Jesus of Nazareth was tempted in the desert while spending forty days in fasting, to perform three unusual acts- to turn stone into bread, to jump from the pinnacle of the temple and fall down and worship Satan in order to obtain all the kingdoms of the world. Jesus did none of those heroic or spectacular acts, but protected Himself from the snare of the temptation.
Later in His public engagements, Jesus performed miracles to heal those who were sick, or help people in need or to rescue people from the possession under which they suffered.
One such miracle was Jesus walking on the sea at night to reach His disciples who were caught in a storm while crossing the sea (Mark 6: 45-52). Let me share a meditation on this miracle focussing on the Multitude, Disciples and Jesus of Nazareth.
1.Multitude
Jesus was seen sending away the multitude of people whom He had fed with five loaves and two fish (v45). In John’s narration of the feeding of the five thousand, we come cross a new dimension, which is not found in Mark’s narration. ‘Jesus perceived that people were about to take Him away by force to make Him a king’ (John 6:15).
I remember how this miracle captivated the imagination of a six years old boy, after he heard this miracle in the Sunday school for the first time. He went back home gathered all his dolls, teddy bears, etc and made them seated on a bed. He went to his mother and asked for five slices of bread and two pieces of fish. Watching the recreation of feeding the five thousand imaginatively, his mother consented and provided him with bread and fish. He brought them in a plate, placed on the bed and stood before it with eyes closed and folded hands. After a while, he turned to his mother and said, ‘Mummy, they have not multiplied’. For a child such a miracle was sensational and awe inspiring.
It was equally so for the adults who watched Jesus perform the miracle in the desert. It was amidst this confusion of people plotting to take Jesus away to make him King, Jesus sent his disciples to the other side of Bethsaida. Who were these people! They were the ones who ran ahead of Jesus and disciples, when Jesus decided to take his disciples to ‘a quiet place to reast a while’ (Mark 6:31). The multitude who arrived in the desert, where Jesus intended rest and retreat for His disciples, Jesus felt compassion to feed them (Mark 6:34), as they were far away from their homes.
Let me explore the something more about the state of affairs of multitude.
They were fearful. Following the beheading of John the Baptist by Herod (Mark6:14-29) people were in a state of shock, panic and uncertainty. It was insanity at its worst form, that Herod should do such a crime to satisfy the revengeful attitude of Herodias. People were looking for consolation and comfort.
The multitude was regardful of Jesus. The came on foot from all cities and reached there to listen to him (mark6:33). They were seeking for a Messiah, who would bring hope and purpose.
The multitude was teachable. Jesus taught them many things (v.34). Jesus found an opportunity to turn their attention from panic and shock to God, who was their hope and salvation. Jesus felt the need of people and related to them at their level of readiness.
Late Dr. Billy Graham was one such person, who was a mass evangelist, well known to communicate at the level that all people can relate to. During the years of his mass campaigns (1947-2005) Dr Graham preached in 185 countries in six continents addressing millions of people directly or through satellite communication. At the age of 99 years when he left for his heavenly abode, on February 21, 2018, his wife Mrs Ruth Graham seems to have said, ‘Billy loved God and ministered to people lovingly’. His was a loving fascination for people, because he too saw people as ‘sheep without a shepherd’. Mass Communication is an art by itself.
People come together in large gathering because they are drawn by the charismatic appeal of some leaders. It is people who create leaders, by their fancy for the ideas and style of communication of the leaders. The mass psychology is such that people become followers of what majority of people have chosen to do. In a mass gathering, many people follow others without a reasonable examination of the ideas and position=s of the leader. The people who were gathering to hear Jesus later turned to call out to ‘crucify’ Jesus! Most wise leaders would not attach too much significance to the turnout of large numbers in a meeting, but would look out for people who are willing to process the message and focus on them to build them up in the new way of life. That would have been the precise reason why Jesus wanted to personally bid them farewell (V46).
2.Disciples
There are some unusual details we find in this story about disciples.
