Ghosts in the Night ...

Little children fear the dark.  It is not the blackness so much as the unknown, what cannot be easily seen.  A stuffed animal in the light of day is a cuddly toy, but in the dark, is a silhouette of undetermined malice.  And let’s not even get started on clowns.  That makeup hides who-knows-what behind it.  But as unsettling as finding a clown in your room in the daytime might be, discovering one there at night might have you wondering where the next pair of clean underwear is waiting.  Perhaps the business truisms of transparency and visibility that offer benefit because they de-mystify and make things clear or easy-to-understand have an echo in life.  In life, a good dose of light seems to drive any monsters away (or at least the monsters that may still reside in our imagination).  Real monsters follow suit.  Thieves typically prefer the dark for their deeds.  So do those among us who would harm us; molesters, rapists, and killers.  In the light they may be caught.  If their victims shine a light on what they did, and who they are, they will surely get caught.  So for evil to prosper, it prefers the dark, to the light of day.

It would seem the supernatural bent on scaring us follows suit as well.  Witches practice rites at night.  Ghosts, or demonic manifestations of those known to be long dead, love to emerge at night.  Perhaps these traditions are handed down because the night makes it easier to scare us – whereas the full illumination of daylight would reveal trickery and raise the comfort level of those encountering these phenomena.  True supernatural manifestations do not actually require nighttime.  The devil is just as comfortable attempting to deceive in daylight as he is at night.  But the night does add an atmosphere of fear to it, that daylight somehow seems to miss.  When King Saul sought the witch to bring him a manifestation of the dead prophet Samuel, he went to her at night.  The demonic representation of Samuel, perhaps one of the earliest Biblical ghosts, appeared in the fire of that night, to bring Saul a message of his own doom.  Not exactly a happy ending.  And a story every Jewish believer would have become familiar with over the years.

Ironically perhaps one of the only events of “after death” that Pharisees and Sadducees could agree upon was - that ghost was not Samuel.  Both would agree it was a demonic manifestation attempting to impersonate Samuel, as neither side would believe God would allow His prophet to be called forth by any witch.  And demons were scattered all through Israel in the time of Christ.  The Sanhedrin should have been the religious leadership body capable of casting demons out; and keeping Israel fairly clean of them.  But this was not the case.  The Sanhedrin seemed unable to stop the plague of demon possession.  So it would be nearly impossible for a believing Jew to throw out the idea of ghosts, and still know that demons were scattered all through the lands of Israel despite an ultra-conservative Sanhedrin leadership.  And when night time arrived, anything supernatural is going to be immediately assumed to be part of team evil.  Even the angels who came to sing of Jesus’ birth had to say fear not, before they could praise the Lord in front the shepherds (watching their fields by night).

So Matthew begins to record his own tale of ghosts that scared him nearly half to death.  It begins after an incredible day of miracles, from healing, to feeding a crowd of 5000 men, plus women and children.  Matthew picks up in his gospel in chapter fourteen picking up in verse 22 saying … “And straightway Jesus constrained his disciples to get into a ship, and to go before him unto the other side, while he sent the multitudes away. [verse 23] And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone.”  This would not be a tale of willing participants.  Matthew uses the word “constrained” as he remembers how insistent Jesus was on the disciples getting in to this boat and heading to the other side of the Sea of Galilee.  It made no sense, again.  The Sea of Galilee is not exactly a small lake you can throw a stone across.  It is rather large.  Sailing across it takes a while with a good tail wind.  And it is much easier to sail than to try to hike around the edge of the Sea on foot.  How was Jesus going to catch up with them?  Was He saying goodbye?  Was this it?

