THE PERFECT STORM
REFERENCE : (MATTHEW 14:22-33) NKJV
22 Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He sent the multitudes away. 23 And when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. Now when evening came, He was alone there. 24 But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary. 25 Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea. 26 And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out for fear. 27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.” 28 And Peter answered Him and said, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” 29 So He said, “Come.” And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus.30 But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!” 31 And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” 32 And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. 33 Then those who were in the boat came and worshiped Him, saying, “Truly You are the Son of God.”
In October 1991, New York City experienced what meteorologists termed: The Perfect Storm. Its duration was five days with a resulting loss of thirteen lives, depleted shores and reportedly, $200,000,000 in damage, nevertheless, it was called The Perfect Storm.
1. When we think of the word perfect, the tendency is to attach positivity to its meaning.( a good fit; without flaw; suitable; sufficient; meeting all requirements0. Yet in Matt.14:22-33 we read of a storm that seemingly spoke to the exact opposite of these meanings. In this storm the disciples felt forsaken, afraid, incapable and desperate. Jesus encouraged them to sail without Him. For the fishermen, this was not a maiden voyage. What did Jesus have in mind? They could have felt ambushed, but Jesus does not operate that way. He will never forsake us. You see we get a chance to prove Him when we encounter difficulty. These seasoned fishermen were not prepared emotionally nor spiritually for what would be their Perfect Storm. Jesus had remained behind and among other things, He prayed. No doubt He was interceding for them. (Heb 7:25). He still does that for us before and while we face situations.
I can only imagine him asking the father to give the disciples confidence to face the storm they were about to experience. He took the time to be alone with theFather. Should we not follow his example? It was important for the disciples to get a life-lesson and react to their circumstances when he was not by their side. They had to be tried and proven (to themselves). Jesus already knew what their reaction would be, but they did not. He had been away from them for most of the day and now they were in the middle of the Perfect Storm, being battered, tossed every which way by contrary winds.
Have we ever been in a situation that was contrary to our perfect plan? Regular little waves do not toss ships around. These waves had to have been massive enough to cause concern to these experienced seafarers. The wind was a force to be reckoned with. They were not accustomed to such.
2. In the meantime Jesus stayed away and allowed that Perfect Storm to start the perfecting process in them. (1 Corinthians 10:13 … A way of escape). Their way of escape revealed himself on time. Imagine them saying, “Jesus persuaded us to go to the other side. In obedience we got into the ship, and now look at this storm. If that were not enough, here comes this ghost. Jesus, how could You allow this? All we were doing is what you told us to do. You are back there on the shore and we are about to drown out here. Probably, we didn’t hear him clearly. Maybe he didn’t want us to leave when we did. Maybe…Jesus where are you when we need you?” Jesus would leave them in despair no longer and he opened their eyes, ears, and spirit. “Rejoice in this Storm, I AM here. Replace fear with faith. Come, step out with confidence. The storm cannot inundate you. It will work to accomplish what I have planned for you.”
3. This Perfect Storm is to:
(i) Demonstrate the extent to which Jesus will come to us in our situation. (v25 On water)
( i.) dispel fear. (v27)
(iii) Allow you to be of good cheer (v27)
(iv) remove doubt (v28 If it be you….)
(v) Reveal your potential (v29 Peter walked)
(vi) Hear a one word commission. (v29 Come. Put your situation under your feet)
(vii) Respond to our desperate cry and extend His hand. (v30-31)
(viii) Prepare a platform for us to worship. (vv,32,33)
4. Storms are not usually as something positive, let alone perfect. The difference with the storms that we experience, is that they are perfect to demonstrate the power of God over everything. Declare each one as (the Perfect Storm) We don’t know how long they will last, nor the collateral along the way, but HE has promised to perfect that which concerncs us. (Psalm 138. 8)
Dr. O.A. James