The Lord of Creation

Bible Passage: Mark 4:35-41

In the first few chapters of his gospel, Mark is building up a picture of who Jesus is. In much of chapter 4 we have learned about his kingdom through his teaching, and now we see the kingdom demonstrated through his actions. In a series of back to back miracles, we learn about the authority of Jesus in every sphere; over creation, sickness, the spiritual realm and even death. This passage shows the power of Jesus over creation as he calms the storm with a word. The passage hands on three ‘greats’ in verses 37, 39 and 41 – a great storm, a great calm and great fear (these may be obscured in some translations, but the wording of all three is the same in the original). The primary meaning of the passage is to show the authority of Jesus, but the passage also serves to illustrate the power that Jesus possesses in relation to the ‘storms’ we each face in our own lives.

A Great Storm (v35-37): The crisis in this passage comes in the form of a ‘great storm’ that Jesus and the disciples faced whilst crossing Lake Galilee by boat. It was a night crossing after a busy day of ministry, so it is understandable that Jesus was spending the trip asleep and leaving the responsibility for sailing to the disciples. As fishermen, they knew the waters well and were experienced at sailing. They would have encountered choppy waters plenty of times over the course of their working life, but the storm they faced on this occasion was serious enough that even these hardened seafarers panicked at the sight of it and were afraid they would drown. The encounter highlights the obvious point that for all of us there will be times that we experience things beyond our capacity to handle, and these can feel like giant storms in our lives. These may take the form of challenging circumstances, physical or mental health issues, relational breakdowns or many other things. Whatever they look like, they can be severely disorientating when we do encounter them.  .

A Great Calm (v38-39): On seeing the storm, the disciples did the right thing and they woke Jesus up. This was not so much an act of calm faith as blind panic, but nevertheless they had seen enough of Jesus at this point that their instinct was to bring their need to him. Having noted in the previous point that we all face things that are akin to ‘storms’ in our lives, the disciples model for us how we too can respond in those times, bringing the circumstance to Jesus. The demeanour of Jesus in the storm is very different to that of the disciples. Where they were anxious, he was totally calm, and taking authority in the situation he brought the storm to calm with just a word. In doing this, Jesus echoes the creation story of Genesis 1, where the creator God separated the waters above from the waters below with a word. Jesus is acting in ways that only God can, and in doing so is bringing calm into even the stormiest of situations, which the disciples were unable to deal with on their own. He can do the same in the storms of our lives too when we bring them to him. Jesus may calm the storm, or He may carry His people through it, but either way, His authority and presence are what give confidence.

A Great Fear (v40-41): When the storm first came upon the waters the disciples were afraid, but now Jesus has brought it to calm their fear is even greater. They have seen something that has blown away all of their expectations, and forced them to ask the big question of just who this person in the boat with them is. For men like the disciples, taught the Old Testament scriptures from childhood, Psalm 107:28-29 would have likely come to mind. It speaks of people crying out to the Lord in a storm and the storm being calmed. What is significant about the psalm is that it credits the calming of the storm to God, but here they are seeing Jesus doing just the same himself. In seeing this, they are forced to shift their paradigms and begin to see Jesus as more than a mere human teacher. As we read the story it ought to create the same convictions in us, and help us grasp something of the divine authority of Christ.

Potential Applications:

• This passage highlights the power of Jesus in relation to the storms of life. You could offer prayer for anybody facing stormy circumstances at the moment.
• The passage challenges our instinct for where we go when tricky circumstances arise. It encourages us to take those needs to Jesus.
• These events are designed to make us ask who Jesus is. Invite people to think about their own answer to this question and how they are responding to Jesus.