Sermon Tone Analysis

Intro

Peace is typically defined as an absence of conflict.

But I think there is even more to it.

Having true internal peace means we are not afraid right now and we have a strong belief that things will be OK going forward too.

Fear can stop people in their tracks.

It can keep you from getting out of bed.

It can keep you from walking out the door.

It can keep you from speaking to someone.

It can really be debilitating and keep people from moving forward in life - keeping them from doing things they want to do or even need to do.

Are you afraid this morning?

Coming to church can be a fearful thing for many people.

Fear about not doing or saying the right things.

Fear about being judged.

I’m really glad you had the courage to come out and worship with us.

Only the God who created us can provide peace and overcome our fears in the midst of uncertainty.

Series

We are continuing our sermon series from the Gospel of Mark titled The Crown & The Cross.

Jesus is presented as a man of decisive action with a clear message and mission, and the reader is called to actively response to the message.

Mark divides Jesus’ life into two parts: his identity as Messiah and King over all things in chapters 1-8a (the crown) and then we see His purpose in suffering and dying on the cross in chapters 8b-16.

Jesus drew people into the parables, imagining themselves in the story and compelling his listeners to respond to the events of the story by making a judgment about the characters and in doing that they realize that they must make a similar judgment in their own lives.

This morning the disciples are asked why they were so afraid in a storm and then why don’t you have faith?

Mark leaves those questions hanging for us.

Are you still afraid?

Who do you believe Jesus is?

Where is your faith?

Do you trust Jesus Christ to save you?

Pray

VIDEO

Let's Go! (vv.

35-36)

v. 35 So this was a really long day!

Jesus dealt with the scribes accusing him of being possessed by Satan.

The crowds were so big, that Jesus had to get into a boat and preach from there.

He shared a number of parables about sharing the Gospel, the Good News about God’s Kingdom and then explained about how just a tiny seed could grow into a tree big enough for shade and to house birds.

Now it’s evening or what we would call late afternoon and Jesus said “Let’s go across to the other side.”

v. 36 Leaving the crowd they left “just as he was.”

Jesus didn’t go back to shore to prepare anything.

There was a sense of urgency.

Jesus said “Let’s Go” and the disciples immediately responded by setting sail for the other side of the Sea (approximately 5 miles).

Several other boats followed them out into the deeper waters of the Sea of Galilee.

So far, the disciples are doing great.

They obeyed without question or needing to know where they were going or why.

Galilean Fishing Boat (First Century AD)

This was not a little two-person row boat or a even a bass tracker.

It was probably a 27’ fishing boat with a mast and two sets of oars.

It had room for fifteen people on board.

Back in 1986, the hull of a fishing boat was recovered from the mud on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee, about five miles south of Capernaum - where Jesus and many of his disciples lived.

The boat—26½ feet long, 7½ feet wide, and 4½ feet high—corresponds in design to a first-century mosaic of a Galilean boat preserved in Migdal only a mile from where the boat was discovered.

This matched the descriptions from the Bible and helped people understand the types of boats used in Jesus day.

So we have historical evidence that Jesus and the disciples would all fit together in one boat.

You can trust God’s Word to be true and accurate.

Asleep

v. 38 But Jesus was in the stern asleep on a cushion.

Q: What part of the boat is the stern?

A: The back.

A number of Bible scholars have compared the sleeping of Jesus on the stormy waters to the prophet Jonah.

Like Jesus, sleeping on the boat, Jonah was sleeping below deck while a huge storm raged outside.

The ship’s crew asked Jonah to pray to his God for deliverance.

The men on Jonah’s boat were saved from the storm only when Jonah was thrown overboard.

God calmed the seas and then provided a way for Jonah to be saved from the sea - God planned for Jonah to be swallowed up by a great fish for three days before being spit up on the shore.

But Jesus was able to control the storm himself without calling on anyone else for help.

He simply commanded the storm to stop and it did.

Jesus provided ultimate salvation by sacrificing Himself.

Jesus’ sleeping through the storm shows His complete confidence in God the Father.

In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.

Psalm 4:8

It is also one of many indications in Mark of his humanity.

He was tired after this really long day of ministry and he needed to rest.

We see his complete weakness and exhaustion.

This is in fact one of the few times the Gospels mention Jesus sleeping so we know it is purposeful.

Because when he is woken by the disciples he displays omnipotent power.

Here is God incarnate.

Fully human and fully God.

Don't You Care? (vv.

37-38)

A great wind storm rose up and the waves were breaking into the boat.

The Sea of Galilee is set in a bowl with high hills all around it.

The colder air of the mountains surrounding it clash with the warmer air rising from the lake and that produces violent weather.

The people who live there today explain that it is subject to sudden storms with high winds and waves.

An open fishing boat with low sides could easily be swamped and in danger of sinking.

Many of the disciples were experienced fishermen.

They knew when they were in trouble.

They feared for their lives.

The disciples woke Jesus up and said “Teacher, don’t you care that we are going to die?”

Each of the synoptic Gospels records Jesus words slightly differently.

Matthew softens the reproach to a prayer - Matthew 8:25 says "Save us Lord we are perishing."

Luke 8:24 to a plea for help.

The rudeness of Mark’s wording reflects the way frustrated and desperate people speak and is probably a verbatim reminiscence of the disciples’ response in the crisis.

Remember Mark wrote this Gospel from Peter’s first-hand knowledge.

Peter was there in the boat and he remembered how terrified they were.

It is probably the most honest.

Have you ever asked God if He cares?

The Psalms are filled with cries of Why is this happening God? Don’t You care?

Please God remember me and rescue me.

Peter learned this lesson well in that boat.

He encourages us in 1 Peter 5:7 to cast all our cares on Jesus, because He cares for you.

Peace!

Be Still! (v.

39)

Humanity has long recognized its inability to control the forces of nature and the elements.

Even today, when a powerful storm happens it is referred to as an act of God.

Cornell Law School’s definition of Act of God:

"At common law, an overwhelming event caused exclusively by natural forces whose effects could not possibly be prevented (e.g., flood, earthquake, tornado)."