“Alas, the uproar of many peoples Who roar like the roaring of the seas, And the rumbling of nations Who rush on like the rumbling of mighty waters! The nations rumble on like the rumbling of many waters, But He will rebuke them and they will flee far away, And be chased like chaff in the mountains before the wind, Or like whirling dust before a gale” (Isaiah 17:12-13).
If you are a born again New Covenant Bible believer then you will most likely know the account of the Lord Jesus calming the severe storm that came up on the Sea of Galilee while He was in the boat with His disciples. Not only can this account be applied to our faith as New Covenant believers but also to the wider Body of the Messiah in the last days. The account is found in Matthew, Mark and Luke’s gospels.
Let’s read Mark’s account…
(Mark 4:35-41) 35. On that day, when evening came, He *said to them, “Let us go over to the other side.” 36. Leaving the crowd, they *took Him along with them in the boat, just as He was; and other boats were with Him. 37. And there *arose a fierce gale of wind, and the waves were breaking over the boat so much that the boat was already filling up. 38. Jesus Himself was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they woke Him and said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?” 39. And He got up and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Hush, be still.” And the wind died down and it became perfectly calm. 40. And He said to them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?” 41. They became very much afraid and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?”
Let’s look at this…
(Vs.35-37) On that day, when evening came, He *said to them, “Let us go over to the other side. Leaving the crowd, they *took Him along with them in the boat, just as He was; and other boats were with Him. And there *arose a fierce gale of wind, and the waves were breaking over the boat so much that the boat was already filling up.”
After spending much time in ministry at the end of the day the Lord Jesus told the disciples that He wanted all of them including Himself to cross the sea to the other side and that when it was at night, not the safest time for seasoned fishermen to be out fishing. Never the less the Lord Jesus fully intended to go to the other side with His disciples in the boat. Now it was dark. In the last days the faithful Body of the Messiah is going to face a very dark and difficult time in this world. It will be the time of the Big Trouble unlike anything that has happened in the past or will ever happen again in the future (Matthew 24:21-22).
Already we are seeing legislation being passed in western countries that diametrically opposes the teaching of the Bible where democracy and freedom are being hijacked by wicked and unprincipled men and women in positions of political power. We are living in a dark world and our faith as New Covenant believers is being tested especially at this time when we see wicked men and women in positions of political power and influence using COVID-19 as the means to enforce their brand of totalitarian control on people.
Now this storm that suddenly arose on the Sea of Galilee was so severe and sudden that the boat started to be flooded. In these last days the Body of the Messiah is facing very severe ‘storms’. It may be persecution, fear, anxiety, depression, laws being passed to restrict ones faith, family difficulties and loss of fellowship with many Churches closed due to the so called ‘Pandemic.’ Many of our brothers and sisters are feeling isolated in the present circumstances and the seas of adversity being whipped up by Satan that are threatening to flood the boat of their souls. For the wider Body of the Messiah, being the global community of New Covenant believers, this time of the Big Trouble is rapidly approaching, especially as we see the increasing hostility of the nations towards Israel.
Added to this, the persecution we see in Islamic countries is coming to the western democracies. It seems that the storms of adversity on the sea of life for the followers of the Lord Jesus are intensifying. Many New Covenant believers are struggling emotionally, mentally and even physically in this current COVID-19 crisis and wondering when it will end. In a very real sense COVID-19 is being used by the Lord to prepare His people for this time of Great Trouble soon to engulf the whole world. The Lord Jesus was also in that boat that night on the stormy sea. Wherever you find the Community of New Covenant Bible believers you will find the Lord Jesus also present with them no matter the circumstances they are facing whether it is a large fellowship or two or three meeting together (Deuteronomy 31:6) (Hebrews 13:5) (Matthew 18:20).
Now the Lord Jesus fully intended to go to the other side and that was that as far as He was concerned. The boat they were in metaphorically can represent the faithful Body of the Messiah corporately and the disciples in the boat the individual members of His Body. The storm metaphorically can represent the opposition and oppression of the saints by Satan and his fallen spirit beings in the unseen spiritual world. In the last days this opposition will come to a head just like the storm and strong wind of adversity that hit the boat, yet even at that point the Lord Jesus still has everything under control including what happens to us in the Body of the Messiah represented by the boat.
Now let’s see what happened next…
(Vs.38) “Jesus Himself was in the stern, asleep on the cushion; and they *woke Him and *said to Him, “Teacher, do You not care that we are perishing?”
Have you ever faced a situation where you were feeling helpless and frustrated and laden down with a heaviness of soul due to manifold temptations or facing a situation that was beyond your ability to control and you found yourself in a very dark place which some have called “the dark night of the soul”? It may be in this current situation with COVID-19 spreading like wildfire through the nations of the world that it has become for you a challenge to your trust in the Lord and it seems He is sleeping and you are alone? In the disciples case in the storm they were actually facing a life-threatening situation and they were quite alarmed and it was compounded by the fact that the Lord Jesus was seemingly asleep in the midst of this life-threatening crisis.
