Well, it's not easy when you haven't had your head in a text all week to sort of jump in and where do I want to preach and what do I want to do? So I decided to do something out of Mark's gospel. I don't know how far Dr. Godfrey is in his study in Mark, but we're going to look at the end of chapter four tonight in Mark chapter four. I did, I was able to spend some time on this this afternoon, so I think it's somewhat different than before, but we'll see. This is, I preached this back in 2016 i doubt anyone has a good mind to remember it except those who take notes right in their bible and write the date so they know exactly what the pastor preached and when some of you are still doing that i think anyways i want to know who it is afterward if that's okay this is mark chapter 4 beginning at 35 and we'll read to verse 41 where jesus calms a storm on that day when evening had come he said to them let us go across to the other side and leaving the crowd they took they took him with them in the boat just as he was and other boats were with them and a great windstorm arose and the waves were breaking into the boat so that the boat was already filling but he was in the stern asleep on the cushion and they woke him and said to him teacher do you not care that we're perishing and he awoke and rebuked the wind in the sea and said to the sea peace be still and the wind ceased and there was a great calm he said to them why are you so afraid have you still no faith and they were filled with great fear and said to one another who then is this that even the wind and the sea obey him and there will end the reading of God's word well I've always been strangely fascinated with this particular section of scripture part of the challenge in looking at this section of scripture is my guests you've heard this preached in the course of your life so many times there are numerous records of this in the scriptures i think mark has two calming of the storm events that are very significant in the life of jesus the problem is is there's sort of a patent way that these have been approached in in the in the evangelical church so that really the heart of the message that we hear when we come to this is that these passages are just about jesus calming the storms in your life that's typically how this particular passage is preached, that that's what Jesus will do for you. He will calm all the storms in your life. Who's the killjoy is going to come along and tell you that's not the right way to look at the text. That's Pastor Gordon tonight right here. He's going to do that for you. Everyone feels pressured, I think, when they look at a text like this to sort of run with it that way and to consider it that way, that Jesus is just about giving us tranquility and peace in this life well this passage is not about that it's quite the opposite actually when we consider mark chapter 4 this passage is about jesus bringing storms into your life it's quite the opposite if i were to try to say that this is about giving you a a comfort comfort sail into the kingdom of God and to tell you that this is just about Jesus calming everything that happens in your life there are many of you who face constant storms and you might wonder what's really wrong then with my own walk with the Lord in fact it was just in the previous section that Jesus said that the seed that lands on the stony places did not know that this would happen and when tribulation comes and storms come because of the word now that's very important when it comes because of these things they depart and they walk away from it all because they came to christianity and they came to christ on false pretenses and that's why they walked away jesus made that very clear now no what we have in front of us tonight is jesus brings this storm on the disciples the question is to explore why to think a little bit about why does he do this and what was the intention and what was the end result in bringing a storm on the disciples it has a very powerful teaching function for the disciples in their ministry but it's very helpful to look at this in light of how life goes in following the lord jesus christ storms will come and go but if you're able to have some kind of understanding of the good intention of the lord in them and what he is accomplishing in reliance and in trust in him well then you can go forward in confidence knowing that whatever he does he does well the lord does everything well the storm of this text is forcing us to ask what do we really believe about the power of jesus's word i think we heard something about that last sunday night to not go beyond what was written it's a theme that is all over the scriptures and that continued theme is to show in mark's gospel the power of the word and the coming of the kingdom that's why immediately such an important word in the gospel of mark it's coming with power and it's coming with strength and the disciples needed to see this they needed to understand the power of the word and the coming of the kingdom do we really know who is leading us and do we really know who is speaking to us when we begin to grasp that a different kind of disposition takes over a different kind of word that march will wrestle with here which is fear a different kind of fear a good fear lays hold of us in the storm that we are taught to look beyond the storms of this life to the one who has preeminence over all things this is what mark is going to show us tonight well we what we find as we open up this particular text is that the disciples have not yet grasped who is speaking to them and how powerful his word really is they've not been taken yet with a proper fear of him that's the end question of this text you know who is this that even the wind and the waves obey his word they obey him who is this they still have not grasped this they still have not fully understood this they still have not understood their savior they still have not understood the power of the word and after making known