Place of Fishing

Mark 6:45.
Immediately He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida,

Very clear instruction: Jesus had told them to go over to BETHSAIDA; they had just finished feeding 5,000.

Where did Jesus tell them to go?  BETHSAIDA.  Now watch!
Bethsaida means “place of fishing.”

But a problem arose.  They are in the middle of the lake, Jesus is on land praying, and a STORM arose.  Now they are straining for the wind was against them.

So, Jesus had sent them to Bethsaida, He’s on a mountain praying.
He sees them straining as the storm comes up.  So Jesus goes to help them, right?  No, He just starts walking right past them.

So, imagine you’re in a bad storm, thinking, “I might die”.
Then you think you see a Ghost.
You find out it’s Jesus walking by and He says “Cheer up”.  OK, what is going on here?  Let me show you.

Listen to John’s account of this story.

Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are known as the Synoptic Gospels because they basically all say the same thing.

John 6:16-17
16 Now when evening came, His disciples went down to the sea,
17 got into the boat, and went over the sea toward Capernaum. And it was already dark, and Jesus had not come to them.

Here it says they were heading toward Capernaum.
Now they are in the same area, but not the same place.

Bethsaida means – place of fishing
Capernaum means – village of comfort!

Jesus said “Follow Me, you’re now fishers of men”.  “Now go to the place of fishing and I’ll meet you there.”

But no, they want to go to the place of comfort where it is easy.

Jesus was walking by because He was headed in another direction.

“You want to get back on track, to get Me in your boat.”  “But I’m not getting in with you until you change course and go back in the direction I told you to go to in the first place”.

Jesus only obeyed His Father who said, “Send the disciples to the place of fishing.”  He told His disciples to go to the place His Father told Him to go.

Jesus won’t get into your boat of disobedience.  Because you perceive a certain course might be easier, you often take the wrong direction.

Could there be storms in your life because you are off course and going to the wrong place?  You started off heading in the right direction.  Then you veered off until you found yourself in the midst of a storm, straining – because you're not where you're supposed to be.

Are you fed up of constantly straining against the will of God?
Then change your course.

The distance between Capernaum and Bethsaida was 6.15 K or 3.82 miles.  Not very far but still off course.

Heading in the general direction is not good enough.

Fishing is our calling; it’s hard work yet our flesh wants comfort.

I don’t know about you but I don’t want to be constantly straining against the will of God and wonder why He is not in my boat.

“Why does it seem everything I do is such a strain and such a labour?”
Because you got off course!  You didn't go where He told you to go.

But everything changes when you cry out to Him.

If you're heading in the wrong direction, TURN AROUND!

Yours for revival,
Pastor Francis Armstrong

What I'm Reading -  When Nations Die  by Jim Nelson Black
What I'm Listening to - Vertical Church Band