200403.ser
“Caught in a Storm”
CLBC January 18, 2004
Subject: Life and Ministry of Jesus
Theme: Deity, Humanity, Power over Nature
Passage: John 6: 14 - 21. Mark 5:45 - 52; Matthew 14:22 - 33
No one gets through life without experiencing the storm!
You’ve noticed that, haven’t you? In fact, most lives contains more than one storm which
threatens our entire state of well being. The storm takes many different forms, and affects our
lives in many different ways, but all storms contain some common elements: they usually come on
rather suddenly, they take us by surprise, they tend to fill our hearts with fear, they test our faith,
and it is to be hoped that they cause us to cry out to our Lord and Saviour for help. If so, then the
storms of life become building blocks of faith which actually equip us for the storms which are yet
to come.
Think of some of the storms of life which have invaded the life of yourself or of someone
you know.
• the storm of illness - sudden or prolonged;
• the storm of death - the death of a loved one,- a child, a partner; especially one not
expected to die ;
• the storm of rejection- divorce, separation, abandonment;
• the storm of unjust criticism;
• the storm of emotional trauma - hatred, anger, resentment, bitterness;
• the storm of physical loss - loss of home, loss of job, loss of money, loss of security;
• the storm of accident, or some event which may change the course of our life in an instant
of time.
One thing I have discovered: Being a Christian, a follower of Jesus, does not exempt us
from the trials of life. What about you? Have you experienced some storms in your life? Is there
any storm threatening you at the present time?
Take heart: the disciples of Jesus were not exempt either. In fact:
1. It was Jesus who sent them into the storm.
Now this may be hard for us to understand. Isn’t Jesus the one who is supposed to protect
us from the storms of life? After all, doesn’t Matthew 10:31 assure us that “not one sparrow falls
to the ground apart from your Father’s will. The very hairs of your head are all numbered”? And
didn’t we grow up singing, “God sees the little sparrow fall; it meets His tender view; if God so
loves the little things, I’m sure he loves me too.”
But if you check the context of that verse, it is not a promise of freedom from trial; it was
given to comfort the disciples as he warned them of the cost of being His followers. “Men will
deliver you up to councils... brother will deliver up brother to death... and you will be hated by all
men for my name’s sake... but remember, not one sparrow falls to the ground apart from your
Father’s will.” Far from assuring them of exemption from trial that verse was comforting them
that the trials would not overwhelm them.
So why would Jesus send them out into a storm?
a. Jesus sent them into the storm to protect them from temptation:
Look with me at John 6:15 “Therefore when Jesus perceived that they were about to
come and take Him by force to make Him king, He departed again to the mountain by
Himself alone.”
1) The desire of the crowds to make him the king of Israel was not a temptation to Jesus.
For Jesus knew what other did not yet understand. He knew that he was the Messiah, the King,
but He knew that his kingdom was not that for which the Jews were looking. They were seeking a
political leader of pomp and power, to lead them against Rome. He knew that they were far more
concerned about the tyranny of Rome than they were concerned about the tyranny of sin. Jesus
spoke continuously about his kingdom - the kingdom of heaven or the Kingdom of God. But as
he later said to Pilate, "My kingdom is not of this world. If My kingdom were of this world, My
servants would fight, so that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now My kingdom is not
from here."
2) But he knew that this desire of the crowds could be a huge temptation to his disciples.
Here was the height of success! They saw the huge crowds following their master; they
saw his miracles of healing and multiplication of food; and now the people want to crown their
master as King? They were not yet mature enough to distinguish popularity from success.
And so Jesus sent them away in the boat, while he dispersed the crowds, and went up into
the mountain to pray.
b. He may have sent them into the storm to teach them more about trusting Him.
This is not the first storm that they had been in. Just a few months before, they had been
on the lake with Jesus asleep in the boat when the storm was so bad that they thought they were
going to drown. When they woke him up, he had stilled the storm immediately and then asked
them why they were so fearful. So they had some experience with His power over the waves, and
here was another opportunity for them to trust him.
Conclusion:
What about you? Has God sometimes allowed you to undergo trials in order to protect
you from some worse temptation? Has he allowed you to experience storms in the past in order to
strengthen your faith?
2. Jesus, though unseen, was with them in the storm
a. This was no small squall they were caught in.
