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Christ Rules! (8) Peace, Be Still!
Christ
Rules! Gospel of Mark Series
A Sermon
from Mark 4:35-5:20 by Jim Hammond
OUTLINE:
Focus:
Jesus is the sovereign ruler who is able to conquer hostile
powers. He has power over
wind and sea (Mark 4:35-41), demons and death (5:1-43).
Consequently he has the power to restore peace to our lives.
Step into the presence of the Lord of Life and Peace.
I.
Christ Rules Over the EXTERNAL STORM
A.
Peace Or Panic
B.
Depends on FAITH or FEAR
C.
The Important Question
II.
Christ Rules Over the INTERNAL STORM
INTRO: Professor
Davies of Australia was a recipient of the Templeton Prize for progress
in religion. He had much to say about how little threat science is to
Christian belief. And yet, in his book, he also says that if the
Christian faith is to be credible to modern people, we have got to get
over the notion of an "interventionist God," that is a God who
hears, cares, and acts for our good.
I disagree.
Professor Davies Hospital Call
Let’s just imagine that professor Davies goes on a Hospital Call
visiting an old, very sick woman in the hospital. He asks her, upon
leaving, "What would you like me to pray for today?"
With her last ounce of energy she replies, "That God will make
me well."
He sighs, then decides tactfully to pray, "Lord, if it be thy
will we pray that this sick sister might be healed. On the other hand,
if it is not thy will, we pray that she might be given a positive
attitude, a willingness to accept her situation. Amen."
Soon as he finished his prayer, her eyes open. She sits up in bed,
throws her feet over the side, stands up, and says, "I'm well. I
really think I'm well."
She bounds out of the room and heads for the nurses' station
shouting, "Look at me! I'm well."
Then young Davies stumbles out of the room, heads out of the
hospital, into the parking lot. Before he pulls out his key to unlock
his car, he looks up and says, "Don't you ever do that to
me again!"
I believe we serve a God who rules!
And I think he enjoys showing us who is in charge.
Sometimes he shows us one way and sometimes another.
But I strongly disagree with Professor Davies.
I DO believe in an interventionist God who hears, cares, and acts
for our good. Sometimes the
Lord calms the storm. Sometimes he lets the storm rage and calms his
child. But when we call upon him he does hear, he does care, and he
will bring something about for our good.
I believe that sometimes God is working on the greater
miracle—the calming of us during a storm—because that has a greater
long term impact. But that
doesn’t mean he always acts just how we want him to and when we want
him to. He is still in
charge, not me.
Traveling in the Boat With Jesus is not always smooth sailing!
If you don’t think God is active today you have missed the boat.
However having said that the bible and experience tells us that
traveling in the boat with Jesus is not always smooth sailing!
No sooner than you jump in the boat with Jesus, storms will hit.
We are going to look at how this took place with the disciples,
but before we do. Consider
the storms of life that have hit you.
Don’t you agree it hasn’t been smooth sailing?
Some of you have been hit with antagonism when
family members, or friends, or coworkers ridicule you for your faith.
Some of you have been hit with a storm called Cancer.
Some of you have been hit with a stormy relationship and you’ve
been served divorce papers, even after you did everything you knew how
to do to avoid divorce. Some
of you have been through the storms of grief when you lost a loved one.
Let me ask those of you who have been hit the hardest, does God
hear, does he care, does he act for your good?
Some of you nod your head yes, and some of you remember the
feelings of doubt and fear and frustration through it all.
Maybe some of you are going through that frustration now.
Maybe right now you feel like God doesn’t seem to
care? Maybe right now
it seems like God is asleep in the helm?
Maybe right now you are terrified about the prospects for the
immediate future? Maybe
right now you are frustrated because you have cried out in pain and
despair, and received nothing in reply?
You wonder, Is there anyone up there who cares about us down
here? If you are feeling
any of these thoughts, or someday when you do.
Today’s message is for you.
Today we will look at the time the disciples jumped
into the boat with Jesus and were surprised by a storm.
They asked Jesus the hard question, “Teacher, Don’t you care
if we drown!?” And they
were surprised at the response.
I. Christ Rules Over
the External Storm (God
Hears, God Cares, God Responds for our good)
(Mark
4:35-41 NIV) "That day
when evening came, he said to his disciples, "Let us go over to the
other side." {36} Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along,
just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. {37}
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?" {39} He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves,
"Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was
completely calm. {40} He said to his disciples, "Why are you so
afraid? Do you still have no faith?" {41} They were terrified and
asked each other, "Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey
him!""
A.
Peace Or Panic
{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?"
The violent winds whip the sea into a fury, causing high waves
that splash over bow and side rails. The craft, swamped by towering
billows, was waterlogged, a toy of the raging elements.
