Mark 4:34-41; Jesus Calms the Storm

Jesus Calms the Storm

Well, good morning. Good afternoon whatever time of day it is for you

So I hope everybody who was able to show up last week

Is enjoying revelation

I know we have enjoyed walking through the book of Matthew

And I hope you get the same enjoyment out of revelation

You know I heard someone say todya

That it is actually easier to understand Revelation

That it is to believe it…

After we start getting into some of the deeper things

I think you may agree with that statement right there….

Anyway, so as we get started today

I had a question for you all

you know my daughter and I

we just spent the last couple weekends

watching the Marvel movies in chronological order

anybody hit hear a Marvel fan?

You know I think one of the greatest things about Marvel

is the imagination that goes into the mind

of the individual

as you’re watching those movies

because you’re seeing people or these particular characters

do things that are seemingly impossible for the normal man or a woman to do.

Things that defy logic

things that defy the laws of nature

things that are only conceivable by people with special powers. 

And yet as we get into the passage today,

we’re going to read a story about someone

who has real powers

not just fictitious movie type of powers,

but we’re talking about actual powers.

Powers that can calm nature

Powers that create nature

and even powers to create life

And I know that it’s so easy to take this particular passage

and talk about how Jesus can calm the storm or our lives,

but I don’t wanna take it that way

I want us to look a bit deeper

and realize what the apostles or the disciples were going through

in this particular moment

Because let me tell you, this was nothing short of mind blowing for this who watched this

and so if you would please open up your Bible to mark chapter 4

we’re gonna start adverse 34 work our way down to 41 to the end of the chapter and we’re gonna be in Mark chapter 5 next time

Mark 4:35–41 (NLT)

As evening came, Jesus said to his disciples, “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.” 

So they took Jesus in the boat and started out, leaving the crowds behind (although other boats followed). 

But soon a fierce storm came up. High waves were breaking into the boat, and it began to fill with water. 

Jesus was sleeping at the back of the boat with his head on a cushion. The disciples woke him up, shouting, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to drown?” 

When Jesus woke up, he rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Silence! Be still!” Suddenly the wind stopped, and there was a great calm. 

Then he asked them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?” 

The disciples were absolutely terrified. “Who is this man?” they asked each other. “Even the wind and waves obey him!”

So how many of y’all came in my Bible study yesterday

or at least were able to attend online?

You know I ask that to call you out if you didn’t make it

No I’m just playing

The reason I asked this is because

if you notice the context,

remember, we’re coming out of that very tense situation

where Jesus was arguing with the Pharisees about the unforgivable sin of the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit,

where he was arguing with them about the sign of Jonah

where he went into this long explanation of what these mysterious parables had meant

and we are right about at the time where he walks out of the house with his disciples,

and the crowd was still there waiting for him

and he’s looking at his disciples and he opens up and I can imagine whats on his mind

We need a break

we need to get out of this area

so we can just think calm down and relax.

Lets just get in the boat, and spend some time in silence

I’ll be honest with you

that could be reading into the situation a bit,

but the more I look at the story

You begin to realize Jesus is still a human being

Don’t get me wrong He is still God in the flesh

But the reality that he might be a little bit tired at this moment has to sink in.

And so you start to see where his motivation is coming from to get into the boat

And spend some time on the sea

But then right on que notice what’s happening here

because it’s almost comical and even frustrating because

if you go into the book of Matthew,

you see how there’s certain individuals that start to follow him as he’s walking away

asking them questions,

And you can see why Jesus is sort of short with them

And I truly don’t think he is being rude

But at the same time, He may not be in the mood for a debate or false allegiance

Does that make sense?

I mean seriously look at the responses that Jesus gives to the those that follow him as he makes his way to the boat

And it almost just appears as though Jesus is just a bit tired

And by show of hands in here,

How many of us get just a bit grouchy when we are tired

Not saying that Jesus sinned here but at the same time

Jesus was a man, who got tired, who slept, who got hungry and a man who had real emotions

So if you kind of read into the situation

You know read in between the lines

And as you kind of look into the life of Jesus,

you have to kind of wonder.

Does this man ever get a break

And the deeper you go

You start to understand why he spends so much time by himself

praying to God, the father for strength

And what’s really unique about this is

because it brings a different perspective to who Jesus really is.

