WEBVTT 00:00:00.080 --> 00:00:01.760 I'm going to invite you to John chapter six together. 00:00:01.760 --> 00:00:03.910 We're going to be in John 6 this morning. 00:00:04.320 --> 00:00:08.180 As we dive into this text, I want to just set the tone for where this is going. 00:00:08.180 --> 00:00:11.620 This is a very powerful passage, but we're only going to look at a few verses today. 00:00:11.760 --> 00:00:15.880 We're going to look at in verse 16 to verse 21 of John chapter six. 00:00:16.180 --> 00:00:23.340 Jesus is doing something significant here for the lives of the disciples, which has implication and application for our lives as followers of 00:00:23.440 --> 00:00:24.100 Jesus as well. 00:00:24.480 --> 00:00:27.280 Very important story, but just a few verses take place here. 00:00:27.820 --> 00:00:35.120 If you want to read some of the other Gospel accounts of this story we're about to dive into, it's recorded again in 00:00:35.120 --> 00:00:38.800 Matthew chapter 14 and in Mark chapter six. 00:00:39.300 --> 00:00:43.320 In fact, Matthew and Mark go a little bit further into the story than what John does. 00:00:43.580 --> 00:00:50.290 John gives us a surface level explanation of this story, but there is a lot to glean from what John communicates to us. 00:00:50.800 --> 00:00:58.420 When you look into the Gospels, it's interesting how Jesus' miracles work through the Gospels. 00:00:58.460 --> 00:01:05.600 We know in studying this together, every miracle that Jesus performs isn't an end in itself, but to ultimately point us to something greater, and that 00:01:05.600 --> 00:01:11.770 is what rests within him, the purpose of his coming into this world and his identity and what it means for us. 00:01:12.020 --> 00:01:14.020 Jesus intentionally performs miracles. 00:01:14.040 --> 00:01:15.410 There's a purpose to his miracles. 00:01:16.120 --> 00:01:20.200 When you study Jesus' miracles, a couple of ways that comes across in the Gospels. 00:01:20.540 --> 00:01:27.060 There are some miracles that Jesus performs where it looks like Jesus allows the circumstance to come to him. 00:01:27.060 --> 00:01:30.760 And then when that circumstance comes to him, he performs the miracle. 00:01:30.900 --> 00:01:34.650 One example would be the wedding of Canaan when they ran out of wine. 00:01:35.200 --> 00:01:40.040 His mother comes and tells Jesus and Jesus performs the miracle of the water turned to wine. 00:01:40.080 --> 00:01:42.180 The need arose and Jesus performed it. 00:01:42.540 --> 00:01:48.280 There's other miracles that Jesus performs where Jesus seems more intentional in the way that he pursues after it. 00:01:48.280 --> 00:01:51.460 And what I mean is when Jesus goes to the woman at the well. 00:01:52.080 --> 00:01:59.080 The way it's described in John Four, Jesus says, "I need and I must go here." So it's saying to us that this is something Jesus 00:01:59.080 --> 00:02:03.720 does intentionally and Jesus pursued this intentionally. 00:02:03.800 --> 00:02:08.430 He said there is a need for him to be there and so that's when they make the journey to meet the woman at the well. 00:02:08.759 --> 00:02:10.039 Jesus had a divine appointment. 00:02:10.080 --> 00:02:17.080 So when you look at these miracles, there are some that the circumstance brings about Jesus performs the miracles, and there's other miracles you see 00:02:17.080 --> 00:02:20.200 Jesus to where he's intentionally pursuing that moment. 00:02:20.200 --> 00:02:25.520 When you read about the miracles on water, there's two different miracles discussed about on water. 00:02:25.600 --> 00:02:29.670 The first is in Matthew Eight where Jesus is on the boat with his disciples. 00:02:29.900 --> 00:02:30.950 You might remember the story. 00:02:31.560 --> 00:02:36.860 Jesus is asleep, the disciples are freaking out, and Jesus wakes up and he calms the sea. 00:02:37.340 --> 00:02:43.800 And so there's one of those miracles that Jesus performs where the circumstance arose and Jesus stills the water. 00:02:44.320 --> 00:02:51.700 When you read this miracle, this miracle is more the intentional type the way it's described in the Gospels, 00:02:51.740 --> 00:02:58.330 where Jesus actually calls his disciples to go into the water knowing there's going to be a storm. 00:02:58.900 --> 00:03:01.600 Now, the big question would be, why? 00:03:02.900 --> 00:03:05.060 Why would you do that? 00:03:05.120 --> 00:03:12.480 And that's where we pick up in the story in the Gospel of John chapter six in verse 16, "When 00:03:12.480 --> 00:03:19.860 the evening came, his disciples went down to the sea." Now you look at this and you'll say, "Okay, I don't see Jesus necessarily 00:03:19.860 --> 00:03:27.040 sending his disciples into the sea to confront a storm." The disciples, it says in this verse, are certainly going to 00:03:27.040 --> 00:03:30.580 the sea, but the question we could pose here is, what else would the disciples be doing? 00:03:30.600 --> 00:03:37.720 If all of the disciples are together and they're going somewhere, when you read the Gospels, the disciples aren't coming about just these ideas on 00:03:37.720 --> 00:03:38.180 their own. 00:03:38.760 --> 00:03:45.860 Jesus is the one guiding the disciples and Jesus tells the disciples to go in the sea, and Jesus knows all things and Jesus knows the storm's 00:03:45.860 --> 00:03:46.260 coming. 00:03:46.260 --> 00:03:48.160 Nevertheless, he tells his disciples to go there. 00:03:48.820 --> 00:03:54.440 Now, if you were to read this account in other Gospels, they share that information in more a detailed way. 00:03:54.440 --> 00:03:57.660 John implies it, the disciples are going somewhere. 