Bible Reflections From Scripture Union Volume OneSample

Peace in the Storm
Read Mark 4:35-41

He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” Mark 4:40

By this time, the disciples had followed Jesus for some time and observed all the miraculous signs that Jesus performed. They had witnessed the multitudes following Jesus and placing their trust in Him. Yet, they remained slow to learn. They had yet to learn to entrust their lives into Jesus’ hands.

Crises and difficult circumstances often push us to our limits and test the depth of our faith. The disciples faced a furious storm and felt helpless. Remember that many of them were fishermen, and encountering storms at sea was normal. Yet in this particular storm, they found their strength and skills to confront the storm challenged. In fear and desperation, they finally turned to Jesus for help.

By now, the disciples should have learned to place their trust and faith in God in the midst of the storm. But they failed. Jesus rebuked the disciples for their lack of faith that made them afraid and unable to respond to a crisis with their confidence in God.

Why was it that the disciples were still slow to learn? They had never fully understood who Jesus really was and failed to understand their purpose in following Him (vs 40-41).

Some of us have followed Christ for years, some recently. Do we know who Jesus really is? What is our perspective of Christ? Without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6). Do we have faith to trust God for situations beyond our control? Who is Jesus to you?