Luke 8:22-25
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What is faith? How would you define faith, remembering that you can’t use the word “faith” in the definition? If a child asked you to explain the meaning of faith, what would you say?
We know that faith is important. The author of Hebrews tells us:
And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. (Hebrews 11:6)
We’re taught in Paul’s letter to the Romans:
1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God. (Romans 5:1-2)
And we read in John 3:
16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. (John 3:16-18)
These last two passages raise another question, it faith the same thing as belief? I often use the two words interchangeably, but do they mean the same thing?
Turn with me to Luke 8. We will pick up our study of Luke’s gospel with verse 22.
22 One day Jesus said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side of the lake.” So they got into a boat and set out. 23 As they sailed, he fell asleep. A squall came down on the lake, so that the boat was being swamped, and they were in great danger. 24 The disciples went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!” He got up and rebuked the wind and the raging waters; the storm subsided, and all was calm. 25 “Where is your faith?” he asked his disciples. In fear and amazement they asked one another, “Who is this? He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey him.” (Luke 8:22-25)
We’re not told when this happened. All we’re told is that it happened “one day.” That means it didn’t happen right after the previous stories of Jesus telling the parable of the soils or the day Jesus’ family came to get him. And really, what specific day doesn’t matter.
Jesus decides it would be good to travel to the other side of the lake or the Sea of Galilee. Why did Jesus think this was a good idea? I think it’s safe to assume that he was led by God to do make this trip. Everything Jesus did was preceded in prayer. Jesus told those who were following him:
For I have come down from heaven not to do my will but to do the will of him who sent me. (John 6:38)
I believe he was sent by God the Father who had a good reason for Jesus visiting the other side of the lake and we find out that reason in the next passage. Jesus’ ministry wasn’t very long. At most it was only three-and-a-half years. Everything he did was with a purpose. Jesus suggests they sail across the lake so the disciples all get into a boat to make the trip. It doesn’t seem to take long before Jesus falls asleep in the back of the boat.
Can you fall asleep that fast? I don’t usually have too much trouble taking a nap. Mary Anne would get aggravated when I put our daughter down for a nap. When she was two, I’d lie on our bed with her and I’d go to sleep while she sat on the bed and quietly played. About the time she’d get drowsy and fall asleep I’d wake up. Mary Anne didn’t like that she couldn’t go to sleep that fast. Evidentially, Jesus could. He fell fast asleep in the back of that rocking boat. He must have been tired.
We don’t usually think about Jesus having these human needs but we’re told that he was hungry, thirsty, and he got tired just like we do.
Initially, it seems the comment about Jesus taking a nap isn’t important, but it becomes important because the next thing we’re told is there is a storm. And this wasn’t just another storm. Luke tells us it was bad enough that their lives were in danger. The waves coming up over the sides of the boat threatened to sink it. So, they did the only thing they knew to do, they woke Jesus up and told him they were going to drown. Mark says they asked if he cared that they were going to drown.
Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?” (Mark 4:36)
I think Jesus cared but he was asleep.
This wasn’t the first time the disciples or Jesus had been out on the Sea of Galilee, but this trip was different. Because it was Jesus’ suggestion, the disciples didn’t think anything of it but it was going to be a trip they wouldn’t forget.
The Sea of Galilee is almost seven hundred feet below sea level. As a result, strong winds are not unusual. In his commentary on Luke, William Barclay included these remarks from a traveler to the region:
The sun had scarcely set when the wind began to rush down towards the lake, and it continued all night long with increasing violence, so that when we reached the shore next morning the face of the lake was like a huge boiling caldron.
The sea is surrounded by table lands into which rivers have cut deep ravines. These ravines act like great funnels to draw down the cold winds from the mountains; and thus the storms arise. Barclay gave the traveler’s description of trying to pitch a tent along the sea. He said:
We had to double-pin all the tent-ropes, and frequently were obliged to hang on with our whole weight upon them to keep the quivering tents from being carried up bodily into the air.
Those are some pretty strong winds. Almost half the disciples were fishermen. They were used to being out on the sea. They were accustomed to storms coming up. This must have been quite a storm though when even the fishermen are afraid it must be bad. It tells us something of the intensity of the storm.
