The God of Miracles 05/19/24 Mark 4:35-41

E good morning good morning I have another car announcement that's two car announcements in one day so you know drum roll I guess there's a red TransAm parked out front with a flat tire so if that's you know you know you have a flat tire now there's all sorts of people here who would love to help you with that if you so require it so you can you can plan ahead now thank you hav e for e all right well good morning church it is good seeing you here on this Beautiful Sunday morning my name's Cody I'm the pastor here and I am glad that you're here I didn't get a chance to say this last week primarily because I'm dense and I forgot but Butch I'm so glad that you and Judy are here aren't you guys I love you brother for those of you who don't know it's it's been a long road for you guys and I'm glad that you're recovering and we still lift you up in prayer we love you brother hey we are all about loving God loving each other and loving our community and world Amen and for those of you that have been here for longer than six months then you know that this is kind of a throwback for me we're going to a picnic right after church today so that's why I'm not wearing my suit and so if you could make sure that you grab some food and come on we got some pulled pork that I made so you guys can enjoy that also there's a whole bunch of other stuff that's going to be happening that's out the hahatonka post office Pavilion we're going to be I'm going to try to preach fast my sermon is not any shorter but I'm going to try to

Preach faster okay hey really cool thing that's happening Jeff Hancock is leading a very short-term community group for people that are in the workplace that want to learn how to share the Gospel better and so he is part of an organization called follower of one that's all about workplace evangelism how do you share your faith with your co-workers in an effective way and so that's going to be starting that first weekend in June in room 401 over here during our community group hour it's six weeks long and so if you want to know how to how do I become a better witness at my place of work this is a really great opportunity for you to be a part of that also children's camp is a little over two weeks away and so if you got want any information about that be sure to see Thomas gersson and ask them any questions that you might have at this time I'd invite you to just find a friend hug their neck say welcome to First Baptist Church [Music] your e he e well good morning again it is so good to hear the Saints rejoicing and just fellowshipping and having a good time together it's such a beautiful a beautiful picture of what heaven will be like the Saints gathered together around the throne worshiping him at this time we get to do something really special and that is to recognize the seniors that have just graduated actually they're not graduating they're graduated that are from our youth group so I'd like to invite Abby Morrison and aah how up here yeah this is my favorite part because never in the history of this has there been a senior that wants to stand up here in front of you all

So I think it's great and I also promise them they don't have to talk because that gets them up here a lot easier so this is AA how her plan is to go to College of the Ozarks and major in elementary education and she'd like to use that degree specifically to teach missionary kids which I think that's just [Applause] phenomenal being one of those yourself you've seen a need and are seeking the Lord in a way to fill that need and that's that's what we do you can pray for her as she's transitioning to college that she'll grow in her walk with the Lord each day and this is Abigail Morrison she's going straight into the workforce specifically cleaning houses is are you taking on clients so there you go now you know and she would love to be a stay-at-home mom someday which in this day and age is a bold statement but it's an excellent bold statement that we believe the Lord rejoices [Applause] in she'd like your prayer for guidance as she moves into true adulthood and that she would also grow in her faith before we wrap this up and give our seniors their gifts I'd like to invite their parents forward to pray over them which I'm not sure I adequately warned them about and as they're coming forward I'd like to invite any other friends and family and acquaintances to also come up and pray over them as they're making this transition into adulthood they just got this treatment a graduation but there can be never be enough prayer amen let's pray together dear Lord we come before you and ask your blessing and guidance on these two young women as they're leaving

Kind of the safety and comfort that they have known in stepping out into the wide world Lord we pray for your guidance over them we pray that you would impart on them such great faith that would never falter God we pray that you would show them very clearly what your will and plan is for their life whatever twists and turns that may be Lord remind them that it's all for your glory and for their ultimate good God we pray that this church would be supportive of these two as they move into this next stage Lord that they would find guidance and mentorship and just love in this body of Believers and as potentially one day they move on to another church another body of Believers Lord we pray the same thing for them at that stage as well it's in Jesus name we ask this amen [Applause] at this time it's it's the time where we take a minute just to ask the Lord to prepare our hearts and our minds for worship as we enter into worship through song and worship through hearing from the word and then we're going to go from here to worship him some more by fellowshipping with one another out at the hahha Tona mail something post office Pavilion that's it so I'd invite you to Bow your heads and close your eyes and ask the Lord to prepare you for worship this morning Lord we pray this morning that you would help us to focus our hearts and our minds on you knowing Lord that so many things distract us so many things get in the way as we gather together of our thoughts of our affections and Lord I pray that you would just bring our eyes to you Lord help us to remember who you are and what you've done help us to remember the cross that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us Lord I pray that you would help us to

