More Than Walking on Water

[0:00] We'll finish Mark 6 tonight by studying verses 45-56.

[0:14] Let's go ahead and read Mark 6, 45-56 now.! Talking about Jesus, Mark said, Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side to Bethsaida while he dismissed the crowd.

[0:30] And after he had taken leave of them, he went up on the mountain to pray. And when evening came, the boat was out on the sea, and he was alone on the land.

[0:41] And he saw that they were making headway painfully, for the wind was against them. And about the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea. He meant to pass by them, but when they saw him walking on the sea, they thought it was a ghost and cried out.

[0:58] For they all saw him and were terrified. But immediately he spoke to them and said, Take heart, it is I, do not be afraid. And he got into the boat with them, and the wind ceased.

[1:11] And they were utterly astounded, for they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened. When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret and more to the shore.

[1:24] And when they got out of the boat, the people immediately recognized him and ran about the whole region, and began to bring the sick people on their beds to wherever they heard he was.

[1:34] And wherever he came, in villages, cities, or countryside, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and implored him that they might touch even the fringe of his garment.

[1:47] And as many as touched it were made well. Here's the main idea for this passage. Jesus demonstrates his deity and fulfills Old Testament prophecy.

[2:00] Again, Jesus demonstrates his deity and fulfills Old Testament prophecy. If that main idea sounds familiar, it should.

[2:11] The main idea is very similar to the main idea for the passage we studied last time. That was the passage where Jesus fed 5,000 men plus women and children. Jesus fed them with only five loaves and two fish.

[2:25] The apostles missed the main point of that miracle. In tonight's verses, Jesus gives them another chance to get the same point. Because of Mark 6.52, we know that the disciples flunked the lesson that Jesus was teaching them by feeding the 5,000.

[2:43] Mark 6.52 says, For they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened. We'll talk more about verse 52 later.

[2:53] For now, just keep in mind that Jesus is giving the disciples and us another opportunity to realize that Jesus is God, and to realize that Jesus fulfills Old Testament pictures and prophecies.

[3:08] The people and the apostles needed another lesson about the purpose of Jesus' first coming because they had a different idea about what the Messiah would be like. When Jesus miraculously created food from nothing and with no apparent effort, the crowd responded with a euphoric attempt to crown him king.

[3:27] They hoped he would overthrow Herod and the Romans and usher in the millennial kingdom with power and provision like he had displayed. The people's enthusiasm was misguided.

[3:39] Their interests were merely material and temporary. Jesus' message, by contrast, focused on truths that were heavenly and eternal. Jesus insisted on a spiritual transformation, not a political revolution.

[3:55] Jesus will return one day to establish his kingdom on earth and to fulfill all that the prophets predicted about the glories of his reign. But this was not the goal of his first coming.

[4:05] The apostles' initial understanding was only marginally better than the people. At this stage, the main difference between the people and the apostles was that the apostles stayed with Jesus while most of the people soon stopped following him.

[4:22] One significant difference between the miracle we saw last time and the miracles that we will see this week is that the apostles were the only ones to see most of the miracles in verses 45-56.

[4:33] The headline miracle is Jesus walking on water. However, this passage has more than Jesus walking on water. When you combine Mark's account with the other two gospel accounts of the same events, we will learn about at least eight miracles or at least eight times where Jesus demonstrates his deity.

[4:54] Whether you consider each of the eight to be a miracle depends upon whether you view some of them as true miracles or whether you view some of them simply as Jesus demonstrating the attributes of God.

[5:06] Regardless, we will see Jesus do at least eight things that prove he is God. We'll split tonight's passage into three sections, starting with verses 45 and 46.

[5:19] Each section highlights a specific action by Jesus. In Mark 6, 45 and 46, we see Jesus communing. Jesus communing is your first set of blanks.

[5:33] Here are verses 45 and 46 again. Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd.

[5:46] And after he had taken leave of them, he went up on the mountain to pray. In these verses, it's the evening of the day when Jesus fed the 5,000 men plus women and children.

[5:59] After the meal, those people still were lingering. They wanted to see an encore from Jesus. We alluded to John 6, 14 and 15 earlier when we talked about the people wanting to make Jesus king.

