Title: In the Sea of Life
Contents
(Mark 6:45-52)
We are all crossing the sea of life. We carry this life in a small single-leaf piece and cross this blue empty sea. But crossing the sea of life is not romantic. The sea is the battlefield of life, the battlefield where life and death are staked. If you succeed, you live; if you don't, you lose your life. Many people lose precious lives in these seas. Many people suffer from motion sickness in this sea. I believe that even a country is a ship that crosses the sea of history. Today, this small boat called Free Korea is being caught up in strong winds blowing east, west, north, and south, and is shaking violently. I see it as a dangerous and urgent time indeed. In this context, the Word of God we read today gives us an invaluable lesson.
It was a great event that occurred when the disciples of Jesus were sailing across the sea to Bethsaida across the sea in the late evening, and this incident really teaches us a great lesson.
When the ship the disciples were in came to the middle of the sea, they encountered a great storm and suffered severe pain. Jesus, who was on land and was praying quietly, walked on the sea to the disciples and got into the boat, and the wind calmed. Here, we think that the situation of the disciples who met a storm in the middle of the sea and reached a critical point is the situation of us crossing the sea of life, and we want to examine the cause.
First, according to this Bible, Jesus is going to a quiet place to pray in the evening, but the disciples are boarding a boat and going to the other side. In the life of Jesus, time for prayer was very important, just as time for work was precious. Whenever there was a big event, Jesus first had a time of prayer before starting the work. He went out into the wilderness and began his public life by fasting and praying for 40 days, and prepared his final cross through the prayers of blood and sweat in the Garden of Gethsemane. In addition, he was not lazy at times to have time for prayer. Contrary to this Jesus, the disciples only knew that there was an urgent task to cross the sea, and they only thought about going across the boat in the middle of the night, but they did not realize that prayer was necessary for that task. This is thought to be the primary reason why the disciples met the great storm.
Today, our members say that they are too busy living life in this world, the purpose of any business, and because our church or members are so busy with social service and other social activities as a life movement of faith, they live their lives without prayer and go through this rough sea of life. Trying to cross over is a cause of great misfortune. A faith movement without prayer is like a car engine without gasoline, it cannot move and function. Prayer is not an accessory to the religious life, but rather a pillar of life and a source of power. We must bear in mind the fact that, personally, ecclesially, and nationally, when we try to embark on a life voyage without preparation for prayer, we always face storms.
Second, the reason this ship was in great danger was the fact that only the disciples left without Jesus. Just as the disciples who do not have Jesus at the center are really just a bunch of things, a church that does not have Christ at the center is nothing. It is really reckless to live your life without having Christ in your heart. The life of a non-religious person is truly a life of self-destruction, and even a religious person who cannot live with Christ and His Word always in their hearts will lead to great misery. Perhaps many of the church members know well how many times in my life a single piece of boat would have been sunk in this sea if I had lived without Christ. It is very important to have Christ in your home, to have Christ in your business, and to have the Lord on board this nation-state.
Sometimes when I take a taxi, I see a picture of a girl praying in front of the driver. So I'm hoping to be the chauffeur with Christ in that car. However, not only car drivers live a dangerous day, but we are all living life's dangerous moments day by day. I hope that I can always have our Lord on the throne of my heart.
Thirdly, the reason that the disciples were greatly threatened in this sea was that they tried to row only with their own experience, skill and strength, although it was painful and difficult to row due to a strong wind. Of course, the disciples were from sailors who were familiar with the sea, and they were first-class craftsmen in rowing ships. However, if you try to overcome the great winds in this rough sea of life, you must know that human skills and abilities alone cannot overcome it. In 1 John, the power of victory over this world is only faith (1 John 5:4).
Sometimes, when a wind of great trials blows before us or when a big problem comes, we often try to solve it with our own strength and wisdom. We need to get rid of this savagery. Man must not forget that even though the trial is natural, it is impossible without Christ to overcome it. The fact that human beings today are trembling with anxiety despite the extreme exploitation of nature and the amount of money they freely collect is evidence that without Christ there is no solution and no peace of mind. When you face trials and trials, I want you to seek Christ first before blaming anyone or blaming the times. May you trust in the power of Christ and find the wisdom of the Lord. Effort without Christ only adds to suffering; toil without Christ only adds to sorrow.
Fourth, we look at the action Jesus took when he reached a dangerous point on the sea. It is a fact that Jesus came to visit the disciples personally, knowing that they were suffering from the storm at sea, even at the time he was praying. Jesus comes to us from afar, not indifferent, when we are struggling with trials that we cannot solve on our own. We should not think that our Lord is far from our side. Sometimes, even when we are far away from Jesus, we need to know that Jesus is with us and not far from us. Here, we come to know the love of God, and we come to know that I am the one who cannot leave Jesus.
Fifth, Jesus is the one who walks on the sea. He is the One who treads all nature under his feet. There are times when we think that Jesus only cares about the problem of the human soul and that all the problems that occur naturally in human life can only be solved by the power and wisdom of people, but that is a very wrong idea. We must know that our Lord is in his hands not only for the fate of man and for the life and death of the spirit, but also for the management, development and good use of all nature. In other words, it is the fact that Christ himself is the pilot of the laws of nature. He is the One who makes us prosperous and makes us miserable, who causes famine and produces abundance. Christ has the power to resurrect even the natural body of man on the last day. Therefore, we must ask Christ for our daily life, and we must rely on his intervention, guidance, and help, who is able to fulfill the supplications and requests of his chosen children.
Finally, Jesus said, "Take heart, it is me, do not be afraid" (Mark 7:50), and he got into a boat swaying violently in a raging storm and calmed the sea. That's what you showed. We want to cross the sea of life, but with peace of mind and without fear. May this little boat of ours be victorious in the stormy seas of life. We hope that we will be able to take Jesus, who comes to our side, in our boat, and vigorously paddle the boat of this life with him.