I’ve been on two cruises. We didn’t have a storm on either one. The water was pretty calm. I can’t imagine what I’d do if there was a violent storm. I’ve heard stories for those who have been at sea during violent storms when the waves were taller than the ship. It would have to be scary and even these experienced fishermen were scared because of this storm thinking they would drown.
Of course they didn’t drown though. Jesus just spoke to the wind and the waves and they quieted down. All he had to do was say the word and they became still. It’s like creation, all God had to do was speak the word and the sky was filled with birds. At his command the seas were filled with fish and the land with the beasts of the field. It’s easy. All he has to do is say the word and it happens.
It’s interesting that Mark tells us that Jesus told the storm to be silent. It’s the same thing Jesus told the demons when he told them to be quiet. You may recall that on occasion the demons inside someone would begin calling out to Jesus and saying who he was. Look for example at Luke 4 when Jesus drove out an evil spirit.
33 In the synagogue there was a man possessed by a demon, an impure spirit. He cried out at the top of his voice, 34 “Go away! What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are – the Holy One of God!” 35 “Be quiet!” Jesus said sternly. “Come out of him!” Then the demon threw the man down before them all and came out without injuring him. (Luke 4:33-35)
Because of this, because Jesus used the same word to quiet the storm as he did to quiet the demons, some have speculated that the storm was caused by evil spirits. It might seem strange to think that the weather could be controlled by the devil or an evil spirit but we read of it being the case in Job 1. After Satan had accused Job of only worshiping God because God had blessed him, God allowed Satan to remove those blessings. First, his oxen and donkeys were stolen and the servants watching over them murdered. Then his camels were stolen and those servants killed as well. Then, is those weren’t bad enough, Job received news that his ten children had been killed. They had all been eating together when a mighty wind struck the house causing it to fall on them killing all ten his Job’s children. Satan was behind each of those events, including the storm. What we must remember is that while Satan caused it, he only had the power God allowed him to have. His power is not unlimited.
If it was the devil behind this storm on the Sea of Galilee it would not be the first or last time he tried to kill Jesus. But it wouldn’t happen until the proper time, at the proper place, and in the proper way. Jesus would die in Jerusalem on a cross. So, when the disciples wake Jesus up he simply tells the storm to be quiet and it obeys.
Luke tells us that when the disciples saw the result of Jesus’ command that they were afraid. Mark says they were afraid of the storm but that they were greatly afraid after Jesus calmed them. This tells us they hadn’t woken Jesus up because they thought he could do anything about it; they only woke him up so he could be awake when they all drowned.
After the wind and waves calmed, Jesus and the disciples continued their trip. They were crossing the Sea of Galilee. We’ll find they were heading for a region called the Gerasenes on the east coast of the sea. The KJV translates the word as Gadarenes which has as its origin Gad, as in the tribe of Gad.
After the Israelites had wandered in the wilderness for forty years, they had conquered a couple of different nations. When it came time to enter the land, three of the tribes (Ruben, Manasseh, and Gad) asked to take possession of the land on the east side of the river that they had already conquered. They liked the land. There was some good pasture land in it and so they asked Moses if they could have it as their possession. It was not a part of the Promised Land and Moses thought they were asking for it because, like their parents forty years earlier, they lacked faith in God to lead them into the land promised to them. But that wasn’t the case. They were willing to go in and help fight for the Promised Land; they just wanted this land that hadn’t been promised to them as well. By the New Testament, there were some Jews still living in the area but it was predominantly Gentile. Jesus sails with the disciples to this area.
After calming the storm, Jesus turned and spoke to the disciples and asked:
Where is your faith?
The question seems a little harsh. Again, many of these disciples were experienced fishermen. They grew up on the Sea of Galilee. They knew it well. They’d probably heard stories of bad storms and maybe even knew people who had died in them. When these men were afraid there was real reason to be concerned.