The winds were howling and the waves were raging loudly pitching
and tossing the boat..."But Jesus was in the stern asleep." There are 3 ways to wake up a person. Noise, shaking, water. His
sleeping shows us two things. 1.
His Exhaustion. How
very tired he must have been, and 2.
His peace. How trusting he was of his Heavenly Father.
The disciples should not be panicking.
Why not? Where is
the safest place in the world to be? In the boat where Jesus was!
The boat is the safest place in the world to be.
Yet, Storms Surprise Us
The
unexpected happens
A little bird was flying south for the
winter. It got so cold it froze up and fell to the ground in a large
field. While it was lying there, a cow came by and dropped some manure
on it. As it lay there in the pile of manure, it began to realize how
warm it was. The manure was actually thawing him out! He lay there all
warm and happy, and soon began to sing for joy. A passing cat heard the
little bird singing, and came to investigate. Following the sound, the
cat discovered the bird under the pile of manure, and promptly dug him
out—and then ate him.
The morals of the story are:
1. Not everyone who drops manure on you is
your enemy.
2. Not everyone who digs you out of a pile
of manure is your friend.
3. When you’re in the
manure, keep your mouth shut, or make sure you know who’s listening.[i]
Storms Surprise Us
Storms Rock the Boat
Storms Threaten to drown us.
Storms are those circumstances that are out of our
control. That’s why they
are frightening. But
remember this. They may be
out of our control, but they are NOT out of Christ’s
Control.
Christ Rules over the storm. We are going to look at two storms today.
An external storm, and an Internal Storm.
One will emphasize the natural, the other the supernatural.
But in both cases we will see that the external storm affects the
internal, and even the natural is NOT without the supernatural.
The first storm is the external storm on the sea.
The second storm was when Jesus came across the sea, when he met
a supernatural storm within a man, the Gerasene
Demoniac. A storm
raged within him, internally. A
Legion of demons caused an internal storm that drove this man mad.
I am convinced that though things seem out of
control during a storm, and we are tempted like the disciples to say “Don’t
you care?”. When we
turn to Jesus, and if he is in our boat He does hear, He does care,
and he does act for our good. But
events in life are not always as I would expect or hope.
I find Christ to be one who speaks peace to my storms whether
they are external and out of my control, or internal; whether they are
natural, or supernatural.
Natural Or Supernatural
It is interesting that the word Jesus uses to address the wind
and the waves is the very same word used to describe Jesus' words to the
demon- possessed man 1:25 "Be Quiet"!
It is more interesting that Mark describes his words to the storm
as a "Rebuke".
I don’t know about
you, but I don’t usually rebuke inanimate objects.
The thing is, these objects, the wind and waves, were animated,
they were empowered. There
were forces behind them attempting to destroy Jesus and his disciples.
Jesus addresses the sea as a "force" threatening him
and his disciples. Scripture teaches us that nature is God's creation and He is
Sovereign over it. However,
it also teaches us that nature itself is also the victim of sin and the
fall. Let me suggest to you
that some “Natural Disasters” are only “natural” in the sense
that they fit the pattern of a fallen world, in rebellion against
God’s will. Perhaps some
“natural disasters” might even have forces behind them that should
even today be rebuked. Perhaps
only the spiritually discerning can distinguish between natural and
supernatural disasters. Just
leave that question as an open ended possibility for now.
Don’t look for a demon behind every natural disaster.
Who Can Change the Weather?
Much that is wrong on earth can be corrected. There are mothers
who dry tears, repairmen who fix machines, surgeons who remove diseased
tissues, counselors who solve family problems, etc..
As to correcting the weather?
People talk about it, but it takes deity to change the weather. Jesus commanded the elements of the weather, with the result
that even the wind obeys him, and so does even the sea.
The
calming of the storm was a powerful image for Christians from the start.
It is not surprising that in early Christian art the Church was
depicted as a boat on a
stormy sea. With Jesus in
the boat, there was nothing to fear.
Persecution was viewed by these early Christians as storms raging
against the boat.
"Have you STILL no
faith?"
The word "Still" teaches us that the experiences of life are
sent to men with a purpose. They
must be used to good advantage, for growth.
His sovereign power over the elements should teach them they can
trust him. He can save them
from the sea, He can save them from death.
He can save them. Don't
they see? Have they still no faith? We
need to learn from answered prayer.
We need to let our faith grow so that we are not fearful the next
time.
STORMS HAVE A PURPOSE. EXPERIENCE
HAS A PURPOSE. THESE MUST
BE USED TO GOOD ADVANTAGE FOR GROWTH.
WE MUST LEARN THAT WE CAN TRUST HIM.
- LEARN
TO TRUST THE 4 ANCHORS
4 Anchors (Based on Andrew Murray’s formula for trial)
1.
I AM here by God’s appointment. He brought me here. It is by His will I am in this place
and in that fact I will rest.
