Jesus was by Himself on the mountainside, praying, while the disciples were getting into heavy weather on the lake.  The sails had come down and they manned the oars to keep the boat's head into the wind: lest the waves should come sideways, to swamp their vessel and sink them.  But Jesus knew all about it ... whatever they felt about needing to save themselves ... He was planning to do that job for them.

Everybody was tired.  The disciples had returned from their first mission assignments, two by two without Jesus (Mark 6:30).  The boat trip from the north west shore of Lake Galilee to the north east shore afforded some relief and time together with their Master.  But when they arrived, they faced a crowd which grew to five thousand families.  Jesus taught them all day and in the afternoon fed everybody from five small bread rolls and two dried fish.  The disciples had to organise the impromptu picnic, taking round baskets laden with food and collecting twelve baskets full of left-overs.  Jesus then went up the mountain alone to pray and the disciples were sent off by boat back to Gennesaret (Mark 6:31-46).  Everybody was tired.

We do not know how Jesus saw them - either physically by the moonlight, or by the same astonishing knowledge with which He knows all the details of our troubles - but He did.  He saw them at the end of their strength with no reserves left.  So He came to them, walking on the water.  It was the 4th watch of the night (from 3.00-6.00am).  For tired seamen, it always seems darkest before the dawn.  Then, they saw the shape of a person in the gloom.  They had no thought that it could be Jesus, so they screamed in terror.  Despite the miraculous multiplication of food a few hours previously, they thought that they were alone and their security was in their own hands.  They had forgotten about Jesus.  But Jesus had not forgotten about them.  There were echoes of God's grace to the Israelites in Egyptian slavery in Exodus 3:7-8: "I have surely seen the affliction of my people … and have heard their cry ... I know their sorrows … and I am come down to deliver them …"  The divine cycle of seeing, hearing, knowing and taking action in our circumstances is the testimony of godly people through the ages.

This true story is also a parable of how easily faithless people assume that God neither knows nor cares - and so they must fend for themselves and cope as best they can.  But the same Jesus who saw them, sees us.  Now, as then, Jesus is teaching His disciples what it means to come to the end of their own resources, so that they might welcome Him. The trouble is that self-centeredness is so blinding, especially when things are against us, that even when Jesus is near we think that His presence is another threat.  Today's passage does not reveal the happy ending; but does show how the Lord knows and cares and comes at just the right time. All we have to do is to trust Him to do that today.