Talk 13 Mark 4:35-41 Jesus calms the storm
Welcome to Talk 13 in our series on Mark’s Gospel. Today our subject is the well-known story of Jesus calming the storm. We’ll begin by reading Mark 4:35-41.
That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” 36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. 37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?” 39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. 40 He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” 41 They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”
So far Mark has given us several reasons why we should believe in the deity of Jesus. He takes Old Testament verses that refer to YAHWEH and applies them to Jesus (1:2-3). He records the words of the voice from Heaven saying to Jesus, You are my Son (1:11). Even the demons knew who he was – the Holy One of God (1:24). When the Pharisees accuse Jesus of blasphemy, asking the rhetorical question, Who can forgive sins but God alone? Jesus responds by saying that he has authority…to forgive sins (2:10) and demonstrates it by healing a paralysed man. He even claims to be Lord of the Sabbath (2:28). And now in the verses we have just read, he demonstrates his power over the forces of nature, leaving the terrified disciples to ask, Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!
So this passage may rightly be seen as further evidence of the deity of Christ. Who can calm storms but God alone? But the story also provides evidence of his humanity. He was asleep. Jesus was both fully man and fully God, a mystery that is beyond our human comprehension. But if my tiny mind could fully understand him, he could not possibly be God. So let’s just believe the biblical revelation of who he is and see how this passage applies to us today as we are confronted with the unexpected storms of life.
35 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” 36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat.
There were also other boats with him.
Let us go over…
When Jesus called his disciples his first words were, Follow me. So it’s not the disciples who take the initiative here. It’s Jesus who says, Let’s go over to the other side. At first sight this might sound like a suggestion, but it’s clear from Matthew’s account that it was much stronger than that. Matthew says that Jesus gave orders to cross to the other side of the lake. The one who spoke the word in the beginning and said, Let there be light, now says, We’re going to the other side. No wonder then that, despite the storm, they arrived at the other side.
They took him along
Again, Matthew’s account is stronger. It says, his disciples followed him. Either way, it’s clear that they were obediently doing what Jesus asked them to. And bearing in mind what was about to happen it’s just as well that they took him along with them. When we’re seeking to follow the leading of the Lord Jesus, it’s important that we ensure that he is with us in every step we take.
There were also other boats with him.
Mark is the only Gospel that records this. The word used for boats here is slightly different from the word used for the boat Jesus was in. The KJV version suggests that they were smaller. If so, they would have been in even more danger from the storm but notice the words with him. Not with them. Jesus is the centre of attention, not the disciples. And the people in the other boats are with him too. The miracle Jesus performs benefits more than the select few. And the miracles he performs for us, in delivering us from the storms we find ourselves in, may very well benefit others too.
37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped.
Make no mistake about it. The problem they were facing was very real. Whatever problem you may be facing right now, it cannot be more serious than theirs was then. The disciples, who were fishermen and knew the lake well, recognised that they were in danger of drowning. In fact Luke’s account states clearly, they were in great danger. And to make matters worse, Jesus was asleep.
38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”
Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion.
As we’ve already said, Jesus was human and his sleep may well have resulted from the weariness that comes to us all when working hard. Preachers and teachers will understand very well what I mean, and if you have experience in ministering to the sick you will know how tiring it can be.
But Jesus’ sleep was not just a sleep of weariness. It was a sleep of faith. He had entrusted his life to his Father in Heaven and he knew that nothing could harm him. When we are asleep things are beyond our control, and when things are beyond our control it can take a lot of faith to believe that all will be well, especially in the middle of a storm.
But what do you do when God is asleep? Of course, God never goes to sleep (Psalm 121:3-4). But Jesus was God and Jesus was asleep. That’s part of the mystery of the incarnation that we mentioned earlier. For God to go to sleep he had to become a man. And as man Jesus was asleep, even though he was still God.
However, in trying to relate this part of the story to our own experience, perhaps we could say that there are times in the experience of every Christian when it feels like God is asleep. What should we do? Well, we could do what the disciples did and try to wake him up! Or we could just hold on tight and trust him to bring us through.
