The Ruler of the Raging Sea

GETTING STARTED

It starts with a stiffening breeze and is followed by a low, easy rumble. Eventually, it blows nearer, and what once sounded like a lovely afternoon shower turns into a fierce thunderstorm that threatens as it crashes overhead. In Texas we are all too familiar with unexpected storms. And in today’s passage, Jesus and his disciples encounter a storm that literally and figuratively rocked the boat.

  • Where do you go when the daily storms of life are threatening? Who or what do you count on to get you through?

READ THE WORD: LUKE 8:22-25 (ESV)

22 One day he got into a boat with his disciples, and he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side of the lake.” So they set out, 23 and as they sailed he fell asleep. And a windstorm came down on the lake, and they were filling with water and were in danger. 24 And they went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we are perishing!” And he awoke and rebuked the wind and the raging waves, and they ceased, and there was a calm. 25 He said to them, “Where is your faith?” And they were afraid, and they marveled, saying to one another, “Who then is this, that he commands even winds and water, and they obey him?”

English Standard Version, copyright 2001 by Crossway Bibles. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

DIGGING DEEPER

  1. When did the disciples wake Jesus, and what was their demeanor when they did so?
  2. Did Jesus seem to be concerned by the waves, the storms, the wind, or the raging sea?
  3. What did Jesus’ question to the disciples in verse 25 imply he was concerned about?
  4. What thoughts and emotions did Jesus’ display of power evoke in the disciples?
  5. When was the last time you focused too much on your storm and not enough on God’s sovereignty or power? What does your response to the storms you have faced indicate about your level of faith? About your honest belief in Jesus’ power to calm your storm?

RESPOND TO GOD

The disciples were among the first to proclaim that Jesus was God, but their experience in this storm caused them to rethink what they truly knew and believed about Jesus. Perhaps that is why Jesus asked his friends about their faith and in whom and what they really trusted. What happens when we forget who Jesus really is, and that he is present with us in every situation? Like the disciples in this passage, we either ignore the storm’s warning signs or rely on our own strength and ability to save us. If we truly understand who Jesus is, we will rely on him much sooner instead of attempting to use our own strength and intellect to bail ourselves out. 

  • Ask God to help you go to him first—not only because of his power over the situation but also because of his place in the universe.