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Christ Walks on the Sea. Joh_6:15-21
v. 15. When Jesus therefore perceived that they would come and take Him by force to make Him a king, He departed again into a mountain, Himself alone.
v. 16. And when even was now come, His disciples went down unto the sea,
v. 17. and entered into a ship, and went over the sea toward Capernaum. And it was now dark, and Jesus was not come to them.
v. 18. And the sea arose by reason of a great wind that blew.
v. 19. So when they had rowed about five and twenty or thirty furlongs, they see Jesus walking on the sea, and drawing nigh unto the ship; and they were afraid.
v. 20. But He saith unto them, It is I; be not afraid.
v. 21. Then they willingly received Him into the ship; and immediately the ship was at the land whither they went.
Here was evidence that the Jews had no idea as to the real meaning of the Messiah and His work, even if some of them were inclined to accept Jesus as the Christ. The intention gained adherents in their midst to snatch Jesus away suddenly and carry Him off for the purpose of making Him king. But Jesus is not a mere Helper in physical needs; His aim is not to cater to the temporal, carnal desires of men; He is no "bread-king. " He knew the hearts and minds of the people; by His omniscience He was fully aware of the ideas and intentions of the people. And therefore Jesus fled from them, since the idea of an earthly kingdom was not included in His plan of salvation. This was a crisis, and He determined to lay the matter before His heavenly Father in prayer, as everyone of His followers should do at all times; He went up into a mountain all alone. But first of all He insisted that His disciples should embark and return to the other side of the sea. By this time it was getting dark, and the disciples, having launched forth, set their course toward Capernaum, while Jesus stayed there alone. The voyage proved extremely unpleasant. A deep darkness fell upon them, and a heavy wind arose, causing the waves of the sea to roll in threatening billows. And still Jesus had not joined them, the evangelist remarks. They missed His presence sorely; there was a sense of impending disaster upon them. But handicapped as they were, the disciples nevertheless continued their efforts, rowing in the face of the storm, since it was out of the question to use the sails. It was long past midnight, and they had covered only about three miles (a stadion being about 202 yards), when they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near to the boat. Since the belief in ghosts was almost universal, the poor disciples could not explain this phenomenon and were filled with fear. But Jesus reassured them with the calm statement: It is I, do not fear. Where Jesus is, there is no need of fear; He has effectually and eternally banished all fear. His voice and His presence filled their hearts with calmness and courage. Now they were eager and willing to take Him into the boat; and no sooner had they done so than they were at the land whither they were bound. The omnipresent power of Jesus annihilates distances. He here performed another miracle, for He has absolute power over all creatures, over the roaring sea as well as over time and distance. The insignificant man Jesus is the Lord of all creation; He may, at will, abrogate any law of nature. From the distant mountain peak to the midst of the sea and then to the western shore of the lake in but a few moments of time: that is the evidence of His omni-present power. This fact redounds to the comfort of the believers at all times, Mat_28:20. All Christians should know that their entire life with all its vicissitudes, their work, their eating and drinking, their entire mode of living is in the hands of Jesus. The care of Jesus will provide for them, will defend them against all dangers, and guard and protect them from all evil.