Tag Archives: Bethsaida

MARK’S GOSPEL…PASSING BY – 17

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Mark 6:45-52 NIV

[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] Later that night, 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. Shortly before dawn, 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.”

For the disciples, life with Jesus was an adventure on steroids! What would He do next? No matter what happened, no matter what fix they got into, Jesus had a miracle.

The disciples were battling a storm on the lake. Jesus was on the shore, watching them struggle. So, what did He do? He hitched up His robe and set off across the water to go them. Just like that!

There’s more to this story than a seemingly simple miracle. Mark wove into this event a few words that open up a window into the meaning of Jesus’ actions.

According to Mark, Jesus did something that made no sense in the context of the story unless we read it in its broader use in Scripture.

“He was about TO PASS BY them…” Why would Jesus have done that if He had wanted to help them?

Now, let’s examine these words in other contexts…

Moses…

Exodus 33:18-19 NIV

[18] “Then Moses said, “Now show me your glory.” [19] And the Lord said, “I will cause all my goodness TO PASS IN FRONT OF YOU, and I will proclaim my name, the Lord, in your presence. I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.” 

Exodus 34:5-6 NIV

[5] “Then the Lord came down in the cloud and stood there with him and proclaimed his name, the Lord. [6] And HE PASSED IN FRONT of Moses, proclaiming, “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness…”

Elijah…

1 Kings 19:9, 11-12 NIV

[9] “There, he went into a cave and spent the night. And the word of the Lord came to him: “What are you doing here, Elijah?”…

[11] The Lord said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for THE LORD IS ABOUT TO PASS BY.” Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind , there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. [12] After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.”

So, what was that all about? The expression “pass by” hints at something big…some revelation of God’s character, in Moses’ case, or God’s ways in Elijah’s case that is much more than God simply crossing in front of these men. 

To Moses, God revealed His “chesed”, His covenant love,  so that Moses could appeal to His mercy to forgive Israel’s sin and reinstate them as His covenant people. 

To Elijah, God revealed His ways, not in raw natural power but in the power of His whispered word. He instructed Elijah to go back and carry out His commands as part of His plans through which He would work out His purposes for Israel. 

So, what did Jesus want to reveal to His disciples when He PASSED BY them?

Let’s look at their reaction. 

Mark 6:49-50, 52 NIV

[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…

[52] … They were completely amazed, for they had not understood about the loaves; their hearts were hardened.”

…and His words, “It is I!” or rather, ’I AM!” Jesus, what are you saying!…A revelation of His true identity, the “I AM!”

How terrible for the disciples! They missed the whole point of Jesus’ revelation because of their unbelief! Despite the miracle of the multipled loaves, they had no expectation that Jesus would save them because He was Yahweh, I AM. They had not yet learned to entrust themselves to Him as God in every detail of their lives.

They didn’t see the familiar figure of Jesus. They saw a ghost! What were they expecting?

This story speaks a loud message to us. When we are in trouble and we ask for help, what do we expect? A ghost? Does Jesus answer us with a  phantom answer or with the real thing? Is He really God or not?

Let’s give Jesus credit for who He really is to us!

Matthew 7:9-11 NIV

[9] “Which of you, if your son asks for bread, will give him a stone? [10] Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a snake? [11] If you, then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask him!”

Jesus is looking for real faith, not “situational” faith or “conditional” faith…not the faith that suits our circumstances but the faith that recognises “I AM” in everything.

THE GOSPEL OF MARK – SOLITUDE…AT LAST!

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SOLITUDE…AT LAST!

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. Mark 6:45-46

A day that was meant to be quiet and restful turned out to be quite eventful! A crowd of more than 5,000 people saw to that! Jesus had accepted their intrusion without irritation. He recognised their desperate spiritual need and ministered to them all day, topping it all with a miraculous meal that was a perfect, practical demonstration of the Father’s compassion for them.

But He had to break up the party and send them home. They could not stay with Him there forever. He sent them home by foot and He sent His disciples back to civilization by boat. At last He could enjoy a time of solitude with His Father in a quiet, remote place. It would have been no use insisting that His disciples pray at that point. They were not yet ready to be quiet in God’s presence and open their souls to Him.

How Jesus must have revelled in these hours of fellowship with the Father, under a starry sky with the wind blowing in His face and the fragrant earth beneath Him. What did He say? What was the heart of His fellowship with God? Do we know Him well enough to speculate about His prayer?

