Ashe Alliance Church
Sunday Service 12.28.25
      • Bible Trivia
        Loading...
  • Who Is Like the Lord (Psalm 113)
  • Here For You
  • Higher and Higher - Psalm 145
  • Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus

  • Main Idea

    God designs the storms of life to exercise our faith and reveal more of Himself to us.
    As we resume Mark’s gospel today after the Advent season, I thought it would be helpful to recap the recent events, because today we will begin with the first account of Jesus sleeping. The sub-text of the passage is that Jesus is exhausted, so let’s review the recent events that have made Him so tired.
    teaching in synagogue
    healed crowds of people
    taught crowds of people
    expelling demons from crowds of people
    healing an individual on the Sabbath, which…
    invited confrontation with the Pharisees
    recruiting disciples
    dealing with His family wanting to drag Him back home
    on the same day as today’s passage, had just finished an all-day teaching spree
    Now, Jesus is ready to move on. Let’s read together.

    Passage

    Mark 4:35–41 CSB
    35 On that day, when evening had come, he told them, “Let’s cross over to the other side of the sea.” 36 So they left the crowd and took him along since he was in the boat. And other boats were with him. 37 A great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking over the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped. 38 He was in the stern, sleeping on the cushion. So they woke him up and said to him, “Teacher! Don’t you care that we’re going to die?” 39 He got up, rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Silence! Be still!” The wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 40 Then he said to them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?” 41 And they were terrified and asked one another, “Who then is this? Even the wind and the sea obey him!”

    I. God Plans Trials vv.35-36

    A teaching moment
    Jesus had just finished teaching parables and now intended to go to the region of the Gerasenes, on the eastern side of the Sea of Galilee. At this point, Jesus must have been exhausted after teaching a massive crowd all day long. I’m sure He was eager to get in the boat and take a break from the crowd. He had more work to do in the Gerasenes, but for now, He could take a break, or so it seems.
    Though I’m sure He was tired, Jesus didn’t just turn off His brain. This wasn’t a 1st-century version of mindlessly watching Netflix to detox from reality. This was a deliberate teaching moment. They (and the others in the boat) had just learned about the Kingdom of God and heavenly realities. Now it was time to see whether they would live by what they had learned.
    Jesus led them into the storm
    The dire circumstances didn’t catch Him off guard. He was fully aware of what was about to happen. This storm was an opportunity to strengthen His followers’ faith, so Jesus took full advantage. This tells us two things about Jesus.
    He sovereignly directs us in His divinity.
    He taught His disciples in His exhaustion, demonstrating His sacrificial care in in His humanity.
    Storm Theology: God leads us into storms in His sovereign providence so that our faith can grow and we can apply what we have learned from Him.

    II. Testing Applies Teaching vv.37-38

    The storm
    So into the storm they went. Mark tells us that a great windstorm developed. The Sea of Galilee is nearly 700 feet below sea level and is flanked by mountains. It was common for cold air funneling from the mountainside to meet warm air rising from the sea, merge, and develop sudden, intense storms. And that is exactly what happened.
    The storm quickly became violent, whipping the waves into towering of terror that crashed into the boat. As wave after wave poured into the little vessel, it was in danger of sinking. No wonder the disciples were terrified! And let’s not forget that only Mark records the other boats filled with people from the crowd who were still following Him. Jesus’ mercy wasn’t limited to the twelve… it was far more reaching than them.
    In this moment, two key human responses are juxtaposed.
    1. Fear over faith
    The disciples were trembling in fear. The circumstances they found themselves in overwhelmed them. I can’t imagine I would have reacted any differently, if I’m completely honest, but in this moment, fear trumped faith. Jesus told them they would go to the other side of the sea. If Jesus said it, it would come to pass. As the Messiah, they could have chosen to trust His word. They could have drawn on their prior experiences. They were all witnesses to the miracles Jesus had performed. The lame and diseased were healed. The demon-oppressed were set free. The secrets of the Kingdom were taught. They could have remembered these things during the storm and come to Jesus in a different way, but instead, they came to Him in fear and distrust.
    2. Peace through active trust
    Jesus, on the other hand, was sleeping in perfect peace. No doubt this also shows His human side, as He slept during a storm, utterly exhausted. Fishing boats in those days didn’t have an enclosed lower deck with a kitchen and bedroom. Jesus was sleeping in the open air at the stern of the boat as water poured into it! Yet it wasn’t just exhaustion that kept Him in a deep sleep… it was the peace that comes through active trust in the Father’s providential care. Jesus knew that if the Father was calling them into the storm, they were perfectly safe. In His humanity, He had fully entrusted His every need to the Father’s faithful hands. In His divinity, He was giving His disciples a priceless gift by sleeping… He was teaching them to trust in Him as He trusts in the Father, even in the most dire of circumstances.
    Fear leads to doubt
    And yet, they questioned His goodness. It is one thing to wonder how on earth Jesus could be sleeping at a time like this. It is quite another to question His love and care for His people. As a Father, I can take a rebuke from one of my kids if they are trying to show me something and I get distracted and miss it. But it cuts much deeper if they interpret my distraction as a sign that I don’t love or care for them. I never want them to question that, but that is precisely what they did to Jesus. He was actively loving and caring for them by helping them apply what they had learned by being forced to trust Him despite the circumstances, and yet their reply to Jesus when they woke Him up was personal and painful. They did not ask, “Teacher, why are you sleeping at a time like this?” That would have shown they were at least seeking understanding. Instead, they asked, “Teacher! Don’t you care that we’re going to die?” That is a question that calls into question Jesus’ love for them.
    Is there anyone on earth who can’t relate to this? I think we can easily extend grace to the disciples in this situation. They were in a life-threatening situation, and their teacher was asleep. While they had already seen Jesus do incredible things, the mission of the cross and the resurrection hadn’t yet unfolded, so they didn’t have the full picture.
    But what about us? We have the fullness of God’s word in our hands. We can look back at Scripture and see the fullness of God’s faithfulness. We can see the work of the cross. We can see the victory over sin and death in His resurrection… and yet, we are prone to doubt God’s goodness and faithfulness in our own storms.
    Storm theology: Trials like these are essential to our spiritual development. They force us to decide. Do we trust God in this moment, or will we be ruled by fear? Do we believe He is with us in the storm? Do we believe He works out all things for our good and His glory? Will we choose to embrace His promises and keep our eyes on Him, or will we question His love and faithfulness? Without these trials, we cannot grow as followers. We grow in the storms.
    Thankfully, even if we fail the test, Jesus is willing to keep teaching us and reveal more of Himself to us.

