Matthew 8:23-27 ESV And when He got into the boat, His disciples followed Him. And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but He was asleep. And they went and woke Him saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.” And He said to them, “Why are you afraid, o you of little faith?” Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. And the men marveled, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even the winds and sea obey Him?”
These five verses contain quite a bit of truth that is meaningful for us today. There is so much in this passage that we will look at it for the next three or four posts.
The disciples got into the boat to follow Jesus, yet they still ran into a storm. Following where God leads is always the best place to be, but it does not guarantee that we won’t have storms to contend with. On the contrary, following God will lead us into scary situations.
As I mentioned in my last post, Christians often expect God to make their lives easy, comfortable, and safe. Nowhere in the Bible does God promise us ease or comfort. Quite the opposite in fact is true.
God does promise to protect us, but sometimes He protects us during the trouble, not from the trouble. As we read this passage we see that Jesus did protect His disciples. But they still had to enter the storm first. God will bring us through periods of trouble to teach us, refine us, and/or glorify Himself. In hindsight we can see His protective hand, but in the middle it can be uncomfortable.
In the case of this particular storm, there is nothing in this passage to indicate that it was anything other than a natural phenomenon. There is no reason to believe it was a spiritual or demonic attack. However, in other places the Bible points out that obediently following God’s leading will eventually put us in the devils sights. The forces of hell want to wreak as much havoc among God’s people as they can. Our faithfulness in following God will draw their attack sooner or later. Those attacks can be troubling and sometimes frightening.
Let us faithfully follow where God leads. Do not fear the storms but expect them and look for God to work in and through them.
Almighty God, give me discernment to see where You are leading. Grant me the courage and strength to follow where You go. Help me to live victoriously to overcome circumstances and spiritual attack.