Who Are You?

Intro:

Brief Family Bio

The things we miss the most are usually right in front of us the whole time.

Mineral Oil

Missing the Fire

The things we miss the most are usually right in front of us the whole time, and that is perhaps never truer than when we think of that in terms of where we find our identities.

Of course, as Christians, we would all like to say that we find our identity in Christ. And in terms of salvation that is always true, but what about in terms of our daily lives?

What about in terms of our daily security?

How about for our families? Our children? Our nation? The world?

Right now is an amazing and frightening time to be alive isn’t it?

On one hand we could be on the verge of an incredible comeback as a country.

On the other, we could be witnessing the next steps toward the end of America as we have known it.

On still another hand, we could be seeing a picture of God’s end times plan, and how it might come to pass.

This year has been insane hasn’t it?

Let’s look at what has happened so far...

Jan 7 - WHO is notified of the coronavirus in China

Jan 11 - China records its first COVID19 death

Jan 16 - President Trump impeachment trial begins

Jan 20 - First COVID19 case in America is reported in Washington state

Jan 26 - Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gigi, and seven others die in a helicopter crash

Jan 31 - The UK withdraws from the EU (Brexit)

Feb 5 - President Trump is acquitted by the Senate of all articles of impeachment

March 10 - Italy becomes first western country to implement nationwide lockdown

March 11 - WHO declares COVID19 a global pandemic

March 16 - Stock market drops almost 3000 points amid COVID19 fears

April 9 - New York amasses more cases of COVID19 than anywhere else in the world at the time

April 16 - Govt extends nationwide shutdown while outlining measures needed to re-open the country

April 27 - The Pentagon releases videos showing three UFOs!!!

May 3 - Enter the Murder Hornets

May 25 - George Floyd is murdered by Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin. The murder is caught on video and released to the world.

May 26 - Major George Floyd protests begin in Minneapolis-St Paul

May 27 - Protests expand across America and turn violent

May 30 - The Space X Dragon 2 is launched from Cape Canaveral, FL

June 1 - George Floyd’s death is officially ruled a homicide; Trump threatens to deploy military to regain control in states under seige from violent protests.

And of course, that was just a sampling of all that has happened in 2020 so far.

Oh, and I forgot to mention that there are early reports that “this guy” is making his way to our shores later this week (show picture of Stay Puffed Marshmallow Man)

And what has been the response of the world?

What has been our response as a nation?

Even among the Church in America?

Fear

2020, if nothing else, has been one heck of storm.

Off the charts

And we are trying to sail through 2020 in our boat, and we see the lightning, we hear the thunder, we battle the wind and the waves, we are pulling on the oars with all our might trying to keep from capsizing.

We are looking to governments that clearly do not know what to do.

We are looking to scientists who don’t know what they are dealing with.

We are looking to so many people and things.

But I wonder, in all our fear, have we forgotten that Jesus is in the boat with us?

I think that to a large degree we have because, in looking at who we as a nation, and even we as the Church, have been looking to for answers and solutions, it seems that we are trying to solve a deeply spiritual/supernatural problem with decidedly superficial means.

Have we been so focused on trying to defend our land that we’ve run right by the only One who can truly make a difference?

Have we been so focused on the waves that we’ve forgotten who is in the boat with us?

Are we mistaking Jesus taking a nap for Jesus not caring?

Do we think that Jesus is surprised by our 2020 storm just because we are?

This evening we are going to look back at a section of Scripture that we covered here at Grace a few weeks ago, except we get to spend more time unpacking this particular part of the narrative.

If you have your Bibles or mobile devices, I invite you to turn to Mark 4:35, and as you turn there, I want to give you the main takeaway for this evening.

Here’s the big idea for tonight:

Our fears reveal where we are placing our faith, and wherever we place our faith, we will find our identity.

We often say that fear is the opposite of faith, and in one sense that’s true.

But as I have learned and grown in God’s Word, I am seeing more and more that fear isn’t so much the opposite of faith, as it is the revealer of where our faith actually is, whether in that moment, or in our whole lives.

Pray

Mark 4:35–41 ESV

35 On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” 36 And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him. 37 And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. 38 But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” 39 And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 40 He said to them, “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” 41 And they were filled with great fear and said to one another, “Who then is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?”

Our fears reveal where we are placing our faith, and wherever we place our faith, we will find our identity.

The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, Volume 8: Matthew, Mark, Luke 1. Calming the Storm (4:35–41)

Jesus had been teaching the people from a boat pushed out from the shore a short distance (4:1). Evening had come; so Jesus decided to go over to the other side of the lake (v. 35). Mark mentions no reason for this decision. Perhaps Jesus simply wanted to escape from the crowds for a little while and renew his strength. The disciples responded to Jesus’ request by taking Jesus “just as he was, in the boat” (v. 36). This presumably means “without going to shore.” That is, Jesus wanted to go directly to the other side of the lake in the same boat he had been teaching the people from and without the delay his first going ashore might have caused.

