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



^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Mark 2:1-12 - Jesus Heals A Paralytic

This is the first of five conflict stories that Mark puts together at the beginning of his Gospel in order to show us when and how the conflict arose between Jesus and the religious authorities--the conflict that would eventually culminate in his crucifixion. Remember that Mark is writing his Gospel at least in part to comfort a people who are experiencing opposition. He wants them to know that Jesus did also and he wants them to know why. In each of these five stories (pericopes) the opposition gets a little stronger, a little more determined. In the last of them we will see his opponents getting together and plotting his death.

If you're familiar with the Gospels then no doubt you're familiar with this story. Jesus is teaching in a house. The crowd is so great around the house that no one can get in or out. A paralyzed man is carried by four men up the outside stairs to the roof and then let down through a hole they'd made in the roof. Jesus heals the man but does so in a very stunning away. He pronounces that his sins are forgiven.

Some scribes who are sitting there witnessing this event are shocked and appalled. Who does this man think that he is? No one can forgive sins but God, they think to themselves. But Jesus reads their thoughts and then proves to them that he has authority to forgive sins by telling the man to get up, take up his bed, and go home. The man does this, proving that Jesus' forgiveness of his sins was not blasphemy at all, because Jesus is God.

This is the sermon I preached from this passage and I hope you will take the time to listen. Just click the link below and it will take you to a page on SoundCloud where the audio can be streamed or downloaded for later listening. God bless you and may you be filled with all the fullness of Christ as you meditate on him.



Click here: Mark 2:1-12 - Jesus Heals A Paralytic



^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^