Worship this morning it's in Jesus name we pray amen I invite you to stand and join us as we sing praise to the Lord [Music] you made the St host you TR the mountain peaks you paint the evening Skies with wers the Earth it is your throne fromt to the Sea all nature testifies your spend praise the Lord praise the Lord sing his great all creation praise the Lord ra your voice you height and all you from F east to west let everything that has praise the [Music] Lord you reached into the Dust In Love Spirit bre you formed us in your very love to know your wonderous Works to tell your Mighty de to join the Everlasting CH praise the Lord praise the Lord sing his great all creation praise the Lord Raise Your Voice you height all yours from to West let everything that has bre praise the [Music] Lord sing it with me ReSound Andes Me Out Heaven hear the sound of worship let every nation bring it honors to the king a r of Harmony etal praise the Lord praise the Lord sing his praise all creation praise the Lord prise your voice you Heights all your deps from to West let everything that has praise the

Lord praise the sing his great all creation praise the Lord Raise Your Voice you hearts and all you dep from to West Burning Stars Alles near and far from Sky to Sea to shore sing out forever more let everything that has bre praise the Lord [Applause] [Music] what is our life and death Christ Alone Christ Alone what is our only confidence our soul to him belong who holds our within his hands what comes aart from his commands and what will keep us to the end the love of Christ in We Stand oh s hallelu our H brings Eternal sing Hallelujah now and we confess Christ Our Hope in life [Music] and what truth can from the TR Soul God is good God is good where is his gra and goodness in our gra Redeemer who holds our faith when fears arise who stand above the stormy Tri the ways that bring us night unto the shore the rock of Christ oh sing hallelu our H BR Eternal H hallelu now and never confess Christ hope [Music] and the

Grave what will we see Christ he lives Christ he lives and what reward will Heaven bring everlasting life with him when we will rise to meet the Lord then sin and death will be destroyed and we will in Endless Joy when Christ is us forever more oh sing hallelu our H prise Eternal Hing hallelu now and ever we confess Christ The Hope in life and oh sing hallelu [Music] our home Springs Eternal oh sing [Music] hallelu now and we confess Christ Our Hope life and now and we confess Christ Our Hope and you all can be seated as our users come forward I couldn't help but be reminded when we were talking about these graduates it was May of 19 73 that's 51 years ago and in April of that month I came to this church for the first time for a worship service Sunday school and by the first part of May the Gospel was shared to me when in a Sunday school class and I was saved so when I walked across that stage at camon High School in 1973 and got a diploma I was a graduate of high school and I was also a saved individual and I'm thankful for this church that we're about we're about the Gospel here we're about sharing the Gospel and if there's anybody here today that's not saved you can settle that today and I hope you do

So let's let's pray heavenly father I thank you today for this opportunity again and for this privilege of being a part something very significant and we're ask also today in our worship to give back some to you and we're thankful that all you do for us and for the opportunity to give back we ask this in Jesus name amen morning church it's been a long time since I've been up on stage so I'm a little jittery and nervous to talk in front of everyone so I brought notes so I don't go off the rails too much all right so for those of you who I haven't met yet my name is Tim balato my beautiful wife Sarah's over there and my kids are scattered around here somewhere we have three we're committed members of this flock and we're blessed and grateful to be a part of it and if you're on the fence I highly encourage you to make it official and join as members it's been a huge blessing to be a member of this block today I want to share with you guys how God has always provided for our family even when we've had little money to give babies as you many of you know are quite expensive but each time you know each time one has been on the way we've wondered how to manage costs and even through the struggles financially God has always provided as we've Faithfully given even through those times there's an old Italian proverb that says every baby comes with a loaf of bread under their arm and that's such a true thing especially it's run it's ring true for us as God has actually provided additional income for us as we've had each child as we've wondered how it was going to work right before Levi was born I went from struggling to find work to God providing out of seemingly nowhere he provided a full-time job for me here locally and

