The disciples were stunned after Jesus calmed a dangerous storm on the Sea of Galilee. Luke 8:25b The disciples were terrified and amazed. “Who is this man?” they asked each other. “When he gives a command, even the wind and waves obey him!” [1]
The group was crossing the Sea when an unexpected storm came in. Even the experienced fishermen among them were frightened, so this must have been a storm of great proportion. Jesus, while true God, was also true man. He was exhausted from ministering to the people and slept through the storm until the disciples woke Him.
Incomplete Picture of Jesus
The fishermen in the boat had experienced a great catch of fish when Jesus called them. All the disciples had watched Jesus heal through creative miracles. They had even witnessed Jesus raise a boy back to life in the town of Nain (Luke 7:11-17). As a result, the disciples and the crowds praised Jesus as a prophet who came to help people.
The disciples would have known that only God could control the weather. The Psalmist tells of a God who can calm the storm. Psalm 107: 24 They, too, observed the Lord’s power in action, his impressive works on the deepest seas… 28 “Lord, help!” they cried in their trouble, and he saved them from their distress. 29 He calmed the storm to a whisper and stilled the waves. [2]
The disciples only saw Jesus as a good prophet but not as God. Jesus’ action on the Sea of Galilee showed His true identity. He was much more than what they thought. The disciples’ faith needed to grow because Jesus could do more than they expected.
Who We Think Jesus Is Matters
Often, we want to understand God and thus limit what He can do to what we can do as humans. The disciples didn’t trust Jesus to get them through the storm and accused Him of not caring. They didn’t realize that God in the flesh was in the boat and was not worried about the storm. Jesus did care for them and had the power to still the storm, which He did with a straightforward rebuke.
If we don’t understand Jesus as the One who loves us, we will not trust Him to care for us. The result is that we will try to do things on our own. But Jesus loves us so much that He willingly suffered and died for each of us to pay the price for our sins. He wants us to accept the gift of salvation He won for us. We cannot earn salvation through human effort and must trust that Jesus can do so. This requires faith.
We, as humans, can’t fully understand God, our creator. Jesus is still with us in our storms of life. We can trust Him when He acts in surprising ways because He loves us. Our Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, can do more than we know or understand. Let God expand your view of Him.
Ephesians 3: 18 And may you have the power to understand, as all God’s people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his love is. 19 May you experience the love of Christ, though it is too great to understand fully. Then you will be made complete with all the fullness of life and power that comes from God. 20 Now all glory to God, who is able, through his mighty power at work within us, to accomplish infinitely more than we might ask or think.[3]
Who is this man? Listen here to understand:
https://podpoint.com/light-of-christ-church-podcast/calming-of-two-storms
[1-3] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation . Tyndale House Publishers.