Deo Gloria
Sermon for August 4, 2024
Pastor Martin Bentz
Text: Mark 6:45-56
Theme: Don’t Be Afraid!
- Your Savior, Jesus, is not a ghost.
- He is more than able to help and to heal.
What is that strikes fear in your heart? The flash of lightning and the booming of thunder like we had this past Monday morning? A close call on the freeway with a careless or inattentive driver? A slowdown in the economy and the rumor of pink slips going out at work? A call from the doctor’s office wanting you to come in for more testing right away?
Thankfully we have someone we can turn to for comfort and reassurance and help in times like that, someone who can put our hearts and minds at ease. His name is Jesus. And the encouragement he offers to his disciples here in Mark ch. 6 is the same encouragement he offers to you and me: Don’t be afraid!
If you remember the story, Jesus had tried to get away with his disciples for a little R&R. They left the crowds behind and set sail for the other side of the Sea of Galilee. But the people followed them on foot and actually made it to their intended destination before they did. So when they arrived, here was a large crowd of people just waiting for them. So much for those relaxing vacation plans. Rather than being frustrated or annoyed, however, Jesus had compassion on the people and spent the day teaching them the truths about the kingdom of heaven. And then he ended up feeding them a meal as well, because they hadn’t brought any food along. He provided them with a miraculous meal of loaves and fishes and fed over 5,000 people. The day was now winding down and it was time for everyone to head home. So first Jesus instructed his disciples to get in the boat and head back to the other side of the Sea of Galilee. He would catch up with them later. After that he dismissed the crowd and then went up into the hills by himself to pray. What he prayed about we aren’t told. Did he pray for his disciples, for a safe trip across the sea? Did he pray for the crowds, that the Holy Spirit would open their hearts and help them see that he can do so much more than feed their hungry stomachs, that he can satisfy their hungry souls with forgiveness and peace and salvation? Did he pray for himself, that the Father would grant him wisdom and strength to meet the demands of ministry and serve all these people? Maybe he prayed about all of those things and more. We just don’t know.
At any rate Mark tells us that it now was evening. The sun was setting. The light was fading. And as Jesus comes down out of the hills, he looks out across the lake and sees the boat the disciples are in out in the middle of the lake. The sail has been lowered because the wind is against them and the disciples are straining at the oars. The word in the original literally means “to torture” or “torment.” They’ve been rowing for probably a couple of hours already. Their backs are sore. Their legs are sore. Their hands are sore and probably forming blisters. And they were going nowhere fast.
I remember being on vacation once with my family in Grand Marias, MI. It was a warm and sunny day, but kind of windy too. For whatever reason my son and I decided to go canoeing on a bay of Lake Superior. It wasn’t the brightest decision we ever made. We didn’t go that far—only 300 or 400 yards down the shore. And when we were going with the wind, it was great. But then we turned around and tried to make it back to the place we had started. It was all we could do to make it back. We were paddling as hard as we could against the wind and were going no where fast. The wind kept turning the canoe sideways. And every time it did, we would drift further backward, further in the wrong direction. It probably took us 45 minutes to get back to where we had started and we were both exhausted.
Now imagine what it was like for the disciples. They had been rowing for a couple of hours already, and they were only half way across the lake. By the time Jesus goes out to them it will be like 4:00 in the morning. So that’s probably another 6 or 7 hours. And they still wouldn’t be to the other side of the lake. Can you imagine how tired and exhausted they were? This was like torture for them. This was like torment. Would they ever make it to the other side of the lake?
Notice too that Jesus does not go out and help them right away. He waits for several hours. Why we’re not told. Does he want his disciples to recognize that they can’t do this on their own, that they desperately need his help? Does he want to them to struggle and strain so that when he does come and help them, they’ll truly appreciate it? We aren’t told.
So as Mark tells us, Jesus finally does go to the disciples during the 4th watch of the night. The 4th watch is from 3:00-6:00 in the morning. As I said, this is like 6 or 7 hours later. Can you imagine how tired the disciples must have been at this point, how sore and exhausted they must have been? And so Jesus goes out to help them, walking on the water. Please don’t try this in your swimming pool at home or when you’re out boating with your friends—unless, of course, you’re wearing a life jacket or you have your favorite floaty nearby, because I guarantee you it will not go well. That would be a dumber idea than my son and I going canoeing on Lake Superior on a windy day. You are not Jesus. You are not the Son of God. You will sink like a rock.
So it’s 4:00 in the morning. The disciples are tired and exhausted and still straining away at the oars. And all at once they notice something on the water coming towards them. At first it’s kind of hard to make out. It’s definitely not a seagull. And it’s not another boat either. In fact, it looks kind of like a person, but a person can’t walk on the water. And the closer it gets, the more and more it does look like a person. But it can’t be a person so it has to be…a ghost. Aaaahhhhh! The disciples were startled, “terrified,” Mark tells us. You would be too if you were out on the lake at 4:00 in the morning and you saw someone walking on the water. What would you think?
But then Jesus immediately spoke to them and put their hearts at ease: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid”(v. 50). Wow! What a relief for the disciples! It wasn’t some scary ghost. It was their Lord and Savior Jesus.
