Go! And Trust the God Who Commands the Storm - Habakkuk 3:8-10
INTRODUCTION — “WHEN THE STORM REFUSES TO STOP”
Church, have you ever noticed that storms do not ask permission?
They do not knock politely on life’s door.
They burst in, they howl, they shake, they terrify.
Some storms begin with a phone call.
Some with a diagnosis.
Some with a betrayal.
Some with a disappointment so deep you feel as if the ground has been pulled out from underneath your feet.
And yet Scripture tells us not only that God is with us in the storm…
but that He commands the storm.
This morning's message in our Go! And… series is titled:
“Go! And… Trust the God Who Commands the Storm”
We will stand with the prophet Habakkuk as he trembles before a God who rides upon the waters…
and then we will stand with the disciples as they tremble before a Saviour who silences the sea.
Habakkuk 3:8–10 (NLT):
“Was it in anger, Lord, that you struck the rivers and parted the sea?
Were you displeased with them?
No, you were sending your chariots of salvation!
You brandished your bow and your quiver of arrows.
You split open the earth with flowing rivers.
The mountains watched and trembled.
Onward swept the raging waters.
The deep shouted out, lifting its hands in submission.”
Mark 4:35–41 (NLT):
“As evening came, Jesus said to his disciples, ‘Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.’
So they took Jesus in the boat and started out…
But soon a fierce storm came up. High waves were breaking into the boat, and it began to fill with water.
Jesus was sleeping at the back of the boat…
The disciples woke him up, shouting, ‘Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to drown?’
When Jesus woke up, he rebuked the wind and said to the waves, ‘Silence! Be still!’
Suddenly the wind stopped, and there was a great calm.
Then he asked them, ‘Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?’
The disciples were absolutely terrified.
‘Who is this man?’ they asked each other.
‘Even the wind and waves obey him!’”
POINT 1 — GOD’S POWER OVER CHAOS IS NOT ACCIDENTAL, IT IS PURPOSEFUL (Habakkuk 3:8–10)
Habakkuk’s prayer is a poetic remembrance of God’s past deliverance.
Verse 8 asks whether God struck rivers and seas in anger — but the prophet answers his own question: No! His actions were for salvation.
The Hebrew word for “anger” here is charon (??????) — burning fury.
Habakkuk says, “Lord, this wasn’t random rage. You were directing history toward salvation.”
The phrase “your chariots of salvation” uses the Hebrew yeshuah (?????????), meaning deliverance, rescue, salvation.
Habakkuk sees God not as a distant spectator but as a God who rides into battle for His people.
God’s interventions in Scripture — from the Red Sea to the Jordan River — were demonstrations of His authority over chaos.
The ancient world viewed seas as symbols of evil, danger, and uncontrollable power.
Yet Scripture repeatedly shows God taming the waters.
Psalm 93:3–4 (NLT):
“The floods have risen up, O Lord.
The floods have roared like thunder;
the floods have lifted their pounding waves.
But mightier than the violent raging of the seas,
mightier than the breakers on the shore—
the Lord above is mightier than these!”
The Hebrew word for “mightier” (adir) means majestic, superior, unbeatable.
The psalmist is not giving us poetic comfort — he is declaring spiritual reality: God is sovereign over what overwhelms us.
John Piper: “God is always doing 10,000 things in your life, and you may be aware of only three of them.”
Habakkuk only saw chaos, but God was moving chariots of salvation.
So too in your life — the storm you fear may be the very vehicle God uses to deliver you.
The Man Watching the Weaver
A man once visited a weaver creating a beautiful tapestry.
From beneath, all he could see were tangled threads — no pattern, no meaning.
But when the weaver turned the tapestry around, the man gasped at the beauty.
When life looks like tangled chaos from below, God sees the completed masterpiece from above.
When you face storms:
Don’t assume God is punishing you.
Don’t believe the lie that God’s forgotten you.
Remember: God’s purposes are bigger than your perception.
POINT 2 — JESUS REVEALS THE GOD WHO COMMANDS THE STORM
(Mark 4:35–41)
This is no ordinary storm. The Greek word is lailaps (?a??a?) — a whirlwind, a tempest, a violent atmospheric disturbance.
Fishermen who had grown up on this lake were petrified.
