Continuing in Luke chapter 8, this week we are going to consider verses 19-25. Please read these verses every day this week and, if possible use a different translation each day, asking God to open your eyes to fresh revelation from His Word.
Luke 8:22-23 (NLT)
‘One day Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.” So they got into a boat and started out. As they sailed across, Jesus settled down for a nap. But soon a fierce storm came down on the lake. The boat was filling with water, and they were in real danger.’
In my opinion, there are few things better than this: coming home after a really, really busy day, putting on my slippers and sitting down to relax on the sofa. Some days are just so full that it’s wonderful to just ‘switch off’ completely after getting home.
As I’m getting older, I’m getting more and more tired with the demands of long days and short sleepless nights. Relaxation is something of a rarity and yet I know of people who are so much busier than I am. In all honesty, I’m in awe of people like Allen and James who seem to have an endless resource of energy. I really don’t know how they do it!
Luke records something rather special for us in our verses today. There are many people who discount some things Jesus did just because He was God. For example, they believe that He never gave in to temptation on account of His deity. They continue to state that His obedience to the Father was easier because He was God.
Well, here Luke clearly shows the humanity of Jesus. The parallel accounts in Matthew and Mark lead us to believe that this story occurred in the evening. Jesus was in need of sleep and in His humanity, He was subject to the same tiredness that we all experience. Jesus had had a really busy day. He’d been teaching all day and surely could do with a bit of ‘relaxation time’. However, He still responded to the ‘next’ instruction from His Father. He had an early morning meeting with someone on the other side of the lake.
There was no time to waste by chilling out for a while. He had to get in the boat in order to get to the other side for morning. And as they sailed across, Jesus took the opportunity for 40 winks. Psalm 121 says: “He that keeps Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep.”. While Jesus slept, He knew that His Heavenly Father was still watching over Him and that He was being held in the everlasting arms. Jesus had such confidence in God.
I’m sure that like me, there have been occasions in your life where sleep escapes you. Perhaps there have been problems during that day that you just can’t shake off. Your mind is working overtime to work out the various solutions that could be reached in difference scenarios. Rest isn’t easy when you’re troubled in this way.
My prayer for us all today is that we cast all our cares upon the Lord. When we know that God is watching over us, why should we worry? Why can’t we sleep when we know that His arms are all around us. Nothing will happen to us tomorrow that He will be surprised at and nothing will come our way that hasn’t already been through His hands. May we have the same confidence that Jesus had and learn to rest, to trust and to sleep soundly under His care.
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