PrintTwo Men In A Boat (6)
I am so grateful for what I am learning as I compare these episodes in the lives of Jonah and Jesus. Today, as I look at the sixth comparison, I am particularly focused on the responses of the sailors (in Jonah's case) and the disciples (in Jesus' case).
Having tried every possible human solution to save themselves (throwing the cargo overboard, rowing harder, praying harder), the sailors on Jonah's boat reluctantly choose the one action that Jonah said would save them. With prayer and pleading, they threw Jonah into the ocean to what they believed would be his certain death (1/14).
To their amazement, the storm stopped immediately. They were awestruck! Speechless! I can't be too far from the mark when I say that these guys were probably seasoned mariners and that this was not the first storm they had experienced. Yet somehow they knew that this storm was different from anything they had previously experienced.
Certainly the way it stopped was like nothing they had ever seen before. Such was the impact of this experience that they abandoned their gods to whom they had prayed without result (1/5) and they offered a sacrifice and vowed to serve the God of Jonah (1/16).
Such is the sovereignty of our God that He could even accomplish His purposes of salvation through Jonah's disobedience. I can't help but wonder what would have happened to those sailors had Jonah not ended up on their boat? Of course, that is not to suggest that we ought to disobey God so that salvation may abound anymore than we ought to sin so that grace may abound.
The response of Jesus' disciples was so very similar to that of Jonah's sailors. "The disciples were absolutely terrified. 'Who is this man? Even the wind and waves obey Him!'" (Mark 4/41). These men recognized that they were in the presence of no regular prophet or teacher. They had just witnessed a demonstration of authority and power like nothing they had ever seen before.
Would I prefer smooth sailing across the lake that didn't require the Lord's intervention and thus never see a demonstration of His power and authority OR would I rather experience the storm and thus have the opportunity to witness God's deliverance in and through such tough times? I'm reminded at this moment of a song I heard quite some years (can't recall the name of the composer) which addresses the very question I have just raised.
So I thank Him for the mountains and I thank Him for the valleys,
And I thank Him for the storms He has brought me through;
For if I never had a problem I wouldn't know that He could solve it,
And I wouldn't know what faith in God could do.
Anyway, there is still at least one more comparison that begs to be made. I'll leave that until next time.
