1. 53-56 Gennesaret - examples of knowing his power but not him and his message
1.1. Thsi is Gadara region
1.1.1. Explain this
1.2. Look at all the people now.. demoniac
1.3. What is this story about then? Disciples
1.4. 56 is like a summary of al lthe miracles...
1.4.1. storm
1.4.2. demoniac
1.4.3. touching hem!
1.4.4. In this connection the absence of any reference to preaching or teaching activity is significant. The people are not prepared for Jesus' proclamation of the word, and the public ministry interrupted in Ch. 6:31 has not been resumed. They understand only that power is channeled neled through his person. Jesus patiently bears with their limited insight and graciously heals those who reach out to him from the bed of affliction. William L. Lane. The Gospel according to Mark: The English Text With Introduction, Exposition, and Notes (The New International Commentary on the New Testament) (Kindle Locations 2506-2509). Kindle Edition.
1.5. Jesus heals them all -- even though they're faith is imperfect!!!
2. Mk 6:52 for they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.
2.1. In tracing this lack of understanding to "hardness of heart" Mark indicates that at this stage in Jesus' ministry the disciples are not essentially different from his opponents, who also fail to recognize nize his unique character and exhibit hardness of heart (cf. Chs. 3:5; 10:5). William L. Lane. The Gospel according to Mark: The English Text With Introduction, Exposition, and Notes (The New International Commentary on the New Testament) (Kindle Locations 2480-2481). Kindle Edition.
3. exegete
3.1. 45
3.1.1. Immediately ... disciples get into boat... while he dismissed the crowd
3.1.1.1. Why?
3.1.1.2. Cause John 16 tells us that they wanted to make him king and likely Jesus wants to protect his disciples from this... this fervor...less they be caught up in it and miss the kingdom
3.1.1.3. Jn.6:15 “Therefore when Jesus perceived that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king, He departed again to the mountain by Himself alone.”
3.1.1.4. This is kindness, pastoral
3.1.2. Jesus came to give us eternal life, not neccessarily easy life and that's what they were looking for
3.1.2.1. Eternal Life, Not an Easy Life Jesus did not come into the world mainly to deliver us from the sufferings of this present age, but to deliver us from the wrath to come (1 Thessalonians 1:10). He came not to give us an easy life now, but an eternal life later. So when they wanted to make him their belly-filling king (in verse 15), he left them and went into the mountain.
3.1.2.2. Why did Jesus withdraw? Because the enthusiasm these people have is not for who he really is. This is so important for our day and for your life. People can have a great enthusiasm for Jesus, but the Jesus they’re excited about is not the real biblical Jesus. It may be a morally exemplary Jesus, or a socialist Jesus, or a capitalist Jesus, or an anti-Semitic Jesus, or a white-racist Jesus, or a revolutionary-liberationist Jesus, or a counter-cultural cool Jesus. But not the whole Jesus who, in the end, gives his life a ransom for sinners (Mark 10:45). And if your enthusiasm for Jesus is for a Jesus that doesn’t exist, your enthusiasm is no honor to the real Jesus, and he will leave you and go into the mountain.
3.1.2.3. But what about “king”? Is he not a king? Verse 15: “Perceiving that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.” Is he not a king? He is. At the end of his life, Pilate asked him in John 18:33, “Are you the King of the Jews?” and Jesus answered in verse 36, “My kingdom is not of this world. If my kingdom were of this world, my servants would have been fighting, that I might not be delivered over to the Jews. But my kingdom is not from the world.” In other words, yes, I am a king, but not the way you think I am. When Jesus says that, he doesn’t mean that this world doesn’t belong to him. It does. He made it. He will come again to claim it. What he means is: I have come into the world the first time to rule men’s lives not by being their military captain, but by being their bread. I am going to triumph not by subduing armies, but by satisfying souls. I am going to conquer not with the power of armed forces but with the power of radically new appetites. Not the King They Thought And what we see back in chapter 6 is that the crowds did not understand this at all. Verse 26 is the key to why Jesus withdrew and would have nothing to do with their excitement about his kingship. “Jesus answered them, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves.’” This is why you want to make me king (6:15). To have me as king mean full stomachs. They hadn’t been changed. Jesus didn’t come into the world to lend his power to already existing appetites. That’s the fundamental mistake of the prosperity gospel. Leave people untransformed in what they crave, and simply add the power of Jesus as the way to get it. That is not the gospel. It is a kind of acclamation that Jesus walks away from. “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” (John 6:15). He walks away.
