Who Can Walk On Water?

Have you ever noticed how it's possible to be amazed by the miracles of Jesus and still be

completely oblivious to their true significance? Not only is that a possibility, but I think that

it's actually more common than what we would hope it to be. Just think of all of these people that

Jesus has encountered in the gospels up to this point and beyond. Thousands of people flocked to

Jesus and his disciples wherever he went, but very few of them actually believed and followed him.

They were eyewitnesses to his power, but they were utterly ignorant of his person.

They loved to see what he could do, but they completely missed who he was. And even the

people that were closest to Jesus, his 12 disciples in particular, still struggled to understand the

significance of Jesus's identity and purpose. And despite all that they had seen, despite all that

they had even partaken in as a result of the power and authority of Jesus, the disciples generally

misunderstood what all of that was about. And such is the case here at the conclusion of chapter six.

And it's for this reason that this miracle of Jesus walking on water of which probably all of us are so

familiar is actually one of the most significant moments in the life of the disciples as they walked

with Jesus. Now that might be a bit of a hard statement, but I think it's true because we look at all,

all that they experienced with Jesus clearly the most significant moment was when the resurrected Christ

appeared to these men. But this was such a massive turning point for these men in their acknowledgement of who

Jesus was and they're beginning to understand exactly what his purpose was in all of this. They were following him in

faith, but they just weren't getting it. All the things that they saw and experienced, it wasn't clicking. They

weren't bringing these connections together to really understand what Jesus was doing until this point.

And even at this point, they didn't quite grasp it, but something significant changed as we'll get to in

beginning to understand this. And so when we come to the miracle of the walking on the water,

it's not just meant to amaze us that Jesus did this really incredible thing, but I really think that we

should view this particular story and miracle as a turning point in the life of the 12 disciples.

We need to understand this event in tandem with the feeding of the 5,000, which is what we studied

last Sunday. You will have difficulty understanding the purpose of Jesus walking on water without

understanding first the purpose of Jesus feeding the 5,000. It's really not two different stories. It's

really one story. This walking on the water is really the conclusion to the story of Jesus feeding

the 5,000. When you go to the Gospels, Luke is the only one that doesn't cover Jesus walking on water,

but all four Gospels cover the feeding of the 5,000. Every time the walking on the water is mentioned,

it is always, always directly linked to Jesus feeding all of those people in the desolate place near

Bethsaida. And so you can't understand the two apart from one another.

It's not just for continuity of narrative. It's not just about that. There's a reason that these two

are linked together. And Mark, I think, lays out two particular reasons here that we want to cover

today. The first one is this, that in verse 45, we see this urgency with which Jesus sent the disciples

away. So he does this great miracle. He feeds all of these people. And then the very next verse,

we don't see anything else happening except for Jesus hurriedly, urgently making sure that his

disciples don't stay around. He's pushing them away. Go, get out of here, go get in the boat, go to the

other side, and I'll catch up with you later. There's an urgency to what Jesus is doing here. So the question

is, what's happening? What was happening in Bethsaida or near Bethsaida that Jesus had to so

urgently get these disciples away? So it's not just about this continuity and narrative telling story in a

particular order. There's a reason that these two are being connected. The second one is this. We read

it a moment ago. Look again with me at, what is it, verse 52. They were amazed, but why were they amazed?

Mark circles back around to the feeding of the 5,000. He says they were amazed because their hearts were

hardened due to them not understanding what the feeding of the 5,000 was all about. They didn't

understand the loaves. They hadn't considered that. Their hearts were hardened, which is a pretty

important statement when we come to Mark's gospel. And that's why things weren't clicking for them before.

That's why they were astounded. So after he gets all the way through this story of what Jesus has done,

he circles back around. And so we have to ask that question, why was Jesus sending these disciples

away with urgency? And what was it that they didn't get? What was it about this feeding of the 5,000 that

wasn't clicking for these men that Jesus had to go walk on water in order to make it click? Because

that's essentially what's happening. They've missed something massive. So Jesus, in order to demonstrate

something very specific to these men, walks on water. And that's what becomes the turning point for the men.

And it's these questions that I hope that we can answer this morning as we go through this chapter.

