JESUS CALMS THE STORM: WHERE IS YOUR FAITH
A Reflection on the Fourth Sunday After Pentecost
Mark 4:35-41
By: The Rev. Sherryl Ann Javier-Bianson
Mission of Krus na Ligas, Diliman, Quezon City
Mark 4:35-41: 35 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. 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. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?” 39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. 40 He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” 41 They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!” “Let us go over to the other side.”
Life’s journey. The journey of life is not easy, as life is full of storms, and that we often encounter different storms. Every storm is different from the other. While people may be able to cope with one, the others cannot. For there are moments of joys and happiness, moments of fascinating delights and elations, and there are also moments of dryness and silence.
Reign of God: Prior to Jesus’ crossing of the sea, He is seen teaching His disciples about the Reign of God, through the parable of the sower and the illustration of the mustard seed. Before He invited the disciples to move across to the other side of Galilee, Jesus made several things clear about the saving rule of God: That in becoming a recipient of God’s blessing, it entails a total commitment to the ways of God over against the ways of the world. And it also teaches them that the Kingdom of God is divisive: it is either for God or against God; a decision that compels serious consequences. Rejecting God’s rule leads to death of our soul; or embracing the Reign of God leads us to trust in God’s overflowing provisions and abundant blessings not only for ourselves but for others, as well.
“Let us go over to the other side.” A command to which His disciples obediently responded. But despite their obedience, they never had a truly deeper trust in God and this simply shook them as the storm gave them qualms. Here Jesus is inviting us to see the realities in our society, the other side of our comfortable status in life. Jesus wants us to immerse and to be involved in the present situation of the world. The story of Mark, that speaks to our time and place right now involves injustice, oppression, social and economic stratification, and inequality among people, was also present during the time of Jesus’ mission on earth. The invitation of Jesus to go over to the other side is for us to be awakened and not just to be silent and quiet during moments that lead us into the storm because He wants us to deepen our faith and to equip us to serve the work of God better.
Living in fear: Today we live in as much fear as what the disciples felt on the sea that day. Every day we see that Satan and sin seem to be having their way and that the people are trapped to defy life and give sufferings to others. Everywhere there is chaos, poverty, hunger, to name a few. Our world is desperately in struggle and want. Our society experiences increasing economic stratification where wealth is becoming concentrated in favor of the hands of the few elites and the masses being left to deeper poverty.
“Where is your faith?” Jesus invites us to cross over and to not be afraid, as He asks, “Where is your faith?” We need to cross over to the other side to sow as well and to be a blessing for others. “Where is your faith in me”? God calls us to be stewards of the Good News for the sake of all the people even if the journey is not easy. We are His disciples and we should not be silent even if it costs us our lives. We must sow love, hope, and justice. “Where is your faith?” Again, Jesus tells us we need to cross over the boundaries that divide us. We must not be silent. We need to wake up and open our eyes. We must be counted as one with Him in His mission.
