The Good News about Jesus – Part 7
By Rev. Dr. Brent Russett – Asbury Free Methodist
June 22, 2025 Mark 4:35–41
Lynda sings – Praise you in this storm.
I love that song. The storms of life come to all of us. What do you do when you’re in the middle of the storm?
We have been working our way through the gospel of Mark. We are skipping ahead to the end of chapter 4. Between last week’s story, where we saw how Jesus was Lord over the Sabbath and this week’s story, where he calms the storm, there are a number of parables. Jesus, true to form, taught about the Kingdom of God. But now he is going to give us a glimpse of the Kingdom of God through his actions.
It might be helpful to understand the Jewish mindset in Jesus’ time. There were countries around Israel, like the Phoenicians, who were a great seafaring nation. Israel was not.
Behind the story, Mark’s readers would have heard echoes of the Old Testament. What happened when Jonah went sailing? He got swallowed by a great fish. God had to rescue his people through the Red Sea. Even in creation, water was described as chaos. Several of the psalms describe how God rules over the raging sea.
What do you have when you put these pictures together? Apart from these fishermen, the Jews were not a seafaring people. The sea for them came to symbolize the dark power of evil threatening to destroy God’s good creation. In books like Daniel, the sea is where monsters came from.
So, when Jesus rescues his disciples from the raging storm, he is saying a lot more than I can stop a storm at a specific time in a specific place. He is saying I am Lord over the storm. I am Lord over the chaos. I am Lord over the monsters. I am Lord over what you fear.
In other words, Jesus calming this storm was not just a “wow” moment for the disciples; It is a powerful reminder that Jesus is the Lord over the storms in your life.
So, with this background, let’s move into our story.
Mark 4:35–36 (NIV)
That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” 36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him.
I want you to note that it was at Jesus’ suggestion that they went out sailing in the first place. In fact, Mark has this curious line, “they took him along, just as he was.” It seems like Jesus was already in the boat. He may have already been lying down in the boat.
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So, you have Jesus in the boat. You have the disciples joining Jesus in the boat. You have the disciples responding to Jesus’ suggestion that they go out on the lake. A little time passes, and then a huge storm comes up.
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I have been around long enough, and I have talked with enough people to know that when a storm comes up in our lives, our first question is, “What did I do wrong?” I must have done something to cause this storm.
Of course, none of us are perfect. So, if you cast around for a reason for the storm, you may hit upon something. The truth of the matter is that sometimes we do cause storms in our lives. If you smoke and get lung cancer, that is a storm we can bring upon ourselves. We know intuitively that we can bring storms on in our lives. So, when a storm hits, our first question is, “What did I do wrong?”
Here’s what I would say to you, if it is not obvious, do not go casting around for a reason for the storm. The disciples follow Jesus into the boat. They listened to his voice, and they still ended up in the middle of the storm. You can do everything right and still get overwhelmed by the storms of life.
For those of you who suffer with anxiety and depression, I want you to hear that. For those of you who are battling stuff going wrong in your body, I want you to hear that. For those of you who have had kids go sideways, I want you to hear that. For those of you who are experiencing a difficult workplace, I want you to hear that. You can follow Jesus. You can listen to Jesus. You could do everything right, and still get overwhelmed by the storms of life.
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Mark records something that the other gospels do not. He tells us that there was more than one boat. We don’t know if these boats followed them out into the middle of the sea or if they just turned back after a little while. Assuming that they were following him to the other side of the Sea of Galilee, then they would have been caught in the storm as well.
When Jesus did his miracle so that the disciples would start to understand who he was, there would have been a knock-on effect. The disciple’s miracle became the miracle for the boats around them as well.
There is a spillover effect of God’s grace. When God does something for you, that goodness often spills over to those around you.
Mark 4:37–38 (NIV)
37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion.
So, Jesus leads them into the middle of the lake where a storm comes up. All the while, he is taking a nap.
This picture is a metaphor for different legs of my spiritual journey. Things are going well. People are being taught. Life is going as it should. You continue to follow Jesus. You know that he’s in the boat with you. Then a storm comes up.
In the middle of that storm, you know that God is with you. You have the assurance that he’s close by. But it feels like he’s non-responsive. I am trying to navigate the storm. I am rowing like crazy. You see the next big wave coming at you, and you try to get yourself in a position to handle it. You’re tired. Your muscles are strained. You feel the anxiety of what might happen if this gets worse.
You call out to God. You paddle hard. You know that God is with you. It just seems like he’s asleep.
Have you ever been there? As Lynda sang
I was sure by now
God, You would have reached down
And wiped our tears away
Stepped in and saved the day
And once again
I say, “A-men” and it’s still raining
But as the thunder rolls
I barely hear Your whisper through the rain
“I’m with you”
You know God is with you – but it’s still raining.
What do you do with that?
Mark 4:38 (NLT)
38 Jesus was sleeping at the back of the boat with his head on a cushion. The disciples woke him up, shouting, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to drown?”
It is an easy thing to go from a place where I know that God is with me to a place where I wonder if he cares about me. It wasn’t that long ago that the disciples saw Jesus cast out demons, heal the sick, forgive the sins of a paralytic person and then raise him up so that he can walk. It wasn’t that long ago when the disciples had front row seats to amazing miracles.
