Jesus was not there

JESUS WAS NOT THERE
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
John 6:17 17where they got into a boat and set off
across the lake for Capernaum. By now it was dark,
and Jesus had not yet joined them.
Night—And Jesus Not There!
BY SPURGEON
“And it was now dark, and Jesus had not come to them.”
John 6:17
CHRIST’S disciples, when they joined Him, had some very happy times with
Him–and they had just had a very grand day in feeding the multitude. I wish I
had been there to help in the feeding of 5,000 men. Everyone who had a share
in that service was highly honored and those who were not there might well
regrettheir absence on such an eventful day! But notice fair days have foul
eventides and the Christ manifested during the day may become a Christ
hidden during the night. Close onthe heels of the intense excitementof great
successcomesthe relapse into darkness of spirit and absence ofjoy. The very
same men who had been rejoicing with unspeakable joy in the Divine power of
their Master, are now left to endure that which is a very sadexperience for
anyone to have–everything dark–and Jesus not there!
I am going to talk about the condition of the men describedin our text. “It
was now dark, and Jesus had not come to them.” And, first, I shall speak
about the affliction of His absence. some considerations whichmay cheerus
under it. and apply it to quite another class ofpersons.
1. First, then, “It was now dark, and Jesus had not come to them. "This
suggeststo us THE AFFLICTION OF HIS ABSENCE.

It was a greataffliction for these disciples to have Christ awayfrom them at
all. Whenever He was away, they were as sheepwithout a shepherd and as
soldiers without a leader, but for Him to be awaywhen they were at sea–when
they were at sea in the dark–whenthey were at sea in a storm–all this made it
much worse for them, for, although we always needJesus, yet we more
peculiarly recognize the value of His Presencewhenwe can derive no comfort
from anything else.
Christ’s absence was, in itself, an affliction to His disciples and, in proportion
as we love Him, we shall acknowledgeit to be an affliction to have Him absent
from us. Those who never knew the sweetnessofthe societyofChrist do not
feel any sorrow that He is absentfrom them. A person who had never tasted
pure water, but has always had to drink some foul draught, would not sigh for
the cooling spring because he had never known its sweetness. There is no
poverty in the world so dire as the poverty of those who have been rich–and
there are none who canknow the value of the Savior, in His absence, but those
who have enjoyed His preciousness by dwelling in His Presence!If your love
to Jesus Christ is chilled, you will not miss Him much. Prince Emmanuel went
awayfrom Mansouland when He was gone, the townspeople did not miss
Him. But had they been enjoying continual fellowshipwith Him and He had
departed from them only for a little while, they would have begun to sigh and
cry in the bitterness of their souls–andwould not have been content till they
had Him back again–andwould have been ready to die if He did not come
back to them at once!To those who intensely love Him, it is, in itself, an
affliction to be without the Savior! And it is an affliction in proportion as they
love Him.
These men were put to many inconveniences by Christ’s absence. To be
without the Savior made the darkness seemall the darker. Had He been there,
they might have sung–if the lines had then been written–
“Mid darkestshades, if He appears,
My dawning is begun!”
If Christ is in the boat with us, I do not know that it matters much whether
the sun is shining or not, for, if the sun shall shine, we shall see HIM, and
delight to see Him by the light of the sun. But if it is dark, we will see Christ
by His own light and rejoice to see, in that brighter light, what we might not
have recognizedhad the sunlight still shone upon us!You all know what it is to
be in the dark and you know that material darkness is not comfortable. I
remember being in a third-class railway carriage with a large number of
other people travelling a long journey at night. Somebody struck a match and
lit a candle. That became the most cheerful part of the carriage andour eyes

could not help turning in that direction, for we did not like the darkness.
Nobody does. There is also a kind of mental darkness in which you are
disturbed, perplexed, worried troubled–not, perhaps, about anything
tangible–youcould not write down your troubles. It may even be that you
really don’t have any, but you feel troubled and dismayed. Other people say
that you are nervous and they blame you and say, “You ought not to give way
in this manner.” That is what they think. But when a person gets into your
present condition, that is the unkindest thing that anyone canpossibly say–
and the leastlikely to do any goodto the poor troubled soul! I do not mind a
trouble which I can see and understand. Manfully would I shoulder it in my
Master’s strength. But when the spirit, itself, is in the dark, one imagines a
thousand evil things! Even goodthings, themselves, seemto be evil and what
should be to your encouragementbecomes oftena source of discouragement!
Have any of you ever been in that condition? If you have, and if Jesus has not
come to you, then, I am sure that you have felt it very difficult and you have
greatly neededHis Presence.
There are a greatmany of you who appear to have a large stock of faith, but it
is only because you are in very good health and your business is prospering. If
you happened to get a disordered liver, or your business should fail, I would
not be surprised if nine parts out of ten of your wonderful faith would
evaporate!I have noticedthat certain brethren who talk about being perfect
are generallypersons of robust constitution with a very comfortable income
and not much to do except to go about to conferencesand conventions–and
talk about themselves. But the tried people of God do not often ride upon
those high horses. Theyhave to cry out very frequently! They have many
anxieties and cares which, although they castthem upon the Lord, make them
realize that they are not yet pure spirits, but are still in the body. Let a man
have a bad headache for about half an hour and let him see whether he does
not feelhimself to be mortal and to still have something sinful about him!
Another part of the affliction of the disciples when “it was now dark, and
Jesus had not come to them,” was that their toil became very wearisome. They
were rowing and they had rowed their boat severalfurlongs from the shore
and it was wearisome work in Christ’s absence. WhenHe was with them and
favored them with a cheering glance, and spoke comforting messagesto them,
I can wellimagine how merrily that boat went along–how they tuggedthe oar
as the Venetian gondolier tugs his to the sound of song, and how the vessel
would glide overthe waves!But now they had to toil by themselves and there
was no sweetword from Jesus, no gracious promise from His lips, no loving
glance from His dark eyes which were to them “like the fish pools in Heshbon,

by the gate of Beth-Rabbim.” Now that their Lord was absent, it was all
tugging and straining till muscle and sinew were weary. It is just so with our
Christian service–ifChrist is with us, it is glorious work to teachin the
Sunday schoolor to preach in the congregation!And going from house to
house is light work to the visitor, for he is consciousofthe Presenceofhis
Master. But if the Lord’s Presence is withdrawn, you feel that you must do
these things from a sense ofduty. You will do them and you will nerve
yourself up to persevere with the task, but it is hard, trying work.
Not only did the darkness seemto get darker and the toil become more
wearisome, but the waygrew rougher, for weare told that “the sea arose by
reasonof a greatwind that blew.” When our Lord Jesus Christ is with us,
rough roads grow smooth, but when He is absent, smooth roads grow rough.
It is marvelous how a man who lives in the light of Christ’s Countenance
makes light of lossesand crosses.He takes them as a matter of course, or,
better still, he accepts them as gifts from God and believes that they will be
overruled for good–andso he keeps on singing as he passes overthe rough
road. But if Jesus Christ is absent, a comparativelyeasylot appears to be a
heavy one and where we should have seena thousand mercies, we only have
an eye to observe our discomforts. It is trying traveling when the waves are
rough and it is dark–and Jesus is not there.
Worstof all, when Jesus is away, all perils become more terrible. Many a boat
has perished on the GalileanLake,beneaththose waters whichsometimes
gleamso placidly as though they tempted the boat to float upon their surface.
And many a man has found a watery grave in that land-lockedsea when it has
workedtempestuously beneath the gusts from the surrounding hills. If Jesus
had been with His disciples on that stormy night. If He had been awake to
speak to and cheer them, they would have rejoicedto see the boat go up and
down, from the trough of the wave to the billow’s crown, like some greatsea
bird in its play! They would have felt a sort of hilarity of spirit at being in
such a brisk gale when the Lord High Admiral of all the seas was in command
of their boat! But now that He was awayfrom them, they feared that the
vesselwould go down. They thought they would never survive that storm, they
would drift onto a rock and not one of them would againreach the shore! The
perils are, indeed, greatwhen it is dark and Jesus is not there!
You will say, dear Friends, that I am describing a very sad condition of things.
Well, it is no fancied one to me, at any rate, and I think it is no unusual thing
for those whom Jesus loves to be put into such a condition. There are many
saints of whom we read in the Word who were precious in the sight of the
Lord, but, among them all, where do you find one who was not tried? “O man

greatly beloved,” was saidto Daniel and, therefore, it might have been added,
“O man greatly tried and passedthrough stern processesto prove whether
you really are what you seem to be.” Whatever God keeps awayfrom His
servants, I do not think He ever keeps awaythe rod from them! He had one
Son without sin, but He never had one sonwithout chastisement. If there are
many of God’s children who have not yet had any trials, I would not
recommend them to pray for it–that would be very wrong. The Lord’s
children need not ask to be whipped, but I would advise them to reckonthat
somewhere betweenhere and Heaventhey will have to realize the truth of that
saying of the Apostle, “If you endure chastening, Goddeals with you as with
sons;for what sonis he whom the father chastens not?”
There I leave this first point–the affliction of Christ’s absence.
II. Now, secondly, I am going to mention SOME CONSIDERATIONS
WHICH MAY CHEER US WHEN IN THIS CONDITION.
The first considerationI would mention is this. DearFriend, perhaps it may
not really be as you think it is. You saythat Christ is absentfrom you, but,
possibly He is not. Perhaps you have not really lostHis Presence. “Oh, but I
am not as happy as I once was!” I do not know that Christ’s company in the
soul necessarilymakes that soul consciouslyhappy continually. I know that
Jesus was very near to Peterwhen a look from Him made the sinful disciple
go out and weepbitterly. I think that the PresenceofChrist may sometimes
tend to breed in us a certain holy sorrow which, though not so sweet, is yet as
precious as holy joy itself. Perhaps, dearFriend, you are not just now in a
right state of body or in a right mental condition to get joy and happiness
from the PresenceofChrist. At any rate, if He were not there, your spirit
would have sunk much lowerthan it does now. Sadas you are, you would
have been much sadder if it had not been for the sacredinfluence of His more
than magnetic Presence whichis really staying your soul. You might have
fallen into despair, but you have not come to that condition yet and it is
because His left hand is under your head so that, although you sink, you do
not sink lower. You might have been utterly overwhelmed if it had not been
for the Divine supports which have been given to keepyou where you are!
I will tell you a secretfrom my own experience. I have had times in which I
have blamed myself and grieved before God and if anyone had askedme,
“What is your soul’s condition?” I would have said, “Bad.” Yet, in a month or
two’s time, I have longedto have that very condition over again, for I have
said to myself, “I am happy now, but I wish I could grieve over sin as I did
then. I think I have strong faith now, but I wish I had the same tender
consciousnessofthe leasttouch and taint of sin that I had in what I regarded