[6:13] Here are John 6, 14 and 15. When the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, This is indeed the prophet who has come into the world.

[6:25] Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself. In Mark 6, 45, Mark omits the reason why Jesus made his apostles get into the boat and head across the lake.

[6:41] One possible reason is that the apostles may have been getting caught up in the excitement that Jesus might soon be king. Or perhaps Jesus wanted to prevent the apostles from getting caught up in that excitement.

[6:55] After all, if Jesus became the earthly king of the nation and overthrew the Roman occupation, Jesus' closest followers would be elevated to high positions. From a human standpoint, those kinds of thoughts had to be tempting to the apostles.

[7:10] The Bible omits the reason why Jesus made the disciples get into the boat without him. The reason could be as simple as what we already know. The disciples had a lesson that they needed to learn.

[7:24] Being in the boat was part of the circumstances needed for them to learn the lesson. After instructing the disciples to depart, Jesus himself was sending the crowd away.

[7:36] Dispersing tens of thousands of people when you include women and children who were held captive by the miraculous would not have been an easy task, humanly speaking. Yet in the same way that Jesus sovereignly ordered them to sit in groups of 50 and 100, the Lord exercised divine authority over the crowd and the people complied.

[7:57] Though they enthusiastically wanted to make him king to suit their own ends, he dismissed them without an argument. As for the people, John 6 verses 22 through 24 imply that they did not travel far.

[8:12] Apparently spending the night in the nearby countryside, they awoke the next morning and returned to the place where Jesus had fed them, only to discover that Jesus was no longer there.

[8:24] After Jesus dismisses the crowd, he goes up on the mountain to pray. We could spend a lot of time speculating about the content of Jesus' prayer. Many people do, but this is another case where the Holy Spirit omits the details about the content of the prayer.

[8:42] What we do see is that Jesus prayed. In his gospel, Mark only records three times that Jesus prays. We know Jesus prayed more than that, but the three times that Mark recorded are these.

[8:56] The first was at the beginning of the gospel when Jesus' ministry is being defined. The second is here in the middle of the gospel after he feeds the 5,000.

[9:09] And the third is near the end of his ministry in Gethsemane, just before he goes to the cross. The three times that Mark records Jesus praying do have something in common.

[9:23] They all come at a time when a mere human would have been tempted to deviate from God's plan. In Mark 1, 35, Jesus prayed after his earthly popularity was at a high point.

[9:37] He had healed many people and had cast out demons. People were flocking to him to see what else Jesus would do. It's been a few months since we've looked at Mark 1, verses 35 through 38.

[9:51] Here are Mark 1, 35 through 38 again. And rising very early in the morning while it was still dark, he, that's Jesus, departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed.

[10:06] And Simon and those who were with him searched for him. And they found him and said to him, Everyone is looking for you. And he said to them, Let us go on to the next towns that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out.

[10:25] In our passage tonight, Jesus also prays when his popularity is surging. Tonight's prayer comes before he again moves on to another place to focus on his true mission.

[10:38] The next time that we will see Jesus praying is in Mark 14, verses 32 through 39, the night before Jesus is murdered on the cross. We know that then Jesus was tempted to deviate from the Father's will.

[10:53] Mark includes some of that prayer. Mark 14, 36 is the most well-known verse in the prayer. And here is Mark 14, 36. And he said, Abba, Father, all things are possible for you.

[11:10] Remove this cup from me, yet not what I will, but what you will. Each time Mark shows Jesus praying, Jesus is tempted to deviate from the divine plan.

[11:26] We can learn from Jesus here. Anytime Jesus faced a critical moment, Jesus prayed. He most often got away and prayed in private. In each instance, overtones of spiritual conflict and warfare were in the air.

[11:42] prayer for Jesus was intense. It was war. John Piperwell says, Until you believe that life is war, you cannot know what prayer is for.

[11:55] Jesus knew this better than any of us. He sought his Father in the heat of the battle raging about him. Now that we've seen Jesus communing with the Father, let's move to the second section of the lesson.

