Storms

Ever since I was a kid, I’ve had nightmares. I would wake up from them with a gripping fear. I attempted to peer in the darkness to discern if anything or anyone scary was in the room. I’d lie in my bed as still as I possible. If anyone was in the room, maybe they wouldn’t notice me. I listened intently for any out-of-the-ordinary sound. All that I could focus on was the darkness, the fear, so much so that I usually forgot to turn on the little kitty light next to my bed that would have dispelled the darkness and revealed there was nothing in my room to fear.

The storms in our life can be like this. Our pastor is preaching through the Gospel of John, and as he covered a portion of chapter six, I couldn’t help but think of the storms we often face.

15 Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself.

Jesus Walks on Water

16 When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, 17 got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. 18 The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing. 19 When they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened. 20 But he said to them, “It is I; do not be afraid.” 21 Then they were glad to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going. [1]

John 6:15-21

Let’s back up a little for context. Jesus had just fed the five thousand men plus women and children. The crowd sees this sign and wrongly understands Jesus’ purpose. They see Him as a strictly earthly king who could free them from Roman rule and restore the old kingdom of Israel. Jesus, knowing this, withdrew to the mountain. Matthew and Mark’s accounts add that Jesus withdrew to pray (Matthew 14:23; Mark 6:46).

Jesus withdrew to the mountain and His disciples went down to the sea as evening came and got into a boat. Again, Matthew and Mark’s accounts give us a little more detail: “Immediately He [Jesus] made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd” (Mark 6:45, emphasis added).

In Greek, the word translated made means compelled or constrained. This is something I have never considered. Jesus who is fully man but also fully God, knowing the storm that was to come, told His disciples to get into the boat to cross over the Sea of Galilee. Jesus wanted the disciples in a boat, in the storm, in the dark of night for a far greater purpose than a simple change of location.

Look back at verses 17b-19: “It was now dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them.” It was dark. Like waking from my nightmares to darkness, the darkness of the night probably intensified the disciples fear. Not only that, but Jesus was not with them.

Many of the disciples were fisherman, fishing on this very sea. As they got into the boat, they may not have been concerned since the storm had not yet arisen. However, “The sea became rough because a strong wind was blowing (vs 18). The Sea of Galilee is known for sudden, violent storms. I think it is reasonable to say the disciples would at least have a healthy fear of the Sea of Galilee and the power it could display. Not only were they now in this storm, but they would have been rowing into the strong wind (the winds came down through a ravine onto the sea).

“When they had rowed about three or four miles…” (vs 19a). The disciples were roughly in the middle of the sea. Mark’s account tells us it was now about the fourth watch of the night (at the time Jesus reappears). This is somewhere around 3 – 6 am. The disciples had rowed six to eight hours, against a strong wind, in the rough waves, and they were only halfway to their destination. I would be discouraged and afraid.

“They saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened” (vs 19b). In college, my husband and some of his engineering classmates had to devise a way to “walk” on the campus pond. With ingenuity, they were able to for a short while on placid water. However, most of us would never expect to see someone walking unaided on the water not to mention walking a great distance from shore, in a storm, in the dark of night. The disciples certainly didn’t. Can you imagine? The boat was being tossed all over the place, yet Jesus walked on the sea as if there were no storm. The disciples thought Jesus was a ghost (Mark 6:49). Now they were really frightened.

But Jesus speaks to their fear, frustration, and weariness. He speaks into their storm: “It is I; do not be afraid” (vs 20). Then Jesus gets into the boat with them, and immediately they are on the other side of the sea.

You may be like me. You know people in storms right now. Maybe you are the one currently in a storm. We are often so focused on the storm that we fail to fix our hearts and minds on Jesus who created the wind and the waves and who is sovereign over them. They are His to command. As I meditated on these verses, I thought about some of my storms. Because of the storms, I was able to know God in a deeper way. My faith grew. Like fire refines gold, God used the storms to refine me..

Less than twenty-four hours before, the disciples had witnessed the sign of Jesus feeding the five thousand men plus women and children all from two fish and five barley loaves which is incredible. Now, because they were in a storm, they witnessed Jesus’ complete power and sovereignty over the wind and the waves He created. The disciples learned more about Jesus with opportunity for their faith to grow than they would have in a calm sail across the sea in the light of day.

Mark gives us another tidbit we shouldn’t miss. “47 And when evening came, the boat was out on the sea, and he was alone on the land. 48 And he saw that they were making headway painfully, for the wind was against them”[2] (Mark 6:47-48a, emphasis added). From the disciples’ perspective, Jesus was not with them because He was not physically in the boat, but Jesus’ eye was on them. He knew their situation. He knew what the disciples needed most, and He knew the perfect time to act.

As my pastor pointed out, John 6 cannot be separated as if there were several independent accounts. In verse 35 (continuing the feeding of the crowd and walking on water), Jesus told the crowd, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” Jesus is all we need. We focus on our storms instead of trusting Jesus. We think we need the storm to cease, but what we truly need is the One who is sovereign and omnipotent over the storm.

Reflection

1. When facing a storm, do you consider that God has lovingly purposed that storm in your life for His glory, for your good in conforming you more to the image of Jesus, and to grow you in your knowledge of Him?

2. In your storm or looking back at a previous storm, is your focus on the storm itself and your suffering or is it on God, who He is, what He is doing, and what is true regardless of how circumstances appear? As we look at the John 6 account, we can see how God’s mercy, goodness, faithfulness, care, and provision were at work. The boat did not break apart. None of the disciples fell overboard or drowned. Jesus had His eye on them. Jesus came to them. This focus brings glory to God rather than glorifying our suffering.

3. How have you grown through a storm?

4. Listen to “The Lord Almighty Reigns (Psalm 93” by Sovereign Grace Music.

[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Jn 6:15–21. [2] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016), Mk 6:47–48.