John 6:16-21
Keeping Your Head Above Water
I. Leaving Without Jesus - v. 16
V. 15 says that "he departed again into a mountain himself alone."
Yet v. 16 says that the disciples left in the boat by themselves.
Matt. 14:22-23 - Jesus constrained his disciples to get into a ship, and to go before him unto the other side, while he sent the multitudes away.
And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone.
A. Life is downhill without Jesus Christ
1. The disciples went down
v. 16 - the disciples "went down unto the sea..."
2. Jonah went down
Jonah 1:3 - he "went down to Joppa", bought a boat ticket, and "went down into it".
B. The Christian life cannot be lived without Christ
• Ever make a decision without consulting Him?
- buying a house or car
- entering into a contract
• Ever go on a trip without asking for His protection?
- Vacation
- Day trip
• Ever make a life-changing decision without asking His advice?
- getting a new job
- moving
- getting or refusing medical treatment
I know what you’re thinking....it’s not that hard to buy a car; to plan a vacation; to decide whether to get a new job or move!!
But think about this---these disciples knew these waters, and they certainly knew how to sail a boat!
Note - they left without praying; He stayed to pray...
Let’s see who’s better off after that...
II. Problems Without Jesus - v. 5-7
A storm arose after the disciples left on their own--and it got dark
John 6:18 - And the sea arose by reason of a great wind that blew.
Mark 6:47-48 - And when even was come, the ship was in the midst of the sea, and he alone on the land.
And he saw them toiling in rowing; for the wind was contrary unto them:
A. A Christian life without Christ is a stormy one
Storms can rise even for a faithful Christian, but a life lived without Christ is like sailing without a lifeboat; flying without a parachute; driving without a seatbelt; a tightwire without a net
We need Christ when the storms arise...
• storms against our children
• storms against our marriage
• storms against our health
• storms against our finances
B.A Christian life without Christ is in opposition to Him
Mark 6:48 - ...for the wind was contrary unto them:
In other words, they could not use their sails, because the wind was coming from directly ahead of them. They had to row!
And rowing directly into the wind is the hardest kind of rowing!
And what does the wind represent? The Holy Spirit!
John 3:8 - The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
Illustration: Jonah 1:3-4 - But Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD, and went down to Joppa; and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he paid the fare thereof, and went down into it, to go with them unto Tarshish from the presence of the LORD.
But the LORD sent out a great wind into the sea, and there was a mighty tempest in the sea, so that the ship was like to be broken.
III. Rising Above the Problems - v. 8-9
A. Let God handle the problem!
Illustration: "In Times of Storm" - Isaiah 36:18ff
King Hezekiah and his people are facing annihilation from the Assyrian army. The Assyrian king adminishes Hezekiah not to trust in God, because the Assyrians have destroyed every enemy so far. Yet Hezekiah takes this problem before the Lord, Who assures him that He will handle it! How? He doesn’t say. Yet we read a little later that the angel of the Lord came to the Assyrian camp and killed 185,000 of them!
B. Let God give you strength and grace to get through the storm!
Look what happens as Matthew describes this incident:
Matt. 14:23-33 - (Read)
Note that Jesus bids Peter to come to Him---on the water!
The Lord wasn’t setting him up for failure; it was possible to do!
Peter actually walked on water!.......UNTIL....
Poem: All the water in the world, no matter how it tried,
Could never, never sink a ship---unless it got inside.
All the evil in the world---the blackest kind of sin;
Could never hurt you one least bit---unless you let it in!
Instead of complaining about problems, give it to God and let it go!
Illustration: "He’d Rather Holler"
There’s an Ozark story about a hound sitting in a country store and howling as hounds do. In comes a stranger who says to the storekeeper, “What’s the matter with the dog?”
“He’s sitting on a cocklebur.”
“Why doesn’t he get off?”
“Well, he’d rather holler.”
You’ll never know how things will work out unless you allow the Lord to do what only He can do!
Things will work out better than you ever could have imagined!
Illustration: "Carlton Fisk"
A memorable moment in baseball comes from the 1975 World Series between the Boston Red Sox and the Big Red Machine. NBC showed Carlton Fisk hitting a long ball, then jumping up and down and waving his arms trying to influence the ball to stay fair. It did—for a winning home run.
That close-up of Fisk would have been missed if the cameraman had been more responsible and followed the ball with his camera.
But the cameraman inside the scoreboard at Fenway Park had a problem at that moment---a rat was circling his feet. He was concentrating more on the rat than on the game. So instead of following the ball out of the park, he kept the camera on Fisk at the plate.
Sometimes we have problems like that rat. We have no idea how things will work out, but because of the problems, we could see God work in a way we never would have without the problems.
IV. Bringing Jesus Aboard - v. 21
A. They received Him into the boat
Good move!
Have you received Him?
B. The wind ceases
And look at their reaction....they’re amazed!!
Mark 6:51 - And he went up unto them into the ship; and the wind ceased: and they were sore amazed in themselves beyond measure, and wondered.
But why are they amazed at what He can do? Look at v. 52...
Mark 6:52 - For they considered not the miracle of the loaves: for their heart was hardened.
They forgot Who they’re dealing with!
Do you ever do that? Of course you do!! We all do...
C. They arrived at their destination
You’ll get where you’re going faster, safer, and better with Him than without Him!
He is the God of the storms!
Be patient! Sometimes the problem is the problem; sometimes the problem is you! Sometimes we just need a little patience!
Illustration: "Elevator Trouble"
A company had moved into a new skyscraper and discovered that the builder apparently had not put in enough elevators.
Employees were upset because there were long waits for the elevators, especially at both ends of the working day.
The company created a task force of certain staff and asked them to come up with a solution to the problem. The task force came up with five possible solutions:
1. Speed up the elevators
2. Arrange for the elevators to stop only at certain floors during rush periods.
3. Stagger the working hours to reduce elevator traffic during peak periods.
4. Install mirrors around entrances to all elevators.
5. Drive a new elevator shaft through the building.
Which solution would you have chosen?
After some consideration, the company chose the third solution.
It worked. Why? Because many workers were more interested in watching themselves or others in the mirrors, and the time passed more quickly. The problem was their impatience; not the speed of the elevators.
Be patient--Psalm 37:7 calls it "rest"--in the Lord!