[12:11] In Mark 6, verses 47 through 52, we see Jesus calming. Jesus calming is the second set of blanks. Jesus calms the storm and he calms his disciples.

[12:26] Let's read verses 47 and the first part of verse 48 again. And when evening came, the boat was out on the sea and he was alone on the land.

[12:38] And he saw that they were making headway painfully for the wind was against them. Evening refers to the second evening of the day. That's between six and nine o'clock at night.

[12:51] Jesus had fed the multitudes earlier during the first evening, which lasted from 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. By now the sun was down and dusk turned to darkness.

[13:04] With each passing hour, the distance between the disciples and Jesus widened. They were in the boat, which was in the middle of the sea. Jesus was alone on the land.

[13:16] The word boat here refers not to a huge floating vessel, but to a boat which is propelled by oars. The apostles were using their own strength to get across the lake.

[13:28] The first part of verse 48 says that they were making headway painfully. We can tell from the other accounts of this event that Mark is understating the situation.

[13:40] The apostles were in a desperate situation. Listen to Matthew chapter 14, verses 23 and 24. Here are Matthew 14, 23 and 24.

[13:52] And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone.

[14:03] But the boat by this time was a long way from the land, beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them. In John's account, John 6, 18 says this, The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing.

[14:23] Because of the sudden eruption of a terrifying storm, what normally would have been a routine lake crossing had become a treacherous journey. Violent winds propelled crushing waves that battered the boat.

[14:35] A few weeks ago, we saw in Mark chapter 4, verses 37 through 41, that the disciples had experienced a similar storm, that Jesus had been with them.

[14:48] This time, they were in the boat by themselves. Going back to the Mark text, the King James, New King James, and New American Standard Bibles make it obvious that the apostles were struggling in their attempt to cross the lake.

[15:06] Listen to the first part of Mark 6, 48, in the King James. And he, of course, that's Jesus, saw them toiling and rowing.

[15:17] He saw them toiling and rowing. As with the first storm documented in Mark chapter 4, Jesus intentionally sent the disciples into this storm too.

[15:28] Jesus may indeed send us into trouble and difficulty, but with a redemptive purpose. There our understanding of his providence and power is increased.

[15:40] There our faith and dependence on him and him alone grow. His plans are not always easy or what we want, but they are always best. Have you spotted the first of the eight things that prove that Jesus is God?

[15:58] By use of the term spotted is a clue to the first of those eight things. Jesus saw that the apostles were struggling. It was nighttime and Jesus was miles away on a mountain.

[16:12] Yet Jesus saw that the apostles were struggling. No ordinary human could have seen that. Jesus saw that because he knows all things. He's omniscient.

[16:23] He's fulfilling Old Testament pictures of God. Listen to Proverbs 15.3. Proverbs 15.3 says, The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good.

[16:42] Job 31.4 says this, Does not he see my ways and number all my steps? That, of course, was a quote from Job himself.

[16:53] Here is 2 Chronicles 16.9, at least the first part of it. 2 Chronicles 16.9 starts, For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth to give strong support to those whose heart is brainless toward him.

[17:15] Let's go back to our Mark text and look at just the next sentence of Mark 6.48. It has the second demonstration that Jesus is God. And about the fourth watch of the night, he came to them walking on the sea.

[17:32] We will get to the walking on the sea part soon, but we need to notice something else first. Jesus came to the disciples in the fourth watch of the night.

[17:43] That is from 3 a.m. to 6 a.m. Earlier, we noted that the disciples left in the boat sometime between 6 p.m. and 9 p.m.

[17:55] That means that the disciples have been rolling for at least 6 hours and perhaps as long as 12 hours. Walking on the sea is Jesus' second demonstration that he is God.

[18:09] Walking on water is something that the Old Testament depicts God doing. In Job 9.8, Job says that God is the one who alone stretched out the heavens and trampled the waves of the sea.

[18:25] In Job 38.16, God asks Job a question. Here is God's question in Job 38.16. Have you entered into the springs of the sea or walked in the recesses of the deep?

[18:40] Going back to Mark 6.48, the end of verse 48 breaks in the middle of a sentence. It says, He meant to pass by them.

