Jesus on Board 11/19/2015

"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."  Mark 4:37-39

Though it was an actual event (as opposed to one of the many parables Jesus had just spent a day preaching), there are arguable more profound lessons to be gleaned from this famous passage of scripture than the parables he so recently shared near the shore.

First, it is no revelation to know and understand that storms come into all of our lives.  Being a Christian neither guarantees nor implies a life free of concerns, difficulties and unfortunate circumstances.  In fact, Christ often said that the way would be perilous and fraught with challenges.

Second, when these storms come, take note of your surroundings.  No one has to tell you that you are in a storm when it arrives.  In fact, you may have to tell others.  Two important things should be noticed, however.  The first, as was the case with the apostles, is that you are in a boat.  While it is true that the storm sometimes threatens to overtake the boat,  the alternative here is that we could be in the midst of the sea without a boat, a situation that would be exponentially worse.  Second, note that the storm does not overtake the boat but that the boat is afloat.  The lesson here is that though our circumstances may rage around us and though we may feel in peril of our very lives, at that moment, we are not consumed but sustained.

Most important of all, Jesus was on board throughout the storm.  Yes he was asleep but I submit to you that it was because he was tired from doing the Father's work of caring for us all day.  More worthy of note, however, is the fact that he had no concern or fear about a storm that was raging on the earth that he made!  There was zero chance that Jesus would perish and if it was true for him in that circumstance, it was true of all of those who were with him.

Beloved, our storms can be awfully fearsome things.  We often panic, lose faith, give up hope and sometimes even want to jump out of a perfectly good floating boat.  Let us be reminded that with Jesus on board, we simply need to exchange our fear for faith.  It is Jesus and only Jesus that has truthfully said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you" Heb 13:5.  Further, know that faith conquers fear but only in proportion to its strength.  We just need to make sure that we have invited Jesus aboard the boat of our lives.

Increasing in faith,

Lee