The Storm Is Passing Over

THE STORM IS PASSING OVER

WOULD YOU DO SOMETHING FOR ME?When you have finished reading this Bulletin, would you pass it on to someone you’ve been praying for; especially someone who does not – to your knowledge – have Christ for his or her Saviour?And then, if this Bulletin has been a blessing to you, would you take one other leap of faith? Get in your car, this Sunday. Pick up that person you were praying for. And then all of you meet me at Church, this Sunday at 1 p.m.?This week is Holy Communion week, and we are expecting God to show up in a miraculous way. I am so excited with anticipation that I want EVERYBODY to be blessed by it – especially you!Our message is “THE STORM IS PASSING OVER” and is taken from Mark 4:35-41. You will want to be here for this one! Thank you

Keep the Faith

Pastor Ray

And the same day, when the even was come, he saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side. And when they had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he was in the ship. And there were also with him other little ships. And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. And he was in the hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith? And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him? Mark 4:35-41

Those of you who belong to a church will recognize this story – you will probably also recognize it, even if you don’t currently belong to a church, but ever did belong to a church at some point in your life. In fact, I submit that this story might even be familiar to some people who have no church background at all, but might have accidentally overheard its message in a song, or in something that somebody said.

It’s a familiar story, but I believe telling it again will be a good thing … for somebody!

The story says that in the short space of a trip across the lake Jesus finds His way to the helm of the ship, falls asleep on a pillow, and a violent storm erupts. A Tsunami, perhaps? A squall? Who knows?

But a storm …

The disciples –sensing that they were in danger look for Jesus, and discover He is asleep.

This narrative has several familiar elements – all of which have been preached, eloquently, over time. My task is to address just two of these elements: first, the disciples’ question to Jesus; and more importantly Jesus command to the storm.

I’ll give it to you straight: my reason for zeroing in on the Lord’s command to the storm is that I am hoping somewhere along the way that what He says will be a blessing to you – as you face whatever challenge that is confronting you in your life, today.

The story, on the surface, is about a storm. But as always, it is possible that God intended the storm to serve as a metaphor for a life’s disaster – a crisis. We learned how the Bible uses the image of a storm to represent the times of great misery and devastation that often confront us. I submit to you that it only takes a brief look into your personal life for you to remember something that you went through that was so intense, so critical, so overwhelming that it was like a massive storm brewing in your mind.

In fact, it wouldn’t surprise me if somebody reading this isn’t saying to themselves, “Preacher, I’m going through something like that right now!” If you are that person, I’ve come by to speak specifically to you to tell you God has a message for you.

Let me tell you what God told me to tell you.

STORMS HAPPEN!

I said this in my message a few weeks ago, but let me put it in a different perspective for you, here. (This is especially for you Saints, who have been laboring under the misconception that getting Saved was supposed to fix all the other problems that life throws at you)

When the boat started quaking and the water started soaking the deck the disciples were confronted with this blazing reality. Yes, Jesus could have kept the storm from ever happening – but I believe He allowed it to happen to show them one very important reality: “ … that they who are passing with him over the ocean of this world to the other side, must expect storms by the way.” Matthew Henry Complete Commentary