Mark 6:45-51

Still Winds and Hard Hearts

Devotional 32 of 50 · Mark chapter 6

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After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb. Suddenly there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, rolled away the stone, and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards trembled in fear of him and became like dead men. But the angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; He has risen, just as He said! Come, see the place where He lay. Then go quickly and tell His disciples, ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see Him.’ See, I have told you.” So they hurried away from the tomb in fear and great joy, and ran to tell His disciples. Suddenly Jesus met them and said, “Greetings!” They came to Him, grasped

Mark 6:45-51 · BSB

⁴⁵Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of Him to Bethsaida, while He dismissed the crowd. ⁴⁶After bidding them farewell, He went up on the mountain to pray. ⁴⁷When evening came, the boat was in the middle of the sea, and Jesus was alone on land. ⁴⁸He could see that the disciples were straining to row, because the wind was against them. About the fourth watch of the night, Jesus went out to them, walking on the sea. He intended to pass by them, ⁴⁹but when they saw Him walking on the sea, they cried out, thinking He was a ghost— ⁵⁰for they all saw Him and were terrified. But Jesus spoke up at once: “Take courage! It is I. Do not be afraid.” ⁵¹Then He climbed into the boat with them, and the wind died down. And the disciples were utterly astounded,

Jesus

The disciples were able to heal and cast out demons. The miracle of walking on water is completely unique to Christ. He actually walked on the water; the original language gives no wiggle room to interpret it otherwise. Jesus was demonstrating His authority over the natural order—the very laws of creation that bind all of us.

This scene begins with Him sending the disciples ahead so that He could dismiss the crowds and get some time to pray on the mountain. After praying, Jesus saw them struggling in the wind and came to them, walking on the water.

Oddly enough, these verses reveal that Jesus intended to pass by them. Why would He do this? Some connect this event to the Old Testament, where the glory of God passed by Moses. Jesus may have wanted to reveal His glory to them in a powerful and unmistakable way.

When they saw Him, instead of praising Him and beholding His glory, they were terrified. Instead of recognizing this as a divine sign, they thought they were seeing a ghost. Maybe this is why Jesus didn’t pass by them, showing even more of His glory. He needed to reveal the truth: they were not seeing a ghost, but encountering something far more real, glorious, and awe-inspiring.

Jesus then commanded them to “take courage!” and let them know, “It is I. Do not be afraid.” The very moment He stepped into the boat, the wind died down. We saw Him calm the storm with His words, and now we see Him stop the wind without a word or gesture, just His presence. Without a word or command, the wind obeys His presence—an awe-filled silence that testifies to His divine authority.

His Desires

Jesus desires time for rest and renewal, yet He faithfully ministers to those who seek Him. He also sends people away when the time is right to ensure He has this time to be alone with the Father. We will be blessed when we follow His example by withdrawing from the crowd to spend focused time in prayer.

The disciples see Him, and Jesus reveals what He desires of them: to take courage and not be afraid. He then climbs into the boat, and the winds are still. He does not want us to be afraid of catastrophe. There is no force in nature stronger than its Creator. So we must not fear, even when faced with imminent peril, but trust in the Maker of this world and the One who rescues from death.

Unfortunately, the disciples’ hearts become hardened. When Jesus really shows off His glory, people’s hearts can be hardened because they do not understand. Many ask, “Why doesn’t God just show up in full splendor and display His glory—then all would know and follow Him?” Yet here we see: if His glory is revealed in greater measures, hearts are hardened when they cannot comprehend it.

Like the hard soil in Jesus’ parable, their hearts could not receive the deeper revelation of who He truly was because they expected a conquering Rabbi, not the Lord of creation. Jesus desires that we see Him in all His glory as He truly is, not what we want Him to be.

Follow Through

Find times to be alone and pray.
Take courage and trust in Christ.
Seek to see and know Jesus as He really is.

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