You may have heard the story of some turbulence an airline experienced when approaching Hawaii earlier this month. Thirty minutes away from the island, the plane experienced the extreme turbulence that injured thirty-six passengers. One of the passengers said she was seated and was thrown into the ceiling. The pilots said some turbulence in that area is usual but not that much. Even they were caught off guard. Airline personnel are accustomed to that, but when they say it’s bad it must be really bad.
That’s how it was with the storm. It was so bad that even the fishermen thought they were going to die. So, it seems a little unreasonable for Jesus to ask about their lack of faith. They were just being realists. They understood the reality of the danger they were in.
So, what was Jesus asking? What did he mean by the question? It brings us back to our original question, what is faith? While faith and belief may be used interchangeably, here is the key distinction: belief is a mental ascent while faith goes beyond that and includes trust. James commented that even demons believe there is one God. However, they don’t trust God. They don’t put their faith in God into action. The disciples believed in Jesus. They were beginning to believe he was the Messiah, but did they trusty him? When things got difficult as with the storm, did they trust Jesus? Do we trust Jesus with the difficulties we face?
Some have suggested that the real fear was not so much for their lives but for that of Jesus and more specifically, for God’s plan. If that is true, it would make sense. They had come to believe that Jesus was the Messiah, the fulfillment of God’s promise to their forefathers many years before. And so, what did that mean for God’s plan if Jesus were to die out in the middle of the sea? They had heard Jesus talk about God’s kingdom and they were anticipating the coming of that kingdom. Their hopes and the hopes of their people were for the coming of God’s kingdom. Would that hope die with Jesus as he slept in the back of the boat? The purposes of God would be destroyed by the storm. They were certain they would not make it to shore alive. As one preacher described it, Jesus said, “Let’s go over,” and they were certain they were going to go under and so would the hopes of God’s kingdom.
Do we ever do that? Do we ever fear for God’s kingdom and God’s plan being sidetracked or derailed because of some election not going the way we would have liked or because of some disaster? When we hear news stories about what is being taught children today do we doubt God’s plan? If so, we are forgetting that Jesus is still with us. We can still trust him. We don’t understand everything that is happening but we can trust that God is still in control. As long as Jesus is with us we can’t sink.
God will is going to be done and there is nothing the devil can do to stop it. He tried to kill Jesus but couldn’t. Jesus said he laid down his life. Neither the Jews nor the Romans took it from him. The devil didn’t take it from him. Jesus laid down his life in his own time. The devil will never stop the ultimate plan of God. He wages war but he will never win. Do we believe? Do we have faith? Do we trust?
Here are some lessons we can learn from this story.
First, sometimes we will face storms in our lives.
This one is pretty obvious because we’ve already faced them. But when we do we need to remember that it’s nothing unusual. James tells us the purpose of trials and storms is to test and deepen our faith.
2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. (James 1:2-3)
Second, when we are in a storm we may think that we are out of God’s will.
Perhaps you thought you were doing something wrong or that God was punishing you for some great sin. But that’s not what this story teaches. A devotion in “Our Daily Bread” based on this passage explained:
Even when believers follow Christ’s bidding, they may face hardships. For example, Jesus’ disciples were doing God’s will when they took Him across the lake, for he had commanded them to do so. Yet they were buffeted by a dreadful tempest, and they seemed to be in danger of drowning. A storm - and Christ on board! It seems a contradiction. Wouldn’t His presence ensure a peaceful journey? Not at all!…”
In other words, you can find yourself in a storm and be right in the center of God’s will.
Third, when we are in a storm we may think that God doesn’t care.
The disciples asked Jesus if he cared that they were dying. Since he seemed totally unaware of their situation they were beginning to wonder. Does God know about our troubles? Does he care? Sometimes we mistakenly conclude that we are alone, that no one, not even God. But that’s not true. God never promised we’d never have problems but he did promise to always be with us.
And fourth, when we are in a storm we need to cry out to our Father.
To cry out is to assume that there is a God who cares and who not only cares but acts. Always trust in God. The storms of life reveal where our faith lies.
When difficulties we have three choices. One, we can choose to worry, but we all know deep down that worrying changes nothing. Two, we can try harder, and harder until we see that there is nothing more we can do and we are forced to conclude that it is absolute out of our control. Or three, we can trust in God and seek his help.