[18:53] This phrase generates a lot of discussion among commentators and pastors. Interpretations of the significance of the phrase vary widely. Perhaps the most outlandish interpretation is a view that claims that Jesus was a jokester who wanted to tease the disciples by making it to the other side of the lake before they did.

[19:15] You may or may not agree with the interpretation that you will hear from me. However, I hope we can all agree that Jesus had no intention of playing a joke on his apostles. Here's what I believe to be the significance of Jesus' intent to pass by them.

[19:33] Jesus was planning to give them the third manifestation of his deity in this passage. That view is supported by several conservative commentators. More importantly, it's supported by Scripture.

[19:46] When God revealed himself in the Old Testament, God never let anyone see his full glory. Instead, God gave them only a glimpse of his glory while passing by them.

[19:59] Turn to Exodus chapter 33. We'll look at verses 17 through 23. This section of Scripture is part of a dialogue between Moses and God.

[20:12] Here are Exodus 33 verses 17 through 23. And the Lord said to Moses, This very thing that you have spoken I will do, for you have found favor in my sight, and I know you by name.

[20:28] Moses said, Please show me your glory. And he said, I will make all my goodness pass before you, and will proclaim before you my name, the Lord.

[20:40] And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy. But he said, You cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live.

[20:55] And the Lord said, Behold, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock. And while my glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by.

[21:10] Then I will take away my hand, and you shall see my back, but my face shall not be seen. Did you notice that verses 19 and 22 mention God passing by?

[21:24] In fact, Exodus 33 22 twice mentions God passing by. Now listen to 1 Kings 19 verses 9 through the first part of verse 11.

[21:38] 1 Kings 19 9 through the first part of verse 11 tells us about an encounter between God and Elijah. There he, that's Elijah, came to a cave and lodged in it.

[21:51] And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, and he said to him, What are you doing here, Elijah? He said, I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts.

[22:03] For the people of Israel have forsaken your covenant, thrown down your altars, and killed your prophets with the sword, and I, even I only, am left, and they seek my life to take it away.

[22:18] And he said, Go out and stand on the mount before the Lord, and behold, the Lord passed by. As the Lord passed by Moses at Sinai and Elijah at Horeb, so now the God of the Old Testament, who is Christ, wanted to pass by his disciples so that they might see his glory and believe.

[22:42] Only God can walk on water, and Jesus is showing them beyond question that is who he is. Jesus intending to pass by them is the third manifestation of Jesus' deity in this passage.

[22:57] The verse shows how Jesus fulfills the Old Testament. Listen now to verses 49 and 50 of Mark chapter 6. But when they saw him walking on the sea, they thought it was a ghost and cried out.

[23:12] For they all saw him and were terrified. But immediately he spoke to them and said, Take heart, It is I. Do not be afraid. You might be thinking that we can't count the passing by as Jesus fulfilling Old Testament pictures of God.

[23:31] After all, Jesus intended to pass by the apostles to show his glory, but the disciples failed to comprehend who Jesus was in that moment. If you are thinking that, you're correct.

[23:45] Even still, this verse gives us the third demonstration of Jesus fulfilling an Old Testament passage. We read Job 9.8 earlier. This time, listen to Job 9.11.

[23:58] In Job 9.11, Job said of God, Behold, he passes by me and I see him not. He moves on, but I do not perceive him.

[24:10] That's what happened to the apostles. Let's spend a little more time on Mark 6, verses 49 and 50. Understandably, the disciples were shocked when they saw someone walking on the sea.

[24:26] No doubt, the night of utter exhaustion and constant struggle added to their confusion. They panicked and supposed it was a ghost. The word ghost in Greek, from which the English words phantom and phantasm are derived, refers to an apparition, or imaginary specter.

[24:45] Popular first century superstition purported that the spirits of the night brought disaster. The disciples assumed the worst. They were so startled that they shrieked in horror.

[24:57] They cried out for they all saw him and were terrified. The Greek word for terrified means to throw into a panic or to strike with dread. They had already been afraid of the storm.

[25:10] Seeing a figure walk toward them on the water propelled their fear to even higher levels of intensity. Be sure to get the picture of those big, burly, hard-working apostles screaming like little schoolgirls.