Apart from just loving to be around Jesus (who wouldn’t), Matthew and his colleagues had real concerns for the safety of Jesus in this crowd, in this region, and his ability to rejoin them any time soon.  The disciples had no orders for what to do when they reached the other side.  What then?  Were they supposed to wait?  To minister?  To setup a fishing camp?  What?  This is why Jesus nearly had to force them to obey what He wanted.  Once they did, Jesus sent the multitude away, and went up a mountain to pray.  He was there alone.  Meanwhile Matthew records picking up in verse 24 saying … “But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary.”  Picture a microburst.  Picture a water spout.  Picture the terror of being on the middle of the Sea of Galilee with only a few accomplished fishermen, the rest were tradesmen of other crafts so pretty much useless in a Sea fairing crisis.  The storm that comes is fierce, perhaps fierce enough to interrupt the prayers of Jesus.  There was no Coast Guard, no rescue ships, nobody to save you.  If your boat filled up with water – you drowned.  This was not a casual bit of rain, it was a life and death struggle to survive, and it was being done at night, when it is far more difficult to see in highly reduced light (no moon, no stars, only thick clouds).

Matthew continues in verse 25 saying … “And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea. [verse 26] And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear.”  First thing to remember is the disciples had NO idea this was Jesus heading their way.  All they saw was a human form, that was a source of light, which would really stand out in the darkness all around them.  It was moving at incredible speeds.  Jesus was not moving at a snail’s pace, or taking the time it would take a normal person to walk the distance the disciples had already sailed before the storm kicked up.  That would take hours.  This was happening in minutes.  This form was moving across the waters at a great speed, and for every step it took, the waves were smoothing out like butter in front of it.  Only a ghost could do this, or a demon, bent on possessing one or all of them in that boat.  And they were terrified to a man.  Every one of them began screaming like a cackle of little girls.  Again this all happening in seconds and minutes.

Matthew continues in verse 27 saying … “But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.”  Now let’s take a second look at this from the perspective of Jesus.  He is alone atop a mountain in deep prayer with His Father.  This was not something new and unusual, this was a habit for Him.  It usually happened at night, because He did not want to deny His time with us during the day.  So when we were all tired and heading to bed, Jesus could not wait to get to talk to His Father.  He would climb the nearest hilltop to be as close as He could get, and begin His prayers.  So it was this night.  But something interrupts Him.  He can sense that the devil has begun a special attack on His crew out on the water, intending to kill them all while Jesus is busy in prayer.  The devil figures Jesus is too far away to help them, so they are doomed men.  But the devil is wrong.  Jesus stops praying and does something the devil does not count on.  He moves across land and sea as if on a hover board.  Each step He takes spans many feet in distance below Him.  And a journey that might have taken hours is now ending in only minutes, the storm losing strength as He nears the boat.

But Jesus finds His crew in terror, screaming at the top of their lungs at His approach.  He immediately slows His pace so that their fears do not rise any further.  He is close enough to speak out to them, but not close enough to enter their boat yet.  The storm persists at the boat.  And Jesus announces who He is.  He is lit up, so plainly visible to their eyes.  But all they see is a ghost they believe is a demon attempting to impersonate Him.  They need more proof it is really Him.  Matthew continues in verse 28 saying … “And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water. [verse 29] And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.”  Peter has an idea.  No demon or ghost will ever help them out, but Jesus would, so he asks to join Jesus on the water.

And it works.  Matthew continues in verse 30 saying … “But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. [verse 31] And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?”  Matthew is more generous than other gospels on this story.  Matthew attributes Peter’s doubt to the ferocity of the storm, but in truth there was more to it than that.  Other gospels record Peter turning around to look back at the others still in the boat, and immediately he sank.  Nonetheless Peter cries out to save him, as should we, ideally as do we – and the response of Jesus is, to immediately stretch out His hand, catch Peter, and save Him.  You will note, Jesus did not delay.  He did not chide Peter about being dumb, and tell Peter that he needs to do better, before Jesus is going to invest the time in saving him.  Peter does not need to complete the Lord’s prayer first.  Or read up first.  Or start attending Wednesday prayer meetings first.  There were no pre-requirements.  There was Peter crying out to be saved, and Jesus saving him without delay.  That is how it still works with us, no matter what your church, family, or friends might tell you.