And yet — Jesus is asleep.
The Greek for “rebuke” (epitimao ?p?t?µ??) is the same word used when Jesus rebukes demons.
The storm is treated not as a natural inconvenience but as an intruder trespassing against the will of God.
And then Jesus speaks: “Silence! Be still!”
In Greek: “Siopa! Pephimoso!” (s??pa· pef?µ?s?)
Literally: “Be muzzled!”
This is divine authority.
Psalm 107:29 (NLT): “He calmed the storm to a whisper and stilled the waves.”
This psalm describes what God did — Jesus does it.
Jesus is doing what only God can do.
This moment is a declaration of divinity.
Colossians 1:17 (NLT): “He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together.”
The storm obeys Jesus because creation recognises its Creator.
Max Lucado: “Fear may fill our world, but it doesn’t have to fill our hearts.”
Fear filled the boat — but the One who fills all things in every way (Ephesians 1:23) was in the boat.
The Piano Master and the Broken Keys
A concert pianist once sat down at a grand piano moments before the performance and discovered several keys were broken.
The instrument was flawed, unpredictable — yet the master played a beautiful composition because skill is not limited by imperfection.
Church, your life may have broken keys,
your situation may feel out of tune,
but Jesus — the Master — can still play His glory through you.
Jesus may not always calm the storm around you,
But He will always calm the storm within you.
Fear asks, “What if?”
Faith declares, “Even if — God is still God.”
Trust Him not because you understand the storm,
But because He commands it.
POINT 3 — THE STORM IS OFTEN GOD’S CLASSROOM FOR GROWTH
(“Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?”)
Jesus doesn’t ask, “Why did you wake me?”
He asks, “Why are you afraid?”
Fear exposes misplaced faith.
The disciples trusted their experience, their boat, their skill — but not their Saviour.
Isaiah 43:2 (NLT): “When you go through deep waters, I will be with you.”
God never promises a life without storms.
But He promises His presence in the midst of them.
Faith is not proven in calm seas but in crashing waves.
God refines us through pressure, not comfort.
Tim Keller: “You don’t really know Jesus is all you need until Jesus is all you have.”
Faith becomes most real when the storm strips away everything else we trust in.
Your storm may be the platform for a testimony God will use.
Your struggle may become someone else’s survival guide.
Your trial may be the stage for Christ to reveal His glory.
Stop asking, “Lord, why this storm?”
Start asking, “Lord, what are you teaching me through this storm?”
THE GOSPEL PRESENTATION — THE STORM THAT MATTERED MOST
There is a greater storm than wind and waves:
the storm of sin and its consequences.
Humanity was drowning — not in water, but in rebellion.
The wrath of God — righteous and holy — thundered against sin.
Yet Jesus, the Son of God, stepped into our storm.
At the cross:
He bore the storm of God’s judgement.
He took our sin upon Himself.
He died in our place.
He was buried.
And on the third day, He rose again — victorious, triumphant, conquering death itself.
Because Jesus endured the storm of God’s wrath,
He can now speak to your soul: “Peace. Be still.”
CALL TO ACTION — “GO! AND TRUST HIM IN YOUR STORM”
Believer, this week:
Trust God’s plan even when you cannot trace His hand.
Pray not for smaller storms, but for stronger faith.
Tell someone about the Saviour who commands the wind and waves.
Choose obedience even when it costs.
Worship Him in the storm — because He is worthy.
INVITATION TO SALVATION — “COME TO THE ONE WHO CALMS THE CHAOS”
If you have never surrendered your life to Jesus Christ,
you are still in the greatest storm — the storm of sin.
But today — right now — Jesus stands ready to save you.
If you will:
Repent of your sin,
Turn to Him,
Trust Him as Lord and Saviour…
He will forgive you, rescue you, cleanse you, and give you eternal life.
Call out to Him:
“Lord Jesus, save me. I believe You died for me, rose again, and I surrender to You.”
He will calm the storm in your soul.
BENEDICTION / FINAL EXHORTATION:
Church, may you walk this week with the confidence that:
The God who rides upon the waters in Habakkuk,
is the same God who calms the waves in Mark,
and He is the same God who walks with you today.
Go in His peace.
Go in His strength.
Go and trust the God who commands the storm.
Amen.
