TAWG - September 18, 2024 - Mark 6:45-56
September 18, 2024

Mark 6:45-56

6:45-46 | Jesus again arranged to be alone to pray. According to John’s account (John 6:15), the crowd was at this point eager to make Jesus king, and that is why Jesus retreated. Believers today may think that busy schedules and people’s demand for their attention are legitimate reasons for skipping prayer, but Jesus was prompted to seek out times of prayer for these very reasons.

6:47-48 | The Roman method of timekeeping divided the night into four watches of three hours apiece. The fourth watch would have been from 3-6 AM. If this incident took place near the time of Passover, which is likely, the light of a full moon would have allowed the men to see Jesus walking on the surface of the sea. The fourth watch was also the time at which the crossing of the Red Sea took place (Ex. 14:24).

6:49-50 | The disciples were frightened by the sight of Jesus walking on the sea because they thought He was a ghost, and therefore a harbinger of chaos or doom. But Jesus calmed them by assuring them, It is I – the same words by which Yahweh revealed Himself to Israel (Ex. 3:14). His presence brings His people peace in any storm (Isa. 41:10; John 16:33).

6:51 | A second miracle occurred as soon as Jesus climbed into the boat with His disciples: the strong headwind that opposed them all night suddenly stopped. The disciples should have begun discovering that their teacher was no ordinary man, yet the next verse indicates how slow they were to understand the meaning behind His miracles.

6:52 | Mark connects the disciples’ failure to understand with their hardened hearts. People’s failure to recognized Jesus’ identity and mission is never just a matter of limited information or reasoning skills; quite often, lack of understanding reflects a stubborn heart.

6:54-56 | Rather than chronicling this part of Jesus’ ministry in detail, Mark says only that wherever Jesus went, people ran to Him, hoping to be healed and blessed. And all those who touched Him in faith were made well.