How we respond to the love of God, as we learn to love Him, is a response to that incredible love.  It is not a pre-requisite to getting it.  Jesus simply reminds Peter that to focus on Him, would have kept that faith strong.  Asking Peter how he lost his faith, is a gentle way of showing Peter the error of looking away from Jesus, either to a storm, or to others.  The same holds true for us.  Looking at the crisis we face does nothing to make it better for us, but looking to Jesus will.  Looking to others in the church will do nothing to increase our faith, but looking to Jesus will.  Nature disappoints.  Humans disappoint.  But Jesus does not.  This lesson was not just meant for men who were still recovering from a deep terror they felt only moments before, it is for you and for me.

Matthew continues the epilogue in verse 32 saying … “And when they were come into the ship, the wind ceased. [verse 33] Then they that were in the ship came and worshipped him, saying, Of a truth thou art the Son of God.”  As if His identity could ever be in question again.  The disciples recognized Jesus as the Son of God.  But a few more subtleties for us to examine here.  First, as Jesus enters the boat, the entire storm is dissipated to nothing.  Game over Satan.  Satan, demons, and “ghosts” may be literally out to kill you; they were trying to kill Jesus’ first followers.  But Jesus wins those battles every time; we need only look to Him.  Nature obeys the will of Jesus, Jesus is not captivated by the will of Nature.  In addition, time and physics also bend to the will of Jesus.  His movement across and land and sea to reach His disciples did not end there.  Upon entering the boat, other gospels stated, the boat was “immediately” at the destination they were originally sailing for.  The hover effect continued, or time and space were folded, either way distance is no object for Jesus, then or now.

The disciples perhaps once feared the night, but no more.  They learned, as should we, that dark is not something Jesus cannot see through.  He can rescue us from the dark we embrace, save us the moment we call out to Him, and be with us when time and physics say it is impossible to reach the destinations He may have in mind.  From this moment on, I would bet the disciples longed to see a human form lit up at night, not fearing any ghost or demon, but instead hoping it would be Jesus once again.  When fear disappears, faith and hope can emerge.  No more shrieks of terror, instead shouts of joy and hosanna to fill that night air.  Were it me, I believe I would have collapsed at the feet of Jesus unable to move, like a two-year-old content to curl up under daddy’s chair.  I have great respect for the disciple’s ability to continue on in their journey with Jesus.  And continue on they did; the miracles were about to reveal even greater truth to them only moments away …

 

Rapid Transit & Potential ... (witness number elevent)

Rapid, unexplainable travel, was to the disciple John, yet another witness to the divinity of Christ.  In our last section, John discusses how Christ “removed” Himself from a crowd of 5000 men (plus women and children) who were intent on forcing Him to become their king after the feeding of this crowd.  Christ simply became unavailable to their intentions.  But how does one simply disappear in a crowd of that many witnesses united in a singular purpose (well meaning, but not in line with God’s will)?  To John this ability was a hallmark of the divinity of Christ.  But chapter six, does not end with this singular incident, it continues almost immediately with 2 more. 

Verse 16 picks up with a passage of time, presumably from lunchtime to evening perhaps dinner time when the disciples decide to go down to the Sea of Galilee and take a boat over to the city of Capernaum.  Perhaps after not knowing where Christ was for a period of time, they thought He might have gone ahead of them there based on prior discussions with Him.  Perhaps it was just their best idea of where they might find Him.  Whatever their thinking, they entered the boat, and made for the other shoreline.  Verse 17 makes it clear, that it was now dark, and Jesus was not already with them in the boat.  This distinction was important to John to specify for this part of the story.  And as their luck would have it, or perhaps as Satan often does with us when we find ourselves outside of the immediate presence of Christ; verse 18 continues … “And the sea arose by reason of a great wind that blew.”  Enter the storms of life.

