Storms.

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!”

-Matthew 8:23-27

I love this scene in Matthew’s Gospel. You know, the more I read the scriptures, the more I have come to a single conclusion: “Nothing good ever happens on a boat.” Seriously. Think about that.

No doubt weary from His ministry, Jesus finds himself asleep in the boat with His disciples surrounding him. All is well until the sea erupts. Scripture says “a furious storm” came upon the lake.

Ok. I have seen my fair share of storms. Goodness, I grew up in East Texas. I have seen PLENTY of storms. There’s something interesting here, however, that Matthew wants us to get. Consider the Greek for the word “storm” he uses here when he explains what they were experiencing:

Do you see it? This isn’t just an average storm that they were experiencing. This was literally described by Matthew as an earthquake of a storm!

Point made, Matthew, point made.

So the disciples find themselves in a pickle. Do they ride out the tempest or do they wake Jesus up? I wonder if any of them actually thought that this was a test. Honestly, who sleeps through earthquake-sized water-related storms? Certainly they had heard of Jonah, right? You know, if I was in the boat, I probably would have had the bright idea to get Peter to grab Jesus’ legs while I would have taken hold of His head and we would have tossed Him overboard. Hey! In Jonah’s story, when he went overboard, the seas went calm, right? Maybe it was a test?

Of course, now that I think this through, I feel quite certain this idea would have gone badly for me.

So they wake Jesus.

Smart move. And Jesus’ response?

Why are you so afraid?

I love this. Jesus is calm, He is confident, and He is reminding His disciples that the power doesn’t exist in the liquid earthquake that they find themselves in the midst of — the power is found in the one who is in the boat with them.

So He rebukes the storm and the seas calm. Next? He would cast out demons, showing power over evil. Then? Matthew would note Jesus’ power to forgive sins.

So, let me ask: What do your seas look like right now? Whether placid or calm, the beautiful reminder is that Christ is there. He’s in the boat.

Listen. The one who has the authority to stomp out evil, who offers forgiveness of sins — this same Jesus we see in Matthew 8 is the same Jesus who is there for you right now.

Earlier I posted a lyric to a Matt Redman song I have been listening to lately on Twitter.