ABANDON SHIP? NAH!

Our Sunday bible readings don’t always seem to have much to do with each other but, occasionally, there’s a real dramatic build up. Take the ones for 20th June.

First, God puts Job in his place: Who shut in the sea with doors when it burst out from the womb? Who said “Thus far shall you come and no farther, and here shall your proud waves be stopped?”

Then in the psalm: At His word, the stormy wind arose and lifted up the waves of the sea. They cried to the Lord in their trouble and He brought them out of their distress. He made the storm be still and the waves of the sea were calmed. Then they were glad because they were at rest and He brought them to the haven they desired. 

And all this points ahead to the gospel where Jesus calms the storm which was threatening to sink the boat carrying Him and His disciples on the sea of Galilee.

 Years ago, I went in a small pilgrimage party to the Holy Land and we took a short voyage across the sea of Galilee in what was advertised  a “Jesus boat” i.e. one which resembled as closely as possible the size and shape of the one He might have used.

It was a most enjoyable trip. I remember a bit of wind and an  appreciable spray coming over the bow but it was a pretty calm crossing. The crew obviously knew what they were about and would have cancelled the sailing if a storm was suddenly going to brew.

But it was not uncommon in biblical times for such sudden storms to arise without the sailors of those days being able to anticipate them. So it is not difficult to imagine the panic which gripped the disciples, even when we remember that at least four of them had been professional fishermen!

Now, with the hindsight of knowing about the crucifixion and resurrection, the calming of the storm takes on the appearance of a kind of rehearsal in miniature for Christ’s later victory over death and all the forces of evil in the world.

 Let’s go back for a moment to those Old Testament readings.

 The ancient Israelites had always looked on, and been suspicious of, the sea as associated with evil, with monstruous forces or even creatures which lurked as a threat in the deep.

That’s why we get those verses from the Psalm which I quoted. And that’s why the writer of the book of Job has God reminding Job of who’s boss – the one who could shut in the sea and tell it “Thus far and no further”.

In fact, this sort of stuff is found all over the Psalms and the books of the Prophets. And that is because these parts of the bible were written when Israel was experiencing the metaphorical “storms” of war, invasion, exile and persecution.

So the Psalmist and the Prophets are echoing the legendary stories about the God of old who was famous for calming the seas as a sort of plea to God to come to their present aid in the storms of war etc.

They even used to say sometimes: COME ON, ALMIGHTY GOD, WAKE UP. DON’T JUST LIE THERE. COME AND HELP US!

Which obviously has an echo, a parallel, in this story about Jesus. Jesus is the living incarnation of the mighty God the Father who tamed the raging waters at creation.

 COME ON, JESUS, WAKE UP! DON’T JUST LIE THERE. WE’RE SINKING.

 And so indeed He does. He gets up and “rebukes” the wind and the waves. Rebukes. As much as to suggest that the wind and the waves can somehow be addressed as  persons

So that Jesus’s action here becomes a kind of nature-exorcism of evil spirits just like His exorcisms of the evil spirits in human beings.

The calming of the storm is usually put into the category of miracles i.e. a demonstration of divine or supernatural power. But then we have to ask what is the point of a miracle?

If you read through the gospels, you will find that Jesus is more than once at pains to emphasize that He is not in the business of showing off like a magician. Hey presto! Abracadabra!

And in John’s gospel, these supernatural feats are not even called “miracles” – they’re called “signs”.

And what do the miracles or signs – whatever you want to call them – MEAN? What is their purpose?

First of all, divide them up into two sorts: healing miracles and nature miracles.

The healing miracles are, I’m sure, designed to demonstrate the greatness of God’s LOVE. Jesus heals the blind, the lame, the lepers and all the others because He feels sorry for them. He has compassion on them. He shows us that is what God is like and that He wants us to show the love and compassion of God in our own lives..

The nature miracles on the other hand are designed to show the greatness of God’s POWER. And what is the point of that? Surely the point is to invite us to TRUST Him, to have FAITH in Him, whatever befalls us in life.

Why are you afraid? He asks the disciples. Have you STILL no faith?

 “Where is your faith?” He often challenges us. Or in the more familiar phrase, He chides us as “O ye of little faith”.

This is the other side of the coin from “Your faith has made you whole” the thing Jesus famously says to those who do trust in His power and His love. 

One thing is required of us if He is to help us in 2021. To help save us not only from the Pandemic, not only from terrorism and hate-crime, not only from shabby, dishonest politics and rulers but to help save us from ourselves, from selfishness, pride, greed, envy, from all sorts of sins and, ESPECIALLY FROM FEAR. YES, fear.  Not only of drowning at sea but fear of failure, fear of loneliness, fear of sickness, fear of death.

We must have FAITH in Our Lord Jesus Christ.

Not a childish faith that assumes we can leave it to Him to wave a magic wand and shield us from suffering, but a mature faith that He will not let us down, that He will suffer with us and give us the strength to endure, even if necessary to face death.

Not a brittle faith which makes us shout in panic to wake Him up because we think He’s neglecting His duties but a strong faith that He always knows what He is about and what the answers to our prayers should be.

One of my prayers right now is that we might be allowed to sing hymns together again in church. Looks like this won’t now be until July 25th (the first Sunday after the new magic “terminus” date of July 19th.

But if we could sing one right now - if only! – I would want it to have been this, sung to the tune Finlandia by Sibelius:

Be still, my soul: Your God will undertake

To guide the future as He has the past.

Your hope, your confidence let nothing shake,

All now mysterious shall be clear at last.

 Be still, my soul: The tempests still obey His voice who ruled them once in Galilee.