Sailing during day and night: Most fishermen would set sail late in the evening to fish and plan to return early in the morning to be on time for the morning market to sell their catch. I presume that the disciples being former fishermen were good at sailing at night. However, the daytime sailing turned out to be a different experience for eh disciples. It was Jesus who sent them to the other side of Bethsaida (Mark 6:45). This was the second attempt that Jesus was making to help the disciples to go away from the crowd to be on their own, because of which Jesus sent them ahead of them, while He sent the multitude away and retreated to the mountain to pray after that.
For the disciples to go ahead without Jesus was also a new experience. It is like writing with the left hand who is used to write with the right hand. It would become a strenuous experience and would not find it easy. When I began by senior house surgency, I had to be on call at night on alternate days. Most of the night, I would have been awake and return to work on the next morning. It was a difficult and demanding part of work to begin with. I got used to it in less than a month. It is through unusual experiences we expand the spectrum of our experiences and widen our thinking and skills. Jesus was preparing the disciples to become familiar with different unexpected events so that they grow in patience, resilience, and endurance. The disciples were in a formative journey. What contributes to our growth are stressful situations, because they make us discover our strength, make us seek the help of others and turn to God in prayer.
Caught in a storm. The disciples were straining at oars as the wind was against them (v48). They lost their way in the storm. This happened after a spectacular event of Jesus feeding the five thousand with five leaves of bread and two fish. It was a ‘peek’ experience of excitement and celebration. They were witnesses to the power and authority of Jesus. Following this was this ‘valley’ experience of being caught in a storm in a familiar sea that they were used to fishing.
This is the existential rhythm of life-peek and valley experiences. Think of the old testament devout man, Job. He too was caught in a storm of life after having been prosperous (Job 1: 1-3). He was blameless and upright before God. He had seven sons and three daughters. He possessed 7000 sheep, 300 camels, 500 yoke of oxen, 500 female donkeys and very many servants. Job was the greatest of all the men in the east. In Job1: 13-19, we read about the losses he suffered one after the other of all things he possessed and his family except his wife. His confession following this was: ‘Naked I came from my mother’s womb, naked I shall return- the Lord gave and the Lord has taken away, Blessed be the name of the Lord’. All followers of Jesu of Nazareth would have similar peek and valley experiences in all the seasons of our lives. That is why, we shall live our pilgrim journey with this consciousness- Who we are; Whose we are; and Whom are we following!
Dr Ravi Zachariah, who moved on to his heavenly abode a short while ago, was diagnosed with cancer only about a year ago. He deteriorated physically quickly to the surprise of all who were hoping for respite and recovery. When he knew that he was slipping away, he seems to have said, ‘I am better prepared for my eternal home through all these’! That was truly a pilgrim’s heart. The journey of life ought to have this perspective that, ’it is in God we live, move and have our being’, because of which we go through the diverse experiences of life as an essential part of our formation. A butterfly has some struggle to break out of its cocoon, during which it receives its strength in its wings.
They perceived Jesus as a ghost (v 48). The disciples were weary, anxious, drifting a storm, and were rowing for hours together. No wonder in the darkness of the night, they might have been frightened seeing someone walking on stormy water. Their visibility was reduced in the moon light and high tide obliterating their vision. They had not expected anyone to walk in the seas when it was rough. The disciples were in a state of panic that their inner orientation was also disturbed. It is when we are under stress, we lose our composure and clarity of sight and insight. That was what led the disciples to think of the ghost!
The disappointing aspect about the disciples was that, ‘They had not gained any insight from the incident of the loaves but their heart was hardened’ (Mark 6:52). They had their own way of thinking. The disciples were in a state of emotional and physical exhaustion that their reasoning skills too suffered in such a situation. When we go through stressful situations and disturbing circumstances, there is a risk of losing our sense of judgement and choices. That itself is a reason to avoid making decisions or conclusions on such occasions.
Jesus getting into their boat brought peace and calmed the sea. No situation is outside the control and purpose of God. This is the hope for a pilgrim.