I had no college degree but he gave me a full-time job in technology which is what I was wanting to go for when Levi was born it was during the recession and it had been a there had been a raise freeze for quite a while for years and God broke through that and got me a raise enough to help with that and the same with Sophia God provided as well again and looking back it's hard to see even with as strained as our budget was and while we were giving through that it's it's hard to see how that all worked but you know God's grace and provision is sufficient and it's enough Philippians 4:19 says and my God will meet all your needs according to the riches of his glory in Jesus Christ Christ I encourage everyone facing Financial struggles God sees your heart and he honors your faithfulness trust him and continue to give even when it's hard I'd say especially when it's hard he will provide for your needs in conclusion let's honor him with our giving and witness his incredible faithfulness in our lives thank thank you [Applause] guys I invite you to stand again as you're able as we continue to sing Rock of Ages C for me rock ofes for me let me hide myself in the let [Music] andure from and [Music] the LA of my fulfill thy demands for could not atone thou and th

Alone in my hand no I simply to th Cross [Music] I bleeding breath when my shall close death when I Rise to worldone and beh on thy Throne rock ofes for me let me hide myself [Music] in and because of that sacrifice because of the Cross we can boldly Proclaim if we have faith in Christ that all we have is Christ that the things of this world can be nothing to us because he is he's paid the price he has made a way for us so join me as we sing Hallelujah all I have is Christ Hallelujah all I have is Christ [Music] Hallelujah Jesus is [Music] my night what I knew the way the s that Pro joy and me to the Grave I had no hope that you would a reel to your will and if you had not L me first I would you [Music] still but as I my [Music] H Indi

To the CR you looked upon my hel and Let Me to the Cross and I God's love you suffered in my you bore the Wrath reserve for me now all I know is praise Hallelujah all I have is Christ Hallelujah Jesus is my [Music] life now Lord I be your alone and this so all Mighty the Str to follow your commands never come oh Father my R in any way you choose and let my song forever be my only G [Music] you [Music] Hallelujah all I have is Christ [Music] Hallelujah Jesus Is My Oh Hallelujah all I have is Christ [Music] Hallelujah Jesus is let's sing it again just our voices Hall [Music] is Christ

[Music] Hallelujah Lord help us to keep on that remind us that everything we are everything we have Belongs to You Lord use our Ransom life lives in any way you choose Lord help us to follow after you because you are so worthy it's in Jesus name we pray amen well if you have your Bible and I hope that you do please turn with me to Mark 4 verse 35 we're going to finish up chapter 4 today and we're going to be looking at one of Christ's most famous Miracles the calming of the storm and before we get into that though I want to encourage some of you that struggle with depression and anxiety when pastors preach about depression and anxiety many of those people they get anxious even more depressed as a result of that because they feel like I'm not doing enough or I don't have enough Faith or what have you I want to encourage you in this a little bit that if you have depression and anxiety while the sermon is for you it's not about you does that make sense okay sometimes pastors they preach that people they get they feel like oh I have to be on meds to handle my anxiety or I have to do this in order to handle my depression or what have you and they feel like if I just had more Faith then I could trust God in this and that's not what this sermon is about okay this is about trusting in Christ yes but it's also about how to weather the storms that come our way so be encouraged that if you have a weakness glory in God in that weakness because it's in your weakness that the strength of Christ is most gloriously revealed amen so before we get into this sermon and into the passage a little bit I want to tell you a story about a guy named Iris sanki he was a man who actually traveled with DL Moody and

He was the a song leader for DL Moody and his Crusades back in I think it was like 1870 he Moody heard Mr sanki singing at a Sunday school convention and he said I need that baritone to travel with me and for two years years they actually had tremendous success on these big Evangelistic Crusades all over the United Kingdom from Glasgow to edenburg to London all of these different places just God really worked and then they returned to the states in 1875 and they were like International stars that by that point and it was that Christmas Eve in 1875 sanki he was traveling by Steamboat up the Delaware River it was beautiful Starlet evening remember Christmas Eve and a lot of people are like Mr sanki would you please just sing us a song and so he was leaning up against there and he wanted to sing a Christmas song but he just felt really prompted by the spirit of God to sing this song Savior Like a Shepherd lead us and there was this deep Stillness as his as his voice floated across the quiet river that Christmas Eve and when he had finished this man stepped from the shadows and said Mr sanki did you serve in the Union Army yes I did I started serving in the spring of 1860 you remember if you happen to be on picket Duty during a bright moonlit night in 1862 yeah actually I do remember that very much surprised he said so did I but I was in the Confederate Army and when I saw you standing at your post I raised my musket and I took aim at you oh okay well a steam though what's going to happen and he said you know at that instant just as you did a moment ago you raised your eyes to heaven and you began to sing and I thought let him just sing a song and once he's done then I'll shoot him dead but the song that you sang was the song that you sang just now I heard the

