Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.

Now when evening came, the boat was in the middle of the sea; and He was alone on the land. Then He saw them straining at rowing, for the wind was against them. Now about the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea, and would have passed them by. And when they saw Him walking on the sea, they supposed it was a ghost, and cried out; for they all saw Him and were troubled. But immediately He talked with them and said to them, "Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid." Then He went up into the boat to them, and the wind ceased. And they were greatly amazed in themselves beyond measure, and marveled. For they had not understood about the loaves, because their heart was hardened.

When they had crossed over, they came to the land of Gennesaret and anchored there. And when they came out of the boat, immediately the people recognized Him, ran through that whole surrounding region, and began to carry about on beds those who were sick to wherever they heard He was. Wherever He entered, into villages, cities, or the country, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged Him that they might just touch the hem of His garment. And as many as touched Him were made well.

- Mark 6:47-56

Yesterday, we read about the feeding of the five thousand. The apostles have just returned from their first missionary journeys, having been sent out two-by-two by Jesus. They wish to report to Him, but such is Jesus' fame that there is not even time to eat. Jesus calls them away to rest in a deserted place; they get into a boat but the crowd anticipates where they are going. The multitudes arrive before Jesus and the disciples do! Jesus finds these people are "like sheep without a shepherd." He has compassion on them and begins to teach them; as the day draws to a close, they are all still in this deserted place, without food. Jesus tells His disciples, "You give them something to eat" -- and from the five loaves and two fishes they are able to gather, all are fed. Jesus then sends His disciples back across the Sea of Galilee, while He goes to the mountain alone to pray. See You give them something to eat - like sheep without a shepherd.

Now when evening came, the boat was in the middle of the sea; and He was alone on the land. We remember from yesterday's reading that, after feeding the five thousand in the wilderness, Jesus sent away His disciples to Bethsaida, across the Sea of Galilee. Jesus Himself goes "to the mountain" to pray. At the beginning of yesterday's reading, Jesus had intended to take His disciples away from the crowds, for rest and prayer, but the multitudes followed them, anticipating where they were going. So, we understand that Jesus has finally withdrawn Himself for the prayer He needs. And here is our setting - it is late, the apostles are in a boat in the middle of the sea, and Jesus is alone on the land.

Then He saw them straining at rowing, for the wind was against them. How does Jesus see them in the middle of the sea? We don't know. Perhaps there is a view from the mountaintop. But it is night, it is dark. The wind is against the apostles and they are struggling - even with seasoned fishermen aboard, used to working the Sea of Galilee, they are straining. How does Jesus know?

Now about the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea, and would have passed them by. The fourth watch of the night is very early morning, before dawn. "Would have passed them by," according to the Oxford Annotated Bible, describes the way in which Jesus appeared to His disciples. So we get a very strange picture here, wind and waves creating struggling and straining. It is the middle of the night - the early morning hours, past 3:00 A.M. The disciples are now the ones "like sheep without a shepherd" - straining at rowing their boat in the darkness, with the wind against them. And then there is this picture of Jesus striding on the water, as if He "would have passed them by." Seemingly out for a stroll, this picture of Jesus walking on the water gives us His attitude encountered by the disciples.

And when they saw Him walking on the sea, they supposed it was a ghost, and cried out; for they all saw Him and were troubled. But immediately He talked with them and said to them, "Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid." "It is I" is the declaration of God to Moses. My study bible says, "It is I, literally 'I am' (Gr. ego eimi), especially used in the Gospel of John, is Jesus' own testimony to His deity. It reflects God's name as revealed to Moses at the burning bush (Ex. 3:14). Only God is self-existent, uncreated, the only being whose existence depends on no other but Himself; therefore He alone can truly say, 'I am.'" "Do not be afraid" should always be our understanding of the faith that accompanies this presence to us. Over and over again, we will come to understand fear as the enemy of faith, of God's love and trust in our mutual relationship.

Then He went up into the boat to them, and the wind ceased. And they were greatly amazed in themselves beyond measure, and marveled. For they had not understood about the loaves, because their heart was hardened. Once He is with them again, the wind that blows their fears ceases. Perhaps one of the most interesting things about this reading is this note included by Mark, about the disciples' hardness of heart. What were they thinking with the multiplication of the loaves and fishes? Are they so busy and struggling with their work of discipleship that it was an afterthought, a detail that escaped their attention? Or perhaps it was just too significant to consider, because at this stage in the Gospel Jesus' divinity has not been disclosed to them. It is such a potent secret! Rather, its revelation and understanding must come by faith - and that is consistent with all the gospels. My study bible says, "The knowledge of Christ is a matter of the heart. When our hearts are illumined by God, they become the seat of divine presence, grace and knowledge. In all the ascetic writings of the Orthodox Church, the heart is known as the 'seat of knowledge.'" Clearly we have a gradual recognition of what is going on, through the revelation of divine qualities or attributes of God: power to heal, authority over demons, the earlier "rebuke" of the wind and waves, the abundance in the multiplication of the loaves and fishes, and now the capacity for defying the laws of physics or gravity in walking on the water. This extraordinary act opens their eyes to what has been before them, that they could not perceive.

When they had crossed over, they came to the land of Gennesaret and anchored there. And when they came out of the boat, immediately the people recognized Him, ran through that whole surrounding region, and began to carry about on beds those who were sick to wherever they heard He was. Wherever He entered, into villages, cities, or the country, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged Him that they might just touch the hem of His garment. And as many as touched Him were made well. When they cross over into Gentile territory, Jesus once again is the center of a tremendous frenzy of people searching for Him, seeking Him out. They bring to Him all who are ill; such is His reputation that they seek even to touch merely the hem of his clothing, and with that touch they are made well. Jesus' powerful ministry is successful in all places, and He makes many Gentile conversions. In Gentile territory, the Messianic secret does not have the power to inflame and divide that it does among the Jews and the prevalent expectations in the culture, and there is a different dynamic appeal at work.

This is a story about faith, and how it works, and even how and when it doesn't. In Gentile territory, the crowds pursue Him and are healed in great numbers; but His own disciples did not as yet understand His divinity, even after the multiplication of the loaves and fishes. It's a story about perception, and how we understand. Where hearts are hardened, even the most extraordinary events may go unnoticed. It is astounding what we may have blinkers on to avoid, to not see - while those outside a situation may understand very well. Jesus' own hand-picked disciples had their hearts hardened to understanding about the loaves and the fishes, and are slow to come to realize His divinity, the great Messianic secret that Jesus will not allow to be publicly divulged in Jewish territory. But alone, on the water, in the darkness, He comes to them in a time of struggle and fear - and we are told that He saw their struggle. He is the gentle friend who is there for them, to dispel their fears, as He is with us in our own darkest nights. We recall the words of one of the greatest of American writers, F. Scott Fitzgerald, perhaps inspired by this passage amidst his own life struggles: "In the real dark night of the soul, it is always three o'clock in the morning, day after day." Let us remember that He sees what we don't, and that we cannot set limits on the power of the divine or the holy in our lives. The story of faith is one of revelation, of opening our eyes to the things we don't know and don't understand by ourselves. It's a story of how our hearts need to be opened. And how our fears need to part way to hear the "I am." In the darkness, in the night, in our struggles, He is there with I am; but we need to open our hearts to know it. Even in the midst of our struggles, and our fears, the I am is there for us, and He sees us in our distress. Are we there for Him and for the faith and trust He has placed in us?