We Do Not Need to Row Alone

 

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO MARK

WE DO NOT NEED TO ROW ALONE

Mark 6:45-52

45 Immediately Jesus made his disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. 46 After leaving them, he went up on a mountainside to pray. 47 When evening came, the boat was in the middle of the lake, and he was alone on land. 48 He saw the disciples straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. About the fourth watch of the night he went out to them, walking on the lake. He was about to pass by them, 49 but when they saw him walking on the lake, they thought he was a ghost. They cried out, 50 because they all saw him and were terrified. Immediately he spoke to them and said, "Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid."  51 Then he climbed into the boat with them, and the wind died down. They were completely amazed, 52 for they had not understood about the loaves; their hearts were hardened.

NIV

We could spend some time with the fact that Jesus needed to get away to a solitary place to pray as he sent his disciples ahead of him in the boat and dismissed the people. Even Jesus needed some alone time, the pressures of ministry had to be tiring for him as although he was fully God, he was also fully man. Being fully man, he had to experience being tired, or even exhausted after spending so much time with so many people who were all looking to him for whatever their need. Sometimes we forget that he was fully man ourselves, and only see him as the Son of God, a Divine being, full of the Spirit, able to do anything. Of course, he is, and he demonstrates that over and over again, healing so many people, raising some from the dead, and now feeding five thousand with just a few fish and a couple of loaves. His disciples have been with him, even from the beginning at the wedding at Cana when he first turned water into the best wine ever. They have even gone out town to town and healed people, drove out demons, and taught about the kingdom of God. How could they have had all that experience and then Mark tells us their hearts were hardened as they did not understand about the loaves? But before we get to that situation, there is something else that is interesting about Jesus, while everything about Jesus is interesting, but here there is something we may have missed before. Having been on the Sea of Galilee, we understand the size and that a small boat out in the middle might be a little difficult, first to see, especially in the night, and with a windy sea with waves, and secondly, see who is in that boat. This might be even more difficult if we were up in the mountains far from the shoreline. The disciples were straining at the oars, straining to make their way across the lake and they were all the way in the middle of it. Yet, Jesus saw them. They may have thought they were all alone in their struggles, but they were not, for Jesus had his eye upon them and was on the way to them. Of course, Mark makes mention that Jesus was about to pass them by, but they saw him and were afraid. Now, who would not be a little scared if someone was walking on the water in the middle of a windy night? Come on, no one sees that very often, and it must have been completely unsettling to them. We are not sure what they cried out, except it must have been cries of fear, for they did not recognize that it was Jesus, but rather a ghost. Still, Jesus was there, and he speaks words of calming to them, “Take courage, it is I, don’t be afraid”. What we learn here, is that although we may go through a few storms of life, although we might be struggling against the winds of life, to make our way, we are never alone, for Jesus has his eye on us, and when it may seem hopeless and our struggle is getting us nowhere, Jesus will come to us and talk with us, telling us to be of good courage, for it is Him, and we should not be afraid, for he will get in the boat with us and immediately the storm will cease. We do not need to row alone. As far as their hardened hearts, or hearts that did not understand, it is not difficult to garner the truth here. Even after we have experienced so much from the hand of Jesus, there can be times when our struggles seem overwhelming and we are not looking to Jesus, but to our own solutions and failing to achieve any headway. That can be seen like we just don’t get it. We just don’t understand that Jesus has his eye on us and is coming to calm that storm, if we just would take courage, see it is Him and not be afraid because we do not have to row alone, Jesus will be with us and calm that storm.