On The Other Side

Title: On The Other Side

Story: Flying to California through a storm with the family

I’ve flown a million miles all around the world and I’ve yet to experience a storm quite like this one. I tried to stay calm, especially because I kept seeing my wife look over and check to see if I was nervous. I thought I was so calm, but then later she said “I knew when I saw you get nervous that this was really bad.” During the chaos I thought to myself, “What were the pilots thinking?! We should have never left that tarmac! We should have stayed landlocked baby till the storm had passed. Do they even care that my whole family is on this flight?!”

Passage: Mark 4:35-41

On that day, when evening had come, he told them, “Let’s cross over (everybody say “Cross Over”) to the other side of the sea.” 36 So they left the crowd and took him along since he was in the boat. And other boats were with him. 37 A great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking over the boat, so that the boat was already being swamped. 38 He was in the stern, sleeping on the cushion. So they woke him up and said to him, “Teacher! Don’t you care (everybody say “Don’t You Care?”) that we’re going to die?” 39 He got up, rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Silence! Be still!” The wind ceased, and there was a great calm. 40 Then he said to them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?” 41 And they were terrified and asked one another, “Who then is this? Even the wind and the sea obey him!”

Pray: (Pause 3-5 seconds)

Background:

What’s happened up to this point and what happened after?

After Jesus had finished teaching by the sea he told the disciples that he wanted to cross to the other side. They hopped in the boat and set sail across the Sea of Galilee. This body of water is about 700 feet below sea level and is surrounded by hills and mountains. The cool air from the mountain peaks along with the warm damp air from the Sea of Galilee would often cause violent and unexpected storms. The men on this boat though would be very familiar with these types of storms. They were seasoned fishermen and would often fish on this lake.

Types Of Storms:

1. We can cause our own storms

   1. “I don’t know what happened… I just kept spending money I didn’t have.”
   2. How many of you know it’s easy for us to cause a storm in our own lives?

   3. We can get caught in other people’s storms

   4. Jonah running from God and ending up in a boat where a storm arose. The storm that was meant for Jonah was affecting others around him. And all they needed to do was remove Jonah from their situation and the seas would calm down. That’ll preach. Different sermon, different day. :)

   5. We can go through storms as a result of obedience to God

   6. This is where I would like to linger for our time together.

   7. Illust: starting the journey of church planting

      1. There’s a few reasons I believe this is the case. The enemy is obviously going to ramp up the attack if he sees life change and revival. He doesn’t want that! He’s going to work overtime to shut that down. But I also believe that there are many lessons to be learned that can only be understood in times of suffering and desperation.
      2. We’ve had our vehicle stolen - experiences God as our provider
      3. Been to the hospital more times in the last year than in the last 10 years - witness God as the ultimate physician.
      4. Experienced moments of depression and anxiety - felt the overwhelming peace and comfort from God
      5. Walked through deep loss as a family and with friends - felt God as sovereign and patient in my wondering
      6. Don’t miss the opportunity in the storm to discover a deeper level of God’s faithfulness in and on your life!
      7. But wait… aren’t you obeying God?! I want to take the next few minutes and see how the storm can produce more faith, comfort, security, and peace in your life more than any success ever could.

Main Points: Why does God allow us to go through a storm?

1. Gives us a desperation for His presence

   1. In life, how often are you perfectly content and fine doing certain things that you are “good” at without God, but then when things become too much you become desperate? OK GOD! I need you now! Help! Many of the men on this boat were professional fishermen that were quite familiar with sailing and this body of water, yet this storm sent them in desperation.

   2. Illust: Ryan setting our front yard on fire

      1. I could imagine Ryan is out there frantically trying to put out the fire that is spreading rapidly toward our newly finished cedar cabin in the woods! It wasn’t until he came RUNNING in yelling “DAD! COME QUICK!” That he found peace and assurance that everything was going to be ok.

      2. I came out and frantically ran to the water hose to put the fire out. But in his eyes, everything was going to be ok, dad’s here. Unlike me, Jesus is not frantically going to run out and try to solve the problem, Jesus says “peace, be still”. He alone has all the power and authority to calm the raging sea and still the chaos in our lives and hearts.

         3. Just because there is a presence of a storm does not mean there is an absence of your God.

      3. He is with you. If he is Lord of your life, then He is on your boat. And He wants to hear your cries for help.

      4. Notice he doesn’t rebuke them for waking him up, he gently rebukes their faith. “How did they not think I could calm this storm?” “Why did they think they were going to die, did they forget my promise?”

      5. Gives us a demonstration of His power

         1. The disciples had been with Jesus and had seen his power demonstrated in a variety of ways, they witnessed him healing the sick, forgiving sins, and casting out demons, yet they doubted his power in their current situation.

      6. How many times have we seen God move in our lives, in so many different ways, but then a moment comes and we’re like “not sure if he’s got this one.”

         2. Taking responsibility is different than taking control. The disciples could have tried to harness their knowledge, experience, and expertise all through the night, but then they would have missed God's power!

      7. Many of you are feeling tired and exhausted because for far too long you’ve relied on your ability and knowledge to carry you through when I’m telling you, God’s got a miracle if you would simply cry out to Him!

      8. Seek me and you will… find me. Knock and it will be... opened!
      9. Come to me all who are weary and heavy laden and I will give you…. Rest!
         3. Without the problem, you don’t see His power. You don’t feel His comfort! You don’t experience His Salvation!
         4. “You rule the raging sea; when its waves surge, you still them.” Psalm 89:9 CSB
         5. “Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and he brought them out of their distress.” Psalm 107:28 CSB
         6. “But mightier than the violent raging of the seas, mightier than the breakers of the shore - the Lord above is mightier than these!” Psalm 93:4 NLT

      10. Gives us a dependence in His promises

          1. When you are in the middle of the storm you have two options;

      11. Give in to fear and assume that Jesus no longer cares

      12. Cling to the promises and character of God and cry out to Him in faith.

          2. God is not as concerned with the storm around you as He is with the faith inside you.
          3. “Our greatest problems are within us, not around us.” - Warren Wiersbe

      13. This explains why Jesus gently rebuked their lack of faith.

      14. Illust: Peter later in the narrative
          4. Even though they had witnessed his power demonstrated over and over again, they still doubted His ability to rescue them in their darkest hour.
          5. Our circumstances often cause us to doubt His faithfulness, but His promises are trustworthy and worthy of our full dependence.

Closing:

If you’re here tonight and you’re in a storm. Look to Jesus! He’s not absent from your situation, He hasn’t bailed on you in the trials, He’s right there and He wants you to cry out to Him in desperation!

What if Jesus is resting in His storm, to demonstrate to you that you can rest in your storm? He was not only sleeping, some translations say that He was sleeping on a pillow! In the eye of the storm, keep your eyes on your Savior.

I pray that you too can find rest in your storm, feel the presence of Jesus, witness His power on display, and cling to His promises.

Invitation.

Let’s pray.