    III. Jesus Reveals Himself and His Expectations vv.39-40

    Jesus gets up
    As we marvel at the raw authority Jesus has over nature, let’s not overlook the fact that He responds to His people. The disciples came to Him in fear and asked a question. Despite the question’s irreverence, Jesus got up and responded… not to them directly… but to the situation that was causing the fear and panic. He addressed the elements that were stunting their growth by using them to declare something about Himself.
    Jesus rebukes the wind and the waves
    The men in the boat and the people in the other boats were afraid of the sudden, powerful storm. They were afraid because it was powerful, unescapable, and threatening to their lives. In response, Jesus calmed the storm by speaking three words: Silence! Be still! In response to the Creator’s command, creation obeys. The command to be silent is the same one Jesus gave to the demon in chapter one. Supernatural beings and forces of nature alike obey the one who has authority over them.
    Only God can command the elements of nature. In the Old Testament, only Yahweh wields the power of nature and commands it.
    Perhaps the disciples thought back to the book of Genesis, when God made all things, or perhaps their minds recalled a few of the psalms that declare God’s command over the sea:
    Psalm 33:7 CSB
    7 He gathers the water of the sea into a heap; he puts the depths into storehouses.
    Psalm 107:1-2;23-30
    Psalm 107:1–2 CSB
    1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his faithful love endures forever. 2 Let the redeemed of the Lord proclaim that he has redeemed them from the power of the foe
    Psalm 107:23–30 CSB
    23 Others went to sea in ships, conducting trade on the vast water. 24 They saw the Lord’s works, his wondrous works in the deep. 25 He spoke and raised a stormy wind that stirred up the waves of the sea. 26 Rising up to the sky, sinking down to the depths, their courage melting away in anguish, 27 they reeled and staggered like a drunkard, and all their skill was useless. 28 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress. 29 He stilled the storm to a whisper, and the waves of the sea were hushed. 30 They rejoiced when the waves grew quiet. Then he guided them to the harbor they longed for.
    Many commentators note the parallel between this passage and Jonah, who also slept during a storm, though Jonah was a contrasting opposite. He was running from God while Jesus was revealing God. Jesus rebuked the wind and sea directly, while God silenced the storm as an act of judgment on Jonah for running away. I see and appreciate that parallel, and we could explore how man’s natural response is to be stubborn and flee, while Jesus demonstrates peaceful submission to the Father. But I think we would be better served to remember the story of Job. If you remember, Job had a bit of a storm in his own life. Chapters 1-37 detail the tragic loss of Job’s family, wealth, status, and health. Then he had to defend himself and endure round after round of his friend’s attempts to force him to admit to hidden sin that would cause God to pour out His wrath in such a devastating way. But then in chapter 38, God speaks with a rebuke:
    Job 38:1–11 CSB
    1 Then the Lord answered Job from the whirlwind. He said: 2 Who is this who obscures my counsel with ignorant words? 3 Get ready to answer me like a man; when I question you, you will inform me. 4 Where were you when I established the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. 5 Who fixed its dimensions? Certainly you know! Who stretched a measuring line across it? 6 What supports its foundations? Or who laid its cornerstone 7 while the morning stars sang together and all the sons of God shouted for joy? 8 Who enclosed the sea behind doors when it burst from the womb, 9 when I made the clouds its garment and total darkness its blanket, 10 when I determined its boundaries and put its bars and doors in place, 11 when I declared, “You may come this far, but no farther; your proud waves stop here”?
    And His rebuke goes on for four chapters, at the end of which, Job replies:
    Job 42:2–6 CSB
    2 I know that you can do anything and no plan of yours can be thwarted. 3 You asked, “Who is this who conceals my counsel with ignorance?” Surely I spoke about things I did not understand, things too wondrous for me to know. 4 You said, “Listen now, and I will speak. When I question you, you will inform me.” 5 I had heard reports about you, but now my eyes have seen you. 6 Therefore, I reject my words and am sorry for them; I am dust and ashes.
    I think this better aligns with the spirit of Jesus’ rebuke to the disciples when He asks them why they are afraid and points out the fickleness of their faith. In both cases, the people were in dire straits, and their responses seem justified to anyone of us who have endured hard things, nothing as severe or intense, yet in both cases, God rebukes their unbelief.
    Here, Jesus overcomes the great storm by speaking three words that bring a great calm. Don’t miss the repetition of that word. It highlights the superiority of Jesus over life-threatening events. He is greater than.
    Storm theology: Jesus is greater than the storm because He is the Creator God of all things. The divine word of God that spoke creation into existence in the beginning can also command storms to cease. However, instead of seeking to escape life’s storm, we would be far better off if we embraced the God who is with us in the storm and clung to Him as we endure it. The greatest danger to our existence is never the circumstances around us but the unbelief within us.
    Thus, this story comes to a close.