We do not exist in a neutral world.  The life that surrounds us is not passive to our decisions and actions.  Battle lines are drawn in every aspect of life we find ourselves within.  The forces of evil are not simply dormant or uninterested in our fate.  They have but one recourse left to them.  They are doomed, with a certainty they cannot escape.  They have no illusions about winning the final war with God.  They lost the first one in heaven and were cast out.  They lost the second one at the resurrection of Christ when not even death could hold back the love of God.  And they will lose the third one when fire will rain down and consume the remnants of their now tortured existence ending their lives forever.  This fate is inescapable.  Given that, the only meaning they have left, in a doomed existence, is to spread the pain of loss to God, by dragging as many of us with them into the abyss as is possible.  This is their entire purpose now, as after their failure at the resurrection of Christ, no hope is left to them for conquering God.  So to cause us pain, is to cause God pain.  To see us fail, is to “win” against God, to deprive God of the only treasure He is invested in, our freedom from pain.  It is against this battle, that seas will arise with a great wind.  It is against this battle, that your life will not be free from the pain this world can bring.  Evil forces are not sleeping where your life is concerned, they are actively attempting to bring you pain, and thereby cause pain to God.

But as Satan and his forces are not dormant in the battle, neither are the forces of the Lord.  In verse 19, John begins as if to offer a prelude to coming events, by stating how far they managed to move the boat by rowing it (around 25 to 30 furlongs).  How poignant that our best efforts against the storms of Satan show such meager results.  But verse 19 continues … “they see Jesus walking on the sea, and drawing nigh unto the ship: and they were afraid.”  Here in the middle of a storm no less, is Jesus walking on the sea heading right towards them.  And their first response was fear.  In the middle of a battle against the storms of life, we see approaching us, the miraculous presence of Christ, we see our hope on the horizon, and our first response is … fear.  How could a miracle really happen to us?  How could something we “know” to be impossible, be happening in spite of our “knowledge”.  How could the impossible become possible?  Enter Christ.  Experienced fishermen knew how to handle a boat.  They knew the effects of gravity on water.  They knew that walking on water was simply and clearly impossible, particularly during a storm.  These are all facts upon which science would side with the knowledge of the fishermen disciples; undisputed facts.  Yet that is exactly what their bewildered eyes are giving witness to.  Christ is doing what they simply “knew” He could not do.  In the human vernacular, we call this a miracle.

And what is the response of our loving God to our irrational fears?  I use the word ‘irrational’ because our God has done nothing to ever make us question His motives, or His love.  Every act of God in our lives whether miraculous or mundane has demonstrated it is always in our best interest.  But despite our history with Him, we still react in fear to what we do not know, or rather, when our “knowledge” is undone by what He does.  Verse 20 says … “But he saith unto them, It is I; be not afraid.”  Christ begins by identifying Himself to his disciples.  This is not some dark apparition, or evil spirit, it is Christ, in the flesh, God in man.  And as such, you have no reason to fear.  When the storms of Satan surround us, the sea is high with waves and winds that threaten to tear apart our lives, and we see the miraculous presence of Christ, we have no need to fear.  We can relax.  We can set aside the facts we “know” to be true, and begin to experience the miracles Christ is doing in front of our eyes, and despite our knowledge.  Facts, and accumulated scientific knowledge, are often set aside in the face of love.