Words perfectly we are thine do thou befriend us be the guardian of our way and those words stirred up memories of my Godly mom holding me in my childhood singing that song to me and when you had finished your song it was impossible for me to take Aim again and I thought the Lord who is able to save that man from certain death surely must be great and mighty and my arm of its own accord dropped limp at my side now Ira had no clue that drama had happened did he you see it was God who spared that man from certain death we don't believe in coincidences things don't just happen we believe in a personal Sovereign involved God of the universe that cares about all of his creation and especially for his people I mean the fact that Ira sanki would sing that particular song on that night to evoke those tender memories of a wouldbe Slayer which ultimately stayed his hand God he protects us God he protects his own and none of us are going to go before our time praise the Lord for that today we're going to be talking about this a little bit and I hope that today's a blessing to you if you would stand with me in honor of God's word as we read Mark chap 4 verses 35-41 let's see what God's word has to say says on that day when evening had come he said to them let us go across to the other side and leaving the crowd they took him with them in the boat just as he was and other Boats were with them and a great Windstorm arose and the waves were breaking into the boat so that the boat was already filling but he was in the stern asleep on the cushion they woke him and said to him teacher do you not care that we are parishing 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 and he said to them why are you so afraid have you still no faith 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 let's pray so Lord we do thank you for this day and we thank you for this time that we get to have your word opened in pray preached and expounded upon and I pray that you would move Hearts Lord help us not to follow anything other than what your Holy Spirit wants us to follow God and so we submit to you and we ask and plead for you to move Among Us Lord work here in our hearts today and we invite you to do that Lord we also want to lift up to you people that we know and that we love that are going through many storms we pray for the garden family Lord we pray for Kathy bans we pray for so many people that are just sick especially for Denny Johnson Lord we just want to lift these people up to you and we pray that you would be that calm and that peace in the storms that they're going through whatever they may look like God we know that you are in control and that you love them and that you are the great Shepherd and the great high priest who guides us all the way to your throne and I just pray Lord that you would help us to have greater and greater faith that when the storms come we would not be afraid we love you in Jesus name amen well our passage it begins with I guess the conclusion of a really rough day of Ministry for Jesus Christ you think about all the things that he had endured we've gone over them for the last six weeks or so we've been on this one day in Jesus's life think of all the things that he had to endure like he had people from his city of Nazareth come to him and say hey we need to get you back home you're causing too much trouble right he had the Pharisees that said this is a demon-possessed man clearly okay so he's possessed by be elub and no one needs to listen to him he had that kind of discouragement come against his ministry he had other discouragement

Come in the form of his family saying you know Hey brother we need to sit down and have a talk because you're causing a lot of trouble and we might get excommunicated from the synagogue if you don't stop it they were trying to talk sense to him and not only that but he had hundreds if not thousands of people coming just to hear him in that little house and they were coming just to hear word a word from God and to listen to his teaching and so in response to that Jesus he moves his teaching out to the coast where he taught from a boat for hours hours into the evening after all of the discouragement after all the disheartening things Christ he still poured himself out for the sake of others the evening came the evening is the best time to sail on the Sea of Galilee it was the most common time the evening and on into the overnight hours the reason why they would they would go fishing during that time is because the danger of storms was at its least at that time most storms they would crop up in the afternoon anywhere from about noon to all the way to 900 p.m. And so the Sea of galile it's Unique this is just a shot from Google Earth it's not very big not at all but it is the lowest elevation of any freshwater lake in the world it there we go thanks buddy it is over 600 feet below SE level okay it's a deep lake and surrounded by all of these mountains and valleys which actually channels the wind to go over the waters and as a result what can be a beautiful and peaceful day on the lake can rapidly turn into a terrifying fight for your life and it crops up very unexpectedly this is this is just a storm this was recorded in 1993 because people were like there aren't storms that big on that little bitty Lake yeah there are

