Matt 8:26
"...Why are ye fearful o ye of little faith? Then he arose and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm."
We can all recognize this passage. Take a moment to process it.
First, "faith and fear cannot live simultaneously" (I know this is quoted from someone).
Second, storms especially in the ocean come in waves, how are they manifested in our lives?What storms in our life keep us from sleep (REST)? Are they really of great importance that even if death were imminent it would really be that bad?
It would if you didn't understand God's plan.
I never knew why the Savior would react in such a fashion. I'm sure he wasn't yelling at them when he made this statement or said it in a way that was condescending, but his words expressed such great disappointment that I'm sure it pierced even the strongest of the saints, his followers. I see it as the "the look" that mothers give that help us understand we're not following orders. The look that pierces the soul and helps steer us back to the sure path and gives us perspective. To another disciple the Lord said "Follow me; and let let the dead bury the dead" after the man had said "Suffer me first to go and bury my father".
Seems a little harsh no? But we know what he meant, his intentions. He knew God, he was God, and he could see the least of us and the greatest of us. All he did in his ministry was to invite us to put the world aside and serve with full intent. So, that we could live again. Salvation is for the living not the spiritually dead.
It's amazing that his words could be so straight forward and unquestionably thoughtful that you could not argue them or even get upset by them, if you knew that His intention was to serve God first. Sometimes all this work can seem cumbersome and overwhelming, but we have to remember that our eyes only see the present and that there is a veil not far distant, where all of our work from this life is made manifest by those that have already passed. Doctrine and Covenants teaches that "there is a time appointed of every man, according as his works shall be" (121:25) Which I understand that it means that as long as we are fulfilling not our will but that plan which the father laid out for us, then we will be allotted the time necessary to achieve our greatest potential. Regardless of the storms which beset us we should only set sights on the rest which will be given to us after we have passed from the test of our mortal existence. To Joseph Smith the Lord taught (D&C 122) And if thou shouldst be cast into the pit, or into the hands of murderers, and the sentence of death passed upon thee; if thou be cast into the deep; if the billowing surge conspire against thee; if the fierce winds become thine enemy; if the heavens gather blackness, and all the elements combine to hedge the way; and above all, id the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee, know thou, my son, that all these things shall five thee experience, and shall be for thy good. The Son of Man hath descended below them all. Art thou greater than he? Therefore, hold on thy way, and the priesthood shall remain abound with thee; for their bounds are set, they cannot pass. Thy days are known, and thy years shall not be numbered less; therefore fear not what man (the world) can do, for God shall be with you forever and ever" (122:7-9). He promised that priesthood would remain with him, just as the apostles had in that same boat, when the Savior calmed the storm. It is important to recognize the council that we must set the world aside and rely on the Savior to protect and guide us in our mission as our days are known, as long as we are here fulfilling our purpose. The prophet Joseph Smith did as much as he could in the similitude of the Savior and as promised he received his glory and fulfilled more than any mortal man could have accomplished. I know this is true, in his name, Jesus Christ.
We can all recognize this passage. Take a moment to process it.
First, "faith and fear cannot live simultaneously" (I know this is quoted from someone).
Second, storms especially in the ocean come in waves, how are they manifested in our lives?What storms in our life keep us from sleep (REST)? Are they really of great importance that even if death were imminent it would really be that bad?
It would if you didn't understand God's plan.
I never knew why the Savior would react in such a fashion. I'm sure he wasn't yelling at them when he made this statement or said it in a way that was condescending, but his words expressed such great disappointment that I'm sure it pierced even the strongest of the saints, his followers. I see it as the "the look" that mothers give that help us understand we're not following orders. The look that pierces the soul and helps steer us back to the sure path and gives us perspective. To another disciple the Lord said "Follow me; and let let the dead bury the dead" after the man had said "Suffer me first to go and bury my father".
Seems a little harsh no? But we know what he meant, his intentions. He knew God, he was God, and he could see the least of us and the greatest of us. All he did in his ministry was to invite us to put the world aside and serve with full intent. So, that we could live again. Salvation is for the living not the spiritually dead.
It's amazing that his words could be so straight forward and unquestionably thoughtful that you could not argue them or even get upset by them, if you knew that His intention was to serve God first. Sometimes all this work can seem cumbersome and overwhelming, but we have to remember that our eyes only see the present and that there is a veil not far distant, where all of our work from this life is made manifest by those that have already passed. Doctrine and Covenants teaches that "there is a time appointed of every man, according as his works shall be" (121:25) Which I understand that it means that as long as we are fulfilling not our will but that plan which the father laid out for us, then we will be allotted the time necessary to achieve our greatest potential. Regardless of the storms which beset us we should only set sights on the rest which will be given to us after we have passed from the test of our mortal existence. To Joseph Smith the Lord taught (D&C 122) And if thou shouldst be cast into the pit, or into the hands of murderers, and the sentence of death passed upon thee; if thou be cast into the deep; if the billowing surge conspire against thee; if the fierce winds become thine enemy; if the heavens gather blackness, and all the elements combine to hedge the way; and above all, id the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee, know thou, my son, that all these things shall five thee experience, and shall be for thy good. The Son of Man hath descended below them all. Art thou greater than he? Therefore, hold on thy way, and the priesthood shall remain abound with thee; for their bounds are set, they cannot pass. Thy days are known, and thy years shall not be numbered less; therefore fear not what man (the world) can do, for God shall be with you forever and ever" (122:7-9). He promised that priesthood would remain with him, just as the apostles had in that same boat, when the Savior calmed the storm. It is important to recognize the council that we must set the world aside and rely on the Savior to protect and guide us in our mission as our days are known, as long as we are here fulfilling our purpose. The prophet Joseph Smith did as much as he could in the similitude of the Savior and as promised he received his glory and fulfilled more than any mortal man could have accomplished. I know this is true, in his name, Jesus Christ.
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