Mark, Media, Sermons | by Pastor Adam Sinnett

Today in Mark 6:45-56, we see another one of Jesus’ most famous miracles: walking on water. One of the challenging aspects of talking about Jesus in our cultural context is that, in America, we have largely become overly familiar with him, which can subtly steal our awe and astonishment. This is one reason we’re going through a prolonged study of Jesus’ life and work – to stoke the awe of some, while helping others get their awe back and still others to experience it for the first time. Mark writes to capture our attention. It can be hard to trust someone you don’t know, so he goes to great lengths to clarify exactly who Jesus is, what he is like, what he came to do and why it all matters. He wants us to see Jesus for exactly who he is, as that is key to understanding the world’s history and our own.

Mark, Media, Sermons | by Pastor Adam Sinnett

Today in Mark 6:30-44, we reach one of Jesus’ best known miracles: the feeding of the 5,000. This particular miracle had such an impact that its one of the only miracles that each of the Gospels record and in many ways, this miracle is the grand finale of Jesus’ public ministry in Galilee. In our passage today, Mark is unmistakably helping us see that Jesus is a revolutionary good shepherd – and that changes everything about everything.

Mark, Media, Sermons | by Pastor Adam Sinnett

Mark is making it clear that unbelief, rejection, and hostility are the context in which Jesus’ mission advances. We forget how helpful this would have been to Mark’s first readers in Rome as they underwent their own persecution. Today, in Mark 6:7-30, we get insight into the basic anatomy of Jesus’ mission – and our role in it. Up until now the disciples have been extras and bystanders, but that is all about to change.

Mark, Media, Sermons | by Pastor Adam Sinnett

In Mark 6:1-6 we see Jesus as the subject of both radical belief and radical rejection. Not just a product of a modern mindset, the message of Jesus has always been offensive to some. If we are to truly understand, however, who Jesus is, then we must confront His offensiveness and wrestle with our own unbelief.