To Encourage You

Mark 4:35-41 “That day, at evening, Jesus said to his followers, ‘Come with me across the lake.’ So they left the crowd behind and went with Jesus in the boat he was already in. There were also other boats that went with them. A very bad wind came up on the lake. The waves were coming over the sides and into the boat, and it was almost full of water. Jesus was inside the boat, sleeping with his head on a pillow. The followers went and woke him. They said, ‘Teacher, don’t you care about us? We are going to drown!’ Jesus stood up and gave a command to the wind and the water. He said, ‘Quiet! Be still!’ Then the wind stopped, and the lake became calm. He said to his followers, ‘Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?’ They were very afraid and asked each other, ‘What kind of man is this? Even the wind and the water obey him!’”

One of the things that should differentiate Christians from the rest of the world is the nature of their fears.  You see, fear can be a good thing, and it can also be a very bad thing.  Anyone who has no fear of touching a hot stove will soon find that he or she was foolish to have such “courage.”  We respect hot stoves because we know they can hurt us if we’ve not careful around them.  On the other hand, the Bible tells us that “The fear of man lays a snare” (Proverbs 29:25), for people who base their actions on such fear will find themselves trapped in all kinds of poor decisions and the harmful circumstances that are their result. 

In the passage above we see another kind of human fear: the fear of coming calamity because of our circumstances.  Here we have the apostles in a boat. A number of them were fishermen, so the others likely felt like they were in good hands, that is, until a terrible storm came upon them.  If you’ve ever been in rough seas in a boat that wasn’t built for them, you know the feeling.  As they were tossed about and the waves started to come over the sides, they were terrified and were certain they were about to drown.  Meanwhile, Jesus, who was with them in the boat, had no such fear. In fact, He was sound asleep in the midst of all the chaos.  So they woke Him up and enlisted His help. At this He rebuked them for their fear and commanded the winds and wave to be quiet.  Surely this seemed so strange to them, even futile, to talk to the sea.  But then it obeyed!  What an incredible and awesome moment!

So, what was the apostles’ reaction to all this?  You would think it would be great relief.  But it wasn’t.  In fact, now it says they were not just afraid, they were VERY afraid.  While it was one thing to fear the wind and water, here was one Who had power over both. As I heard one pastor say about this event, “It was one thing to fear the conditions outside the boat.  It was more terrifying to have the God who controlled those conditions IN the boat.”  Can you imagine the awe they felt? Can you imagine what it would be like to be in the presence of the One Who made the sea, the wind, and everything else?  But that’s exactly who Christ is. That’s the nature of His power. He is the omnipotent, omniscient, omnipresent, immutable God of the universe. 

So, whom do you fear? What do you fear? Do you have such awe for the Jesus of the Bible that you take very seriously all He has said? Do you fear going against His will?  Do you realize what you are messing with when you persist in your disobedience in the full sight of His eyes? Or do you fear other things much more? Are you afraid of what someone might say to you if you were to share the gospel with them? Are you afraid of your situation in life because you think you are all on your own? Do you fear the future? Does it fill you with dread? Or do you fear the One who controls all the situations of life, the One Who is far more powerful than anyone or anything else in your life?  Are you awestruck by His power? Do you respect Him so much more than that hot stove?  You see, the things we fear will say a lot about who we really are.  The things we hold in reverential awe will show the world who is the true Lord of our life.