day crowd our 24-hour clock. What have you found effective in preserving that precious time with your Lord in prayer?
- Our Lord’s healing continues to show forth in Mark’s Gospel. Luke 6:19 describes that people felt the “power coming from him.” It should not be a surprise that Dr. Luke would use such language as a physician. How can we feel his power in our lives?