the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven to them which he had been doing in the previous section he had just been preaching the mysteries of the kingdom he had just said blessed are you for your eyes see i've opened your eyes to understand the mysteries of the kingdom we read that on that same day after he explained the nature of the kingdom in parables to them he said come let us cross over to the other side he has purposely taken them at night from the busy Capernaum side of the lake to the eastern side of the Gerasenes so it's probably Peter's fishing boat and there were other series of fishing boats following along and these guys are um are master fishermen I mean this is really always been encouraging to me that Jesus chose his disciples as fishermen it's a risky move of course you're out on the sea of galilee that sits 700 feet below sea level in the valley all around them there are steep mountains and there are hills and it's an extremely dangerous proposition that jesus says to go and do this being that the lake is one of the lowest sea levels in the world they all knew that wind storms arose they all knew that these things could come on you gale force winds in just a moment of time and it would be a disaster they're fishermen they know this you can't see it coming in the night they didn't have radar they didn't have weather reports you know this is the year everyone starts talking about the Edsman Fitzgerald you know that story or I you know we just watch another round of Titanic in the Gordon house this always comes on you know what an awful thing to all of a sudden have a storm hit you that quickly that the waves and the gales and the winds are that big that it could see the size of the Edmund Fitzgerald. That thing could dip down like that. And what they say happened was the wave came over the boat and snapped it right into it and immediately it dropped to the bottom. They were done. Well, that's the kind of storm that had come. On the Sea of Galilee. Mark uses the word, a crucial little word here. It's a mega storm. It's a mega storm. He's going to use this, I think, three times in this little pericope. It was a mega windstorm that had beat the boat. To the point that Mark says, it's filling up. We read this astonishing little statement that Jesus is down there sleeping in the boat. It's really remarkable. You have sort of a juxtaposition here, at least in thought, of his humanity and his deity, that he's truly God and truly man. In his humanity, he's tired, all that he's been doing. And he goes down and he takes a nap. And as truly God, he's going to command in a moment the wind and the waves. Notice what happens, how it begins. Let us go, let us cross over to the other side. That's a command. The Lord has told them what they're going to do. I've often thought that's an interesting thing, because if you look at it from the perspective of how it's often sort of preached, that Jesus is given to calm the storms in your life, you know, did Jesus need a nap? And did he not know what he was leading them into? Did Jesus need a nap and yet knew exactly what he was leading them into? And I think anyone who understands the sovereignty of God, anyone who knows who this is, is going to say it's the latter. Jesus was tired and fatigued and he went to rest knowing exactly what was going, determining exactly what was going to happen. At his word, let us go. Determining a storm would come. Now what do they do? There's nothing that really stands out about concern about this. They follow their Lord. They're very obedient to the command. It wasn't that this storm came because they were disobedient. Actually, it's quite the opposite. They went. They followed. All indication here is that they were absolutely following in line with the Lord's will and that it's not Jesus' thinking about the whole point here, that this is not something that Jesus has simply got beyond him. The storm has been determined. I don't have to make a case for what the storms are. I think we know. These are the sort of things that come upon us unexpectedly. And suddenly, the things that cause absolute panic, the things that cause absolute despair. It's the phone call of somebody who says, your loved one was killed tonight. They died. It's the bad news from the doctor. Everything is turned upside down. You're in a situation that is absolutely outside of your control. Nothing ever was, but at least you thought it was. And everything's been turned into disarray. What do we do at that moment? Something comes upon us that's absolutely outside of our control. It didn't have to happen, did it? And then we struggle with the very feeling of the disciples here. is the Lord sleeping? These guys are fishermen. For the most part, it takes a lot to scare a fisherman. Never watched Deadliest Catch? I mean, those are fearless men. You know, they're out there in Bering Strait out of Dutch Harbor. You see what comes on those guys? I've seen shows where some of them slide right off the boat. They're done. The disciples are scared to death. They have never been in the eye of a storm like this. They knew and would not have chosen to go into the eye of the storm like this. They are completely helpless. i think that's right where jesus wants them i think that's right where jesus wants them see i think i believe we're supposed to see in this a correlation of what he had just done for them he had just revealed to them the mysteries of the kingdom of god the power of his word he had just bless them with the word he had just explained to them that he's lord that the kingdom would grow up and become greater than all the other kingdoms as a mustard seed all the other kingdoms in the world he had essentially claimed for himself in these parables all authority and power of the word to them we can theoretically say we believe that but there are times when you're forced to believe it you really know you know what is trust in the word what does it look like what is real trust in his word this