He would have affirmed His ECHAD with the Father. Perhaps He would have gone over the day’s events, reviewing the way He had handled everything that had happened in the light of His submission to the Father, His compassion for the people and His purpose to reveal the Father to them. He would have listened to the Spirit whispering His Father’s approval and affirmation.

Perhaps He was aware of the temptations surrounding another successful day; the pull towards self-satisfaction, independence, pride, self-awareness, and prayed to be kept from the sins that dragged Adam and Eve into rebellion against God. Perhaps He would have humbled Himself before God and reaffirmed His purpose to give Himself up as an atoning sacrifice for the sins of the whole world. perhaps He simply enjoyed the peace of the Father’s presence and the warmth of His love.

Walking Trees

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WALKING TREES

They came to Bethsaida, and some people brought a blind man and begged Jesus to touch him. He took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village. When He had spit on the man’s eyes and put His hands on him, Jesus asked, ‘Do you see anything?’ He looked up and said, ‘I see people; they look like trees walking around.’ Once more Jesus put His hands on the man’s eyes. Then his eyes were opened, his sight restored, and he saw everything clearly. Jesus sent him home saying, ‘Don’t even go into the village.’ (Mark 8: 22-26).

Why so secretive? Was this another of those occasions when Jesus wanted to dodge the crowds? Never did He pass up on an opportunity to show mercy. When this blind man was brought to Him with a desperate plea to heal him, He responded immediately with a great big “yes” but, at the same time, He was not in Bethsaida on a healing campaign.

He gently led the blind man away from the people. The poor guy must have wondered where Jesus was taking him. Outside the village, where He was alone with the man and His disciples. Jesus rubbed spit on the blind man’s eyelids. What was the purpose of that? Was it an aid to faith? Was there power in His spittle? Perhaps the reason was far simpler than that. Did Jesus use His spittle to lubricate the man’s eyelids so that He would not injure him when he touched his eyes? Every person, every situation demanded a different strategy.

After the first touch, Jesus questioned him. “What do you see?” This answer to this question seems to indicate that blindness had come on him at some stage in his life – cataracts may have formed or some disease may have caused him to go blind. Whatever the cause, he had once been able to see because he was able to identify trees. People as trees walking? Hazy objects moving – that’s all he could see at that moment. Light had begun to enter his eyes but he was still unable to focus.

Was Jesus perturbed because His touch had not worked? Not at all. He simple touched the man’s eyes a second time and the healing was complete. This time the man’s vision was perfect and he was able to identify everything clearly. Imagine his joy when the world around him once again came into view!

Why did Jesus send him home? Surely the man’s first objective was to run into the village square – unaided and without his cane to guide him, if he used a cane, and tell everyone the good news. What would they think of him if he sneaked off home and didn’t even announce to everyone that he could see again? What about the people who brought him to Jesus? Wasn’t it only right that he should at least report to them what had happened?

Jesus’ instruction had to override his desire to tell the world his good news. The Master had a very good reason for telling him to dodge the people and go home. By the time they found out that he had been healed, Jesus and His disciples would be far enough away to escape being mobbed by a crowd of desperate people wanting healing.

But why did Jesus act so secretively? Surely He wanted them to know who He was. Wasn’t this why He came – to introduce the kingdom of God to His people? Weren’t His miracles a witness to His identity and His mission?

In the next part of Mark’s story we get a clue to the reason why Jesus acted as He did. When He was among His own people, He warned many of those whom He healed not to talk about it because He wanted people to weigh up the evidence for themselves. He did not want a mob of curiosity-seekers to run after Him. He wanted people to believe in Him because they were convinced that He was the Messiah. Miracles do not produce faith. Faith produces miracles. Had miracles produced faith, the children of Israel would have trusted and obeyed God in the wilderness. Jesus would have gathered a crowd of believers in Him before He was ever crucified. But it didn’t happen.

Jesus is not interested in opportunistic followers. Unfortunately, campaigns of miracles and healing are doing exactly that today. People are invited to follow Jesus for what they can get out of Him. When He does not oblige, they walk away disillusioned because they have not learned to bow to Him as Lord.

Whether we experience miracles or not is irrelevant. Jesus demands our allegiance and obedience because of who He is, not because of what He can do for us. He is gracious and merciful, and He does heal and meet our needs, but that is because of who He is, not because of the demands we make of Him.

Do you follow Jesus as Lord, or do you use Him for your own ends?

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

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