When we were at the beach this past weekend we felt the mighty power of the waves. Two youth kept drifting off down the beach because the waves were inexorably carrying them. One youth was knocked down three times while trying to get in. We made sandcastles and played bocce ball in the sand, sand which was created by thousands of years of waves crushing rocks into tiny pieces. Waves are powerful. Tsunami waves can reach heights of 100 ft at the shore and 13,000 feet in the ocean. (submerged) They can do untold damage. They are so powerful that governments around the world are seeking to harness their energy through wave technology.
In psalm 93:4, the Bible says "Mightier than the thunders of many waters, mightier than the waves of the sea, the LORD on high is mighty!" The Lord is more powerful than all the power of the waves. This seems like a no-brainer, but in our lives we really do question the power of God. We wonder whether he reigns. We look at all the evil in the world and we wonder whether God is in control. Especially when we look at the cross we can wonder if God is in control. The only son of the God of the universe was put to death by ancient peasants... what's wrong with this picture? Yet this psalm, God's word, is reassuring us that God is indeed in control. He's stronger than the strongest thing we can imagine or fear here on earth. God reigns. That should be a comforting thought to us for God is a good God, slow to anger and abounding in love.
There once was an emporer of a mighty nation who declared war on the sea. He sent his army down to the sea. They gave a great shout and all the soldiers threw their spears into the sea. Then the emporer declared his army victorious over the sea. How foolish! How foolish it is to be at war with God who is much greater than the sea, the waves, the waters. The Lord reigns, there is no hope of fighting him even though God doesn't seem to be in control. The Lord reigns.
