Dealing with the Wind of the big bad Wolf
PPT 1 series title “Dealing with the wind of the big bad wolf.”
So today I want to share what the Lord showed me from a story that is found in 3 of the gospels, Mt, Mk, and John. This is coming under the theme of dealing with the wind of the big bad wolf.
The text involved is the story where Jesus told His disciples to get in a boat and go to the other side. From this text we will note carefully that the apostles had a serious battle with wind and waves and yet they faithfully continued to obey the command of Jesus. We will do our best to unpack this story and apply it to our own lives. Winds of resistance will try to stop your obedience in its tracks.
PPT 2 pic
I begin by reminding you of the story of the 3 little pigs…
Once upon a time, there were three little pigs who lived with their mother. One day the mother said to the three little pigs, “You are all grown up now. It’s time for you to go out into the world and live on your own.” So, the three little pigs gave their mother a big hug and kiss and set out to find their own place to live.
Finding straw, the first little pig quickly built his house. Finding sticks, the second little pig also quickly built his house, he and the first pig spent the rest of the day laughing and playing around, later they lazily took naps.
The third pig took his time and worked all day building his house out of bricks.
At about the time he finished with his brick house, a big, bad wolf came trotting down the lane. He saw the first little pig napping in the shade of his straw house. “Yum, yum, that pig would make a tasty bite to eat,” thought the big, bad wolf. But the little pig saw him coming and ran inside his house of straw, slamming the door behind him. The little pig breathed a sigh of relief because he remembered that his mother had always said that wolves were not to be trusted.
Now the big, bad wolf knocked at the door and said, “Little pig, little pig, let me come in.”
“Not by the hair of my chinny chin chin,” answered the first little pig.
“Then I’ll huff and I’ll puff and I’ll blow your house down, “ said the wolf. And he huffed and puffed, and he blew the house down. The little pig then ran to his brother’s house made of sticks. The scene repeats itself, and the two pigs run and find sanctuary in the house of their brother which was made of bricks.
The moral of the story is hard work pays off, but for us today the question is will your house stand up to the wind of the big bad wolf?
Today I want to talk about the wind of the big bad wolf that attempts to get you to compromise, and very simply we are going to talk about if your standards and level of obedience can handle a blowing wind.
PPT 3 Compromise graphic.
Compromise has multiple meanings and I want to go over a few of them, and then we will get into our bible texts.
PPT 4-6 Definition of compromise
In the world of computers and private information, compromised means unauthorized access has been allowed. Your information/system is no longer safe.
In the world of negotiation compromise means, I give up some - you give up some.
In the military, and in the world of spy craft, it means secrets and or sources have been revealed, and because of that they are no longer trustworthy. They cannot be used any more.
For our message today, compromise means to let go of a biblical standard or area of obedience, for some perceived benefit.
So now, we are going to look at our text, we will see how compromised standards are related to the wind blowing of the big bad wolf.
PPT 7-8 text
Mt 14:22 Immediately He made the disciples get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side, while He sent the crowds away.
Mt 14:23 After He had sent the crowds away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray; and when it was evening, He was there alone.
Mt 14:24 But the boat was already a long distance from the land, battered by the waves; for the wind was contrary.
Mt 14:25 And in the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea.
I don’t see anything in that text about not compromising? It’s there, let me show you another angle of this story in the gospel of Mark and perhaps it will crystallize things for you:
PPT 9 text
Mr 6:48 And he saw them toiling in rowing; for the wind was contrary unto them: and about the fourth watch of the night he cometh unto them, walking upon the sea, and would have passed by them.
Toiling: the Greek word is: Bass An Id Zo: it means to torment, to question by applying torture.
3x’s in the nt Demons use this word in reference to being punished by God. Mt. 8:29; Mk. 5:7; Lu. 8:28. So the word has reference to the punishment the devil is going to get. In Revelation 9, the bottomless pit is opened, and beasts come up out of it, and they are said to leave plants and animals alone, but men who do not have God’s mark of protection they are to be tormented (basanidzo), not killed. In Rev. 14 if you take the mark of the beast you will be tormented (basanidzo) with fire and brimstone.
In Rev. 20:10 the evil trinity (devil, Antichrist, and false prophet), are cast in the lake of fire where they are tormented (basanidzo) day and night forever.
In Mt. 14:24 where it says the boat was battered by the waves, that is bassanidzo, and the same word is translated toiling in Mk 6:48.
So what does this have to do with not compromising when the wind of the big bad wolf is blowing?
Very simply, here is where they didn’t compromise, and it is important you get this: They kept rowing. Fighting a tormenting wind, bailing water, they kept rowing, being tossed about like rag dolls, they kept rowing.
Turn to your neighbor and say, “neighbor, keep rowing.”
No compromise is seen in this text in this way, they remained faithful in what could be called a hard obedience.
PPT 10 definition
What is a hard obedience? It is obeying when its hard.
Jesus sent them away about 6pm, a storm arose, and Jesus doesn’t show up until the fourth watch of the night, that is between 3-6 AM, that means they had been rowing for between 9 and 12 hours and had little to show for it. 3-4 miles, about halfway.
Now I want you to picture the scene for a minute, Jesus made them get in the boat, He constrained them, He told them, He forced them.
They row for perhaps an hour all is well, then all hell breaks loose and they are rowing with all their might, and bailing out water for the next 8-11 hours. Here is a scene from their life where they are held in a good light. They kept on rowing because Jesus had said go to the other side.
Do you obey when winds of opposition blow?
Please indulge me to use my imagination.
Jesus is praying, the devil comes to Him and starts talking about God’s people and especially the disciples:
They only serve others when it’s a job the like
They only forgive their friends, and not more than twice
They only give when it is convenient
They only attend service when they feel like it
They only do stuff when others applaud them, one criticism and they are gone.
They only obey you when it is easy, and I can prove it to You. You told them to go to the other side, I bet I can get them to disobey that command, all I need is to blow a little wind on them. You know how many of your people turn their backs on you when my wind blows against them?
Go ahead satan, they are yours, but do not hurt them.
Boys let’s get em.
After a while Jesus says to Satan, “they are still rowing, they are still obeying.”
(Satan) I’ve only just begun. I have a couple guys on that boat, one I can really rely on, and the other only now and then.
Scene shifts a devil is whispering in Judas’s ear, Judas speaks.
“Listen fellas, I think we have done this long enough. If God wanted us to get to the other side it wouldn’t be this hard. I say we turn around go back to shore, get some rest and then tomorrow when the weather is better we cross the lake. What difference does it make if we go now or a couple hours from now?”
The apostle John says, “the Master said we are to go to the other side, keep rowing.”
Another devil whispers in Thomas’s ear. Thomas speaks.
“Hey guys I think Judas has a good point. I don’t believe, we are going to make it, like where is the Master, we are on our own out here what Judas said sounds like common sense to me.”
Peter speaks up. “the Master said to go to the other side, to the other side we go.”
How would you do in a situation like that? Would it make sense to wait till the morning to you?
When my children were smaller, sometimes they would be playing a game or something, and they had chores to do. I would tell them to do their chores, and they would reply, “we will do them when we finish the game.” In reality what they were saying is we will obey you on our terms, we will disobey you till we feel like doing what you said. That describes perfectly how we sometimes respond to the Lord.
Here is my favorite definition of obedience
PPT 11 definition of obedience
Obedience is immediate compliance with the first prompting of the Holy Spirit.
Anything else is partial or delayed obedience, both partial and delayed obedience have disobedience wrapped up in them. In the same way that a half-truth always contains a whole lie, partial obedience contains disobedience.
Let’s talk about when obedience is hard, as in our passage today:
PPT 12 text
A hard obedience is to obey when it is hard,
A really hard obedience is obeying when it is difficult and involves a very small thing.
Illus: me and Lasik
At about the age of 40 I began to need reading glasses. Ever since then I have been praying for the Lord to heal my eyes. I got glasses to help with my reading, and along the way I heard about Lasik eye surgery. Thinking about it once, I felt the Lord strongly tell me I was never to do that. Through the years I have had to do serious spiritual warfare over the issue. At times I would have thoughts, “you have glasses why can’t you have Lasik? What’s the difference?” The difference is the Lord told me not to do it. On other occasions I would have the thought, “there is nothing in the bible about Lasik, why can’t you do it?” Again, the answer is the Lord told me not to. Here if part is the reason why I think it important”
Sometimes the devil will start a big war over a little area of obedience, do you want to know why?
Illus breaking down a prisoner of war.
When a person is captured during war, he is only allowed to give the enemy certain information. Name, rank, serial number. The enemy will do everything in their power to get you to compromise other information seemingly innocent information. They will say, “what’s the big deal if you tell us where you are from? Who will know you told us? What difference will it make if you tell us? They will use punishment and reward to try and get a person to crack on a little thing, knowing that once a person goes down that road they will give up more and more. Here is the biblical principle for what we are talking about:
PPT 13 text
Luke 16:10 “Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much.
The violation of your conscience is bad whether the matter is small or great. The same weakness over little things will show up in big things. Or at least it will grease the skids of disobedience.
PPT 14 text
A really, really hard obedience, is when it is hard and involves a considerable amount of time and suffering. Take Joseph as an example.
Ps 105:19 Until the time that his word came: the word of the LORD tried him.
Like the apostles we need to keep rowing no matter how much the wind blows, how hard the waves fight against us. If the Master has said, “go to the other side.” To the other side we must go. The very reason the wind was so contrary was because they were obeying the Lord.
Don’t allow loneliness to cause you to compromise your standards, keep rowing
Don’t allow boredom to cause you to compromise your standards, keep rowing
Don’t allow fatigue to cause you to compromise your standards, keep rowing
Refuse to lower your standards to accommodate those who refuse to raise theirs. Keep rowing.
Contrary winds are picking up. But that will only affect those who are susceptible to quit rowing.
PPT 16 pic
Close: The goal of this message is that we would commit to live and walk in obedience when it is hard or over a seemingly small thing. And where we have failed ask God to forgive us and commit to keep on rowing
