“Resting for a Purpose” 2-20-22
Overview
Resting for a Purpose
In Mark 6, Jesus sends the Twelve out two by two with authority over unclean spirits, traveling light and depending wholly on God's provision. They proclaim repentance, cast out demons, and heal the sick. When they return, they gather around Jesus brimming with stories of what they had done and taught. It would have been the perfect moment to ride the wave of momentum and send them right back out. Instead, Jesus says, "Come away to a deserted place all by yourselves and rest a while" Mark 6:31.
This is a striking affirmation of rest in a culture that ties identity to productivity and treats stillness as laziness. God has always built rest into the rhythm of life—"Six days you shall labor… but the seventh day is a Sabbath" Exodus 34:21. The Greek phrase Jesus uses can be translated "by yourselves" or "for yourselves"—both are true. We withdraw from labor in order to be refreshed and rejuvenated for what comes next.
But where is the lonely place? When the disciples reach shore, a crowd is already waiting, and Jesus, moved with compassion because they were "like sheep without a shepherd" Mark 6:34, begins to teach. Soon He feeds five thousand from five loaves and two fish, and the disciples gather twelve baskets of fragments (Mark 6:35-44; cf. John 6:12). It's easy to miss the answer: the lonely place was the boat. There the disciples ceased from labor and were refreshed in the presence of Jesus alone. Notice, too, where the disciples' eyes went when faced with hungry crowds—on the obstacle ("two hundred denarii worth of bread") rather than on the Savior who has never had trouble setting a table, as He did with manna and quail in the wilderness Numbers 11.
One of the church's most ancient symbols is a ship embarked on the sea of life. As we worship together, we are in the boat with Jesus, and there is a refreshment available in worship that no amount of sleeping in can give us. We are renewed by the One who shed His blood to reconcile us, who claims us in baptism, who has gone to prepare a place for us, and who gives life abundant and eternal. Yet rest is not the destination—it is preparation. Soon the benediction is pronounced and we disembark onto a shore that is no longer lonely, full of people who need compassion, care, teaching, and the light of Christ. The church rests as she worships, but she rests with a purpose. Land ho—it is almost time to go ashore.
Transcript
Do you open your Bibles, please? 2s
With me, too, the Gospel of Mark the sixth chapter for our study today. 4s
Mark chapter six, as we continue to look at the action gospel, the gospel of Saint Mark. 9s
When we come to the sixth chapter of the Gospel of Mark, the disciples are sent out. 18s
Jesus has been teaching. 25s
Jesus has been modeling. 26s
And now he's going to send them out for specific ministry. 29s
Before we get to the text, let's look at the instructions that Jesus gives. 37s
So let's actually start in the sixth chapter, verse 7. 41s
He called the 12 and began to send them out to by two and gave them authority over the 48s
unclean spirits. 54s
He ordered them to take nothing for their journey except to staff. 56s
No bread, no bag, no money in their belts. 60s
But to wear sandals and not to put on two tunics. 63s
He said to them, wherever you enter a house, stay there until you leave the place. 67s
If any place will not welcome you and they refuse to hear you, 73s
as you leave, shake off the dust that is on your feet as a testimony against them. 77s
So before sending them out, then Jesus gives them authority. 84s
Tells them what to take and he also says, and this is what you do if you are rejected. 89s
Beking up then in verse 12. 97s
So they went out, proclaimed that all should repent. 99s
They cast out many demons, a noited with oil, many who were sick and cured them. 103s
And then comes the debrief. 110s
They return, verse 30. 117s
The apostles gathered around Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught. 121s
Can't you just see in your mind as I, 130s
gathering then back with Jesus and they are just brimming with excitement. 133s
One story merging into another. 140s
This is the perfect time, isn't it? 145s
It is the perfect time for Jesus to ride this wave of excitement to turn them quickly and to send them back out. 148s
But what does Jesus say? 163s
Verse 31. 166s
He said to them, come away to a deserted place or you can translate that a lonely place. 168s
Come away to a lonely place all by yourselves and rest a while. 178s
For many were coming and going and they had no leisure even to eat and they went away in the boat 185s
to a deserted place by themselves. 193s
It is a wonderful affirmation of the need for rest. 200s
As we live in a society, don't we? In which? 208s
Our identity is so often linked with production or rest is associated 212s
with laziness. It's wonderful, isn't it? 223s
That God says sit down, sit down before going back out. 229s
God certainly affirms the need for rest, Exodus 34th chapter. 241s