Now, remember, we're coming to the close of this chapter that has focused specifically on the

disciples. All of Mark's gospel is about Jesus. All of the Bible is about Jesus. But Mark is giving us

this picture of Jesus and telling these stories of Jesus in Mark chapter 6 through the lens of his

Mark 6 · chapter mention

disciples, their training, and what it was that was going on in their minds.

Let me ask you, when you got saved, when you were converted to Christ, did everything that you read

in the Bible and everything that you had ever heard about the Bible just all of a sudden just click,

and you just had it, and you were just like, you're a doctor of theology now, it all just makes sense?

Of course not, right? Of course not.

The character of God is infinite.

You will never, you will never understand it all. You will never grasp it all.

I was talking to Caitlin and Michaela this morning about a song I was listening to this week.

It's a City of Light song called I Want to Know You.

And there's a bridge in the song, it says, it says like wave after wave on the ocean,

like all of the sand on the shore, your beauty and glory are endless. Oh Jesus, I must know you more.

And I think the more that we actually begin to understand the Bible, and the more we begin to

actually see who Christ is, we realize how little of Christ we actually understand.

And for a believer, it should put this desire, this fire in your heart.

Lord, I just want to know you more. I want to know more of who you are.

I want to understand this more.

So now let's put ourselves in the disciples' shoes.

Yes, they've seen some amazing things.

They had done some amazing things through the power of Christ.

But they're not any different than us.

Didn't mean that everything just clicked with them all of a sudden.

There was a progression to their understanding.

They grew in grace the same way that we grow in grace.

And it wasn't that they didn't have faith.

It wasn't that they weren't regenerate.

It wasn't any of that.

It was that this was just another step in their walk of faith.

And it ended up being a monumental moment for them in this time that they were following Christ.

So if you care to keep an outline, maybe next to verses 45 and 46 in those scripture journals,

you'll write this, messianic misunderstanding.

Messianic misunderstanding or misunderstanding the Messiah or however you'd want to phrase that.

It doesn't really matter to me.

But it's in verses 45 and 46 where we're going to see this.

And one of the recurring problems with the crowds that followed Jesus

was that they continually misunderstood the purpose of the Messiah.

It wasn't necessarily that they denied Jesus as being a messianic figure.

I think that was the point in the crowds following him is that they suspected that he was indeed

at least a Messiah from God.

What they misunderstood is exactly what that meant and exactly what the purpose of the Messiah would be.

They expected this political leader, this military hero that would deliver the nation from oppression

and would restore it to a former glory, like the glory of David's kingdom.

And even those who had followed Jesus expected a physical kingdom that would be established in their lifetime.

Now, Isaiah had prophesied that the coming of the Messiah would cause a few things to happen.

That deaf people would hear, that blind people would see, that lame people would walk,

that good news would be brought, that blessing would come upon the nation.

And what have we seen Jesus doing as he's going throughout Galilee in Mark's gospel?

He's preaching good news.

He's bringing blessing to the nation.

The deaf can hear, the blind can see, the lame can walk.

All of these things that the prophets had foretold would be true of the Messiah are true in Jesus.

And the crowds are starting to see that.

They're seeing, okay, this might be the one.

What they misunderstood is what the one was intending to do.

But then Jesus even admitted that he was the one.

Remember this from Luke chapter four.

You don't have to turn there.

Maybe write it in the margins of your notes and you can reflect on it later.

Luke chapter four, Jesus's first visit to Nazareth after his ministry had begun.

And he goes and he's allowed to speak in the synagogue.

And it says that in the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him.

He unrolled the scroll and found the place where this was written.

The spirit of the Lord is upon me because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind,

to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor.

And Jesus rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, sat down,

and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him.

And he began to say this,

Today, this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.

Okay, Jesus was clear.

Sometimes we wonder that.

Why wasn't Jesus more clear?

That's pretty clear.

And that's early on in his ministry.

He's reading these prophets and he's saying,

I am that one.

And so it's not that the people didn't think he was the Messiah or a Messiah.

It's that they misunderstood what his whole purpose was.

Remember John the Baptist?

