When Jesus Walks on Water | Mark 6:45-52 | Pastor Daniel Batarseh (Gospel of Mark Series)

Jehovah Jireh, my provider. God is not intimidated by our economy. Do you believe that? He has his own economy. Right?

He'll take care of us. He'll guide us in this time of inflation and recession and all the craziness and all the rumors of the American dollar, what's gonna happen, and new currencies and all these things. God owns a thousand cattles on a thousand hills. He has everything under control, my brother. He has everything under control, my sister.

I want you to see that with me in God's word today. Would you meet me in Mark chapter six? Meet me in that glorious text that is so so so common to our understanding, to our vault of testimonies of what God has done in the past in the person of Jesus Christ. But I pray today that you would see it in a new light, that you would see it with fresh fresh eyes. And our brother prayed so beautifully, but I can't help but pray again.

Would you pray with me? And maybe pray for me while you pray as well. Lord, we come to you in absolute reverence, absolute awe. Lord, we do come knowing that we have been accepted in the beloved, but Lord, our hearts our hearts are so easily distracted, consumed with the things of this world. So weak, so frail, so given over to emotion.

Lord, we ask for a personal grace, especially for the delivery of this word. We pray that there would be a special power in it. We ask, Lord, that there would be a sense of your nearness, Lord. We pray that you would peel back the veil and that we would be able to behold you, Lord. Let everybody disappear.

Let Christ take center stage. And, Lord, we pray again that you would do wonders in our hearts, in our understanding, yes, but in our lives, practically speaking, we pray that you would come and do miracles, Lord. Heal us. Heal the broken body. Heal the broken marriage.

Heal the wayward heart. Heal the confused soul. Heal the broken in spirit. Oh, Lord, we pray that you would indeed heal us. Your Holy Spirit would speak to us.

Oh, God, we pray that there would be unction in the Holy Spirit this afternoon. True unction and power. Lord, we know that your own apostles could not go without the Holy Spirit Being bestowed upon them with a special grace, Lord, we do not presume and we do not rely on our own strength. Let the holy spirit have his way and may Christ be pleased with what he sees and hears in this house. In Jesus' name we pray.

Amen. 12. 12 baskets was a total number of leftovers that the 12 disciples were able to gather after Jesus Christ performed a miraculous banquet to feed thousands of men, women, and children at the time where they could not eat for themselves. 12. 12 baskets of bread and fish for 12 of Jesus' closest servants who were willing to suspend their getaway in order to serve strangers in a desolate place.

It was no coincidence that the number of baskets that they were holding in their arms was 12. Because in that miracle of the loaves, Jesus did not just want to communicate to a crowd who are like sheep without a shepherd, that he is compassionate. He also wanted to communicate to his own that he does not overlook them. When Jesus mysteriously made bread appear and fish to come about out of nothing, he also calculated the amount that would be left and that would be retrieved by his own. And Jesus wanted to teach so much in that one miracle.

And one of the things that you and I concluded on last week is that when the Lord sees you, the Lord sees me serving him, He does not forget us. He will not leave us to ourselves. In fact, when we serve him sacrificially, he will take care of us perfectly. And more than that, one day he will reward us abundantly. I'm telling you that this is the truth for those who are indeed dedicated to his purposes.

In fact, there is a verse that confirms that truth and I know we already we haven't even read a verse from Mark, but I'm telling you to go somewhere because I want you to make this a verse that you will cling to as you serve him day by day, month after month, year by year. So keep your place there Mark, but go quickly to Hebrews six ten, because this is what will comfort some of you. In Hebrews six ten, the Holy Spirit says, for God is not unjust, so as to overlook your work and the love that you have shown for his name and serving the saints as you still do. For God is not unjust to overlook your service, your love to the church, to the people of God. Why would the Holy Spirit include a verse like this in holy scripture?

Why would he insert this kind of a promise in the text? You know why? Because we are prone to believe at times that as we give our efforts and our resources and our energy to the things of God, that he might forget us, that he doesn't see us. And that awful thought is often strengthened when we perceive in people that they don't notice what we have to offer. And they don't express their appreciation for our sacrifice and what we do to benefit and all the time that we take apart from our families or from other activities that we could be doing on the weekend.