Now we are told in the Word of God that “He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel Will neither slumber nor sleep” (Psalm 121:4). Now we know that the Lord Jesus on earth was God manifest in the flesh of His eternal Son yet if God never sleeps or slumbers how come the Lord Jesus was asleep? Notice also that the Lord Jesus was ‘asleep’ in the stern at the back of the boat and near the rudder which steers the boats course. How could the Son of God be sleeping at a time like this and seemingly not even concerned about the perilous situation facing all of them?
It is interesting that the world used in the Greek text for “sleeping” can apply to physical sleep but also used as a metaphor. In other words, the word itself tells us that the Lord was not physically asleep or slumbering but appeared to be sleeping but with one eye open watching to see how the disciples would react to this crisis. It was a test of their faith. Of course they failed the test at this time but it was not over for them yet. This situation was preparing them for the storms and difficulties they would later face in life as they served the Lord in good times and bad times and that would stand them in a good stead for the ultimate test where they would have to lay down their lives for the Lord Jesus as all of them did except the Apostle John. They were not necessarily all happy to die but they all died happy!
The disciples ultimately came to realise that wherever they went that the Lord Jesus was with them and in them by his Spirit and steering the rudder at the stern of the vessel of their life and ministry while they themselves did the work as they served the Lord. In the last days the Body of the Messiah globally is going to be hit with a storm at the hands of Satan that will test them but only for a time, and that time will be cut short by God for their sakes and for the very survival of the world (Matthew 24:21-22).
All of us to a greater or lesser degree have faced storms of one sort or another in life and will face storms in the future but with each storm the Lord Jesus will be present and we know that even in the severest affliction by the devil as we see in the case of Job, God says to Satan “This far and no more!” We see this occur in what the Lord Jesus did after the disciples had disturbed His ‘sleep.’
Let’s see what He did next…
(Vs. 39-41) “And He got up and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Hush, be still.” And the wind died down and it became perfectly calm. And He said to them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?” They became very much afraid and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey Him?”
In a crisis God is never too early and never too late but always on time! Sometimes we think we are facing a very difficult situation or even a life-threatening one such as COVID-19 but we are never alone in the storm. When it looked like they would all perish the Lord Jesus stood up and faced the storm and rebuked it literally saying “be muzzled!” and immediately it ceased and all was perfectly calm. Sometimes in our personal life we will face a storm and the Lord does not answer us in the way we expected Him to answer, but in time when the storm has passed and we are safe, we realise that our faith has increased as we turned to Him in that storm when it looked like all was lost!
We also have the assurance that when He seemed to be asleep in the crisis He had his eye on us and our situation all of the time. Now after everything was perfectly calm on the sea the Lord Jesus turned to His disciples and with a loving rebuke asked them why they were afraid and where was their faith? If He had decided to go to the other side of the Sea of Galilee then they should have realised that they also would get to the other side safely even after the storm hit. In the last days when it looks like the faithful Body of the Messiah is about to be exterminated by the man of sin and His beast empire the Lord Jesus will come back and at His rebuke the enemies of the cross will be shattered beyond recovery! At His command the armies of heaven will ride forth with the Messiah to deliver Israel and by extension and engrafting the faithful Body of the Messiah.
As New Covenant believers we will have to face difficulties and uncertainties in this present life as we have been destined for them (1 Thessalonians 3:3). In an ever changing and insecure world where safety and security is rapidly diminishing we see freedom and democracy being replaced by a form of global totalitarian tyranny that Satan is using to attack Israel and the faithful Body of the Messiah. However, even though the storm rages against us as New Covenant believers, the seventh and last trumpet will sound! Suddenly in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye we will all be changed to immortality body soul and spirit and after that all things will be made new! (1 Corinthians 15:51-52) (Revelation 11:15).
Dear brothers and sisters in the Messiah our Lord Jesus as we all face COVID-19 and the draconian totalitarian tyranny from those in positions of power arrayed against us let us not buckle down at the knees in fear but look heavenwards with expectant faith because our Lord Jesus is coming and at His rebuke the storm will cease in the world and in our souls, the enemy vanquished and all will be perfectly calm! Even in the COVID-19 crisis we are all facing and everything that comes with it let’s remember that it is always safe to trust the Lord! When He says to the storm “Be Muzzled” everything will become perfectly calm!
And so as Isaiah writes; “Alas, the uproar of many peoples who roar like the roaring of the seas, And the rumbling of nations who rush on like the rumbling of mighty waters! The nations rumble on like the rumbling of many waters, But He will rebuke them and they will flee far away, And be chased like chaff in the mountains before the wind, Or like whirling dust before a gale” (Isaiah 17:12-13).