Before he was executed, he's in the prison.

And remember, he's confused.

Because even John the Baptist thought that Jesus,

though he knew Jesus to be the Lamb of God taking away the sin of the world,

he thought Jesus was bringing a physical kingdom then in his lifetime.

And he's confused because he is sitting in the prison.

And he wasn't thinking that that was going to be a part of the plan of the Messiah

and of his cousin, Jesus.

He didn't think that's what was going to happen.

And remember, he sends some of his own followers to Jesus.

And they say,

John wanted us to ask you,

Are you the one or should we look for another?

And what was it that Jesus said?

You can read it in Matthew 11 or Matthew 14.

One of those passages has this in context.

And Jesus says,

Jesus heals a few folks in front of John's disciples.

And he does all these works.

And then he turns to those disciples.

And he says,

Go and tell John that the deaf hear,

and the blind see,

and the lame walk,

and good news is preached to the people.

In other words,

John, you know,

you may not understand what I'm doing,

but you know I'm the one to do it.

So go tell John,

Don't worry.

Things are fine.

So even the people that were closest to him

didn't quite get it at this point.

But he was doing all of these things.

So with that in mind,

look at verse 45.

Immediately,

I'm reading from the ESV now.

Immediately,

he made his disciples get into the boat

and go before him to the other side,

to Bethsaida,

while he dismissed the crowd.

So there's this misunderstanding.

People aren't grasping exactly,

even the disciples aren't grasping exactly

what Jesus' purpose is.

Something is now happening on the side of this hill,

and Jesus forces these disciples to leave.

You have to get out of here.

Go get in the boat and go away.

The feeding of the 5,000 had taken place,

as we talked about last week,

in a desolate place.

It was in the region of Bethsaida,

which is northeast Galilee.

Probably,

there's some confusion

over what's happening in direction.

There's no reason to be confused.

Jesus is sending them away

to go to the other side.

Okay?

He's sending them to go back to the other side,

probably around the shoreline,

the way that they had come.

But why?

Well,

this particular area

was known to be a stronghold

for the zealot movement.

You'll probably recognize that term

because one of Jesus' disciples

was a zealot.

His name was Simon.

In one passage,

he's called Simon the Canaanite,

which literally means zealot.

That's what he was.

He was a part of this zealot movement.

Now,

this tells you something

about Jesus' mindset

toward this group.

Simon repented of

and left that group

in order to follow Jesus.

Now,

that was a messianic group.

They cared about Israel.

They cared about the Messiah.

They cared about all those things.

But that didn't mean

that they had it all together.

It didn't mean

that they were thinking rightly

about who Jesus is

and what the Savior would do.

In fact,

they were a military group.

They were hiding in the hills,

training in order to kill,

in order that they might free Israel

from the bondage

that they had experienced in Rome.

So they were freedom fighters.

They were revolutionaries.

And what they expected

the Messiah to do

was to be a military leader

that would lead them

in their training

in a fight,

a physical fight,

against Rome.

Now,

because this is the place

where this feeding took place,

some have suggested

that this crowd

was made up

predominantly of zealots.

He's in zealot territory.

All four Gospels

emphasized

that it was 5,000 men.

We know that there were women

and children there too,

but the emphasis is on the men.

Could it be

that this is basically

a group of 5,000 zealots

that have gathered

on the hillside

that now have witnessed

with their own eyes

Jesus do an incredible miracle?

And now they think,

okay,

the Messiah is here.

We've been training for this.

It's time to go fight.

And there's this messianic fervor

that's misunderstood

because they didn't really understand

who Jesus was.

And John tells us

that they attempted

to make Jesus a king

by force.

In fact,

John chapter 6,

John 6:14

verse 14,

when the people saw the sign

that he had done,

they said,

this is indeed the prophet

who is to come into the world.

Perceiving then

that they were about to come

and take him by force

to make him a king,

Jesus withdrew again

to the mountain by himself.

So why is it

that Jesus is sending

the disciples away

in such a hurried fashion?

Because the disciples

generally agreed

with the messianic expectations

of the people.

And they were probably

getting caught up

in the zeal of the crowd.