whole section is a challenge to that authority and to demonstrate the power and the authority of the word and this has really tested the relationship for a moment. It's a testing of their faith. It's a test of faith in life that has come upon them. It is the storm that he appointed for them. It's the storm that he orchestrated for them. It's the storm that he designed for them. Just how powerful is he? Just how powerful is the word? Can it be trusted, his word? Ought we to trust his word the test has drawn out a response hasn't it what we find is that in the middle of this storm jesus is down in the stern sleeping on a pillow it's a remarkable verse i've never quite known how to process it all i could come up with is the absolute stability and on how unshakable he is in absolute control of all things but the text is taking us and challenging us to ask and to think about the question that they ask they awoke and they said to him teacher don't you care that we're perishing it's a mayday they are filled with fear they are filled with panic the question is and they think about this. Don't you care? Stop. Don't you care? I think that's one of the greatest questions of life. This is the heart of the test. Don't you care? Don't you care if we die? I wonder how many of you have asked that and struggled with that. We've really not been that great of people in the course of life. And let this kind of situation come on us. And this might be the question you start asking. Really, how faithful have you been? Don't you care? Do you care? His entire purpose of coming to this earth was because he cared. He came to lay down his life so that we would never what? Even though we die, we shall live. Don't you care? Have you asked it? Well, you might. You might tomorrow. Or you might a month from now. We've heard about God's goodness all of our lives. I've preached it all of my life. Our devotions are great when the sun's up. Our devotion's great when the sun's up. What about the storm? Moments like this come, the storm comes, and all of a sudden, things are raised to the surface and we're tested. What has this storm done? Well, if you're asking if he really cares about you, you have a direct conflict with the promise of his word and the distress that's before you. There's a promise of his care. I think Peter would later capture this. all your cares upon him because he cares for you. It might have come right out of this. Look how weak we are. You know, I think that's one of the things that's really captured here for these strong fishermen. Do you know how weak you are? Do you know how fearful you are? If you're bored, you can go to your keyboard tonight and type in the Great Sheep Panic of 1888. This is what I do in my spare time. It was the night of November 3rd, 1888 in Oxfordshire. Around 8 o'clock, tens of thousands of sheep across an area of about 200 square miles impulsively and simultaneously went berserk. Nobody had ever seen anything like this. They broke through their pens and they bolted out in the fields. They destroyed property all over the place, running over fences and tearing down everything. The next morning, they found them scattered miles away. Nobody could figure out why. So all the theorists came in and they tried to understand why. Some said it was an earthquake. This is what they finally concluded. The heavy, oppressive atmosphere accompanying the thick darkness, the susceptibility of sheep to atmospheric disturbance, and their nervous and timid dispositions would all tend to increase the fright the sheep experience. The cause of the panic being a cloud rolling along so low down is apparently to touch the ground, Although locally, the usual direction followed by thunderstorms has indicated a line along which the sheep stampeded on nearly every farm in the region. A low, dark cloud came over the sheep. That's what they concluded. And the sheep went berserk. Do you know what you are? You're a sheep. What do sheep do? They panic. You can't uphold yourself. This life is full of all kinds of anxieties and fears and panics and distresses and situations like this. You can't uphold yourself. Remove the tough guy, Finir, that the church and guys are having today. We're all afraid. We're all afraid. That's what's happening. Nobody's tough. The disciples are panicked. So would I. I couldn't chide the disciples here. I'm one of them. I'm not even as strong as a fisherman. The fear was so great. Would we have done anything different? And that leads to the point of this. The issue is not of the point of rebuking them for panic. The question is, and what they did not see and what they did not realize is who was with them and how powerful his word is to keep us. Many of you are full of anxiety precisely because you're sheep. It's what you are. But when the appointed storms come, the question is, what does he do? In this particular case, the storm has led them to panic. But I think the beautiful thing is, is in the midst of their panic, notice the tide this morning, who did they come to? They came to Jesus. They came to Jesus. And how did they come? They came as little children. Mom, Dad, there's a noise in here. Get in here. You too need to come to Jesus as a little child. The truth of the matter is, they were more secure in the storm because Jesus was with them than when life was very calm and he was not walking with them. i think that's a something that's captured here if the boat goes down guess who also goes down he's with them really in all of life he's with us isn't he didn't he make that promise as soon as they ask that question something overwhelming happens he stands up and there isn't really a rebuke of the disciples here first notice what he does you can picture him standing up stepping out on the boat and we read that he verbally spoke to the sea he raised his voice and with one command said peace be still and the entire storm calmed in front of them to a sea of glass what had he had been doing the whole time he had been with them and