3.2. 46
3.2.1. Pray
3.2.1.1. Jesus only prays 3 times in Mark and each time....
3.2.1.1.1. ... the prayer is at night
3.2.1.1.2. ... the disciples are removed
3.2.1.1.3. ... Jesus is in a lonely place
3.2.1.1.4. ... the prayer precedes big events
3.2.1.2. Other times Jesus prays
3.2.1.2.1. Mark 1:35
3.3. 47-48
3.3.1. Whenever the disciples are away from Jesus in Mark, they are in trouble
3.3.2. 4th hour
3.3.2.1. jewish splits it in 3 watches, romans in 4. More hints mark is writing to romans
3.3.2.2. so this is 3am to 6am
3.3.3. out at sea
3.3.3.1. John tells us in John 6:19 that they were 3 or 4 miiles out
3.3.3.1.1. So jesus has to see this supernaturally?
3.3.4. "he saw ... came to them"
3.3.4.1. compassion for the disciples
3.3.4.2. God sees us!!! and all we go through
3.3.5. "walking on the sea"
3.3.5.1. Only God does this in the OT - 51. Job 9: 8; 38: 16; Ps 77: 19; Isa 43: 16; Sir 24: 5-6, Odes Sol. 39: 10. Edwards Jr., James R. (2009-10-05). The Gospel according to Mark (Pillar New Testament Commentary) (Kindle Locations 10232-10233). Eerdmans Publishing Co - A. Kindle Edition.
3.3.5.2. In walking on the water toward the disciples, Jesus walks where only God can walk. As in the forgiveness of sins (2: 10) and in his power over nature (4: 39), walking on the lake identifies Jesus unmistakably with God. This identification is reinforced when Jesus says, "Take courage! It is I.'" In Greek, "' It is I'" (egō eimi) is identical with God's self-disclosure to Moses. 52 Thus Jesus not only walks in God's stead, but he also takes his name. Edwards Jr., James R. (2009-10-05). The Gospel according to Mark (Pillar New Testament Commentary) (Kindle Locations 3816-3820). Eerdmans Publishing Co - A. Kindle Edition.
3.3.6. "he meant to pass by them"
3.3.6.1. In the OT, however, this nondescript phrase is charged with special force, signaling a rare self-revelation of God. At Mt. Sinai the transcendent Lord "passed by" Moses (Exod 33: 22; also 33: 19 and 34: 6) in order to reveal his name and compassion. Again, at Mt. Horeb the Lord revealed his presence to Elijah in "passing by" (1 Kgs 19: 11). The most important antecedent of the idea, however, comes in Job 9: 8, 11: [God] alone stretches out the heavens and treads on the waves of the sea. When he passes me, I cannot see him; when he goes by, I cannot perceive him. Edwards Jr., James R. (2009-10-05). The Gospel according to Mark (Pillar New Testament Commentary) (Kindle Locations 3825-3826). Eerdmans Publishing Co - A. Kindle Edition.
3.3.6.2. but here is something different. Her eis the God that came to be revealed for they saw him and cried out. That is --- the drama here - Jesus expressing the Godness of God and yet the compassion of a savior. he is transcendant but means to be seen and understood.
