Monday: Lord of All Creation
After the miraculous feeding, Jesus ordered His disciples into their boat (Matt. 14:22). He wanted them away from the mayhem and pressure. A good teacher will shelter his students from what they’re not yet ready to handle. “Calling His disciples,” writes Ellen G. White, “Jesus bids them take the boat and return at once to Capernaum, leaving Him to dismiss the people … They protested against the arrangement;
Image © Jeff Preston from GoodSalt.com
but Jesus now spoke with an authority He had never before assumed toward them. They knew that further opposition on their part would be useless, and in silence they turned toward the sea.”—The Desire of Ages, p. 378.
Read Matthew 14:23-33. What do these verses reveal about who Jesus was and the nature of salvation?
A revealing moment occurs when the terrified disciples are wondering who is walking on the water toward them. Jesus says to them, “‘It is I; do not be afraid’” (Matt. 14:27, NKJV). The phrase “‘It is I’” is another way of translating the Greek phrase ego eimi, which means “I am.” This is the name of God Himself. (See also Exod. 3:14.)
Scripture time and again has the Lord in control of all nature. Psalm 104, for example, clearly shows that God is not only the Creator but also the Sustainer, and that it’s through His power that the world continues to exist and that the laws of nature operate. There’s nothing here that hints at the god of deism, who creates the world and then leaves it alone. Jew or Gentile, we all owe our continued existence to the sustaining power of the same Lord who stilled the sea. (See also Heb. 1:3.)
Peter’s cry, “‘Lord, save me!’” (Matt. 14:30, NKJV) should echo our own, because if the Lord Jesus doesn’t save us, who will? Peter’s helplessness in that situation reflects our own in the face of what our fallen world throws at us.
| Think about just how helpless you really are, in the sense of being at the mercy of forces so much greater than you and that you can’t control. How should this reality help strengthen your dependence upon Jesus? |
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I have enjoyed reading the Sabbath School lesson on my computer.
I can not hear so I do all in can on the computer. Its so hard when you can not hear. Thanks for what your are doing
Veletta Phelps and I live in Michigan, Like I said I can not hear. but I enjoy the Sabbath School Lessons. Thank you
Amen Valetta! It's great to know that inspite of your inability to hear you are still able to follow the lesson in the manner you have indicated.
We praise God that the time is coming when you will receive your ability to hear. May God help us make ready for and hasten His soon coming to put an end to all the troubles of this world.
I am grateful for this lesson which shows that Jesus is mightier than all the storms that may be raging in our lives and that He is still saying, "Be not afraid, it is I".
Valetta I am hearing impaired also. As time continues, each day is a blessing for all that God gives us. Yes looking forward to our eternal promises is a hope that we cherish, but God is good every minute of each day, and we experience that reality now, this very minute.
It is important that we not depend on our wisdom to make any choices in our life. Like Jesus said, "I do nothing on my own", we need to give our will to God continually that we might make every choice and decision in our lives according to the motivation of His Holy Spirit as Jesus did and does today.
Yes indeed it's the Lord of Sabbath whom we should be submitted to not man. Sometimes our will may not be His will but there's a reason for everything and His time is the best. We should not be weary of serving our maker, our reward awaits in Heaven.
Yes, Jesus showed us what to do when our human will is not the will of the Father by saying, "Nevertheless, not my will but thy will be done.
We must keep our eyes on Jesus and let Him guide us lest we fall
When He says come His invitation is for all of us to follow Him
Who can we go to but the lord blessings to all the saints of God
I always love the Sabbath school lessons but more so now that there's so much more to learn from others experience
Thank you committee members for a job well done
It is not safe for us to cherish doubts and fears, for these grow by looking upon and talking them. I feel to reach up my hand and grasp the hand of Christ as did the sinking disciple on the stormy sea. I want to do my work with fidelity that when I shall stand before the great white throne and am called to answer for the things done in the body, which are all written in the book, that I may see souls standing there to testify I warned them, I entreated them to behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world.—This Day With God, p. 212.
Lest any forget, Jesus did NOT still the storm by HIS power. He did nothing we could not do through faith in the power and purposes of God. Jesus was/is indeed the Lord of all Creation, but that was laid aside as He lived on this earth as one of us, but without sin.