You know, and I don’t know what it is about my childhood or growing up for whatever reason,

and I don’t know why this is,

but I had always thought that there weren’t that many people following Jesus,

That he was this robot type of guy

That never had any real emotions

but the more I dive into the gospels

the more I realize this man almost never had a moments peace,

and so you can kind of see, in the scriptures when he gets a little bit short with people

when he gets a little bit snippy with people

it’s almost as if he is exhausted

WITH THE LACK OF FAITH

and in the frustration of performing all of these miracles

doing all of these signs

and yet not getting the response that he should,

You begin to see his human side and in some stories

The emotion coming off the page is palpable

But I want you just for a moment

let’s go back to the passage real quick because

believe it or not there’s really only one critical point

to this entire passage that I want you to get

And I think it fits the short timeline that we got here

so perfectly so let’s just read here one more time

and If you could do me a favor

I want you to focus on the divinity of Christ in this moment. 

Starting at verse 38…

“Jesus was sleeping at the back of the boat with his head on a cushion. The disciples woke him up, shouting, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to drown?” When Jesus woke up, he rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Silence! Be still!” Suddenly the wind stopped, and there was a great calm. Then he asked them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?” The disciples were absolutely terrified. “Who is this man?” they asked each other. “Even the wind and waves obey him!””

Mark 4:38-41 NLT

What I find absolutely and truly fascinating about this particular incident

About this moment and time

Is that what you are seeing here

Is something that we fall victim to on a daily basis if we’re being honest with ourselves

Look at the story

because these disciples

they have been with Jesus for over a year now

And remember, we’re the second year of his ministry.

So They have been with Jesus for over a year.

They have watched him heal thousands of people

they have watched him do countless miracles

they have watched him become the fulfillment of every single prophecy

that you can possibly think of

and yet when it comes down to the moment,

where faith is required

Their faith hits a point of failure at the deepest level 

Now I want you to do me a favor

And I want you to bring this back to yourself

how often in our moments of trials and tribulations

in the moments of our deepest darkest most desperate situations

Do we forget who Jesus is?

How often do we forget what he has promised us

and I’m not saying that everything in your life is gonna go hunky-dory

I’m not saying that,

No friends Jesus promised us he said in this world you will have trials and tribulations,

but what else did he say but

take heart for I have overcome the world

And so what I’m trying to tell you here today, folks

is that all too often we forget who we serve

we forget what we are promised

and in the light of eternity, the problems and trials

That we face and the deepest darkest moments of our life

mean absolutely nothing

and I know that is hard to hear.

I know that is frustrating to hear because

I can hear you right now saying Chaplain,

you have no idea what my life has been like

you have no idea what I have gone through

and you know what

you’re absolutely 100% correct

but you know who does know what you have gone through?

Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior and

And you know what he is screaming at you in this passage

Where is your faith? Where is your faith?  

Its a difficult i know

But let me bring it a tad closer to home for you

You know I was studying for this sermon

and as I was studying for the Bible study yesterday

I ran across something unique that will kind of will help you put this into perspective.

Help you understand the faith that Jesus is requiring

And next as we go to the gospel of Matthew

we’re gonna study this a little bit next week

But when you talk about the storm that these disciples we’re going through

Matthew specifically (and keep in mind He was there)

used a word about this storm that equated to an earthquake

and what a lot of scholars say is that

this was an abnormally powerful storm for the sea of Galilee

something that would have terrified them to their very core

And as they're panicking

as they are freaking out

what does Jesus do

he stands up he rebukes the storm everything calms down

and then he looks at the disciples and he says

why are you freaking out?

Do you not realize who’s in the boat

I created these winds

I created this water.

I created everything here.

Do you not realize who is in the boat?

John chapter 1 tells us that by him Everything that was made was made

That everything was made through him.

Everything was made for him

And Romans chapter 11 tells us that everything was made for the glory of him

do you not realize who is in the boat?

Ask yourself today what do you really believe about Jesus

There is truly something magnificent about this man something different about this man,

what do you believe?

What do you understand about who we serve?

Let me read one final passage and we will close with this

Colossians chapter 1

Colossians 1:15–20 (NLT)

15Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, 

16for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see— such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him. 

17He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together. 

18Christ is also the head of the church, which is his body. He is the beginning, supreme over all who rise from the dead. So he is first in everything. 

19For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, 

20and through him God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross.

Lets pray