Sermon for June 24, 2018              Fifth of Pentecost            “Who Then is This?”

In the Gospel story of Jesus calming the waters, we have Jesus wanting to get some rest after a busy day. His disciples get into a boat with Jesus and head to a quiet spot on the other side of the Sea of Galilee.  A storm suddenly rocks the boat. They wake Jesus and ask; do you not care that we are about to perish? Jesus calms the waters and asks the disciples why they were afraid. Then disciples are terrified (some versions say ‘awed’) and say to themselves; who then is this.

When I step back and take a longer look at this story there are some interesting bits that emerge. I know that at least three of the disciples are fishers and fished the Sea of Galilee. I expect that most of the disciples are familiar with fishing on the Sea. Jesus grew up in Nazareth a town nestled in the valley with no Sea, so in our language a ‘landlubber’. So when the Sea whips into a frenzy, as it is known to do, Jesus sleeps and the experienced fishers are fearing for their lives.

When they wake Jesus, he calms the storm and wonders aloud why the disciples are afraid. It is at this point that the disciples are terrified.

Another interesting aspect is that all the waters were calmed so all the boats and people in them were suddenly in calm waters. Jesus then is the teacher for all who come near his influence and the Saviour for those who listen and are inspired by His teaching. Jesus did not calm the waters just around his little boat but for the whole sea. We are not privy to the comments on the other boats but I am sure there was speculation going on as to what exactly happened. I also suspect that when the disciples landed they spread the news of what Jesus had done.

I think that image is vital and essential to understanding Jesus but is only part of the truth of this story.

At least three of the disciples are seasoned fishers, they were afraid for their lives, and so it goes that the others would also have a heightened level of fear. All the while Jesus is sleeping in the back of the boat. In our personal and church life, there are often times when we are afraid. That our world is rocked. In some of these moments, we have the capacity to draw on a strength we did not know we had and that is a great personal learning. In the case of the disciples, they did not gather to devise a strategy; they did not try to solve the problem of the wind and waves. They woke up Jesus. Jesus calmed the wind and waves and the anxiety of the disciples.

There are times when all our cleverness and ability do not solve the problem or our problem. It is in these moments that we, like the disciples, turn to Jesus. Jesus then has the capacity to, in love, offer perspective to the problem, to calm the stormy seas, or make the calm seas stormy. And we are thankful that Jesus is our Saviour.

The part of the story that I find fascinating is at the end. It is after the calming of the storm that the disciples are terrified/awed and exclaim: who then is this! That even the wind and waves obey. Did you get that? After the wind and waves, the anxiety of the disciples is calmed, then they are terrified. It is perhaps the most poignant moment of insight and understanding for the disciples, that they now know their lives have and will be, forever changed.

When placed side by side, believing in Jesus, and heeding his call to be about mission I have a feeling that we are most terrified about the latter. For the first we may have a sense that we will get our hands dirty and our hearts opened but for the latter we have no doubt. That terrifies us, at least it should for we come face to face with knowing that Jesus places in our hands the wellbeing of our neighbours and creation.

I wondered what constitutes a community of faith this week. Here is where I am at with my ever-evolving understanding; we are a group of individuals whose lives have and are being transformed by the glorious love of Jesus. We gather so that our unique skills and gifts can be combined for greater benefit to the mission of Jesus. We gather so that we can be encouraged by each other’s transformation and come to the humble realization that our lives are being transformed.  Like the disciples, we have work to do individually or in small groups, and we have work that requires us all.

It is after Jesus touches our heart with love that we are awed or terrified. Like the first disciples, we follow Jesus and there is no thought of turning back. The ending of the United Church’s Statement of faith rings clearer with sharper focus in light of this story: we are not alone, we live in God’s world. Thanks be to God.