The Inhumans, a
reclusive race of genetically altered superhumans, are among Marvel’s lesser
known comic-book characters. These secluded superhumans follow the leadership
of their king, Black Bolt, whose
powerful voice triggers a supremely strong and highly destructive shock wave
capable of leveling a city every time he speaks. Due to the potential peril
posed by this power, Black Bolt practices rigorous mental training to prevent
himself from ever uttering a sound, even in his sleep, and he usually maintains
complete silence, communicating through sign language or via spokesperson.
In an episode of Ultimate
Spider-man, which my son and I recently watched on Netflix, Black Bolt uses
his earth-shattering voice to save the city of New York. As the floating city
of Attilan plummets toward Manhattan, Black Bolt plants his feet atop the Daily
Bugle building, turns his eyes skyward and utters a single word. The resulting
shock wave sends the falling utopia sailing into the upper atmosphere. What I
find most compelling is Black Bolt’s word choice. He could have chosen any word
in the English language or even an alien language for that matter. But when
Black Bolt spoke, he said: “Peace.”
Jesus made a similar choice. In Mark 4, a sudden storm seizes
control of a leaky fishing boat occupied by Jesus and his followers. The sky
rumbled above them, the water churned beneath them. Their fishing boat bounced
and spun on the white-tops of angry waves. In the midst of the storm, one of
them shouted over the crashing waves at Jesus, “Teacher, don’t you care that
we’re going to drown?” (Mark 4:38 NLT). Then Jesus stood up, rebuked the wind,
and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a
great calm (Mark 4:39 ESV). When Jesus speaks, even the wind and the waves
listen.
Two thousand years later, the words of Jesus have not
lost their power. Not only did the words of Jesus have the power to still the
storm on the Sea of Galilee, but also, when you read his words splashed across
the pages of your Bible, they have the power to still the storm within you.
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