A large number of people followed Him (Mk 3:7-12)
You are the Son of God ... This sentence is a key word for me - in today's meditation. The unclean spirits know perfectly well who Jesus is. They know He has power, that is why they fall before Him. We also read in this Gospel passage: He had cured many and, as a result, those who had diseases were pressing upon him to touch him. Jesus appears today as the one who heals and casts out demons. We also read: a great multitude of people from Galilee followed him. And from Judea, from Jerusalem, from Idumea and beyond the Jordan, and from around Tire and Sidon, great multitudes came to him when they heard news of his great deeds.
The crowds follow Jesus and even when Jesus moves away because he needs a moment of privacy and to bring order to those who came to Him for healing. Many people follow Him. So, he ordered his disciples to keep the boat ready for him because of the crowd, so that they would not crowd him.
What is so important in this passage? Above all, the fact that Jesus has all full authority and power. He can heal and release. Nothing is impossible for Him. We can, like this crowd go to Him and He will help, heal. Today we also find out that miracles are performed through him. It is His Name that has the power to mend all what is weak and sick in our lives. If we invoke the Name of Jesus, let us be sure that even the greatest sorrows will be dispelled. All we need is our faith ... And the belief that Jesus is the true Son of God.
Boat
The remark about the boat that Jesus wanted to have always ready is very interesting. In this way, he wanted to be able to somehow protecthimself against the pressing crowd, to have a tool to bring order to those who came to Him for healing. Rather, he did not want to run away from them, as he did not want the chaos of human needs and desires to disrupt His activities.
Good must be in order, otherwise it will not work and may even harm.It is hardly surprising that whoever heard about Jesus immediately went to meet Him. It is perfectly normal that people want a change in life, a healing, a little sense from the One who has been said so much good. It was hard to expect that the people will walk politely and in military order. After all, everyone had a vital interest in Jesus and wanted it to settle. That is why they crowded around him in chaos. Everyone wanted to be as close as possible, to get as much as possible for themselves, to taste as much as possible. We must add the effects described by crowd psychology. And the problem began. Because in such a situation it was difficult to help anyone. The meeting with Jesus began to turn into a struggle with others who wanted to touch Him. That is why Jesus asked for a boat.
Thanks to this, at any moment he could move away from the crowd and reorganize the situation, control people, give them a chance. When helping another person, it is extremely important not to let their emotions dominate you, lest the tangle of thoughts and fears take over the control of the situation. It is important to be able to step back a bit, otherwise it will not be possible to solve any situation. This is not an expression of a lack of empathy at all. If we want to help someone in God's name, we must remember that God's action is to clear up disorder. This is how it was at the beginning, when "the earth was chaotic and desolate". God introduces order by arranging its individual areas day by day. Jesus repeats this creative action by bringing order to the tangled lives of the people who came to him.
It is not easy to help wisely. It is not easy to step aside a bit when we want to show compassion. Jesus teaches wise and reasonable goodness. If we do not know how to get in the boat and move back a bit, we will be consumed by someone else's internal chaos. The boat must always be on standby, otherwise, instead of beautiful help, a beautiful disaster awaits us.
Until Tomorrow
fr. george