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About-Him.Com Devotional 09-17-2011 http://about-him.com/ Jesus is Still in the Boat! Luke starts his account of Jesus stilling the storm with the simple statement, "On a certain day." I believe that it was a day like no other in the lives of Jesus' disciples. When reading any story from the gospels, it is good to compare all of the accounts, to get the complete picture. Many bibles such as the Thompson Chain have a Harmony of the Gospels which will list the events in the life of Jesus in their probable order and give the references to each gospel. By going to the Matthew account, we get a fuller picture of what took place on this day. Jesus had just finished preaching The Sermon on the Mount and Matthew tells us that great multitudes followed Him. Revival was in the air, and I'm sure there was a feeling of excitement. A leper appeared and cried out, "Lord if you will, you can make me whole." Jesus simply said, "I will" and He commanded the man to be healed. More excitement! Matthew 8:2 And, behold, there came a leper and worshipped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. 3 And Jesus put forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou clean. And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. Next a Roman military officer appears, begging Jesus to speak the Word, so that his servant could be healed. Jesus spoke the word and the servant was healed. Matthew 8:13 And Jesus said unto the centurion, Go thy way; and as thou hast believed, so be it done unto thee. And his servant was healed in the selfsame hour. Absolute euphoria! The crowd was pressing and Jesus stopped at Peter's house. Perhaps He wanted a break. Maybe he expected to have lunch. Well, He did get lunch, but not until after He healed Peter's mother-in law of a fever. Matthew 8:14 ¶ And when Jesus was come into Peter's house, he saw his wife's mother laid, and sick of a fever. 15 And he touched her hand, and the fever left her: and she arose, and ministered unto them. This has already been a very long day. The crowd had probably increased and they were pressing. Matthew 8:16 When the even was come, they brought unto him many that were possessed with devils: and he cast out the spirits with his word, and healed all that were sick: A man who was moved by all of this cried out, "Lord I'll follow you wherever!" Jesus' reply shows that the man was speaking , without really counting the cost. Matthew 8:19 And a certain scribe came, and said unto him, Master, I will follow thee whithersoever thou goest. 20 And Jesus saith unto him, The foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests; but the Son of man hath not where to lay his head. Jesus decided that this was enough for one day. I'm sure He was exhausted after, preaching, healing, and casting out devils. Mark tells us that they had sent away the multitude, but there were other small ships. Some of these people just wouldn't go away. Suddenly a great storm came up, but Jesus was asleep on a pillow. The same disciples who had shouted the victory earlier in the day were now fearful of drowning. Mark 4;35 ¶ And the same day, when the even was come, he saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side. 36 And when they had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he was in the ship. And there were also with him other little ships. 37 And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. The men in that boat needed help and they needed it fast. Yesterday's Hallelujah wasn't going to help now. They had just made a quick transition from a Sunday night shout to Monday morning reality. They did the only thing they could do; they woke up Jesus. Mark 4:38 And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? 39 And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. What does this story tell us? In our walk with Jesus, there will be times of good feeling, ecstasy and euphoria. Sometimes, everything will go smoothly and the Lord will seem so near. We may rest assured that a storm is on the horizon. Sooner or later illness will come. You may find yourself at middle-age and unemployed. The doctor may call and say that your last test indicated cancer. Eventually we will all face the death of a spouse or a loved one. Jesus, of all things, will appear to be sleeping. Jesus is still in the boat! We have only to call out to Him, "Master!" We can rest assured that He hears us. The words "And He arose" stand out to me. Jesus didn't cower on the pillow, He stood up and took authority over the situation. We can do likewise. We can stand on the Word and promises of God and rest in full assurance that the storm will calm. We may not calm natural storms, but we can rebuke many spiritual storms that beset us. By prayer, by faith, by the Name of Jesus and the Word of God, we can and must stand up, rebuke the storm, and move on in Jesus. Keep Looking Up! Don and Marie Spooner About Him! Ministries Your thoughts and Inquiries Contact@About-Him.Com Subscribe to this devotional? Subscribe@About-Him.Com The purpose of About-Him.Com is to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ whom we preach as the Almighty God manifest in the flesh. It is our desire that everything presented on these pages increases your faith in our God and Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Home About Us About His Word Bible Studies Humor Songs of the Church Thoughts on the Life of Christ Weekly Devotions Audio Devotionals Topical Studies Contact |