In today's reading we see that the walls that Nehemiah started have been completed! Praise the Lord! It took 52 days, but God helped His people! (And He will do the same for us today!)
In today's blog, I will focus my comments on Luke 8. Luke 8 is full of the miracles of Jesus. But something I saw for the first time this morning was why Jesus was calm as He slept in the boat. Naturally, I've always thought it's because He has all power. He commands the wind and the waves, but this is what Desire of Ages tells us:
"When Jesus was awakened to meet the storm, He was in perfect peace. There was no trace of fear in word or look, for no fear was in His heart. But He rested not in the possession of almighty power. It was not as the “Master of earth and sea and sky” that He reposed in quiet. That power He had laid down, and He says, “I can of Mine own self do nothing.” John 5:30. He trusted in the Father’s might. It was in faith—faith in God’s love and care—that Jesus rested, and the power of that word which stilled the storm was the power of God.
As Jesus rested by faith in the Father’s care, so we are to rest in the care of our Savior.... How often the disciples’ experience is ours! When the tempests of temptation gather, and the fierce lightnings flash, and the waves sweep over us, we battle with the storm alone, forgetting that there is One who can help us. We trust to our own strength till our hope is lost, and we are ready to perish. Then we remember Jesus, and if we call upon Him to save us, we shall not cry in vain. Though He sorrowfully reproves our unbelief and self-confidence, He never fails to give us the help we need. Whether on the land or on the sea, if we have the Saviour in our hearts, there is no need of fear. Living faith in the Redeemer will smooth the sea of life, and will deliver us from danger in the way that He knows to be best." (DA 336)One more thing that really impressed me from Luke 8 was when the woman reached out and touched Jesus and she was healed. Jesus could have let her go without making a scene, but He asked... WHO TOUCHED ME, because He wanted a confession from her own mouth of His faithfulness.
The following beautiful quote is in my Bible margin correlating with this miracle.
"Our confession of His faithfulness is Heaven’s chosen agency for revealing Christ to the world. We are to acknowledge His grace as made known through the holy men of old; but that which will be most effectual is the testimony of our own experience. We are witnesses for God as we reveal in ourselves the working of a power that is divine. Every individual has a life distinct from all others, and an experience differing essentially from theirs. God desires that our praise shall ascend to Him, marked by our own individuality. These precious acknowledgments to the praise of the glory of His grace, when supported by a Christlike life, have an irresistible power, that works for the salvation of souls." (Christian Service, p. 16)We can trust Jesus in the storms! And we can trust the hand that heals us. Let's not keep His goodness to ourselves though, let's share with the world! Our God is good!
Tomorrow's Reading: Neh. 9-10 and Ps. 78:38-72
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