Sermons

Have you ever felt blown off course in life?

Have you ever found it really hard going and wonder where the Lord is and what He is doing?

Do you want God to use you with greater power?

All of those questions dealt with in today's Mark passage 6:45-56.

Where we are coming from is the incredible feeding of the 5,000. Where Jesus has done a multiplication miracle of 5 loaves and 2 fishes to feed everyone and each of the disciples has collected a basket of leftovers. There's abundance and each of them get to experience that!

We are now going to see how God meets us in the winds of life. A couple of chapters before Jesus has calmed out a life-threatening storm, in this one Jesus is going to meet them when it's a tough going wind blowing them off course.

After the feeding of the 5,000, Jesus sends them to sail to Bethsaida just up the coast, while he goes off to pray up a mountain. They get caught in wind against them and it is painful progress.

First thing. The wind blows on everyone

The disciples were following Jesus obediently. They were doing exactly what He told them to do and the wind is blowing against them.

Jonah was the opposite. He got in a boat to go the opposite way from where the Lord wanted him to go and the wind blew!

The wind blows on everyone – whether you are being obedient or disobedient and God will use the winds and storms of life to grow us and guide us.

When the wind is blowing hard against you and it's hard to make progress – making headway painfully. It's so tempting to ask where are you God? Why are you not helping me? Have you forgotten about me?

He hasn't – Heb 13 “I will never leave you nor forsake you.” 6 So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?”

When you are in it, it is hard to hold on to that believe me! But it is true.

In today's passage v48, we are told “He saw that they were making headway painfully.” He know what you are going through, he sees it. And he is interceding for you. He was praying for the disciples then, and he is sat at the right hand of the Father right now praying you.

Prov 15:3 reminds us The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good.

He sees and He comes at just the right time to bring courage and strength to keep going.

2 Chr 16:9 For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him.

Sometimes it's pretty dark first! The disciples were in the fourth watch of the night – 3-6am. Just before dawn.

Janet and I had been talking about how tough life is and where's God in a situation. The next day, a Christian I know who lives in Swaffham came over to Lynn and grabbed me just outside the office to tell me he had a word for me – don't doubt, God will answer our prayers. God sees, He knows and He comes just at the right time.

I love the painting on the next slide – Jesus comes walking on top of the wind tossed waves as nothing. He really is in control – he is large and in charge!

V48 tells us “He meant to pass by them”, comes across so odd as a phrase. Less so if you think of three OT occasions where the Lord passes by. Pass by is when we get to see God's glorious power at work for us…

Moses is hidden in the cleft of the rock as God's glory passes by – so that he knows that God's presence will always be with them. Ex 33.

Elijah's experience is different. In 1 Ki19 – he's going through great discouragement and God passes him by too…

And he said, “Go out and stand on the mount before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind dan earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. 12 And after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire the sound of a low whisper.1 13 And when Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his cloak and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. And behold, there came a voice to him…

God was in the whisper. Sometimes when it is hard going the Lord whispers to us in the midst of the tempest.

Job is having a tougher time! In Job 8 he speaks of creation and then the Lord passing by…

who alone stretched out the heavens and trampled the waves of the sea; who made the Bear and Orion, the Pleiades and the chambers of the south; who does great things beyond searching out, and marvellous things beyond number. Behold, he passes by me, and I see him not; he moves on, but I do not perceive him.

When it is really tough, it can be hard to see God in it. Job didn't to start with and he wasn't helped by his friends who should have been helping him see God.

The disciples didn't recognise Jesus – the hearts were closed in the pain of the rowing.

It is hard to know why God allows the winds to blow hard against us in life – when we are obeying or disobeying. But if there was no storm there would be no miracle. And we will see the detour had massive impact for many people.

The parallel passage to this one in Matthew is the one where Peter ends up walking on water. He sees Jesus and asks the Lord to invite him to walk over. In the storm, Peter got to be part of an incredible miracle. He messed up by taking his eyes of Jesus. But Jesus never leaves us in our failure.

Why does Mark not tells us about that. Well Mark was a protégé of Peter and Peter doesn't brag. There's no pride in him. I love that. Pride stinks – it's like BO everyone else can smell it apart from the person.

Back to the story. Jesus us watching and praying and comes at the right moment. And he says three things.

Take heart! – be encouraged, don't give in to despair and discouragement

It is I – literally “I I am” – God, King of Kings

Do not be afraid – Jesus is walking on the waves that the problem, the storms are under the feet of God.

In your struggles – health issues, family issues, job issues, in your tears and loss and pain. They are under Christ's feet. He is in control. Have no fear.

This isn't the life-threatening storm of Mark 4 “we're going to die!” This is tough going in the winds of life, when there's no let-up, when you are trapped by the circumstances, when there is straining at the oars and no progress. When you are facing hardship and adversity, when you are at the end of your resources, when Jesus seems absent. He comes with his presence to give courage, himself and take away fear.

Jesus gets in the boat, the winds stop and the disciples are confused! Their hearts are still hard.

So Jesus calms the storm, and he gives us peace when we are in the storms and winds of life.

But they are still on a detour. Instead of landing at Bethsaida where asked them to go to, the land on the other side of the sea of Galilee at Gennesaret. That tells me life is as much about the journey as the destination.

Don't get het up if there are twists and turns in life and you end up on a detour. God wants to use you right new where you are right now. It's a detour not a dead-end.

We get too worried about guidance. Am in the right place? Am in the right job?, Is she the one? The Lord is most interested in your heart and your Christian formation. He will blow you off your original course. Don't forget the 12 where right in God's will, doing exactly what God said and they were blown off course, with Jesus!

Life is less of a blueprint and more of a game plan. In the army they say a plan survives until first contact. God will use tough seasons and hard seasons and winds and storms to take you on a detour.

One of my favourite devotional worship songs is an old one now, by a band called Delirious, called August 30th. Martin Smith wrote after a serious car crash changed the course of his life. Aug 30th 1995 he crashed just miles from home and was trapped in the car and hat to be cut out. The firemen asked him where's the blond lady that was holding your head? An angel? As he lay in hospital with a broken leg for weeks, God called him to full time musicianship and the rest is history.

He wrote August 30th of that day

Thank you for the chance to live again
I will run always for you
Clouds had gathered all around my head
But these hands they lifted me
And I’ll tell of this love that saved me

 

God will use the storms of life to make a detour that could be your destiny.

And he is the God of the second chance –  Thank you for the chance to live again

The disciples were obeying God and hit a storm. Jonah was running from the Lord and God used a storm to get him to his destiny. Do you need that chance to live again?

What happens to the disciples when they land in the wrong place. People recognise them and bring all the sick to them for healing. And wherever they go they do signs and wonders. I'd say extraordinary miracles – even the hem of his garment was healing people.

If you turn a page or two in your Bibles you will find they did eventually get round to Bethsaida in 8:22 after many people were healed and saved on the way. Who knows what would have happened without the storm.

The Christian life is a journey with ups and downs and twists and turns.

God will meet you in the  tough times as well as the good, in the valleys as well as the mountain tops.

Along the way he will use you to encourage others. Azmi turning up with a word from God was super timely and super encouraging.

And God will use you to do signs and wonders too!