Read: Matthew 8:18-34
It is easy to look at the various stories in Matthew 8 as though they are isolated events, individual vignettes without any overarching narrative, but the truth is that they are all leading up to a point.
Jesus has healed a leper, saved the life of a Roman centurion’s servant, restored Peter’s mother-in-law to health, and healed many individuals and cast out several demons, all before we get to our text for today.
Jesus told the leper not to tell anyone what had happened because He didn’t want His ministry to be based on healing people. He didn’t come into the world to cure the sick. The centurion’s story gives credence to this. He could have healed them from Heaven. No, Jesus came to take our illnesses and bear our diseases. He came to take the cures of sin upon Himself so that we could be saved.
But the crowds pressed in on Jesus anyway. They wanted to see the miracles. They wanted their problems solved. But they didn’t, necessarily, want Jesus, just what He could do. So Jesus got into a boat and headed off to the other side.
Immediately, we see these two strange encounters to would-be disciples. A scribe tells Jesus that He will follow Jesus wherever He goes, Jesus responds that He doesn’t have anywhere to lay His own head. Another disciple asks Jesus if he can bury his father first, but Jesus tells him to let the dead bury the dead. Very strange stories, but we will have to continue reading and come back to these before we can fully understand their meaning.
Jesus Calms the Storm
As Jesus is crossing the Sea of Galilee to get away from the crowds, a storm picks up. The waves are crashing over the edge of the boat and they are about to sink, but throughout all of these Jesus is taking a nap. The disciples are perplexed and wake Him up, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.” Jesus asks them, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” He then rebukes the wind and the sea and immediately they are calm.
A lot is happening in this story, but the important thing to recognize is that the disciples were familiar with the sea of Galilee. They were weathered fishermen. They knew how to handle storms like this. When they come to Jesus to ask for His help, they appear frustrated. They don’t understand why Jesus wouldn’t be helping them bilge out the water. How could He be resting at a time like this? But Jesus was resting specifically to demonstrate a point. He was at peace in the midst of the most threatening of circumstances. While the disciples were shaken by the storm, Jesus was stable.
Jesus chides them for their lack of faith. When the centurion asked for a miracle, Jesus marveled at his faith. “Truly I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith.” His own disciples did not understand the power that Jesus really had. Despite the miracles they had already seen, they still saw Jesus as vulnerable as they saw themselves.
Jesus demonstrates His power and authority over the wind and the sea. He rebukes them and they obey Him. This world is a violent place. We are constantly under a threat of perishing, but Jesus knew His purpose in coming into this world. He wasn’t going to die in a storm on the Sea of Galilee. He would not be brought down by nature.
While Jesus marveled at the faith of the centurion, the disciples now marvel at the authority of Jesus, “What sort of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?” They are seeing it, but they are not quite able to understand the significance of what Christ has accomplished.
Jesus Casts out Demons
As they arrive at the other side of the Sea, they come into a region of the Gentiles where there are two demon possessed men. These demons are so fierce that no one would ever even think of passing by that way, but Jesus goes right to where no one else would go. Jesus is on a mission.
The demons recognize Jesus, “What have you to do with us, O Son of God? Have you come here to torment us before the time?” The point in this passage is that gentiles are more observant of who Jesus is and these demons acknowledge the authority of Jesus while the Jews had missed it. While they are tormenting these two men and the surrounding villagers, they are now worried that Jesus is going to torment them. They ask to be allowed to possess a herd of pigs nearby.
Jesus responds with a word, “Go.” Just like Jesus had healed the centurion’s servant with a word, and calmed the sea with a rebuke, now, a single word frees these men from their demons. Jesus demonstrates His power and authority even over His enemies.
As the demons possess the pigs, they rush off a cliff and perish in the sea. You would think that the villagers would be relieved, but as soon as they hear about it, they come out and beg Jesus to leave their region. Out of fear or anger or a mixture of both, they didn’t want anything to do with Jesus. This is in contrast to where this passage began. Jesus had been casting out demons on the other side of Galilee, and the people were flocking to Him. Now, Jesus exerts His power and authority over these tormented men and the villagers ask Him to leave.
What Does This All Mean?
The central crux of this passage is the first section we looked at. The scribe and the disciple had come to Jesus seeking to follow Him, but they were turned away because they didn’t recognize the power and authority of Christ.
The scribe said He would go wherever Jesus goes, but do you think he would go willingly into a storm? Do you think he would walk by the way of the demon possessed men when no one else would go there? Jesus is on the move. He is not stationary. He does not choose the safest path. He goes wherever the Father wills.
It’s hard for us to surrender that level of control. We would never walk willingly into danger without a good reason. I’ve mentioned this to many parents who have come to me throughout the years, weeping over the trouble that their children have had to face. I have no doubt that they love their children. They would never wish hardship on them. But God, who loves those children even more than their parents, would take them through the most frightening circumstances to teach them to trust in Him.
Next, this disciple asks to bury his father. This seems like a rather noble statement, but Jesus can recognize his heart. He is more likely concerned about his inheritance. He doesn’t want to be written out of the estate. He wants to make sure his affairs are in order before He is willing to follow Jesus.
Our goals in life are often just out of reach. Our responsibilities are endless. If we are waiting on something before we are ready to follow Christ, then the time will never come. We are to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, then all of these things will be added in their proper place. By choosing anything over Jesus we are choosing the treasures of this world. Treasures that we cannot control in a world that puts our treasures under constant threat.
To be a follower of Christ demands that deny ourselves and surrender to Him. The scribe and the disciple were not ready to do that. They saw the miracles of Jesus and they heard His teaching, but they could not submit to Him as their Lord.
Application
This is the question that everyone needs to ask. Is Jesus just our savior? Or is He our master as well? He has the authority to heal the sick, cast out demons, and control the weather. Does He not also have the authority over us as well? Why do diseases, storms, and His enemies obey Him, but we don’t?
Are we worried to give Him our lives? What are we afraid of? He can cure the sick, calm the storms, and crush our tormentors. Wouldn’t we be in better hands if He were in control?
I know how difficult it is to submit to Christ, and I know how foolish that is to try to manage my own life. We need to confess, not only of our sins, but of our own desires to assert control over our own lives instead of surrendering to Christ.
Jesus is calling us to follow Him. Will we listen? Will we obey?
Adam Miller is the president and host of Songtime Radio and serves as the pastor of South Chatham Community Church. This article is a condensed version of one of his sermons.