And so we interpret how people fail to see us and then we bring that to God and we think surely Lord you have indeed in some measure forgotten me. People may forget, even God's people. God doesn't. And what this text shows is that it is contrary to his nature to be forgetful and not to remember every single deed of love that you have performed in his name. It is actually a violation of his character to dismiss whether small or great what you have done for his namesake.

And that is what you saw last week when Jesus provided 12 baskets of food for 12 of his servants who gave up that evening that was devoted to them, to others. And we will continue to see that truth conveyed though manifested differently today. You and I are going to witness another miracle. And the miracle that we're gonna witness is gonna teach a different angle of God's all seeing grace. The same disciples who are able to perceive that the Lord sees me in my service, are the same disciples who are going to see that the Lord watches me.

Not just in my service, but in my struggles. And the way the Lord is going to convey that gracious truth is by walking on water. Yes. By walking on water, Christ is going to convey to the disciples and to us that he sees us. Not just as we toil in service, but even as we struggle while we try to serve him.

And I want your heart to be open to that truth and to believe it for yourself. And though that might be the central point that's gonna be driven down into our souls, that is not the only point. There's so much there's so much that beautifies this text that we cannot ignore. And I want you to see it with me as we begin to read here in verse 45. Mark six forty five.

Immediately, he made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side to Bethsaida while he dismissed the crowd. And after he had taken leave of them, he went up on the mountain to pray. Something happened right after Jesus fed the multitudes. The Lord perceived something. Something came to his attention.

And clearly, it was urgent enough for the Lord to look at the 12, all of a sudden to say, get in the boat and go. Get out. Meet me in Bethsaida. Go before me. And we may not perceive what it is exactly here, but it's the concert of the word of God that actually shows us.

But we might think to ourselves, well what happened exactly? What what happened for Christ to commission his disciples in this way? And not only that, but to slip into solitude himself. Did the Pharisees and Sadducees show up on the scene again with another devious plot? Did Herod send for his men freshly after killing John the Baptist to apprehend Christ and his closest followers?

What was it that demanded such dispersion after a mighty display of his majesty? Well, you don't have to guess praise God, you just have to read your bible more carefully. And where we get the answer is in the parallel account of this very same incident and that is in John. And in John chapter six, I want you to see exactly why it is that Jesus did this very thing. John six fourteen, we read, when the people saw the sign that he had done, they said, this is indeed the prophet who is to come into the world.

They interpreted the miracle of the bread and fish and linked it to the promise that was spoken through Moses that there is a prophet who is to come and you shall listen to him. And they saw the correlation between a Moses who provided man in the wilderness, now with Christ who provided bread for them in a desolate region. And so they said this got to be him. But more than that in verse 15, perceiving it says, perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king, Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by himself. Perceiving then that they were about to come and take him by force to make him king.

That's the reason. That's the reason Jesus looked at his 12 and said, go. And that's the reason where he pulled himself away up into a hilltop, so that he can be in prayer. Why? Isn't this an encouraging thing?

Don't we want Jesus to be crowned as king by the Jews especially? No. Actually, it's not a good thing. Because John goes on to tell us that their motive, their desire and wanting to exalt him and give him a throne is purely because he made their bellies full. Their their intention here is just because, purely because of material miracles that were performed.

And think about what Jesus can do for us if we elect him as our leader. Think about all the days off work. Think about all the vacations. Think about all the endless meals. Think about all the things that he can do, and so they were now so excited and ready to start a revolution.

They were ready to overthrow Rome with this kind of miracle worker on their side. Surely we can do it. And so there is enthusiasm, but it's a misguided enthusiasm. These people enjoyed the bread that Jesus could provide, but they would not embrace him as the bread from heaven. That's why Christ wanted nothing to do with their proposal.

And so he looks at his 12 and he says, knowing their weakness that they can get caught up in this frenzy, and entertain the ideas for themselves and side with them and say, Lord, come on. This is good. They want you to be king. Isn't this what we want? You're the Messiah.

This is our time. No. He doesn't even give him a moment more. He says, get in the boat and go. And he does.

