If

IF Matthew 14:28

There is a small word that some people say we shouldn’t use. It is the word if. The word if is a faithless word. It indicates a voice of uncertainty and it indicates a condition to be met. In the bible God used the word "if" numerous times. (Exodus 19:5) He said: If you will obey my voice indeed and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people" (2 Cor. 15:2 "If you seek him, he will be found of you; but if ye forsake him, he will forsake you" (2 Cor. 8:14 ) "If my people who are called by my name, shall humble themselves and pray, and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways. Then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and heal the land. " "If I be for you, I am more than the world against you."

Today, I want us to look at a different side of the word "if". Do you know that the "ifs" in you life can become your victories. Did you not know that man’s extremities is God’s possibilities. Did you not know that when God says yes no man can say no. Did you not know that If God is for you than he’s more than the world against you? If you will only believe God?

That’s what Jesus told Martha. He said "If you would only believe, you would see the glory of God." God can take any situation in your life and turn it around to your good, "If" you will only trust him and believe that he is able to do it.

You hear people say all the time. If only I’d done this or that. If only my parents had treated me differently, If only I’d gone to school when I was suppose to. Probably every person on earth has some "What ifs" and "If onlys" in their life.

When you focus on the ifs in you life, you are hindering your own success. Instead of looking at the negative circumstances in your life all the time, why not focus on the positive circumstances. We need to focus on what we do have, not on what we don’t have. A lot of us get up every Sunday morning wit two and three closets full of clothes, talking about we ain’t got nothing to wear. We have two and three cars and wishing that we had a Lexus. We make more money than we have ever made in our life and mad because we didn’t get a raise. What are your assets, what are your talents. Use what you got.

When Moses was at the red sea. All he had in his hand was a rod. God told Moses to stretch forth that rod and the sea divided and the children of Israel walked on safely. What if Moses would have said "Lord you know that this rod ain’t nothing and it can’t do anything." Do you think that Moses would have been victorious. What if Old man Job would have taken his wife’s advice and cursed God and died. He would have lost all of his riches. Sometimes the

We need to learn to change our if’s to possibilities rather than impossibilities. We need to learn to change our negatives into possibilities.

Did you know that once you accept Jesus Christ as your Savior, he will never leave you? Hebrews 13:5 "I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. You might forsake Him, but He will always be faithful to you. He will never forsake you no matter what the test or trial maybe.

But in order to receive God’s blessings and benefits in your particular situation: First, you must obey God and his Word. Second, you must keep your eyes and your attention focused on Him instead of on the problem. When you do these two things, victory and deliverance will await you!

In our text today, Jesus had sent the disciples away, and they were in a ship out in he middle of the sea, attempting to go unto the other side, as Jesus had commanded them. And it says that the wind was contrary. That means that the wind was blowing against the ship instead of helping them get where they wanted to go. The disciples found themselves all alone, laboring in the dark to row against the clashing waves. They were seemingly going nowhere.

It’s a dark day when you come up against some circumstances, some trials, and temptations in your life. It’s a dark day when there seems to be no one around to help and no way to get to the other side. Maybe you feel like you’re in the midst of a storm. Has anyone here ever been in the midst of a storm? Somebody here is in a storm right now. Somebody is traveling through the storm of sickness, somebody is traveling through the storm of financial difficulty. Somebody is traveling through the storm of temptations. Some of us are rowing our ships on life’s sea and getting nowhere.