Zealots are ready

to take Jesus by force,

force him to be their leader.

They're going to go

fight against Rome.

And here's the disciples

on the other end

who are gung-ho for that.

That's what they thought

this was all about.

They thought,

yes,

this is it.

We're going to be

his right-hand men.

And they're getting excited.

And Jesus says,

no,

you need to get out of here.

It's time for you

to leave.

The language in verse 45

indicates that Jesus

had to force them out,

that they were reluctant

to leave.

And now we begin

to understand exactly

why this was such an issue

with the disciples.

After everything

they had witnessed Jesus do,

after Jesus calling

them to be apostles

that were going to

continue his kingdom,

they were going to

take his kingdom

across the world,

they didn't even understand

what that kingdom was.

They didn't even understand

what that purpose

was going to be.

They were susceptible

to the political enthusiasm

of the crowd.

So Jesus commanded them

to sail to the other side.

And it's just a reminder.

There's always a danger

in getting swept away

by error

when we fail to realize

exactly who Jesus is

and what he's meant to do.

The errors that we can

so easily get caught up in

as Christians

always come back

to a misunderstanding

of who Jesus is

and what his purpose is

should be mindful.

Look at verse 46.

After he had taken leave

of them,

he went up on the mountain

to pray.

It's always fascinating

to consider

the prayer life of Jesus.

It's mysterious.

Why would Jesus need to pray?

I understand why I need to pray.

Because I'm weak.

That's part of our prayer, right?

It's a surrender.

It's, Lord, I can't do this.

I need you.

I need you to work on my behalf.

I need you in this moment.

But why would Jesus do this?

It's mysterious to think about it.

It pictures the intimate communion

in the Trinity,

the unity that existed

between the Father

and the Son

and the Spirit.

But while we often see Jesus

praying in the Gospels,

these private times

of prayer in solitude,

particularly in these

mountainous places,

we see these names

specifically through the Gospels.

They're always connected

in some way

to difficulty

and temptation.

Now think about this

for just a moment.

When's the first time

that we see Jesus

in this type of prayer?

Well, it was right

after his baptism.

He was led of the Spirit

into the wilderness

for 40 days and 40 nights.

And as he's praying and fasting,

what is happening?

For 40 days and 40 nights,

he's being tempted.

And what were those temptations about?

Satan's,

the goal of Satan's temptations

of Jesus

was to get him to go

against the will of the Father.

That was the purpose.

Whether it was turning

the bread into food

or the stones into bread,

or whether it was jumping off

the pinnacle of the temple

and having angels bear him up

before he falls on the rocks,

or whether it was to bow to Satan

in order to gain the kingdom,

all of those things

were really for one purpose.

Go against the will of the Father.

Those were the temptations.

Okay?

When's the next time

we see him being tempted?

Mark chapter 1.

Mark 1 · chapter mention

This explosive popularity

all of a sudden in Capernaum.

Remember,

all these people are coming

all night to Jesus.

Jesus slips away

in the middle of the night

to go pray,

and his disciples hunt him down.

And what'd they say?

We need to go back

because it's happening.

It's happening, Jesus.

And what does Jesus say?

No,

we're going to go

to other towns now

so that I can teach them

because that's why I've come.

And so this moment of prayer

in Mark chapter 1,

Mark 1 · chapter mention

what is it?

It's a reaffirming

of the will of the Father.

And the next day,

he doesn't go back

to follow the expectations

of the disciples.

He follows the expectations

of the Father,

and he goes,

and he stays on track

with what his purpose was.

We're going to see it again

the night of his arrest.

He's going to go

to the Garden of Gethsemane,

and he's going to go

a little further

than the rest of them

in this solitude at night.

And what is it

that he's going to pray

in a moment of temptation,

probably?

He's going to pray,

Father,

not my will,

but your will be done.

And then we see him again

on the mountain praying

right after a group of zealots

had tried to get him

to circumvent

the will of the Father,

which was the cross.

He could have had

the leadership.

He could have had

the kingdom.

He could have had

the things apart

from the cross,

but that wasn't

the will of the Father.

And so he goes

and he prays.

It's important here

because it's perfect

as the Son of God was

and is.

