Mark 8:9-10
Greyhound
Bus! I don’t know if you have had the privilege of taking a long trip lately aboard
what used to be a stable of transportation, but perhaps you should. It isn’t as
fast as an airplane trip, although there isn’t as much waiting in security
lines! In most cases you will get much more legroom than in a plane. And you
will see portions of the country that you previously have not seen.
And
the people! You will find some wonderful people, young students traveling for a
far away job interview on a shoestring and a prayer, grandparents visiting
children and grand children, and the occasional person who served some time for
a misdeed and is now traveling to start over. All people for whom Jesus died.
Most
of us prefer to get where we are going as fast as possible. At least I do!
There are too many unexpected delays in life as it is. I want control!
Jesus
was a traveling man! And here He is wrapping up a crowd and getting into a
boat. So why did He use a boat to cross this body of water? It was the fastest
mode of travel to get from one side of the lake to the other.
Imagine
if you were Jesus. You gather a crowd everywhere you go. Even before you arrive
at your destination, crowds are gathering and waiting for you. When you work
the crowd people are reaching forward to touch you, hoping healing will flow to
them. And all you want to do is get to a small town on the other side of the
lake. Delays. Crowds. Interruptions. Sore feet. Uncomfortable sleeping accommodations.
And the food. He has to make it Himself, literally.
So
Jesus chooses to take a boat across rather than travel by foot around the lake.
I don’t blame Him. He is still trying to spend time with His disciples, time
that is rapidly coming to a close. And at every turn it seems that people get
in the way. Not that people are a problem for Jesus, but you know what I mean.
The crowds pull His attention and energy. He wants privacy, but people keep
talking about the miracles He is doing and His following keeps increasing.
So
why go to Dalmanutha? It was a very small town in that day, so small that we
still don’t have definitive proof about its location. In 2013 a probable site had
been found, but investigation still continues.
We
all make choices about transportation. Even Jesus did.