What Is Waiting On The Other Side Series

WHAT IS WAITING ON THE OTHER SIDE

Mark 5:1-22

Like many of you I began this year with great hope and anticipation. On the first Sunday of the year, many of my preacher friends rolled out their “2020 vision” to their churches. In hind sight, that “2020 Vision” got blurry in a hurry!

There is no way that we could have predicted the things that we have seen in 2020. The year began with torrential downpours; it seemed like it rained every day for two months. In late January and early February we began to hear news report of a new virus that was spreading all over the world. In March that virus began to spread here in America. By mid-March our worlds had been turned upside down. People were out of work, businesses had to close, churches were shutting down, and fear gripped the land. The terms Covid, social distancing and quarantine became a regular part of our vocabulary. We dealt with mask mandates, mandatory 6ft separation in public places and limited numbers of people allowed in crowds. Pastors and church leaders were forced to improvise. We cancelled nursery, children’s church and Sunday school. We modified our service times and methods. We purchased FM transmitters and began doing “online services”. Many of these things are still commonplace today.

I have not made a single hospital visit in the past 12 months. Longtime faithful members of our churches have passed away all alone because their family members were not allowed to be with them. I have officiated funerals that in “normal times” would have been standing room only, but due to the pandemic only the immediate family was present. By now most of us know someone who has died as a result of Covid.

We have also seen an increase in racial tension in our country. We watched on the news as riots broke out in the cities. We saw monuments toppled, windows shattered and buildings burned to the ground. In the summer and fall, we saw record numbers of hurricanes and tropical depressions. And most recently our country has endured a contested election and great political turmoil.

These are just the things that have made the evening news. Aside from the nationwide and worldwide problems, we have all dealt with personal issues that we did not see coming this time last year. Some of you may have lost your jobs. Your personal finances are not what you expected them to be a year ago. Some of you may have endured a divorce or marital strain in 2020. I’m sure that in a crowd this size some of you have received reports from your doctors that you did not want nor expect. Many had an empty seat at the table this Christmas because one of your loved ones has passed away.

There is no denying the fact that 2020 has been a rough year for everyone. In fact, things have been so bad that the term “2020” has become a byword. But there are many things that the child of God can rejoice in, even in a year such as this. We can rejoice because God is still on His throne. We can rejoice because Jesus is still saving lost souls. We can rejoice because lives are still being changed. We can rejoice because this world is not our home. We can rejoice because Jesus is coming back someday.

For months people have been anxiously awaiting New Year’s day. They have it in their minds that when the ball drops in New York City a great reset will occur and we can start over. I am afraid that they are going to be very disappointed. You see, our God is infinite in His wisdom. He has a perfect plan for His people, for this world and for His Kingdom. And I’m pretty sure that God does not celebrate New Year’s Day. There is no way for us to know what is waiting for us in 2021. Things could get better, and things could get much worse. The reality is that we do not know what lies ahead.

The Lord’s Disciples found themselves in a similar situation. These men had left everything behind to follow Jesus, and as a result they had seen some amazing things. They had seen countless miracles. They had seen the blind receive their sight, the deaf made to hear, the lame made to walk, the mute speak, lepers were cleansed and demons were cast out. They had heard Jesus teach with great power and authority. There is no way that they could have known all of the things that they would experience as they continued to walk with Jesus!

As we arrive at our selected text, Jesus instructs them to get in a boat and to go to “the other side”. They were on a journey that would take them across the Sea of Galilee. They did not know what was waiting for them when they arrived. In fact, there was a moment when they were not sure that they would even make it to the other side. (Mark 4:37 And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. 38 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?) In the midst of the storm Jesus “arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.”