The First Time They Worshiped
Read: Matthew 8:23-27; Matthew 14:32-33
Follow the disciples through two storms and you will notice a quiet progression. In the first, from Matthew 8, the boat was nearly swamped while Jesus slept, and after He calmed the sea, the men marveled and asked, “Who can this be, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?” They were amazed, but they were still guessing.
In the second storm, Matthew 14, Jesus climbed into the boat and the wind ceased, and this time they did something new. They “worshiped Him, saying, ‘Truly You are the Son of God'” (v. 33). It was the first recorded worship the disciples ever offered Him. They had watched Him feed thousands, heal the sick, and cleanse lepers, and none of it had drawn worship from them. It took a long, dark night on the water to bring them to their knees.
The point is sobering and hopeful at once. Some of the most important truths about Christ are learned only where we are most desperate. Comfort can leave us admiring Jesus from a distance, but the storm has a way of bringing us close enough to worship.
What is Jesus teaching you about Himself in your present difficulty? Ask Him to open your eyes, so that your trial ends, as theirs did, in worship.
Watch the full sermon: Youtube