Jesus’ disciples were still getting to know him when this morning’s gospel (Mark 4:35-41) takes place. In these early days of his public ministry, he had preached in synagogues in Galilee, cured many people and taught in parables. Word of his cures and teaching had spread quickly and he attracted large crowds wherever he went.

**

This morning’s gospel begins,

On that day, when evening had come, Jesus said to his disciples, "Let us go across to the other side." (of the sea of Galilee.)

And leaving the crowd behind, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. Other boats were with him.

Until this point in Mark’s gospel, Jesus had taught and cured in Galilee. With this trip he would move into the Gentile area on the eastern side of the sea, the land of the Gerasenes (Mark 5:1)

At least four of his disciples were fishers: Peter, Andrew, James and John. Sailing was part of their life. It was also a common way of travel for traversing the 11km of Sea of Galilee instead of having to travel by foot around the perimeter. (If they had started walking at the midpoint to get to the other side, it would have been about 27 kilometers...not a trip one would want after an exhausting day,)

The boat they took was probably similar to the Kinneret boat, about 27’ long and 8’ wide at the widest part, capable of holding twelve to fifteen people. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P2Rb971l3pE)

The crowds wanted to follow him so they accompanied him in other boats.

**

But as they sailed,

A great windstorm arose, and the waves beat into the boat, so that the boat was already swamped. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke him up and said to him, "Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?"

Geology affects the suddenness and strength of storms. “The warm, moist air above the Sea of Galilee will often rise, while cooler air from the hills rapidly descends, creating high winds at the water's surface. In addition, the Sea of Galilee is relatively shallow, which tends to produce larger waves when wind speeds are high.” Storms can rise quickly, so that they may have set out in good weather and been surprised by the suddenness of the tempest. At night, storms also feel more threatening.

The detail that he was asleep even as the storm rose indicates that Jesus had been tired from his work and the constant demand for his attention. He was fully human and needed rest. Being able to sleep through the storm signalled his exhaustion… and perhaps his sense of peace.

**

He woke up and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, "Peace! Be still!" Then the wind ceased, and there was a dead calm.

The people of Jesus' day experienced chaos on all sides in the form of illnesses, disfigurement, social isolation (from leprosy), possession by daemons…and from storms. When Jesus confronted these powers of chaos, he made the reign of God visible by showing the integrity and beauty that God intended.

His command, Peace, is an imperative verb. It means, in part, “to make calm” or be still. It also has a sense of “to make whole”. Jesus reestablished order with his command.

In the OT the ability to control the sea or calm tempests was seen as a divine power.

O Lord God of hosts,

    who is as mighty as you, O Lord?

    Your faithfulness surrounds you.

You rule the raging of the sea;

    when its waves rise, you still them. (Psalm 89: 8-9)

O arm of the Lord!...

Was it not you …

who made the depths of the sea a way

    for the redeemed to cross over? (Isaiah 51:9-10)

**

He said to them, "Why are you afraid? Have you still no faith?"

In Mark, faith, is not just an intellectual activity but a whole-hearted commitment to following Jesus with confidence. (See Mark 5:34, 5:36, 9:23-24)

His disciples had heard him teach, had seen him cure many people and had responded to his personal magnetism by following him. Yet they still did not appreciate the extent of Jesus’ powers. Their lives as fishers had taught them to regard storms with caution and fear.

**

And they were filled with great awe and said to one another, "Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?"

In Jesus’ day, nature was more of a mystery than we find it today. Jesus had said, The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. (John 3:8) It was a force that seemed unpredictable and capricious. That Jesus would have the power to control it was amazing.

**

Jesus had used parables about nature to illustrate his teaching. Last week we heard that the Kingdom of God is as if someone would scatter seed on the ground, and would sleep and rise night and day, and the seed would sprout and grow, he does not know how. (Mark 4:26). The gospel for June 23rd shows that Jesus went beyond the not knowing how to orchestrate harmony from nature. He went further than talking about nature. He showed that he had control over it. Early listeners of the gospel stories would have marvelled at the story. 

**

  • Imagine what people in the other boats were thinking, first, as the storm rose – “we made a mistake following the teacher” – then immediately after the storm was calmed, “what happened to make the wind die so suddenly?” – finally, as they heard that Jesus had commanded Peace to the wind.
  • Jesus’ question, Have you still no faith?, invites us to consider what faith means in our context. Does it mean The Lord is my shepherd, nothing shall I fear. (Psalm 23) Is it just a rebuke such as, ‘Do you think I would let the storm overcome you?’ Does substituting trust for faith change the way you understand the sense? Does it mean that we should take risks in God’s name and trust that Christ will protect us? Does it mean that we follow him with confidence? What if storms blow up and swamp us? Does that invalidate our faith?
  • Biblical miracles have had a hard life since the Enlightenment. Before then, they were accepted as an illumination of Jesus’ divinity. After, they became an embarrassment because they couldn’t be explained rationally… “What does not happen now, could not have happened then,” seemed to be the argument… During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, some theologians went to extraordinary lengths to explain how the miracles could have happened: to make them plausible to rationalists. Their contortions appeal to some and make others smile. Referring to this morning’s gospel they opined that the storm simply subsided, coincident with Jesus’ command, not because of it… or that Jesus didn’t calm the storm, he merely calmed his disciples’ fear by waking up.

These theologians were right about one thing: reason should not be dismissed when considering miracles. Rationality must also have access to Jesus’ miracles. Where do you stand on this gospel story? What do you think?

Peace

Michael

Attachments 
YouTube video The Kinneret ‘Jesus’ Boat: Archaeological Evidence for New Testament Boats on the Sea of Galilee