Don't Doubt Him

My brothers and sisters I believe we can all agree that life is funny sometimes. It’s almost somewhat non-understandable, it has a way of truly not adding up or making sense. Its always something after something, and must have gotten to a place where if things point start to line up, I’m done, done trying, done working, done with all of this...

Why does it seem in this time that the wrong is progressing, and the righteous isn’t?

Why does it seem that the disobedient it being promoted, but the submitted isn’t?

It seems as if life isn’t fair, as if life and time has come together and beat me down, and all I was trying to do was what I was called to do, serve with a pure heart and it keeps getting broken, believe and trust and it keeps putting me in strange places.

Have you ever felt punished while doing right? Has a storm ever come your way while living right? And it makes no sense on why...

Mark Batterson, wrote in his book All In: You Are One Decision Away From a Totally Different Life

When we do what's right, regardless of circumstances or consequences, we set the table for God to turn the tables. All we need to do is stand up, step in, or step out.”

In other words, you are getting ready to see God flip the favor back to you... honor comes to the faithful, humility comes to the unfaithful...

We all have felt and seen where the right ones have the hardest times, but my brothers and sisters it’s not overlooked, it sometimes divine from God... here we are in a season of questions a lot of times of God, this is a little difficult, but God is trying to see if you’re really along for the ride?

We find ourselves in the book of Matthew, this 14th chapter starts off with the beheading of John the Baptist, leads into Jesus feeding 5,000 plus people, now we are in verse 22-32 which is highlighted the walking on the water of Jesus.

Jesus probably intended the feeding of the five thousand to be primarily a lesson in faith for his disciples. Here, on the heels of the first lesson of the day comes the second lesson. The disciples had demonstrated no confidence in Jesus’ ability to feed the crowd1. With much yet to learn, the disciples came closer than ever to an understanding of who Jesus was.2

1 Stuart K. Weber, Matthew, vol. 1, Holman New Testament Commentary (Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 2000), 220.

2 Stuart K. Weber, Matthew, vol. 1, Holman New Testament Commentary (Nashville, TN:

Don’t ever get to a place where you forget who Jesus is!!!

Too many believers have lost who Jesus is because of the current state in life... how can you get so lost in life that you forget who Jesus is? I know it’s rough, I know it’s hard but don’t forget....

The text starts out raising a question for me, I’m in verse 22

...

I couldn’t get my mind wrapped around the idea of why he would send them out, could it be that it was a test to see if the encounters you’ve had with God had an effect on you.

Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go

on ahead of him to the other side

Now my brothers and sisters, your encounter with God is not

meant to keep for yourself, if you ever have an encounter with

God, it’s some type of evidence that will be left behind... some

stuff your survived for the purpose of letting it be known only

God could do it.

Too many times we hold internal what is meant to be used for the building of God. You didn’t go through the hell and warfare for nothing, and too many of us have overcome the storms of life and won’t tell the breakthrough you had to experience...

Now the separation period wasn’t permanent, the text says he sent them ‘’AHEAD.”

The word “AHEAD” means to go before, to proceed,

and someone in the room needs to be reminded that at some point he’s going to meet you right where

you need him to.

Not only did he give them a destination, but he also gave them away of getting there, he put them in the boat and sent them out, which means to me

Three things I we must understand on why we can’t Doubt him

1. He Always Has Reason on What he Does

I’m in verse 23 After he had dismissed them, he went up on a

mountainside by himself to pray.

Jesus finished the task of sending the people away, then went up into the mountain to pray. After the big day with the crowds Jesus turned to his Father in prayer; the infinitive will indicate purpose. This was done privately; Matthew has two expressions, by himself and alone, so that he is emphasizing that what took place was between Jesus and his Father only;3

If Jesus needed some alone time with his Father, why shouldn’t you...

