What Else Can He Do?Chaplain Tina Wilson, CTCA/Southwestern Regional Medical Center
But the men marveled, saying, "What manner of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him!" Matthew 8:27 There are times in our lives when we're amazed by the people that surround us daily. We're surprised at the abilities of the person we once thought "common." These times may come for a mother who gazes upon the child who once struggled walking and now is running in the Olympics. Another may have this experience watching his wife receive a reward for her heroic acts in the military. Still yet, a child may see his grandparents in a different light after an evening of sharing life stories. These sensations of rediscovery occur among us regularly. They also occurred among the disciples of Jesus. The men that walked and talked with Jesus were continuously surprised with the man they had come to commonly know. It was in these times they questioned, "I didnt know he could do that. What else can he do?" The disciples traveled with Jesus and saw him at the pinnacle of his ministry. They saw him heal the sick, raise the dead, feed the five thousand and do a host of other miracles. In seeing and knowing this, they still became afraid when a storm arose as they crossed the sea. One may ask, if they knew Jesus as a miraculous worker or one capable of great feats, why were they so afraid? Perhaps their fear arose from the fact that calming a storm was something they hadn't seen Him do, so they didn't think it was something He could do. Or, perhaps, they thought this particular storm was beyond His capabilities even as a miracle worker. Either way reveals the disciples' unawareness of Jesus' power and capabilities. To this, Jesus replied, "Why are ye fearful, ye of little faith?" Jesus identified this fear as doubt of His ability to protect. The disciples had seen Jesus heal the leper and free the demonic. It was easy for them to believe for healing and liberty. However, they had not seen Jesus take control over the elements of the world like water and wind. Since it was never seen, it was hard to consider, moreover believe, that Jesus had power to control the wind. Once Jesus calmed the sea, the disciples rediscovered who Jesus was and wondered what else he could do. Other miraculous acts of Jesus were impressive to the disciples; yet, it was not until they were in a situation that they rediscovered Jesus and his abilities. From that day forward, the disciples knew and believed from curative to refuge, Christ had covered his people, making proper provisions. Christians today are much similar to the disciples of Christ in that after having heard the teaching of Jesus and seeing his power demonstrated in our lives and the lives of others, we often become afraid in stormy situations. We may feel Jesus cant handle this situation only because weve never seen him do it before. Other times, we feel because we have never seen Jesus work in a certain manner that he's unable to perform tasks which seem impossible to us. Yet, to our surprise, we rediscover Jesus and his power. Like the disciples, we are awestruck by the one we have known and followed for some time. It's amazing how and when Jesus works in our lives. Just when we seem to have him all figured out, knowing what he can and can not do, Jesus surprises us with another great feat, displaying his authority and power. In these times, when what seems like a huge storm comes, and we immediately become fearful, wondering how we'll survive, we, like the disciples, should address Jesus. He, then, will address our doubts, fears, and ignorance of his power and ability. When we think of Jesus, the miracle worker, there are usual works we envision. However, Jesus is able to do the impossible and the unseen. That is, Jesus can do what we haven't seen Him do. Perhaps, in these times of uncertainty, we should remind ourselves of the things Jesus can do. We should consider what else He can do rather than what He hasn't done. If He's able to make the blind see, what else can He do? If He can heal the leper, what else can He do? If He can raise the dead, what else can He do? If He died in order to save my soul, what else will He do to save my life? |