The new testament contains accounts of the teachings, miracles and blessings of Jesus during his life here on earth, some obvious and some not so obvious. An example of an obvious and not so obvious blessing of Jesus can be found in the calming of the sea. This account is recorded in the gospels of Matthew chapter 8, Mark chapter 4 and Luke chapter 8.
Jesus was asleep in the ship when a great wind storm suddenly appears creating waves large enough to fill the ship with water. The disciples awaken Jesus amid a state of panic and ask Jesus if he no longer cares about them. I love the way the King James bible translates their statement in Mark, "Master, carest thou not that we perish?". The disciples should have known that the safest place to be in times of trouble was by the side of Jesus, yet their faith was not strong enough to let Jesus sleep.
Jesus asks the disciples what happened to their faith as he calms the wind and the sea. The disciples respond in astonishment by asking each other "What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?".
By comparing all three gospel accounts Mark records one particular statement that is not found in the other two gospels: "And there were also with him other little ships." In our study of this miracle it is easy to overlook this statement, and yet it has profound implications. ‘Other little ships’, the ship that was carrying Jesus and the disciples was not the only ship on the sea, so therefore there were other ships in peril without Christ onboard when the storm suddenly arose.
When Jesus awoke he could have told his disciples that they were safe from harm with him onboard and left the storm to its rage or he could have lifted the ship and placed it safely on the shore, instead he calmed the wind and the sea. When the sea settled all of the ships on the sea were rescued from the rage of the storm, not just the ship carrying Jesus and his disciples.
In this account we have the obvious blessing of the disciples being rescued from the storm and the not so obvious blessing of all the other little ships on the sea being rescued from the storm too. And so this is how it can be even today. All of us are probably guilty of looking upon someone and questioning why did the Lord bless this awful sinner. Perhaps it could be that when the Lord blessed one of his faithful followers the blessing was so widespread that it blessed others too.
I have written a poem about this lesson.
The Sea of Life
Mark 4:35-41
Sailing on the sea of life on a calm and peaceful day
when suddenly a storm arises and meets me along the way.
So I batten down the hatches hoping to make it through,
others are out on the sea and have to face it too.
Waves come crashing over and begin to fill my boat.
Soon it will be filled with water and can no longer stay afloat.
How am I going to keep from sinking and deal with this stress?
Does the Lord no longer care for me or is this some kind of a test?
However great the storm may be I can get through it with the Lord,
but what about those other ships that don’t have Christ on board?
The presence of a storm does not mean we are out of God’s will
for believers and nonbelievers alike will have to face life’s ordeals.
Storms will expose the weakness that dwells within our heart.
If we keep our faith in Jesus, the storm will soon depart.
Jesus is my strength during the storms that I will have to face.
Satan may create distractions but Jesus will keep him in his place.
Peace and comfort will return when the storm subsides.
Regardless of the situation, God must still be glorified.
When the Lord calms the storm and has brought me through,
may those other ships on the water receive the blessing too.
About the Author :
If you would like to read more bible lesson poetry that I have written check out my blog at http://www.biblelessonpoetry.blogspot.com/ . Additional poetry bible lessons can be found at http://www.poetrybiblelessons.blogspot.com/ . If you are interested in inspirational poetry then try http://www.poetrytoinspire.blogspot.com/ .
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