He felt temptation

in a way

that we can never understand.

Yet he never sinned

even one time.

Not one time.

In fact,

Hebrews reminds us of this.

We do not have a priest

who is unable

to sympathize

with our weakness,

but one who in every respect

has been tempted

as we are,

yet without sin.

Do you understand

the importance of this?

That Jesus couldn't be

the Savior

if he wasn't sinless.

but he is sinless.

He never went

with the temptation.

He never gave in

to the messianic

expectations

of the people.

Last night,

Ashlyn and I

were talking about this

in a way.

We were talking about this

on the couch.

I can't remember

the context

of what we were saying,

but we were talking

about how easy it is

to worry

about future sin.

We want to please

the Lord,

don't we?

We get worried sometimes

that I don't want

to mess up

and I don't want

to fall so badly

that I'm alone

and I feel distant

from God

and all of those

kinds of things.

That was kind of

the context

of the conversation

that Ashlyn and I

were having.

We had to bring it

back to the gospel

because my acceptance

with the Father

is not on the basis

of whether or not

I can keep all the stuff.

Whether or not

he's close to me

and I'm close to him

is not about

how good I can be.

It's not about

my righteousness.

It's about the righteousness

of Christ

because if my acceptance

is based on how well

I can keep up

this Christian thing,

then I'm never

going to be good enough.

I'm never going

to feel accepted.

I'm never going

to be loved

to the Father,

but that's not

what it is.

He doesn't look at me

for how good I am

or how well

I can keep all the stuff.

He looks at me

for the righteousness

that is his son.

Perfection.

Because the sinless

Savior died,

my sinful soul

is counted free

for God the just

is satisfied

to look on him

and pardon me.

And what is this

all about in this prayer?

Jesus is reaffirming

his commitment

to the will of the Father.

He will not sin.

He will not give

into temptation

and praise God

that he didn't

because it's only

due to his sinlessness

as our Savior

that we can actually

be saved.

He's not about,

look,

you need to free yourself

from this idea

that I'm going

to lose something,

whether it be

my salvation

or whether it be

my closeness to God

if I don't keep

all the rules

and I don't do

all the stuff

and I'm just so worried

that I'm going

to mess up.

And if it wasn't

about how good you were

to be saved,

it's not going to be

about how good you are

to stay saved.

And it's not going

to be how good you are

to feel saved.

It's not any of that.

It's the righteousness

of Christ.

What a freeing gospel

he gives us.

It's about him.

Now we haven't even got

to the walking

on the water part.

We need to probably

get there, don't we?

Write this down

in the margins.

Divine revelation.

Divine revelation.

This is verses 47 to 51.

Let's look at verse 47.

And when evening came,

the boat was out

on the sea

and he was alone

on the land

and he saw that

they were making

headway painfully

for the wind

was against them.

Now we've noted

in the past

about storms

that tend to come

over the Sea of Galilee

in a sudden fashion.

And the disciples

had actually feared

for their lives.

I think it was

at the end

of chapter 4

where they had

feared for their lives

during such a storm.

Another storm

has developed

as Jesus

has sent them

away

on the lake.

Mark's language

is actually

a little different

this time though.

It's not that

they were in danger

as much

as they were

miserable

here in this passage.

There's no indication

that the boat

was falling apart

like before.

They weren't terrified

in this moment

for their lives.

They were just going

through a really

difficult time.

They just couldn't

make any progress.

It's not that

they were going

backwards.

It's not that

it's not that

they were falling

apart.

They weren't

drowning.

It's just that

everything was

against them

in this moment

and they couldn't

make any progress

because of this storm

so that they're

really miserable.

They're miserable.

They're toiling painfully

to row

and they're not

actually getting

anywhere.

And ironically

they were in that

troubling predicament

because of obedience.

Right?

We often think

of it that way.

We think well

if I'm obedient

to the Lord

then blessing will come.

Yeah and often

it does.

Sometimes you're

obedient to the Lord

and you just get

more miserable.

That's what's

happening with

the disciples here.

Jesus says

listen you guys

need to go to the boat

and you need to go

to the other side

knowing full well

that they were

going to struggle

all night long.

