Storms and the Majestic Saviour, Part II
35 On the same day, when evening had come, He said to them, “Let us cross over to the other side.” 36 Now when they had left the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was. And other little boats were also with Him. 37 And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. 38 But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?”39 Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace,[a] be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. 40 But He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How[b] is it that you have no faith?” 41 And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, “Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!” see Mark 4:35-41
There are a number of storm stories in the Bible. Mark 4:35-41 is not the least of them. Jesus had told the disciples that they were going to the other side of the lake but in the midst of their journey a ferocious storm blew in and the disciples panicked. They forgot that Jesus had spoken and had given His word.
What word?
The word about going to the other side. That was the Lord’s promise to them. What we can learn from this, however, is that between the providing of the promise and the provision of the promise there is often a problem. And it’s there, amidst the problem, that Jesus demonstrates His divine power and majesty. It’s there, during the storms of our life, that He also tests us to show us whether or not we believe in His Word, His Majesty, His Deity and His absolute power.
But something worse than the fact that Jesus leads them into the storm is that in the midst of the storm, He goes to sleep. Have you ever been in a storm and it seemed as if Jesus has forgotten you? It seems He is sleeping. If this describes you, don’t panic! The storm may have come, but Jesus hasn’t gone anywhere, He’s right with you.
May we not be like the disciples. They forgot that Jesus was in the boat with them; they were in His presence, but they forgot this. They forgot that He was there, they forgot His word to them, they forgot that they were going to the other side.
But you know the story, the disciples have a panic attack and waken Jesus with the cruelest of words, “Don’t you care that we are about to perish?” Have you ever felt that Jesus didn’t care for you? One look at Calvary will expose the error of that thinking. See Him there, suspended between heaven and earth, bearing our curse. See Him there, the dying Lamb, the interceptor of the wrath of God. How can you imagine that He doesn’t care for you?
Then, in one of the great scenes of the Bible, the Creator of the universe arises from His sleep, stretches Himself to His full height and rebukes the storm and tells it to, “HUSH!” The winds got quiet, the waves got quiet and even big Peter got quiet. The disciples knew that they were in the presence of sovereign majesty. It’s no wonder then that they asked, “behold what manner of man is this that even the winds and the waves obey Him?” And, it’s no wonder that they were amazed; Jesus had just given them a revelation of His deity!
These men would have known the Old Testament scriptures and now they were beginning to connect the dots! They were beginning to see that when Jesus calmed the storm, He was demonstrating that He was the LORD, the almighty Yahweh of Psalms 107.
Here’s what it says,
“They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters; These see the works of the LORD, and His wonders in the deep. For He commands, and raises the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof. They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wit's end. Then they cry unto the LORD in their trouble, and He brings them out of their distresses. He makes the storm a calm, so that the waves thereof are still. Then are they glad because they be quiet; so He brings them unto their desired haven” (See Psalm 107:23-30).
Here once more we are faced with incontestable proof that the Jesus of the New Testament is the Yahweh of the Old. In the Old Testament it is Yahweh to whom the people cry in the storm, but to whom did they cry in the New? They cried to Jesus, for Jesus and Yahweh are one and the same! He wants us to look to Him especially in times of trouble.
And that’s the Gospel Truth!
-preacher
D. G. Miles McKee
Please
find enclosed link to audio Gospel sermons & Contact Information:
http://milesmckee.com/
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