Luke 8:16-25

Good morning everyone. My name is Benjamin McEndarfer and I am the youth director here. It is a privilege to be able to share Gods words with you this morning.

Lets start with a word of prayer.

We continue our studies in the Book of Luke, we will be looking at Luke 8:16-25 in a little bit. When we read Luke 8:16-25 I found that it seemed disjointed. We have 3 separate stories and none of them seem to fit with the others, in fact a lot of Luke as this feeling of being Disjointed.what we are going to read today starts with a parable about letting our light shine, than switches over to Jesus rejecting his earthly ties and concludes with Jesus calming a storm. Within the confines of Luke it is hard to get a picture of what was happening and how these events all fit together.

So to help me understand what was going on I found myself looking at the other gospels, to see if they said anything about these events. One thing that I discovered is that these events all happened on the same day and that this was actually a very big day in the ministry of Jesus, even the parable we went over last week happened on this day. I also found out that many theologians see this day as a switching point, in the ministry of Jesus. Let me take a moment to explain.

Real quick in the book of Matthew chapter 12, Matthew lets us know that the religious leaders had come from Jerusalem and they accuse Jesus of doing his miracles by the power of satan. This rejection was the official ruling of the religious leaders. A ruling that the people had been waiting to hear, for everyone wanted to know who Jesus was and what the leaders thought. We actually see this claim spread in Luke 11 we see the common people repeat this claim found in Matthew 12 that the leaders had said. After they made this ruling Jesus refutes the claim and clearly states that he is the Messiah. But more importantly he started to teach in parables. Jesus was still going to teach the people but he was no longer going to make it easy to understand what he was saying. Instead he was going to teach in parables and only give the interpretation to his disciples. So much could be said about this day and this rejection but i feel that this would be better said at a latter time. And Since we are studying the book of Luke I don't want to take away from that by jumping all around through the gospels to show the significance of this day and all the things that happened. instead i want to stay focused on what Luke has to say. This will help us keep the unique perspective of Luke while we continue our study.

So now that we have that quick background information. Let's start by reading from Luke.

Luke 8:16-18 

“Now no one after lighting a lamp covers it over with a container, or puts it under a bed; but he puts it on a lampstand, so that those who come in may see the light. 17 “For nothing is hidden that will not become evident, nor anything secret that will not be known and come to light. 18 “So take care how you listen; for whoever has, to him more shall be given; and whoever does not have, even what he thinks he has shall be taken away from him.

When it's dark, what do we do? We turn on a light. And I can't think of anyone after they turn on a light, takes a container and cover it. Why turn it on to begin with. You turned on the light to see. So why would you cover it. Jesus in the gospel of John makes this claim.

12 Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life. Jn 8:12.

If we have believed in Jesus as the Messiah we have the light of the world in us, and we should not be ashamed of this light it is the only light that can shine in the darkness. Jesus was there and had shown everyone that he was the light of the world. That the light that he gave should not be covered. But that is what the leaders were trying to do by claiming that day that it was Satan who gave the light. Jesus warns those following him to pay attention to what they are listening to. For they need to make a decision as to whos light they are going to let shine. Are they going to take Jesus and let his light shine or are they going to try to cover it and pretend it's not even there, or will they go so far that they try to extinguish the light themselves.

The next thing that happens is Jesus is interrupted by his family .

Luke 8:19-21. And His mother and brothers came to Him, and they were unable to get to Him because of the crowd. 20 And it was reported to Him, “Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, wishing to see You.” 21 But He answered and said to them, “My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it.”

At first I thought that this makes no sense. Why would Luke put this right after Jesus talking about the light and covering it up?

