“On that day, when evening came, He said to them, ‘Let us go over to the other side.’ Leaving the crowd, they took Him along with them in the boat, just as He was; and other boats were with Him. 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. And He said to them, ‘Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?’ They became very much afraid and said to one another, ‘Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?'” (Mark 4:35-41).
We live in very tumultuous times. It really feels sometimes like we are sitting in a sinking ship. Wars and rumors of wars. Political and economic instability. Rampant antisemitism. Growing hatred for Christians and biblical truth. Is there something we can learn from Mark 4:35-41 about coping with our fears in the storms of life? Yes!
The disciples, who happened to be seasoned fisherman, are scared to death in the storm. Oddly, their fear does not abate even after the storm dies down. In fact, they are even more afraid. Why? Their fear is directly related to their low Christology, i.e., their failure to understand who Yeshua really is. Let me explain.
Who Yeshua Is?
In verses 35-38, Yeshua is acting like the prophet Jonah (Jonah 1). There’s a storm. He’s asleep in a boat. The sailors (i.e., disciples) wake him up, and plead with him to do something fast: presumably to pray, just as the sailors had asked Jonah to do when they woke him up. “Then the sailors became afraid and every man cried to his god, and they threw the cargo which was in the ship into the sea to lighten it for them. But Jonah had gone below into the hold of the ship, lain down and fallen sound asleep. So the captain approached him and said, ‘How is it that you are sleeping? Get up, call on your god. Perhaps your god will be concerned about us so that we will not perish'” (Jonah 1:5-6).
Then the men feared the LORD greatly, and they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows
In verse 39, Yeshua goes off the Jonah script because he is no longer acting like Jonah the prophet. By rebuking the wind and calming the sea, Yeshua is acting like the God of Jonah who “made the sea and the dry land” (see Jonah 1:9). “So they picked up Jonah, threw him into the sea, and the sea stopped its raging. Then the men feared the LORD greatly, and they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows” (Jonah 1:15-16).
Never Alone
The source of the disciples’ fear before AND after the storm is directly related to their failure to appreciate the true identity of the man sitting with them in the boat! Is Yeshua a prophet? Yes! But based on the parallels to the story in Jonah 1, he is obviously so much more. Yeshua is “GOD WITH US.” And because “God is with us” we are never alone, even in the storms of life. And according to his perfect timing, Yeshua will command the wind and the sea which threaten to destroy us, “Hush, be still!”
“But now, thus says the LORD, your Creator, O Jacob, and He who formed you, O Israel, ‘Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are Mine! When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; αnd through the rivers, they will not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched, nor will the flame burn you. For I am the LORD your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior'” (Isa 43:1-3a).