as my dark days.” We are very bad judges of our own spiritual experiences.
We often undervalue who God esteems andset greatstore by that which God
does not prize. So it may be that Christ is really with you, dear Friend,
although you are writing such bitter things againstyourself and mourning His
absence.
If He is, indeed, absent, there is one thing to comfort you, namely, that you
have not driven Him awayby your sins.Thatis to say if you are in the same
condition as those disciples were in the vessel. TheirMasterhad bid them go,
and they had gone at His command. He had left them–they had not left Him,
so they had not to blame themselves because He was not there when the
darkness came on.
If you are conscious that you have been living in some known sin, go and
bitterly repent of it before God. If you have grievedthe Spirit of Godand
driven Him away from you, listen to the voice which says, “Return, you
backsliding children.” But that is not the subject upon which I am now
speaking. I am addressing these who think they have lost the Presenceof
Christ, these whose consciousjoy has departed, who, nevertheless, are not
aware that there has been anything in them which would separate them from
their God. You, dear Friends, may derive comfort from this fact. Say, “Well,
as the Lord has sentus to sea and left us, we are where He put us. And as this
is His Sovereignappointment, even if it is the post of trial, so let it be. We will
kiss the rod and even in the dark we will believe that all is well! And just as a
child, when it is put to bed without a candle, must not cry, but must go to
sleep, so we will not weep, but bow submissively to whateverour Lord
ordains.”
Further, if Jesus Christis not in the boat with His disciples, although it is
dark, they have this thought to comfortthem–that He still loves them. He is
not there, but He loves them, so His heart is with them. They seemto be alone,
but their names are written on His heart just as they used to be. Yes, Beloved,
our condition before Goddoes not depend upon our consciousenjoyment. Do
you believe that we are children of Godtoday because we are happy, and that
we may be children of the devil tomorrow because we may then be
desponding? Oh, no!–
“If ever it should come to pass
That sheepof Christ should fall away,
My fickle, feeble soul, alas,
Would fall a thousand times a day!”

But the mercy is that even though we believe not, He is faithful! We change,
but He changes not! And when His servants are in a storm or under a cloud,
the love of Jesus Christfor them is just the same as when they rejoicedin the
full sunlight of conscious enjoymentof His Presence.
Recollect, also, thatalthough you cannot see Jesus andHe is not with you, He
knows where you are. You cannotseeHim, but He can see you. “Whata
terrible blast came down from the hills just now!” The Lord knows all about
it and how it made the ship rock and reel, and staggerlike a drunken man.
“Thatwave seemedto come right over us and to wet us to the skin.” Yes, but
Christ knew every drop that was in it and just where eachdrop would fall.
“But see how every timber in the vesselstarts–itmust surely go to pieces
soon.” But Christ knows all about the starting of the timbers and the straining
of the masts. He is not ignorant of the condition of any of His children. And if
He has put them in a position of trial, He Himself watches overthem with
tender and sympathetic eyes and knows exactlytheir perils and their needs.
And, more than that, our blessedLord not only knows where we are and all
about our circumstances–andloves us and feels for us–but He can come to us.
“How can He come to us? We are many furlongs out at sea.” Yes, but He
cancome to you. “But there is no other boat near and if there were, how could
it live in such a storm as this? Would you have us believe that He will came
riding upon the wings of the wind or walking upon the waves? It cannot be!”
Yet it was, you know, for Jesus did come to them. And if you say, in the time
of your distress, that the Lord Jesus cannotcome to you, I must tell you that
you know not what you are saying! His people never can be in a place where
He cannot get to them!
And what is more–letthis comfort you–He will come to you for He did come
to His disciples. He came walking onthe waterand so reachedthem–and He
will come to you, also. Though He may tarry a little while, for the trial of your
faith, He will come to you before long. If you believe in Christ even when it is
dark with you, the clearshining will come to you before long–
“When your eye of faith is dim,
Still trust in Jesus, sink or swim”–
and in due time Christ must come to you. He cannotfinally forsake one ofHis
people and when He comes, He will say, “Fora small moment have I forsaken
you, but with greatmercies will I gatheryou. In a little wrath I hid My face
from you for a moment, but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on
you, says the Lord your Redeemer.” So be of goodcheer, for Jesus Christ will
come to you even when it is all dark around you!

And here is another word of cheer for you, namely that when He does come, it
will be in a way that will give you ahigher sense of His Glory than you ever
had before. You have seenHim on the land, but you have never yet seenHim
on the water!Well, you could not see Him walking on the waterunless you
were on the water, yourself–andyou could not see Jesus Christcalming the
storm unless there was a storm to be quieted! And if the wind did not blow,
you could not tell whether He could control it. Trial is absolutelynecessaryin
order to reveal to us some of the attributes of our gracious God!We cannot,
ordinarily, see the stars in the daytime, but if we go down a mine or a well, we
can. And often in the deep mines or wells of trouble, as we go down, down,
down, we see the brightness of our Lord Jesus Christ as we never saw it
before! You know that there is a certain kind of ink with which you may write
but no one will perceive that many precious promises that are written with
this invisible ink and, until you hold them to the fire of affliction or trial, you
will never read them and understand them. You must be brought into this
trial! You must be in the dark, or Jesus will not come to you with such a
splendid display of His marvelous power and love as He gave to His disciples
on that stormy sea!But, look–overthe tops of those rolling billows He comes–
the Man, the Christ, the God–swiftto help and deliver you in your hour of
greatestperil! Oh, it is worthwhile to miss His Presence fora while–and to be
in darkness for a time–if we may afterwards see Him in a still nobler
Characterand understand more of His mighty power to save!
It is very possible that when your Lord comes back to you, His return will be
to you the end of a great manytroubles, toils and difficulties. I do not
understand how it was, but when our Lord came walking on the waterand
entered the little vessel, “immediately the ship was at the land where they
went.” There was some sudden lift, or darting forward of the vesseland
immediately it was at the shore!Have you ever noticed how when you have
had a time of greatspiritual darkness and, perhaps, of greatlabor and trial,
and you have worriedyourself because you could not see the Lord’s hand in it
all and could not trace the Lord’s love overruling it, Jesus Christhas at last
come to you and there has been an immediate end to your spiritual trouble–
and what has been possibly more remarkable, there has been an end to all the
rest of your trials? Perhaps, for months afterwards, you have not had any
spiritual darkness, orstormy winds or contrary waves!There was a great
calm after all your trials, just as, when the children of Israelhad been so
oppressedin Egypt and were about to be delivered from the hand of Pharaoh,
the Lord said, “Againstany of the children of Israel shall not a dog move his
tongue.”

I have had those seasons ofwonderful calm when not a dog has moved his
tongue againstme, although I have had all the dogs of Hell at my heels a little
while before! There have been no troubles from above, around, or beneath–
not a devil has dared to tempt me and nothing external has afflicted me–all
seemedto come exactly as I would have it and all in a moment! Perhaps it
would not be safe for us to get to land so quickly without having first been in
the dark a little while. We cannot bear sudden prosperity. Great successis one
of the worstperils of mankind. Many a man has been elevateduntil his brain
has growndizzy and he has fallen to his destruction. He who is to be made to
stand securelyon a high place has need to be put through sharp affliction.
More men are destroyedby prosperity and successthen by affliction and
apparent failure.
These are some of the considerations whichmay cheerthose of God’s people
who, for a time, walk in darkness and see no Light of God. May God bless
these words to any mourning saint who may hear or read them!
III. But now, in concluding my discourse, I am going to make a very different
use of the text. There are some of you–I am glad to see you here and I pray the
Lord to bless the messagewhichI am about to give you–there are some of you
who do not know the Lord Jesus Christ and who are not trusting in Him.
Your condition may be describedin those amazing words of the Apostle Paul,
(to me they are very amazing), “ without Christ.” That is one of the saddest
thingsthat canbe saidof anybody–“without Christ.” Possiblyyou say that you
do not see any sadness in your present condition. You enjoy yourself very
much. You are young, in goodhealth, the world is bright and life seems to be
one continual dance to you. It is true that Jesus has not come to you, but you
do not need Him and you think that you can do very well without Him. But
one of these days it will be very dark all around you–and it is a very terrible
thing for a man when it is dark and Jesus does not come to him!
I have seensuch people. I saw some of them during the recent financial panic–
they were men of considerable business and they were making money, but
everything around them seemedto be shaking. Many firms were failing and
presently the news came that there was a failure in a certainhouse which
would involve them in its ruin. All was gone in a moment and there was
nothing to be done but to call their creditors togetherand tell them the truth.
In such a time as that, a man who has a large family depending upon him and
who occupieda high position in societymay have to come down to almost
absolute poverty. I do not know what some men whom I saw then, did, for
they had not any Christ to go and talk to–theyhad not the Well-Belovedinto
whose earthey could whisper the sadtale of their troubles. I know that some

of them were glad to getanybody to listen to what they had to say, and it was
a sorry story. Well now, some of you have been prospering in worldly matters.
God has blessedyou with temporal goods, but reverses may come to you and
what will you do, then, without Christ?
But there is something worse than that! It may be that your worldly business
may continue to prosper, but there may come to you a mental trouble. It does
come to you sometimes, does it not? You have been out to a very merry party,
but when you come home you feeldreadfully flat. Do you not occasionallyget
into that state? Perhaps I am addressing someone who usedto be very
interestedin the theater. He has been again, lately, but somehow or other the
plays are not so interesting as they used to be, or else he has changedhis
attitude towards them. The factis that the man has not the tastes and desires
that he once had. If he goes where he used to go, he does not any longerfind
the mirth and merriment that he used to find there–the laughter seems to him
to be folly and madness–he cannotenjoy it. Well now, if you have lost your
taste for this world, it is a sorry thing for you if you have not acquired a taste
for anotherand a better world! If your old friend has gone from you, it is a
sad thing if the new best Friend does not came to you! I pity those of you who
once thought yourselves so very goodand whose self-righteousnessis all gone,
but who have nothing better in the place of it–it is very dark and Jesus has not
come to you. I pity you who were once so self-containedand dogmatic, but
who now begin to tremble and to be afraid because Jesusdoes not come to you
it is night with you–mental night–and it is night in your circumstances,yet
Jesus has not come to you. What I would bid you do is just look through the
thick darkness, for on the crestof the wave, the crucified Savioris standing!
And if you will but look to Him with the eye of faith, He will come into your
vesseland deliver you. He will sanctify your trouble, clearawaythe affliction
from your mind and give you peace and rest!
Remember, also, that in a very short time all of you will die. Will you picture
yourself lying upon the bed of sickness?I cannot describe the room, for I have
not seenit, but I can wellimagine you propped up with pillows, for you can
scarcelygetyour breath. And the physician has told your wife that in a few
hours it will be all over. And you have been very gently told–atleast, you have
spelt it out for yourself–that they have given you up and that the sweatthat
they are wiping from your brow is really the death-sweat. It is very dark.
There, bid “good-bye” to your wife and children, for you must leave them.
Look out of the window and see what you can of the surroundings of the old
homestead, for you are going to leave it and you have no home to dwell in
forever. It is very dark. Money cannot help you now. The honors you have

gained cannothelp you now. And the fondness of affection, which would help
you if it could, cannothelp you now. It is very dark, but, worstof all, Jesus
has not come to you–
“Jesus canmake a dying bed
Feelsoft as downy pillows”–
but if He does not come to you then, man, what will you do? What will you
do? What will you do? To die in the dark is terrible! To live in the dark is
more than I would choose, but what must it be to die in the dark and not to
have Jesus withyou? May Goddeliver you! But if you will not have Christ as
your Savior in life, how can you expect to have Him in death? Fly to Him now,
lest tomorrow you should see the picture which I have sketched, executedto
the very life–and you the subject of it!
But if it is dreadful to die without the Savior, what will it be to wake up in the
unseen world without Him? And, at the last, what will it be when the great
trumpet sounds, to have no Savior to welcome you, but, insteadthereof, to see
Him far away, seatedupon that GreatWhite Throne as your Judge? What
will it be to have no Jesus coming to help you when the earth is rocking and
reeling and the Heavens are on fire, and the books are opened, and the Judge
is dividing, to the right and to the left, the sheepand the goats? And, all the
while, He has not darted one glance of love at you, or opened His lips to say
one friendly word to you? Think what will be your despair when, at last, it
comes your turn to hear the terrible words, “Depart, you cursed, into
everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.”–
“You sinners, seek His Grace,
Whose wrath you cannotbear!
Fly to the shelter of His Cross
And find salvationthere.”
Look to Him and live! God help you to look now! And then, when it is dark,
Jesus will come to you–no, better still, He will live with you forever and ever!
God bless you all, for Jesus Christ’s sake!Amen.
BIBLEHUB RESOURCES
Pulpit Commentary Homiletics

