GET INTO THE BOAT

 

GET INTO THE BOAT!

It was sometime in the 80s. We were living in Omaha and I decided to paint the trim that ran under the roof of our home. I could do this with a step-ladder for most of the house, but on the north side, the peak of the roof was 29 feet high and my fear of heights was a huge problem. I would approach the ladder with a great deal of bravado- nothing to be afraid of- and rush up the rungs with my paint brush in hand. But as I neared the top, my legs froze and I hugged the ladder. When I finally made it to the top, I would reach out with one trembling hand and paint another inch or two of the trim… before I scampered back to the safety of the ground.

I was terrified! Scared to death, and I have never gotten over it! My late brother, Randy, on the other hand, was afraid of the sea…thalassophobia which seemed to call to him when he was on the shore. And it is this fear- thalassophobia- that many people in the ancient world had. Several ancient cultures had flood stories and many people in that time believed in sea monsters and other sources of danger. On the 5^th day of creation, Gen. 1:21, God created the great sea monsters, and except for Noah and his family, God destroyed humankind with the great flood. Jonah tried to run from God, but he was returned to his starting place in the belly of a “big fish.” With God on his side, Moses divided the sea, which allowed the people of God to escape from the Pharaoh. Otherwise, the great sea would’ve kept God’s people in slavery.

The sea was a mysterious and threatening thing for sailors and passengers alike, and this was certainly the case with the Sea of Galilee… where sudden, strong, and short-lived storms often occurred. This brings us to our passage today. After Jesus finished teaching about the kingdom of God, He said, “Let’s go to the other side”… of Lake Gennesaret (another name for the Sea of Galilee). Let’s get into the boat and go to the other side, and he meant “now,” without returning to Peter’s home and preparing for the trip. Jesus meant that they should get into the boat “now.” So they got into the boat, not long before a “great windstorm arose and their boat was filling with water.” The disciples were bailing out water and becoming increasingly frantic- so they woke Jesus up and questioned whether he even cared if they died. Rather than responding to such a question, Jesus rebuked the wind and the storm subsided. It was over. Everything was fine, and Jesus asked two questions: why are you so afraid, and have you still no faith? According to Mark, when Jesus calmed the sea, the disciples were filled with great fear yet again, asking one another, “Who is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”

Well, I hope each of you will give some thought to this brief passage, What did it mean? What does it say to us? And I will start with 5 observations of my own:

1.    The disciples were professional fishermen. They were the sons of professional fisherman, and they must have been familiar with the sudden storms that arose on this sea. So, why were they so terrified? Maybe it was their experience that gave birth to their fear.

2.    Getting into the boat is half of the battle. Unless we get into the boat, we will not experience the journey and we will never grow to be the men and women we were called to be. God calls and we respond… or not. We get into the boat… of not, and if we don’t go, we will miss out on all the things we might have see and all the blessings we would have received.

3.    Going to the other side can be a frightening thing! Who or what is on the other side? Will I be harmed or changed in ways that I don’t want to be changed? Will I be liked or will I be treated with disdain? Will the experience be worth the uncertainty that I will endure?

4.    Who was it that questioned whether Jesus cared? What kind of a question is that? I’ve been in my share of storms- you have too- and I’ve prayed to my Lord! I’ve sometimes wished that God would have said “yes,” instead of “no.” or “now,” instead of “later,” but I’ve never thought that God didn’t even care.

5.    Who is this man who can calm the sea and wind? This is a great question. Who is this man who has authority over the forces of nature? At its core, FAITH is more a matter of trust than intellectual assent. Faith is living as if what we claim and hope for… is true. Faith is actually believing that God’s eye is on the sparrow and that God has the whole world in His hands. If we can get a firm hold on the fact that the man who is sleeping in our boat… is GOD, we can rest easy and get a little sleep ourselves, If Jesus is God, we have nothing to fear! Nothing at all! Absolutely nothing! Amen!