Mark 4:39-
...”And he arose, and rebuked the
wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there
was a great calm”.
Storm is one of the things every fisherman or user
of the sea/ river will like to avoid because of the dangers they create to
fishermen or seamen. Likewise, life is full of storms or difficulties, and as
storm is a danger to the fisherman, it also creates dangers for our lives.
Storms can destroy your Christian life; your family; your marriage; your
business. It can cause frustration for life. Sometimes, our reactions to the
storms are disastrous- leading to request for death in both believers (eg.
Elijah) and unbelievers.
Overview
In
Mark 4:35-41, Jesus and His disciples, in their usual missionary works i.e.
doing God’s business, decided to go to the other side of a lake by boat. On
their way, they encountered a storm to the extent that the disciples were
afraid. As expert fishermen as some of the disciples were, however, they began
to fear the storm. The danger they encountered was so frightening that they
lost the faith to calm the storm. They called Jesus, who was then sleeping in
the boat, for help. Jesus rebuked the storm and it became calm there and then,
but He queried the disciples.
How
do you handle the storms (difficulties) in your life?
Our storm
As
human as we are, we often encounter stormy (difficult) life problems. Sometimes
the problems are so devastating and challenging that we forget about our
victorious power through faith. Sometimes we wonder whether God is alive and
seeing us suffer.
Are
you afflicted by a sickness/ disease that is making your life miserable? Is it
about your marriage? Is about your children or frustrations in work? Is
something tearing your family apart? Is anything denying you your freedom in
Christ? Rebuke that storm in Jesus name!
Rebuking the storm
To
rebuke is to speak severely to or say sharp words to. Jesus Christ is telling
us that we can rebuke the storms in our lives if we have faith. We have been
given all power in heaven and on earth to rebuke. The storms, engineered by
Satan, hear and they know that you have the power to quiet them and therefore
they use fear to destroy your faith at the first instance.
The
disciples were afraid because the water was entering the boat and as fishermen,
they knew the effect of water entering a boat. Maybe your problem has dominated
your solutions and getting worse. Man says you are going to sink or fail by all
means. Don’t worry, it is all part of Satan’s agenda to destroy the child of
God. Have
faith and rebuke the storm in Jesus name and it will flee!
Getting the faith to rebuke
But as a Christian, do you have the faith Jesus is
asking us to have?
- Be careful of what you hear as a Christian.
Know that Faith comes by hearing the word of God (Rom. 10:17). Faith is
simply: believing that you have something that
does not exist in the physical, sensory and perceptive world that you live
in. Let God’s
promises in the Bible be your guide.
- Don’t
live by sight but by faith in Jesus. What you see can be damaging to your
power to rebuke the storm and
- Don’t panic at the storms, stay calm (like
Job)
Readings
- 1sam. 17:32-49: David and Goliath story. A small boy wanting to fight a giant whom
even warriors were fleeing from. V37-38; 45-47; 49. Read Psalm 9:9-10.
- 2Corin. 6:1-13- the
Christian should rejoice in troubles. When the storms are coming we put on
a confident smile because we have a saviour greater than the trouble.
Remember,
there is no human alternative to faith. What man can do is temporal- like collecting
the water from the boat. Just have faith in Christ and rebuke that storm in your life.
…..Amen!
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