A Contention Of Sense And Faith.
Matthew 14:22-33 (see also Mark 6:45-52;John 6:16-21)
P.C. Barker
The lastmiracle was one the teaching of which was certainly goodfor all, alike
for the disciples and the multitude; and of the two for obvious and natural
reasons, perhaps more so for the former than for the latter. But, letting alone
the teaching force of it, that foregoing miracle had for its practical objectthe
benefit of the five thousand with women and children, allaying their hunger
and bringing home to their hearts - of what ever characterthose hearts - some
sense ofand some persuasionof the thoughtful considerationofthe Lord. For
the small number of the twelve disciples there was never any greatdifficulty -
probably never any at all - in supplying "alltheir need." But the present
miracle was one for the disciples themselves. It was goodalike for their body
and soul. It may, perhaps, be said to have been in higher kind also, evenas
limb and life are ever of more import than the satisfying of hunger, though
this may be intense. Though we are not at all bound to find herein the reason
of its following so distinctly in eachaccountupon the other, yet the link of
thought may be helpful. And far is it from being out of analogywith the truth,
that he who so cares for the vastflocks scattered, needy, distractedwith fear,
or callous with indifference, shows no small proportion of that care in also
caring for the shepherds and bishops and pastors of the flock, whom he has
set, and whom he ever still is setting, over them. It certainly is so in the history
now before us. Notice here -
I. AN INSTANCE OF CHRIST SENDING HIS SERVANTS TO TRY THEIR
WAY BEFORE HIM TO FEELAND TO TEST THEIR OWN QUANTUM
OF STRENGTHAND RESOURCES;AND OF HOW, THEN, IN SUCH
CASES HE IS WITH THEM, AND OVERTAKES THEM TO THE VERY
MOMENT OF THEIR REAL NEED. Distinguishwith emphasis such cases
from those in which forwardness and self-confidence and unsafe zeal lead the
way. And notice what room there is in the dispensationof the Spirit for full
accountto be taken of this principle. How needful it is, how desirable it is, for
us often to feelthat there is One who trusts us to go onward awhile, and
apparently as though by ourselves, but whose eye and whose love are none the
less ever near to us! And notice, further, that these are not for a moment to be
counted artificial devices of the vastand infinitely wise superintending
Providence, even though for wise and high ends. There were reasons why the
disciples were sent onward before Christ.

II. AS INSTANCE OF A CERTAIN APPARENT CONSPIRACYAND
ACCUMULATION OF THE DIFFICULTIES OF NATURE CONTENDED
WITH, BY THE INCREASE OF CONSCIOUS HUMAN EFFORT AND
TOIL; AND YET WITHOUT AVAIL, OR WITH VERY LITTLE AVAIL.
Darkness,wind, and stormy waves were all "contrary" to the disciples;but
they rowedwhere sails would not serve;and they toiled; and yet there came
the hour when the most that they could say for themselves and their effort was
that they did not retreat, that they could just hold their way. But this was
much to be able to say.
III. AN INSTANCE OF THE FIRST APPEARANCE OF HELP BEING
JUDGED TO BE EITHER AN EMPTYFORM, OR A FORM, IF NOT
EMPTY, CHARGED WITH SOME SPECIES OF ADDITIONAL
FEARFULNESS. Remark thatthe version, "a spirit," is not most correctto
the word used, or probably to the real descriptionof the alarm excitedin the
minds of the disciples. Nor can any justification be adduced from the passage
of any scriptural warrant for belief in certain superstitions. It may be saidto
be Scripture, on the other hand, which defines spirit, and determines the
reality of spirits, and does not deny, indeed, that spirits may take "phantom"
appearances,but in this place certainly does not state it. The word is not the
same as that used, e.g. in Acts 12:15, nor does it point in the same direction.
IV. AN INSTANCE OF THE BOUNDLESS GENTLENESSOF THE PITY,
"LIKE AS A FATHER'S," WITH WHICH THE LORD DISPELS HIS
SERVANTS'FEAR, AND REPLACES IT WITH ALL THE EXULTATION
OF AN UNEXPECTED EXPERIENCEOF COMFORT AND REPOSE.
V. AN INSTANCE OF A GLORIOUS EPISODE OF FAITH, AND THE
FAITH THAT SIGHTS IMITATION AND LIKENESS. Faith is the very
father of greatthought and greatenterprise for some;for others it is patient
endurance of the storms, and the vanquisher of fears, and exquisite rest from
anxiety. But in its noblest attempts, it knows no measure and owns no limit,
while it keeps its firm look on its Lord. It partakes of the omnipotence of its
unseen object.
VI. AN INSTANCE OF AN INGLORIOUS LAPSE OF FAITH. The cause of
this very plainly marked here - the eye turned awayfrom its great object, and
confusedby the difficulties of sense.
VII. AN INSTANCE OF A VERITABLE SCRIPTURE PHOTOGRAPHOF
THE CHURCH OF THE LORD JESUS CHRIST IN THE TUMULT, THE
DARKNESS, THE STORM OF THE WORLD - BUT SAFE; CHRIST NEAR

IT, THE EYE OF CHRIST ON IT, CHRIST HIMSELF IN IT, AND ITSELF
AT LAST WITH HIM IN THE HAVEN. - B.
Biblical Illustrator
Then those men when they had seenthe miracle.
John 6:14-21
The sequelto the miracle
A. Beith, D. D.
I. THE EFFECTOF THE MIRACLE ON THE MIND OF THE
MULTITUDE. They, like all Jews of the time, were expecting the Prophet like
unto Moses.The Divine commission of Moses wasauthenticatedby the
miraculous manna; what then could this miracle mean but that He who
workedit was the antitype of Moses. And then Moseshad been king as well as
prophet. Who could be better qualified for "leaderand commander of the
people" than Jesus:Time and place were both favourable for raising the
standard of rebellion, and five thousand resolute hearts formed no mean
nucleus of an army which would sooninclude every Jewishpatriot. Measures,
therefore, were takento compel Christ to yield to their wishes.
1. In this incident we have an example of zeal without knowledge.Christwas
indeed a King, but had they apprehended in what sense nothing would have
been further from their wishes.
2. Zeal without knowledge mustat all times be most injurious to the true
interests of the cause ofChrist.
II. THE PROCEDUREOF CHRIST (ver. 15).

1. He withdrew.
(1)To frustrate their purpose.
(2)To show that His kingdom was not of this world.
(3)To ascenda higher throne, not by popular election, but by the cross.
2. He withdrew to pray, thus indicating the nature of the glory He sought. He
had much to plead for on behalf of the multitude on whom the miracle had
been lost, and in behalf of His disciples who had more than half taken the
infection. Lessons:(1)Those who misuse Christ and His blessings must not
wonder if they are deprived of His presence.(2)Spiritual safety is closely
connectedwith retirement from dangerous associations. Christnot only
withdrew Himself but sent the disciples away (Matthew 14:22; Mark 6:45).
III. THE DANGER OF THE DISCIPLES (vers. 17, 18).
1. Those who seek and find their delight in Christ's presence know the
bitterness of His absence. How often are Christ's disciples tossedwith
tempests and constrainedto hard and apparently fruitless service!
2. The Masteris ever at hand when the storm is fiercestand where the labour
is hardest.
IV. THE ADVENT OF CHRIST.
1. Aroused their fears.
2. Elicited their prayers.
3. Securedtheir safety.
4. Brought them safelyto shore.
(A. Beith, D. D.)
Three views of Christ
T. Whitelaw, D. D.
I. AMID THE MOUNTAINS (ver. 15).
1. A couchof repose after the physical exhaustionof the day.
2. A temple of prayer (Matthew 14:23;Mark 6:46).(1) For Himself that Be
might resist the temptation He had just escapedas in the wilderness (Matthew
4:8-10), and that He might be supplied with strength for the coming
miracle.(2)For the people who were as sheep without a shepherd.(3) For the
disciples gone on their perilous voyage.
3. A towerof observationof His disciples as now He watches us from heaven.

II. UPON THE SEA (vers. 19, 20).
1. The mysterious apparition.(1) What it was. Christ really walking on, not
swimming in, the sea, not walking on the shore. There is no difficulty here to
those who believe the previous miracle.(2) Why it came. To proclaim Christ
Lord as the Controller of nature, as the bread had proclaimed Him its
Creator.(3)When it appeared. Betweenthree and six o'clock in the morning
when the rowers were at their wits' end. So Christ interposes when our need is
greatest(Amos 5:1).(4) How it was regarded. With fear, as Christ's unusual
appearances oftenare.
2. The familiar voice.(1)What it said (ver. 20). A note of assurance (Isaiah
43:2; Isaiah 54:11).(2)How it acted. It dispelled their alarms.
III. IN THE BOAT (ver. 21).
1. The wind was hushed (Matthew 14:32). To lull the soul's hurricanes when
Christ steps within (John 14:27).
2. The disciples were amazed(Mark 6:51), and led to worship (Matthew
14:33). Christ's supremacy over nature unmistakably betokenedHis Divinity.
3. The voyage was completed.Learn:
1. The dependence Jesus everfelt on prayer.
2. The notice Christ continues to take of His people.
3. The ability Christ possessesto help in the time of need.
4. The glory Christ shall yet bring to His people and to this material world.
5. The object of all Christ's manifestations to leadmen to recognize His
Divinity.
(T. Whitelaw, D. D.)
This is of a truth that Prophet
The distinguishing characteristics ofChrist as a Teacher
W. H. Van Doren, D. D.
I. THOSE WHICH CANNOT BE IMITATED.
1. His originality.
2. His miraculousness.
3. His authority.
II. THOSE WHICH MUST NOT BE IMITATED.

