March 27, 2011

As of this past Wednesday, the death toll in Japan had reached about 9,500. But 15,617 people are still unaccounted for. Last year on January12, 2010, 222,570 people lost their lives in the Haitian earthquake. And yet in November of 1931 it is estimated that up to 2.5 million people lost their lives in the China floods. These kinds of numbers are overwhelming. How can we even begin to get a sense of what it would be like to see so many perish?

And yet all of us experience many storms of a much smaller magnitude that never-the-less can have devastating effects on our lives. We rarely get any warning and sometimes when we do get a warning, we ignore it. We don’t go to the doctor. We don’t go into the basement when the tornado siren goes off. You know what I’m talking about. Of course, Christians face the same struggles as non-Christians. We’re not immune from the trials of life. And since our goal is to live for Christ, it could be said that we actually multiply the potential trials of life since living for Christ brings us into conflict with the world.

This morning we are in Mt.8:23-27 where Jesus calms the stormy sea of Galilee. From this passage we learn that with Christ, believers can confidently face the storms of life.

I. JESUS IS OUR PRESENT SAVIOR. Mt.8:23-24

On average, the city of New Orleans is about 8 feet below sea level and some spots are 10 feet below sea level. The storm surge during hurricane Katrina at New Orleans was 25 to 28 feet above high tide levels. Now the Sea of Galilee is over 600 feet below sea level. It’s common for violent winds to sweep down on the lake causing powerful storms over the sea. How bad was this particular storm? Well consider that a number of Jesus’ disciples were experienced fishermen. They had been on the Sea of Galilee regularly for most of their lives. This must have been a pretty bad storm. The waves were covering the boat.

But here’s the amazing thing: Jesus was sleeping in the boat. The Son of Man was dead to the world in more ways than one (if you know what I mean). Think about it. Jesus had been very busy ministering to people. He had been going from morning till night. It looks to me as if he was physically exhausted. But just the same, after seeing all the miracles Jesus performed wouldn’t you rather have a sleeping Jesus in the boat with you than on the shore away from you? Here were these guys, facing one of the worst storms of their lives and where was Jesus? He was right there with them, even though he was asleep.

Now, a great deal has changed since that day on the Sea of Galilee. Jesus has died and risen from the grave. He’s ascended to the Father. He doesn’t need any sleep. Before he ascended he said to his disciples, “And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” If you know Jesus as your Savior and Lord, there is never a time when he isn’t with you. In Jn.14:23, Jesus says, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.” You see, Jesus dwells in you and he will never leave you or forsake you.

Many storms arise in our lives. There are natural disasters like the earthquake in Japan. According to the world clock, in one minute 22 people are diagnosed with cancer. In one minute there are about 115 deaths, 180 ID thefts, and 22 violent crimes. People lose their jobs or houses in foreclosure. I mean, many sad and tragic things happen to us over the course of our lives. And if you know Jesus, he’s right there with you in the midst of all that happens. You say, “Well, I know he’s there, but often it seems that he’s sleeping, because, surely if he was awake, he wouldn’t let these things happen to me.” But don’t you know that that’s a faulty view of who God is? Jesus never promised a life free from difficulty. Whatever happens to us happens either at God’s direction or with his permission. And it all happens for the accomplishment of God’s good purposes in our lives, in the lives of others, and in the world. Never take difficulty as a sign of God’s absence in your life.

II. JESUS IS OUR PATIENT SAVIOR. Mt.8:25-26a

It is very interesting to see how different the disciples experience of the storm is from Jesus’ experience of the storm. Again, they were experienced sailors. If I can use a little sanctified imagination, it would seem to me that at first the storm didn’t seem unusual, and since they had been through many storms before, they felt could weather it out. No need to wake Jesus up. But then things took a turn for the worse. Now the water is coming into the boat and it looks as if the boat will be swamped and they will drown. On the other hand there’s Jesus sound asleep. Obviously he’s not worried in the least.

The disciples did exactly what we would’ve done. They panicked and woke Jesus up. “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!” And what was Jesus’ response? Well, here in the middle of the storm before doing anything else he takes the time to address his disciples. “You of little faith, why are you so afraid?” Of the 5 or so times Jesus uses this word, it is always directed to his disciples. “Little,” doesn’t so much refer to the amount of their faith as much as it refers to the quality of their faith. Remember Jesus said, if we have faith the size of a mustard seed it will be effective. The question, “Why are you so afraid,” is both simple and deep at the same time. What was wrong with the disciples’ faith? Should they not have awoken Jesus? Is that what he is saying? Should they not have been afraid? Is that what Jesus was saying? We know that faith calms our fears, but then again, fear is a pretty normal response in the face of serious danger. I don’t think Jesus was angry about the fact that they woke him up. “Come on! Can’t a person get a little shut-eye! Nor do I think he was disappointed in the fact that they were afraid. His disappointment was in their lack of understanding about who he is. Their faith didn’t instill confidence in him. It was ineffective. They had seen Jesus perform many miracles. They had seen his power. As a child I learned a little song: “With Christ in the vessel I can smile at the storm.” Well, they certainly weren’t smiling.

