When I was in P7, our school trip went to York. I think it might have been the first time I was on a ferry. I had taken my travel sickness tablets, and, as we got out onto the Irish Sea, the boat began to rock, and I thought, oh no... I remember mentioning to some of the teachers that it was quite rough, only for them to laugh and say that it was actually very calm. And then they started telling all the horror stories of school trip sea crossings when it really was stormy!
In our reading today, the disciples find themselves in a boat a lot smaller than the Stranraer ferry. And on a sea a lot rougher than the gentle Irish Sea that day. And the boat trip leaves them asking questions. But we’ll come to them in a moment or two.
As we launch into the passage, we find that this episode comes ‘That day when evening came’ (35). In the rest of chapter 4, we’ve listened in as Jesus taught the crowds about God’s kingdom. Perhaps you remember the parables he told - of the sower, sowing the seed of God’s word, with the soils being the different reactions to it. Or the parable of the seed which grows, no matter what else the farmer does. Or the parable of the mustard seed, which starts off small, but ends up with exponential growth. And Mark reminded us that Jesus spoke the word to the crowd with many similar parables.
After the full day of teaching, now that evening has come, Jesus says to his disciples: ‘Let us go over to the other side.’ Back in verse 1 we saw that Jesus had used a boat as his pulpit, now he uses the boat as a boat, to travel across the Sea of Galilee. And they go straight away: ‘Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were other boats with him.’ (36).
These are eyewitness details - this is the record of someone who was in the boat, telling their story of what happened. And as the journey continues, you can hear the details of what was happening - and how frightening it all was: ‘A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped.’ (37)
One of Northern Ireland’s national hobbies is talking about the weather, but even so, you may not use that word squall very often - I had to look it up to get the sense of it. A squall is a sudden violent gust of wind or localised storm. So imagine what a furious squall must have been like - an even more furious sudden violent gust of wind. A big wind, noisy, and fierce. And with it, the waves breaking over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped.
Can you picture yourself there as one of the disciples? The wind blowing, the waves splashing, soaking you through, endangering the boat as it starts to fill up, desperately trying to get the water out again and take control of the boat, trying to weather the storm but not getting anywhere. Every hand to the deck, frantic stuff, life-or-death actions. And then someone looks to the back of the boat, and catches a glimpse of Jesus. He’s not pulling his weight, helping to keep the boat above the water. No, Jesus is (38)... sleeping on a cushion.
When I started driving, I would take my mum and dad and granny out for a drive on a Sunday afternoon. Somewhere different every week, somewhere we hadn’t been for a while. And every week, after a few miles of driving, at least one of them would fall asleep. Sometimes, all of them. And I’d think - why am I bothering to drive when you could all sit and sleep at home?! That might have been mildly annoying, but imagine the annoyance of the disciples. In fact, you don’t have to imagine it - look at the rest of verse 38: ‘The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”’
They can’t believe that Jesus, their Teacher, has been sleeping in the storm. They’re all in danger. They’re afraid, even the experienced fishermen among them. Yet Jesus has been sleeping in the storm. Don’t you care if we drown? In other words, get up and help. Maybe they expected him to help by throwing some of the water back out of the boat. Maybe he could help by rowing as they tried to get to safety. Whatever they expected from Jesus, it wasn’t what he actually did when he got up:
‘He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.’ (39).
Jesus, who was sleeping in the storm is now stilling the storm. The furious squall of wind, blowing a gale, dies down. It’s a bit like when the teacher leaves the classroom to go on a message. And slowly, the sound levels from the class begin to rise. Everyone is talking, laughing, enjoying a few moments to catch up in the middle of class, and then suddenly, the teacher returns. One word - quiet - and the class is deadly silent again. The sound of silence would be deafening.
And as for the waves? One moment, breaking over the boat, the next, completely calm. Growing up, we always had Matey for our bubble bath. It produced loads of bubbles, but we also worked out that if you started to make waves, by paddling, or by moving your legs back and forth, you got even more bubbles. It was great fun, right up until the moment when the water started splashing out of the bath and soaking the bathroom floor. But once the splashes started happening, I couldn’t say to the water, no, don’t go over the edge!
But that’s what Jesus does. He says: ‘Quiet! Be still!’ And suddenly, everything is calm. No more wind. No more waves. It is quiet.
Quiet, except for the voice of Jesus. Look at verse 40. ‘He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”’
Jesus had rebuked the wind and the waves, but now Jesus is rebuking his disciples. He’s questioning their fear. He’s challenging their lack of faith. He’s asking them those searching questions.
Why are you so afraid? The obvious answer is that they were so afraid because of the big bad storm that had hit their boat, threatening their very lives. Yet Jesus is asking why they were afraid, even in the midst of the storm. He’s saying that there was no reason for them to be afraid. They didn’t need to fear, no matter how big or bad the storm was. Not when Jesus was with them.
Do you still have no faith? What is he asking there? Jesus seems to think that they should have faith, they should be trusting him, believing in him. He seems to think that by now they should know who he is, and should be trusting him. It’s not even, ‘Do you have no faith?’ It’s, ‘Do you still have no faith?’ Earlier they maybe didn’t trust him, but do they still not trust him? After all they’ve seen already?
As you’ll see time and time again, the disciples are a bit slow to pick up on things. They don’t really get what’s happening. They misunderstand. That’s encouraging, because sometimes we can be a bit slow on the uptake - at least I can - and yet Jesus perseveres with the disciples. He gives them another opportunity, and another. He keeps teaching them, showing them, and he does that for us as well. If this is discipleship for slow learners, then we’re in we’re all in the same boat (pardon the pun).
Jesus, who was sleeping in the storm is the one who stills the storm. But rather than answering the disciples’ question, it leads them to a bigger question, a more troubling question, a more fundamental question. Look at verse 41: ‘They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”
It’s obvious that the disciples were afraid in the midst of the storm. Jesus asks them, ‘Why are you so afraid?’ But do you see when we’re told that they were terrified? It’s not when the wind is blowing. It’s not when the waves are crashing over the side of the boat. ‘They were terrified’ in verse 41, when the wind had died down, and the waves were calm, and the danger was past.
They were scared before, but now they’re terrified. The original Greek says: ‘And they feared fear a great’. Why do they fear a great fear? Not because of the storm, but because of the stiller of the storm. Do you see what they ask? ‘Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!’
Next time you’re at the seaside, try this (making sure you’re not near other people, in case they wonder what you’re at) - tell the waves to be still. Would it work?
Or the next time the wind gets up, when Storm Hannah rolls in, tell the wind to be quiet. Will it work?
But Jesus speaks to the wind and the waves, and they obey him. They do what he says. So who is this Jesus? Do you see what they thought of him, back in verse 38? ‘Teacher, don’t you care that we drown?’ They see him as their teacher. But Jesus is more than a teacher. So who is he?
Mark leaves the question there, for now unanswered. The disciples are slowly discovering who Jesus is. But remember that Mark has already told us in the very first verse of his gospel. ‘The beginning of the gospel about Jesus Christ, the Son of God.’ And our readings from Job 38 and Psalm 65 show us that it is God who rebukes the waves, who tells the sea what to do. Can you see who he is? Jesus, the one whom the wind and waves obey, is more than just a man - he is also God the creator, who commands his creation. He is God over all, he’s in charge. He stills storms.
This sermon was preached in St Matthew's Church, Richhill on Sunday morning 24th March 2019.
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