Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side to Bethsaida, while He Himself was sending the crowd away. After bidding them farewell, He left for the mountain to pray.
When it was evening, the boat was in the middle of the sea, and He was alone on the land. Seeing them straining at the oars, for the wind was against them, at about the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea; and He intended to pass by them. But when they saw Him walking on the sea, they supposed that it was a ghost, and cried out; for they all saw Him and were terrified. But immediately He spoke with them and *said to them, “Take courage; it is I, do not be afraid.” Mark 6:45-50
What is quite remarkable in this reading from Mark’s Gospel is that Jesus’ apparent destination and purpose was not joining his disciples in the boat. His intention, rather, was to go on ahead of them to the other side of the lake. Jesus has a purpose that is greater than ours. We want Him to ratify and bless what we are doing. We want Him to join us in a sinking boat. And often He does out of compassion. But His plans and purposes are much greater then ours and time is running out.
Jesus is more interested in His true disciples joining Him rather than His joining of them.
They were on the road going up to Jerusalem, and Jesus was walking on ahead of them; and they were amazed, and those who followed were fearful. And again He took the twelve aside and began to tell them what was going to happen to Him. Mark 10:32
If true revival is to be consummated in America then the American Church must join Jesus and not the other way around. Are we ready to follow Jesus. Are we willing to get out of a sinking boat. Are we as interested in going on with Jesus to His destination as He is, or are we more interested in diverting Jesus for our own purposes?
What does it mean to go on beyond with Jesus? It means taking our minds off our circumstances and placing them on Christ alone. It means a willingness to give up all that we hold dear if it is holding us back from a faithful walk with our Lord. It means giving up denominational spirits. It means abandoning all programs. It means doing the very thing that Jesus is asking us to do that we do not want to do. It means trusting Jesus more than ourselves. It means forsaking the good for the God’s best. it means going from glory to glory without stopping and building a booth. It means going on up the mountain without even stopping to look at the pretty scenery down in the valley. And it means continually being before the Lord on our faces in prayer with a true hunger and thirst for righteousness.
