“Stormy Weather”

Series: “The Gospel Truth”

Text: Mk. 6:45-56

Introduction: (What?)

Get the big picture. Jesus has just fed 20k+ people with 5 dinner rolls and 2 sardines. The people, according to John 6:14ff, were bound and determined to forcibly make Him their earthly King. Jesus, knowing what was coming, sent His disciples away so that they would not become part of the mob. This is a continuation of the temptation of the devil to shortcut the plan of God and bypass the cross. Jesus dismissed the crowd and then retreated to a quiet place to get back on track through prayer (conversation) with His Heavenly Father. Throughout scripture we see some of God’s choicest people thrown into “storms”. Moses, an Egyptian adoptee, leader of an obstinate people, facing the Red Sea, etc.; Joshua, facing the battle with the Amalekites; the crossing of the flooded Jordan river & the walls of Jericho followed by defeat at Ai; Gideon facing an enemy of 20,000 with only 300 men; Paul faced many beatings and at least one shipwreak.

Explanation: (Why?)

1. Storms Reveal our Weaknesses and Hardness of Heart (vv45-48a;51-52)

I have read from several accomplished people that they learned far more from their failures and tough times than from their successes and easy times. Both Jesus and the disciples faced a difficult time immediately after the Feeding of the 5,000 (20-25,000) From Jesus’s standpoint the difficulty came from the reaction of the crowd. In John 6:14-15, we find “When the people saw the sign He had done they said, ‘This truly is the Prophet who is to come into the world.’ Therefore when Jesus realized they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, He withdrew again to the mountain by Himself.” During His temptation in the wilderness Satan tried several times to get Him to shortcut the plan of God for the salvation of mankind. After that temptation Luke records “he (Satan) departed from Him for a time.” This seems to be a continuation of Satan’s temptation for Jesus to take a shortcut and not have to face the cross. As we can tell from Jesus’s prayer in Gethsemane, this was a real temptation. He prayed that this cup of suffering might be removed, if there was any other way for God’s purposes to be accomplished. We must also remember that the writer of Hebrews said, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has been tempted in every way as we are, yet without sin.” Faced with this temptation, Jesus did what He always did. He spent time face to face with His heavenly Father and thus was able to overcome this temptation.

The disciples faced their own storm. These guys had to be running on fumes by this time. Having completed a successful mission trip, and having their retreat interuppted by a huge crowd and then facing the stress of running food back and forth to feed the multitude, they had to be zapped. Also, they had an idea that Jesus was going to become an earthly king, so they would have joined the crowd in trying to forcibly make Jesus a king. Knowing this, Jesus acted. “Immediately He made HIs disiples get into the boat and goa ahead of Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He dismissed the crowd.” These bone-weary men obeyed and found themselves fighting the wind to stay on course. “Well into the night, the boat was in the middle of the sea, and He was alone on the land. He saw them straining at the oars, because the wind was against them.” (vv47-48a) This was not a Satan-sent storm like they had faced earlier when Jesus was asleep in the stern, but this was just a contrary wind that came when they were at the point of exhaustion. Picking up at v 48b through v 52, we find the disciples’ weakness and hardness of heart exposed. “Very early in the morning (around the forth watch; from 3-6 a.m.) He came toward them walking on the sea and wanted to pass them by. (or, intending to or was about to pass them by) “When they saw Him walking on the sea, they thought it was a ghost and cried out, because they all saw Him and were terrified. Immediately He spoke to them and said, ‘Have courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.’ Then He got into the boat with them and the wind ceased. They were completely astounded, because they had not understood about the loaves. Instead their hearts were hardened.” That last phrase can be a be problematic. Let’s analyze it. These were the same men who had seen Jesus calm the storm; the same guys who had seen him heal the sick, raise the dead, cast out demons (and even delegate this ability to them) and feed 20,000 people with 5 dinner rolls and 2 sardines, and yet they panicked when they saw Him walking alongside their boat in the dark. Out take-away from this should be that when we buy into the common belief that everything is falling apart (like with covid) we begin to think that even God can’t do anything about our situation. Our hearts grow hard. Reality is what God says it is, not what it seems to us to be. IF God can’t be trusted during a pandemic, He can’t be trusted at all. That’s the reason that in our Wednesday prayer groups we pray that God will accomplish His purposes through the pandemic. When He does, it may be in the fourth watch and at the point where we think that we have been abandoned. Jesus says to us as He did to the disciples that morning, “Have courage! I AM is here.”

