This Sunday’s lectionary readings contain one of the more
interesting verses I’ve read lately, and one that for most of my life I
believed was some form of divine comedy on the part of Jesus. However, Ryan Bader, our worship minister,
caused me to look afresh at this portion of the text. It reads as follows,
“Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go before him
to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. And after he had
taken leave of them, he went up on the mountain to pray. 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. And about the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking
on the sea. He meant to pass by them, but when they saw him walking on the sea
they thought it was a ghost, and cried out, for they all saw him and were
terrified. But immediately he spoke to them and said, ‘Take heart; it is I. Do
not be afraid.’ And he got into the boat
with them, and the wind ceased. And they were utterly astounded, for they did
not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.”[i]
“He meant to pass them by”.
Jesus is meeting his disciples on
the other side of the sea, so instead of taking the long way around, he just
makes as the crow flies and walks right out across the water. If that isn’t
strange enough, during this jaunt he catches up with his boys in the boat and,
channeling his inner Dionne Warwick, intends to walk on by as they strain at
the oars. What a funny glimpse into the
God-man’s psyche. And yet, as in most cases of textual exegesis, there is more here
than meets the eye. In fact, there are
two similar stories in the Old Testament that provide clarity on the subject, involving
the great Patriarchs Moses and Elijah.
“Moses said, ‘Please show me your glory.’ And He said, ‘I will make all
my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The Lord’.
And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom
I will show mercy. But,’ he said, ‘you
cannot see my face, for man shall not see me and live. And the Lord said,
‘Behold, there is a place by me where you shall stand on the rock, and while my
glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you
with my hand until I have passed by. Then I will take away my hand, and you
shall see my back, but my face shall not be seen.’”[ii]
And now Elijah…
“And Yahweh said, ‘Go out and stand on the mount before the Lord.’ And
behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore the mountains and
broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind.
And after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. And
after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the
fire the sound of a low whisper. And
when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood
at the entrance of the cave.[iii]
In each case, God chooses to reveal His glory through a
direct, awe inspiring, mountaintop encounter.
His wonder and power pass by permitting just a quick glimpse as he fades
into glory. And, like Moses and Elijah,
we too seek and ask for such a spiritual epiphany. But like so many before us, our years are
spent not up on the mountain, but down on the valley floor, eking out our days
in quiet desperation.[iv] Struggling to believe, fighting doubt and
depression, we question if the great chasm separating our skin from His
radiance will ever be breached.
That’s why I love Mark’s version. Instead of passing on by as before, Jesus
recalculates his route, choosing instead to display His power, glory and love
by simply getting in the boat, picking up an oar, and joining his friends in
their struggle against the wind and waves.
There’s nothing magnificent about it, there are no earthquakes or
mountain shattering winds, just God in flesh, rowing a boat with his buddies. It’s enough to make one weep. Of all the gods man has ever fashioned, which
one would take on flesh, walk our sod and row our boats to show the deep and
lasting love for his friends? Who is this God that joins us in the strain and
the pain of all these years? Does He still
remember when He too lived down here, fighting to find the strength to ask for
daily bread?[v] I know he does…He is this same God of Moses
and Elijah, He is the everlasting Alpha and Omega, the Holy One who also meets
us in the ordinary, grabbing an oar to help us in the journey.
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