Mark 4:35-41 - Jesus Calms the Sea

After giving us a very brief glimpse into the content of Jesus' teachings, Mark returns to recounting miracle stories. This recounting covers four incidents and will take us through the end of chapter five. These miracles all take place in or around the Sea of Galilee. Each of these miracles accomplishes the purpose of demonstrating for us the power that Jesus has over all the enemies of humanity--all that is evil and opposes itself to God. We will see Jesus' power over the demonic, his power over disease, and his power over death. But . . . we start with a story of a storm, and Jesus with his disciples in a boat as they cross the Sea of Galilee.

Pay close attention because Mark is telling us something important with this story. In this account we are going to see both the humanity and the deity of Christ, but it is his deity which is emphasized.

In the Bible the wind and the sea represent the forces of chaos and the unknown, and God is frequently pictured as having power over such forces. In that the sea and the wind represent chaos and destruction they represent the work of Satan in this world. It was through Satan that the curse was unleashed on the world and it became a dangerous place in which to live. And so when Mark records Jesus' reaction to the storm Mark says he "rebuked" the wind, using the same word that Mark uses to describe how Jesus speaks to the unclean spirits--Jesus rebukes them. He rebukes Satan and he rebuked the wind. In fact, the language is uncannily like an exorcism story.

The way in which Jesus stills the storm with a word also reminds us of how God spoke into the darkness and void in Genesis 1:2 and brought order out of chaos. The voice of Jesus is the voice that spoke the worlds into existence. The material elements of this creation know that voice and obey it. Clearly, Mark intends for us to see and understand through this incident that Jesus is very God of very God. No mere mortal commands the wind and the sea, but in the Old Testament it is precisely this that God is portrayed as doing. Especially in that portion of Psalm 107 which we read a few minutes ago:

Some went down to the sea in ships,

doing business on the great waters;

they saw the deeds of the LORD,

his wondrous works in the deep.

For he commanded and raised the stormy wind,

which lifted up the waves of the sea.

They mounted up to heaven; they went down to the depths;

their courage melted away in their evil plight;

they reeled and staggered like drunken men

and were at their wits' end.

Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,

and he delivered them from their distress.

He made the storm be still,

and the waves of the sea were hushed.

Then they were glad that the waters were quiet,

and he brought them to their desired haven.

Psalm 107:23-30

Surely Mark had this passage in mind when he recounted this story and surely the entire incident was orchestrated by God as a message to the disciples and to us that Jesus was God in the flesh, come down to defeat Satan and reverse the curse that his destructive craftiness had brought upon the world. The wind and the sea obey the voice of Jesus. It wasn't just true then. It's still true today.

Below you will find a link to the audio from the sermon I preached on this passage. There is much more to this passage than I have touched on here and I'm sure that by listening to the word preached you will be blessed.

Click here: Mark 4:35-41 - Jesus Calms the Sea



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