Morning By Morning #258

There were also other boats with him.

Mark 4:36

From the pen of Charles Spurgeon:

Jesus was the Lord High Admiral of the sea that night and His presence preserved the entire fleet. It is good to sail with Jesus even if you are in a small boat. When we sail in Christ’s fleet it does not necessarily mean fair weather for us, for huge storms may toss the ship carrying the Lord Himself. Thus, we should not expect to find the sea less rough around our little boat. If we travel with Jesus we must be content to fare as He fares and know that when the waves are rough for Him, they will be rough for us. It is through the tempest and tossing that we will reach the shore, just as He did before us. When the storm swept over Galilee’s dark lake, all the faces there were dark as well and all the hearts dreaded shipwreck.

Yet when all creature help was useless, the slumbering Creator arose and, with a word, transformed the riotous storm into the deep quiet of pure calm. Then not only was the vessel that carried the Lord at rest but the others that were with Him on the lake were as well. Jesus is the Star of the sea, and although there may be sorrow on the sea, when He is present, joy abides there.

May our hearts make Jesus their anchor, rudder, lighthouse, lifeboat, and harbor. His church is the Admiral’s flagship, so may we well attend to her movements and cheer her officers with our presence. Christ Himself is our great attraction, so may we ever follow in His wake, pay close attention to His signals, steer by His chart, and never fear while He is within earshot of our prayers. Not one ship in His fleet will suffer shipwreck, for the great Commodore will steer each one in safety to the desired haven.

By faith we will unmoor our boat for another day’s cruise and sail forth with Jesus into a sea of tribulation. Winds and waves will not spare us, but they all obey Him. Therefore, whatever squalls may blow without, faith will feel a blessed calm within. The Lord is always in the midst of the weather-beaten fleet, so may we rejoice in Him. His ship has reached the haven, and so will ours.

From the pen of Jim Reimann:

The preceding verse of our text says, “When evening came, [Jesus] said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side” (Mark 4:35). Notice He did not say, “Let’s go to the middle of the lake and drown.” Of course, we know a storm came, Jesus rebuked it, and they ultimately made it to the other side.

After rebuking the wind and the waves, however, Jesus rebuked His disciples for their total lack of faith. He did not say to them,”Why do you have so little faith?” He said, instead, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” With faith they could have trusted in three things:

The promise of Jesus. He said,”Let us go over to the other side.”

The presence of Jesus. He was in their boat—even through the storm.

The power of Jesus—to either transform the storm or to transform them.

It is worth noting that during the storm the disciples were afraid, but after the winds and waves were “completely calm” (v. 39), “they were terrified and asked each other, ‘Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!’” (v. 41). Storms may lead us as well to say, as Paul did on the Damascus Road, “Who are You, Lord?” (Acts 9:5). May we seek to “know him better” (Eph. 1:17)!