35That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, "Let us go over to the other side." 36Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. 37A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 38Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?"
39He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. 40He said to his disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?" 41They were terrified and asked each other, "Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!"
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Let's really lift up Michael's family in the coming weeks. Storms of life visit us. I go through a little version of the "storm" due to my impatience and dependence/trust on the gifts rather than the giver of all things that are good. I am not happy, because I settle for the lesser things than God Himself. The more self-absorbed I find myself, the more earthly and unhappy i become. There are also other kinds of storms that visit. Tragedies and many evidence of the brokenness of the world, which i have no control over, visit unexpectedly. What am I to do in the midst of these furious storms of life? I need to know that Jesus is in the boat with me. That is the point, that is the most preeminent point of every stormy circumstance. He is the God of the whole universe and He holds the universe at His word. As the song goes, He is the King over the storm. He is Lord of all, and with this God, I can go anywhere and endure through the storm with honor. Amen.
i remember reading this passage for the first time and thinking "coooooool....he can calm the storm!!! he can help me out in all things!!!" and then the readings afterwards thinking "what does he mean by they have no faith??? that they should pray to calm the storm themselves???" i still really have no idea and everytime i read this passage i get a different thought, but leading up to this episode on the boat caught in a storm, JC has been telling parables of the kingdom of heaven...and i feel like he's telling his disciples that they have him with them. that's all that matters. that their lives whether lost or not during the storm are redeemed lives ready for the kingdom of heaven, and they shouldn't be so caught up in the "storms" of their temporal issues. that even through the storms of their lives they should just keep focus on him. but he does calm the storm to remind them these temporal things should not be dismissed but should definitely be addressed and attended to.
On that day, when evening came, He said to them, "Let us go over to the other side." Leaving the crowd, they took Him along with them in the boat, just as He was; and other boats were with Him. And there arose a fierce gale of wind, and the waves were breaking over the boat so much that the boat was already filling up. Jesus Himself was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke Him and said to Him, "Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?" And He got up and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, "Hush, be still." And the wind died down and it became perfectly calm. And He said to them, "Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?" They became very much afraid and said to one another, "Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?" ((Mark 4:35-41 - NASB)
Reading through these verses, I am actually a little surprised at the reactions of the disciples. Until this point, they have followed Jesus and witnessed how He has created miracles and healed people. They confess with their lips that Jesus is the promised Messiah and king....But looking at today's verses, they are "terrified (vs.41)" because the winds and the waves obey Him (the nature)....In the same way, we should really ask ourselves if we TRULY believe in a god who is God of the whole universe, and omnipresent & omnipotent. We can confess many things to God and often pray aloud saying that we have full trust in His Lordships. But how much of this faith confession is just a routine that has been practiced for a while? How much recognition do I have for our God Almighty in my daily life?
An emphatic Amen to all of these comments! Woosub, every single sentence you wrote was an articulation of the struggles of my own heart.
When Christ is with us, there is nothing to be feared. Instead there is much to be learned from the storms and troubles in our lives. Christ gives us perspective and strength.
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