3.3.6.3. not what Jesus had in his mind, but what they perceived... it looked as if he intended to pass them by
3.3.6.4. The bigger issue is that while they strain, he walks! What they cannot overcome, he stomps upon!
3.3.6.5. “Would have passed them by” – Like on the road to Emmaus when Jesus acted as if he was going to go on further(Lk.24:28 “Then they drew near to the village where they were going, and He indicated that He would have gone farther.”) W/o invitation the risen Jesus will not stay. Another passing by is when God passed by Moses at Sinai in the cleft of the rock!(Ex.33:19,22) Another is Elijah at Horeb(1 Kings 19:11,12)when the Lord passed by. He wasn’t in the wind, earthquake, nor fire, but in the still small voice!
3.3.6.6. The NIV adopts the view that the verb thelo (“ to wish, will”) functions as an auxiliary verb like mello (“ to be about to”): “he was about to pass by them.” The evidence for this use of the verb is too slim to make this interpretation likely. Garland, David E. (2011-03-01). Mark (The NIV Application Commentary Book 2) (p. 262). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
3.3.6.7. Key here is that they are not in peril, just not moving. Thus this is not life threatenign. This is an opportunity to sum what htey shouldhave known but now can be seen - Jesus is God!
3.3.6.7.1. Moses - Exo 33:19-34:7
3.3.6.7.2. 1 Kings 19:11-12
3.3.6.7.3. One can conclude from these passages that when Jesus wants to pass by his disciples, he wills for them to see his transcendent majesty as a divine being and to give them reassurance. Garland, David E. (2011-03-01). Mark (The NIV Application Commentary Book 2) (p. 263). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
3.3.6.8. God cannot be fully seen, but Jesus can. The one who comes to them on the sea is not simply a successor to Moses, who fills baskets with bread in the desert. Only God can walk on the sea, and Jesus’ greeting is not simply a cheery hello to assuage the disciples’ fears. He greets them with the divine formula of self-revelation, “I am.” 5 Isaiah 43: 1– 13 is significant as a backdrop for interpreting this passage. The disciples have been summoned by Jesus to pass through the waters, and Jesus is with them (Isa. 43: 2).
3.3.6.8.1. THey are waiting for a king, but don't get he's God
3.3.6.8.2. Jesus feeds them in the widerness, where there is no bread, and He makes bread (manna)
3.3.6.8.3. Jesus walks on water and passes by them
3.3.6.8.4. Jesus delcares I am and says don't be afraid
3.3.6.8.5. Here is the question to the disciples question in 4:41 - WHO IS THIS. All of this has been to show and demonstrate! Again on the sea!
3.3.6.9. This epiphany does not occur on a mountain, the traditional locale for encountering the divine presence, where one’s vision seems unlimited, but on the deep waters, traditionally viewed by Israel as a place of dangerous storms and sinister power, where one’s vision is blinded by fear. Garland, David E. (2011-03-01). Mark (The NIV Application Commentary Book 2) (p. 266). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
3.4. 48
3.4.1. Straining at the oar
3.4.1.1. Not at risk like in chapter 4, but here frustrated.
3.5. 49
3.5.1. Walking on the sea
3.5.1.1. Treading the waves, however, is something that only God can do (Job 9: 8; Isa. 43: 16; 51: 10; Sir. 24: 5– 6). When Jesus comes strolling across the waters, he shares in the unlimited power of the Creator. In Habakkuk 3: 15, the image of God trampling the sea conveys his power to control the chaos of the seas to save his people Israel (see Ps. 77: 19– 20; Isa. 51: 9– 10). Garland, David E. (2011-03-01). Mark (The NIV Application Commentary Book 2) (p. 262). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
3.6. 50
3.6.1. It is I
3.6.1.1. Again this idea that you see God for who he is and his sheer power and there is fear... but here Jesus says Do not be afraid
3.6.1.1.1. He has come to reconcile us to God. To bring us to God. To himself. That's the goal
3.6.1.2. This identification is reinforced when Jesus says, "Take courage! It is I.'" In Greek, "' It is I'" (egō eimi) is identical with God's self-disclosure to Moses. 52 Thus Jesus not only walks in God's stead, but he also takes his name. Edwards Jr., James R. (2009-10-05). The Gospel according to Mark (Pillar New Testament Commentary) (Kindle Locations 3816-3820). Eerdmans Publishing Co - A. Kindle Edition.
