Trust: The Two Strands

On the basis of trust, there seems no other place to start except the one who is worthy of all of it. Absolutely, all deserving, perfectly faithful, and as it is written, "Every word of God proves true." Proverbs 30:5. As we discover essential truths of trust, may we start not with the wrong compartment of man, but with the perfect compartment of God. We can put our trust in Him. What does it mean to trust God? From the time given, I have seen a close tie of what it means to have faith and what it entails to also trust. 

In one event Jesus said, "Let us go across to the other side." They got into the boat and a squall came upon them. The waves rushed over the boat until it was nearly swamped. The disciples were overcome not only by wind and waves, but also with fear. The one who claimed the venture to the other side, what was He doing? Sleeping on a cushion. With the boat plummeting, disciples disturbed, and in catastrophic chaos, Jesus was sleeping. The disciples frantically fetched Jesus, "Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?" Jesus awakes, and speaks 3 words, "Peace! Be still!" With that the winds ceased and there was great calm. 

The next two short sentences should rouse ourselves as we have oftentimes been in a similar boat. "Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?" Jesus questions them. Fear has overtaken the disciples, and they are naked before Jesus as ones without faith. But wouldn't anyone be afraid in such a circumstance? Maybe, but as Jesus' disciples His ever-appropriate response is a correction. Let us look at two strands we can tie together in order to strengthen our faith and trust in Him. 

The first strand is we can realize His words according to the circumstance, and second strand is to know who He is. 

Let's grab the first strand. May we trust in His words, as it administers in the moment, by the power of who He is. Before the disciples got into the boat Jesus said, "Let us go across to the other side." Mark 4:35. These simple words are coming from God in flesh, Jesus Christ. Did the disciples rely on these words? This theme of faith in God and trust in His timely Word are throughout the Scriptures. Taking the story of Israel in the desert we can draw a parallel. The Israelites neglected the previous words of the Lord as He said they would be able to conquer the Canaanites and take their land. They gave supremacy to the circumstance of how big the Canaanites were instead of trusting in His words. This left them with 40 years in the desert. In order to trust God in the midst of the squall we must as a child trusts her father, trust God's timely Word. This will allow light to shine in the darkness of lies that try to entangle us. 

We can find the second strand in the rendering of the disciples last words in this passage, "Who is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?" Certainly, by this point in time the disciples may have seen Jesus being baptized and being affirmed by God the Father, doing miracles, and preaching parables. But even to this point they question who He is. How do you know Jesus according to the Scriptures, and in what ways have you seen Him work in your life? The second thing we can do, is die to our own thoughts, abandoning lies, distinguishing selfish desire and deceit and simply knowing Jesus. Not about Him but knowing Him. Growing in the knowledge of Him, listening to His voice in the quiet place, and meditating on His Word day and night. Two things we want to know about the character of God is many times He is oftentimes pithy with His words. Second is many times when we are looking for a sign to fly across the sky, while He has many ways of communicating.

As we understand trust, let us be proactive before the squall to first and foremost place our trust in the compartment of the one who is perfectly without fault in His Words, Jesus. May we tie the two strands together: Realize and valuing His words despite the circumstance and knowing Him according to His words within the Scriptures and our personal lives and walk with Him. 

What could have been the best response for the disciples? I am not completely sure what they could have done. Maybe rebuke the wind and waves by themselves, maybe get on their knees and pray, or possibly making a more polite and peaceful gesture towards Jesus to wake Him. For me, with strands in hand I find myself in the midst of the storm, drawing near to Jesus on the cushion and resting near His embrace.