00:03:57.660 --> 00:04:02.020 Obviously, if the disciples are going somewhere, Jesus told the disciples as a group to go to this place. 00:04:02.720 --> 00:04:05.040 But in Mark, he actually says it in verse 45. 00:04:05.040 --> 00:04:12.200 "And immediately Jesus and his disciples get into the boat and go ahead of him to the other side." So Jesus 00:04:12.200 --> 00:04:17.519 tells his disciples, "Get in the boat, go to the other side to Bethsaida," while he himself dismissed the crowd. 00:04:18.880 --> 00:04:23.380 So if you remember, we left off Jesus feeding the 5,000. 00:04:23.480 --> 00:04:27.790 Right after they get done feeding the 5,000 Jesus tells the disciples, "Get in the boat. 00:04:28.180 --> 00:04:29.140 Go to the other side. 00:04:29.300 --> 00:04:34.900 I'm going up on the mountain to pray." So Jesus leaves his disciples all alone to go into the storm. 00:04:35.380 --> 00:04:40.180 And you look at this and we can say to ourselves, "Jesus, this is not easy. 00:04:40.660 --> 00:04:47.880 Why would you send your disciples into the storm?" 00:04:49.200 --> 00:04:56.900 Well, as we read a little bit further, we're going to see the answer to that question as to why the disciples were led here by Jesus. 00:04:57.400 --> 00:05:04.560 But John chapter six, when we started this chapter, it already gave a hint for this story as to why Jesus would do this based on the other story. 00:05:05.600 --> 00:05:12.700 If you remember when John chapter six starts, Jesus feeding the 5,000, the question he poses to the disciples before they feed 00:05:12.700 --> 00:05:19.960 the 5,000 is, "Where are you going to get enough food to feed these people?" And the disciples start to speculate 00:05:19.960 --> 00:05:24.200 a little bit, freak out a little bit over just the amount of people and how in the world they could possibly do this. 00:05:25.040 --> 00:05:32.220 And Jesus tells us in John chapter six, verse five and six that he's asking this question to test his 00:05:32.220 --> 00:05:33.120 disciples. 00:05:34.620 --> 00:05:41.760 And all we see within this story is Jesus is amplifying the need or the means by which 00:05:41.760 --> 00:05:43.380 he's testing his disciples. 00:05:43.920 --> 00:05:48.290 We'll talk a little bit more as to why Jesus would do this as we unfold, but let's talk about you for a minute. 00:05:49.360 --> 00:05:55.580 Why would Jesus have this story for us within this Gospel account? 00:05:56.280 --> 00:05:58.740 Well, a couple of things I'll say here. 00:06:00.760 --> 00:06:08.520 Some of us are really good at learning life lessons from other people's experience. 00:06:09.860 --> 00:06:13.240 And some of us are a little more stubborn than others. 00:06:13.820 --> 00:06:20.620 So some of us can look at a story and we can glean everything that we need to know about that story and be good with that story. 00:06:21.080 --> 00:06:28.600 Others, like maybe your pastor, is better at bumping their head against the ceiling and learning from their own mistakes, and then 00:06:28.600 --> 00:06:31.130 looking back at the story and saying, "Oh, you know what? 00:06:31.280 --> 00:06:38.400 Jesus talks about this." And I'll find some comfort in seeing that while I may learn a little bit more stubborn than others, that I 00:06:38.400 --> 00:06:43.600 see how God showed a similar story in the lives of his disciples that I can relate to here. 00:06:43.700 --> 00:06:51.320 But either way, God wants you to learn something about him in the nature of what's expressed in this story for how you live your life in light of 00:06:51.320 --> 00:06:53.660 Jesus as you journey with him. 00:06:53.800 --> 00:06:54.520 Verse 17. 00:06:56.240 --> 00:07:00.920 "And after getting into the boat, they started to cross the Sea to Capernaum. 00:07:01.900 --> 00:07:08.360 It had already become dark and Jesus had not yet come to them."Let me just say this real quick, in case you caught it. 00:07:08.780 --> 00:07:10.030 Jesus tells them to go to Capernaum. 00:07:10.620 --> 00:07:14.920 But in the verse that I just quoted out of Mark, Jesus tells them that they're going to Bethsaida. 00:07:15.520 --> 00:07:22.780 So you can look at that and be like, "Why in Mark in this story is he saying going to Bethsaida but here in this story he's talking about going to Capernaum?" Well, when you look at 00:07:23.020 --> 00:07:30.100 the Sea of Galilee on a map, what you see is Capernaum really is the first town that they can come to on the shore of the Sea of Galilee and Bethsaida is toward 00:07:30.100 --> 00:07:31.440 the North East a little bit. 00:07:31.520 --> 00:07:37.860 So they're going to journey into land, but to get to that place in the land, they've got to stop at a port or a town. 00:07:38.180 --> 00:07:40.960 So they go to Capernaum in order to head to Bethsaida. 00:07:42.340 --> 00:07:50.260 And when you read this story, it tells you, "It had already become dark and Jesus had not yet come to them." This 00:07:50.260 --> 00:07:57.300 is where, based on how this is playing out, the story's playing out, that you would cue the eerie music and the omens about to take place. 00:07:57.340 --> 00:08:03.560 You can add your own voice inflection to this to see maybe how the attitude of the disciples are during this moment. 00:08:04.020 --> 00:08:07.090 It's in the middle of the night and Jesus is a [inaudible 00:08:06] and it's dark outside. 00:08:07.820 --> 00:08:12.780 They're starting it, "And we're really scared." That's how it comes across in verse 17. 00:08:12.780 --> 00:08:14.180 And then it builds verse 18. 00:08:14.180 --> 00:08:21.260 "In addition, the sea began getting rough because a strong wind was blowing." 