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Jesus rebuking the great tempest in your life today!

"Behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was covered with the waves: but He (Jesus) was asleep" (Mat.8:24). Here, Matthew tells us about a great tempest that struck the ship in which Jesus and His beloved disciples traveled. That was the very ship Jesus commanded His disciples to get into. The disciples obeyed Him and entered this ship. Then that ship was hit by a great tempest. Dearly beloved in Christ, you have accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior and have decided to follow Him in His ship. Many preachers preach today that after accepting Christ Jesus, you should have only bliss and not sorrow; you would receive only miracles and not disasters. Behold, a great tempest has arisen in your life today. Somebody has told you that your sins have invited the wrath of God and that the divine judgment has now come to devour you. Do you know that your Beloved Jesus, though He appears sleeping, is still in your ship?

There arose a great tempest! The ship was covered with the waves. There was no way out for the disciples to escape. They could not swim to safety because the ship was covered with the violent waves. They had no other option but to call on the Lord. They awoke Him, saying, "Lord, save us: we perish". Even if they had not called on the Lord, they would not have perished at all because Jesus was with them. Annoyed with their cry or SOS, Jesus rebuked them saying, "Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith?" (Matt.8:26).

Today, you may be fearful and may be wondering why this misfortune has befallen you, though you have been following the Lord faithfully. Oh, this great tempest has hit you not just because you have not given your tithes to God or not just because you have not spent enough time in prayers or not just because you have not been actively engaged in His vineyard.

This great tempest has hit you because He loves you very much. You may wonder as to why He should send you this great tempest if He loves you. This great tempest has come into your life because He loves you ETERNALLY. The eternal love of Christ Jesus does allow the great tempest in our lives. You will never know Him very intimately when everything goes on well with you. You will never know more of Him when you get only the bliss. You will know more of Him only when the great tempest hits you or when you pass through the furnace of afflictions.

The "eternal" love or the divine love is different from the human love. It cannot be defined in any dictionary. The human love bestows on you happiness in life whereas the eternal love of God bestows on you salvation or eternal life. The eternal love unfolds the incomprehensible love of Christ for His elect – the sheltering love which covers the multitude of sins; the sublime love which blinds the holy eye of the Bridegroom to the wretchedness and unworthiness of His beloved; the flaming love which cannot be quenched by "many waters"; the lofty love which cannot be drowned by "the floods", the precious love which cannot be valued in mere monetary terms. nly the floods or the fire reveals the eternal love of Christ.

It is the great tempest, and not ordinary tempest that reveals the full Person of Christ to us. The Holy Spirit inspired and enabled me to write my book "The Voice of My Beloved" over a long period of 15 years. I spent most of this period in the furnace of afflictions only. The Holy Spirit taught me about the love of Christ through every verse from the book of Song of Songs as I wrote my book. I faced tempest after tempest and the great tempest in my life while writing this book.

The same Jesus is in your ship today. He did slumber for a while when His disciples were traveling in the ship because He was in flesh. To your eyes, He may appear sleeping. But He never slumbers today. The Holy Spirit in you is powerful and mighty. He reveals Christ to you through this school of suffering. You will never perish at all. The great tempest in the Christian life brings him very close to Christ.

As the disciples called on Jesus, He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm (Mat.8:26). The disciples of Jesus were not forsaken but were saved by their Master on hearing their SOS. Today your SOS has reached His ears. He has heard your prayers. Dear sister in Christ, this message comes to you only. Do not think it is meant for some other person. It is you whom the Lord calls "blessed" because you have been in your ship being hit by the great tempest. Dear minister of God, your ministry has been hit by this great tempest so that your faith in human help has been nullified. Call on Him now, saying, "Save us: we perish". God does allow the great tempest in our lives so that we may learn to trust Him all the more and not to continue to trust in human help.

- Job Anbalagan