MARK 4:35-41 UNDERESTIMATED As I followed the Lord in my mind through the pressures of a busy day of teaching and ministering to the multitudes, it seems perfectly natural that He would be tired. Also, following the teaching He gave, there was the process of training the disciples to grasp the truth for themselves. Unfelt truth given by unprepared people who have not made the personal effort to get the meaning of God's Word, will fall on deaf ears. The Lord knew the best way to address an audience of people, and He knew it was necessary to teach His disciples over and over what the point of a message is to be.
It seemed natural that He would find a place to rest while men who were used to traveling by water in their work, went about doing the tasks which would have been a second nature to them. We need to remember that Satan and his host often make a point of attacking us in areas of life with which we are most familiar. There is no place we can go where we are immune from the challenges of the enemy. However, there is a Person to whom we can go. I don't think the disciples had intended the Lord to calm the sea and rebuke the wind. They awakened the Lord Jesus just as they would any other man who was in danger of drowning in the sea. Their intention probably was to get Him to help bail water out of the boat because it was nearly swamped with water coming over the side. They underestimated His calmness of soul and spirit as they saw Him sleeping when they were afraid.
When the Lord Jesus got up and muzzled the wind and spoke to the water, then the disciples were really afraid to the extent of terror. It may have at first seemed like a manly thing to do to show bravery in the midst of danger by challenging the elements. The disciples may even have done something similar themselves in the past as a show of bravado. But when His word stopped the wind and the sea obeyed His voice, there was a far greater fear than fear of the elements that came over the disciples. This was no macho act and bravely spoken words. The reality of who the Lord really was, became plain to them. This was no ordinary man. He was no unusual miracle worker or knowledgeable teacher. This evidence of His deity and His humanity at the same time would have made them aware of the power of the Lord Jesus Christ over the forces of nature. The Creator and this Man, was the same Person. They would never have forgotten this lesson. They had fearfully underestimated the Lord Jesus Christ until this time. All day they had heard Him teaching in parables. Now this same night they experienced a parable themselves and the lesson was well learned.
For our learning it is important that we do not panic in the storms of life. Even if for some reason we wonder at why things happen the way they do, we need to remember there is no need to fear. In fact, there is no reason to go and desperately try to awaken the Lord and inform Him of our problem. He is already, and always, in control of the events that befall us. When Christ is with us, all is well. The storms may even continue but like the hymn-writer said, "With Christ in the vessel, I can smile at the storm." Another writer said we are far safer in the middle of a storm with God, than anyplace else without Him. A proper estimation of our Lord and Savior will make it possible for us to be at peace.
In the calm of the evening, when all is beautiful and quiet - He is there. In the busyness of work, and we are pressured to buy it- He is there. No matter what the testing is we are called to go through - Even if old temptations don't affect us, now there's something new - And the pressure comes upon us until we don't know what to do- He is there.
When the winds of opposition get stronger and rise against us- He is there. The voices of those who know us mock and scorn our trust- He is there. When in the middle of laughter and others' derision- In the times we are making life-changing decisions-
And we live in fast-declining moral conditions- He is there.
When there is no question we are under satanic challenge- He is there. When everything in our life is thrown off-balance- He is there. Even though the storms of life do not cease- There is available to me abundant grace- And in the middle of the storm, I am at peace- He is there.
"O God of earth and sea and sky, my Father: I am rejoicing this morning in the consciousness of the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ as well as His perfect humanity. It gives me a sense of quiet rest to be able to experience the reality of the Savior in all of life's situations. May I never underestimate in any way, the Person, Power and Work of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen."