Never-Ending Adventure Sermon Iii: Jesus Rules No Matter What Series

THE CHRISTIAN’S NEVER-ENDING ADVENTURE

Jesus Rules No Matter What – Mark 4:35-41

A mother was delighted to tell about the night she and her nine-year-old daughter were home alone when strong winds began to blow and the old house began to creak. The moon was shining but the ominous howling of gale-force winds left them feeling a uneasy and afraid.

As the mother tucked her daughter into bed, the little girl, seeing the moon through her bedroom window, asked her mother, “Is the moon God’s night-light”? The mother smiled and replied, “Well, yes, you could say that”.

Then her daughter asked, “Does God turn out his light when he goes to sleep?” “Oh, no,” said the mother, “God never sleeps.”

“Oh,” said the child quietly, “Well, then, if God stays up all night, there’s no sense in both of us staying awake.” And, with that bit of assurance, the little girl turned over in her bed, pulled the blanket up around her neck, and fell asleep.

Why was this child able to go to sleep with no further anxiety about the howling wind? In her childlike manner, she felt assured that there was nothing to be afraid of because God was awake and in charge.

Jesus’ disciples were frightened by winds that had stirred up a storm while they were in a ship crossing the Sea of Galilee with Jesus on board. Yet, even though the Master was with them, fear took hold and, because Jesus was asleep in the stern of the vessel, they panicked and awakened him.

As we consider how Jesus dealt with the disciples and the perilous situation they found themselves in, we learn that we as Disciples of Christ can trust Jesus in the storms of life - Mark 4:35-41 . . .

What an amazing display of divine power! Our Lord overruled the powers that be – in this case, violent natural forces!

However, if we see this miraculous occurrence only in the literal sense - that an actual physical storm was stilled to demonstrate divine power over nature (what a wonderful sight it must have been) we would miss a far greater truth.

In a symbolic sense, what we see here is a valuable lesson about the calming of our fears and anxieties due to the Lord’s presence. What this says to me is:

To go on a never-ending adventure with the Lord Jesus is to go in peace -even in a storm. In His presence, following in His steps, we have peace of mind, heart, and soul - even in the worst storms of life.

Jesus gives us peace: in the storm of sorrow . . . when life’s problems weigh us down with uncertainty . . . when anxiety attacks us and we panic.

Clearly, this story about what happened to the Disciples even though Jesus was with them reminds us that the storms of life come even to followers of Jesus who are living in obedience to Him.

Dutifully, our Lord’s inner circle had been with Him when He taught a large crowd from a makeshift pulpit on a ship. Devotedly, they stayed with Him to go to the other side of the Sea. Yet, they were not exempt from crisis; nor are we.

The storm that came up suddenly - a typical occurrence on the Sea of Galilee -symbolizes what happens when you go on an adventure with the Lord: problems arise out of the blue, bad things happen unexpectedly, anxiety takes its toll . . .

How to deal with the storms of life is the challenge we face every time a crisis occurs. Will we fear the worst or calmly deal with it? If you’re like me, the first emotion you feel is fearful anxiety; your initial shock begins to wear off only when you remind yourself of the presence of God the Father who never sleeps. God in charge!

Because of our devotion to the Lord, and our dependence upon Him in every situation in life, we come to our spiritual senses; then we can deal with our situation because we have learned that our Lord is not only with us but active in life storms.

“For we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28)

The fact that Jesus is not bodily with us in our storms of life is not for us to worry about. By faith we accepted Him as Lord and Savior; by faith we are being saved from eternal separation from God to eternal connection with Him; by faith we follow Him; by faith we trust Him to lead us through the valley of the shadow of death all the way Home!

So, we must ask ourselves the exact same questions Jesus asked His anxious followers: “Why are you so fearful?” --- “Do you still have no faith?”