00:08:22.500 --> 00:08:29.700 A strong wind on land is bad enough, strong wind on sea, and especially first century sea 00:08:29.700 --> 00:08:31.730 in a boat. 00:08:31.960 --> 00:08:33.200 That's no good. 00:08:33.370 --> 00:08:35.000 Who's going there? 00:08:35.000 --> 00:08:35.860 That's not for me. 00:08:35.880 --> 00:08:36.400 Is it for you? 00:08:36.659 --> 00:08:43.799 I've seen the way the waves build in the wind in Utah Lake and I'm 00:08:43.799 --> 00:08:44.820 not interested in that. 00:08:44.840 --> 00:08:52.040 I mean, you ever wonder when you look at the Sea of Galilee, you just look at a picture of it and you're like, "They call it a sea, but these people apparently 00:08:52.040 --> 00:08:56.340 don't know that this is obviously a lake." This is not a sea, this is a lake. 00:08:56.340 --> 00:08:59.200 We have geographical problems here with the way that they're labeling things. 00:08:59.820 --> 00:09:06.940 The reason it's believed that they called it the Sea of Galilee is because waves can really kick up on this body 00:09:06.940 --> 00:09:14.120 of water, and the way that the waves crashing on the shore makes a loud noise just like the sea, and so it's been dubbed by 00:09:14.120 --> 00:09:16.340 that name the Sea of Galilee. 00:09:19.140 --> 00:09:26.160 When you think about waves, and especially if you're driving in a first century boat, a 00:09:26.160 --> 00:09:31.500 storm could easily keep you from where do you want to go. 00:09:33.240 --> 00:09:35.030 It can blow you off course. 00:09:35.420 --> 00:09:37.560 It can put hurdles in front of you. 00:09:37.660 --> 00:09:44.740 In fact, in my nerdy dad way, I just decided to dub this storm, in our 00:09:44.740 --> 00:09:52.260 country when there's a hurricane that's hitting land we like to talk about the name of the storm, I've called this the Paula 00:09:52.260 --> 00:09:54.460 Abdul Storm. 00:09:54.520 --> 00:09:57.400 This is the two steps forward, two steps back kind of a thing. 00:09:57.400 --> 00:10:04.560 These disciples are trying to get where they need to go and they definitely have what Jesus told them to do, but they can't seem to get there 00:10:04.560 --> 00:10:08.280 because the waves they're just too much in this storm. 00:10:09.260 --> 00:10:15.670 And this storm no doubt is intended to be a really a metaphorical storm for us and we make the application to our lives. 00:10:16.860 --> 00:10:23.860 And some of you think when you read this storm and we try to relate the story to what's going on in our lives, some of you have just gotten out of a 00:10:23.860 --> 00:10:24.340 storm. 00:10:25.600 --> 00:10:27.620 Some of you feel like you're in the middle of the storm. 00:10:27.640 --> 00:10:30.780 Some of you might see the clouds gathering to create a storm. 00:10:32.640 --> 00:10:34.920 We think about this storms in our lives. 00:10:34.920 --> 00:10:35.830 It can be parenting. 00:10:36.840 --> 00:10:37.570 It can be marriage. 00:10:38.320 --> 00:10:39.780 It can be your job. 00:10:40.060 --> 00:10:41.960 It can be your health. 00:10:43.020 --> 00:10:46.700 And if you aren't in one now, storms come. 00:10:49.300 --> 00:10:54.160 Storms come and Jesus is teaching us about our relationship to him in light of a storm. 00:10:56.020 --> 00:10:59.360 And I don't want to minimize or downplay the battle. 00:10:59.360 --> 00:11:03.540 When you read this, Jesus wants us to certainly know it's a big storm. 00:11:03.860 --> 00:11:05.310 It's a big problem. 00:11:06.290 --> 00:11:07.020 So what do you do? 00:11:08.620 --> 00:11:12.670 And why would Jesus lead his disciples here knowing it's going to happen. 00:11:13.440 --> 00:11:20.120 Verse 19, "Then when they had rowed about 25 or 30 stadia," let's just stop right there. 00:11:20.120 --> 00:11:21.240 Let's talk about this for a minute. 00:11:21.720 --> 00:11:23.340 They ride 25 or 30 stadia. 00:11:23.380 --> 00:11:31.000 I don't know about you, yesterday, I decided, it was a really nice day, I really went out and I went jogging and then I went on a bike ride, but 00:11:31.000 --> 00:11:33.720 never did I describe it to my wife has, "Honey, I'm heading out. 00:11:33.720 --> 00:11:39.570 I'm going to take some stadia around this place." When's the last time you did a stadia? 00:11:40.080 --> 00:11:42.960 But a stadia is one eighth of a mile. 00:11:43.400 --> 00:11:48.360 So when you do the math, what you find is the disciples rode three to four miles. 00:11:48.460 --> 00:11:55.560 In fact, the other Gospel accounts tell us that in the middle of the storm to go three or four miles, you've got to think, to fight against this current 00:11:55.560 --> 00:11:58.760 and this wind, to go three to four miles, that's pretty significant. 00:12:00.360 --> 00:12:03.700 These guys that tell us in the other Gospel accounts, they do this all night. 00:12:04.940 --> 00:12:05.840 I think about that. 00:12:06.410 --> 00:12:10.900 Some of us woke up this morning, you're thinking, "Wrestle my toddler to church, walk 100 feet. 00:12:10.900 --> 00:12:11.560 Ah, no thanks. 00:12:11.560 --> 00:12:15.160 I tap out." We don't even want to do that sometimes, so depending on how the morning goes. 00:12:15.400 --> 00:12:22.560 And these guys Jesus is calling are willing to journey three to four miles in the middle of a storm and still not 00:12:22.560 --> 00:12:24.160 get to where they need to go. 00:12:24.160 --> 00:12:24.750 This is exhausting. 00:12:25.460 --> 00:12:31.390 And if you're going to put your money on somebody, it's got to be the fishermen that fish in the Sea of Galilee. 00:12:31.460 --> 00:12:34.340 If anybody can do it, these guys can do it. 00:12:34.520 --> 00:12:42.060 But what we're discovering in the story is Jesus wants us to see that some storms, some 00:12:42.060 --> 00:12:44.110 storms are beyond your ability to control. 