Remember, Who's In The Boat! (Hix)

Matthew 8:23-27-Now when He got into a boat, His disciples followed Him.

And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with the waves. But He was asleep.

Then His disciples came to Him and awoke Him, saying, “Lord, save us! We are perishing!” But He said to them, “Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?” Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm.

So the men marveled, saying, “Who can this be, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?”

This is a reminder that Jesus is not only the King of the Jews, but is the King over ever thing!

Not only does He have the power and authority over demons and disease but also over the winds and sea!!

A Great Tempest Arose On The Sea-Just like in our life, there are times of smooth sailing and there are times of stormy waters!

Look how quickly the storm came up, this sea, or actually, a lake is only 7 miles wide and they are going over on the other side because of the crowd, but even being in a hurry, you would think these experienced fishermen would have looked at the sky and said, “Jesus, we might want to wait, a storm is coming!” But they didn’t, so that makes me think, there was no sign of any storm coming.

Just like in our life, things are going well, then all of a sudden….Storms come, disaster comes, illness comes, death comes!

But He Was Asleep-Verses like this remind us who Jesus is!

Yes, He is God, ( A God who can raise the dead, heal the sick, walk on water, calm the storm) but He is also man (Who gets tired, who gets hungry, who gets weary)!

The reason I need to know that is because I need someone in my life, who knows what I am going thru, to understand what I am going thru!!!

I don’t need a god in the sky, that doesn’t sympathize with my daily life, with what I am going thru!!

Then His Disciples Came To Him And Awoke Him-There is nothing wrong in running to God when the storms come (I have done it a many a time, and I do my best praying in the storms of life)!

For some of us it is a natural reaction, to go to God, when the storms come, but to others it is the last resort!

“Lord, Save Us! We Are Perishing-If more Christians would admit this, would confess this, the storms might not be so bad, the storms might not be so long term!

Lord, save me from my addiction!

Lord, save me from my attitude!

Lord, save me from my bad habits!

Lord, save me from my own tongue!

Lord, save me from my bad choices!

Lord, save me from myself!

TWO REBUKES!

1-To His disciples….“Why Are You Fearful, O You Of Little Faith?”

2-And to the winds and sea….He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea

But they are paralleled, because if there wouldn’t have been a storm, they would have never known that He could calm it!

And they had to go thru the storm themselves and Him calming the winds and sea, or they could have just dismissed it, and convinced themselves that it never happened, or the storm stopped on it’s on, but that’s harder to do when you, were the one in the storm!!!

“Who can this be, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?”

This storm happened so Jesus could calm the real storm, the storm in each and every one them!

The storm called fear!

Because storms are going to come and go in our life, but the true test is, what are going to do with our fears?

Are we going to be overcome by it, or are we going overcome fear, with faith!