JESUS STILLS THE RAGING STORM, PART 1

The biblical narrative of Jesus calming the storm has intrigued and captivated children and adults. This was not a miracle as such, but a demonstration of His almighty powers. Still, apart from the supernatural nature of our Lord’s taming of the sea and wind, there is an additional element of this incident to be considered.

This event is recorded only in the synoptic gospels—Matthew (8:23–27), Mark (4:35–41) and Luke (8:22–25); John does not comment on this incident. Matthew includes it following our Lord’s healing of leprosy, paralysis, disease (8:1–17), whereas it follows His parable teachings in Mark (4:1–34) and Luke (8:4–18). There is one other instance of His power over a turbulent sea when Jesus walked on the water: Matthew 14:22–33; Mark 6:45–51; John 6:16–21.

This study will follow Luke’s version, incorporating details from the accounts of Matthew and Mark.

Luke 8:22: Now on one of those days Jesus and His disciples got into a boat, and He said to them, “Let us go over to the other side of the lake.” So they launched out.

At the outset, this verse provides the key note to be considered for the entire passage: that our Lord from the beginning had declared with full assurance a successful seafaring trip.

Luke 8:23: But as they were sailing along He fell asleep; and a fierce gale of wind descended on the lake, and they began to be swamped and to be in danger.

The fierce gale of wind was a typical occurrence on the Sea of Galilee; it was literally a furious storm like the force of a hurricane.1 It is described in Matthew 8:24 as a “great storm on the sea.” From the Greek word for storm seismos (σεισμός) we get our English words “seismic” and seismology, the study of earthquakes. Bruce describes this as “an earthquake of the sea, the waters stirred to their depths by the winds.”2

Note that prior to Luke’s description of the storm, Jesus fell asleep and remained asleep during these frightful weather conditions. A dramatic contrast is presented here: our Lord sleeping peacefully as the furious storm rages and despite the fact that some of these disciples were experienced sailors, they are terrified and panicking. Some might contend that there is nothing unusual about our Lord being able to sleep in the midst of a violent storm since He is God. Yet sleeping indicates an aspect of His humanity. Thus, if He could sleep peacefully, we too can have that type of tranquility during the storms of life.

Next, they began to be swamped and in danger. Matthew relates the idea of being swamped by stating “the boat was being covered” (8:24), indicating that the waves were rising above and into the boat. Thus, they indeed were in danger—their lives were in jeopardy.

Luke 8:24: They came to Jesus and woke Him up, saying, “Master, Master, we are perishing!” And He got up and rebuked the wind and the surging waves, and they stopped, and it became calm.

Now it is with intensity they awaken our Lord: “Master, Master!” In Mark 4:38 they address Him as teacher (Rabbi) and in Matthew 8:25 they address Him as Lord. Which is correct? Most likely all of them, some cried different names, but the idea is that their intention was to wake up Jesus—their Lord, Teacher, Master.

Luke records that they cried “we are perishing!” However, Mark 4:38 records a less respectful outcry: “Do You not care that we are perishing?” Obviously, they believed they were in dire straits, that this was an impending catastrophe. Lenski rightly observes an astounding fact that “these are experienced sailors who now turn their prospect of survival on a former carpenter.”3 And having been witnesses of the divine power of Jesus Christ, they now recognize that at this moment He is their only hope.

Our Lord immediately got up and rebuked the storm and calm was restored. His rebuke was a spoken command recorded only by Mark (4:39): “Hush, be still.” It is not difficult to perceive how this is reminiscent of the historical account in Genesis 1, when God spoke and called forth into creation light, water, earth, vegetation, heavenly orbs, sea creatures, animals and mankind. By the rebuking of the violent storm, our Lord demonstrated His deity, having authority over all of creation.

To Be Continued...

What will be examined in the next post is the reason our Lord’s disciples became frightened and panicked despite the fact they were in the presence of the One who controls the universe. For the apostle Paul precisely proclaimed this about our Lord when he wrote that “all things have been created through Him and for Him. He is before all things,4 and in Him all things hold together” (Colossians 1:17-18).

This demonstration of Our Lord’s mastery over the storm is not simply a nice Sunday school story, but instead it is an actual event that took place in history and included in Scripture for our instruction. We will do well to examine all the aspects of this lesson and its implication for our advance in our life of faith in Jesus Christ.

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[1] Liddell, H. G. (1996). In A Lexicon: Abridged from Liddell and Scott’s Greek-English Lexicon. Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc, 462.

[2] Bruce, A.B. (1990). In The Expositor’s Greek Testament (Nicoll, W. Robertson, Ed.), Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1.143.

[3] Lenski, R.C.H. (2001). Commentary on the New Testament, Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 3.464.