I mean it's just

going to be a pain

all night long.

Kent Hughes said

imagine what

disobedience

could have gotten

these men that night.

And we think

obedience brings

blessing.

Disobedience

brings problems.

But that might not

have actually been

the case at least

not immediately here.

If they had

disobeyed

they probably

would have had

a nice place

to stay for the night.

Could have

sheltered from the storm.

Perhaps they would

have had a host

that fed them

a good meal.

Perhaps they could

have amazed

some people

with the stories

of what Jesus

had done

in their sight

and all these

kinds of things.

They might have

had actually

a pretty good night

had they disobeyed

the Lord.

But they would

have missed out.

They would have

missed out

on this monumental

moment

in their walk

with Christ.

sometimes

Jesus

sends us

through a storm

so that he

might reveal

himself more

fully

in the storm.

Sometimes

he sends us

through a storm

in order to

reveal himself

more fully

in that storm.

He knew

where he was

sending them

and he knew

what he was

going to do

and their

obedience

brought them

hardship

but it

actually

ended up

being the

greatest

blessing

that they

could have

experienced

on that

night.

Notice

Jesus

was fully

aware

of

everything

going on.

They

couldn't

see him

but he

could see

them.

John 6

tells us

they were

three or

four miles

out in

the middle

of the

lake

at this

point.

It's the

middle of

the night.

There's a

storm.

Nobody's

going to

stand on

the seashore

and be able

to see this

boat out

there.

It just

wouldn't

have been

possible.

What's

Mark telling

us here?

It's not

that Jesus

physically

could see

them.

It's that

he knew

where they

were.

He knew

what was

happening.

They

couldn't

see him

at the

moment.

They

couldn't

tell what

was going

on at

the moment

but he

saw them.

He knew

them.

He knew

what was

going on

and he

sees us

too.

I don't

know what

kind of

storm you

may be

going

through

today at

this point

in your

life.

Be careful

before you

wish it

away.

Because it

may be

that it's

this particular

storm that

Jesus is

planning to

reveal himself

to you in

a completely

unique way

that you

haven't

experienced

up to

this point.

And just

know that

no matter

how dark

it is

and how

difficult

it is

he sees

you.

He knows

you.

He knows

what's going

on in

your life.

Verse 48

About the

fourth watch

of the night

he came to

them walking

on the sea.

He meant

to pass by

them but

they saw

him.

walking

on the

sea.

They thought

it was a

ghost.

Cried out

for they

all saw

him and

were terrified.

Now we

see they're

terrified.

But it

wasn't the

storm they

were terrified

of.

It was

Jesus they

were terrified

of.

Because they

didn't know

it was

Jesus.

First

century Jews

they organized

their days into

three hour

periods.

the early

evening was

the time

that Jesus

had fed

the 5,000

that was

between

three o'clock

and six

o'clock

in the

afternoon.

Then they

had this

thing called

second

evening.

That's six

o'clock in

the evening

to nine

o'clock at

night.

That's the

time frame

that Jesus

sends the

disciples out

on the

boat.

The fourth

watch of

the night

is three

to six

in the

morning.

Think

about that.

think about

how long

Jesus let

them struggle.

He's

controlling

the storm

here.

He sent

them into

it.

He's the

one that's

holding off

on calming

the storm

right now.

Six to

eight hours

maybe.

Six to

eight hours

in the

middle of

the night.

They were

already

exhausted.

That was

the point

in going

to Bethesda

to get

some rest

that they

never actually

got.

And they're

paddling

all night.

I mean

goodness

grief.

By the

time Jesus

got to

them,

it was

early in

the morning.

They

rode all

night.

But then

Jesus came

in a most

peculiar

way.

Walking

on the

surface of

the water.

Now,

familiarity

with this

story might

cause us to

take for

granted what

I just

said.

So let's

take a

moment to

consider it.

Jesus came

to them

by walking

on water.

I was

talking to

my dad

yesterday.

I was in

a pool

actually and

he was

sitting on

the edge and

I had this

thought of

water in

my head and

I was

thinking I

can't walk

on this

right now.