[25:26] Rather than rebuking them, Jesus comforts the apostles instead. Look at what Jesus said at the end of verse 50. Take heart, it is I, do not be afraid.

[25:39] That phrase in the original language gives us the fourth instance where Jesus affirms his deity. Although the first sentence could be translated as take heart, it is I, like what we see here, a better translation is take heart, I am.

[25:58] If the I am sounds familiar, that is because God introduced himself that way in the Old Testament. Exodus 3 is where God introduced himself to Moses.

[26:10] Listen to Exodus 3 verses 13 and 14. Then Moses said to God, If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, The God of your fathers has sent me to you, and they ask me, What is his name?

[26:27] What shall I say to them? God said to Moses, I am who I am. And he said, Say this to the people of Israel, I am has sent me to you.

[26:42] Jesus demonstrated his deity through his supernatural power, and he also claimed to be God with the words that he spoke. Realizing it was Jesus, the disciples' fear turned to relief.

[26:55] Mark leaves out the part that gives us the next instance of Jesus demonstrating his deity. To see that turn to Matthew chapter 14 verses 28 through 31.

[27:08] Typical of Peter, Peter was the first one to speak after Jesus told the apostles to have no fear. Here is that exchange between Peter and Jesus in Matthew chapter 14 verses 28 through 31.

[27:24] And Peter answered him, Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water. He said, Come. So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus.

[27:39] But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink, he cried out, Lord, save me. Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, O you of little faith, why did you doubt?

[27:56] This is at least the fifth time in this episode that Jesus demonstrates his deity. In fact, we could even make the case that this section of Matthew gives us the fifth and sixth times that Jesus demonstrates his deity.

[28:13] Jesus enabled Peter to walk on the water. Then Jesus saved Peter when Peter began to doubt. For simplicity, we'll count both of those as one event because neither one could have happened without the other.

[28:29] John MacArthur noted, Peter's faltering faith was representative of all the disciples and exemplified the reason this miracle was necessary, to strengthen their faith.

[28:41] Though Jesus' rebuke was singularly directed at Peter, it fittingly applied to the entire group. That the Lord graciously reached out his hand and rescued Peter in spite of Peter's doubts is a wonderful picture of the way in which he graciously helps his own in their hour of need in spite of their weaknesses.

[29:05] Let's go back to our Mark text now. Here are Mark chapter 6 verses 51 and 52 again. And he got into the boat with them, and the wind ceased, and they were utterly astounded.

[29:20] For they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened. Here's the sixth case of Jesus demonstrating his deity. Look what happened as soon as Jesus got into the boat.

[29:35] Mark says the wind ceased. In Mark 4, Jesus calmed the storm with just a few words. Here he calms the storm without using words.

[29:48] Perhaps the most surprising thing, however, is the apostle's reaction. The word Mark used for utterly astounded is the one we have seen him use several times already in this gospel.

[30:01] The Greek word means that Jesus blew their minds. Do you take some comfort in the fact that the apostles were a little slow on the uptake? Anybody but Jesus likely would have been thinking, what more do I have to do to get through to these guys?

[30:19] God, Jesus knew what he would have to do to make the apostles understand his true identity. Mark even makes a point to emphasize that the apostles didn't understand after the miracle feeding.

[30:34] Look at verse 52 again. It says, For they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened. R.C.

[30:45] Sproul said, when people fail to understand the identity of Christ, it is not because they are unintelligent. It is because their hearts refuse to believe.

[30:56] Their hearts are made out of stone. Sin has caused great calluses to grow on their hearts so that Christ himself could walk in front of them on the water and they still would not believe.

[31:09] The disciples did not get it when Jesus fed the 5,000. They did not get it when he walked on the water. They did not get it when he called himself I am.

[31:21] They did not get it when he stepped into the boat and the wind died. Their hearts were hardened. Matthew's account gives us a glimmer of hope for the relatable but dense apostles.

[31:36] Listen to Matthew chapter 14 verses 32 and 33. Here are Matthew 14, 32 and 33. 33 and when they got into the boat the wind ceased and those in the boat worshipped him saying truly you are the son of God.