I believe one of the reasons that Luke has it this way is because in that moment his mom was trying to remove him from the situation. She in a way was trying to cover that light. We see in Mark 3:21 that his family was trying to take him. This was probably motivated by trying to help him, but the result would have been the same. and in that moment Jesus could have said ok guys moms here i need to go, if he had done this it would have shown that his mother Mariem had a say in the life of Jesus and was somehow over him and could take charge of him. But that is not what happens. Jesus looks at those who were telling him that his mom was trying to get to him and he flips on its head. Instead of saying ok let them in. He instead rejects his earthly ties. What an amazing show of reality, a show of his deity. This story clearly goes against what Catholicism says by saying that Mary can intercede for us and bring our prayers to Jesus. For if that was true she should have been able to get to Jesus. But in that moment Jesus shows us who are truly those who are his and who is truly a part of his family. And that is those who hear the word of God and obey it. Your ancestry has nothing to do with being a child of God. Your personal background has nothing to do with it, The house you grew up in has nothing to do with it. The things you did as a child have nothing to do with it. What matters is your faith in Jesus Christ and do you believe what he said about who he is and what he has done. Jesus the light of the world was sitting and teaching and his family was trying to remove him but The light of the world was not going to allow anyone to cover that light. No matter who they were.

In luke the story at this point makes a odd turn for it says next that

22 Now on one of those days Jesus and His disciples got into a boat, and He said to them, “Let us go over to the other side of the lake.” So they launched out. 23 But as they were sailing along He fell asleep; and a fierce gale of wind descended on the lake, and they began to be swamped and to be in danger. 24 They came to Jesus and woke Him up, saying, “Master, Master, we are perishing!” And He got up and rebuked the wind and the surging waves, and they stopped, and it became calm. 25 And He said to them, “Where is your faith?” They were fearful and amazed, saying to one another, “Who then is this, that He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey Him?”Lk 8:16–25

As we already said this event and the other two that we just read all happened on the same day according to Matthew and Mark. We know that this has been a big day in the life of Jesus and it has finally come to an end. And so far we have seen a lesson for the people in believing in Jesus and not hiding his light. We have seen Jesus claim that only those who obey him are His. and next we are going to have lessons for the disciples.

For those who don't know the sea of Galilee is in northern Israel, it is the largest body of fresh water in all of Israel. A better word for this sea would properly be a large lake. As it is only 64 square miles and at its largest part its 13 miles long and 8 miles wide. In comparison lake michigan is 22,000 square miles its about 307 miles long and 118miles wide. The sea of galilee is small and from one side of the sea you can see the other side. So if it was a clear day when they set out they might have been able to see their final destination.

The sea of Galilee is also a unique geographical place. The sea sits 700’ below sea level (Making it the lowest fresh water lake in the world) and the hills around it sit about 1500-2500 feet above sea level (which is higher than any Hill in the entire state of Illinois). This geography can cause storms to quickly form on the sea, cold winds blow down from the hills and hit the warm water on top of the sea causing the water to become very turbulent. This event, though recorded in Luke, is something different, see the disciples would know all about the sea and how storms could quickly form on it, after all they are fishermen and have been fishing for years. This particular storm I believe is something much worse than rough turbulent water.

A lot of commentators take time to note that Jesus used this time to rest, and relax since he no longer had to teach. I'm not sure this is a fair assessment. He had a huge day. On this day He was officially rejected by the leaders, On this day, His ministry changed, and on this day he rejected his earthly relationships.

I believe that Jesus in his humanity was tired and after that long day he does what anyone else would do on this 2-3 hour trip he goes to sleep. While they were sailing from one side to the other the situation turned chaotic. What was supposed to be a simple trip from one side to the other turns into a nightmare for the disciples. A storm arises and this is such a fierce storm that these trained fishermen are terrified and are sure they are going to die. The wind is howling, the waves are crushing against the boat and the boat itself is filling with water.