The Sea of Galilee is 600 feet below sea level. It is surrounded by hills, especially on the
north, and down the east side, with mountains behind them. Deep rifts are cut through the hills
down which the winds may naturally flow. (Kamloops) As the air at water level is heated it rises
swiftly, and cold air from the mountains and hills flows down through these cuts to turn it into a
boiling cauldron. They had been rowing against this wind for several hours and still were far from
shore.
But while they were struggling on the lake, Jesus was praying up in the hills.
b. Their trials were known to Jesus on the mountain.
While they were struggling in their rowing against the teeth of the storm and the waves,
Jesus was praying on the mountain. While his prayer may have chiefly concerned his future even
to the cross, still I am sure that he also prayed for the disciples in the boat.
c. Nothing could happen to them unless he allowed it.
Conclusion:
Now this experience should tell us something about the trials which we experience.
a. Trials, while not enjoyed, serve a worthwhile purpose in our lives.
Not all of our testings are of earth shattering, life changing proportions. Most of our
difficulties are relatively small, yet annoying. But if we can learn to trust Jesus in these
distractions, it will strengthen our faith in daily living.
“We glory in tribulations,” says Romans 5, “because tribulation or troubles produces
perseverance; that perseverance produces and draws out character; that character contributes
to a new sense of hope and hope doesn’t disappoint because the love of God has been poured
out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”
1 Peter tells us that we may have been for a little while grieved by our trials, in order that
the genuineness of our faith which is more precious than gold may shine forth to the praise and
honour and glory of Jesus Christ.
b. You may not like trials, but you need to be tried. Trial casts you upon Christ in humble
dependence, especially when you cannot really help yourself. Trials not only demonstrate to
others that you are a person of faith. Trials demonstrate to yourself that you have faith perhaps
more than you even realized.
The Christian life is passed from one to another, from life to life, as others see in you an
example of steadfastness and trust that they desire for themselves.
c. It is important to remember that even though Jesus appears to be absent, He is well
aware of what you are experiencing and nothing can happen to you without His permissive
will!
3. Jesus came to them in the midst of the storm
While they were struggling with the oars, worn out after hours of effort, Jesus came to
them over the water.
a. Walking on the water required the suspension of what we call “the laws of nature.”
In studying this miracle it is important for us to remember that Jesus Christ is the one who
created the heavens and the earth, and made the water in this lake. He is the one who has put into
place the laws of nature. It was no more difficult for him to walk on the water than to make water
out of wine or to multiply the 5 loaves and 2 fish. Though Jesus Christ was fully human, and
submissive to the laws of nature, he was also God who could over rule those laws.
In Matthew’s account of this miracle, Peter asked that he might come to Jesus on the
water and Jesus invited him to do so. Jesus also suspended the laws of nature to allow Peter to
walk on the water, until Peter took his eyes off Jesus and panicked.
b. The disciples still didn’t grasp the extent of Christ’s power and thought it was a ghost
and were frightened.
c. To reassure them Jesus identified himself.
“It is I, don’t be afraid.”
Then they took him into the boat.
Conclusion: Don’t we often do the same thing? When we get into a situation with which we are
not familiar, don’t we often forget that Jesus is with us? But when we cry out to him, and when
we regain our trust that he is with us, it calms our fears, and allows us to approach our situation
with a new confidence and peace.
4. Jesus got them safely through the storm.
The last sentence of this story is interesting. “ Then they were willing to take him into the
boat, and immediately the boat was at the land where they were going.
Matthew says that when he got into the boat, the wind ceased, and the disciples
worshipped him saying “Of a truth, you are the Son of God.”
Conclusion:
So what can we learn from this miracle?
One thing is certain, we do face, we have faced and we shall face storms in our lives.
Such storms usually come suddenly, often unexpectedly, and frequently without preparation. Such
storms usually trigger fear in our hearts; they usually emphasize our complete helplessness and
leave us with nowhere to turn unless we are walking in complete dependence upon the Lord. An
old hymn asks the question, "Will your anchor hold in the storms of life, when the clouds unfold
their wings of strife? When the strong tides lift and the cables strain, will your anchor drift or firm
remain?"
But the trials of life do not need to overwhelm us.
If you are a Christian, if you have trusted the Lord Jesus as your Saviour and Lord, then
you have a wonderful promise in the Word of God in Romans 8:28 “And we know that all things
work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to [His]
purpose.”
The next verse tells us that he is seeking to “conform us to the image of His Son, “
And then it asks us a question that we must never forget, no matter what the storms of life
which we may encounter. “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be
against us?” Romans 8:29 ,31
Amen.
