Have Faith in the Storm

The Storm

Today is the second part of a tale of two crossings. Last week’s storm at sea we saw Jesus coming to his disciples walking on the water. Jesus walked through the waves, the wind, the rain, the thunder and the lightning. We saw Peter dare to ask Jesus call him to come to him walking on the water. Peter at the Lord’s command has the faith to step out of the boat and into the storm. Through life’s storms Jesus comes to us and asks us to come to him. To come and meet him in the storm, and to completely trust him.

The second crossing is the same but different. One of the striking differences is that Jesus is in the boat with the disciples taking a nap in the middle of a storm. Yet the thing that is different is also the same Jesus, God in human flesh, is present with his disciples in both storms.

Last week was a call to step out of the boat and meet Christ in the storm. As followers of Christ, as people marked by holiness God through Christ calls us to minister as he did in the dark stormy places that surround us. It is also a call for those who have yet to follow Christ to step out of the boat and trust God that through Christ he will guide you through life’s storms.

This week the challenge for us is despite the storms in your individual lives, despite the storms that rage through the communities we live and minister in, despite the storms that shake our church, we are called to have faith that God knows what he’s doing and he will get us to the other side.

Finding Peace in the Storm

A common theme in the storms at sea crossings is following Christ. In Jesus famous water walking passage, Peter follows Jesus out of the boat. In today’s passage the disciples follow Jesus into the boat.

Matthew 8:23-27 is really a continuation of what it means to follow Christ.

Matthew 8:18–22 NLT

18 When Jesus saw the crowd around him, he instructed his disciples to cross to the other side of the lake. 19 Then one of the teachers of religious law said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” 20 But Jesus replied, “Foxes have dens to live in, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has no place even to lay his head.” 21 Another of his disciples said, “Lord, first let me return home and bury my father.” 22 But Jesus told him, “Follow me now. Let the spiritually dead bury their own dead.”

Why the excuse from one of his disciples to get in the boat and go to the other side? Perhaps it had something to do with the other side of the sea of Galilee Jesus wanted to go. Have you ever used the term “they lived on the other side of the tracks?” Well the other side Jesus wanted to go to was the other side of the tracks. It was an area known as the Decapolis which was in gentile teritory. It was a place most people stayed away from. Jesus wanting to go there tells us the good news of the Gospel is for everyone, even places we don’t want to go. We are to follow Christ regardless of where he wants us to go or who he wants us to reach.

Jesus instructions were to cross to the other side of the lake. Jesus after preaching one really long sermon, healing a man with leprosy, healing the Roman centurions servant, and healing many others he was tired. So Jesus saw this as the perfect opportunity to grab a pillow and curl up in the back of the boat and take a nap. Suddenly a violent storm came up that looks to the disciples as if the boat was going to sink and they were all going to drown. In middle of this tempest there is Jesus in the back of the boat still finding enough peace in the storm to sleep through it.

Meanwhile the disciples are grabbing buckets and doing everything they can to keep the boat afloat. The disciples go to Jesus terrified in fear and wake him up “Lord! Save us! We are going to drown.”

In this cry we hear echoes of Romans 10:13

The greek word for save in this case is sozo it is most often used when seeking deliverance from a hostile situation. To the disciples the storm wasn’t just a storm but an evil attack from the depths of the sea.

Jesus wakes up and chastises the disciples for their lack of faith. You of little faith. Why are you so afraid? After rebuking his disciples for their lack of faith Jesus gets up and rebukes the evil storm that disappeared as suddenly as it came up.

Why did Jesus chastise his disciples? Jesus commanded in verse 18 that they were going to the other side not to the bottom of the sea. The fear of the storm caused the disciples to lose faith in what Christ said and believe the storm was going to drown them. When Christ calls us to do something, or go somewhere we will arrive safely at the destination.

Matthew: A Bible Commentary in the Wesleyan Tradition Teaching Discipleship by Word and Deed 8:18–27

LIFE CHANGE

THE STORMS IN OUR LIVES

Matthew’s interpretation of the stilling of the storm invites us to hear this story as a promise in the storms of our lives. But it is not simply a promise to remove all fearful and difficult times from our lives. Rather, it is a promise that Jesus is able to take us safely to the final destination. The Christian journey offers no protection from the tragedies and painful circumstances of life. Those times will come, and they may well rock our boat. What they can not do to the person of faith is sink our ship. We can live in confidence that Jesus will carry us through.

James 1:2–4 NRSV

2 My brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of any kind, consider it nothing but joy, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces endurance; 4 and let endurance have its full effect, so that you may be mature and complete, lacking in nothing.

What does this crossing mean to us as followers of Christ? It is only through unwavering faith in Christ that we can find peace enough to fall asleep and trust him to guide us through life’s storms. When our faith wavers Jesus is there in the boat with us to hear our desperate plea “Lord! Save us!” Or the way a popular Christian song puts it. “Jesus come quickly, I need you for my survival!”

Storms in our lives

Over the course of my life there have been many storms that rocked the boat , and really could have sank the boat. There are some who would blame God for allowing these storms to happen in the first place. There are some who may blame God for allowing the storm to get out of hand. I give thanks that the God I have come to know in and through Christ, has mourned with me through life’s storms, has encouraged me through life’s storms, and has always carried me through life’s storms. That is the good news of the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Horatio Spafford

What is our challenge today? To have faith that God will guide the ship through the storm safely to the other side. Even when it seems your life boat may be sinking have faith that God will carry you through. It is through our faith in Christ that we can find enough peace to fall asleep in the middle of the storm.