I caught the news the other day and read that BC Ferries had canceled several sailings between Tsawwassen and Vancouver Island due to stormy weather. It happens now and then and is one of the expected perils of ferry travel.
That took my mind to the gospels. There are several accounts of Jesus calming storms on the Sea of Galilee.
On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him. And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he 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?” And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?” Mark 4:35-41 ESV
I can only imagine how the disciples felt when Jesus spoke and the storm ceased. How many times later did they talk about the event amongst themselves?
It’s a powerful text. What is it about?
I’ve heard two versions over the years, each claiming to answer that question.
One says that it’s an astounding account of Jesus’ power, pointing to His control over the natural order and proving His divinity.
The other says it is to tell us that Jesus can calm the storms in our lives.
The first concerns the text itself; the second concerns a possible application of the text. The application is seldom, if ever, what the text is about.
Let me give another example. In the account of David v Goliath (1 Samuel 17), we learn that young David kills Goliath using a sling and a stone. David demonstrates his faith in the Lord. The text is not about how God can slay the giants in our lives.
When we read the Bible, we first need to look at what the text tells us. Then we move on to see what the text actually means (a process called exegesis). Exegesis is a scary ten-dollar word that basically means examining a text to determine what it really says. We do it all the time with the Bible, even without knowing the fancy word.
Finally, we might look at how the text can be applied to our lives (the application).
Moving directly to the application without understanding the text can lead to many incorrect understandings of what the Bible says and means.
Let’s allow the text to speak for itself.