And in this situation what is Jesus doing? We just said He is asleep, a careless act, maybe he could be helping to bail water out of the boat, maybe he could be comforting his disciples after all this was his idea and something he commanded them to do. But no he is asleep. So the disciples in this terrifying situation have these desperate cries, a cry of fear, a cry that carries with it the idea that they are about to die.for they say Master Master we are perishing. This would be the equivalent of someone yelling in the dead of night fire fire wake up the house is on fire we are all going to die!! But instead of being able to leave the house you are stuck and can't leave. If you jump off the boat you are guaranteed to die and if you stay you risk the boat capsiding or worse it sinks. You are not getting out of this situation.

So Jesus gets up and right away rebukes the sea and the wind. The word Rebuke has its roots in the idea to Muzzel, its as if Jesus himself Muzzeled the sea, as if the sea was sentient and Jesus commands even nature. As soon as Jesus had said this the sea calmed and everything stopped. An instant calm in this dire situation.

Before we look at the response of the disciples I want you to think about what Jesus was doing before he calmed the sea. He was asleep. why ? why was Jesus asleep. To answer this let me give you a situation that maybe you have been in before.

Think about an airplane. You are sitting down by a window seat. You look out at 30,000’ and you see these dark strom clouds. And you see the plain getting closer and closer, this causes you to have some fear before you even get to the storm, but you make a rational thought and think well ive been through storms before. As soon as the plain gets into the clouds the turbulence hits and this is the fiercest turbulence you have ever felt. You keep expecting someone on the intercom to say that the plain is going down but that call never happens. You are scared, you are terrified, you keep asking to talk to the pilot because you feel as though you are in danger but you can't. You have to stay in your seat. Finally the airplane gets through the strom and everything is calm. What did your worry get you. What did your fear accomplish you think to yourself. As you are thinking this you look over and there is a man next to you who is just now starting to wake up. He slept through the entire situation, he was not even aware of the storm. You ask him sir how were you able to sleep through that storm. He simple says it was because he knew who was in control and how that was not him. Hebrews 11:1 says “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”

If we had to take a quick glimpse of this situation of the boat on the sea. We would see 12 men frantically trying to save themselves and 1 man sound asleep. 12 shows no faith 1 is showing complete faith. 12 are trusting in their own ability to save themselves and 1 is trusting the God of creation through the storm.

Jesus once awake showed them who he was. And who was in the boat with them. One thing neat about this story is the way Mark says it. In Mark 4:36 it says that Jesus had gotten into the boat “just as he was” nothing had changed as to who Jesus was from the time he got into the boat to the time he calmed the sea. The man who entered the boat was more than a man. Something that the disciples needed to learn.

And did the disciples learn something about Jesus? yes they did. And you can see it in there question. “Who then is this, that He commands even the winds and the water, and they obey Him? It was if in this moment that they saw the light of the world and recognised that it was Jesus.

Jesus used this situation to show his disciples who he was. There aw was correct, their fear of Jesus was proper. This is what was needed, this was a good thing for them to see. And this was an invaluable lesson for his disciples and for us.

We are all guilty at times thinking that what the Lord has for us will be easy, that it will not be hard. That difficulty will not arise and we even tell ourselves that we know God is with us because things are easy. Let us not believe the lie of the enemy. This is not what the counsel of scripture teaches us. In fact it teaches us the opposite. It clearly says that we must pick up our cross, we must count the cost to follow Jesus and for many around the world that means being kicked out of your family, losing your job, being hated by your community and it could even mean your death. Or the death of your loved ones. The call to follow Christ is not easy.

Our faith must be focused on the Light of Jesus, a faith not ashamed of the light but one that can boldly let it shine. We are not a people who put a cover over our light but we must learn to display it brightly. Our earthly ties do not matter in eternity, following Christ and obeying him is what matters. And sometimes following Him means that we are going to follow him into storms. He was the one who told the disciples to sail, he knew the storm was there. But what was needed was faith in Christ. To realize that he is the King of kings and Lord of Lords the creator God, the God of angles the Great I AM and that is who we follow even through the storms.

I’m Going to ask Paul to come up and lead us into communion.