The Storm
Notes
Transcript
INTRO
INTRO
Have you ever been in awe?
I’m talking about that moment where your jaw drops
There’s a little fear, a lot of wonder, and you don’t even know what to say
Like:
Witnessing an insane play in a game
Watching someone perform live and realizing, they’re different
Meeting someone you’ve looked up to your whole life
Getting news that changes everything—college, money, a gift you never expected
Those jaw-dropping moments in life
I am a huge football fan
in fact i’m a huge Patriots fan
it it happens to be the super bowl today and they are playing in it
There have been some jaw-dropping moments watching some patriot super bowls
the helmet catch against the gaints to lose to eli manning again
the 28-3 comeback against the falcons… sorry bradley
the last time the seahawks and pats play ending with the increption on the 1 yard line to win the game
There are so many moments in our lives that leave us in awe
TENSION
TENSION
But let me ask you this:
When was the last time you were truly in awe of Jesus?
Not just thankful
Not just relieved
But in awe
Maybe:
He answered a prayer you didn’t expect
He came through in a moment of need
You heard a powerful testimony
But what about being in awe of Jesus because of who He is, not just what He does?
I think a lot of us lack that kind of awe
The kind of awe Jesus deserves more than anyone
This morning, we’re going to sit in a section of Mark where Jesus puts His authority on full display
specifically over nature
And ewe are going to see it leave the disciples in awe
Fear. Wonder.
TRUTH
TRUTH
On that day, when evening had come, he told them, “Let’s cross over to the other side of the sea.” So they left the crowd and took him along since he was in the boat. And other boats were with him.
Context:
Jesus has just spent the day teaching parables to a large crowd on the shore
He now tells the disciples that he wants to cross to the other side of the sea
so of course they get the boat ready, hop in, and take off
A great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking over the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped.
As they are making their way across the sea a great windstorm begins
this would have not surprised the disciples as sudden storms on the sea a Galilee was actually quite normal
the sea is surrounded by mountains and find it’s self located in the valley of them
because of this is was normal for the strong winds of the dessert to come over the mountains down on the sea cause very dangerous storms in the matter of minutes
That is exactly what is happening here…
the storm is bad
so bad that the boat is beginning to be swamped or flooded by the waves coming over the sides
think deadliest catch
it’s not some slow mo movie action… it’s pure life or death chaos
The disciples are fighting for their lives but what is Jesus doing?
He was in the stern, sleeping on the cushion. So they woke him up and said to him, “Teacher! Don’t you care that we’re going to die?”
Jesus is sleeping this whole time…
We can assume that the boat they were using was a typical fishing boat of that time which would have been a medium size wooden boat with a stern in the middle where the captain would steer and command the crew
Jesus seems to be sleeping on a cushion under the steer and our of the elements
And there’s two important things this moment tells us
Jesus is fully human
becasue he’s sleeping
assume that part of the reason he is sleeping because of exhaustion from preaching all day (I feel him)
Jesus is perfectly secure
He rests because He knows the Father’s will cannot fail
The disciples are fighting for their lives while Jesus is resting in absolute trust
Yet while Jesus is sleeping the disciples are fighting for their lives
and they get to the point that they’ve tried everything
so much so that they’ve conclude that unless they wake up Jesus to see if he can do anything then they are going to die
So they wake him up…
can you imagine that moment
we don’t know how long the storm has been going on but we can assume long enough the disciples are drenched, tired, and hopeless
we gotta wake him up
what do you think that conversation was like?
brother we are about to die over here and you are dreaming about rainbows and unicorns over here
can you do something?
He got up, rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Silence! Be still!” The wind ceased, and there was a great calm. Then he said to them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?”
Jesus in the midst of this horrific windstorm, stands up, and rebukes the wind and say’s to the sea, “Silence! Be Still!!”
and that is exactly what happens
the winds immediately stops
the sea is immediately calmed
in fact in the great the “great calm” is written to deliberately stand in contrast to the “great windstorm”
in other words as quickly as the windstorm began it was calmed
Then Jesus turns to the disciples and calls them out for their lack of faith
Jesus is having one of those c’mon guys conversations
I told you to go to the over side of the lake, did you not believe I had the power to get you across to the other side safely
You’ve witnessed demons identify my as the Son of God, I’ve told you I’m the Lord of the Sabbath, I’ve preformed miracles in front of your eyes, you know i’ve was strong than satan’s temptation in the wilderness…
and yet you think I am going to drown to death on a boat ride that I suggested?
And you know what the disciples response was?
And they were terrified and asked one another, “Who then is this? Even the wind and the sea obey him!”
The disciples were in awe…
jaws on the floor of the boat in shock, wonder, fear
terrified meaning they were filled with a great fear
not of Jesus’ rebuke towards them but because of what they had just witnessed
They are like the scene from the incredibles when bob comes home from work
slips on the skateboard and crushes the metal on his car so that his door won’t closes
He get so frustrated that he picks up the whole car as to throw it out of anger
then he sees this little kid on tricycle with a massive bubble of bubble gum
who is in such shock that the bubble pops all over his face yet his mouth is just locked in a shocked face
Why?
because most of them were good Jewish men which meant that their minds were running rampant with scriptures like
He rebukes the sea and dries it up,
and he makes all the rivers run dry.