The mention of “other boats with him” (v. 36) seems to be a pointless detail and strongly suggests an eyewitness account. We are not told what happened to the other boats. Perhaps they were lost in the storm or driven back to the western shore of the lake.

37 The geographic location of the Sea of Galilee makes it particularly susceptible to sudden, violent storms. It is situated in a basin surrounded by mountains. Though at night and in the early morning the sea is usually calm, when storms come at those times, they are all the more treacherous. The storm is described as a “furious squall” (lailaps megalē anemou) that was driving the waves into the boat so that it was being swamped. Smith’s description of the Sea of Galilee’s susceptibility to storms is illuminating: “The atmosphere, for the most part, hangs still and heavy but the cold currents, as they pass from the west, are sucked down in vortices of air, or by the narrow gorges that break upon the lake. Then arise those sudden storms for which the region is notorious” (G.A. Smith, The Historical Geography of the Holy Land [New York: Armstrong and Son, 1909], pp. 441–42).

38 Jesus, tired from a long day’s teaching, was in the stern of the boat, asleep on a “cushion” (proskephalaion). Lagrange (p. 231) says that “in these boats, which will no doubt always have been the same, the place for any distinguished stranger is on the little seat placed at the stern, where a carpet or cushions are arranged.” The cushion (the definite article is used) was apparently the only one on board, and Jesus used it as a pillow for his head. This is the only place in the Gospels where Jesus is said to have slept; but he did, of course, get tired and need sleep like any other man. He must have been very tired to have slept through such a violent storm.

Remember, for the apostles to fear a storm on the lake, it had to be a bad one. They had rough and tumble fishermen among them who knew how to handle a boat. They had seen Jesus perform amazing miracles already.

And still, the apostles, who had been hanging out with Jesus already, still did not understand who He was, to the point that they feared for their lives even while Jesus was in the boat with them

Just like I did when the pillow was on fire, the apostles exposed themselves as being naked and ill-equipped. Not because Jesus hadn’t been taking care of them, but because they lacked the sight that only faith in Jesus could provide. Just like I ran right by a pillow that was literally covered in flames and smoke, the apostles were completely blind to the fact that Creator of the Universe and the Sustainer of All Things was in the boat with them.

Let me ask you, do you ever do that?

Do you ever get so overwhelmed, so afraid that you forget that Jesus goes into every storm with you?

You would think that the opposite would be true. You would that the disciples would be emboldened with Jesus in the boat.

Our fears reveal where we are placing our faith, and wherever we place our faith, we will find our identity.

The apostles fears revealed that their faith was in their own strength and ability to navigate the storm. And if that failed, they hoped their boat could withstand the onslaught.

When Jesus rebuked them asking, “Where is your faith?” He not only called them out for their continued spiritual immaturity, but He also revealed to them that they identified themselves more with the things of this world, rather than in Christ Himself.

That’s how our fears reveal where we are putting our faith, and that’s how the location of our faith can show us where we are finding our identities.

If our faith is in the temporal, then we are identifying ourselves with that temporal thing, or that temporal person.

Playing on basketball team with best player illustration

Mom driving me to school illustration

Ok. Let’s break down a couple of key phrases in this passage that I hope will help us here.

v. 38 - “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?”

Stop for a moment and consider all the wrong assumptions that the apostles are making about Jesus right now? They accused Jesus of not caring about them. That’s pretty bold.

But we do that to Jesus too don’t we?

We mistake His silence in a circumstance, or what we perceive to be His silence, as an indication that He doesn’t care, or that He is mad at us, or that He is refusing to help us.

I hear Christians do this quite frequently.

Many times, you’ll hear people say that their faith is failing when they feel like this.

Here’s why.

They’ve been blaming Jesus for the failure of whatever other person or thing they’ve been putting their faith in up that point.

Do you see how the apostles’ faith was not completely in Christ and how that directly related to whether or not they recognized their identities in Him?

How about you?

Is this where you are right now?

Are you worried that God is letting America sink in this storm?

And even if God allowed that to occur, do you think that you would be any less His child if that happened?

This question, this accusation posed by the apostles showed that they really didn’t understand who Jesus really was, and if they didn’t understand who He was, how could they truly understand who they were in Him?

The same is true for us today.

Let’s look at another phrase:

v. 39 - “Peace. Be Still”

Here is Jesus now rebuking the wind and calming the waves. Mark is the only author who records the words of Jesus here.

And here is a noteworthy observation.

Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Son of Man, the King of Everything, subjected Himself to the obtuse, accusational, and unbelieving rudeness of His own creation.

