He’s more than they realized

Throughout Matthew’s account of Jesus’ life and ministry, he recorded a lot of events.  When you read through his text, he quickly moves from one setting to the next.  A story, then an interaction, a crowd teaching, then a confrontation, next a healing, and on and on and on.  The transition between most events can feel like switching scenes from a movie or TV show. 

There is one significant event that Matthew captures in just 5 verses – when Jesus stilled the storm.  This incident took much longer to unfold in real time than the time it takes to read, but there’s still a lot to notice in these few verses:

Matthew 8:23-27
As He got into the boat, His disciples followed Him.  Suddenly, a violent storm arose on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves – but Jesus kept sleeping.

So the disciples came and woke Him up, saying, “Lord save us!  We’re going to die!”

He said to them, “Why are you afraid, you of little faith?”  Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm.  The men were amazed and asked, “What kind of man is this?  Even the winds and the sea obey Him!”

Hardened, trained, experienced fishermen thought they were going to die – that’s how big this storm must have been!  The Sea of Galilee was, and still is, infamous for its sudden, violent storms.  While several of the disciples knew this and had survived many of its storms, this one was too much.  And of all things – Jesus was sleeping!

When the harried disciples finally woke Jesus up, He simply told the winds and the waves to “Knock it off” and they stopped.  Immediately, there was clear skies and calm waters.  What I want to note is the question Matthew recorded the stunned disciples asking each other: What kind of man is this?

According to Dr. Thomas Constable:

The Israelites viewed the sea as an enemy that human beings could not control. Throughout the Old Testament it epitomizes what is wild, hostile, and foreboding. It stood for their enemies in some of their literature.

The stilling of the storm is the first nature miracle Matthew records in his gospel.  What is interesting to note is that the ability to calm the seas is a characteristic that the Israelites believed only God could do.  Here is just one of the texts representing their understanding.  Notice how closely the details of this psalm matches Matthew’s account:

Psalm 107:23-32
Others went to sea in ships, conducting trade on the vast water.
They saw the Lord’s works, His wonderous works in the deep.
He spoke and raised a stormy wind that stirred up the waves of the sea.
Rising up to the sky, sinking down to the depths,
their courage melting away in anguish,
they reeled and staggered like a drunkard,
and all their skill was useless.

Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble,
and He brought them out of their distress.
He stilled the storm to a whisper, and the waves of the sea were hushed.
They rejoiced when the waves grew quiet.
Then He guided them to the harbor they longed for.

Let them give thanks to the Lord for His faithful love
and His wonderous works for all humanity.
Let them exalt Him in the assembly of the people
and praise Him in the council of the elders.

So, the disciples’ question of What kind of man is this? may actually have been more of a rhetorical question than one of simple bewilderment.  Through this miracle, they were beginning to realize that the rabbi they were following may actually be the God-man the nation had been waiting for.

For us, we should absolutely cry out to God when we’re in trouble and in need of rescue.  When He provides a way out, don’t take His provision for granted.  Instead, reflect on what God has done and realize that His ability to rescue is just a glimpse of who He is.

Keep Pressing,
Ken