The Disciples were drained…
Having spent the entire day absorbing doctrinal lessons on an empty stomach (Mk.6:31-34) would have left them mentally exhausted. When the teachings were finally finished there was still plenty more to do. Though the day was already “far spent”, the Disciples (at Christ’s command), served 5,000 men (+ women & children) the best all-you-can-eat buffet in the history of mankind, which would have left them physically taxed to say the least. Compounding the difficulty of an already challenging day was the fact that it all began with the tragic news of John the Baptists recent murder (Mt.14:12-13). In considering those few details, it goes without saying that these Disciples were maxed out; mentally, physically, and emotionally. They had been with Jesus all day long, obeying His every command from morning till night…and it wasn’t even over yet.
After they had finished cleaning up the mess, Jesus “immediately made His Disciples get into a boat and go before Him to the other side of the lake” (Matthew 14:22 says the same thing: Jesus “made” them do it). This wasn’t an option, this was an order. They weren’t given a choice. It was time now for more obedience. This is a remarkable situation: It’s already late, they’re absolutely drained, they’ve had no rest and nothing to eat, they’re still bearing the emotional weight of the loss of a spiritual brother, and yet, the commands just keep coming. It’s almost as if Jesus is pushing His men into a place where they will fail. Does He even want them to get to the other side of the lake?
Four miles in to an eight mile journey, the boys were met with trouble. The wind had shifted and was now against them, kicking up waves and preventing them from paddling any further. They were stopped in their tracks; stuck in the middle of the sea. “Straining at rowing” (Mk.6:48) was all they could do to keep from going backwards, and with little energy left, the situation was hopeless. Failure to obey Christ’s command to meet Him on the other side was now inevitable. They had already reached their mental, emotional, & physical limits, but now, with disobedience just around the corner, they were about to experience spiritual incompetence as well.
Most of us would rather hear about our need for forgiveness & mercy in a book or Bible study than to be shown our need through personal failure.
Failure was on the horizon for them, and even if they couldn’t see their need for help yet, Jesus could. He wasn’t satisfied to simply tell them about their need for His mercy, He decided to show them. Is it any accident that the wind came against them when it did? After all, Jesus had only recently demonstrated His ability to control the forces of nature (Mt.8/Mk.4). The process by which God made His Disciples aware of their need for mercy was complex & lengthy, but it got the job done because, just like He does for all of His disciples, He needed to create a situation where they’d see it for themselves. God always finds a way to remind His people of their need for His help. He will even supernaturally arrange your failure if He has to. Most of us would rather hear about our need for forgiveness & mercy in a book or Bible study than to be shown our need through personal failure. But hand’s-on experience is always preferable to God. It may be a painfully frightening ordeal, but it’s good for you.
The reason so many people want God to eliminate sin from their life with the quick snap of a finger instead of through the long, hard road of repentance is because they don’t want to need the Lord’s mercy. We sometimes see mercy as a favor from God that we’ll have to eventually return. Our logic tells us that if we could just convince God to make our sin go away overnight, we could wake up in the morning with no further need of Him, which is exactly what some of us want…to reach a level of spiritual competence by which we’re able to live independently of God. It’s the same evil desire some Christians have always had, even in their former days of sinful self-governance and unbridled lust. Their craving for independence is greater than their longing for God Himself. They don’t have a problem serving Him all the time (they’ll even exhaust themselves doing it), but needing Him at all makes them quite uncomfortable. It makes them feel indebted to God, and they don’t like that. They’d rather feel as if God is indebted to them. Self-satisfaction takes priority over God’s being satisfied. So they pursue a certain degree of piety & perfection, rather than spiritual contrition and a heart that’s broken over its own sin. You see, receiving God’s mercy has a natural humbling effect, which is why, in our pride, we can easily turn church into a place where we silently compete against one another to see who needs it least.
The pursuit of independence from God is as wicked & as dangerous as any other transgression, and He knows it. In order to protect us from the harmful effects of such an unhealthy craving, the Lord Himself “consigns everyone to disobedience, so that He may have mercy on everybody” (Romans 11:32). That statement should be as shocking as it is comforting. It’s shocking, because one would think it beneath God to make use of sin like that. The meaning of the term “consign” here, is that God “delivers you up to the power of sin so that you’re completely shut in by it without means of escape”. His “consigning” us to disobedience then, has an eerie ring to it, wouldn’t you say? And yet, the Scriptures reveal that consigning us to disobedience is a regular practice of His, with no concern for what it might do to His reputation by admitting it. He sees to it that everyone will sin whether they want to or not. Again, did Jesus even want His Disciples to get to the other side of that lake?
God isn’t bothered when we cry to Him for rescue…
… He specializes in it.
The fact that God “delivers us up to the power of sin” is not only shocking, but also strangely comforting. Comforting because it says that my sin doesn’t surprise Him. Comforting because it reminds me that my coming to Him for mercy is all part of His plan; it’s ok that we need Him. He doesn’t mind it when we ask Him for forgiveness. He welcomes it. He isn’t bothered when we cry to Him for rescue. He specializes in it. We might have a problem with appearing needy to Him, but He doesn’t. Not at all.
Now this shouldn’t lead us to mistakenly believe that we can freely disobey God because He seems to be pushing us in that direction anyway. We all know what the Apostle Paul would say to that (Ro.6:1-2)! It simply is not true. After all, the Disciples never quit rowing, did they? They strained at it. It’s not our job to give up, it’s our job to obey, all the while knowing that even the best of our obedience will still fall short. Again, this is no excuse for sin, rather, this is a strong incentive to follow Christ with the joy of knowing that when we do sin, there’s mercy for us.
Any reasonable Christian knows how impossible it is to bypass their continual need for God’s mercy. No matter what the situation, mercy is the answer. We need it more than we know, but God knows how much we need it, and He will show you just how deep that need is. When He reveals to you just how badly you’ve failed, and just how desperately you need His mercy, don’t look away. Don’t pretend to not notice it. Perceive it, freely confess it, and accept the mercy that is yours in Christ. Knowing your need for mercy is a sign of hope; humbly asking for it is a sign of spiritual maturity; and gladly receiving it is true salvation.
So, did Jesus really want His Disciples to get to the other side of that lake? Or rather, does Jesus want you to obey His directives and live an obedient life? Yes, of course He does. But not without Him. You’ll never get to the other side on your own. It’s the one who fails to realize this who spends their time stuck in the middle of that proverbial sea “straining at rowing”…impressing themselves with how little of God’s help they need…going nowhere.
Is that you? Jesus wants to be the one who brings you across the lake we call “life”, and if you’re trying to get there without His help, He’d be glad to show you just how much you actually need it. So, is there room enough in your boat for Him, or do you prefer your independence?
