Into The Storm

Joh 6:16-21 When evening came, his disciples went down to the lake, (17) where they got into a boat and set off across the lake for Capernaum. By now it was dark, and Jesus had not yet joined them. (18) A strong wind was blowing and the waters grew rough. (19) When they had rowed three or three and a half miles, they saw Jesus approaching the boat, walking on the water; and they were terrified. (20) But he said to them, "It is I; don't be afraid." (21) Then they were willing to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the shore where they were heading.

Good morning everyone.

This is the 6th sermon

on the seven signs in John.

Remember Johns stated goal

in writing this gospel.

That being to reveal who Jesus is

and in doing so

lead the reader to salvation.

Now this morning’s lesson

should probably be preceded

by a little background about the Sea of Galilee.

The Sea of Galilee lies

in the lower portion of the Jordan Valley

in a mountain range

that rises to 4,000 feet above sea level.

The lake itself is 700 feet

below the Mediterranean Sea.

Storms come in from the Mediterranean

and blow across the Jordon valley

into the mountains

surrounding the sea of galilee .

Then the cold air rushes down from the mountains, colliding with the warm moist air

rising off the surface of the water itself.

It is not unusual therefor

for the Sea of Galilee

to experience sudden and extremely violent storms.

Todays story starts

at the end of a busy day for Jesus ,

during the day he preached to,

healed and finally fed

some 15,000 men woman and children.

So now it’s near the end of the day,

and Jesus wants some alone time.

This is where we pick up todays lesson.

Even though our text this morning

is from the book of John

I will be using all three Gospel accounts

of this incident to make my points.

John says

6:16-17 When evening came, his disciples went down to the lake, (17) where they got into a boat and set off across the lake for Capernaum.

Mat 14:22 Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd.

A storm is about to occur

on the sea of Galilee

and Jesus knew it.

What do we see him doing here?

He is sending his disciples out

into the heart of the storm.

He is not protecting them from it,

he is not warning them it is coming,

he sends them out into it.

Notice it says

“He made them get into the boat”

Do you think if they knew what was coming

that they would have been willing

to get into that boat.

Jesus never promised to protect us

from the storms of this world.

We see later in John, Jesus saying

Joh 16:33 I have told you all this so that you may have peace in Me. Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world."

Not to many of us in this room

have had a life filled with

peace tranquility and comfort.

Jesus never promised that.

He may even send us out on a mission

knowing full well there is a storm out there,

My first point this morning is this:

Jesus allows storms in our lives and even sends us out knowing we are headed into them.

Lets continue reading our text:

Johns account reads:

John 6: (17b-19)By now it was dark, and Jesus had not yet joined them. (18) A strong wind was blowing and the waters grew rough. (19) When they had rowed three or three and a half miles, they saw Jesus approaching the boat, walking on the water;

What we see here is that

the storm indeed comes up

while Jesus is up on the mountain praying.

But what John fails to mention

and what Mark makes clear

is the timeline of events.

Because the timeline of events

is very telling.

Lets read

Mark 6:46-48 After leaving them, he went up on a mountainside to pray. (47) When evening came, the boat was in the middle of the lake, and he was alone on land. (48) He saw the disciples straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. About the fourth watch of the night he went out to them,

The first thing we notice is

that it is daylight when he sends them out,

when he makes them get into the boat.

Let’s say 7 pm

Next he dismisses the crowd,

but they do not leave

they just settle in for the evening.