Bashan and Carmel wither;
even the flower of Lebanon withers.
You rule the raging sea;
when its waves surge, you still them.
He spoke and raised a stormy wind
that stirred up the waves of the sea.
Rising up to the sky, sinking down to the depths,
their courage melting away in anguish,
they reeled and staggered like a drunkard,
and all their skill was useless.
Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble,
and he brought them out of their distress.
He stilled the storm to a whisper,
and the waves of the sea were hushed.
They disciples are struck with awe because this is an “ah ha” moment for them
yes, they have witnessed Jesus do some crazy things already
but nothing that wasn’t abnormal of the Old Testament text they knew
but this was different
scripture is clear… only God is the creator and controler of nature
and what they just witnessed was proof to them that Jesus has the same authority over nature as God the Father
so this must also mean he is God too
They disciple are in awe becasue more clearly than ever they see Jesus for who He truly is
Jesus having the authority to still the winds and calm the waves was proof that He was divine
that He is truly God in the flesh
But this moment does more than just display Jesus divinity
it points forward to something greater
The disciples are in a situation where:
They are powerless
Their effort isn’t enough
Death is inevitable unless someone intervenes
That mirrors our condition in sin
We weren’t just struggling
we were helpless
Dead in sin
Separated from God
Unable to save ourselves
No amount of effort could stop the flood
But then Jesus steps in
He is the only one who meets God’s standard
perfect,
sinless,
obedient
Yet He willingly goes to the cross and dies the death we deserved
At the cross, it looked like chaos won
It looked like Jesus lost
But just like the storm, death was never in control
Jesus rose from the grave, proving He has authority over sin, death, and judgment
And just like the disciples were saved not by their effort, but by trusting Him
We are saved by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone
APPLICATION
APPLICATION
Believer
Believer
This morning if you’re a christian you have the hope and assurance that
Jesus has saved your form the greatest storm
And because that is true I want to give you 3 assurances from the text as we face other storms in our lives
Jesus isn’t surprised by the storm
While we don’t know if Jesus in is human nature knew there was going to be a storm on the trip that night
we do know that he wasn’t surprised when the disciples woke him up
he wasn’t overwhelmed
he wasn’t freaking out
Because he was in control
he knows the wind and waves obeys His voice
He knows he has authority over the situation
And the same is true for our storms as well
they surprise us and come out of nowhere
they overwhelm us and keep us up at night
they seems too big and too much for us to bear
and guess what…
they are for us but not for Jesus
Jesus is not surprised by our storms
the do not overwhelm him
and they are definitely not too big for him to handle or too much for him to bear
2. Jesus is with us in the storm
When the storms of life come our way we often feel like the disciples
it feels like Jesus is sleeping in the boat
we have prayed and prayed and prayed and there seems to be no answer
and we throw up the same statement out of frustration
“Jesus, don’t you care i’m going to die”
“Jesus, don’t you care what i’m going through”
“Jesus, don’t you care how bad this hurts”
I understand…
i’ve been there
But hear me this morning church
Even when it feels like Jesus is asleep in the midst of your storm
Even when it feels like he is MIA
Even when it feels like he must not care
The Lord is with you
in fact He is closer than you ever realized
scripture is clear
the Lord does not foresake us
the Lord does not abandon us in our time of need
the Lord draws near to the broken hearted
The storm may be so overwhelming that it seems as if He has left but that couldn’t be more farther from the truth
3. Jesus will see you through the storm
Jesus saw the disciples through the storm that day on the sea and what did he tell them?
“guys, don’t you think if I called you to go to the other side, I would get you to the other side?”
If Jesus has called you to himself, if you have put your faith and trust in Him as your Lord and Savior then He has saved you from the greatest storm
and he will get you through every storm on your way home
No matter how big the waves may get
no matter how hopeless that situation seems
Jesus will get your through the storm
It may not be exactly how you desired or planned
but may we have the faith to trust and know that His timing, His provision, and His plan is better
Believer, if Jesus saved you from the greatest storm, you don’t have doubt Him in the smaller ones
Unbeliever
Unbeliever
For those who don’t know Jesus
Maybe this morning, for the first time, you’re realizing the real storm.
Not stress
Not circumstances
But sin
Separation from God
Judgment you can’t escape on your own
And maybe God is opening your eyes to see Jesus clearly
not just as a good teacher, but as the only One with authority to save
The disciples didn’t survive because they tried harder
They survived because they trusted Jesus.
And this morning, you’re being invited to do the same
Closing
Closing
As I close let me say this…
Storms are a reality of life
We all experience them in different ways
In fact sometimes we even face them as a church
But the greatest storm we ever faced wasn’t anxiety, stress, or hard circumstances
it was sin
We were separated from God, unable to save ourselves, and headed toward judgment with no way out
Jesus didn’t just calm a storm on the sea
At the cross, He stepped into the greatest storm on our behalf
He lived the life we couldn’t live,
died the death we deserved,
and rose again to prove that sin and death no longer have the final word
If Jesus had the authority to save us from that storm, we can trust Him in the storms we face now
Awe?