Showing us our need for complete reliance on a greater power than ourselves was the main point of Jesus' teachings and the demonstration of His life. Before He walked on the water, saved Peter and stilled the storm, He had spent most of the night in earnest prayer for those He came to show the “way, the truth, and the life”, through living faith as a man Himself. He did not come until the 4th watch of the night, so sometime between 2 and 4 AM, or later. He prayed most of the night due to His need as a man to know and do the will of His Father. He revealed the Father by submitting Himself to God in everything, just as we can. God will be seen in the life of every true witness, as He was in Christ.
Yes, Robert. Thank you for your thoughts. We can overcome selfishness just like Jesus.
With the faith of Jesus (the fruit of His Spirit) as a grain of mustard seed allowing God as our "employer" we can do all things through Him. The most powerful thing we can do is to overcome self and our selfishness.
There are several features that involved the storm, the disciples, and Jesus. The ones that stand out to me are, the reason that Jesus said, O ye of little faith. This has been said a number of times on different occasions. I think Jesus was reinforcing their faith and trust in Him with each opportunity. Peter knew Jesus could and would trust him. Peter didn't have to consider it for a moment. I think however one of the reasons the events went as well in final analysis, is Matt.14:33
If Jesus could walk on water, speak to the waves and make them obey, bid sickness and demons to flee, defy and defeat death, rising in victory after three days leaving the grave clothes and an empty tomb, surely He is the Master of all creation. If He can forgive, cleanse from every stain of sin and "is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him" (Heb. 7:25), He can recreate us into new creatures because the word assures that for anyone who is in Christ, "old things are passed away, behold! all things are become as new" (2Cor. 5:17).
Just before He left, Jesus gave His disciples the solemn promise to return to earth so He could take them back to heaven with Him to the place He had gone to prepare. This promise extends beyond them to every man , woman or child who would choose to make Him not just their Savior, but Lord of their lives. The manner of Jesus' ascension from earth back to glory, defies all logic and laws of physics and science that man can explain. Having completed His earthly mission, Jesus disappeared in a cloud right before the very eyes of His adoring awestruck disciples, so that the angels had to say, "Men of Galilee," they said, "why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven" (Acts 1:11).
We can't even begin to imagine what it will be like when Jesus bursts through the eastern sky and makes His second appearance on earth. Again He will defy all laws of gravity, this time from the opposite direction, in descending order, riding on clouds with an innumerable host of angels and the sound of the trumpet, a great noise and the brightness of His glory which strikes the wicked dead. But what is more exciting is that "we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord" (1 Thess. 4:17) Let's all determine to be there by making the Lord of all creation, both Savior and LORD of our lives!
All hail the power of Jesus' name!
Let angels prostrate fall;
Bring forth the royal diadem,
and crown him Lord of all.
Bring forth the royal diadem,
and crown him Lord of all.
Just for clarity brethren and friends, "together with them in the clouds" refers to the "dead in Christ" spoken of in verse 16 of 1 Thess. chapter 4.
"For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.
Wherefore comfort one another with these words" (1 Thess.4:16-18).
From Tanzania am learning Sabbath School from my own phone, frankly I like today lesson how Jesus does in our daily lives, sometimes I can see the Jesus power doing miracles everyday in my life.One day when I was in the bus the woman needling on my back and causing many problems according to the poison, when I went to the hospital Dr says you're luck, according to the poison you couldn't live longer so many disease may ocur like heart attack so I got medicines and use it and pray to my Lord so that til now Jesus removed everything which is bad in my body, therefore we need to tel Jesus our problems and lokinghim everytime without to loose a gaps Jesus wil do us he does.
Àmen brother Jesus can save us from so many storms of this world if we take Him as our Lord and Saviour. God bless you for all your comments.
'And when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray'Matthew 14:23.I have learnt from Jesus that even though as we are serving God,we should not become too busy to such an extent that we do not have our personal sweet time of prayer.God loves to have fellowship with us.Let us never think that if we are serving God,we are prone from getting into the closet to communicate with the Father.If Jesus Christ saw the need for prayer,how much more us?The message we are preaching or teaching it comes from the Father,hence we need to spend time with Him so that He will reveal to us what we ought to say to other people.Yes having prayer time as a Church,family or Group is also encouraged but your prayer time with God should never be neglected.Have a one on one time with your Creator.
Peters cry is every ones cry for the Lord to save us. Reminding the faithfull followers and helping the struggling men and women to keep their eyes fixed on the Lord of all creation..Im blessed reading all comments. Praise God.
Phelta,in the name of the Lord Jesus obtain your hearing back