2.
I AM in His keeping.
He will keep me here in His love and give me grace to behave
as His child
3.
I AM under His training. He will make the trial a blessing, teaching me the lessons He
intends for me to learn.
4.
I AM for His time--In His good time He can bring me out
again—how and when He knows
B.
Depends On Faith or Fear
Where is Your
Faith?
IT USUALLY
takes a storm to discover where you place your faith.
Where is your faith placed?
In the boat? In your
circumstances? In the
weather? In the security of your home to keep the weather out?
Is it In the security of your bank account to keep the financial
storm out? Is it in the
security of your insurance policies to keep disaster out?
Is your faith in your exercise program to keep you healthy? What
happens when one little storm cracks that superficial picture of
security? It can happen
just as suddenly as a Galilean storm.
All it takes is one little storm to find out where your faith is.
I hope the Son of God doesn't have to say to you, "you of
little faith". On the
other hand, I hope there is a little faith for you, at least enough to
take you away from the fear that will destroy that faith.
The storm is but a little matter.
What is a storm when you have Jesus in the boat with you?
But God
I know not, but God knows;
Oh, blessed rest from fear!
All my unfolding days
To Him are plain and clear.
Each anxious, puzzled
“Why?”
From doubt or dread that grows,
Finds answer in this thought:
I know not, but He knows.
I cannot, but God can;
Oh, balm for all my care!
The burden that I drop
His hand will lift and bear.
Though eagle pinions tire,
I walk where once I ran,
This is my strength to know
I cannot, but He can.
I see not, but God sees;
Oh, all sufficient light!
My dark and hidden way
To Him is always bright.
My strained and peering
eyes
May close in restful ease,
And I in peace may sleep;
I see not, but He sees.
-Annie Johnson Flint[ii]
2 things to Remember: If
you are with Jesus: 1)
"The boat will not sink, 2)
and the storm will not last forever."
FEAR CAUSES A Dry-Docked Faith
How many of us have voluntarily dry-docked our
faith? How many of us keep land-locked for safety's sake? If a few of us
do venture out on the water, it is usually only to paddle about in the
shallows -- afraid to sail too far away from land, where the current
might grab us and take us off in unknown directions. What are we afraid
of? While the disciples did have the advantage of witnessing firsthand
the power of Jesus to heal, they did not yet have the experience of
witnessing Christ's death and resurrection to buoy up their courage.
C. The Important
Question
They are led to the question,
"Who is this" or "What kind of man is this". The narrative ends with the attention focused NOT on the
storm NOR upon the miracle, but upon Jesus Christ himself. The Question "who is this" is not answered.
Everyone who reads it may give his own answer, may profess his
own faith, and add his own doxology.
--"who is
this man"? This is THE
important question. What is
your answer to this question? Your
answer to this question will make all the difference for you in the
storms now, in the storms in the future, in the great storm to come, and
on Judgment day? If your
answer is "This man is the Son of God" then you need to make a
decision to follow Him. Have
you ever made that decision? Have
you ever made it public? I
invite you to make that decision today.
II.
Christ Rules Over the Internal Storm
(Mark
5:1-20 NIV) "They went
across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes. {2} When Jesus got out
of the boat, a man with an evil spirit came from the tombs to meet him.
{3} This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him any more, not
even with a chain. {4} For he had often been chained hand and foot, but
he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was
strong enough to subdue him. {5} Night and day among the tombs and in
the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones. {6} When he saw
Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him. {7}
He shouted at the top of his voice, "What do you want with me,
Jesus, Son of the Most High God? Swear to God that you won't torture
me!" {8} For Jesus had said to him, "Come out of this man, you
evil spirit!" {9} Then Jesus asked him, "What is your
name?" "My name is Legion," he replied, "for we are
many." {10} And he begged Jesus again and again not to send them
out of the area. {11} A large herd of pigs was feeding on the nearby
hillside. {12} The demons begged Jesus, "Send us among the pigs;
allow us to go into them." {13} He gave them permission, and the
evil spirits came out and went into the pigs. The herd, about two
thousand in number, rushed down the steep bank into the lake and were
drowned. {14} Those tending the pigs ran off and reported this in the
town and countryside, and the people went out to see what had happened.
{15} When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by
the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and
they were afraid. {16} Those who had seen it told the people what
had happened to the demon-possessed man--and told about the pigs as
well. {17} Then the people began to plead with Jesus to leave their
region. {18} As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been
demon-possessed begged to go with him. {19} Jesus did not let him, but
said, "Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has
done for you, and how he has had mercy on you." {20} So the man
went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for
him. And all the people were amazed."
[i]
Source unknown. I got it from http://www.bible.org/illus/s/s-202.htm#TopOfPage
[ii] Source unknown I got it
from http://www.bible.org/illus/f/f-05.htm#TopOfPage
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