1. His positiveness.
2. His self-assurance.
3. His self-representation.
III. THOSE WHICH SHOULD BE IMITATED.
1. His naturalness.
2. His simplicity.
3. His variety.
4. His suggestiveness.
5. His definiteness.
6. His catholicity.
7. His spirituality.
8. His tenderness.
9. His faithfulness.
10. His consistency.
11. His devoutness.
(W. H. Van Doren, D. D.)
The misinterpretation of the Divine sign by the perversenessofthe carnal
mind
J. P. Lange, D. D.
They draw from the sign a correctconclusion(a true doctrine) and a false
application (a bad moral). So with orthodox faith a false (ecclesiasticalor
secular)morality is often associated.
(J. P. Lange, D. D.)
This is of a truth the prophet
W. W. G. HumphryG. Humphry, B. D.
1. They beheld in Jesus the fulfilment of prophecies fondly remembered, of
hopes long deferred. The Law-giverwho was to be a secondMoses;the
Delivererwho was to be a more mighty conqueror than Joshua;a King more
glorious than David, wiserthan Solomon, was come at last.

2. They who said so were not men learned in the Scriptures, like the Jewish
scribes and rulers; book-learning, evenof the highest sort, is apt to make
those who have it slow in forming their judgments, backwardand cold in
declaring them. Nor were they men of the city, who might have gained some
knowledge atsecondhand from those who had searchedthe Scriptures. But
they were a crowdof rude, simple folk, come together from the hill country of
Galilee, where old traditions had been handed down from age to age by word
of mouth. With an instinct more true, more strong, than the opinions of the
learned, they perceived that the bread which they receivedin such abundance
could only have been supplied by God Himself, and that in Him who fed them
thus God was revealedas clearly as when He spake by the profits to their
forefathers.
3. Confessions ofthis kind, all the more impressive from their being artless
and involuntary, are often to be met with in the four Gospels, and are just
such as we might expect men would make on .seeing ofa sudden the
supernatural power and wisdom of Christ (see John 1:49; Luke 5:8; Mark
15:39).
4. It is not to be supposed that the like effects should be wrought in us, who
have heard and read a hundred times the record of these things. Miracles the
most amazing, discourses the most persuasive, the heartrending tales of
sufferings inconceivable, soundin our ears as old familiar truths; and
familiarity too often leads to neglect, eventhough it may by no means breed
contempt. They who live in sight of a beautiful landscape lose in some degree
the perceptionof its loveliness. Theywould like to view it with fresh eyes;as
the strangers do who come to visit them. There is stealing over us a spirit of
indifference, which for any saving purpose is as dangerous as the spirit of
downright unbelief.
5. God does not suffer us to remain without a warning in this deadly stupor.
Not by miracles, not by the visitation of angels, but in the course ofHis
providence, by what we call the accidents oflife, He arouses us and makes us
see the Saviour as plainly revealedto our inward vision as He was to those
men sitting on the grass and eating the bread which He gave them in the
wilderness.
6. And what sortof things are they which bring us to see in His beauty and
majesty that Saviour who hitherto has had no form or comeliness in our sight,
so that we have even hid our faces from Him? Have we been led to look with
abhorrence on one of our darling sins and yearn for the purity which once we
had, and which we cannot of ourselves recover? And has a ray of comfort
from Him been shed upon us, kindling a new hope in our breasts, making us

embrace as a living truth what had become to us a dead form of words, that
Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners? Or has the heavenly ray
reachedyou by another path? It is in love that thou art chastened, that the
weight of thy affliction, which is but for a little moment, may gain thee the
exceeding and eternal weightof glory. I have been the Man of sorrows, and
now am at God's right hand. I know thy afflictions, and even the glory here
am touched with a feeling of them. But such is God's law, equal for all;" only
through tribulation canstthou enter the kingdom here above." Have such
consolations givena new turn to your thoughts, and thrown some light on the
deep mystery of your life? If so, you might well exclaim, "This is of a truth the
Prophet that cometh — that Herald of life and joy, so greatly needed by the
sons and daughters of affliction, so longedfor by me, sorrow-stricken, sickat
heart as I am! This is He, the Desire of all nations!" And if, in any of these
ways, the goodimpression has been made upon you, take care to keepit by
giving good heed to it, and especiallyby often calling to mind the
circumstances under which you first receivedit. Otherwise it will soonwear
out like the stagnantpool of Bethesda, troubled for an instant by the angel's
wing.
(W. W. G. HumphryG. Humphry, B. D.)
When Jesus therefore perceivedthat they would come and... make Him a
King
Christ not a King by force
J. Parker, D. D.
1. Some men have greatness thrust upon them. From all such Christ separates
Himself, knowing that what is done by compulsion may by compulsion be
undone. So He would not have a kingdom forcedupon Him, nor would He be
forcedon a kingdom. Wonderful words are written on His royal banner: "Put
up thy sword," "My kingdom is not of this world."
2. This is the secondtime that He declined a crown. It is not every man who
has two such chances. Everything depends on how you gethold of your
kingdom. If you have offered false worship for it, it will rot in your grip; if
you have been forcedon reluctant hearts, they will eastyou off in the spring
tide of returning power.
3. There is something in this Man more than in any other man. The more His
characteris studied, the more independent we shall be of theological

evidences. The grand claim of Christ to supremacy goes right up to the centre
and necessityofthings.
I. NOTHING HAS TO BE DONE IN THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN BY
VIOLENCE, by mere force. Did not Christ come to be a King? Yes. What
matter then the way of becoming one? Everything. A man must prove his title
to his seat, orhe may be unseated.
1. It is not right to do right in a wrong way. It is right that you should come to
church: it would be wrong to force you to come. The end does not sanctify the
means.
2. Force is powerless in all high matters.(1)You can force a man to kneel, to
repeatdevotional words while you stand over him swordin hand; but he
defies you to make him pray.(2) You canforce a man to pay his debts, but you
cannot make him honest. Honesty cannot be createdby force, nor dishonesty
be punished by it.(3) You can compel a nation to build a church, but you
cannot compelit to be religious. The very attempt to force a man to be
religious destroys the temper which alone makes religionpossible.
I. While all this is true on the human side, the real point to be consideredis
that JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF WOULD NEVER REIGN BY MERE
FORCE. If you could force men to Christ, you could never force Christ to
men. It is the Infinite that declines. Jesus reigns by the distinct consentof the
human mind. "If any man will open to Me, I will come in." "Come unto Me
all ye," etc.
III. If He will not be a King by force, BY WHAT MEANS WILL HE
BECOME KING? 1, PreachMe, is one of His injunctions. Show My doctrine,
purpose, spirit, throughout the world. That is a roundabout way, but the
swing of the Divine astronomyis in it. It is not the thought of a common man.
2. Live Me:"Let your light so shine," etc.;"I have given you an example;"
"Follow Me."
3. Lift Me up. "If I be lifted up," etc.(1)On the Cross ofAtonement.(2) By us
when we love His law, submit to His bidding, reproduce His temper, receive
with unquestioning heart all the gospelof His love.
IV. Now for the philosophical explanation of all this. "WE LOVE HIM
BECAUSE HE FIRST LOVED US." This Man lays hold of our entire love,
and thereby secures aneverlasting reign. The man who proceededto capture
human nature as this Man proceededis presumably a true king. No
adventurer could have actedas Jesus Christ.

1. Little child, Jesus wouldnot have you forcedto be good. He says, "I am
knocking at the door of your heart; let Me in."
2. He makes no proposition about going out.
3. The Church, like the Master, should not rule by force, but by love.
(J. Parker, D. D.)
Secretprayer
J. Trapp.
Secretprayer feeds the soul as secretmorsels feedthe body; therefore it is
said to be the banquet of grace, where the soul may solace itselfwith God, as
Esther did with Ahasuerus at the banquet of wine, and have whatsoeverheart
can wish or need require. While the disciples were perilling and well-nigh
perishing, Christ was praying for them; so He is still for us at the right hand
of the Majestyon high.
(J. Trapp.)
Jesus on the mountain above the political designs of men
Lange.
He alone.
I. He alone THE FREE ONE who is more a King than any prince on earth.
II. He alone THE CLEAR-SIGHTED ONE, who sees above allcraftiness of
policy.
III. He alone THE SILENT BUT DECISIVE DISPOSER OF ALL THINGS.
(Lange.)
The kingship of Christ
W. H. Van Doren, D. D.
Like Josephour Lord suffered for the sin He so carefully avoided. The charge
of claiming to be King was brought up againstHim at His trial. Yet while
shunning the bauble of an earthly sceptre, He was King of kings, and will for
ever wearmany crowns. To make Him King was of the Father, not of poor
mortals. How low their ideas of Messiah'skingdom! What had loaves and
fishes multiplied to do with "Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever"?

(W. H. Van Doren, D. D.)
And when even was now come His disciples went down unto the sea and
entered into a ship, and went over the sea towardCapernaum
A night upon the deep
T. Whitelaw
I. OF DISAPPOINTEDHOPE.
II. OF UNSUCCESSFULEFFORT.
III. OF DEEPENING ALARM.
IV. OF DIVINE MANIFESTATION.
V. OF SUPERNATURAL DELIVERANCE.
(T. Whitelaw, D,D.)
Jesus absentin darkness
C. S. Robinson.
It is sometimes worth while to try to meet the mournful and worried state of
mind in the churches, when the goodare longing, and perhaps waiting, for a
revival of religion to come.
I. THE PICTURE. In the course of description of the scene on Lake
Genesaret, itwill not be difficult to suggestthese points:
1. The close and rather humiliating connectionbetweenwistful souls and
wearybodies.
2. The disheartening result of a rapid transition from exhilarating crowds to
unromantic and lonely labour.
3. The feeling of desertion when, perhaps, Jesus is praying for us all the time.
4. Desolateframes of feeling give no release from diligent duty. Our question
now is, What did those disciples do?
II. THE LESSON.
1. They kept on rowing. That is, they did preciselywhat they would have done
if Jesus had arrived.
2. They headed the boat for Capernaum. That was what He bade them do (see
Matthew 14:22).