3 Leon Morris, The Gospel according to Matthew, The Pillar New Testament Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI; Leicester, England: W.B. Eerdmans; Inter-Varsity Press, 1992), 381.

it would

suggest that at some point throughout the journey Jesus was

going to meet them...

he’ll never have a place for you to go

without giving you a way of getting there

There are some moments that I need to lock myself away and seek his face, its alarming to me that we as followers of Christ don’t do like Christ.

Question

when is the last time you separated yourself from people? When is the last time you got away to seek God?

it’s a dangerous thing when the believer hasn’t been seeking God.

We want what he has to offer but don’t seek time away with him.

Jesus was intentional with separation of himself and people...

Don’t allow people to make you feel wrong for self-isolation...

Its strange that after a miracle is performed, he’s praying, must of us know the feeling of being drained and needing a refill. Jesus feeds 5,000 plus people and needs time with God after, my brothers and sisters this is a sign of operating in Gods Name and Not on Gods NAME...

It’s something that comes over you that makes what God has called you to and who your called to be possible.

Too many of us know the feeling when the power of God falls on you.

Maybe you’ve never experience when the glory of God falls and hits you and the power overtakes you, but when you are finished there’s a feeling of emptiness that only God himself can pour back into you, and the reason why he needed a repour is because

Jesus wasn’t done pouring out

matter fact he got so poured into he’s still pouring into you now... yes he pouring out but has to

get refilled to keep pouring... after Jesus gets before God he prays thanksgiving and refilling

2. He always knows when to appear

It amazes me the timeline of the timeline of the next, Jesus performs a miracle, sends them out and here comes a storm. And I need to pause here because some of us know how this feels, doing the work of the lord, work for the kingdom and a storm comes.

I can see if I was wrongdoing, playing church, being messy, taking my gift as a joke, but lord I’m doing this to further the kingdom and here’s a storm,

I feel the need to help someone understand that at some point a storm is coming, you’ll face something on the journey...

I know that’s not popular to hear

The storm will come to remind you that even though it’s hard I’m still God, he puts in the storm to remind of his

and the reason why he needed a repour is because

Jesus wasn’t done pouring out,

of punishment to come, but it’s a storm from

commitment.

its one thing for a storm

you in trouble.

at some point your commitment to God will get

of God but not the chastening of God, want the reign with

, because we want to love

God but not the suffering with God...

power,

The bible says the boat is a considerable distance for shore, they are a distance from where they last saw Jesus.

I’m in verse

To understand this timeframe, we must realize the setting of time, this is called dusk between the hours of 12am and 3am which is the darkest time of night, not only did he show up at the darkest time of night. But they were head to a place called Gennesaret, know they only way to get there from the previous location was through the sea of Galilee.

The sea of Galilee is in the midst of two mountains and is at a low point. He shows up at the darkest time and the lowest point

We all know the feeling...

3. He always knows what to say

This catches my eye because they didn’t cry out in fear of the storm, but they cried out in fear of what the saw and

you...

if he put you in it, he’ll pull you out of it. Stay

committed to God because he’s always committed to

25 Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to

them, walking on the lake.

Well, let’s look lastly at the text verse

26 When the disciples saw

him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a

ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear.

couldn’t recognize, and some of us have been in a storm so long that we fear is no longer the storm but what we can’t recognize in the storm.

This my brothers and sisters are a sign that even

.

Because you can be in a storm and not handle it, but the simple fact I’m able to take my focus off the storm and look and see something in the storm lets me know I’m handling the storm.

They cried out in fear, it’s mind-blowing that the very thing that made them cry out in fear, is the very person that can respond and handle that they’re dealing with... I need someone right where you are to cry out, the righteous cry out he will deliver.

Notice he never speaks to the storm, he doesn’t speak to water, he speaks to them. This is to make them realize 1 nothing else is being added onto what you’re facing. 2 I’m here, and when I show up, I’m handling whatever you’re dealing with.

storm was raging that they were able to manage the

while the

storm

I’m in verse

27 But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take

courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”

The text doesn’t say it but lets notice it, is strange to me that Jesus is far enough that they couldn’t recognize him, but yet close enough to be heard.