Peace! Be Still

And a great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. ³⁸ But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?”

³⁹ Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” And the wind ceased and there was a great calm. ⁴⁰ But He said to them, “Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith?”  ⁴¹ And they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, “Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey Him!”  (Mk 4:37-41)

In this Scriptural account, you’ll notice three things.

1. Jesus was asleep in the boat, having been tired from His previous ministry to the people. This exhibits Jesus’ humanity.
2. Jesus’ followers awoke Him out of fear for their safety. Despite their fear, they called upon Him to save them.  Their response—calling upon Jesus—was the best thing for them to do.
3. Jesus reproached their small amount of faith, but then performed a miracle in order to increase their faith.  This reveals His power and authority.

Jesus’ disciples knew enough about Jesus to expect Him to save them from this perilous situation, but not enough to understand His authority.  After Jesus rebuked the wind, they became fearful, and wondered at His identity.  How perplexing it is to me that they were fearful, rather than joyously thankful . . .

We have the benefit of not needing to wonder about Jesus!  We know that He is the Savior of the world. (Jo 4:42)  Helping power, in any crisis, is both present and active in Jesus.  He will bring peace and calm to our every situation when we cry out to Him for help.

Then they came to the other side of the sea, to the country of the Gadarenes.  (Mk 5:1)  This verse demonstrates that the boat arrived safety at its destination.

Jesus had authority over the elements of nature. He is King, not only of people, but over all of the forces of nature, as well.  This should strengthen our faith and confidence in Him and in His Word.  Trust Jesus to bring peace and calm to your circumstances.