Greyhound Bus! I don’t know if you have had the privilege of taking a long trip lately aboard what used to be a stable of transportation, but perhaps you should. It isn’t as fast as an airplane trip, although there isn’t as much waiting in security lines! In most cases you will get much more legroom than in a plane. And you will see portions of the country that you previously have not seen.
And the people! You will find some wonderful people, young students traveling for a far away job interview on a shoestring and a prayer, grandparents visiting children and grand children, and the occasional person who served some time for a misdeed and is now traveling to start over. All people for whom Jesus died.
Most of us prefer to get where we are going as fast as possible. At least I do! There are too many unexpected delays in life as it is. I want control!
Jesus was a traveling man! And here He is wrapping up a crowd and getting into a boat. So why did He use a boat to cross this body of water? It was the fastest mode of travel to get from one side of the lake to the other.
Imagine if you were Jesus. You gather a crowd everywhere you go. Even before you arrive at your destination, crowds are gathering and waiting for you. When you work the crowd people are reaching forward to touch you, hoping healing will flow to them. And all you want to do is get to a small town on the other side of the lake. Delays. Crowds. Interruptions. Sore feet. Uncomfortable sleeping accommodations. And the food. He has to make it Himself, literally.
So Jesus chooses to take a boat across rather than travel by foot around the lake. I don’t blame Him. He is still trying to spend time with His disciples, time that is rapidly coming to a close. And at every turn it seems that people get in the way. Not that people are a problem for Jesus, but you know what I mean. The crowds pull His attention and energy. He wants privacy, but people keep talking about the miracles He is doing and His following keeps increasing.
So why go to Dalmanutha? It was a very small town in that day, so small that we still don’t have definitive proof about its location. In 2013 a probable site had been found, but investigation still continues.
We all make choices about transportation. Even Jesus did.
The Arnold Journey 