Who Is He? Series

“He’s Amazing! Who Is He?”

Mark 4:35-1

Life is filled with what we call ‘bad days.’ This bad day account was supposedly taken from an actual insurance claim report. It’s highly doubtful but worth thinking about. Mr. Insured had just purchased a new 7509cc Honda motorcycle. After a few leisurely trips around the block to become acquainted with this powerful new machine, he parked the cycle in front of his home to show it off to his neighbors. It started to rain, however, and not wanting to get the cycle wet, Mr. Insured decided to bring the cycle into his house. He put down several large boards over the front steps to make a ramp. He started the cycle up and drove up the ramp, but being unfamiliar with the power of his new cycle, he lost control on the porch, crashed through the front door and into the television set. He sustained a fractured collarbone and the living room was covered with gasoline and oil. The ambulance took him to the local hospital and while he was there his wife and daughter cleaned up the debris, soaked up the gasoline in towels, and wrung them out in the toilet. Several hours later Mr. Insured returned home, full casted from neck to waist. Soon he went into the bathroom, where he lit a cigarette; he tossed the match into the toilet…Needless to say the ambulance was called again. As they were carrying the battered and burned Mr. Insured out of the house one of the medics asked his wife what happened. Upon hearing the story both medics broke out laughing, slipped on the wet porch and dropped Mr. Insured, fracturing his arm. On the way to the hospital the ambulance was involved in an accident, but at least there were no further injuries. Talk about a bad day! The motorcycle was sold the next day! Often life does not go according to our plans.

So the disciples learned. On this day, recorded in Mark 4, everything was going well – until the unexpected happened. Let’s look at some lessons the disciples learned.

First they learned that STORMS COME WITH LIFE. No one is exempt from them. For the disciples it had been another busy day of ministry. Jesus had spent himself teaching, healing, and dealing with the crowds. He was exhausted. So the disciples took him into a boat and headed for the other side of the sea where they could all be refreshed and renewed.

And it was a perfect night. The wind had died down when the sun had set; the water was like glass. It didn’t take long for the lapping of the gentle waves to lull the weary Jesus to sleep and to relax the tired disciples. But EVEN THOSE CLOSEST TO JESUS EXPERIENCE STORMS. Without warning, the wind began to blow and quickly increased in intensity. Soon the rain poured down and the disciples began working frantically to keep the boat afloat and on course. Eventually the boat took on water and they began to bail. They were frightened. To top it off they were also frustrated that their Master, who could have been of help, was still sleeping. When they finally hit the panic stage they shouted to Jesus and roused him from his sleep. And because they were so frightened and frustrated they judged Jesus as they called to him. They actually condemned him: “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?” How can you sleep? Here we are, your beloved disciples — who have given up everything to follow you – and we’re about to drown while you sleep! What kind of deal is this? Wake up and help us! We cannot do it alone!

What a scene! The disciples had seen his miracles, heard his teachings, and left everything to follow him; now they ask if Jesus if He cared about them! We wonder what got into them, what possessed them. And yet we know – storms, after all, come with life.

SO WE EXPERIENCE STORMS IN OUR LIVES. Just read the papers or listen to the news. An airplane crashes and all on board are killed; does God care? A preschooler wanders out the door and drowns in a swimming pool; does God care? A youngster walks his bike down along the side of the road, and is hit by a car and dies; does God care? A policeman lays down spikes to stop a fleeing car and the driver of the car runs him over and kills him; does God care? Men are being massacred, women raped, and families forced to drop everything and leave their homeland; does God care? Young men and women, leaving families behind, are asked to go serve in war-torn areas and put their lives at risk; does God care?