The bible study I'm currently in presented me with a challenge a few weeks ago: we were each to take a "Jesus" story and read it several times over the next week or two and look at how it might apply to the current circumstances in our life. Simple enough.
The small group I'm in decided to choose "Jesus calms the storm." (We chose Luke 8 in particular; though this event is documented in Mark 4:35-41 and Matthew 8:18,23-27 as well.)
I wasn't certain what reading this story several times would reveal to me. I'm ashamed to admit I didn't expect much...I mean "Jesus calms the storm" is one of the many stories I'd grown up in church reading and hearing. I was fairly certain that nothing in that particular story would be revolutionary. Well, as often is the case when I think I know everything, God revealed more in these passages than I could have possibly imagined!
Let me walk you through my thoughts/revelations/aha moments in relation to this "simple" story. (I apologize in advance for my tendency to go on tangents and my general unnatural enthusiasm for research.)
I like research, I like school, I like assignments....I know, I'm weird. I approached this 'assignment' with the enthusiasm that I had reserved for my Master's thesis...it's been a really long time since I've had an assignment. And, though I admittedly didn't expect to discover anything new, I was excited for the task, nonetheless.
I began by reading the three passages in which the events are documented and made some notes:
Luke 8:22-25 -
They were in real danger.
Jesus was asleep.
Jesus rebukes the storm but not his disciples.
I feel that the key in this passage is NOT that Jesus calmed the storm but that it reveals his true nature, being both man and God. Man, because he was obviously tired and fell asleep. God, because as the disciples made note, "Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him."
This passage also made me realize how very real their danger must have been. The men in the boat were Jesus' disciples...and who were some of his disciples? Peter, Andrew, James, and John = Fishermen! So if these experienced fishermen, who had spent much of their lives on this very sea were fearful of their lives then it must have been more than a little storm. Their danger was real. Jesus didn't scold them for being silly scaredy cats (can you tell I'm a mommy! ha!) On the contrary, he rebuked the storm but not his friends. He didn't lessen the danger of the storm but called for them to have faith in the face of that danger.
When he asks them, "Where is your faith?" Jesus is not asking them this because they shouldn't have been scared of the storm. He is asking them because he told them from the beginning where they were going, "Let's go over to the other side of the lake."
He knew where they were going. He told them from the start. Their faith is his words wavered in the face of the storm. Jesus revealed his true nature in both his actions that day: falling asleep=man and calming a storm=God.
While I was processing my thoughts on this passage I turned to read Mark 4:35-41 where I got more details on the event.
Mark 4:35-41 -
It was a furious storm.
The boat was nearly swamped. (This is the same use of the word as Luke.)
Jesus was sleeping in the stern on a cushion.
Again, he rebukes the storm.
Being somewhat drawn to research, I may have mentioned this, I began looking up information on boats during this time period. I wanted to see the most common designs...I also wanted to study the location of the stern. I soon discovered that the stern is the rear of the boat. At this time (and even today) and with the type of boat Jesus was in, this is the location of the steering apparatus. It is the most common location for the captain to be, since the captain is typically in charge of where the boat was going. Aha! Now, it is quite possible that I am reading much more into this than need be. Perhaps the stern was just the best place for Jesus to stretch out for a nap. But maybe, just maybe, the symbolism I see in this passage is completely warranted. Jesus is not only in the boat, he is in the stern...he is in charge in where it is going! He is the captain, so to speak. Wow! What does that say to the disciples? What does that mean to me as I look to Jesus when I encounter storms in my own life? The storms may be real but my God is bigger. The waves may be crashing and I may be swamped but He is in my boat...and more than that, he is steering my boat. Does that give anyone else goosebumps?
Again, my mind is reeling as I turn to the final documentation in the bible of this event:
Matthew 8: 18, 23-27
Again, we see similar vocabulary used to describe this "furious" storm.
Storm came up without warning.
I am reminded again how very real and dangerous this storm must have been (not the rain shower I think I always pictured in Sunday school - my mind has now replaced it with the scene from that movie "The Perfect Storm.")
This passage added that the storm came up without warning. This caught my attention. It is hard to imagine a storm coming up without warning on the sea. Whenever at the beach and a storm is rolling in you can see it from miles off shore. You feel the wind pick up, the sky darkens, you KNOW a storm is rolling in. And yet, this passage clearly states that this storm arose with no warning whatsoever. That is often the case in life, isn't it? Life is going along just hunky dory when something unexpected (and often unwelcome) throws us for a loop. And yet, even then, Jesus knows the destination.
After reading the three passages I had these final realizations:
Within the passages Jesus is called - Master, Teacher, and Lord. (All very appropriate and accurate descriptions.)
And though the disciples recognized him as such and pleaded for his help when the storm nearly capsized their boat they were simultaneously amazed when he provided the help they required. Their faith was only so deep.
How many times have I done the same thing?
God help me! Please! ...Oh, wow...you helped me! You really are God?! You are God!
It humbles me to see so much of myself in this story. To realize that I can frequently be accused of the same thing, "Why are you so afraid?"
Jesus is in my boat.
"The LORD is my light and my salvation--whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life--of whom shall I be afraid?"
Psalm 27:1
My heart is so full. I love hearing how God's WORD is active and never comes back without changes us. Thanks for sharing. In the story David taught on today, Jesus told the man who had been demon possessed man, "Go home to your family and tell how much the LORD has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you." So he did and all the people were amazed at what Jesus had done. Thanks for telling Your Jesus story. It always amazes me at how Jesus wants to speak to us personally.
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