00:12:46.540 --> 00:12:53.900 And I think that this story is especially relevant for planners, which sometimes is code for control freak. 00:12:54.720 --> 00:13:01.960 I'm a planner and Jesus wants you to see that some storms, they're 00:13:01.960 --> 00:13:02.960 beyond your control. 00:13:03.020 --> 00:13:10.040 But to be honest, when it comes to following Jesus, you've got to get to 00:13:10.040 --> 00:13:13.010 the end of yourself before you really get anywhere with him. 00:13:14.860 --> 00:13:20.360 I mean, it's not until you really see your need for Jesus that you embrace Jesus for who he is. 00:13:22.780 --> 00:13:26.800 There are plenty of people in the world that look at Jesus and just label him a good teacher. 00:13:29.360 --> 00:13:31.280 But Jesus is far more than a good teacher. 00:13:33.080 --> 00:13:36.260 Jesus is Lord and Jesus is savior. 00:13:38.020 --> 00:13:45.180 And it's not until you get to the end of yourself of recognizing that you can't do it and you need a rescue that you'll even submit 00:13:45.180 --> 00:13:48.680 yourself to his authority and who he is for that salvation. 00:13:51.140 --> 00:13:52.640 Some storms are beyond our control. 00:13:52.700 --> 00:13:59.820 In fact, in Mark chapter two, verse 17, Jesus said to the crowd, "It's not for the healthy 00:13:59.820 --> 00:14:01.360 who need a doctor, but the sick. 00:14:01.940 --> 00:14:08.960 I have not come to call the righteous, but the sinners." Jesus is saying, "Those are the things 00:14:08.960 --> 00:14:09.820 they've got to put all together. 00:14:11.620 --> 00:14:12.580 I'm not here for that. 00:14:12.600 --> 00:14:16.620 I can't rescue that." It's in that pride that really keeps you from him. 00:14:18.220 --> 00:14:21.830 It's not until you recognize how much you need him, that you really embrace him for who he is. 00:14:24.020 --> 00:14:31.120 What we see in this story then, in light of the strong winds and the disciples giving it all they've got trying to row 00:14:31.120 --> 00:14:39.260 all night long, three to four miles, to try to get to the destination Jesus called them to that we start to see really 00:14:39.260 --> 00:14:46.220 what sets the difference between the feeding of the 5,000 and the storm in the Sea of Galilee. 00:14:46.340 --> 00:14:50.680 And look at it, in verse 19, the second half of this verse, what we see is Jesus takes them through the storm. 00:14:50.700 --> 00:14:53.290 He doesn't just lead them to the storm, but he takes him through the storm. 00:14:53.880 --> 00:15:01.160 It says in verse 19, "They saw Jesus walking on the sea and coming near the boat, and they were frightened." 00:15:02.780 --> 00:15:03.220 And there it is. 00:15:04.880 --> 00:15:12.040 You can imagine this moment, if you're a discipline on a boat, if anyone's going to be confident in 00:15:12.040 --> 00:15:14.140 this circumstance, it's these guys. 00:15:15.940 --> 00:15:19.680 But yet They're worried and they're concerned and they're afraid. 00:15:20.460 --> 00:15:23.940 This is such a bad moment for them that they don't even know what they're going to do. 00:15:24.120 --> 00:15:25.500 This is a moment out of their control. 00:15:26.040 --> 00:15:27.840 And it describes them in this story, they're frightened. 00:15:27.840 --> 00:15:31.000 This is the difference between the feeding of the 5,000 and this miracle. 00:15:31.000 --> 00:15:37.000 When Jesus fed the 5,000, they're really learning about how God can supply, but there's no risk to that lesson. 00:15:37.080 --> 00:15:42.840 "That's great, God, we learn how you can supply." But now we're in a circumstance where it's talking about life and death. 00:15:43.260 --> 00:15:45.940 God needs to be who he really taught them to be in the previous miracle. 00:15:46.580 --> 00:15:47.160 That's the lesson. 00:15:47.280 --> 00:15:52.600 Because for them right now, everything would be placed on this moment and depending on God. 00:15:53.040 --> 00:16:00.140 And I could even picture this, who in their right mind is going to think that in the middle of the night, in the middle of a storm, you're going to see someone walking 00:16:00.140 --> 00:16:00.840 on water? 00:16:01.120 --> 00:16:08.340 I can imagine, if you're a disciple and you start to see what you think is a person coming across the water, and then you start to recognize it's 00:16:08.340 --> 00:16:13.220 Jesus, I mean, you'd be dropping to your knees on this boat thinking, "Oh Lord Jesus, did he make the storm? 00:16:13.240 --> 00:16:20.400 He tried to go on the boat without us and here comes this ghost." And they're frightened out of their mind because if they think if Jesus can't do this, then we're 00:16:20.400 --> 00:16:22.750 not going to be able to do this and they're worried. 00:16:24.880 --> 00:16:30.620 Some storms are beyond your control. 00:16:32.040 --> 00:16:39.240 The disciples are frightened, but I want you to see that in their struggle Jesus 00:16:39.240 --> 00:16:40.340 is with them in the storm. 00:16:42.940 --> 00:16:50.260 In the middle of the night and the greatest of storms they face, Jesus 00:16:50.260 --> 00:16:54.760 sees what they're enduring, and Jesus is with them. 00:16:54.860 --> 00:16:55.760 And look what it says in verse 20. 00:16:57.940 --> 00:17:01.140 "But he said to them, 'It is I. 00:17:02.540 --> 00:17:08.550 Do not be afraid." Now why would Jesus say, "Do not be afraid"? 00:17:08.579 --> 00:17:10.839 Does Jesus not care what they're going through? 00:17:11.140 --> 00:17:14.130 Does Jesus not understand their emotional state in the middle of this circumstance? 00:17:14.660 --> 00:17:16.380 Does Jesus not understand how hard this is? 00:17:16.420 --> 00:17:19.319 If anyone should be able to do this, they should be able to do this. 00:17:19.520 --> 00:17:22.180 Why would Jesus say, "Do not be afraid"? 