    IV. We Recognize and Respond v.41

    The object of their terror shifts
    I have to wonder whether the disciples weren’t thinking of Job, because their reaction mirrors his. While their terror remained, it was no longer in response to the storm but to the presence of God among them.
    They stood in awe
    Even though they had been with Jesus when He taught them the ways of God’s Kingdom, healed the sick, and cast out demonic forces, this is the first time they act as though they are truly beginning to see Jesus as God. Only God can command nature and bring peace to a raging storm. Like Job, they responded with awe and reverence when God rebuked them. They learned their lesson through the theology of the storm. As Job did centuries before, they rightly recognized the power and authority of God, only this time it was God in the flesh. Who is this that the wind and sea obey Him? I believe this question was rhetorical. I think they knew exactly who He was. In their stunned state, this was a declaration that the human Jesus, who gets tired and hungry, is also the divine Creator of the universe… the very same God who rebuked Job centuries before.
    Throughout church history, this story has been taught and preached as a depiction of the church enduring trials in this world and succeeding because Jesus is in the boat.
    Storm theology: The decision the disciples had to make is the same one we must make today in our own trials. We must answer their rhetorical question and act on the answer. Will we recognize that the God of creation is with us to teach us and strengthen our faith, or will we let fear overcome our faith? In these trying times, we must remember the storm theology…

    🔥 Application Point:

    Remember the theology of the storm.
    In closing, I’ll leave you with this quote from Kent Hughes:
    What should you do? Understand and believe that it is through storms, afflictions, hardships, and challenges that you grow. Without them, you would be captive to the terrible tyranny of self. Understand that Christ wants to develop you through the storms ahead. Know that he is completely capable of delivering you with a word. He is the same Christ who calmed the storm… Know that he is in the boat with you. He is in you. Exercise this faith and lay down your fear. For when this faith is active, fear vanishes!
    Hughes, R. Kent. 1989. Mark: Jesus, Servant and Savior. Vol. 1. Preaching the Word.
    The storm theology is about who God is, and the outcome is our maturity.
    The theology is about Providence. Is God in control of this moment? Does He see me in this moment? Can Jesus see me through this moment? Is His power and authority greater than this moment?
    Then we must act on what we have learned about Him. Teaching must be followed by testing. We must decide daily who Jesus is and what He can do. This will shape our response in the trial… will fear trump faith, or will faith overcome fear?
    ➤ Reflect: Can you recall a personal storm where you felt God's presence? What did you learn from that experience? How can we better recognize God's hand in our trials and storms?

      • Mark 4:35–41CSB

      • Psalm 33:7CSB

      • Psalm 107:1–2CSB

      • Psalm 107:23–30CSB

      • Job 38:1–11CSB

      • Job 42:2–6CSB

  • Christ The Sure And Steady Anchor
  • Praise God From Whom All Blessings Flow (Old 100th)
      • Bible Trivia
        Loading...
Ashe Alliance Church
nroten@ashealliance.org
3362462979
http://www.ashealliance.org
10 members • 1 follower