LUKE 8:22-25.
“One day Jesus said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side of the lake.” So they got into a boat and set out. As they sailed, he fell asleep. A squall came down on the lake, so that the boat was being swamped, and they were in great danger.
The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!“
He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm. “Where is your faith?” he asked his disciples. In fear and amazement they asked one another, “Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him.”
Now, the disciples had been with Jesus for a while, journeying through the season of His ministry that was full of demonstrations of His miracle working power.
They were no strangers to the sight of the supernatural.
They had already seen Him heal the sick, raise the dead, and drive out evil spirits. Surely they were growing more accustomed to the idea that He could turn the tables on earthly challenges in a heartbeat.
Once again, they were face to face with a desperate need. But, they don’t quite pass the test, and it’s interesting to see how they deal with the challenge. Actually, we can see two separate reactions on part of the disciples that reveal to us a big need for growth.
FIRST – it’s how they feared drowning when the storm came upon their boat. Sure, I get it – this particular storm was ‘dangerous‘. But after witnessing some of Jesus’ amazing miracles, it still didn’t show up on their spiritual radar that He could deliver them out of the trouble they were in. Why were they afraid, when He had already demonstrated His ability to rescue people out of terrible situations – even death?
SECOND – it’s how they respond when He actually does answer their prayer by delivering them. Jesus wakes up, rebukes the wind & raging waters, and the storm goes calm. Their reaction afterwards blows me away.
“WHO IS THIS???“
Really? They have to ask themselves again who Jesus is? He had already identified himself as the Son of Man. He had already worked some incredible supernatural miracles. Yet, it was as if they were seeing it happen for the very first time. It was if they weren’t even expecting to get out of there alive.
I think we’ve got to learn from the disciples’ missteps in this situation. When the dangerous storms are stirring in our lives, as long as Jesus is in our boat, we don’t have to be anxious about our safety. We don’t need to worry about the outcome!
He may even appear to be ‘sleeping’ on us, totally unaware of what we’re facing, BUT – He is never out of control, and He is not going to let us sink! AND, when He does rescue us from our trouble, let’s not act so surprised like His own men did!
Instead of coming off shocked that He answers our prayers, we need to be praising God with a heart that was looking for His answer to come all along. Just as Psalm 34:19 says: “The righteous person may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all.“
“His eye is on the sparrow… and I still KNOW that He watches over me!!!”