00:17:22.359 --> 00:17:26.170 Why is Jesus not panicking in this moment like the rest of the disciples? 00:17:29.240 --> 00:17:32.880 Jesus says, "Don't be afraid," for two reasons. 00:17:35.300 --> 00:17:41.040 Number one, what Jesus wants is his disciples to understand is his authority. 00:17:42.700 --> 00:17:45.680 It's comforting. 00:17:47.460 --> 00:17:53.320 It's comforting right before you go into an operation that you don't see the doctor panic. 00:17:55.380 --> 00:17:59.770 It's comforting when you get on a plane and you see the pilots smile. 00:18:01.600 --> 00:18:08.900 Or it's comforting when you see the chef who just made your meal looking on with anticipation for you to enjoy with delight the same food that he 00:18:08.900 --> 00:18:10.180 knows he's tasted 1000 times. 00:18:10.880 --> 00:18:12.010 Those are some comforting things. 00:18:12.460 --> 00:18:15.400 No one wants to get on a plane where the pilot says, "You know what? 00:18:15.580 --> 00:18:23.020 This is my first flight ever." Or no one wants to go to a doctor says, "I just completed school and you're my first operation." Nobody 00:18:23.020 --> 00:18:24.620 wants that. 00:18:25.000 --> 00:18:27.480 And for Jesus, this is the same thing in this circumstance. 00:18:27.500 --> 00:18:32.770 Here's why he's not frightened with them, because he's the one that's in control. 00:18:35.140 --> 00:18:36.200 It's his authority. 00:18:36.280 --> 00:18:43.940 In fact, when you study this idea of just water as it relates to God in scripture, the Jewish 00:18:43.940 --> 00:18:47.630 people have a particular imagery that comes along with water. 00:18:48.920 --> 00:18:56.460 In Genesis One, when God created, it tells you in verse two to six, that God created the earth and it was without form and void and 00:18:56.500 --> 00:18:59.370 the water covered the deep end and chaos. 00:19:00.300 --> 00:19:04.220 And out of the chaos of the water God brings forth the land. 00:19:04.800 --> 00:19:06.800 And out of chaos God brings order. 00:19:08.680 --> 00:19:15.840 Or in Exodus chapter 14 after God tells Moses to go before Pharaoh and say, "Let my people go," 00:19:15.840 --> 00:19:19.660 God leads his people to the Red Sea. 00:19:21.180 --> 00:19:28.300 And Pharaoh is chasing them from behind and Pharaoh's going to kill him and the people are flipping out, and God tells Moses to 00:19:28.380 --> 00:19:31.220 hold his staff before the sea and God parts the sea. 00:19:32.380 --> 00:19:34.630 And out of slavery, they find themselves free. 00:19:35.800 --> 00:19:43.140 Or even when they crossed the Jordan River in Joshua chapter three, verse four, again out of slavery into freedom, out of chaos into order. 00:19:43.280 --> 00:19:44.380 God leads them. 00:19:44.420 --> 00:19:48.200 And the people of Israel know that God controls the water. 00:19:50.660 --> 00:19:56.380 And in Matthew chapter eight, the first time Jesus is on the water with the disciples and Jesus is asleep in the boat. 00:19:56.520 --> 00:20:00.780 Jesus is asleep in the boat and the disciples are freaking out because the water and the waves. 00:20:00.800 --> 00:20:05.140 And they wake up Jesus and Jesus looks to the waves and he says, "Peace. 00:20:05.140 --> 00:20:12.380 Be still." And the disciples asked the question, "Who is this man that even the wind and the waves 00:20:12.380 --> 00:20:20.820 obey him?" If God controls the water, Jesus 00:20:20.820 --> 00:20:27.320 then controls the water, then Jesus must be God. 00:20:30.240 --> 00:20:31.140 It's his authority. 00:20:34.600 --> 00:20:36.600 Matthew chapter eight, verse 27 is where that comes from. 00:20:36.620 --> 00:20:38.920 "Then the men in the boat were amazed and said, 'Who is this? 00:20:39.140 --> 00:20:46.160 Even the wind and the waves obey him.'" I think about the disciples in this moment. 00:20:48.880 --> 00:20:56.040 You need faith in a big God before you can really do the things 00:20:56.040 --> 00:20:57.200 that he calls you to do. 00:20:59.440 --> 00:21:06.520 We need to understand just how powerful his authority is before we really trust him to 00:21:06.660 --> 00:21:09.480 do the things he says that we should do for him. 00:21:10.920 --> 00:21:14.660 And this is where Jesus is leading his disciples. 00:21:15.820 --> 00:21:19.190 So, one, Jesus says, "Don't be afraid," because of his authority. 00:21:19.360 --> 00:21:23.480 Number two, Jesus says, "Don't be afraid," because of our position. 00:21:25.500 --> 00:21:30.820 Our position without God can be fear-filled and intimidating. 00:21:32.080 --> 00:21:36.120 Our ultimate position without God should be fear-filled and intimidating. 00:21:36.240 --> 00:21:40.390 You think about, what does the rest of eternity look like for you apart from God? 00:21:41.560 --> 00:21:45.700 There should be concern there if you're trying to think about eternity apart from God. 00:21:47.180 --> 00:21:53.200 Our position without God can be fear-filled and intimidating, but your position with God is powerful. 00:21:55.060 --> 00:22:00.020 Our natural tendency is to be afraid, especially when you feel incapable and out of control. 00:22:00.060 --> 00:22:01.380 That's the disciples. 00:22:01.400 --> 00:22:07.970 They were confident in their abilities and who they were, but yet they found a storm greater than where they were, and so they began to be fear-filled. 00:22:08.740 --> 00:22:15.840 And one of the most frequent statements in all of the Bible, I'm sure you've seen it, "Do not be 00:22:15.840 --> 00:22:23.380 afraid." Well over 300 times, the Bible tells you, "Do 00:22:23.380 --> 00:22:27.430 not be afraid." Do you know why the Bible tells us that? 00:22:29.480 --> 00:22:33.400 Because our normal tendency as human beings is to be afraid. 