[31:59] Matthew shows us that the apostles finally are starting to get the point. Sadly we will see as we keep going through Mark that they sometimes fail to remember Jesus' identity until after his resurrection.

[32:11] Jesus never gives up on them. Instead Jesus continues to patiently reveal himself to them. Early in my career I complained to an experienced manager about a crusty coworker who was just beginning to grasp what seemed to be an obvious concept.

[32:32] The experienced manager said when you get an elephant moving in the right direction don't criticize him for being too slow. Based upon Matthew 14 verse 33 Jesus finally has his elephants moving in the right direction.

[32:50] We need to go to John's account of these events to see what else happened when Jesus got into the boat. Listen to John chapter 6 verse 21. John 6 21 happened after Jesus identified himself and told the apostles not to be afraid.

[33:08] Here is John 6 21. Then they were glad to take him into the boat and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going. John 6 21 gives us the seventh instance where Jesus demonstrated his deity.

[33:26] Only God could make the boat immediately arrive at the shore. Some of the apostles probably were thinking, couldn't you have done that sooner instead of making us row for all those hours?

[33:37] We have more verses to cover and we will get through those remaining verses tonight, but let's pause for a minute to ponder the significance of what we have seen so far in verses 45-52.

[33:50] here's quote from J.C. Ryle. There are thoughts of comfort here for all true believers. Wherever they may be, or whatever their circumstances, the Lord Jesus sees them, alone or in company, in sickness or in health, by sea or by land, in perils in the city or in perils in the desert, the same eye which saw the disciples tossed on the lake, is always looking at us.

[34:23] We are never beyond the reach of his care. Our way is never hidden from him. He knows the path that we take and is still available to help. He may not come to our aid at the time we like best, but he will never allow us utterly to fail.

[34:40] He who walked on the water never changes. He will always come at the right time to hold his people up. Though he delays, let us wait patiently.

[34:52] Jesus sees us and will not desert us. Warren Wearsby pointed out that God was putting the apostles through these trials for a purpose.

[35:03] Here's what Wearsby said. In Mark 4, Jesus had led his disciples into a storm following an exciting day of teaching. Now, after a time of miraculous ministry, he again led them into a storm.

[35:19] In the book of Acts, the storm of official persecution began after the disciples had won 5,000 people to Christ. Perhaps while they were in confinement, the apostles recalled the storm that followed the feeding of the 5,000, and they must have encouraged themselves with the assurance that Jesus would come to them and see them through.

[35:41] So far, we have seen Jesus communing with the Father and Jesus calming the storm and also calming his disciples.

[35:52] In the last section of the lesson, Mark 6, verses 53 through 56, we will see Jesus curing. Jesus curing is your last set of blanks.

[36:05] Taken together as a group, these verses represent the eighth time and beyond that Jesus demonstrated his deity in tonight's passage. Listen to Mark 6, 53 through 56 again.

[36:18] These verses will remind you of earlier healings that we have seen in Mark. When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret and moored to the shore.

[36:30] And when they got out of the boat, the people immediately recognized him and ran about the whole region and began to bring the sick people on their beds to wherever they heard he was.

[36:41] And wherever he came, in villages, cities, or countryside, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and implored him that they might touch even the fringe of his garment, and as many as touched it were made well.

[36:58] John 6, 17 indicates that the disciples were crossing the lake toward Capernaum, yet they landed at Gennesaret. though the disciples may have originally intended to go directly to Capernaum, the Lord supernaturally and instantaneously placed their boat at Gennesaret.

[37:17] They had undoubtedly drifted off course because of the strong winds. This explains why their boat was no longer headed toward their original destination. Storm or no storm, they landed exactly where Jesus wanted them to be.

[37:31] The close proximity of Capernaum and Gennesaret meant that Jesus and the disciples easily walked to Capernaum after they got out of the boat. Capernaum was their ultimate destination, and it was there in the synagogue that Jesus preached his sermon on the bread of life.

[37:50] Mark 6, 53-56 contain many echoes of earlier miracles. First, this story reminds us of the story of the feeding of the 5,000.