Even though the apostles faith was in themselves and their boat more than in Jesus, Jesus still calmed the storm because He loved them and He wanted them to know who He really was.

Hungry kids on long car rides illustration - We know they are hungry. It is frustrating that they don’t know by now that we will never let them starve. Even though we rebuke them, we still feed them because we love them.

I point this out because some of you listening to this in person or online might need to be encouraged in how much Jesus loves you and your family.

Even in the 2020 storm. Even if America is never the same again.

Jesus Christ will still be the same.

He will never not be our Savior and King.

No matter how divided our nation is, those who believe on Jesus Christ are still united in Him (Gal. 3:28). And that is true across political divides, racial divides, social divides, and so on.

And He will never not love you enough to go with you through the storms you face.

v. 40 - “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?”

The word, still, in Jesus’ rebuke indicates that Jesus had expected the apostles to be able to demonstrate a more mature faith by this time.

The faith that Jesus is referring to means faith in God’s saying power as it is present and active in the person of Jesus.

In other words, faith that all Jesus has to do is say the word and it will be done.

And if you think about it, that’s how Jesus usually displays His Power, isn’t it?

Through His words.

By His words the earth and everything in it was created.

By His words a plan of salvation was put in place when Adam and Eve sinned (Gen. 3:15)

By His words, His servants in the OT won battles as underdogs, often times not even actually fighting, but simply by obeying what God asked them to do.

By His words Jesus healed thousands upon thousands in His earthly ministry.

By His words the Centurion’s servant was healed. Jesus didn’t even see him in person

Matthew 8:5–13 ESV

5 When he had entered Capernaum, a centurion came forward to him, appealing to him, 6 “Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, suffering terribly.” 7 And he said to him, “I will come and heal him.” 8 But the centurion replied, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. 9 For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. And I say to one, ‘Go,’ and he goes, and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes, and to my servant, ‘Do this,’ and he does it.” 10 When Jesus heard this, he marveled and said to those who followed him, “Truly, I tell you, with no one in Israel have I found such faith. 11 I tell you, many will come from east and west and recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven, 12 while the sons of the kingdom will be thrown into the outer darkness. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” 13 And to the centurion Jesus said, “Go; let it be done for you as you have believed.” And the servant was healed at that very moment.

By His words, storms were calmed.

By His words, people came out of the graves and up from their death beds.

By His words on the cross, “It is finished” God’s wrath was satisfied through His sacrificial death and salvation was made possible for all who would believe in Him.

Our fears reveal where we are placing our faith, and wherever we place our faith, we will find our identity.

So, what are you afraid of right now today?

What is your fear revealing about where your faith is?

What is the location of your faith revealing about what you believe your identity is?

Our world today is identity obsessed, and the world wants to confuse you and frustrate you about your identity.

And look at our world now. Look at our country right now.

There’s one more phrase from this passage I want to show you:

Mark 4:36 ESV

36 And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him.

“Other boats were with him.”

There were other boats out in the lake during that storm. The Bible doesn’t tell us what happened to them. Either they made it through, they capsized, or they turned back around. That’s all that could have happened to them.

But here’s something encouraging that will hopefully give us strength and courage in our nation today.

Of all the boats out on the lake right now, in the midst of the storm of 2020, Jesus is in only one of them. He is in the boat with His children.

Jesus is in the boat with those who believe in Him.

Let that sink in.

And because there are other boats, it means there are witnesses to what happens in our boat.

There are witnesses to how we are responding right now.

The other boats are just as scared and frightened as we are.

Here’s the question:

When those other boats look at our boat, and they see us, do they see us seeing Jesus in our boat?

Or do they see us hiding from the waves and looking no different from them?

I think that this is an incredible in history right now.

And history is written by those who survive it, but also by those who witness it.

I believe that if the world, if those other boats, see us in this boat taking a nap with Jesus (so to speak), that is, not being afraid like they are afraid, that these other will witness something that they will never forget.

They won’t talk about the powerful storm, they’ll talk about the boat that made it through.

And when they do, they’ll have to admit that Jesus was on our boat.

But the only reason we will make it is because we will see our identity as being held secure in Jesus Christ, not dependent on the sturdiness of the boat we’re in, or the strength of our own abilities to row against the current.

Yes, we can be afraid.

And yes, we should be on our knees before Jesus pleading with Him for mercy for our nation, wisdom and humility for our leaders (no matter what their politics are by the way), and healing for us as a people.

But we should not, we cannot, let our fears blind us to the One who is in the boat with us,

The One who is our Hope

The One in whom we have our identity

The One, Jesus Christ.

So, I close this message with a question of application.

Its the same question Jesus asked His apostles in the boat.

Where is your faith?

I pray its in Christ Jesus. And if not, I pray that you will place your faith in Him today.

Thank you.