3.6.1.3. John 8:58, where He says, “Before Abraham was born, I am.”
3.6.2. do not be afraid
3.6.2.1. “But take courage,” from tharseo means to be brave, buck up, get a grip on yourselves. That expression, “Take courage,” is used eight times in the New Testament. Jesus is always the one who gives us the courage to endure the trial. Seven times He says it in the gospels, one time He says it in Acts 23 to the Apostle Paul. Jesus is the source of our bravery, isn’t He, in the midst of deadly circumstances.
3.6.2.2. just as God said it in the old testament
3.6.2.3. However, as Lane has pointed out, Pss. 115:9ff.; 118:5f.; Isa. 41:4ff., 13ff.; 43:lff.; 44:2ff.; 51:9ff. suggest that such words coupled pled with an admonition to take heart or have no fear appear to make up a formula of divine self-revelation. Ben Witherington III. The Gospel of Mark: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary (Kindle Locations 3307-3308). Kindle Edition.
3.6.3. HEre in matt 14:28 Peter walks on water
3.6.4. When the Lord gave the Great Commission, He also gave the reassuring promise (Matt. 28:20), “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” That was David Livingstone’s verse as he endured countless hardships in the 19th century, trying to open the interior of Africa to the gospel. He said (A Frank Boreham Treasury, compiled by Peter Gunther [Moody Press], p. 107), “On those 9 words I staked everything, and they never failed! … It is the word of a gentleman of the most strict and sacred honor, so there’s an end of it!”
3.7. 51
3.7.1. got into the boat with them.... wind ceased
3.7.1.1. things don't cease till Jesus is with them in the boat
3.7.1.2. This is the original moment ... Jesus said "go away with me" and now they are away with him!!
3.7.1.2.1. think of what this means. Think of the timing needed
3.8. 52
3.8.1. The real danger was not the storm, but unbelief.
3.8.1.1. They saw Jesus and did not believe.. but not believe what?
3.8.1.2. Did not believe Jesus would have compassion and help them! Why astonished if it was soemtign new, something unheard of ... that JESus has power and GOOD NEWS FOR OUR LIVES!!!!
3.8.1.3. How many of us still live this way? We follow jesus, we see thhings he does .. but still we doubt! astonished... as if...
3.8.1.4. Mk 3:5 And he looked around at them with anger, grieved at their hardness of heart, and said to the man, “Stretch out your hand.” He stretched it out, and his hand was restored.
3.8.2. hardness of heart
3.9. Summary
3.9.1. POINT: that it is in the midst of storms, hardships, and adversities that Jesus reveals himself to disciples. Edwards Jr., James R. (2009-10-05). The Gospel according to Mark (Pillar New Testament Commentary) (Kindle Locations 3866-3867). Eerdmans Publishing Co - A. Kindle Edition.
3.9.2. These two facets of trial and revelation combine to form a unified purpose, just as they did in the Exodus, where God disclosed himself as "I AM" (Gk. egō eimi, LXX) in the midst of Israel's oppression in Egypt. Edwards Jr., James R. (2009-10-05). The Gospel according to Mark (Pillar New Testament Commentary) (Kindle Locations 3867-3868). Eerdmans Publishing Co - A. Kindle Edition.
3.9.3. In storms, adversities, and defeat, human self-sufficiency is revealed for what it is — human insufficiency. When the defenses of human pride are breached, people sometimes see God's presence among them — even if it at first appears in troubling and perhaps terrifying ways. Edwards Jr., James R. (2009-10-05). The Gospel according to Mark (Pillar New Testament Commentary) (Kindle Locations 3870-3872). Eerdmans Publishing Co - A. Kindle Edition.