00:22:37.100 --> 00:22:39.920 Our normal tendency is to be afraid. 00:22:39.920 --> 00:22:41.580 It's common in our struggle. 00:22:42.560 --> 00:22:49.370 But at the same time, the Bible also says, "Do not be afraid," because the Bible wants us to recognize the God's with you. 00:22:51.240 --> 00:22:55.780 In Christ, the Lord is always with you. 00:22:55.780 --> 00:22:56.940 He doesn't forsake you. 00:22:57.020 --> 00:22:58.240 He doesn't abandon you. 00:22:58.240 --> 00:23:01.450 If you are in Jesus, God's presence is with you always. 00:23:03.280 --> 00:23:10.500 When you see the authority of God and the promise of God that you have, it builds confidence in your position, 00:23:10.740 --> 00:23:12.170 not in you, but in him. 00:23:12.480 --> 00:23:13.900 It's not because of you, it's because of him. 00:23:14.200 --> 00:23:16.640 That's why Paul says it in Philippians 4:13. 00:23:16.860 --> 00:23:20.380 The point of this, the point of this lesson isn't to say, "I can do hard stuff." That's not the point of this. 00:23:20.840 --> 00:23:25.100 The point of this lesson is to say that God can do hard things through you. 00:23:25.160 --> 00:23:27.300 It's not about your confidence in you. 00:23:27.300 --> 00:23:30.220 It's about your confidence in him. 00:23:30.220 --> 00:23:35.720 And so when you think about this story, this story is not about the size of the storm, but the size of your God in the storm. 00:23:38.980 --> 00:23:46.020 His authority and your position in him, it's crucial to everything that God will 00:23:46.020 --> 00:23:47.850 call you to in this world. 00:23:48.140 --> 00:23:54.640 Because some of the dumbest decisions we will ever make as people is because we are led by fear. 00:23:58.200 --> 00:23:58.820 Right now maybe. 00:24:00.560 --> 00:24:07.360 Right now it's possible Jesus is wanting to lead you somewhere but you reject it because of fear. 00:24:10.500 --> 00:24:13.140 Fear is what happens when you think about you. 00:24:15.680 --> 00:24:19.500 Faith is what happens when you consider him. 00:24:22.200 --> 00:24:29.040 If you think about your relationship with God, what could fear steal from you in your walk with Jesus? 00:24:31.220 --> 00:24:31.940 It'll steal your joy. 00:24:33.840 --> 00:24:35.220 It'll steal your energy. 00:24:36.580 --> 00:24:37.420 It'll steal your hope. 00:24:38.200 --> 00:24:40.080 It'll steal your obedience. 00:24:41.160 --> 00:24:42.260 It'll steal your faith. 00:24:43.100 --> 00:24:45.880 It'll still your relationship with God. 00:24:45.980 --> 00:24:53.100 In fact, the way that I know that is, if you read this same story in the account in Matthew chapter 14, included in Matthew 14 00:24:53.100 --> 00:24:56.240 is a little extra snippet of the story we don't quite get in John. 00:24:56.640 --> 00:25:03.680 And that's when they see Jesus walking on the water and Peter says, "Lord, if it's you, then let me come out of the boat." And Jesus says, "Come out of the boat." Peter steps out 00:25:03.680 --> 00:25:08.600 of the boat, and the minute he takes his eyes off Jesus, because he's afraid, what happens? 00:25:08.660 --> 00:25:10.800 He sinks. 00:25:11.160 --> 00:25:18.300 He sinks, but Jesus will get you through to 00:25:18.340 --> 00:25:18.700 the other side. 00:25:21.500 --> 00:25:28.720 You think about, you and I know this, if you've read the Gospels or you're familiar with the First Century Church history, all that lays out 00:25:28.720 --> 00:25:35.820 in front of these disciples, they have a powerful road to walk with Jesus, but they 00:25:35.820 --> 00:25:37.690 also have a road full of mini-storms. 00:25:40.080 --> 00:25:48.160 And if they're going to get where God has called them to be in him, and if they're going to live the kind of life that God has called them to live in him, they 00:25:48.160 --> 00:25:51.930 have to really believe in a God who's big enough to see them through. 00:25:53.820 --> 00:25:56.050 That's why God leads them to this storm. 00:25:57.640 --> 00:26:04.080 God doesn't want them to see something about themselves, because in and of themselves we already know where we are as people when things get out of our control, we're afraid. 00:26:07.140 --> 00:26:14.010 But God wants them to see something in him that's greater than the circumstance in which they face. 00:26:15.680 --> 00:26:17.360 I love how John says this. 00:26:17.440 --> 00:26:25.240 John, who writes the Gospel of John, also writes First John chapter four, verse 18, listen to this, "Perfect love 00:26:25.240 --> 00:26:29.620 casts out fear. 00:26:30.540 --> 00:26:32.420 Perfect love casts out fear. 00:26:33.940 --> 00:26:43.040 God intentionally sends them into the storm so that they see a God who is for them, a 00:26:43.080 --> 00:26:50.280 God who is with him, a God who comes to them, who guides them, who knows 00:26:50.480 --> 00:26:55.540 where they are in their battle, and he has it all in his hands. 00:26:59.340 --> 00:27:00.640 God's not surprised by your circumstance. 00:27:03.360 --> 00:27:04.900 God's not surprised by your storms. 00:27:07.120 --> 00:27:09.080 God's not surprised by your adversity. 00:27:14.160 --> 00:27:22.080 God has the ability within him to lead you to the storm, to 00:27:22.160 --> 00:27:25.450 lead you through the storm, and to lead you to the other side. 00:27:27.700 --> 00:27:28.970 So let me just give us a few conclusions. 00:27:29.580 --> 00:27:37.080 Number one, God's goal in your life isn't to calm every 00:27:37.080 --> 00:27:37.360 storm. 00:27:38.220 --> 00:27:38.780 You notice that? 00:27:38.800 --> 00:27:45.880 There's a difference between Jesus' first time on the water with his disciples and Jesus' second time 00:27:45.880 --> 00:27:46.840 on the water with his disciples. 