3. Jesus arriving walking on water
After seeing of the disciples, Jesus sent the multitude away. He then departed to the mountain to pray (v46). While in prayer, Jesus ‘seeing them straining at oars’ (v.48), left to look out for them. How Jesus ‘saw’ from distance about four miles is a matter of speculation for the Bible commentators. Was it an inward awareness that the all-knowing Jesus had while in prayer! Or was it a physical sighting of the disciples in the moon light! Whatever might be the way Jesus saw the disciples, he went to them walking on the sea (v48).
There are three miracles in this story: Jesus saw the disciples from far; Jesus walked on the water; and Jesus stilled the storm by getting into the boat. It is a fascinating way of bringing a change to the situation for the disciples. God is at work in our lives and small miracles continue to happen in our lives, although we do not pause and reflect on them as much as we ought.
In the book, ‘Small Miracles’, by Yitta Halberstam and Judith Leventhal, there is a biographical narration of many people who narrated their recollection of unnatural experiences in their lives. They were not chance occurrence; they were surprises to say the least for all of the narrators. The book is a vivid illustration of how God is at work silently in our lives. The unnatural experiences we encounter are God’s ways of refreshing and reminding us of His goodness and thoughtfulness.
I remember an experience last week while I was on my way to work. It has been raining for a week. While I was about to take the turn form the main road to go to the hospital, I felt a strong inhibition to take that turn. I stopped the car to check if I was feeling well. As the feeling grew stronger to avoid that turn, I proceeded on the main road and took another route to go to the hospital. When I reached nearer the hospital, I noticed that the road I normally take was submerged and many vehicles were stranded on the road. I had a meeting in the hospital at 8.30 pm. If we were to recollect there would be many such daily events in our lives, which remind us of God guiding and escorting us in the journey of life.
What fascinates me about the experience of prayer that Jesus chose to have at that particular time! His habit of aura et labora, pray and work is what strikes me. He was present with his disciples most of the times and remained absent on some occasions for prayer. It was during prayer the desert fathers had insights which led them to develop exercises to practice the presence of God. It was the habit of prayer which the contemplatives discovered as a means of finding a way forward in difficult circumstances. It was during prayer Jesus was given the insight about the disciples struggling in the sea.
I remember a testimony of Dr C.K.Job, a former Principal of the Christian Medical College, Vellore. He narrated to me his longing to become a doctor for which he was in the habit of prayer. Having been from Kerala state, which had no medical college in 1947, his only chance was to compete for one of the four seats reserved for students from Kerala in the madras Medical College. He did not even apply as the competition was too high for him. By then he had already found a job as an officer in Kerala government service. But he kept his desire to be a doctor strongly in prayer. His friend, who was from Tamil Nadu who knew of Dr Job’s interest to study medicine, sent him an application form from Christian Medical College, Vellore, when it announced to take the first batch of men students in 1947. He applied, went for the interview. Three men who had come for the interview stayed in a small house in the Bhagyam campus. The house was raided by thieves in the night and escaped with three trunks where they had kept their clothes and certificates. In the morning as they became aware of what happened in the night, Dr Job and his friends were about to go to the Principal’s house to report the matter. They noticed all the three trunks behind the house. Except the certificates, the thieves had taken away everything else. Dr Job appeared for the interview wearing the same clothes he wore while travelling to come to Vellore the previous day. He was selected to study medicine at CMC Vellore.
While narrating this event Dr job mentioned to me that ‘our prayer would not relieve us of the daily demands of living but would give us a trustful attitude in God in difficult times’. Dr Job had an outstanding career as a researcher in leprosy, Professor, Principal and an international leader in Leprosy rehabilitation science along with Dr Paul Brand. On an occasion when I last met him, he talked about the pain of losing his wife earlier, although he himself was undergoing treatment for a terminal illness. He summed up, all these experiences in one sentence: ‘God is a good God, who gives us what is good for us’. Dr Job lived his life in the habit of aura et labora- pray and work
This miracle summarises for us what God has in store for those whom He calls, sends and entrusts with a mission. God watches over us and accompanies us in the journey of life.
M.C.Mathew (text) Images form internet sites with grateful acknowledgement.
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