4. Illustration
4.1. Some example of follwoing but not getting
4.2. many will say to me ..
4.2.1. Point is that you might be used of God but actually not belong to God.
4.2.2. Point is you might know His power but not really know his life because if you had, your life would reflect his life
4.2.3. Point is that while you did things in his name you never understood what that fully meant
4.2.4. Because at the end of the deay the point was not power to change circumstances, but power to change the ehart, sin.
4.3. 1. ILL: Once, on a church bulletin board there was the following notice: Morning Bible Study: Jesus walks on water Evening Bible Study: Searching for Jesus.
4.4. 1. ILL: Charlie Brown Charlie Brown builds a beautiful sandcastle, works on it for hours. Finally he stands back, looks at it. It’s wonderful. Just as he’s admiring it, a storm comes up and blows over all of his sandcastle. Now, he’s standing where his beautiful masterpiece was, on level sand, saying to himself, "I know there’s a lesson in this, but I’m not sure what it is."
5. connection
5.1. This passage is a vivd display of
5.2. Isia 43
6. Outline
6.1. Main point
6.2. Points
6.2.1. v45 - send the disciples away
6.2.2. v46 - Jesus goes and prays
6.2.3. v47 - lessons of himself
6.2.4. v53 - the display of the masses - they want power but not his message. They want to touch him.
7. Big Themes
7.1. Miracles do not always evoke faith
7.2. It's about christology and not miraclology
7.2.1. And this btw is the danger of the charismatic movement - it's always about the healing, about power, but doesn't show us the main point - WHO IS JESUS?
7.2.2. He never asks how much power do they think I have but always Who do men say I am?
7.3. He sees and cares for his disciples. He comes to them!
7.3.1. This scene is the gospel - us rowing as hard as we can to get to where God tells us to go but floundering and he comes to us!
7.3.2. He shows patience when they fail to see what it all means but recoil in fear. There is no rebuke, only calm assurance. He then delivers them safely to the shore. Garland, David E. (2011-03-01). Mark (The NIV Application Commentary Book 2) (p. 267). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
7.4. Some may find comfort in knowing that even when they do not see Jesus, Jesus sees them and comes in the hour of need. Garland, David E. (2011-03-01). Mark (The NIV Application Commentary Book 2) (p. 268). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
7.4.1. He is like Aslan, the lion/ Christ figure in C. S. Lewis’s Narnia Chronicles, who appears from over the sea without warning but exactly when he is needed: “Aslan was among them though no one had seen him coming.” 13 Garland, David E. (2011-03-01). Mark (The NIV Application Commentary Book 2) (p. 268). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
7.5. In the OT, th eclosest to seeing God is his back. here we see his face! God come in Jesus
7.6. 4th watch of the night - God is never late
7.6.1. As Rawlinson imagines it: … faint hearts may even have begun to wonder whether the Lord Himself had not abandoned them to their fate, or to doubt the reality of Christ. They are to learn from this story that they are not “forsaken,” that the Lord watches over them unseen, and that He Himself— no phantom, but the Living One, Master of wind and waves— will surely come quickly for their salvation, even though it be in the “fourth watch of the night.” 12 Garland, David E. (2011-03-01). Mark (The NIV Application Commentary Book 2) (p. 267). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
7.7. Jesus does not rescue his disciples out of the sea but enables them to continue the voyage. Garland, David E. (2011-03-01). Mark (The NIV Application Commentary Book 2) (p. 268). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
7.7.1. His coming is like the letters to the churches in the Apocalypse. The churches receive the word that the Lord knows what they have endured and are encouraged to continue to endure. The Lord knows the works, toil, and endurance of Ephesus (Rev. 2: 2), the affliction and poverty of Smyrna (2: 9), the faithful witness of Pergamum in the midst of Satan’s throne (2: 13), the patient endurance of Thyatira (2: 18), and the little power of Philadelphia (3: 8). He does not relieve them of their struggle but promises victory if they are faithful. They must keep rowing, but the power to cross over the sea of life and reach the final destination is not theirs. It belongs to God. Garland, David E. (2011-03-01). Mark (The NIV Application Commentary Book 2) (pp. 268-269). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
7.7.2. The late Malcolm Muggeridge wrote (A Twentieth Century Testimony [Thomas Nelson], cited in Reader’s Digest, Jan. 1991, p. 158): Contrary to what might be expected, I look back on experiences that at the time seemed especially desolating and painful with particular satisfaction. Indeed, everything I have learned, everything that has truly enhanced and enlightened my existence, has been through affliction and not through happiness.
