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May 26
The miracle of calming the storm presented by the first three evangelists constitutes a lesson of spiritual life, necessary for each human being.
I. The authenticity of our faith in God is proved by the fact that we are following Jesus Christ: "Jesus got into the boat and His disciples followed Him" (Matt. 8:23). True faith is expressed through action. James in his epistle helps us properly assess the authenticity of our faith in God:
1. Faith without works is declarative, not practiced - "What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds?"
2. Faith without works does not save, it just puts the conscience to sleep - "Can such faith save them?" (2:14b).
Many Christians claim it is important only to believe, but the Bible confirms that true faith motivates man to follow Christ. Faith that does not manifest does not exist.
The previous context presents the Lord's encounter with two of His contemporaries. The first person asks Him permission to follow Him: "I will follow You wherever You go" (v. 19). Christ explains that he will not have any material benefit because He does not even have a home such as the foxes in the field. The Lord's answer helps us to understand that the Lord was testing his motivation. The second one has conditions in order to follow the Lord: "First let me go and bury my father" (v. 21). Unexpectedly. Christ answers him using a hyperbole that highlights the priority of God in our actions: "Let the dead bury their dead..."
II. The authenticity of following Christ is confirmed by the presence of suffering: "Suddenly a furious storm came up on the lake, so that the waves swept over the boat" (v. 24a). The purpose of a disciple is primarily to follow the Lord, not to avoid the storm.
III. Suffering brings people to God, teaching them to pray: "The disciples went and woke Him, saying, "Lord, save us! We`re going to drown!" (v. 25). Christ uses this opportunity to explain to them that fear is caused by unbelief in the sovereignty of God: "You of little faith, why are you so afraid?" (v. 26)
Although they were in great danger, the Lord first rebuked the disciples and then calmed the storm. The attitude of the Savior teaches us that for God, our correction is more important than our salvation. The truth is that we cannot avoid the storms of life, but we can avoid unbelief. The priority of God is not primarily our comfort and safety, but our correction and sanctification.
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