Why Are You Fearful?

²⁶ But He said to them, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. Matthew 8

Why are you fearful? What a great question! Most Christians will admit to being fearful about something, but why are we fearful?

Matthew 8 contains a well-known story. Jesus and His disciples got on a boat to sail across the sea. Jesus took a nap and a great storm arose. The disciples panicked and woke Jesus. Jesus rebuked the disciples for their lack of faith. He rebuked the tempest and then there was a great calm.

Why were the disciples fearful? The answer may seem obvious to us; they were in a small boat and a big storm arose. The prospect of capsizing in a tumultuous sea didn’t appeal to them. Drowning seemed likely. To Jesus, though, their fear was the result of a lack of faith.  Who was in control, God or the wind and waves?  

In His Word, God promises to care for us and our wellbeing. Do you fear for your life? God’s Word states that nothing dies apart from His will -- not even a sparrow. God cares more about you than a bird. The days of your life aren’t left to chance, but are protected by the sovereign will of your loving Father (see Matthew 10:29-31).  

Are you fearful about not having enough money to pay the bills, or that you may miss out on some blessing in life? Romans 8 says “³² He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” If it’s good and you need it, God says you will have it. God loves you so much He gave His Son to the cross for you. If He went to that great length for you why would He hold any good thing back from you? Whether food, shelter, a spouse, children, wisdom, etc., why would God send His Son to die for you but ignore your needs? God is good and you can trust Him.

The next time you look at the tempest around you and begin to fear, have faith. Have faith that God has your very life in His hands and nothing can happen to you apart from the will of God. Have faith God cares about you so much that He gave His only Son to the cross for you, and won’t hold back any good thing from you. When your faith is in God, even in the midst of the tempest a “great calm” will come over your life.