This is
the first of my three sermons on commitment, based on Mark 6:30-44. In this story,
we will look at the foundation, evidence, and reward of commitment. In this
sermon, we will be dealing with the foundation of commitment.
Mark
6:30-44 begins with the gathering of the twelve disciples and Jesus: “The apostles gathered around Jesus
and reported to him all they had done and taught” (Mark 6:30). The disciples just came
from their respective ministries. Earlier, Jesus sent the disciples in two with
the authority to cast out evil spirits, and that was precisely what they did (Mark 6:7, 12-23). With all these things Jesus and the
disciples had done, they were certainly very tired. After everything they have
done, and after telling their exciting victories to one another, their
adrenaline has finally run out, and they desired nothing else but to have a
good rest.
Unfortunately,
the tiring ministry of the disciples did not end in their travels. People were
still coming to them: “so many people
were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat” (Mark 6:31).
Well, people were still coming to Jesus, and since the disciples were with
Jesus, they were implicated in whatever Jesus experienced. They were already so
tired, and perhaps in their hearts they were wishing that these super annoying
people would leave them alone for a while. They were most certainly glad when
Jesus finally said: “Come with me by
yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest” and as the story unfolded, “they went away by themselves in a boat to a solitary place” (Mark 6:31-32).
The problem, however, was that the people were really so
passionate to be with Jesus that they did not want Him to leave them. The story
continues to narrate: “But many who saw them
leaving recognized them and ran on foot from all the towns and got there ahead
of them” (Mark 6:33). This verse is actually the crucial one in this
sermon. It is a very short sentence, summing up the event following the
departure of Jesus and the disciples. Perhaps Mark summarized the story and did
not go into the details in the interest of saving space, but there are actually
a lot of things going on in the verse. This verse actually reveals to us the
most important foundation of commitment: deep and intense longing for Jesus
Christ.
Let us unpack verse 33.
The verse says that “the people ran on foot from all the towns” (6:33)
in order to be where Jesus was going. According to tradition, the feeding of
the five thousand took place at Tabgha, and we can assume that Jesus and the
disciples were coming from Bethsaida, where Jesus had performed many miracles
in his early Galilean ministry. By going on foot, assuming that the people were
running along the shore of the sea, the people actually ran about 10-13
kilometers. (SM Megamall, from Tikling, is 10.4 kilometers.) Commentaries
indicate that Jesus and the disciples may have their boat cruising in the sight
of the people, which was why they were able to know where they were going. But
still, the fact remains that they run 10-13 kilometers. This is not an easy
feat to do. Even I do not have the capacity to run 10 kilometers.
Who are these runners? Imagine with me, and let us look at the
scene at a wide angle. There were many people. In fact, the story indicates at
the end that there was a total of five thousand men who were fed by Jesus
Christ. Let us assume that there were also five thousand women and five
thousand children. This means that a crowd approximately numbering fifteen
thousand was running 10 kilometers. This is an awesome fun run. That is a lot
of people. Imagine 15,000 people running from Tikling to SM Megamall.
Let us look at the crowd more closely. Let us take our cameras and
focus on some of the runners. I am sure there were children, youth, and adults
in the crowd. The adults were carrying their children. There were also pregnant
women. There were grandpas and grandmas. Also, because Jesus and the disciples
were known healers, there were probably sick people in the crowd. There were
blind, lame, and all sorts of bodily disfigured people. And so, like the four
men who lowered their friends through the roof (Matt 9:2-8; Mark 2:1-12; Luke
5:17-26), there were sick people being carried by their families or friends.
But if we zoom in our cameras and look at their faces, we will see
that amidst all the long distance they were running and amidst their physical limitations
and burdens, there was great eagerness for them to continue. Again, these
people ran 10 kilometers, whether running on their own or running with their
family members or running while carrying other people on their backs. Yes, they
have already run a long ways; but there is no hint of hesitation. Yes, they are
stretching their physical capacities; but there is no regret about what they
are doing. Yes, they are tired; but there is joy in their eyes. Yes, they are
suffering; but there is peace in their eyes. There is a strong conviction in
their eyes that this is the right thing to do. Their feet are now blistered,
but they still want to go on. Their bodies are sweating, but they still want to
go on. Their hands are cramped because of whatever they are carrying, but they
still want to go on. Their lungs are almost out of breath, but they still want
to go on. Their muscles are sore already, but they still want to go on. They
are running not on good roads but on sand, making it more difficult to run, but
they still want to go on. They are already inhaling dust and bad odor, but they
still want to go on. They are navigating through thorns and thistles and
shrubs, but they still want to go on.
There were a lot of difficulties and challenges in running after
Jesus Christ: physical, psychological, economic, but the people just went on
and on. There was still joy in their hearts.
We must ask the question: why are they still running? Because they
are passionate about Jesus. They are longing to be with Jesus. They only reason
for their continued and undying commitment to what they are doing is their
desire to be with Jesus Christ.
Have we
experienced being in love with someone that all we want to do is be with that
someone? And regardless of the hardships, difficulties, and challenges, we
still want to be with him or her. We will climb the highest mountain, swim the
widest ocean, walk the longest road, just to be with the one we love so much? No
matter what comes our ways, when we are so in love with what we are doing,
nothing can hinder us.
This is the foundation of commitment: love, passion, desire, and
longing for whatever or whoever we are committed to. This is found over and
over again in the examples of awesome people in the Bible. Noah was asked by
God to build a big ark because He said He would flood the whole earth. Noah
obeyed. I can imagine people laughing at him, taunting him to his face, maybe
even receiving criticisms from his own family and friends. And yet he continued
on doing what he was asked to do. He was committed to his calling (Gen
5:9-9:17). Moses remained committed to his calling as the leader of the
Israelites, despite the many grumblings and hardships he encountered at the
hands of his own people. Job’s commitment and faith to God was impeccable. He
loved God more than riches and his family. Even in economic, social, familial,
and physical difficulties, he remained in love with God. Paul loved Jesus
Christ so much that amidst all the persecution, hardship, beating, shipwrecks,
brutal assaults, rejection, and even imprisonment, he remained strong in the
faith, proclaiming the gospel everywhere. Jesus loved humanity so much that He
endured shame and even death. All along, He was thinking about us. Like these
exemplars, the crowd in our story deeply desired to be with Jesus, and nothing
can stop them from running after Him.
Mark says that “the people ran on foot from all the towns” (6:33).
We can perhaps imagine that the number of people from Bethsaida was three
thousand, but because they were running along the shore and across towns, they
attracted other people to run with them. This is one of the fruits of
commitment: when people see that we are passionate about something, people
begin to ask what is there? As a social
experiment, while walking on the street, just stop for a bit and begin to stare
at the sky. Just stay staring, and people will also stop and stare where you
are staring. Another social experiment: Talk passionately about how evil
someone is, and you will notice that your hearers will also begin to hate the
person you are talking about.
When we are excited about something, people will catch our vision
and passion about it. As a concrete example, when we are excited to go to
church and our neighbors see that, they are intrigued what is so important
about going to church. But when they see our lukewarm attitude on Sunday
morning, and they even hear us say something like--“Oh, I did not even realize
it is Sunday today. Oh man! I have to go to church!”—people around us will
definitely follow our emotions.
When people see our commitment, they too will catch our faith
virus.
Let us ask ourselves today: How is my love for God? Do I still
have that burning passion to be with Him, worship Him, and serve Him when I
first made the decision to follow Him? Or has the flame of my love slowly died
down because of the pressures of the world, of work, of family, of friends, or
of other competing desires?
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