However, when the storm hit, it was easy for them to forget. It was easy for them to make the jump from something bad is happening to, I wonder if God cares? That is so like us.” Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to drown?”
You will notice that they woke him up shouting. They didn’t go over to him and calmly shake his shoulder. “Hey, Jesus. Do you think you could help us out here?” No. They shouted at Jesus. Don’t you care that we are going to drown?
I have shouted at Jesus away too often. Don’t you care?
Mark 4:39 (NLT)
39 When Jesus woke up, he rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Silence! Be still!” Suddenly, the wind stopped, and there was a great calm.
I love the fact that in the story, Jesus was such a sound sleeper. I just don’t like it when I am in the middle of a crisis, and it feels like he’s asleep.
Jesus rouses himself. He rebukes the wind and waves. He says, “Silence” or “Quiet.” Immediately, the wind died down and the sea became calm.
I imagine the disciples didn’t know what to feel. They’re in the middle of this adrenaline rush. They are fearing for their lives. Jesus speaks a few words. All is calm. Now all they hear is the sound of water gently lapping against the boat. What do you do with that?
Jesus’ words to the disciples were,
Mark 4:40 (NIV)
40 He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”
Jesus is saying I’m in the boat with you. You have seen what I’ve done in the past. How is it that you have no faith right now? He was not rebuking them for being in the storm. He wasn’t rebuking them for what they did in the storm. He was rebuking them for worrying about the outcome of the storm.
I think Jesus was looking for the kind of faith that Julian of Norwich, a 14th-century follower of Jesus, displayed when she said, “And all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.”
The storms may be fierce. The waves may be high. The future may be uncertain. It may feel like you are about to be swamped. But you can still trust Jesus with the outcomes.” And all shall be well. All shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.”
I get that it is hard when your storm is a cancer diagnosis, or you experience a severe injury, or when you feel the darkness closing in, or when the uncertainty of life around finances, relationships or kids presses on you. Whatever your storm, you can trust Jesus in it. “And all shall be well. All shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.”
For the one who calm the storm is the one who said
John 11:25–26 (NIV)
“I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; 26 and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
I have often seen Jesus speak into the storms in my world, and there was peace. But I also recognize that this life is not all that there is. Paul was able to worship in prison, not knowing if he would be executed, because whether he lived or died, he was with the Lord. And all shall be well – even in death.
In the middle of the storm, on my better days, I reached by faith to say what Julian of Norwood said. “And all shall be well. All shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.”
On my not-so-better days, I hear Jesus gently rebuke me, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?”
He didn’t abandon his disciples for lack of faith. He just called out the discrepancy between the miracles that they had seen and the fear that they had.
I think that he often calls out the discrepancy between the faith that we profess and the faith that we live out. He doesn’t abandon us. He just calls us to something better. In the middle of the storm will you trust me to say, “and all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.”
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The disciples see the wind calm down and the waves disappear. Jesus’ response was to point out the discrepancy between what they had seen in their faith. The disciple’s response was
Mark 4:41 (NIV)
41 They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”
Their response was Who is this guy? Jesus had already shown authority over demons, over sickness, over sin and over the Sabbath. But now he is demonstrating that he is Lord over creation, and the disciples just had their minds blown. For them, this was a whole new level of authority.
They had come to terms with the fact that Jesus was greater than the demonic. He could heal any kind of sickness. They had been constantly amazed by Jesus. But their view of Jesus was still too small. They could not imagine him to be greater than the storm – to be in control of the weather.
I often wonder if our view of God is too small. We pray, and we see what others might term coincidences in our lives. We see answers to prayer in how he arranges the circumstances of our lives. We have seen him provide for us again and again. But I wonder if our view of God is too small.
When the storms of life look bigger than the God I serve, my God is too small. When the future I could face seems uncontrollable, my God is too small. If, when in the middle of the storm, I cannot say, “and all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.” Then my God is too small.
Sunday after Sunday, we declare through song, scripture, and prayer that Jesus Christ is Lord. Part of what that means is that he is Lord over the storm.
Can you trust him with your storm? Or is there a discrepancy between the faith that you profess and the attitude you have towards your storm? Can you trust Jesus enough to say, “and all shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well.”
That is part of what it means to profess Jesus is Lord. When we profess Jesus is Lord, we are saying that he is Lord overall, even the storm. Jesus is Lord of the storm. There are some of you here today who feel the discrepancy between the faith you profess and the faith you live out. Would you say to Jesus, Forgive my lack of faith, help me to trust you? There are some of you in the middle of the storm. Can you trust Jesus to be Lord of the storm?
There is an old chorus we used to sing, and I want us to sing it this morning. He is Lord, he is Lord, he has risen from the dead, and he is Lord.
Some of you will sing this as a declaration. God, I trust you to be Lord overall. I proclaimed that you are my Lord in the face of the storm. Others of you will sing this as a prayer. Lord, I want you to be Lord of me in the middle of the storm. Help me to have enough faith to say, and all shall be well, and all shall be well had all manner of things shall be well.
Sing it with me.
He is Lord
he is Lord
he has risen from the dead and he is Lord
every knee shall bow, and every tongue confess
That Jesus Christ is Lord.
Let’s personalize it and sing “He’s my Lord.”
Pray.