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And He Saw

by Duane Huffstutler  
4/08/2012 / Devotionals

Mark 6:45-49 45 And straightway he constrained his disciples to get into the ship, and to go to the other side before unto Bethsaida, while he sent away the people. 46 And when he had sent them away, he departed into a mountain to pray. 47 And when even was come, the ship was in the midst of the sea, and he alone on the land. 48 And he saw them toiling in rowing; for the wind was contrary unto them: and about the fourth watch of the night he cometh unto them, walking upon the sea, and would have passed by them. 49 But when they saw him walking upon the sea, they supposed it had been a spirit, and cried out: (KJV)

Jesus had just finished performing a miracle of feeding 5000 men and who knows how many women and children, the general consensus was that there were many more people who sat on the hillside and ate that day listening to Jesus. He had told the disciples just what they were to do and didn't leave anything to chance. Jesus told them that they were to go to the other side of the Sea of Galilee. He didn't tell them that they were to go out into the middle of the sea and capsize the boat, nor did he tell them to go out to the middle of the sea and sink the boat. He told them to go to the other side.
Then Jesus went as he always did to pray. During the time of prayer Jesus revealed his inner most feelings to God and God told Jesus what he expected for the next day. I am also sure that Jesus prayed for his disciples and all of the other people who followed him, giving them all over to the work of the Holy Spirit.
When Jesus had finished talking to the Father he saw his disciples struggling with keeping the ship on track and going in the right direction. They didn't have auto pilot and a gps so they had to depend on their own skill to get from point A to point B. Since most of the 12 were fishermen they knew the sea and how to make it work for them. But this night they were tired and wore out from fighting the storm. They were worrying about the storm and Jesus not being there with them. They were sure that they were going to sink from the high waves and the wind. The disciples saw the storm and not much else. Their faith in the keeping power of Jesus Christ was very weak. So if Jesus was not with them then he had no control over what they were facing, or did he.
So when Jesus finished talking to the Father, what else did Jesus see? Being the fourth watch of the night the natural eye was not able to see a whole lot because the storm had blocked the moon. So Jesus being in the Spirit saw what no man could seeHe saw their obedience and fear. Fear will stand out anytime that there is a dangerous situation brought up or when one is all alone. Since there were at least 12 on the ship they were not alone, but they just knew that they were going to die.

When you talk to Jesus and he gives you a task to do, what does he see in you? Does he see your obedience or does he see the fear and disobedience. If I do this they are going to talk about me. They might even say that I am crazy or a fanatic and that would be terrible. They might call me names. There are places where they will beat you and may even kill you because you stand for Christ. There is coming a day when it will happen even in this country. And it may not be as far off as you may think. Take a look at the Apostle Paul; he counted it an honor to be persecuted for the cause of Christ.
We have had it so good that we think that we are supposed to be able to go through this life without any persecution or name calling and still be the honored of God. We have seen nothing of the trials and persecution that the Christians in this country are about to see. Are we going to stand for Christ when things get rough or are we going to turn our backs and go the easy road to save our own skin? We have to decide now before it gets bad, what we are going to do and get ready. When the times get hard then it will be easier to turn away from God than it will be to make our mind up then. We must dig in and get deeper in God than we ever dreamed now so that we will have the stamina that we will need then. If we turn our backs on God when things get rough there is no guarantee that we will be able to come back if we have the time to do it.
What are you going to do? Jesus is watching just as he was watching the disciples, what is he seeing in your storm? Are you trusting him to take you through it or are you afraid you are going to die, lost in the middle of the storm? Jesus Christ has promised that you will make it to the other side, you can trust him or you can be afraid, the choice is yours.

Duane L. Huffstutler, Written 2011, Faithwriters.com
Duane L. Huffstutler is the Sunday School Director at Oak Grove Pentecostal Ministries in Bonifay Florida. All scripture is from the King James Version (1611)

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