[38:02] Jesus tried to get away with his disciples, but the people recognized him and ran to him. Jesus did not turn any away, but he healed them.

[38:15] Second, the people brought the sick people on their beds. This reminds us of the story of the paralyzed man in Mark 2, verses 1-12. Third, people implored Jesus that they might touch the fringe of his garment.

[38:31] This recalls the story of the woman with the flow of blood. Mark's point is that these brief stories scattered throughout Mark thus far are only a small-scale glimpse into the grand-scale healing grace of Jesus.

[38:44] J.C. Riles said, let us see here a pattern for ourselves. Let us go and do likewise. Let us strive to bring all around us who are in need of spiritual medicine to Jesus, the great physician, that they may be healed.

[39:03] Souls are dying every day. Time is short. Opportunities are rapidly passing away. The night is coming when no one can work. Let us spare no pains in laboring to bring men and women to the knowledge of Jesus Christ, that they may be saved.

[39:21] It is a comforting thought that all who touch him will be healed. for true believers who know that Christ is the only means of salvation, we already have received the necessary spiritual medicine that Ryle mentioned.

[39:37] We have the eternal life promised in John 3.16. Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty required for our sins. However, for those who have yet to trust in Jesus as God, as the only means of salvation, they will pay the penalty for their sins for eternity.

[39:56] Let us believers pray that God will provide us with the sense of urgency that Ryle mentions in his quote and that we see from the people in Mark 6.53-56.

[40:10] Remember the main idea. Jesus demonstrates his deity and fulfills Old Testament prophecy. If we count the healings referenced in verses 53-56 as one demonstration of his deity, Jesus proved that he is God eight times in this passage.

[40:28] That is why this passage is about more than walking on water. J.I. Packer says, The true God is great and terrible just because he is always with me and his eye is always upon me.

[40:43] Living becomes an awesome business when you realize that you spend every moment of your life in the sight and company of an omniscient, omnipotent creator.

[40:55] Here's a quote from Jason Meyer. This story is a stirring reminder of how to read the Bible. Sometimes we read the Bible to commend ourselves to God.

[41:06] We read so that God will see us. Reading the Bible worshipfully means reading it so that we will see God. Bible reading is not just a cerebral exercise in which we recover the author's original intent.

[41:22] God is the divine author and he intends to reveal himself. We should respond with worship, awe, and faith. The best thing about our passage tonight and every Bible passage is that the stories we read in those passages are true.

[41:39] Remember that Mark wrote this gospel under the guidance of Peter. Here's what Peter wrote in 2 Peter 1.16. 2 Peter 1.16 says, For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.

[42:04] We know that Peter was in that boat when it was tossed on the sea. So was John. And John opened his first letter with a similar comment. Here are 1 John 1.1-3.

[42:17] 1 John 1.16 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life, the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testified to it, and proclaimed to you the eternal life which was with the Father and was made manifest to us.

[42:41] That which we have seen and heard, we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us, and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ.

[42:54] Daniel Akin closed his commentary on tonight's passage with comments that we will all do well to remember. Akin said, Jesus knows you better than you know yourself.

[43:07] He loves you more than you love yourself, which is a great deal. He is more compassionate than you could ever hope. He is more powerful than you could ever imagine.

[43:20] And he knows your needs more perfectly than you or I could ever comprehend. This bread of life allowed his body to be broken that your soul might receive the spiritual nourishment it needed.

[43:33] He walked the stormy waters through the dark night that led to the cross so that he might rescue us and that we might never again be terrified or afraid. Through the wonderful touch of his bloody redemptive hands, we can forever be healed of sin's diseases and be made well forever.

[43:53] He walked across the stormy waters of judgment in our place and he took on our sicknesses in his own body. Take heart, he says, understand, I am.

[44:07] Let's pray. Father, we thank you for this reminder that you've given us and actually the multiple reminders that you've given us that Jesus is God.

[44:20] Help us to realize what that means for us in our own lives. we serve a living Savior who was and is God and who is with us in our trials.

[44:33] Let that give us courage as we face difficulties. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.

[44:43] Thank you.