Stormy Seas and Faith

Mark 4, records in just one paragraph a story of Jesus and his disciples in a boat when a storm whips up. The disciples wake Jesus exclaiming “Teacher do you not care that we are about to perish?” at which time Jesus spoke the winds and rough seas into silence.

Jesus didn’t include this story in the Gospel narrative because he was short on miracles or needed to fill a little space.

Jesus had just taught on the shore of this very sea some stories about the coming Kingdom. He taught about sowing seed and the productivity of faith planted in a faithful heart. He also taught about the mystery of how a seed is transformed into a plant and the coming harvest. Lastly he taught that the kingdom was like a planted mustard seed and how such a small seed could turn into a big plant.

And then at the culmination of this teaching about the Kingdom he gets into a boat and crosses the sea and the winds blow, the sea is churned up and the disciples fear that they are going to drown. Like they expected the headlines of the Jerusalem newspaper the next morning would read... "Jesus and Disciples Drown During Freak Storm on the Sea of Galilee".

It’s like they haven’t been listening… nothing can stop the coming of the Kingdom and their role in it… not stormy seas, not earthquakes, nothing can stop the Kingdom!

Jesus included this story at the culmination of his teaching to test their understanding and their faith and they came up a little short in the faith department. But… that’s okay because the building of faith is a process and Jesus was patient with his disciples just as God is patient with us.

There may be some stormy seas ahead of us too but just remember… Jesus can calm the stormiest of seas. Have a little faith in him because he has a plan for us.