Lord of Creation | Mark 6:48–52
48 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, 49 but
when they saw him walking on the sea they thought it was a ghost, and cried
out, 50 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.” 51 And
he got into the boat with them, and the wind ceased. And they were utterly
astounded, 52 for
they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.
Mark writes to the Romans, who divide the night into four
watches. The fourth watch is the last before
dawn, approximately 3:00–6:00pm. This
means that they had spent hours trying to travel the sea to no avail. After rowing for so long, and their arms had
grown tired, they were unable to move forward on their own. But they were still in clear view of Christ.
Jesus reflects is the
image of God. We read in v. 48, “He
meant to pass by them,” perhaps an echo of the Septuagint in Exodus 33:19, 22, where
the Lord passes by Moses. In v. 50, He
says, “I am”—an oddly emphatic statement on the personal pronoun (equivalent to
the Spanish “Yo soy”)—exactly how the
Septuagint renders “I AM” (Ex 3:14; Dt 32:39; Is 41:4; 43:10, 13, 25; 45:18;
52:6; Hos 13:4; Jl 2:27). In Hebrews
1:3, we read that “He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint
of [God’s] nature.”
Jesus reflects what
they know not. According to v. 49,
they literally they thought He was a phantasm.
This evidences that even the disciples did not understand exactly Who He
was (cf. v. 52). They have enough information to understand
Him to have all the power of heaven and earth; He’s the Lord of creation,
multiplying food and controlling weather.
Yet, their hearts are hard to the truth right in front of them.
Sin and spiritual apathy can make us grow cold to the true
Person of Jesus Christ. Those who never
know Him fear Him, not knowing what will come next. Thankfully, Jesus condescends and helps the
disciples know Him. The wonderful news
of Scripture is that the Lord of all creation meets us in times of struggle and
unbelief, especially when we have nothing left to offer Him. Open the Scripture and seek Him, and He will
help you to know Him better therein!