Think about the implications of having Jesus in the boat. Nothing could happen to the Son of God by chance. It’s not as if the wind and the waves were going to suddenly overpower the Savior. Jesus was completely safe. He had no reason to fear the storm. If Jesus wasn’t afraid, the disciples didn’t need to be afraid either. They were with Jesus. The disciples drew a conclusion that wasn’t correct. They said, “We’re going to drown.” But, in fact, they were not going to drown. Palm 56:3-4 says, “When I am afraid, I will trust in you. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me?” In fear we often call out to God for help and deliverance. Do we trust him? Do we trust him to deliver us in his time? Do we trust him to deliver us in his way?

When we face trials and difficulties, we must be responsible to do whatever we can do, about the situation, but we must also call upon the Lord and rest in him. He cares for you. He knows more about the situation than we do, and he is fully with us. But how thankful we are that he’s patient with us. He knows our frame. He knows how easily we become distracted by the circumstances we see. The circumstances distract us from the realities we can’t see, the realities of Jesus and his presence with us. How many times do parents get impatient when over and over again their children are afraid to try whatever it is the parents want them to do? We especially see this impatience in sports. But Jesus patiently urges us on in our faith to trust in him; to put confidence in him.

Now look, I can’t say exactly what that looks like for you. What I can say is that it will involve fervent prayer and the intentional exercise of faith in Christ. In Phil.4:6-7 Paul writes, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Are you in over your head? Jesus never is. Call out to him and trust him to help you.

III. JESUS IS OUR POWERFUL SAVIOR. Mt.8:26b-27

I remember an episode of Happy Days. The Fonz (played by Henry Winkler) and his girlfriend were at Inspiration Point and for some reason there was a lot of noise. The crickets were chirping loudly and I remember the Fonz standing up and saying “QUIET!” Of course, there was complete silence. Well the Fonz commanded a great deal of authority in that show, but, of course, no one has that kind of authority over the crickets or any other natural event.

Yet here is Jesus now standing in the boat, rebuking the winds and the waves. Are you kidding me? If any of us did something like that, peoplr would think we’re crazy. No one talks to the winds and the waves. No one that is, except Jesus. John 1:3 says, “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” Jesus knows creation inside and out. He knows all about the chemistry and the molecular structures. He knows the physics of it all because he made it. He has authority over it all. We must never judge Jesus according to human limitations. He is God in the flesh. The disciples certainly had to learn this. It’s one thing to perform miraculous healings. The disciples were amazed at how Jesus could heal. But it’s quite another to control the forces of nature with the spoken word. I mean, at best, we can only contain or manage the forces of nature and we don’t do that very well. But Jesus controls the forces of nature.

The winds died and the sea became calm. You don’t get the impression that the storm began to slowly decline in intensity. You get the impression that immediately things became calm. And the disciples marveled. “What kind of a man is this?” Should they have known better? From Jesus’ question, “Why are you afraid,” it seems that indeed, Jesus thought they should have known better. And what about us? Shouldn’t we know better? The point of this message isn’t that Jesus will always calm the storms that swirl about us. The point is that we can fully trust Jesus to help us in the storms we face. He’s got all the power and if we trust in him, we can experience the peace he brings; the peace that transcends all understanding.

So far I’ve been speaking about the storms of life, but if we are followers of Jesus, who live as ambassadors for JC, we are going to experience a whole different set of storms. Serving Jesus in this world is bound to bring challenges. And seeing Jesus’ authority over nature, is a constant reminder to us that we can serve him with confident assurance. Let’s not forget that Jesus was always training his disciples, preparing them for the day when they would be sent out to preach the gospel. Much of that preparation took place in the storms of life. It’s no different today. Do you remember when Paul was on the ship destined for Rome? While in the Mediterranean Sea a terrible storm blew in. It looked as if the ship would be lost. After many days of being driven by the storm, we read in Acts 27:23-26 that Paul stood up and said to the men, “Last night an angel of the God whose I am and whom I serve stood beside me and said, ’Don’t be afraid, Paul. You must stand trial before Caesar; and God has graciously given you the lives of all who sail w you.’ So keep up your courage, men, for I have faith in God that it will happen just as he told me.” And it did! They landed on the island of Malta. All were saved.

I had never heard of Henry Venn until this week. He was born on February 10, 1796, on the outskirts of London at Clapham. His father, John (1759-1813), was pastor of Clapham parish and pastor to William Wilberforce and other influential men. Henry grew up to become a powerful leader in the Evangelical movement. World missions was one of his passions. He is known as the father of the indigenous church principle. This is the principle that mission churches should strive to be self-supporting, self-governing, and self-propagating. You would do yourself a favor to look up his name. Venn died in 1873. At a clerical meeting on January 10, 1865, Venn made this statement: “A feeble, nominal Christianity is the great obstacle to the conversion of the world.” When we lose our confidence in Christ, our Christianity will become bland and nominal. The disciples learned that their confidence in Christ was well placed. And they preached with confidence. As long as we have life on this earth, God has work for us to do. Twelve/twelve is part of that work. As long as we have life on this earth we will exp many storms. With Jesus, believers can confidently face the storms of life. Amen.