2. Storms make Conversation with God Essential (v46)

Let’s go back to v 46 and see how Jesus dealt with His temptation. “After He said good-bye to them (the crowd) He went away to the mountain to pray.” Mark records three instances of Jesus praying alone. (1.) At the beginning of the Gospel after the great time of healing and deliverance in Capernaum (1:35); (2.) Here, in the middle of Mark’s gospel after He feeds the multitude and is being tempted to give in to their fervor for Him to become their “Warrior-King”; and (3.) near the end of His ministry in the Garden of Gethsemane. One commentator noted that “Any time Jesus faced a critical moment, He prayed. He most often got away and prayed in private. In each instance overtones of spiritual conflict and warfare were in the air. Prayer for Jesus was intense. It was war.” Pastor John Piper said, “Until you believe that life is a war, you cannot know what prayer is for.”

I’m always amazed and a little put off by the fact that when most people talk about the full armor of God, they stop with verse 17 in Ephesians 6. They leave off v. 18 which says, “Pray at all times in the Spirit with every prayer and request, and stay alert with all perseverance and intercession for all the saints.” Once you have the armor on, you don’t just stand there. You take the weapons that God has provided; the Sword of the Spirit, and prayer and you advance against the gates of Hell.

When you’re faced with temptation, or in the midst of a storm, conversation with your Heavenly Father is essential.

3. God will Get You Where You Need to Be (v53)

Jesus had told the disciples to head for Bethsaida, on the northern shore of the Sea of Galilee. The contrary winds that they encountered blew them off course so that they landed at Gennesaret, on the western coast. Sometimes when you and I find ourselves taking a circuitous route to a destination, we fret because of the detour. However, if we are truly surrendered to God, we must realize that His destination may not be ours, but it will always put us in the right place at the right time for the right reasons. God saw to it that Jesus showed up at the point of the greatest need, despite His previous plans. Gennesaret was a densely populated area that thus far had only heard of Jesus and His ministry. Now, by the sovereign hand of God, they were going to experience His ministry first hand.

4. Ministry Happens (vv54-56)

“As they got out of the boat, people immediately recognized Him. They hurried throughout the region and began to carry the sick on mats to wherever they heard He was. Wherever He went, into villages, towns, or the country, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and begged Him that they might touch just the end of His robe. And everyone who touched it was healed.”

Interestingly enough, while the disciples, who had been with Jesus 24/7 for months did not recognize Him when He came walking on the water, the crowds of people at Gennesaret recognized Him “immediately”. The explanation for the disciples might be that they were not expecting Jesus, they were exhausted both physically and emotionally and thus their fear overwhelmed their faith. One of the reasons we emphasized last week the need for rest is that when we get on physical or emotional overload we can lose sight of our Savior. Such overload happens when we are exposed to extreme emotions or when we are physically & emotionally spent. When that happens we need to stop, withdraw from the situation that brought on the overload, and take time to recover.

Evangelism began to take place in Gennesaret and the surrounding area. People scattered everywhere announcing the arrival of Jesus and bringing those who were sick or lame to where He was. The mats on which they brought the needy were the same type that had been used to bring the paralytic in chapter 2.

Jesus didn’t stay by the shore, where they had landed, but He began to go through the entire region of Galilee. The marketplaces, (like outdoor malls) were the center of activity, so that is where many brought their needy friends and family members in the hope that they would be healed. One commentary notes that “The needy may in faith take the initiative in miracles. Those who came to Him and touched Him were healed (like the woman with the issue of blood). They did not cosider this to be magic. They knew that Jesus’s power released by their faith brought miracles.”

Application: (How does this impact my life today?)

The pandemic has created a “perfect storm” for emotional and mental upheaval. Data shows that depression and suicidal tendencies are at an all time high. Fear creates an open door for the enemy to enter. The only way to close that door is to surrender to God and allow His perfect love to cast out the fear. Spending daily personal time with God through reading His Word and through prayer are essential to your spiritual health. Listening to faith-building music rather than C & W or Rock music can also help calm your fears. Stay clear of doom and gloom scenarios that are constantly blasting from radio and TV news sources.

Complete this sentence from the following checklist. I need to...

Surrender my life to Jesus

Start or resume a regular, daily time alone with God

Turn off the news

Connect with a “faith family” (church, SS class, small group) that will listen to me, encourage me and pray for and with me.