[4] “Before all things” refers to His eternal existence (John 1:1; 1 John 1:1).

 

THE BELIEVERS' PROTECTOR — 1 JOHN 5:18

 Verse 18: We know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God protects him, and the evil one does not touch him. [ESV]

 

The first part of this verse was discussed in the previous post directing the believer that they are not to keep on sinning, that they should avoid every inducement to sin in thought, word and deed and to firmly resolve not to sin.

The Believers’ Protector

Next, John asserts that we have a protector: He who was born of God. What he is presenting is a precise reference to the Lord Jesus Christ: “the only begotten from the Father” (John 1:14); “His only begotten Son” (John 3:16, 18; 1 John 4:9). This is John’s affirmation of the unique person of Jesus Christ—both God and man; and his unrelenting opposition to the Gnostic heresy, a heresy which continues even today, alleging that Our Lord was merely a “good man” thus denying His deity.

Jesus Christ continuously keeps him, the believer, by watching over and guarding1 him during his life on earth. How exactly does He accomplish this? First, by keeping the believer eternally secure:

And I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand. (John 10:28)

But He also keeps the believer from the power of the evil one. Who is the evil one? The Greek word for evil (poneros) in our passage means evil in an active sense “which corrupts others, evil–disposed, malevolent, malignant, wicked.”2 By a comparison of the Parable of the Sower in the gospel accounts of Matthew, Mark and Luke, it can be established that he is none other than Satan.

“When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what has been sown in his heart. This is the one on whom seed was sown beside the road.” (Matthew 13:19)

“These are the ones who are beside the road where the word is sown; and when they hear, immediately Satan comes and takes away the word which has been sown in them.” (Mark 4:15)

“Those beside the road are those who have heard; then the devil comes and takes away the word from their heart, so that they will not believe and be saved.” (Luke 8:12)

We find that Matthew uses this same word that John does, but in the parallel passages Mark uses Satan (Satanas) and Luke uses devil (diabolos). In these gospel passages the inspired authors each used a different Greek word to describe the active wickedness of Satan. Evil doesn’t come from nowhere or from something inanimate; it originates from this one person who is actively antagonistic and opposed to the God of the universe: Satan.

The Aim of the Evil One

The evil one’s intention is not to achieve “a mere superficial touch”3 but rather to secure a firm grasp. But since he cannot snatch the believer out of Our Lord’s hand (John 10:28-29), he will do all that he can “to sever the vital union between Christ and the believer”4  by destabilize believers with false teachers and heretical doctrines.

As the believer’s protector, Our Lord prayed to His Father just prior to His death to keep (protect) His disciples from the evil one, Satan.

 “I do not ask You to take them out of the world, but to keep them from the evil one.” (John 17:15)

He then specified the manner by which they should be protected, praying: “Sanctify them in the truth: Your word is truth” (John 17:17). The word sanctify implies “the separation of the believer from the world in his behavior—by the Father through the Word.”5

In the same context, prior to when Jesus offered this prayer, He had forewarned the disciples that “Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat” (Luke 22:31). The sifting of wheat is the process of separating the choice grain from the chaff, the worthless coating over the seed. Our Lord was predicting how the disciples will be tested when Satan sifts them, meaning to agitate and establish by trials and afflictions6 to determine if they are truly “of the truth” (1 John 3:19). For their response to testing ought to be a complete reliance upon their faith, a resting upon the truths of God’s Word that they have been taught. If the testing causes them to fall to pieces, then it will prove that they are abysmally lacking in biblical truth—a condition as worthless as chaff.

In Luke 22:32, Jesus further requests of the Father that “your faith may not fail.” The word faith refers to “that which is believed, body of faith or belief, doctrine.”7 For it is the knowledge of the doctrines of God’s Word that empowers the believer to overcome all trials and testing. When we consider how our Lord interceded for His disciples that their faith would not fail them, we can be assured that in His present ministry today at the right hand of God He “also intercedes for us” (Rom. 8:34; Heb. 7:25).

It is imperative that we who believe in Jesus Christ, should understand that Scripture is the only source of absolute truth; designed by God to enable us to distinguish the error of false teachings instigated by the evil one.

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[1] Thomas, R. L. (1998). τηρέω. In New American Standard Hebrew-Aramaic and Greek Dictionaries. Anaheim: Foundation Publications, Inc., G5083.

[2] Zodhiates, S. (2000). πονηρός. In The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament. Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, G4190.

[3] Robertson, A. T. (1933). Word Pictures in the New Testament. Nashville, TN: Broadman Press, 1 John 5:18.

