What Sort of Man is This?
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Matthew 8:23-27
23. And when he got into the boat, his disciples followed him. 24. And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but he was asleep. 25. And they went and woke him, saying, "Save, Lord; we are perishing." 26. And he said to them, "Why are you afraid, O men of little faith?" Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm. 27. And the men marveled, saying, "What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey him?"
Psalm 65:5-8
5. By dread deeds thou dost answer us with deliverance, O God of our salvation, who art the hope of all the ends of the earth, and of the farthest seas; 6. who by thy strength hast established the mountains, being girded with might; 7. who dost still the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, the tumult of the peoples; 8. so that those who dwell at earth's farthest bounds are afraid at thy signs; thou makest the outgoings of the morning and the evening to shout for joy.
The first thing that struck me in Matthew is the question, “What sort of man is this?” Peter, Andrew, James and John have just left behind everything they knew—abandoned their fishing nets, their families and their lives to follow this man! And they shake their heads and tremble with fear at Jesus’ calming the sea! They had just awakened him and begged him for help! Did they just want him to help bail out the water that surely had come over the bow of the boat? Or was it that they had followed him initially because of his magnetic pull. Because of his irresistible persona, one could not help but follow him when personally called!
I don’t think at this point the disciples, or anyone else for that matter, really had the big picture of what was going on here! They followed this man, without knowing why . . . they beseeched him to help, without being sure of what exactly they wanted him to do . . . they must have been thinking either, “What in the world have I gotten myself into?” or “Wow, I’m sticking close to this guy, he might just be the ‘real deal’.” In any case, they were in absolute awe of him and frightened at being in the presence of such power!
My Bible Reader’s Companion states: Faith grasps what unbelief cannot. Isn’t that profound? It was faith that made them follow Jesus. They weren’t aware of his divinity at this point. They had seen him around town, they had heard him preach. But they knew he was a carpenter—a laborer and tradesman—just like them. How could he calm the sea? How could he command the elements? They surely ran their minds back through the Psalms. Surely they recalled the verses from Psalm 65. Were they wondering then if this was the real deal?
I wonder if this is when that “light bulb” lit up in the minds. I wonder if this was the “point of no return” for them? This Jesus not only declared that He was the fulfillment of the law, he demonstrated it through miracles and signs. We need more than faith sometimes. We need signs and miracles. We ask for something we’re pretty sure isn’t going to come to be. But when it does we declare how wonderful God is! What are we expecting? Where does faith enter in?
Didn’t Jesus tell us to ask and we shall receive? The disciples asked Jesus to help them—and he did! But he gave them much more than what they asked for – or expected! Jesus will do that for us, too! All we need to do is ask! The God who controls the morning and the night, the mountains and the seas also hears our feeble prayers. And he answers them!
I hope today you tremble in awe of the loving, kind, mighty God who walked the earth 2000 years ago. And that you’ll pray with confidence that God hears every prayer—and answers!
Mary