The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”
The disciples chose the first option. They decided to wake him up. We do something similar when we hammer on the doors of Heaven and repeatedly plead for an answer. And there are times when it’s appropriate to do that – remember the parable of the unjust judge (Luke 18:1-6)? God understands when we feel the need to pray like that.
But in the light of Calvary, we can hardly accuse God of not caring! I wonder if perhaps it was Peter who asked the question. Years later it’s clear he had learnt his lesson. Not only could he sleep in the prison knowing that, like James, he could be executed the following day (Acts 12), but at a time when the church was facing intense persecution he could write to his fellow Christians to cast all their anxiety on Jesus, because he cares for you (1 Peter 5:7).
Yet at the time when the disciples woke Jesus up, it’s clear from their question that they believed that Jesus had the power to save them, but that they were doubting if he cared enough to do so! The fact that Jesus suggests in verse 40 that they still have no faith shows us that true faith is more than believing in God’s power to work a miracle.
39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. 40 He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”
Despite their lack of faith, Jesus works the miracle anyway! Note what he didn’t say. He didn’t say, I’m sorry guys. I’d have liked to have saved you, and I could have saved you, if only you had enough faith. As it is, I’m afraid you’ll have to drown… Of course he didn’t say that. Why? Because he did care. He did love them, and he had a purpose for their lives. And he does love you, and he does have a purpose for your life. Please remember:
GOD’S LOVE FOR YOU IS BIGGER THAN YOUR LACK OF FAITH.
The disciples didn’t need to wake Jesus up. He had said they were going to the other side and his word cannot fail. Believing in God’s power is not enough. Real faith trusts in his love for us. Interestingly, in Matthew’s account Jesus’ challenge to their faith comes before he calms the storm. Sometimes it’s the condition of our hearts that needs dealing with before the external conditions of the storm we are facing.
Putting Matthew’s and Mark’s accounts together, which are probably only a summary of the events that took place, it seems that Jesus addressed the subject of the disciples’ faith both before and after he calmed the storm. Following Jesus is an ongoing experience of learning more and more how much we can trust him. Our faith in him grows as we understand his faithfulness. His faithfulness will be your shield (Psalm 91:4).
41 They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”
They were terrified
Why? They had already seen miracles. In fact he had already given them authority to cast out demons and to heal diseases. But this miracle was different. It clearly demonstrated more than ever who Jesus was. The truth was beginning to dawn on them. They were standing in the presence of DEITY.
Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”
God had allowed the storm. It had happened for a purpose. The disciples’ experience of the storm was a step forward in their understanding of who Jesus was. The same is true of the storms in our lives. We may not understand their purpose, but that does not mean that there is no purpose. And when he brings us through the storm we find we have a deeper appreciation of Jesus.
And so they reached the other side.
Of course they did!
And they got out of the boat and sat down on the beach, opened their sandwiches and had a picnic.
Of course they didn’t!
That of course is typical of what we would like to happen. Surely when we’re through the next storm we’re entitled to a break! And that is what sometimes happens. But not on this occasion. Just look at what happened next:
Mark 5:1-4
They went across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes. When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an evil spirit came from the tombs to meet him. This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him any more, not even with a chain. For he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him.
Oh no! Not another problem! Yes, and following Jesus brings with it all kinds of problems. Sometimes it seems like problem after problem. But with Jesus, there’s a solution for every problem. Jesus’ life was far from easy, and he faced many problems. And eventually he faced the greatest problem of all – Death on a cross.
No, that was not the problem. The cross was the solution. The problem was your sin and mine. But Jesus dealt with it once for all at Calvary. He took the punishment all our sins deserved and he died on that cross. But he couldn’t possibly stay dead. He had promised he would rise again! And he did. And to prove it he appeared to his disciples for a period of 40 days and then ascended into Heaven.
And one day soon, he’s coming back, and he will take us to the other side. And then there really will be a picnic!