he had been preaching the word of his kingdom and people were being saved and with that same voice now remember mark's gospel said for one reason he had come forth it was to preach let us go to the cities with a powerful voice he was shaking up the entire region and now with the voice of the mouth of jesus the one through whom everything was made when he spoke he commanded the earth and it obeyed. It had the intended effect. The storm was sent to show them this. And where has it brought them? Well, you'll see they were deathly afraid of the storm, weren't they? They had come in panic of the storm. But the reality is that in their walks with the Lord, they had the wrong kind of fear in life. there's something he's training them in that they would have to train people in sheep in you have the wrong kind of fear mark says it was a mega storm and then mark says there was a mega calm in the greek and then in verse 39 you'll see that in verse 39 but then in verse 41 the greatest fear came upon them for the first time we read that a mega-fear overwhelmed them. And it wasn't the storm. Who is this? Mega-fear hit them. Who is this? That even the wind and the sea obey Him. Who is this? They had forgotten about the storm. Their eyes were on Him. And they were listening to His voice. And they were seeing it displayed its sheer power over all of creation. He is Lord over all. And where has the storm led them? To complete godly fear and awe of who is with them. Whose voice commanded them. Who had blessed them and privileged them to hear the word of the kingdom. They saw him. And you see, that's the proper fear that must happen to us. That's the fear that must happen to us. The right kind of fear. The right kind of fear in this age. And Jesus asks this important question, doesn't he? Why are you so fearful? Do you still have no faith? That's the penetrating question of the text. That's the question Jesus asks of you tonight. Why are you so fearful? What are you fearful about? I've shown you my power. I've spoken my word to you. You've seen my word raise people from the dead. And I have given you an inspired word that gives you accounts like this, that tells you of my power, that demonstrates my power. All of creation bows down to my word. It's all mine. I own it all. I formed it all. and you're still not trusting me, are you? Oh, you have little faith. I wonder how important that question is for us today. Do you still, after all this, doubt my word? The effect is this. If I can calm the storm by my mere word, what does that tell you about who I am? When they say, who is this? They have one option. This is the Son of God speaking to us. It was through Him that all things were made. It was by His Word that it happened. All of creation humbly bows to Him. The demons in Mark bow to Him. They saw. It was His absolute supremacy of the voice of His mouth and what He has said to us. What about all these things happening today? It seems out of control, doesn't it? It seems chaotic. It feels like we're in the middle of the eye of a storm. Do governments seem in charge to you? Says Jesus, really? Do you think that? You think governments are in charge? Are you fearful about your future? Are you fearful about your children? Are you fearful about your health? Are you fearful about life? What are you fearing? I am the resurrection and the life, says Jesus. I am the good shepherd. It's my voice that saves you. And I have promised to be with you. Wheresoever you go. It's my voice that will deliver you. Do you still not believe my word? See? It's my voice that will command your body to get up out of the grave. And this, beloved, is why we're tested. And why we need to be tested. It's not merely his ability to calm the storm that makes us fall. all over him it's his ability to uphold us and to keep us as sheep through the storm so that we see who is speaking to us and his testing is intended to draw out faith who is this in chapter six another storm happens this is a big point for mark that storm he walked out on the sea to them they thought he was a ghost do you remember what happened see this question is who is this and the second storm he tells them be of good cheer i am be not afraid stop fearing who i am you see that was the one in the burning bush he is the one who declared to moses i am who i am i uphold heaven and earth by the word of my power And the intention in trial and in testing and the intention of the storms of the Lord is to draw out of you awe and majesty, awe and wonder over the majesty of Christ. Seeing his power to uphold, his power to keep, his power to encourage, his power to help, has the intention of drawing out in us of every circumstance that we face faith in his word, faith in his promise, and faith in him. If all creation bows, why wouldn't we? Oh, you of little faith. Heaven and earth will pass away. But my word will never pass away. It will endure forever. And I've spoken to you promise. And I've said I will never leave you nor will I forsake you. What did Peter later say? Well, he said this. We were eyewitnesses of his majesty. We saw who he is. We beheld his glory. The only begotten of the Father. Full of grace and truth, said John. And you know what? Here's my greatest counsel to you, said Peter. We have the prophetic word. And you would do well to heed it as the light that shines in your darkness. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, thank you for such a marvelous text. And thank you for showing us again and encouraging us to have faith in the gospel and the word of your beloved Son, to hear Him. Help us, for we confess we are so weak, we cannot uphold ourselves even for a moment. We will fall into panic and fear. We are weak sheep. The Lord is our good shepherd. And with your rod and your staff, you will guide us, and you will comfort us, and you will lead us. And give us then mercy and grace to trust your word, and to believe you, and to have the right kind of fear. Hear our prayer, O Lord, in Jesus' name. Amen.