And I

told my

dad, I

said I

wish that,

I wish I

could grasp

maybe more

emotionally

what this

was like.

I can

understand it

factually, I

believe it with

my whole heart.

It's hard for

me to grasp it

in the way that

the disciples

clearly would

have grasped

it.

He walked

on the

surface of

the water

four miles

in, in

the middle

of a storm.

Now tell

me, who

can walk

on water?

I can't

do that.

You can't

do that.

Gus can

do that.

And he

said he

might

give it

a shot.

I'll give

it a shot.

The

disciples

couldn't

except

Peter and

it was

only because

Jesus allowed

him.

There's

only one

person that

can walk

on water

and it's

not the

Messiah.

It's the

Son of

God.

which tells

us something

significant

about what

this moment

was.

They were

misunderstanding

Jesus'

messianic

purpose.

And so

Jesus comes

to them in

a way that

they can't

mistake it.

This isn't a

messianic

expectation.

This is an

expectation that

we would only

see in God

himself.

It's easy to

get a little

confused in

this verse

when Mark

says that he

meant to

pass by

them.

But there

is a little

bit of

significance

here.

He doesn't

mean that

Jesus was

walking past

them as if

he didn't

want to be

seen and

they happened

to notice

him out

there.

It's the

sense that

he was

walking beside

them for

the specific

purpose that

he would be

seen.

That's what's

going on

here.

Now,

some of

us suggested

that there's

a correlation

here in the

language to

when God

passed by

Moses in

Exodus 34.

Do you

remember that

story?

Moses goes up

on the

mountain.

He's

getting the

second go

around for

the Ten

Commandment

tablets.

He says,

God, I

just want to

see you.

Will you

let me

see you?

God says,

I'll hide you

in the

cleft of

the rock

and I

will pass

by you.

He was

revealing

himself.

Understandably,

the men

were scared.

Wouldn't you

be?

Why were they

scared?

The thought

would have

never crossed

through their

minds.

I wonder

if Jesus

will come

walking by

on the water

tonight.

Who would

even think

about that?

None of

us would

ever even

imagine that.

And they

weren't

especially

superstitious

people,

the Jews,

but these

men, the

only explanation

they could

come up with

in that

moment is

this is a

ghost and

they were

terrified.

And then

verse 50,

they were

going to

go to

them.

And they

said,

take heart,

it is I,

don't be

afraid.

And he

got into

the boat

with them

and the

wind ceased.

They didn't

recognize him

at first,

but they

knew his

voice.

And the

miracle wasn't

over.

That's what the

amazing thing

is here.

It's

unbelievable

that Jesus

walked on

water.

water.

But did

you notice?

This time he

calmed the

storm without

even saying

anything.

The last

time he

said,

peace be

still,

and he

harnessed

creation,

this time

all it

took was

from climbing

the boat

and all

of a sudden

it's all

over.

It's

amazing.

And so we

have to ask

this question.

Who can

see the

storm tossed

in the

middle of

the night?

I can't

see that.

You can't

see that.

Who can

walk on

water?

I can't

do that.

You can't

do that.

Who can

calm the

wind and

the waves?

Not me.

Maybe Gus.

Only God

can do

this.

Only God

can do

this.

That's the

point.

That's the

point of the

walking on

the water.

Thirdly,

write down

authentic

worship.

verse 51,

and they

were utterly

astounded

for they

did not

understand

the loaves,

but their

hearts were

hardened.

They were

blown away

by what

they witnessed.

You know,

there's a

type of

amazement

that leads

us to

cheer or

show

appreciation

for a

person or

for an

action.

Think

going to

a ball

game.

Julie and I

were watching

the Yankees

and the

Royals

play the

other night.

The Yankees

were down

in the

bottom of

the ninth.

Luke Voigt

hit a

walk-off

single that

won the

game for

the Yankees.

And what

happened,

what ensued

after that

is what

you might

expect.

The whole

crowd goes

crazy.

All the

players rush

onto the

field.

They're

jumping

around.

They're

amazed

in that

moment.

They're

amazed

at what

Luke Voigt

has just

done.

They're

amazed

that they

got to

experience

this victory

in the way

that they

did.