00:27:47.160 --> 00:27:48.440 First time, he did calm the storm. 00:27:49.960 --> 00:27:50.670 Second time, he did not. 00:27:53.200 --> 00:27:59.020 God's goal in your life isn't to calm every storm, but rather to calm your heart in the storm. 00:28:00.220 --> 00:28:01.580 How? 00:28:02.520 --> 00:28:05.720 By growing your faith in the one who is greater than the storm. 00:28:07.480 --> 00:28:09.200 I like the famous quote by Mike Tyson. 00:28:09.640 --> 00:28:12.220 He says, "Everyone's got a plan until you get punched in the face. 00:28:12.900 --> 00:28:20.540 Then it all goes out the window." And it's like saying this to you, it's easy to say you have faith in Jesus, but 00:28:20.540 --> 00:28:23.780 it's not until the storm comes that you really see where your faith is in Jesus. 00:28:25.860 --> 00:28:30.000 And the first time out with the disciples in the water, Jesus calmed the storm. 00:28:31.920 --> 00:28:37.820 But the second time out, Jesus was more interested in calming the heart of the believer in the storm than the storm itself. 00:28:39.600 --> 00:28:43.540 And the reason God could do that is because he is greater. 00:28:43.560 --> 00:28:47.680 Number two, God's primary goal isn't to get rid of fear. 00:28:49.480 --> 00:28:53.480 Now, that's hard for us as Americans because we like comfort, by golly. 00:28:54.030 --> 00:28:58.950 Let's follow Jesus because it's easy, and if that's your reason for following Jesus, you should not follow Jesus. 00:28:59.260 --> 00:29:03.860 Jesus never promises that he'll make things easy, and God's primary goal isn't to get rid of fear. 00:29:05.260 --> 00:29:10.250 If God's primary goal was just to simply remove fear, I would just tell you, Jesus is awful at his job. 00:29:13.320 --> 00:29:17.880 You can rid fear and still not have Jesus. 00:29:19.740 --> 00:29:20.940 You think about that? 00:29:21.060 --> 00:29:24.520 If all the goal is to get rid of fear, you can do that and not have Jesus. 00:29:26.960 --> 00:29:34.440 God's primary goal is to keep your eyes on him, and it's in his power and 00:29:34.560 --> 00:29:37.260 love that fear begins to diminish. 00:29:39.400 --> 00:29:39.980 Do you see that? 00:29:39.980 --> 00:29:47.100 When you recognize the authority of God above it all and your position in the hands 00:29:47.100 --> 00:29:52.420 of that God that cares for you, it doesn't matter what the storm is. 00:29:53.480 --> 00:30:00.560 When your eyes are on the greatness of that God who is greater than that storm, it puts that storm into perspective and 00:30:00.560 --> 00:30:02.980 the fear of that storm begins to diminish. 00:30:04.040 --> 00:30:08.340 And that's exactly what Jesus is showing his disciples in this example. 00:30:09.880 --> 00:30:13.440 And it's not to say, "Let's downplay your struggle." We don't want to do that. 00:30:13.880 --> 00:30:18.400 I'm not saying, "Okay, look wimp, because what you're going through is easier because Jesus is greater. 00:30:18.680 --> 00:30:21.960 Stop being such a wuss about it." We're not trying to downplay your struggle. 00:30:23.400 --> 00:30:24.680 It could be a hard struggle. 00:30:24.680 --> 00:30:26.980 When you look at this storm, this is a powerful storm. 00:30:27.640 --> 00:30:28.680 This is a big storm. 00:30:29.960 --> 00:30:36.240 We're not trying to downplay the struggle that you're going through, but rather, we're trying to elevate your Lord in the storm. 00:30:38.960 --> 00:30:39.720 Because he's greater. 00:30:41.240 --> 00:30:44.520 Following Jesus, it isn't always easy. 00:30:44.580 --> 00:30:50.360 He leads them to the storm, but the results in Jesus are beautiful for eternity. 00:30:50.440 --> 00:30:52.100 Look what it says in verse 21. 00:30:52.660 --> 00:31:00.180 "So they were willing to take him into the boat and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were 00:31:00.180 --> 00:31:09.500 going." Fear can sink your ship, but 00:31:09.540 --> 00:31:13.160 faith invites Jesus to be the captain of your boat. 00:31:15.480 --> 00:31:18.470 And Jesus will lead you through the storm to the other side. 00:31:20.380 --> 00:31:25.320 Number three, let me say this, the real struggle in this story isn't the storm. 00:31:28.200 --> 00:31:29.760 Let me say it in a different way. 00:31:30.020 --> 00:31:37.100 The real struggle in this story isn't the storm around them, but the storm within them. 00:31:39.180 --> 00:31:41.760 You see, that's the lesson that Jesus wants to teach his disciples. 00:31:44.240 --> 00:31:50.180 It's not the storm itself that they need to be concerned about, but where their faith is in the middle of the storm. 00:31:50.420 --> 00:31:53.200 Not the storm around them, but the storm within them. 00:31:55.300 --> 00:32:02.440 And when I want to think about this, some of us, if we took a poll this morning, may not be impressed with our current level 00:32:02.440 --> 00:32:03.790 of faith. 00:32:04.860 --> 00:32:10.560 If we had to describe where our faith is, maybe we'd even describe it as just very weak or very little. 00:32:12.520 --> 00:32:18.700 And I want you to know this morning, that's okay. 00:32:20.080 --> 00:32:27.920 That's okay to see your faith and feel that it's little, because when it comes to Jesus, you 00:32:28.000 --> 00:32:31.620 only need a little, God will grow it. 00:32:33.280 --> 00:32:33.860 God will grow it. 00:32:33.920 --> 00:32:35.760 It's not about the size of your faith. 00:32:36.460 --> 00:32:37.380 That's not the story. 00:32:37.800 --> 00:32:42.980 The story is not about the size of your faith, but where you put your faith that matters. 