The 10 foot swells this is just the waves crashing into it you can see the that's not a cloud that's a that's a wave crashing into this breaker right there actually you can watch this video on YouTube and you can just see water just rushing into this restaurant people standing there going what do we do is amazing but that's just that's just a 10- foot swell and I want you to write this down if you're taking notes write this down notice that there's three greats In this passage and the first great that we have is the great storm the storms in Galilee like I said reach these gigantic 10- foot swells and the storm was terrible and I want you to think those of you that are fishermen okay what would it take what kind of storm would it take for you to be scared on Lake of the Ozarks all right what would it take for you to be terrified for your life on Lake of the Ozarks you're out there fishing enjoying the day what do you need golf ball sized hell like baseball sized Hil what do you need to be terrified for your life and that's what these men because a lot of them were fishermen who grew up around the Sea of Galilee these men are terrified for their lives they fished and they traveled on a 29 foot oh sorry great storm on a 29 foot boat like this is actually a boat from the first century okay that they discovered when the Sea of Galilee was low and so they preserved it they put it together 29 ft Longboat right there can seat 15 people and go across the sea and yet here they are close to sinking the waves are crashing over the boat so much so that it is going to go under and if they go under in a storm like this they are going to die and where is Jesus in the midst of all the chaos what is he doing is asleep he's asleep in the stern the stern that's the back of the boat that's

Where it's the most steady that's where they would sleep that's where they would rest and why is Jesus doing that well practically because he's he's fully God and he's fully man okay he has the same limitations he had the same sicknesses the same exhaustion that you and I experienc yet he did so perfectly but what did the what do the disciples see they just see him sleeping they think that he's uncaring they think that he's indifferent to do anything to stop the storm and isn't that our reaction too I mean when we go through periods of spiritual drought or your marriage isn't going well or you have a loved one that has a long-term sickness or dies or you have a miscarriage with a child isn't our first temptation to blame God and say God how could you let something like this happen don't you care about me God that's what our first father Adam did he said Lord it was the woman that you gave me that did this God if you really cared you would help me and how wrong they were and how wrong we are to think that God is somehow unloving or uncaring God he knows every storm God he knows every gust of wind every wave that crops up he knows every drop of rain that pelts us he knows when our hearts race and when we get that shot of adrenaline and when that kicks in he knows that intimately he knows when our thoughts wander to the worst case scenario he knows our feelings even when we're pretty good at hiding them in front of others but listen Christ he was in that little boat with the disciples and the father he was carefully guiding it even through the storm that is why Christ was able to rest he had perfect faith in the father and when we trust in God through Christ guess what we experience the greatest peace and peace like what Christ had on those waves Christ didn't wake up and go oh my gosh a

Storm he stood up and he rebuked the waves I will say this the disciples they did go to Jesus that's exactly what we are supposed to do amen he goes to Jesus and they wake him up in Matthew chapter 8 ver2 here's what it says they said save us Lord we are perishing that's the parallel passage you know everyone faces these storms and they still accuse God of being cruel uncaring or powerless but we learn that Christ can help and he is willing to help despite our sinful attitudes and our lack of faith isn't that encouraging isn't that so encouraging that despite our nasty attitudes and despite our lack of faith God is still willing to minister to us that he still loves you Christ he rebuked the wind and he said to the Sea peace be still that's not the first rebuke where Christ he told someone to be still or be silent in the Greek we study about this when Jesus was casting out that M the unclean Spirit from the man he said the same words be muzzled or in our vernacular shut up and immediately the wind ceased and there was a great calm you know there was a man in Walmart who was pushing a cart who had a screaming one-year-old in it he was walking along and I said be quiet George calm down George don't scream George don't yell George we're almost out George we're gonna be done in just a minute George and there was this woman that was watching him and she goes oh you're such a good dad you know you're just doing everything that you can to keep little George calm and I just want to tell you Bravo and he says lady I am George now when we seek peace and we just remind ourselves of peace and we're just wanting peace we're always going to find short fall short of Peace but when we come to God and we invite God and we seek God and we go to

