Is He Really Asleep? – Lent Day 18

Matthew 8: 23-27. Then he got into the boat and his disciples followed him.  Suddenly a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat. But Jesus was sleeping.  The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!”  He replied, “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm. The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this? Even the winds and the waves obey him!”

We’re back in the Galilee, and today’s pictures are of the lake itself.  Geographically, the lake is about the size of Lake Simcoe.  Its depth is constantly measured and is seen as a sign of the health of Israel.  Two years ago, when we were there rain was the predominant weather system.  Our guide told us that although we saw wet weather as discouraging, they receive it as a blessing.  Well, Israel was so blessed that year that the water level rose to its highest in more than a decade that spring.

On a previous trip, we had been on the boat trip the day before the winds picked up, and these white caps were visible.  The last trip, the winds weren’t too high, but it certainly rained while we were travelling, so this Scripture took on new significance for us.

• 

• 

The disciples were fearful for their lives.  The winds had picked up and a storm had set in on the waters.  The Sea of Galilee is surrounded by hills, and so this body of water is bit like what’s in your teacup or coffee mug.  When you blow on it to cool off, there is movement.  So, augment that to storm force winds and there will be some scary activity happening, and to be on a boat in that…well, it would be concerning to say the least.

But, Jesus?  He’s resting, taking a nap.  In the midst of the choppiness, the tossing of the boat, He’s laying down. Then, simply at his command, it all stops.  Bear with me, for there’s a lesson here.

In the midst of our worse times, it feels like everything is designed to blow us down.  Our fight or flight instinct kicks in and we run on full adrenaline.  We were never promised that life as a Jesus follower would be gumdrops and lollipops. No, Jesus himself said that he came that we would have life, and life abundantly.  That means everything living brings – the good and the bad.  The difference is that in the bad, we can call on the one who STOPS the storm with just a few words.  

He was able to sleep because he was confident in the knowledge that his Father held securely.  Do you have that level of confidence, or do you sometimes feel God is sleeping while you are in crisis?  Ask God today that you would have that simple, complete trust, and that you would be able to share in the disciples’ astonishment at the power in the presence of Jesus.

 

What’s That You Say? – Lent Day 6

Luke 4:24-30. “All the people in the synagogue were furious when they heard this.²⁹ They got up, drove him out of the town, and took him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw him off the cliff. ³⁰ But he walked right through the crowd and went on his way.”

When the time of temptation was completed, Jesus returned to his hometown of Nazareth, filled with the Holy Spirit.  He had begun his time of ministry, and in this full passage, he went into to the synagogue and began to teach, and his new reputation preceded him.  To say those who had watched him grow up were unimpressed would be an understatement.  Especially as he read a passage from the Scroll, and then pronounced that “today the Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing”.  Imagine!  

The crowd was so angered by his pronouncement that they forced him to the edge of a cliff just at the edge of town, with the plans to throw him off it.  We don’t have the reason given to us, but he managed to just walk away from them.  This is the view from that cliff:

The people in Jesus’ hometown thought they knew him so well that there was nothing new he had to say to them. When Jesus first proclaimed the good news of God’s kingdom to his own townspeople at Nazareth, he was met with angry incredulity. Their very familiarity with him blinded them to his colossal mission. Many of us have been familiar with the words of Jesus from childhood. We have heard the narratives, the sermons, the parables so often that it is difficult to imagine it the way the author of Hebrews describes it, ‘The word of God is living and active’.

God can speak to us in the most unexpected way and through the most unexpected people and means.  If we are so fixed in our own conclusions, like those in the Synagogue that day, we leave no room for Him to work in new ways.  Pray that you will experience His Word afresh in this Season of Lent. Spend time reading from a translation you understand, (if you don’t have one, message us and we’ll see that we get you a contemporary Bible) and read with the expectation that God will speak to you.  He won’t disappoint, surprise and challenge maybe, but never disappoint.