3. They bailed out the water if any rushed into the boat. All the worldliness in
the world's sea cannot sink Christ's Church, if only the waves are kepton the
outside of it.
4. They strained their eyes in every direction for the leastsignof Christ's
coming.
5. They cheeredeachother.
(C. S. Robinson.)
The absentChrist
W. M. Taylor, D. D.
It is always dark until Jesus comes to us, or until we go to Jesus. This is the
case with —
I. THE AWAKENED SINNER who, in contactwith Jesus, passesfrom
darkness into light.
II. THE DESPONDING CHRISTIAN (Psalm43., 51., 130.).
III. THE AFFLICTED CHRISTIAN.
IV. THE BEREAVED. "If Thou hadst been here our brother had not died."
But when He comes He is the Resurrectionand the Life.
(W. M. Taylor, D. D.)
Christians in darkness whenChrist is not near
W. Arnot, D. D.
I. CHRIST'S THOUGHTS ABOUT HIS DISCIPLES.
1. He leaves men for a time in fear and danger.(1)After the fall the whole
world was thus left till Christ came in the flesh.(2)After the Incarnation He
remained thirty years in obscurity. He remained far distant from Bethany till
Lazarus was dead. He fingered on the mountain while His disciples were
struggling with the storm.(3) At this day His people wonder at His absence,
and exclaim, "Thou art a God that hidest Thyself."
2. His delay is no proof of His neglect. His delights were with the children of
men before His abode was among them. When absent from Lazarus His heart
was full of a brother's love. Here His purpose was to allow their extremity to
become His opportunity. So when He left the world it was that the Comforter
might come. And now it is only love that detains Him within the veil.

3. Never, and nowhere, do they who wait on the Lord wait in vain. To weary
watchers the time seemedlong but the coming was sure. "Faithful is He that
promised." "He that keepethIsraelshall not slumber."
II. THE DISCIPLES'THOUGHTS ABOUT CHRIST.
1. It was a matter of the heart. In knowledge they were children; and like
children, too, in single-eyed, confiding love. Afterwards they became more
enlightened. But their first love was not weakerthan their last.
2. Observe how this child-like love operates in time of trial.(1) The waters
were permitted to swelland frighten the children, although their Elder
Brother held those waters in the hollow of His hand. But these true men would
neither be bold in the absence oftheir Lord, nor faint in fear when He was at
their side.(2)The storm and darkness made their hearts quiver, and all the
more surely did these hearts turn and point towardthe mountain-top when
Jesus, the Daysman, stoodlaying His hand upon God.(3) But these dangers
though greatwere material and temporal; whereas the dangers which induce
us to seek a Saviourare our own sin, and the wages thatit wins. But these
burdens will make you doubly welcome.(4)The example of these Galileans is
shown here as in a glass, that every mourner may thereby be encouragedto
long for the presence ofthe Lord (Psalm 50:15).(5)Love to Christ in a human
heart, kindled by Christ's love to man and laying hold of the love that lighted
it, is the one thing needed.
(W. Arnot, D. D.)
Christ, though absent, has not desertedus
J. Trapp.
Jesus was absentall the while. He leaveth them, as it were, in the suburbs of
hell. Howbeit as the eagle when she flieth highest of all from the nest doth ever
casta jealous eye upon her young, so doth this heavenly eagle.
(J. Trapp.)
Night with Jesus
H. Bonar, D. D.
1. It was night, The disciples were alone, which made it double night.
2. It was night at sea. To be without Jesus in the day and on land was sad, but
this was sadder.

3. It was a night of toil: rowing four miles in the teeth of the wind; and
Christ's absence made their labour doubly hard.
4. It was a night of danger. The storm had broken loose and there was no
Jesus. Let us look at these works in their more generalaspectin relation to the
Saint and to the Church.
I. NIGHT.
1. The sinner's history is one long starless night.
2. The saint has his night, too, of sorrow, bereavement, and pain.
3. The Church, too, has her night — poverty, persecution, desertion. There
shall be no night there, but there is night now.
II. NIGHT WITHOUT JESUS.
1. The sinner's night is altogetherwithout Him.
2. The saint has night when Jesus seems distant. Without Him altogetherwe
cannot be — "Lo, I am with you always." Butthere are times when He is not
realized; and the issue of these is to bring Him nearer.
III. NIGHT WITH JESUS. With Him the darkness is as the light. Forhaving
Him we have —
1. Companionship.
2. Protection.
3. Safety.
4. Comfort.
5. Strength.
6. Assurance of the coming day.
IV. DAY WITH JESUS. He does not say, "Let Me go, for the day breaketh."
And if His presence has made the night pleasant, what will not that presence
make the coming day!
(H. Bonar, D. D.)
They see Jesus walking onthe sea
Does He not always walk upon it? Is not His majestic tread on the Galilean
waters typical
A. P. Peabody, LL. D.

I. OF HIS MARCH ALONG THE AGES? No figure seems more literal than
that by which we speak of the waves, the current, the sea of time. How
constantly is the lapse of years, obliterating races, memorials, greatnames, the
dykes set up by arms, laws, industries and enterprise. Of the civilized nations
now on earth but one in Christ's time had a name or a place except the Jews.
The languages thenspokenare now dead. The manners and religions have
passedaway. Meanwhile, Jesus has walkedupon the waves. The gospelhas
never been submerged or been less than the one shaping, controlling power.
1. At the outsetfierce and bitter persecutionassailedChristianity, but from
beneath the heel of the Caesarsit mounted their throne.
2. Then commencedthe severertrial of corrupting prosperity; and still its
ordinances, doctrines, and influence could not be wholly corrupted.
3. Invading races threatenedto destroy it, but yielded to it.
4. During the dark ages it gave birth to noble charities, home life, etc.
5. In these latter ages how many and powerful have been the assailing forces,
scientific and infidel; but no soonerhas any fountain of knowledge become
deep and clearthan it has invited His tread and rolled tributary waves to His
feet.
6. And lo! as centuries roll on His circuit widens. His steps lay hold on the
ends of the earth and the islands of the sea.
II. OF HIS WAY IN THE HEART OF MAN.
1. How fierce the waves that threaten our peace and wellbeing! Passion,
appetite, lust, pride, desire, fear. What powerbut Christ's can walk these
waves? Butlet Him enter and these billows know their Lord.
2. What miracles of mercy has He not wrought in these subject souls!(1) Here
was intemperance or lust. No love could stem the torrent; but Christ entered
and appetite was quelled and all is now pure and peaceful.(2)In that spirit
passionraged;Christ entered and vengeance has given place to love and
forgiveness.
3. In every soul into which He enters, He walks as sovereign. The forces of
charactermould themselves at His command.
III. OF HIS PATHS AS HERALD AND GUIDE TO THE LIFE ETERNAL.
(A. P. Peabody, LL. D.)
Christ in the night storm

T. L. Cuyler, D. D.
I. Many of my hearers may be just now in a FEARFUL NIGHT-STORM OF
TROUBLE.
1. One is in the darkness of a mysterious providence.
2. Another is under a tempest of commercialdisaster. He has lost "the
rigging" of his prosperity; and his pride has come down as a top-sailcomes
down in a hurricane.
3. Another one is toiling with the oars againsta head-sea of poverty.
4. The guiding rudder of a dear and trusted friend has been sweptawayby
death.
5. Still anotherone is in a midnight of spiritual despondency, and the promise-
stars seemto be all shut out under gloomy clouds. My friend A — is making a
hard voyage, with her brood of fatherless children to provide for. Friend B —
has a poor intemperate husband on board with her; and Brother C — 's little
bark hardly rises out of one wave of disasterbefore another sweeps overit.
There are whole boat-loads of disciples who are "toiling at rowing" over a
dark sea of trouble.
II. THE HOUR OF THE CHRISTIAN'S EXTREMITYIS THE HOUR OF
CHRIST'S OPPORTUNITY. At the right moment Christ makes His
appearance. We do not wonder at the disciples'astonishment and alarm. But
straightwayJesus speaksunto them, and in an instant their fears vanished
and "the wind ceased." Now,goodfriends, who are breasting a midnight sea
of trouble, open the eye of faith, and see that Form on the waves!It is not an
apparition; it is not a fiction of priestly fancies. It is Jesus Himself! One who
has been tried on all points as we are, and yet without sin. Christ comes to you
as a sympathizing, cheering, consoling Saviour. His sweetassuranceis, "Lo! I
am with you. Fearnot; I have redeemedthee." Receive Him into the ship. No
vesselcansink or founder with Jesus on board. Let the storms rage, if God
sends them. Christ canpilot you through. It is I! There may be a night coming
soonon some of you, when heart and flesh shall fail you, and the only shore
aheadis the shore of eternity. If Jesus is only in the bark, be not afraid. Like
glorious John Wesley, you will be able to cry aloud in the dying hour, "The
best of all is, God is with us!"
III. THE TEACHINGS OF THIS INSPIRING SCENETO THOSE WHO
ARE IN A MID-SEAOF CONVICTIONS OF SIN AND TROUBLINGS OF
CONSCIENCE.The storm of Divine threatenings againstsin is breaking
upon you. You acknowledgethat you are guilty. Alarming passagesfrom

God's Word foam up around your distressedand anxious soul. You cannot
quell this storm, or escape outof it. Toiling at the oars of self-righteousness
has not sent you a furlong nearerto the "desiredhaven." You have found by
sore experience that sin gives no rest, and that your oars are no match against
God's just and broken law. Friend! Listen! There is a voice that comes
sounding through the storm. Hearkento it! It is a voice of infinite love, "It is
I!" "Whosoeverbelievethin Me shall not perish, but shall have everlasting
life." If you will only admit this waiting, willing, loving Jesus into your
tempest-tossedsoul, the "wind will cease." Christ can allay the storm. Receive
Him. Do all He asks, surrenderthe helm to Him, and you can then feelas the
rescueddisciples did when they knelt down in the drenched bottom of their
little boat, and cried out, "Truly this is the Son of God!"
(T. L. Cuyler, D. D.)
It is I, be not afraid
The Lord's voice to His people
T. Whitelaw, D. D.
I. PROCLAIMING HIS PRESENCE.
1. In unexpected places.
2. At unwonted times.
3. In unfamiliar forms.
II. DISPELLING FEAR —
1. Of danger.
2. Of death.
3. Of evil.
(T. Whitelaw, D. D.)
The recognitionof Christ in the hour of death
Homiletic Monthly.
The recognitionof Christ coming to help and comfort in the hour of severest
trial is ever the Christian's privilege. If he see Him not in the storm, he must
look againand again, for he has but failed to recognize Him. This truth we
would apply only to that lastfearful storm which wrecks the bark in which
the soulhas been crossing the sea oflife.

I. TO RECOGNIZE HIM WE MUST EXPECT HIM.
1. He has promised to be there. "Lo, I am with you alway." "Whenthou
passeththrough the waters, I will be with thee."
2. He who has given His life for us will not fail us in that most trying moment.
II. BY WHAT SIGNS MAY THE CHRISTIAN KNOW HIM?
1. The Christian soul knows Him by His visage. Infinite love breaks through
every disguise when viewed by the soul fitted to recognize it.
2. Knows Him because He announces Himself: "It is I, be not afraid."
3. Knows Him because ofthe calm that comes with Him. Conclusion:Martyrs
and Christians in all ages have borne testimony to the recognitionof Christ in
the lasthour of life.
(Homiletic Monthly.)
The symbolism of the voyage
J. Trapp.
A believer must have on the sea of life, Patience for his tackling, Hope for his
anchor, Faith for his helm, the Bible for his chart, Christ for his captain, the
breath of the Spirit to fill his canvas.
(J. Trapp.)
Afraid of Christ
J. Trapp.
Of Him in whom was laid up all their comfort. How oft are we mistakenand
befooledby our fears!
(J. Trapp.)
Timely comfort
J. Trapp.
— He waits to be gracious. Ourextremity is His opportunity. God brings His
people to the mount, with Abraham, yea, to the very brow of the hill, till their
feet slip, and then delivers them. When all is given up for lostthen comes He
in, as oil of an engine.
(J. Trapp.)

