In the Gospel today, Jesus is in a boat with the apostles crossing the Sea of Galilee. It’s a trip they often make. Suddenly, a raging storm comes up. Many of the apostles are veteran fishermen sailors so they’ve been here before. But this time is different. The wind is fierce, the waves are high, and the boat begins to fill with water. The apostles are afraid the boat might sink and they drown. Not knowing what else to do, they wake up Jesus and he calms the storm. Beside this article is a very vivid painting by Rembrandt which shows the storm raging around them. This image is also one of the windows behind the Sanctuary at St Mary on the Lake.
Although I’m not an art enthusiast, I’m struck by two aspects of Rembrandt’s painting that really stand out. First, there are 14 people in the boat instead of 13 (12 apostles and Jesus.) A little Google search told me the extra person was Rembrandt himself. He’s the guy in the back of the boat looking right at you. He put himself in the story to inspire our faith in Scriptures because the Bible is the truth. This really happened. Second, the 12 apostles are so busy keeping the boat from sinking that none of them are looking forward. Some are trying to secure rigging and sails, others are bailing water or holding on, one is sick hanging over the side rail, one is steering the boat, and a couple are waking up Jesus who is sleeping through it all. But, NO ONE is LOOKING FORWARD. Because if they did, they would see a beautiful blue and yellow sky opening through the storm clouds. This makes me think of the hope our faith in God brings when we trust Him that everything will be OK.
More to follow about our storms of life when I preach this weekend. But for now, let’s remember Jesus is in the boat with us no matter how bad the storm is. All we must do is cry out to him, and he can work wonders for us. What calms the storms in life is not that all of our problems suddenly disappear but that we realize God is still in charge, even asleep with his head on a cushion, and all will be well.
Deacon John
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