It would

have been

a completely

different type

of amazement

if after

hitting that

and winning

the game,

Luke Voigt

started to

flap his

arms and

fly around

the stadium.

That's a

different kind

of amazement.

The men

weren't in

the boat

saying,

Jesus,

you rock.

That's

awesome.

Do it

again.

No,

that's not

the kind

of amazement

that's happening

here.

What's

happening

here is

utter

worship.

it sends

them to

their knees.

And how

do we

know that?

Because Mark

doesn't say

it.

We have

to borrow

from the

other gospels.

Matthew

says it.

Matthew

Matthew 14 · chapter mention

chapter 14,

and those

in the

boat

worshipped

him,

saying,

truly,

you are

the son

of God.

This is

why this

event matters.

Remember

the last

time Jesus

calmed the

storm?

What was

it that

the men

said after?

What

kind of

man is

this that

even the

wind and

the seas

obey him?

They were

amazed,

but they

were asking

the wrong

question.

What kind

of man

is this?

What kind

of Messiah

is this?

What power

he has?

Now they're

saying the

right thing.

Truly,

you are

the son

of God.

That's why

this matters.

It's the

first time

they've made

this confession

in their

time in

following

Christ

in the

gospels.

This is

the first

time that

the disciples

acknowledge

this thing

about Jesus'

identity.

When Luke

covers the

feeding of

the 5,000,

he immediately

follows it up

with that

great confession

from Peter

where Peter

says,

you are the

Christ,

the son of

God.

Matthew says,

he gets in

the boat and

they said,

truly you are

the son of

God.

Mark's going

to get there

in chapter 8

with that same

confession.

Here's what

John says.

Remember the

next day,

the crowds

find Jesus

and he gives

this lesson

on how he

is the bread

of life

and everybody

left him.

Everybody,

even the

disciples outside

of the 12,

they left him.

They said,

this is too

fanatical for

us and they

left.

Here's what

happened.

John 6,

after this,

many of his

disciples turned

back and no

longer walked

with him.

So Jesus

said to the

12,

do you go

away as

well?

Are you

going to

leave me

too?

And Peter

said,

Lord,

to whom

shall we

go?

you have

the words

of life

and we

have believed

and have

come to

know that

you are

the Holy

One of

God.

What's the

difference

between the

12 in

John 6

and the

crowds in

John 6?

The crowds

were amazed

at what

Jesus could

do.

The

disciples,

even despite

their

misunderstanding,

despite the

fact that they

couldn't make

all the

connections the

right way

yet,

despite all

of that,

they believed

that this is

who he was.

That was the

difference.

You know

what will

keep you

faithful to

Christ,

faithful to

the church,

faithful to

pursue godliness

in your life?

It's not a

sheer amazement

with Jesus.

That won't

get you very

far.

That won't

get you

very far.

What will

keep you

going,

even when

you don't

understand,

is the

fact that

you believe

that this

is who

he is.

This is

truly the

son of

God.

This is

the savior

of the

world.

It is the

only thing

that will

push you

through.

When he

sends you

into a

storm,

it won't

be your

amazement

that will

get you

through the

storm.

It will

get you

through the

storm.

This is the

son of

God.

This is

the son

of God.

This is

the son

of God.

And it's

another

reminder that

proximity to

Jesus doesn't

always result

in faith.

Being amazed

by him

doesn't

automatically

mean that a

person has

come to

terms with

his true

identity and

purpose.

There are

plenty of

people in

churches this

morning around

Charlotte that

are totally

amazed by

Jesus,

but they

do not

have faith

in Jesus.

There's a

difference.

There's a

difference.

Let's wrap

it up this

way.

Verses 53

to 56.

When they

had crossed,

they came to

the land at

Gennesaret,

moored to

the shore,

and when they

got out of

the boat,

the people

immediately

recognized

him and

ran about

the whole

region and

began to

bring the

sick people

on their

beds to

wherever

they heard

he was,

and wherever

he came in

villages,

cities,

or countryside.

They laid

the sick,

in the

marketplaces,

and implored

him that

they might

touch even

the fringe

of his

garment,

and as

many as

touched it

were made