The storm on the lake
W. M. Thomson, D. D.
My experience in this region enabled me to sympathize with the disciples in
their long night's contestwith the wind. I have seenthe face of the lake like a
huge boiling cauldron. The wind howleddown the valleys from the north-east
and eastwith such fury that no efforts of rowers could have brought a boat to
shore at any point along that coast. To understand the cause of these sudden
and violent tempests we must remember the lake lies low — six hundred feet
lowerthan the ocean— that water-courseshave cut out profound ravines and
wild gorges,converging to the head of the lake, and that these actlike gigantic
funnels to draw down the cold winds from the mountains. On the occasion
referred to we pitched our tents on the shore, and remained for three days
and nights exposedto this tremendous wind. We had to double-pin all the tent
ropes, and frequently were obliged to hang with our whole weight upon them,
to keepthe quivering tabernacle from being carried up bodily into the air. No
wonder the disciples toiled and rowedhard all that night.
(W. M. Thomson, D. D.)
The disciples and their absentMaster
W. Arnot, D. D.
I have observedthat a shipmaster, especiallywhenthe presence ofcurrents
and the proximity of land make his burden heavy, shakes the compass
sharply, and then watches the point on which the quivering needle finally
settles down. The shaking makes the master more sure that the needle points
truly to its pole. In those days the magnet was not known. No trembling
compass on the deck that night told the steersmanhow to hold his helm, after
the mountains had disappearedin night; but an instrument more mysterious
and equally true within those simple seamenhad once been touched by divine,
forgiving mercy, and pointed steadfastlynow to the Source of saving power.
(W. Arnot, D. D.)
The pathway of the King
A. Maclaren, D. D.
I. THE STRUGGLING TOILERS. Is it not the history of the Church in a
nutshell? Is it not the symbol of life for us all? The solemnlaw under which

we live demands persistent effort, and imposes continual antagonismupon us;
there is no reasonwhy we should regard that as evil, or think ourselves hardly
used, because we are not fair-weathersailors. The end of life is to make men,;
the meaning of all events is to mould character. Anything that makes me
strongeris a blessing, anything that develops my morale is the highest good
that can come to me. And so be thankful if, when the boat is crossing the
mouth of some glen that opens upon the lake, a sudden gust smites the sheets
and sends you to the helm, and takes all your effort to keepyou from sinking.
Do not murmur, or think that God's Providence is strange, becausemany and
many a time when "it is dark, and Jesus is not yet come to us," the storm of
wind comes down upon the lake and threatens to drive us from our course.
Let us rather recognize Him as the Lord who, in love and kindness, sends all
the different kinds of weatherwhich according to the old proverb, makes up
the full summed year. The solitary crew were not so solitary as they thought.
That little dancing speck on the waters which held so much blind love, and so
much fear and trouble, was in His sight, as on the calm mountain-top He
communed with God. No wonder that wearyhearts and lonely ones, groping
amidst the darkness, and fighting with the tempests and the sorrows oflife,
have ever found in our story a symbol that comes to them with a prophecy of
hope and an assurance ofhelp, and have rejoicedto know that they on the sea
are beheld of the Christ in the sky, and that "the darkness hideth not from"
His loving eye.
II. THE APPROACHING CHRIST. If we look for a moment at the
miraculous fact, apart from the symbolism, we have a revelation here of
Christ as the Lord of the material universe, a kingdom wider in its range and
profounder in its authority than that which that shouting crowd had sought to
force upon Him. His will consolidates the yielding wave, or sustains His
material body on the tossing surges. Two lessons may be drawn from this. One
is that in His marvellous providence Christ uses all the tumults and unrest,
the oppositionand tempests which surround the ship that bears His followers
as the means of achieving His purposes. We stand before a mystery to which
we have no key when we think of these two certainfacts;first, the Omnipotent
redeeming will of God in Christ; and, second, the human antagonismwhich is
able to rear itself againstthat. And we stand in the presence ofanother
mystery, most blessed, and yet which we cannot unthread, when we think, as
we most assuredly may, that in some mysterious fashion, He works His
purposes by the very antagonismto His purposes, making even head-winds fill
the sails, and planting His footon the white crests ofthe angry and changeful
billows. How often in the world's history has this scene repeateditself, and by

a Divine irony the enemies become the helpers of Christ's cause, andwhat
they plotted for destruction turned out rather to the furtherance of the gospel.
Another lessonfor our individual lives is this, that Christ, in His sweetness
and His gentle sustaining help, comes nearto us all across the sea of sorrow
and trouble. A sweeter, a more gracious sense ofHis nearness to us, is ever
granted to us in the time of our darkness and our grief than is possible to us in
the sunny hours of joy. It is always the stormy sea that Christ comes across, to
draw near to us; and they who have never experiencedthe tempest have yet to
learn the inmost sweetnessofHis presence. Sorrow brings Him near to us. Do
you see that sorrow does not drive you awayfrom Him.
III. THE TERROR AND THE RECOGNITION. Ido not dwell upon the fact
that the average man, if he fancies that anything from out of the Unseenis
near him, shrinks in fear. I do not ask you whether that is not a sign, and
indication of the deep conviction that lies in men's souls, of a discord between
themselves and the unseen world; but I ask you if we do not often mistake the
coming Master, and tremble before Him when we ought to be glad? Let no
absorption in cares and duties, let no unchildlike murmurings, let no selfish
abandonment to sorrow, blind you to the Lord that always comes near
troubled hearts, if they will only look and see. Letno reluctance to entertain
religious ideas, no fear of contactwith the Unseen, no shrinking from the
thought of Christ as a Kill-joy keepyou from seeing Him as He draws near to
you in your troubles. And let no sly, mocking Mephistopheles ofdoubt, nor
any poisonous air, blowing off the foul and stagnantmarshes of present
materialism, make you fancy that the living Reality, treading on the flood
there, is a dream or a fancy or the projectionof your own imagination on to
the void of space. He is real, whatevermay be phenomenal and surface. The
storm is not so real as the Christ, the waves not so substantial as He who
stands upon them. They will pass and melt, He will abide for ever. Lift up
your hearts, and be glad, because the Lord comes to you across the waters.
And hearkento His voice:"It is I! Be not afraid." The encouragementnot to
fear follows the proclamation, "It is I!" What a thrill of glad confidence must
have poured itself into their hearts, when once they rose to the height of that
wondrous factI There is no fear in the consciousness ofHis presence. It is His
old word, "Be not afraid." And He breathes it whithersoeverHe comes; for
His coming is the banishment of danger and the exorcism of dread.
IV. THE END OF THE TEMPESTAND OF THE VOYAGE. It is not always
true, it is very seldomtrue, that when Christ comes on board oppositionends,
and the purpose is achieved. But it is always true that when Christ comes on
board a new spirit comes into the men who have Him for their companion,

and are conscious that they have. It makes their work easy, and makes them
"more than conquerors" overwhat yet remains. With what a different spirit
the wearymen would bend their backs to the oars once more when they had
the Masteron board, and with what a different spirit you and I will set
ourselves to our work if we are sure of His presence. The worstof trouble is
gone when Christ shares it with us. Friends! Life is a voyage, anyhow, with
plenty of storm, and danger, and difficulty, and weariness, andexposure, and
anxiety, and dread, and sorrow, for every soul of man. But if you will take
Christ on board it will be a very different thing from what it will be if you
cross the wan waters alone. Without Him you will make shipwreck of
yourselves;with Him your voyage may be as perilous and lonely as that of
that poor Shetland woman in the Columbine a month ago, but He will take
care of you, and you will be guided on shore, on the one little bit of beach
where all the rest is iron-bound rocks, onwhich whoeversmites will be
shatteredto pieces. "Thenare they glad... where they would be."
(A. Maclaren, D. D.)
COMMENTARIES
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers
(17) For“a ship,” the receivedtext has, with some of the best MSS., the ship—
i.e., the ship in which they first crossed. For“wentover the sea,” readwere
going over the sea. The voyage is describedas still continuing.
TowardCapernaum.—St. Matthew speaks more generallyof the other (i.e.,
the western)side. St. Mark of Bethsaida, whichwas distinct from Bethsaida
Julias, which was on the eastof the lake. (Comp. Note on Luke 9:10.) For an
accountof Capernaum, see Matthew 4:13, and in this John John 6:59.
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary
6:15-21 Here were Christ's disciples in the way of duty, and Christ was
praying for them; yet they were in distress. There may be perils and
afflictions of this present time, where there is an interest in Christ. Clouds and
darkness oftensurround the children of the light and of the day. They see
Jesus walking on the sea. Even the approaches ofcomfort and deliverance
often are so mistaken, as to become the occasions offear. Nothing is more

powerful to convince sinners than that word, I am Jesus whomthou
persecutest;nothing more powerful to comfort saints than this, I am Jesus
whom thou lovest. If we have receivedChrist Jesus the Lord, though the night
be dark, and the wind high, yet we may comfort ourselves, we shallbe at the
shore before long.
Barnes'Notes on the Bible
See this miracle of walking on the sea explained in the notes at Matthew
14:22-33. Compare Mark 6:45-52.
Jamieson-Fausset-BrownBible Commentary
16, 17. when even was come—(Seeon[1791]Mr6:35).
entered into a ship—"constrained" to do so by their Master(Mt 14:22; Mr
6:45), in order to put an end to the misdirected excitement in His favor (Joh
6:15), into which the disciples themselves may have been somewhatdrawn.
The word "constrained" implies reluctance on their part, perhaps from
unwillingness to part with their Masterand embark at night, leaving Him
alone on the mountain.
went—rather, "were proceeding."
toward Capernaum—Mark says (Mr 6:45), "unto Bethsaida," meaning
"Bethsaida ofGalilee" (Joh12:21), on the westside of the lake. The place they
left was of the same name (see on [1792]Mr6:32).
Jesus was not come to them—They probably lingered in hopes of His still
joining them, and so let the darkness come on.
Matthew Poole's Commentary
Ver. 17-22. By the sea is here meant the sea of Galilee, orlake of Tiberias, or
of Gennesaret. There our Saviour and his disciples had left the multitude; the
disciples having takena boat, and passing over on the other side, and Christ
having followedthem, the multitude, probably having gone in the night to rest
themselves at their severalhouses, came againin the morning, expecting to
have found Christ, and have seenmore miracles; being disappointed,
understanding that both Christ and his disciples were gone over.
Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible
And entered into a ship,.... In which they came, and was waiting for them; or
into another:
and went over the sea towards Capernaum; steeredtheir course from
Bethsaida, where they took shipping over the sea of Galilee;at leastover one