00:32:45.200 --> 00:32:49.930 So the disciples before they got into this boat probably had all the faith in the world that they were going to get across. 00:32:51.740 --> 00:32:52.980 But their faith was in the wrong thing. 00:32:55.500 --> 00:32:58.500 It's not about the size of your faith, but where you put your faith. 00:32:59.980 --> 00:33:06.360 There are many people in this world that put their faith in a greater being that, at the end of the day, isn't going to rescue their soul. 00:33:09.220 --> 00:33:14.460 But it's the authority of Jesus that demonstrates otherwise for those that put their faith in him. 00:33:16.240 --> 00:33:22.680 The disciples were put on this journey with Jesus because Jesus knows what's ahead of them. 00:33:24.180 --> 00:33:31.260 And if God nurtures their soul right now in growing their faith today, as they continue to grow in him, they're going to 00:33:31.360 --> 00:33:33.240 do great things tomorrow for his kingdom. 00:33:35.280 --> 00:33:36.420 And it's the same for us. 00:33:37.700 --> 00:33:44.880 You take what faith you have, little or great, you put it in him, you walk in faith with Jesus, and Jesus transforms your life 00:33:44.880 --> 00:33:49.080 more in his image as you journey along with the Lord. 00:33:50.800 --> 00:33:57.880 As you think about this storm and you compare it to your life, I think it's okay to say, "God, I can't 00:33:57.880 --> 00:33:58.180 see. 00:33:59.760 --> 00:34:07.040 I can't see in the middle of this night, in the middle of what I'm going through with the waves around me, I cannot see how you're 00:34:07.040 --> 00:34:08.400 going to lead me to the other side. 00:34:08.460 --> 00:34:09.949 I can't see that right now. 00:34:12.179 --> 00:34:13.300 But God, you said you would. 00:34:15.340 --> 00:34:22.420 And God, you are good, so I'm going to trust in you." 00:34:22.540 --> 00:34:25.340 For some of us, that's where the struggle is, isn't it? 00:34:25.360 --> 00:34:27.159 We doubt the promises of God. 00:34:28.159 --> 00:34:32.639 We doubt the goodness of who he says he is and what he says he'll do for us. 00:34:33.040 --> 00:34:37.730 And we buy into a lie believing that will benefit us more than Jesus himself. 00:34:38.040 --> 00:34:43.880 And rather than invite him into the boat, we continue to row in the storm as if we think that we can save ourselves. 00:34:47.440 --> 00:34:51.719 And I think it's okay to be in that place where you're struggling, but to still trust. 00:34:53.320 --> 00:35:00.420 And many times in your life, you're going to go about your day and you're going to be in a storm, and I love how this story ends because it gives us a 00:35:00.420 --> 00:35:02.610 little bit of a conclusion to understand what happened in the lives of the disciples. 00:35:02.680 --> 00:35:09.020 Because, in our own lives, we'll go through these storms and we get to this place where we're out of strength and we realize we can't do it. 00:35:09.180 --> 00:35:15.160 And we'll throw up our arms and we'll trust in God, and before you know it, we're on the other side. 00:35:17.460 --> 00:35:22.930 And then you look behind you and you just say to yourself, "God, I can't believe. 00:35:23.960 --> 00:35:25.320 I can't believe you gave me the strength. 00:35:27.100 --> 00:35:35.140 I can't believe you saw me through, but now on the backside of the storm, I can look back through it all and 00:35:35.280 --> 00:35:40.440 see your hand was with me on the journey." That's why John 6 is here. 00:35:41.740 --> 00:35:48.780 Some of us learn in stubborn ways, some of us learn from other people's wisdom, and 00:35:48.780 --> 00:35:50.850 we're probably all somewhere in between all that. 00:35:52.520 --> 00:35:59.600 But here's a story that says to you, "It's not about the size of the storm, but the size 00:35:59.600 --> 00:36:06.760 of your God in the storm." And your faith doesn't have to be great, because 00:36:06.760 --> 00:36:09.360 it's about where you put your faith that matters. 00:36:11.280 --> 00:36:18.360 Jesus is your rescuer, because I hope this morning, if in your 00:36:18.360 --> 00:36:25.900 life, you've never come to that place where you've put your faith in Jesus as your ultimate rescuer of your soul that 00:36:25.900 --> 00:36:26.920 you invite him into that boat. 00:36:28.680 --> 00:36:30.340 And that's what a relationship with God is. 00:36:30.400 --> 00:36:34.560 That's what distinguishes us between religion and walking with Jesus. 00:36:34.560 --> 00:36:41.660 Religion will tell you, "Go out and perform and do it and God will be impressed and God will love you." And relationship with God says, "There ain't anything that you're 00:36:41.660 --> 00:36:48.960 going to do to impress God, because he can do it all anyway, but he loves you and he wants you and 00:36:48.960 --> 00:36:56.300 will walk in that storm with you if you would just get to the end of yourself and recognize you can't save your soul, but 00:36:56.320 --> 00:37:03.580 Jesus can." And for the rest of us that have put our faith in Christ to recognize 00:37:03.580 --> 00:37:06.940 that that's how the journey with Jesus continues to go all of our days. 00:37:08.760 --> 00:37:11.730 We'll wake up every day and we determined who's going to be the master of our fate. 00:37:11.860 --> 00:37:13.430 Will it be me or will I follow Jesus? 00:37:15.920 --> 00:37:22.300 Am I going to believe in a lie and think that it's going to be about what I do that makes my life better for me or about what he's done? 00:37:23.420 --> 00:37:27.260 Will I trust him or will I'll walk in fear? 00:37:28.380 --> 00:37:35.520 Is he big enough to handle it and will I step out in faith with him to invite him to lead me where he desires for us 00:37:35.520 --> 00:37:36.200 to go?