God you know what we find we find God and peace if we're going to the Lord with our problems if we're seeking him out and we're inviting him into the situation guess what happens he changes our hearts and our perspectives and sometimes our circumstances that storm and the Sea of Galilee it cropped up and it violently shook the disciples to their core and it caused tremendous fear and worry for their very lives you know worry is that actually a form of atheism did you know that it is worry it betrays a lack of faith and trust in God it's why Christ he taught us not to worry but to rely on the goodness and the kindness of God in our culture we are seeing a greater greater a greater and greater difference between Christians and how they handle the storms of life many of those without Christ they believe you know if I just change scenery if I just get out of town for a little bit that's going to change my attitude and that's going to bring calm and so they go on vacation and of course the circumstances don't change they come back and what happens well the Storm still raging we get on our little phones and go you know what I just need to veg out for a minute you know and as a parent that's a really big Temptation let me tell you but you know what half an hour of cat videos and puppy videos and political videos and you know little doohickey videos and all that kind of stuff doesn't refresh my soul not one bit and that's how non-Christians handle the storms but sometimes Christians can fall into that trap too instead of praying and pleading we find ourselves vegging and scrolling where is Our Hope for calmness the Scriptures say in Nehemiah 8:10 and do not be grieved for the joy of the Lord is your strength it goes on to say in the book of Acts 3: 19 repent

Therefore and turn back that your sins may be blotted out that time times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord the truth is that for many of us the reason why we have no peace in our storms is that we're not spending time with the Lord who can calm those storms when we trust Christ with our fears and our cares what happens is that we experience the greatest peace possible and we have to have a right view of the storm and we have to have a right view of God many times we make the situations and the storms way worse than what they actually are it's like Satan he PRS about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour but we forget that Christ also stomped on the head of the serpent we forget that he's a chained lion let me ask you this were the disciples in any real danger in the storm I mean yes like they were fearful they were very scared like totally valid understand that get it right but do you think that there was anything that Christ was going to allow to happen that was just unexpected where where did Judas go I don't know he went overboard just kidding without Judas There's No Redemption remember that was Christ going to lose his sheep just simply because he need to rest or did Christ choose to sleep as an example for us to trust in the father see the disciples at that moment even in the midst of the storm were safer than the emperor of Rome simply because they were near to Christ amen you see peace that Jesus gives is not the absence of the storm rather it's the confidence that he is going to be with us the hyw writer BB mckenny he wrote you guys might know this have faith in God it's have faith in God though all else fails about you have faith in God

He provides for his own he cannot fail though all kingdoms Shall Perish he rules He reigns upon his throne have faith in God he's on his throne have faith in God he watches over his own he cannot fail he must Prevail have faith in God have faith in God in this situation Christ he brought immediate calm to the storm and he turns to the disciples and he asks them two really good questions and there are two questions that we should ask of ourselves why are you so afraid and have you still no faith why do Christians still fear well Jesus he gives us the answer in the next question it's because of a lack of faith and why didn't they have faith well they didn't have a right view of God yet these men they were Jewish they grew up knowing the laws the commands understanding the Covenant and received the sign of the Covenant they knew all of these different things they had the Old Testament they had the prophets and the promises but they didn't have relationship with the Father the closer that a Christian is to God the more faith we will have and the more that the storms will seem more trivial rather than lifethreatening and if it is life-threatening what of it your Life's a vapor anyways it's here one minute and gone the next but your soul your soul is eternal your soul lasts your soul is forever if we cared about our soul as much as we had care for our bodies than man we would win the world in a week listen faith and fear they are opposed to each other and all fear for the Christian Finds Its root in a wrong view of God all fear and let me prove this when you were a child what kind of fears did you have think just think through it you know what they are I asked that question on Facebook this weekend I got some really interesting answers I knew that my wife was going to put frogs and you and you think of something silly let's just call it silly like frogs she'll she'll beat me later don't worry about it but you know there were some that were up there that were that were really you could understand drowning tornadoes making mistakes was a big one right A lot of people were just fearful of making a mistake others were a little more interesting and you might kind of chuckle at them but when we compare our fears whether they're irrational or legitimate and that's up to you to decide and then we think about the Lord how do our fears compare to the Lord I mean when we think about the goodness and the Holiness and the Purity and the righteousness of God what happens to our fears when we consider the promises and the power and the good purposes of God what happens to our fears when we dig into the Scriptures and we read about the promises that God has towards his people and when we consider and examine the very character and nature of God what happens to our fears when we see how God intentionally places people in the Old Testament and into the New Testament into tough situations what happens he receives greater glory because they lean on the Lord and they rely on him what does that do to your faith it builds it up I once heard a brand new believer say Cody I just have such unshakable faith in God you know there was a buck that was standing by a brook and he was looking at himself in this Brook as it goes by and he goes man I look good check out my antlers they're huge I got I got a whole bunch of