Aren’t you glad your Savior Jesus isn’t a ghost? Isn’t it comforting to know that Jesus is not some scary apparition or phantom; but that he’s real, 100% real? Many today would like you to believe that he is anything but real, that he is nothing more than a ghost, something like Caspar the ghost, someone you read about in children’s story books, but never take too seriously because he is just part of some made-up, fanciful story. Aren’t you glad that isn’t true? Aren’t you glad that Jesus is real, that he is in fact the Son of God and Savior of the world?
We see that in this story. We see it in his ability to walk on the water. You and I cannot walk on the water. Your obnoxious, know-it-all coworker cannot walk on the water. Your atheist professor at college cannot walk on the water; but Jesus can. What does that tell you about Jesus? Likewise we see it in his calming of the storm and his miraculous healing of many who were sick.
But we also see it the words that Jesus spoke. You see, when Jesus spoke to his frightened disciples, he didn’t actually say, “It is I.” What he said was, “I am.” “Take courage! I am. Don’t be afraid”(v. 50). “Take courage! I am.” That can’t be coincidence. When Jesus speaks, it is never just a coincidence. To bring comfort and peace to his disciples, Jesus says, “I am.” It reminded them and it reminds us who he really is. He is the great I Am, the God who just is, who always is. The God who is never affected by storms or disturbed by disasters. The God who is always the same—yesterday and today and forever. The God whose word never changes, who never goes back on his word, who is always faithful, always true, always keeps his promises. The God who promised to send a Savior to rescue us from sin and death and sent his own Son to be that Savior—not a seagull or a dolphin, not a genie or a ghost, but a real Savior, with real human flesh and blood, so he could provide us with real forgiveness for our sins and real peace for our souls and real life in heaven. Our Savior, Jesus, is not a ghost. He is the Son of God. He is the great I Am, which means he is more than able to help and to heal.
We see that in this story too, don’t we? After calming the troubled hearts of his disciples, Jesus calms the storm as well. As soon as he climbs in the boat, the wind dies down and it’s completely calm. No more back-breaking rowing. No more screaming muscles in their legs and arms. Now they can hoist the sail again and sail right into the harbor at Gennesaret.
We also see it in his ability to heal those who are sick, to heal them even by just letting them touch the edge of his cloak. I know doctors can do some pretty amazing things now days with various surgeries and treatments. I know they can repair worn out hips and shoulders and knees. I know they can replace heart valves and do kidney transplants. But I’ve never seen a doctor do something like Jesus did. I’ve never seen a doctor walk through a waiting room full of sick people and everyone who touched his nice, white doctor’s coat suddenly got better. Do you know why that is? Because doctors are not Jesus. Doctors are really, really smart and they’re really good at what they do, and for that we are very grateful; but they are not Jesus. Jesus doesn’t have to do surgery to help someone get better. Jesus doesn’t have to prescribe some special kind of medicine. He can make people better completely on his own. He is always able to heal and to help.
So I understand COVID has been going around again this summer. Is Jesus able to bring you healing and recovery? Of course he is. He is more than able. Is Jesus able to help you recover from pneumonia or shingles? Of course he is. He is more than able. Is Jesus able to help you when you’ve been diagnosed with cancer, to bring healing and recovery to your body? Of course he is. He is more than able.
Of course, it may be Jesus’ plan that you don’t get better for a while. You recognize that, right? It may be Jesus’ plan to have you struggle with that disease for a while, that you have to toil away under the burden of sickness, that you have to strain away at the oars of affliction for a while and wait on him and rely on him for the comfort and strength to get through it. Is Jesus able to help you? He is more than able to help. Then again, it may be Jesus’ plan that you don’t get better at all, but that he take you from this life and make you perfect in heaven. Is Jesus able to do that? Is he able to relieve you of your suffering and pain in this life and make you perfectly better in heaven? Of course he is. He is more than able.
And then again, maybe it’s not your body that needs the healing. Maybe it’s your soul, your soul that is sick with sin and guilt over some past transgression, your soul that is tormented by some grievous wrong or foolish action, your soul that is afraid of God, afraid that God is going to punish you for what you did and banish you to hell forever. Is Jesus able to help you? Is Jesus able to bring healing to your sin-sick soul? Of course he is. He is more than able. Because of what he did for you, and for all of us, at the cross; because he took your sin and guilt upon himself and paid for it all with his holy, precious blood, he is more than able to help. He is more than able to forgive. He is more than able to give you comfort and peace. He is more than able to save you from death and give you life—eternal life with him heaven.
Is it a flash of lightning and a thunderous boom outside your bedroom window that has set your heart a racing? Don’t be afraid. Look to Jesus, your Savior. Is it the rumor of layoffs that has made you more than a bit anxious about the future? Don’t be afraid. Look to Jesus, your Savior. Is it the news from the doctor’s office, news about a diagnosis you have been dreading? Don’t be afraid. Look to Jesus, your Savior. Thankfully he is not a ghost. He is the great I AM, the eternal and faithful and gracious God of our salvation. And he is more than able to help and to heal. Amen.