Insight and understanding
Late that night, the disciples were in their boat in the middle of the lake, and Jesus was alone on land. He saw that they were in serious trouble, rowing hard and struggling against the wind and waves. About three o’clock in the morning Jesus came toward them, walking on the water. He intended to go past them, but when they saw him walking on the water, they cried out in terror, thinking he was a ghost. They were all terrified when they saw him. But Jesus spoke to them at once. “Don’t be afraid,” he said. “Take courage! I am here!” Then he climbed into the boat, and the wind stopped. They were totally amazed, for they still didn’t understand the significance of the miracle of the loaves. Their hearts were too hard to take it in. Mark 6:47-52
Some people go through life with their eyes closed. Eyes are wide open but don't really "see." They can only see what is in the surface but overlook the underneath. They focus on images but not on deeper issues. Vision seemed to be present but not depth in perception. If life is a journey, they would notice the road but not the majestic, breathtaking scenery. When we are not growing in our insight or understanding, we can suddenly reduce life to just mere existence with recurring sparks of boredom and meaninglessness. From the text, the disciples just experienced a great miracle where at least five thousand people were fed with few amount of loaves of bread and fish. The people tried to seize Jesus and make Him their king. They had seen miracle after miracle, but none like this. But it was not the time yet for He has not undergone crucifixion. So to defuse the situation, He told the disciples to go in a boat and head across the lake to Bethsaida while He stayed in a nearby mountain to pray. Then, the disciples struggled with the oars for they were facing strong wind and waves. They were filled with fear and Jesus seeing this He came to their rescue. He calmed the sea as He stilled the wind and waves and reassured them that there was no reason to panic. Then, Mark made this comment; “they still didn’t understand the significance of the miracle of the loaves. Their hearts were too hard to take it in.” They did not understand for they chose not to understand the significance of the miracles they previously witnessed. Had they applied what they had observed Jesus was doing, they could have expressed their trust in Him when they were facing the strong wind and waves. Same thing could happen to us when we become dull in our spiritual hearing (see Hebrews 5:11). We could log in hours of reading His word and yet come out unable to apply spiritual truths because we lack insight. Discernment between good and evil is brought upon by having trained senses. Spiritual growth and maturity are results of mixing understanding with application of God’s truth in life.
Blessings,