Six days you shall work. 247s
Oh, you shall work. But on the seventh day you shall rest. 249s
You shall rest. 256s
Back to what Jesus says, verse 31, come away to a deserted place 261s
all by yourselves and rest a while. 267s
That word by yourselves can also be translated for yourselves. 272s
You can translate it either way and the meaning is applicable either way, isn't it? 278s
To come away by yourself but to come away for yourself. In other words, to cease from the labor 284s
in order to be refreshed in order to rejuvenate. 292s
Come away by yourself. Come away for yourself and rest. 298s
That's why this can get a little confusing here, can't it? 314s
Because you have the call to rest and yet it seems. 319s
Like that call is quickly abandoned. 326s
Right? As last we left the disciples, they were in the boat. 333s
Verse 33, now many saw them going and recognized them and they hurried there on foot from all the 341s
towns and arrived ahead of them. 350s
Just a little backdrop here. Galilee is a relatively small place. It's only 50 miles north to 355s
south. It's only 25 miles east to west. And the Jewish historian, Josephus of the day said, 361s
of the 204 towns and villages there wasn't one that had less than 15,000 people in them. 370s
So this is a rather populated piece of landscape here, isn't it? And can't you? 378s
Can't you see in your minds I, the people there, running to where they know Jesus is going to land 383s
and running the eight miles to meet him? Verse 34. 393s
As you went to shore, he saw a great crowd and he had compassion for them because they were like 401s
sheep without his shepherd and he began to teach them many things. 408s
What happened to that rest? Bit there, right? 419s
Because Jesus just picks up where Jesus lives off. 424s
Just starts teaching and there's the crowd there. This crowd in the lonely place that is there. 428s
So the lonely place isn't too lonely. Is it? So what happened to the call to rest? 438s
Well, the story gets more complicated. Because now a concern is raised. Verse 35. 447s
When it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, this is a lonely place. 456s
And the hours now very late send them away so that they may go into the surrounding country 464s
and villages and buy something for themselves to eat. One wonders, don't you? 469s
Well, that's the motive here on the part of the disciples. Is the motive here? 479s
There's a lot of people here to minister too and we see where this is going. 487s
Is the motive that they're having a growl in the stomach themselves? 494s
What do we talk though? We're taught to put the best construction on things. 501s
Put the best construction on things. 508s
So since we're not told here, the reason why they said what they said, 513s
let's put the best construction on it that the disciples are legitimately concerned 518s
that these people are hungry and they're in a lonely place and it's getting late and they're not 524s
going to be able to get food. The best construction. Verse 37. 530s
But he answered them. You give them something to eat. 542s
They said, the Him are we to go and buy 200 denariai worth of bread and give it to them to eat. 550s
200 denariai is eight months worth of wages for the common worker in the day. That's a significant 558s
bit of money. And isn't it fascinating here that the disciples focus not on the Savior but on the 566s
obstacle? Can we relate to that? That when faced with the obstacle, our eyes bore into the obstacle 574s
instead of become fixed on the Savior? God has a track record of having no problem putting on a big 585s
meal, does he? There's no problem there for God. Number is tells us that he fed the people with 595s
money and then he fed the people with quail. God has no problem in addressing this issue. Verse 38. 602s
You said to them, how many loaves have you? Go and see. When they found out they said five and two 616s
fish, then the order of them to get all the people to sit down in groups on the green grass so they 622s
sat down in groups of 150s. Taking the five loaves in the two fish, he looked up to heaven and 629s
blessed and broke the loaves and gave them to his disciples to sit before the people and he 637s
invited the two fish among them all and all eight and were filled. Have you ever said, 643s
after a meal, I'm stuffed. That's what that word means. Satisfied is a more refined way of putting it in English. 656s
They were stuffed. They couldn't eat any more and all eight and were filled. They were stuffed. 670s
So here you are on this landscape. Not so lonely because you have this crowd that has come. 692s
Jesus is ministering, the disciples would be ministering and now there's more work here. 703s
Because the disciples here are instructed to pick up the fragments. Verse 32 again and all eight and were 712s
filled and they took up 12 baskets full full of broken pieces of the fish. Those who had eaten the loaves 722s
numbered five thousand men and we know who they are there because John tells us in John six. 729s