part of it, a creek orbay of it, as they intended, towards the city of
Capernaum, which lay over againstBethsaida:
and it was now dark; quite night, which made their voyage more
uncomfortable, especiallyas it afterwards was tempestuous:but the worstof
all was,
and Jesus was notcome to them; as they expected, and therefore were obliged
to set sailand go without him.
Geneva Study Bible
And entered into a ship, and went over the sea {b} toward Capernaum. And it
was now dark, and Jesus was not come to them.
(b) In Mr 6:45 they are told to go ahead to Bethsaida, for Bethsaida was along
the wayto Capernaum.
EXEGETICAL(ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)
Cambridge Bible for Schools andColleges
17. toward Capernaum] S. Mark says ‘unto Bethsaida’which was close to
Capernaum. See notes and map at Matthew 4:13 and Luke 5:1. For ‘went
over the sea’we should read were coming over the sea, i.e. were on their way
home.
was not come] More accurately, was not yet come.
Pulpit Commentary
Verses 17, 18. - And darkness had already come on, and Jesus had not yet
come to them. This thrilling touch in John's narrative makes it more than
evident that the beloved disciple was on board. He had been expecting the
Masterto make his appearance in some form. He had lookedlong and eagerly
to that point on the mountainside whither he knew that Jesus had retired. The
dreary and disappointed expectation, the long and wearywaiting, left an
indelible impression. Their natural course towards Capernaumwould have
been almost parallelwith the shore of the lake;but it was dark and
tempestuous, they could not steer. And the sea was being roused from its
slumber by reasonof a high wind which was blowing. If the wind came from
the north, it would drift them out into the darkness and the middle of the lake,
which is there, at its widest, about five miles broad, i.e. forty stadia, or
furlongs. The statement of the next verse comes then into undesigned
coincidence with Mark 6:47, which shows that they were "in the midst of the

sea," i.e. halfwayfrom shore to shore. This would exactly correspondwith the
following statement.
Vincent's Word Studies
Ship (πλοῖον)
Rev., boat. See on Luke 5:2. The best texts omit the article.
Went (ἤρχοντο)
The imperfect, were going. So Rev.
Capernaum
Mark has Bethsaida.
It was now dark (σκοτία ἤδη ἐγεγόνει)
Literally, darkness had already come on. On darkness, seeonJohn 1:5.
PRECEPTAUSTIN RESOURCES
CALVIN
Verse 17
17.It was now dark. John passes by many circumstances whichthe other
Evangelists introduce; such as, that for severalhours they struggledwith a
contrary wind; for it is probable that the storm arose immediately after the
night began to come on; and they tell us that Christ did not appearto his
disciples till about the fourth watchof the night, (Matthew 14:28; Mark 6:48.)
Those who conjecture that they were still about the middle of the lake when
Christ appearedto them, because Johnsays that they had then advanced
about twenty-five or thirty furlongs, are led into a mistake by supposing that
they had sailedto the farther or opposite bank; for Bethsaida, nearwhich
town, Luke tells us, the miracle was performed, (Luke 9:10,)and Capernaum,
which the ship reached, (John 6:16,) were situated on the same coast.
Pliny, in his fifth book, states thatthis lake was six miles in breadth, and
sixteen in length. Josephus (in the third book of the Wars of the Jews)assigns
to it one hundred furlongs in length, and forty in breadth; (132)and as eight
furlongs make one mile, we may easilyinfer how little the one description

differs from the other. So far as relates to the presentsailing, my opinion is,
that they did not go over so greata space by direct sailing, but through being
driven about by the tempest. (133) Howeverthat may be, the Evangelist
intended to show that, when Christ presentedhimself to them, they were in
the utmost danger. It may be thought strange that the disciples should be
tormented in this manner, while others had nothing to disturb them in sailing;
but in this manner the Lord often makes his people fall into alarming dangers,
that they may more plainly and familiarly recognize him in their deliverance.
BOB DEFFINBAUGH
Walking on the Water
(6:16-21)
16 Now when evening came, his disciples went down to the lake, 17 gotinto a
boat, and started to cross the lake to Capernaum. (It had already become
dark and Jesus had not yet come to them.) 18 By now a strong wind was
blowing and the sea was getting rough. 19 Then when they had rowedabout
three or four miles, they sighted Jesus walking onthe lake, approaching the
boat, and they were frightened. 20 But he said to them, “It is I, do not be
afraid.” 21 Then they wanted to take him into the boat, and immediately the
boat came to the land where they had been heading.
The disciples are alreadyin the boat and on their way to the other side of the
lake when Jesus finishes His time of prayer. They have come in one boat, and
now there seems to be only one wayfor Jesus to reach Capernaum, the same
way the crowds came to this place from Capernaum—by walking around the
Sea of Galilee. The problem is that this would require Jesus to walk pastthe
crowds, betweenHim and the other side of the sea. If a boat were available,
He could navigate His journey so as to keepenough distance betweenHimself
and those on the shore. But there is no boat on hand. Once again, Jesus seems
to be in an impossible situation. Once again, Jesus has no difficulty dealing
with the problem. He simply crossesthe Sea of Galilee by walking on the
water.
As He is walking on the sea, Jesus comesupon His disciples, straining at the
oars, fighting strong contrary winds. Mark tells us that Jesus “wantedto pass
by” the disciples, because “the night was ending” (6:48). I think Mark means
that Jesus is eagerto getto shore, before daylight, so He will not attracta

crowd. The crowds are not as likely to converge onthe disciples if Jesus is not
with them. But the disciples are having trouble, struggling againstthe wind.
We are not told that they are in danger, and we know that at leastfour of
these fellows are fishermen. This is nothing new to them.
But the disciples look out and see Jesus passing themby. They are terrified,
not by the winds or by their difficulties in rowing the boat, but by the sight of
Him whom they do not recognize as the Lord. If they have never believed in
ghosts before, they surely do now! Jesus takes pity on them, assuring them
that it is He, and that they need not be afraid.32 They eagerlytake Jesus into
the boat and are immediately at their destination.33
Conclusion
As great as these two miracles are, very little is made of them in the Gospelof
John. Jesus does not even bring them up, when He could have gained great
notoriety from them. These two miracles, like virtually all of our Lord’s
miracles, are miracles of necessity. Jesus does notfrivolously employ His
powerto satisfyHis own desires. (This is evident by His refusal to succumb to
Satan’s futile attempts to tempt Him to do so.)Walking on the sea is necessary
because Jesus needs to send His disciples away as quickly as possible, before
He deals with the crowds. He then needs to return to Capernaum, but in a
way that keeps Him from the fanaticalking-makers in the crowd. Our Lord’s
walking on the waterand the boat’s immediate arrival on shore are miracles
of necessity.
But why is John’s accountof these miracles so terse, so skeletal?Why does he
not make more of them? If he does not make something of them, why does he
even mention them at all? I believe that on the one hand they hardly need any
defense at all, or any explanation, given their relation to the rest of John’s
Gospel. Johnhas clearly told us in chapter 1 that Jesus is God. If He, the
Word, is the One who called all creationinto existence, is it any greatwonder
that He can create a meal for 5,000 men, or that He can walk on the sea?
Jesus’actions are completelyconsistentwith who John says He is, who God
the Fathertestifies that He is, and who Jesus Himself claims to be. So what is
there to explain or to embellish?
Let me attempt to illustrate this in everyday terms. Among other things, I am
a mechanic. I fix things, especiallycars. If I work outside for a few hours and
then come into the house, my wife Jeannette may say to me, “What were you
doing out there?” If I answer, “Oh, I was torquing a cylinder head and
changing the struts,” I do not expect her to respond, “Wow!That’s incredible!
Tell me more about it!” I know what my wife will say(pretty much): “Hmm.”

I was doing what she expected, given who I am and what I do. In our text
Jesus is doing what we should expectHim to do, given who He is. Neither
Jesus nor John feel obligedto provide a drum roll before these miracles or to
blow a bugle afterwards. Jesus is doing what we should expectthe Sonof God
to do.
There is anotherreasonJohn does not make more of these miracles. These
miracles are not in the foreground of this chapter, but instead provide the
backgroundfor what John considers more important material. The main
thrust of this chapter is our Lord’s “Breadof Life” discourse, whichis
occasionedby the miracle of the feeding of the 5,000. Johnrecords this
miracle because it is the setting for what takes place in the remainder of the
chapter, much like the healing of the paralytic sets the scene for the rest of
chapter 5.
The feeding of the 5,000 and our Lord’s walking on the sea seemto have a
definite connectionwith Mosesand the events of the Exodus. Later in this
very chapter, and againin chapter 9, Moses is a prominent figure in the
Gospelof John; the Jews who are in oppositionto Jesus refer to him as their
hero (1:17, 45;3:14; 5:45-46;6:32; 7:19, 22, 23; 8:5; 9:28-29). Under the
leadership of Moses,the Israelites passedthrough the sea on dry land, and
God provided His people with manna from heaven. Jesus is the One who is
greaterthan Moses.He personally walks on the sea, and He provides bread
from heaven, the true bread which gives men eternallife. In our text, these
two miracles link Jesus and Moses, and show that Jesus is the greaterof the
two.
There is anotherreasonfor John’s brevity. John, like our Lord (and very
much unlike me) is a masterof the art of understatement. In chapter 13, John
records that Judas Iscariotwent out to betray our Lord. Almost incidentally
John adds, “and it was night” (John 13:30). This expressionis pregnant with
meaning, but John does not spell it all out for us. He expects us to meditate
upon his words and ponder their significance. Jesus does the same thing in His
teaching. When Jesus teaches, people go awayscratching their heads, asking
themselves, “I wonder what He meant by that?” This method requires the
reader to do some thinking, rather than the teacherdoing all the reader’s
thinking for him or her.
Having learned that our text is preliminary to and preparatory for the “Bread
of Life” discourse of our Lord in the latter part of this chapter, there are some
principles to be learned from these miracles as we reflectupon them. Let me
point out a few in closing.

