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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?” Mark 4:38 NASB
In the middle of a storm or trial, it is very common for us to question what is happening. Sometimes in those questions God will speak to us and reveal why certain things are happening. But there comes a point where our questions can cross a line and we actually partner with Satan (the accuser) and begin to bring accusations against the character of God. We've all done it. Like, when we experience some sort of inequity that we don't see others around us experiencing and we begin to accuse God of showing favoritism. Even if we know that scripture says that He is no respecter of persons (Rom 2:11, Acts 10:34). The disciples in the middle of a storm wake Jesus up from sleeping and they have one concern; themselves. They never asked Jesus why He wants to go to the other side, they never asked Jesus how He can be asleep in the middle of the storm, they never asked Jesus if He was afraid, they never asked if He wanted to turn around. They never asked: "God, what are you trying to do through this storm? What is Your plan in leading me into this storm?" Instead, the disciples were content in staying at the elementary level of questioning and accusing instead of growing into maturity. When we begin to ask the deeper questions like those, we will start to take on the "mind of Christ" and see things from heavenly perspectives. We all know that asking questions like "what are You trying to accomplish through this storm" is difficult to do though. Especially in a world that promotes the interests of man above the interests of the eternal God. Paul dealt with this same issue when addressing the church in Philippi: But I hope in the Lord Jesus to send Timothy to you shortly, so that I also may be encouraged when I learn of your condition. 20For I have no one else of kindred spirit who will genuinely be concerned for your welfare. 21For they all seek after their own interests, not those of Christ Jesus. Philippians 2:19-21 NASB Paul said that he had no one else outside of Timothy that shared a kindred spirit and that did not seek after their own interests. This is one of the saddest, yet revealing group of verses in the whole of the New Testament; especially in the world we live in today. We live in a time where the interests of Christ take second place to the interests of men. Our safety, our security, and our happiness are what we are told to think on, plan for, save for, and live for. Sadly, when anything comes in and "rocks the boat" of our lives, the first thing to go is the interests and purposes of Christ. How do we combat these influences from the world and stand firm on the word of God? Paul reminds us that the secret is humility and intentionally (daily) taking on the mind of Christ: Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; 4do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. 5Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, 6who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. 8Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Philippians 2:3-8 NASB Jesus shows in Mark 4 that He did in fact care about the disciples by rising up to silence the storm. But the question to ask is: "Do you and I care about where Jesus is trying to take us and what Jesus is trying to accomplish through the storm"? What the disciples experienced through the storm and what happened on the other side of the storm was the divine plan of Christ. Let us move beyond ourselves and into the divine plans of God. Questions to Consider: 1. Do you have someone like a Timothy in your life that you walk in unity with and share a kindred spirit with? If not, will you pray that God brings that person along? None of us are meant to walk the Christian life alone. 2. What are some of the interests of Christ that you are currently fighting to see accomplished? How can we as a church come alongside those efforts?
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