Friends in the herd and man they don't have a rack like I do you know if they hear a dog bark they immediately go running into the forest but not me you bring on a dog I'll show it what these antlers can do you know what just bring a pack of wolves I can do it and that's how that's how people with untested faith are soon there was the Yelp of some poor puppy puppy and what happened to the buck it goes traing off into the wood W as quickly as possible running away from that little sound of the puppy because it startled it and it ran away you see the heart is not as strong as his antlers and his legs were carrying him away from that little dog and so it is with untried faith you cannot be sure of untried faith for even a moment fear it will destroy in the day of trouble and that's one of the reasons why God allows and brings storms into our lives it's there to refine our faith to show himself to be the faithful God to be the powerful God to be the Sovereign God to be the good God to be the loving God to be the merciful God to be the just God to be the righteous God the Israelites they couldn't go into the promised land why because they were fearful of the Giants that were in the land only two men from that generation were allowed to go into the promised land Joshua and Caleb and that was because they believed the Lord and they were able ble to lead them into Victory Christian you have all the promises in Christ every single one of them every single promise is yours why because the Bible says 2 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 20 for all the promises of God find their yes in him Jesus that is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory we know that the promise of ours promises our ours in Christ and so remind yourself of the promises of

God but they are yours not because you profess belief in the promises but because you know the Lord Jesus Christ but the disciples they just didn't understand and they were filled with what great fear they were filled with great fear the disciples they were just beginning to understand Jesus of Nazareth he wasn't just some miracle worker he wasn't just a good teacher he had more power than any man in all of history ever who could control the wind and the waves in the Roman World remember that Mark it was written to the Christians in Rome and they come from a polytheistic culture who was the God of the sea it was Neptune who was the God of storms it was Jupiter and as there reading this still would have permeated that church syncretism it happens to go from polytheistic religion to a monotheistic one but God he has all control and all authority and the Jews they knew this for Millennia listen to what the Scriptures say in Psalm 89 oh Lord God of hosts who is mighty as you are oh Lord with your faithfulness all around you rule the Raging of the sea when its waves rise you still who is the one that controls the wind and the waves it's only the Lord only always the Lord Psalm 107: 25- 29 for he commanded and raised up the stormy wind which lifted up the waves of the sea they mounted up to heaven they went down to the depths their courage melted away in their evil plight they reeled and staggered like drunken men were at their wit's end and then they cried to the Lord in their trouble and he delivered them from their distress he made the storm be still and the waves of the sea were hushed who controls the wind and the waves it's only the Lord it's only ever the Lord and so these disciples they experience Jesus calming the storm and

The waves and the only conclusion that they can come to is who is the one that's controlling all of this it's the Lord it's only the Lord and they're terrified they are terrified because they find themselves in the presence of something that they can't put their finger on oh they know but it leads to fear it leads to trouble God Almighty was in their midst and that doesn't that doesn't Comfort them it leads to fear why because they had a wrong view of God the God they believed in resided in the temple in Jerusalem no one could look upon the Lord he was the God of Abraham Isaac and Jacob he was the God of Israel but then here is Jesus of Nazareth attributing to himself Divine attributes and proving his authority over demons over sickness over creation itself and instead of being encouraged and strengthened and going wow we are with God they are filled that means maximum capacity with great that word in the Greek is Mega the biggest of the big Phobos they were filled with great fear and notice that when the storm came up they were fearful their boat was sinking and they were in danger and once the storm was calm they experienced off the charts fear greater fear than even the storm had why because they obtained a better view of God they got to see the power of God for themselves in a truly remarkable and terrifying way RC Sproul he writes they liked his power when they were in trouble so they were quick to wake him when the boat seemed endangered but when he showed them his power they said this is not common power this is Holy power this man is different from every other person on the face of the Earth and finding themselves in the presence of the Holy One of Israel they were