[4] Vine, W. E., Unger, M. F., & White, W., Jr. (1996). ἅπτω. In Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words (Vol. 2, p. 638). Nashville, TN: T. Nelson, 2.638.

[5] Vine, W. E. (1996). Collected Writings of W.E. Vine. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson.

[6] Zodhiates, σινιάζω, G4617.

[7] Arndt, W., Gingrich, F. W., Danker, F. W., & Bauer, W. (1979). πίστις. In A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, p. 664.

 

© 2026 David M. Rossi
 

TO FIRMLY RESOLVE NOT TO SIN - 1 JOHN 5:18

Verse 18: We know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God protects him, and the evil one does not touch him. [ESV]

As John begins to close his epistle, the next 3 verses open with the single Greek word we know. John is reviewing what we have learned from his instruction. He previously emphasized the believer’s practice of righteousness (2:29; 3:7, 10) instead of the practice of sin and lawlessness (3:4, 8, 9). Further, differentiating “between the occasional lapse and habitual sin or a continuous sinful state”1 (5:16–17). However, verse 18 is not specifically a reference to sin leading to death as was cited in verse 16.

Does Not Sin 

The opening phrase is both logical and declarative. Logical, because at the moment a person believes in Christ they are born of God and are immediately in an abiding relationship with Him and thus it is impossible for them to sin. And since all their sins have been judged, they are now in a right-relationship with the Father. As a declarative statement, it is God’s objective for the believer to have continuous abiding fellowship with Him that is not interrupted by sin.

However, no believer is able to lead a perfect life as did Our Lord. Still, it is not God’s ideal standard that believers involve themselves in sin or to regard sin indifferently. This verse expands upon John’s instruction in chapter 1 concerning our fellowship “with the Father, and with His Son Jesus Christ” (1:3). The word fellowship means “an association involving close mutual relations and involvement.”2 It is the essential aspect of our abiding in Him. To sin is to “walk in darkness” (1:6); hence, the converse is to “walk in the Light” and have fellowship with Him (1:7).

Therefore, John is declaring a biblical principle that everyone who is born of God ought to personally embrace and observe: to firmly resolve not to sin. This implies the avoidance of every inducement to sin in thought, word and deed. For our responsibility before the Lord is twofold: that at all times we should be alert to personal sin during our moment-by-moment walk of faith and that we should be determined to maintain an abiding fellowship with the Lord in the sphere of His love relationship. Mindful that we are not alone in our endeavor to overcome temptations to sin as the writer to the Hebrews explained:

For since He Himself was tempted in that which He has suffered, He is able to come to the aid of those who are tempted. (Hebrews 2:18)

Ryrie makes a relevant observation, that Our Lord’s temptations “were designed to sidetrack Him in the purpose of His coming to earth.”3 Thus, temptation and sin is the evil one’s ploy intended to distract us from God’s plan for our lives.

Our Defense

So what should be our defensive position against temptation and sin? The apostle Peter instructs us:

Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. (1 Peter 5:8 ESV)

The idea of being sober-minded does not imply being free from alcoholic intoxication; for the Greek noun is used in the New Testament figuratively to be free from confusion, distraction and be self-controlled.4 Peter also advises the ideal means to maintain watchfulness to the “schemes of the devil” (Ephesians 6:11ESV) is to “resist him, firm in your faith” (1 Peter 5:9 ESV). For our faith should be comprised of sound biblical teachings. So that the greater our knowledge and understanding of God’s Word, the more we will become alert to temptations and enable us to resist sin. Thus we will attain a vital objective of our Christian life: to achieve consistent fellowship with Him and to “do the things that are pleasing in His sight” (1 John 3:22).

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[1] Waugh, R.M.L. (1953). The Preacher and His Greek Testament, London: The Epworth Press, p. 46.

[2] Louw, J. P., & Nida, E. A. (1996). Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains. New York: United Bible Societies, 1.445.

[3] Ryrie, C. C. (1995). Ryrie Study Bible: New American Standard Bible, 1995 update. Chicago: Moody Press, p. 1947 note.

[4] Arndt, W., Gingrich, F. W., Danker, F. W., & Bauer, W. (1979). In A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and other early Christian Literature. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, p. 538.

 

THE WICKED LAWLESSNESS OF SIN - 1 JOHN 5:17

Verse 17: All unrighteousness is sin, and there is a sin not leading to death.

John now summarizes verses 14–17 concerning prayer with a gentle warning and a calm assurance.1

 

Sin Categorized

John has previously characterized sin as lawlessness (3:4). God’s commands presented throughout Scripture, including the Ten Commandments, encompass His laws for all mankind to uphold. Even though believers of the Church Age do not live by the commands of the Mosaic Law, there are many commands given that believers today are to obey in thought, word and deed. Disobeying God’s mandates places the believer in a position of lawlessness. John assured us that His commandments are not burdensome (5:3), meaning they do not carry the psychological stress of constraining and challenging mandates; this is just as Our Lord guaranteed “For My yoke is easy and My burden is light” (Matthew 11:30).