It says Jesus told his disciples, gather up the fragments left over so that nothing may be lost and so 739s
here's more work for the disciples to do. So now we're back to the whole original confusion here 748s
about this text. Whatever happened to the lonely place, whatever happened to that. 758s
Come away by yourselves and rest. Whatever happened to that rest. 769s
I was in seminary. I lived in Bachman Hall. I chose Bachman Hall for a reason. 786s
Bachman Hall was a multi-purpose place. You had the dorm rooms, you had some 797s
offices of professors, you had the mail room, you had the laundry room, you had to trek a little bit 806s
to get to the other whole stube hall. But I was told from people that had gone before you want Bachman. 813s
So signed up for Bachman and thankfully got it. One of the reasons why I chose Bachman 820s
is there was a underground tunnel that connected Bachman Hall to a good deal of the classes. 828s
In fact, you could get to the library through the tunnel. On those cold Minnesota days 839s
which for this guy from California was quite a learning experience and growth curve. 848s
I just basically just stayed put in Bachman Hall. Use the tunnel wearing short sleeves to the 856s
classes, whether it being 20 below outside. It was a room in Bachman Hall. You could very quickly pass it. 864s
It was a little prayer room held about 10 people max capacity. There was an altar there. 877s
They would change the pyramids there with regard to the season that you were in. 885s
It was a lovely, quiet place for small gatherings of worship. We're just popping in. 893s
At the beginning or during or at the close of a day. 902s
Reason why I mentioned that is with all the activity in Bachman Hall. It was easy to walk by 907s
this little room. It was easy to pass by without seeing. 918s
The closely at the text once again. The closely. Where was the lonely place? 930s
Because Jesus said, come away by yourselves to a lonely place and rest. 944s
Well, just as to forget those words, and just as we say, well, we've got other priorities right now. 955s
Where was the lonely place? 965s
It was in the boat. It wasn't it. It was in the boat. 970s
Because there they were refreshed. Physically there they could cease from the labor. 978s
There they could be refreshed spiritually by being with Jesus. Just them. 989s
Just them. 1001s
The lonely place? 1004s
It was the boat on the way over. 1008s
One of the ancient symbols in the life of the church for the church is a ship. 1016s
It's a boat. Artistically, sometimes just diagram the the church is conveyed. It's portrayed as a ship. 1025s
Embarked on the sea of life. The ship as we gather for worship. 1037s
As we worship together, online in person, we are refreshed 1050s
through worship. We're renewed through worship. 1065s
Beloved, you could sleep until noon if you can do that. You can sleep until noon on Saturdays 1072s
and Sundays and never be as refreshed as you are with the refreshment that comes from worship. 1083s
That is a whole level that sleep does not give you. 1101s
But as we worship, we are refreshed. The lonely place for refreshment for the disciples 1107s
was the boat. The refreshment for the church is the boat as the church worships. 1128s
Worships, the one who has died and rose for us. Worship the triune God, father, son and Holy Spirit. 1152s
Worship the Lord Jesus Christ who has shed His blood, reconciling us. Worship the one who has taken the wrath of God 1161s
for sin upon Himself. Worship the one who claims us in the waters of baptism. Worship the one 1170s
who has gone ahead to prepare a place for us. Worship the one who has given us life of 1178s
abundance and life eternal. Refreshment as the church worships. 1185s
There was the other lonely place, of course. The disciples referred to it. 1204s
It was the place that usually is deserted but no longer. 1210s
And as they disembarked from the boat, there were a host of people there with all kinds of needs. 1218s
It's people that needed compassion. It's people that needed to be loved. It's people that needed 1226s
to be taught. It's people that needed to be cared for. So having been in the lonely place of the boat, 1233s
now what was time for them to go ashore to that lonely place that wasn't so lonely anymore, 1244s
to minister, to minister. Not too long from now, we'll drop anchor. The benediction will be said, 1252s
and we'll disembark. On the immediate shore, our people here today 1270s
that need compassion and care and love and to be taught. And as we leave this place and go to 1282s
other reaches of the shore, there we're going to see people who need the same thing. They need a 1293s
a biblical word. They need a word of grace. They need to be taught. They need to be cared for. 1307s
They need the light of Christ in their life. We're going to disembark 1313s
and go to shore. So beloved, the church rests now, rests as we worship, 1322s
but we rest with a purpose. Why? Landhoe. Landhoe! And it's almost time to go shore. 1340s