Verse 21, brings a third miraculous demonstration to John and his contemporaries.  But it does more than that.  It once again outlines the entirety of the gospel in a single verse.  It states … “Then they willingly received him into the ship: and immediately the ship was at the land whither they went.”  They by choice, “willingly” received him into the ship.  They took Christ in.  They accepted Him into their company, into their lives.  This is our part in the act of salvation.  We must choose to accept what Christ is offering, namely His transformative presence in our lives.  When Satan rages against us, our defense is not to keep on rowing.  Our defense is not to wage war on Satan, for Satan is the master of war and will swallow us up in a second.  Our defense is not to look to the strength of our boat, or our oars, or our will power, or our determination.  Our defense is to take Christ into our boat.  Our defense is to accept that what we cannot do, Christ can do.  Our defense is to recognize our defeat, unless we are to be given a victory from outside of ourselves.  This victory can only come when we “willingly” accept it from the only God who offers it.  When we accept Christ into our lives, when let go of the oars, and take the hand of God, there are results.  Immediate results emerge.  The disciples found themselves IMMEDIATELY transported to the shore they were aiming for. 

Zero delays in the gifts of God.  Zero further rowing on the part of the disciples, they took no further action to arrive at their destination, they simply found themselves there, by a miracle they could not explain.  This is how salvation works.  We do not cure ourselves from evil, we are cured by Christ, in a method we will never be able to explain, as it is NOT OUR WORK.  It is the work of Christ that saves us.  The rowing stopped, but the destination was reached anyway, and at a rate the disciples thought to be impossible.  Again, our accumulated scientific knowledge of facts, is set aside in the face and presence of Christ.  Again, what is impossible to us, is accomplished by Christ.  We are NOT able to save ourselves from the bondage of self-service.  But Christ is.  Christ does what we cannot.  Christ alters the rules, we have been bound by.  He transcends our knowledge and facts, and does what we cannot do.  This was no act of partnership on the part of the disciples; they did not accept Christ into the boat, and then keep right on rowing it themselves.  They took Him in, the storm became irrelevant, and they reached the destination in an instant.  Christ did the “work”, they only took Him in.

The words of John echo through the ages.  They outline in physical form, the same process we must engage in from a spiritual perspective if we are ever to see ourselves freed from the bondage of evil.  The point of this witness of John was not merely that Christ could bend the laws of physics, or redefine them at will.  The point of this witness of John was not that they could defeat the storms of life through the actions they took.  The point was only to take Christ into the boat.  The point was to set aside what we know to be true, and accept what Christ offers in spite of what we know.  It is not our definition of the rules of physics that we must allow Christ to remake; it is our definition of truth.  Truth will not be found within us, it will be found only in Christ.  Facts are only relevant in Christ.  Salvation is only possible through the outside gift of Christ to us as we allow it.  Rapid transit is not our goal.  Rapid reformation of who we are is.  If we are to be remade in the image of Christ, we must learn to let go the entirety of who we are today, and be willing to be remade completely.  There is no shred of us, worth holding on to in this process.  The new creature He wishes to make of us needs no stain of our past to ruin the new model He will create.  And His results are guaranteed.  His work beyond our understanding, but effective, and complete none the less.

The potential of who we are to become, can only be found when we let go of our ideas of control, and allow Christ to recreate us, and show us what we are yet to be.  It is not our job, or our focus, to figure out “how” Christ does what He does, but simply to accept it.  We gain the benefit of the work of Christ, without knowing exactly how He does it.  The storms that today are so ever-present, become so completely irrelevant when Christ enters our presence.  Whether it is our health that threatens us, financial ruin, relationships in total decay, even imprisonment for the crimes we have committed; a life made free by Christ can make all these storms of no concern.  For it is a greater freedom He offers.  It is a greater purpose He offers.  It is a greater love He offers.  It makes every second of the life we have one that is worth living.  It makes every opportunity we have to share love even more precious.  It makes every soul around us, of infinite value, a prize to be shared through the eons of time in a place where pain will exist no more.  People we once thought to be our ‘enemies’ can through the love of Christ reflected through us, become our closest friends.  When we see life, through the lens of an infinite God, who plans for us to share a life of complete freedom on a timeline without end, what is important to us here changes.  It is not that storms cease to exist, but that they cease to be relevant.  Transformation is potential that Christ alone can bring, to offer us a vision of life and truth, beyond what we know.  This is His gift.  This is what He offers.