7.8. Often Christ may pass by our lives in ways that we fail to see and that might frighten us. Garland, David E. (2011-03-01). Mark (The NIV Application Commentary Book 2) (p. 269). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
7.8.1. How do we see him while we struggle in the dim hours of the night in this present age, besieged by windy opposition? It may only become clear in retrospect, as it did for those first disciples. We realize that in that horrible hour we were in the very presence of God and that Christ revealed his glory to us. We were too blind, too petrified to see it. One should then be alert that in the times of discouragement and greatest fears Christ is passing by, showing his love and power and leading us across troubled waters. Garland, David E. (2011-03-01). Mark (The NIV Application Commentary Book 2) (p. 269). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
7.8.2. A disturbing element of this miracle is the response of the disciples to Jesus’ sudden appearance. They do not recognize him and are more frightened by his presence than his absence. He comes with all the power of God who controls the mighty forces of the wind and the sea. He tries to reassure them by making himself known in his glory and power. It fails to calm their hearts. Instead, they are stupefied, frightened, and confused. Garland, David E. (2011-03-01). Mark (The NIV Application Commentary Book 2) (p. 269). Zondervan. Kindle Edition.
8. review
8.1. Giving to Others with Him as Our Gift Then verse 13 says something that surely has more meaning than mere mathematics. “So they gathered them up and filled twelve baskets with fragments from the five barley loaves left by those who had eaten.” Why twelve? Surely it’s no mere coincidence that there are twelve. Jesus calls his disciples “the Twelve” in verses 67 and 70. Surely Jesus means to say: When you serve me and you give and give and give until you think you can give no more, I will take care of you. I will always be enough for you. If you pour out your life to give bread to the world, I will be your all-satisfying bread. The more you satisfy others, the more I will be your satisfaction. The more you give life to others, the more I will be life to you.
9. References
9.1. Leon Morris writes (ibid., p. 367), “People do not come to Christ because it seems to them a good idea. It never does seem a good idea to natural man. Apart from a 5 divine work in their souls (cf. 16:8) men remain contentedly in their sins.” Yet at the same time, we are responsible for our unbelief. So, then, how can anyone be saved?
9.2. When Paul preached the gospel to Lydia, we read (Acts 16:14), “And the Lord opened her heart to respond to the things spoken by Paul.”
9.3. Pray His sovereign All
9.3.1. John 6:37a: “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me ….” This refers to the elect, whom the Father chose before the foundation of the world to give to His Son. Jesus refers to those the Father has given Him in 6:39 and in 10:29 (see, 18:9). He repeats it five times in His prayer in John 17: John 17:2: “… even as You gave Him authority over all flesh, that to all whom You have given Him, He may give eternal life.” John 17:6 [2x]: “I have manifested Your name to the men whom You gave Me out of the world; they were Yours and You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.” John 17:9: “I ask on their behalf; I do not ask on behalf of the world, but of those whom You have given Me; for they are Yours ….” (Note that the Father has not given everyone in the world to Jesus, but only some.) John 17:24: “Father, I desire that they also, whom You have given Me, be with Me where I am, so that they may see My glory which You have given Me, for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.”