Consumed by fear but where could they go they were stuck in the middle of the Sea of Galilee they can't swim that far there's no way that they're going to escape and what were they facing they were facing God incarnate the word which became flesh and what is the cure for fear the cure for fear is ultimately love it's why after the resurrection Christ he asked Peter Peter do you love me three times John he writes in his epistle in 1 John chap 4: 16-8 so we've come to know and to believe the love that God has for us God is love and whoever abides in love abides in God and God abides in him by this is love perfected with us so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment because as he is so also are we in this world there is no fear in love but perfect love casts out fear for fear has to do with punishment and whoever fears has not been perfected in love the truth is that perfect love and trust in the Lord drives out the fear that we may have the early church had picked up on this in Mark's testimony that Christ he is in the boat with the disciples on a stormy Lake and ultimately what this is it's a picture of the church in the midst of the world early Christian art would often depicted the church in this way of being in a boat and Christ being there with it because Christ he shares the boat with us and because of that the boat will never sink so what should you do well you should understand and believe that it is through all the storms the tri trials the famines the diseases the challenges all that kind of stuff it's through all of that you grow and without those gifts from God we would be slaves to that terrible master of self and so understand that Christ he wants to develop you through those storms that he has planned for you ahead none of us will get to heaven without going through

Storms know that he is also completely capable of delivering you with just a single word also we can trust Christ in the middle of the storm Jesus he knows our struggles that we have with faith and he will correct us with gentleness and understanding because he is our great high priest and yet with the most desperation and the smallest amount of Faith he still works and he still brings peace and Stillness to the waves and the wind that beats on our hearts he's the same God who calmed the storm he is the same Christ who eased that finger of the that was on the trigger to kill Ira sanki know that Jesus is in the boat with you he is with you and he is in your heart and so exercise this Faith lay down your fears get a right view of God because when this faith in Christ is active fear it vanishes head heart hand head I want you to know that he has he has great Care Authority and responsibility in his followers lives that's what God wants us to take away from this he doesn't lose his sheep he cares for us he died for us and so know that because of Jesus's great love for you he cares about what you're going through and he's willing to walk alongside of you in it he never leaves us he never forsakes us so draw close to the Lord heart God wants you to believe that when the storms come we have access to him in Christ for strength and deliverance God he may give you courage to get through it God might silence your storm God might bring along a friend to encourage you whatever it is God he's Almighty and he is a refuge for you to hide in and hand God wants you to take refuge in him when the storm comes when tornado sirens are blaring there's three things that people do they either resume their daily life and ignore it or they go outside to see if

There's a tornado or they take shelter until the storm has passed for Christians God he invites us to take shelter in him and if you're not a believer that invitation is for you too seek shelter in the Lord he loves you he's called each and every single one of us that are in him to follow him and maybe you know that you're called to that too you can talk to the friend that brought you can shake my hand and say Pastor I'm ready to talk about this too what does that mean to follow Christ and you can have a safe refuge for the storms but what must you do well you have to repent of your sins you got to agree that God is God and you got to believe the Gospel we're talking in our community group this morning Jesus said take up your cross follow Jesus that's what it means to have Shelter From the storms if y'all would stand with me let's bow our heads let's close our eyes and we'll respond in worship so God we do thank you for this time that we get to have together and we just pray that you would help us to know more about you I pray for every person that can hear me right now and I just pray that they would know you and if there's anyone here that they need to get their relationship right with you Lord maybe they recognize that they're Sinners and they need peace Lord ultimately they need peace with you before anything else and so I pray that today would be that day that happens but for those of us that are Believers Lord I pray for strength and encouragement that you would just move in our hearts and in our lives Lord to be encouraged and strengthened because of what you're doing in our hearts in the midst of the storms we love you and as we respond and worship

May you be glorified today in Jesus name amen [Music] it is so sweet to trust in Jesus just to take him at his word just to rest upon his promise just to know thus say the Lord Jesus Jesus how I trust him how I proved him more [Music] and Jesus Jesus preious Jesus Oh for Grace to trust him more oh how sweet to trust in Jesus just to trust his cleansing blood just in simple Faith to plunge meath the healing cleansing blood Jesus Jesus how I trust him how I proved him more Andor Jesus Jesus preious Jesus Oh for Grace to trust him [Music] more I'm so glad I learned to trust the precious Jesus Savior friend and I know that thou art with me Willl be with me to the end Jesus Jesus how I trust him how I proved him more adore Jesus preious Jesus Oh for Grace to trust him more Lord we are so thankful for what you're doing in our church and in our in our lives God and help us Lord as we leave here to know that you are that safe place that Rock of Ages where we can hide the safe place that we can go to thank you for proving yourself faithful in our lives we just ask Lord that when those Storms Come that we would encourage each other to rely on you and to draw closer to you thank you for this time we pray that you give us safety as we go to the church picnic now and that you would be blessed in Jesus

Name amen hey I need I need three guys that are willing to get five gallon water buckets in there fill them up with ice and water thanks