But in this verse, John advances the issue by asserting that all unrighteousness is sin. The Greek word for unrighteousness (adikia) indicates that which is contrary to what is right in accordance “to the standard of His holiness and righteousness.”2 Swanson characterizes it as unjust deed, wickedness, evil, wrongdoing.3 Further expanding upon the concept of wickedness, Zodhiates states:

This wickedness is seen more particularly in the neglect of the true God and His laws and in an adherence to the world or to idolatry; hence, adikía means impiety, ungodliness, contempt of God, as opposed to truth or piety toward God…those who impede the worship of the true God.4

This implies that the believer who sins has substituted their faithfulness to God for selfish ambitions by indulging in the fleeting enticements and pleasures of this world (Romans 2:8; 2 Thessalonians 2:10–12; 2 Peter 2:15).

Reassurance of Our Relationship

Next, John encourages believers that there is a sin condition that does not result in the divine discipline of death. Robertson asserts that: “Sin is a terrible reality, but there is no cause for despair. Sin not unto death can be overcome in Christ.”5 We should recall that there is no sin that God would refuse to forgive us for and to cleanse us from its stain. The fact is that all our sins (and the sins of the whole world) were judged on the cross, having satisfied the just demands of the Father (1 John 2:2).

And yet we should never be dismissive of the fact that we may receive corrective discipline for unconfessed sins. However, this can be avoided if we keep short accounts with God. This requires an acute awareness of personal sins and diligence in confessing sins (1 John 1:9); for confession of sin is by necessity self-judgement, as explained by the apostle Paul:

But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would not be judged. But when we are judged, we are disciplined by the Lord so that we will not be condemned along with the world. (1 Corinthians 11:31–32)

We must keep in mind that if God were not to discipline us, then regarding our vital relationship with Him, we would be considered “illegitimate children and not sons” (Hebrews 12:8). Thus, the reason for corrective discipline of those “whom the Lord loves” (Proverbs 3:12) is plainly stated by the writer of Hebrews:

All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness. (Hebrews 12:11)

The Life of Righteousness

The writer to the Hebrews instructs us to once and for all time to “lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us” (Hebrews 12:1). But note that the writer to the Hebrews characterizes our life of righteousness as a race. This is a direct contrast to the perception of some in Christian assemblies today, where many equate the Christian way of life with a journey. The Greek word for race (agon) is where we get our English word agony. Elsewhere Paul uses this word for fight in 1 Timothy 6:12; 2 Timothy 4:7, conflict in Philippians 1:30 and struggle in Colossians 2:1. Paul further instructs us to “run in such a way that you may win” (1 Corinthians 9:24), meaning to race like the rabbit and not trudge along like the tortoise. As our example, Paul could rightly boast: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith” (2 Timothy 4:7).

Therefore, the Christian life is not some tranquil, idyllic excursion down a dreamy country lane. It is fighting the good fight, finishing the course, keeping the faith—this is our race, our life of righteousness. Anything else is a distraction from attending to the primary spiritual needs of the believer: the study of His Word and the absorption of His truth to establish the foundation of our belief structure. It is only with this basis for our faith that we live the righteous life. This is the formula advanced by Paul:

All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:16–17; cf. Romans 12:1–2)

Final Thought

Note the writer to the Hebrews’ apt conclusion:

Now the God of peace, who brought up from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep through the blood of the eternal covenant, even Jesus our Lord, equip you in every good thing to do His will, working in us that which is pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen. (Hebrews 13:20–21)

Are we striving to “do the things that are pleasing in His sight” (1 John 3:22)? Are we determined to finish our race? The key is: that we must run; and to do so unrestrained by the unrighteousness of sin.

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[1] Smith, David (1990). The Expositor’s Greek Testament (Nicoll, W. Robertson, Ed.), Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 5.198.

[2] Vine, W. E., Unger, M. F., & White, W., Jr. (1996). Vine’s Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words. Nashville, TN: T. Nelson, 2.326.

[3] Swanson, J. (1997). Dictionary of Biblical Languages with Semantic Domains: Greek New Testament. Oak Harbor: Logos Research Systems, Inc., G94

[4] Zodhiates, S. (2000). The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament. Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, G93.

[5] Robertson, A. T. (1933). Word Pictures in the New Testament. Nashville, TN: Broadman Press, 1 John 5:17.

 

© 2026 David M. Rossi