Who’s in the Boat With You? | Benjer McVeigh | June 1, 2025
·43 min·4 clips
When Jesus wakes up and commands the storm to stop, the disciples realize they're in a boat with God himself.
This episode is a sermon from Flourishing Grace Church, part of a series walking through the Gospel of Luke. Host and lead pastor Benjer McVeigh opens by reading Luke 8:22-25, where Jesus and his disciples encounter a storm on the Sea of Galilee. Benjer shares a relatable anecdote about teaching his teenagers to drive, using it as a metaphor to define faith as requiring both an object and trust, rather than just an emotion or feeling. He critiques common misconceptions of faith as a bucket to be filled or a meter to monitor. The sermon delves into the biblical story, describing the sudden windstorm on the lake and the disciples' fear, despite many being experienced fishermen. Benjer emphasizes that Jesus calming the storm reveals his divine authority, shocking the disciples and expanding their view of him from a rabbi to God himself. He references a replica of a first-century boat found in the 1980s to add historical context. Benjer then explores the theological implications, arguing that when people feel distant from God or overwhelmed by storms, it's often because their view of Jesus is too small. He quotes C.S. Lewis's 'The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe' to illustrate that God is not safe but good. The sermon shifts to Colossians 1, where Paul describes Jesus as the image of the invisible God, creator of all things, and holder of all authority. Benjer applies this by stating that Jesus has authority over every storm in life and is never surprised by circumstances. He discusses how this perspective affects stewardship, using the church offering as an example of acknowledging everything belongs to Jesus. The message concludes with practical outcomes: knowing the master of the storm allows believers to not lose heart and sometimes walk towards storms for others' sake, as the early disciples did. Benjer ends with an invitation for listeners to raise their hands if they need a bigger view of Jesus or want to put their faith in him for the first time, followed by a prayer and call to action.
