By Elizabeth Prata
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SCRIPTURE: “And on that day, when evening came, He said to them, “Let us go over to the other side.” And leaving the crowd, they took Him along with them in the boat, just as He was; and other boats were with Him. And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat so that the boat was already filling up. And Jesus Himself was in the stern, sleeping on the cushion; and they got Him up and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” And He woke up and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Silence! Be still.” And the wind died down and it became perfectly calm. And He said to them, “Why are you so cowardly? Do you still have no faith?” And they became very afraid and were saying to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?” (Mark 4:35-41).
A few things before I move on. These were seasoned fishermen, used to the sudden squalls particular to the sea of Galilee (which is 700′ below sea level). Winds would sweep down the mountain at speed and ruffle the waters of the Sea until the waves were towering and short spaced between each other. For these experienced fishermen to be this scared of a storm, the storm must have been especially ferocious.
But secondly, after Jesus calmed the storm with a word, they became MORE afraid (afraid…’very’ afraid). The word for very is megas, meaning “large, great, in the widest sense.” It’s where we get the word mega from. Their fear changed from a physical danger type fear of the storm to a spiritual fear.
Now for the second passage today, where afterward I’ll compare the two.
Luke 10:38-42: “Now as they were traveling along, He entered a village; and a woman named Martha welcomed Him into her home. And she had a sister called Mary, who was also seated at the Lord’s feet, listening to His word. But Martha was distracted with all her preparations; and she came up to Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to do all the preparations alone? Then tell her to help me.” But the Lord answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and bothered about so many things, but only one thing is necessary, for Mary has chosen the good part, which shall not be taken away from her.”
‘Lord do you not care… that we are perishing?’
‘Lord, do you not care… that I’m overwhelmed and she’s lounging?’
Of course it is a silly question. We see that’s so, once the storm has passed, or once the frustration levels out. Of course the Lord cares. He had just spent the day with the disciples caring for the thousands of sick and possessed. He chose Mary, Martha, and Lazarus’ home because he loved them. Of course He cared. He was on earth because He cared. He faced the cross because He cared.
But aren’t we silly, in our moments of fear and frustration; we lash out at God.
In both those cases of ‘Lord, do you not care?’ the people asking it were looking at another person rather than God. The disciples were looking at each other ‘we are perishing!’ Martha was looking at Mary, not Jesus.
We care for ourselves physically, as does the Lord, but the Lord also wants us to take care of ourselves spiritually. He was gentle with Martha, telling her that Mary chose (CHOSE) to apply herself spiritually while she had the chance, letting the physical needs of cooking and cleaning and serving go by the wayside temporarily.
He was a bit harsher with the disciples. In Mark’s Gospel Jesus asked them why they were so cowardly. In all 3 Gospels where the story is recounted, (Matthew 8:23–27, Mark 4:35–41, and Luke 8:22–25) Jesus asked the men ‘where is your faith?’
The issue at the root of it is, do not let your physical needs, wants, or fears swamp your spiritual strength. If Jesus had intended for all the men to drown in the storm and immediately resurrect them, so be it. If He had intended for them to die and resurrect on Resurrection Day, so be it.
Of course it’s easier said than done. When we get cancer we might cry out “Lord, do you not care?” When the baby dies, “Lord, do you not care”? Our fear and our grief are so large it blots out reason, even sometimes, faith.
Gordon Lightfoot famously asked in his song “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald: “Does anyone know where the love of God goes when the waves turn the minutes to hours?”
Not that God withdraws His love. He never rescinds the love He has chosen to set upon His children, and for the ones who are not His children, common grace abounds. But that we, in our fear, anger, grief, our frustration, FEEL like God has withdrawn it.
Always choose the better portion. Jesus in effect said this to Peter, who had asked about John. “What about that guy?” Jesus said never you mind about Him, you, follow ME.’ (John 21:22)
We do not resolve our fears by looking to our surroundings or to what other people are doing, but by looking to Jesus.
Look unto me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth: for I am God, and there is none else. (Isaiah 45:22 KJV)
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