(1) Jesus commands us to do more than we are (humanly) able, because He
enables us to do what He commands. The disciples are inclined to shirk their
responsibility to feed these folks because the task is “impossible.” Jesus does
not let them off the hook, but rather lays the responsibility for feeding the
5,000 attheir feet. What the disciples are not able to do on their own, they
accomplishby the powerof Jesus Christ. And not only are they able to feed
this crowdso that all are filled, they even end up with a surplus.
God ministers through our weakness.He does not select“strong” people so
that He can use their strengths;He choosesweakpeople so that He can
demonstrate His powerthrough their weakness(see 1 Corinthians 1:18–2:5;2
Corinthians 4:7–5:10;also chapters 8, 10, 12). He gives us tasks which we do
not have the strength to do ourselves, becauseHe gives us His strength to
carry them out.
(2) The magnitude of the task should not be used as our excuse for not
attempting it, especiallywhenthe task is our Lord’s command. How easyit is
to use the magnitude of a given task as our excuse for not obeying our Lord.
The GreatCommissionis a command given by our Lord to His disciples, and
thus to His church. The GreatCommission is therefore a command we are to
obey; it is not a suggestion, andnot a request. We are to be about this task, in
whateverways God puts before us. Let us see the magnitude of the mission as
the occasionforfaith, obedience, and prayers, and not as an excuse for apathy
and idleness.
(3) Wonder of wonders, Godhas chosento multiply and expand our puny
efforts and contributions, so as to accomplishHis will. The young lad with five
loaves and two fishes had little to offer, but Godmultiplied what he had. Our
efforts are so feeble, so fallible, and yet God uses us as “claypots” to do His
will. Even our failures are used of God to bring about His purposes.34
(4) Those whom God uses to minister to the needs of this crowd are also those
who gain the most from serving others. I wish to be very carefulhere, because
I am not advocating that we “give in order to get.” But it is interesting to note
that this young lad ends up with “all he could eat,” which is probably more
than he had in the first place. And the disciples, who thought they had nothing
to serve, eachended up with a full basket. As we give ourselves in the service
of others, God cares abundantly for our own needs.
(5) The disciples are inclined to limit their ministry to what they have seen
and done before. One of the greatweaknessesofthe church is evident in the
statement: “But we’ve always done it this waybefore.” Some things need to be
done a certain way. But often we attempt to solve problems with only those

means and methods with which we are familiar, to which we are accustomed.
The disciples think of feeding the 5,000 onlyin terms of buying food at a store.
Jesus has a better way. Jesus has a different way, a way they would never
expect, a way they would never believe if told about it beforehand. God
delights in doing the unexpected, so that His wisdom, powerand grace are
displayed through His handling of “impossible” situations. When we face
difficulties, we should be carefulnot to limit the ways we expect God to
minister through us. We dare not demand or even expectthe unusual, but we
certainly dare not deny the possibility.
(6) Our Lord cares about and takes care ofour needs. Jesus ministers to these
people because oftheir greatneed for teaching and healing. He also cares
about their physical needs, because they are wearyand hungry. Do you trust
God to care for your needs? Jesus wasthinking about feeding the 5,000 long
before it everentered the minds of His disciples. Jesus knew all along what He
intended to do. Our Lord cares, andHe cares wellfor our needs. Mostof all,
He cares about our need for the forgiveness ofour sins. As we shall soonsee,
He became the “Breadof Life” by dying on the cross ofCalvary, by bearing
the guilt and punishment for our sins. Have you trusted in Him who caredso
much that He died on Calvary?
20 UEM was formerly knownas BEE (Black Evangelistic Enterprise), an
organizationcommitted to planting churches in the urban community, where
crime and poverty are abundant, but where there is a scarcityof Bible-
believing, gospel-proclaiming churches.
21 In Matthew 14:21, the author makes it clearthat there are 5,000 men there,
not counting the women and children. It seems to be generallyconcededthat
on this occasionthere must have been approximately 20,000 people present.
22 D. A. Carson, The Gospel According to John (Grand Rapids: William B.
Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1991), p. 269.
23 There is also the “wine” of chapter 2 and the “water” of chapter3.
24 Today we know this place as the Golan Heights.
25 See the study note in the NET Bible, and also Carson, p. 268. It is
interesting that Morris is more inclined to think that the definite article is
significant here: “The place of these happenings is defined as ‘the mountain.’
This expressionoccurs severaltimes in the Gospels (e.g. Matt. 5:1; Mark
3:13), and raises the question whether there was a particular mountain which
Jesus and His immediate followers familiarly knew as ‘the’ mountain.” Leon

Morris, The GospelAccording to John (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans
Publishing Co., 1971), p. 342.
26 Morris (p. 343)points out that Philip is the logicalone to ask, since his
home town is Bethsaida (John 1:44).
27 See Matthew 14:21.
28 “The ‘small fish’ (opsaria)are probably pickled fish to be eatenas a side
dish with the small cakes(scarcely‘loaves’)ofbarley bread …” Carson, p.
270.
29 Matthew, Luke, and John mention only taking up the portions of bread;
only Mark mentions the fish (Mark 6:43).
30 There are some pathetic efforts to explain this miracle away, so that it is no
miracle at all. One “explanation” is that Jesus usedthe lad’s contribution to
shame the rest of the crowdinto sharing the food they brought with them.
Another is that Jesus gives the crowda symbolic meal, something like
communion. If this is the case, how canJohn tell us they are all satisfied?
31 It is clearfrom the other Gospels thatJesus healedmany on this occasion.
32 It is at this point in Matthew’s accountthat Peter walks onwater—
momentarily (see Matthew 14:28-30).
33 There are different ways of understanding verse 21, but I see this as
another miracle. I believe this miracle took place because Jesus neededto be
on shore before daylight, when His arrival would be noted by all who looked
out on the sea.
34 David’s sin with Bathsheba resultedin a marriage from which Solomon
was later born. David’s foolish actof numbering the Israelites resultedin the
purchase of the land on which the temple was later built. The jealous actof
Joseph’s brothers was used of God to “save” Jacoband his family, to prosper
them in Egypt, and to prepare them to possessthe promised land.
DAVE GUZIK
Jesus walks onthe water.
1. (16-17)The disciples go out on the Sea of Galilee.

Now when evening came, His disciples went down to the sea, gotinto the boat,
and went over the sea toward Capernaum. And it was already dark, and Jesus
had not come to them.
a. His disciples went down to the sea, gotinto the boat: Matthew and Mark
tell us that Jesus made His disciples getinto the boat (Mark 6:45). They set off
across the Sea of Galilee because Jesus told them to do it.
i. “According to Mark 6:45, Jesus ‘compelled’(anankazo)his disciples to
embark and go back across the lake;perhaps he saw that they were being
infected with the crowd’s excitement.” (Bruce)
b. It was alreadydark: Severalof the disciples were fishermen, all accustomed
to fishing on this very lake. When they gotinto the boat, the thought of rowing
across the lake at night did not concernthem.
c. Jesus had not come to them: This actually was the secondtime Jesus dealt
with His disciples on a stormy Sea of Galilee. In the first storm (Matthew
8:24), Jesus was presentwith them in the boat and He rebuked and calmed
the storm. In this storm Jesus askedHis disciples to trust His unseen care and
concernfor them.
2. (18)The wind disrupts their efforts to cross the Sea.
Then the sea arose because a greatwind was blowing.
a. Then the sea arose:The wind alone was bad enough, but the wind also
whipped up the waters, making for troublesome seas.
b. A greatwind was blowing: The Sea of Galilee was and is well known for its
sudden, violent wind storms that quickly make the lake dangerous.
i. “The Sea of Galilee is six hundred feet below sea level, in a cuplike
depressionamong the hills. When the sun sets, the air cools;and as the cooler
air from the westrushes down over the hillside, the resultant wind churns the
lake. Since the disciples were rowing toward Capernaum, they were heading
into the wind; consequently, they made little progress.”(Tenney)
3. (19)Jesus comes to His disciples, walking on the water.
So when they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on
the sea and drawing near the boat; and they were afraid.
a. When they had rowedabout three or four miles: In the first storm upon the
Sea of Galilee the disciples were terrified (Matthew 8:25-26). In the beginning
of the secondstorm they were more frustrated than afraid. Jesus told them to
row across the lake and despite their hard work, they seemedto make little
progress.

i. Matthew 14:25 this this happened in the fourth watch of the night, sometime
betweenthree and six in the morning. So, they rowedhard for perhaps six to
eight hours, and had only come a little more than half wayacross the lake
(three or four miles).
ii. They were in this place of frustration at the will of Jesus, doing exactly
what He told them to do. Additionally, Mark 6:48 says that Jesus watchedthe
disciples as they rowed across the lake. His eye was on them all the time. They
were in the will of Jesus and watchedby Jesus, yet working hard in
frustration all the time.
iii. “Up on the hillside Jesus had prayed and communed with God; as he set
out the silver moon had made the scene almostlike the daylight; and down on
the lake he could see the boat with the rowers toiling at the oars…He had not
forgotten. He was not too busy with God to think of them.” (Barclay)
iv. “He is on the mountain while we are on the sea. The stable eternity of the
Heavens holds Him; we are tossedonthe restless mutability of time, over
which we toil at His command.” (Maclaren)
b. They saw Jesus walking onthe sea… and they were afraid: Mark 6:49-50
says the disciples were afraid because they thought Jesus, walking onthe
water, was a ghostor a spirit.
i. Mark “adds the remarkable detail that Jesus ‘meant to pass-by them’ i.e.
overtaking, as though He had wishedthat the mere vision of Himself should
prove sufficient support and assurance to them.” (Trench)
ii. The disciples were not ready for any kind of supernatural help. They knew
what Jesus commanded them to do and they setout to do it – but without any
direct help from Jesus. So they were surprised and afraid to see supernatural
help coming to them.
iii. Jesus also gave them reasons and reminders to trust His supernatural help.
Undoubtedly, they took with them at leastsome of the twelve baskets of
leftover bread (John 6:13), yet they were still shockedwhen the supernatural
help came to them on the sea.
4. (20)The calming words of Jesus.
But He said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.”
a. It is I: For Jesus, it was enoughto announce His presence. He was with His
disciples and would meet them in their frustration and fear.

i. “There are places in this Gospelwhere the words ego eimi have the nature
of a divine designation(as we shall see on 8:24, 28), but here they simply mean
‘It is I’.” (Bruce)
b. Do not be afraid: Jesus came to bring supernatural help and comfort to His
disciples. His presence gave them what they needed, even though He came in
an unexpected way.
i. We know from Matthew 14:28-32 that after this Peter askedJesus ifhe
could come out and walk on the waterand Peterdid walk on the water – for
short time.
5. (21)Jesus brings them to their destination.
Then they willingly receivedHim into the boat, and immediately the boat was
at the land where they were going.
a. Then they willingly receivedHim into the boat: The implication was that
Jesus would not come unless He was willingly received. Even walking on the
Sea of Galilee, Jesus waitedto be welcomedby His disciples.
b. Immediately the boat was at the land where they were going: When they
hadwillingly receivedHim into the boat, the miraculous happened. This was a
remarkable miracle. The work that was so frustrating a few moments before
suddenly was divinely accomplished.
i. “Fromthis detail given by John it is inferred that the ship seemedto move
automatically, without sail or oar, in obedience to His will: so that without
effort of the disciples or crew it quickly passedover the remaining distance
(two miles or so) and came to shore.” (Trench)
ii. One could saythat Jesus rescuedHis disciples from frustration and futility.
Jesus wants us to work hard; but He never wants us to work in futility. Their
work had not been a waste, but it waited for the touch of divine powerand
presence.
c. Immediately the boat was at the land where they were going: Such a
remarkable miracle was helpful for the disciples, especiallybecause Jesus had
just refused an offer to be recognizedas a King Messiah. This assuredthem
that He was full of divine power even though He did not claim a throne
according to popular expectationand opinion.
i. “How far they were from the place at which they landed, when our Lord
came to them, we know not. But the evangelistseems to speak oftheir sudden
arrival there as extraordinary and miraculous.” (Clarke)

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