Sermon Tone Analysis

Text: Mark 4:35-41, Psalm 34:4

Theme: We live in a world that gives us many reasons to be afraid, but we are citizens of the Kingdom who save your gives us confidence.

Date: 12/23/2018 File name: GospelOfMark09.wpd

ID Number:

What do you fear?

What are you most afraid of?

What do you find yourself worried about?

All of us can probably come up with something.

Maybe several somethings.

We live in a society whose residents are beset with all kinds of fears and phobias.

Even God’s folk — good, and saintly, churchgoing, Bible reading Christians sometimes are afraid.

We all know that the apostle Paul tells us“For you have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but you have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.

the Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God.” (Romans 8:15-16, NIV).

But there are still those times when we may doubt, when our faith may falter a bit, and when we find ourselves afraid.

ILLUS.

In a Peanuts comic strip, Linus is seeking psychiatric help from his big sister Lucy.

Most kids put up lemonade stands.

Lucy van Pelt puts up her psychiatric booth.

He tells her, “I am in sad shape.

My life is full of fear and anxiety.

The only thing that keeps me going is this blanket ... do I need help?”

Lucy responds, “I think we had better try to pinpoint your fears ... if we can find out what it is you’re afraid of, we can label it.”

With that, Lucy begins suggesting a daunting list of fears including, hypengyophobia (the fear of responsibility), Ailurophobia (the fear of cats), Climacophobia (the fear of staircases), Thalassophobia (the fear of the ocean), and Gephydrophobia (the fear of crossing bridges).

Finally, she suggests Linus might be suffering from Pantophobia.

“What’s Pantophobia?”

Linus asks.

“The fear of everything,” says Lucis.

“That’s it!”

shouts Linus, bowling his sister over.

We can laugh at Linus and Lucy, but who among us doesn’t fight an ongoing battle with fear of some kind?

Let’s be honest this evening; too many Christians have allowed fear and anxiety to crowd out the peace that passes all understanding.

But, there is good news: there is an antidote to our apprehension that allows you to face down your fears and find courage when anxiety grips the heart.

Our text for this evening, shows us that the apostles knew what it was like to suddenly be afraid.

But we also discover that they had an uncommon Savior who was in control and who was in the boat with them.

I. WE ALL FACE STORMS THAT FEED OUR FEARS

“A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped.

38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion.

The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don’t you care if we drown?”” (Mark 4:37–38, NIV84)

1. verse 35 refers to “That day ... “ points backward at everything that it taken place in chapter four

a. it had been a busy day in Lord’s life

b. in order to get away from the crowds, Jesus recommends to his disciples that they get in a boat and head for the far side of the lake

2. as they begin the journey, Jesus — who is exhausted from ministry — quickly falls asleep in the back of the boat while the disciples hoist the sail and break out the oars

3. they are out upon the lake when suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere, a ferocious squall blows up

ILLUS.

The Sea of Galilee is 700 feet below sea level and just 30 miles to the north is Mount Hermon, 9,200 feet high.

Within 30 miles, you have a difference of 10,000 feet in elevation.

On the west side of the sea are the hills of Galilee that reach 1,400 feet, and on the east side of the sea are the Golan Heights that reach 2,500 feet in elevation.

The Sea of Galilee essentially sits in a bowl.

What that means is you have constant clashing of the cold air from the mountains and the warm air coming up from the Sea of Galilee, and as a result, the Sea of Galilee was a place with lots of storms, lots of squalls.

a. as they make their way across the sea, the wind begins to blow, the waves roar and break over the gunnels of the boat to the point of swamping it

1) the disciples are quite literally bailing for their lives

b. it must’ve been a particularly severe storm, for even the experienced fishermen among the disciples were afraid

1) they are absolutely convinced this is the end, “we are perishing” is in the present tense — seasoned fishermen think they are going to die

2) can you imagine how poor Matthew, a land-loving tax collector, might have felt??

4. what does this story have to teach us about those things we are afraid of?

A. THE UNEXPECTED STORMS MAKE US MOST AFRAID

1. just like storms of nature, when we see a crisis or difficult situation looming on the horizon, were often able to steal ourselves — at least emotionally — against the calamity we see heading our way

ILLUS.

When we were living in Adrian, a tornado came through the area one year, just barely missing town.

It’s went north of town, crossed the railroad tracks, skipped over the highway, and went on its way through the countryside.

One of our farm families, Melvin and Macel Jones, had a barn blown down and lost tin on several other out-buildings, but the house was fine.

When I saw Melvin the next day, I asked him, “Weren’t you afraid?” to which Melvin responded, “Nope.

Saw it coming.”

Melvin saw the direction the storm was taking and knew it wasn’t going to be as bad as it could have been.

a. none of us likes going through the storms of life

b.

but, there’s something about seeing them coming, that helps us prepare

2. that’s why I think that it’s the unexpected storms we fear the most

a. the accident, the unexpected illness, the unprovoked attack, the abrupt job termination, the untimely death – these are the things that seem to stir up the greatest anxiety in us

b. it is the sudden storm that lands like a sucker punch to our gut

3. some years ago, a Christian research group asked born-again believers those things that they fear the most

a. here is the top eight years among believers

1) the fear of living insignificant lives

2) the fear of rejection

3) the fear of failure

4) the unhealthy fear of God

5) the fear of sickness, aging, and death

6) the fear of threats to our children

7) the fear of the rise of evil

8) the fear of a society that’s breaking down

4. these are all real fears, but the Bible has real answers for our fears

II.

SOMETIMES WHEN WE FIND OURSELVES IN THE MIDST OF A STORM, IT SEEMS AS IF GOD IS UNCONCERNED

Mark 4:38 "Jesus was at the back of the boat, sleeping with his head on a cushion.

His followers woke him and said, “Teacher, don’t you care that we are drowning!”

NCV

1. what do you do or who do you turn to when fear grips your heart?

a. it is very obvious from this passage that the disciples are fearful

b. we hear them cry out, “Lord, don’t you care if we drown?”

1) now, let me translate that for you from the original Greek text . . .

2) “Lord, we’re sinking . . .

do something!”

2. now, let me hasten to say, that some fear is good

a. if a danger is real, then a proper fear is not only healthy, but called for

1) it is good to fear things like fire, and tornadoes, and floods, and even the consequences of inappropriate and destructive behavior

b. fear is what keeps us from playing in the middle of a four-lane highway

ILLUS.

In the novel Moby Dick, Captain Ahab tells his crew, “I’ll have no one aboard my ship who doesn’t fear a whale.”

c. the Bible tells us, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge,” (Prov.

1:7)

3. most of our fears, however, are unreasonable fears — phobias