Tell them to do that. But at the same time, he also senses the need to retreat himself. To pull away, not just from the crowd, but from his own. And to do what of all things? After a long day of ministry, of exercising power, teaching, healing, and doing things with bread and fish.

He wants to pray. That's for your instruction my brother and my sister. That's for our counsel. This is included for us to know something about prayer. And here's what it is.

When you are presented the opportunity, the temptation to veer away from the will of God, you must learn to turn to prayer. Jesus will one day rule and reign on this earth as king. You better believe it. Amen. He will.

But before he would be crowned king there in Jerusalem, as that mountain would be exalted above all other mountains we are told, he had to face the cross. No crown before a cross. Jesus knew that. Jesus knew that but that didn't stop Satan in the wilderness to give him a shortcut to the throne. Jesus knew that but it didn't stop the crowd to approach him and to give him an easier way out.

And so what you have here in essence is the persuasion to avoid the cross, and to come to the throne early. And the Lord would not have any of it. And the way the Lord would be strengthened to resist it, so to speak, is by exemplifying what you need and what I need when similar temptations are brought before us to say, why don't you just do it this way? Prayer is what anchors us in the purposes of God. Prayer is what will fortify you on the path that God has ordained for you.

Prayer is what clears your vision and helps you to perceive past the carnal prizes and promotions of this life, and to have a righteous perspective on all things. That's what prayer does. And if there's any takeaway that you will make from this point, please let it be this, that apart from prayer you you and I will not know longevity in the will of God. We will not know how to be sustained in the sweet purposes of our king if we don't know how to cultivate a life of prayer. Listen to this.

Jesus had to pray. That's fascinating to me. He didn't stand there and linger. He didn't stand there and entertain the thought. He didn't he didn't engage with those people and what they would offer him.

No. He went into secret and met with the father. And the type of prayer that I'm speaking about that will promise you success in honoring the Lord Jesus Christ with your life is the prayer that is modeled by Christ here. What do I mean by that? Yes, the Lord sees your thoughts.

Yes, he sees your springing concerns as you work and as you travel, but there are conflicts of the soul and there are certain temptations that require this kind of caliber of praying. Do you know what that means? Secluded, undistracted, undivided time in prayer. And until you and I believe that about prayer and are willing to give ourselves to this kind of prayer, we will never know the weighty promises that it offers. The infusing grace, the shield and the strength that we can know in isolation with God and to meet with him and to wait on him until he gives us what we need to be able to push through all the noise.

And I'm telling you in this day of surrounding seductions, in this day of bombarding persuasions, if you and I don't know how to pray, not gonna make it very far. I can tell you that. The Lord prays, but after he prays, we're told something else here in verse 47. And when evening came, the boat was out on the sea and he was alone on the land. And he saw that they were making headway painfully for the wind was against them.

And about the fourth watch of the night, he came to them walking on the sea. He meant to pass by them. We don't know how much time Jesus spent in prayer, but eventually he came out of that intimate place. And we are told that he now made his way to the disciples who were struggling at sea. But before we see him planting his feet on those raging waters, the Holy Spirit pauses, and he wants you to pause.

And as we pause, he wants us to see that Christ sees something. He wants us to have Christ's perspective on this very scene. And what it is that Christ saw from that hilltop, as I'd like to imagine the moon was shining on those waters. And as the crickets filled the air, that they were making way painfully. Translation, they were struggling to go where Jesus told them to go originally.

He was watching them. And in John six eighteen, you don't have to turn there, we're told that it was a strong wind. A strong wind. It wasn't a light breeze. It was a strong forceful wind that even made the waves rough.

Matthew tells us that those waves were beating against that very boat. And so they were struggling indeed. And this is a familiar thing for these men, but we see here that the Lord is watching them. Watching them attempting to honor his wishes when he said, I need you to go before me. I'll meet you there.

And they were met with opposition. The wind was against them. It wasn't for them, it was against them. And here's the point that I want to make to you today, that obedience often is met with opposition. You will know resistance as you dedicate your life to serving Christ no matter what he asks of you.

And what makes that resistance especially more challenging for the true soldier of God, is that while they are trying to row forward, they sense the absence of Christ's presence in the midst. Isn't that the most bothering thing? I'll go where you go, but Lord let me just sense you along the way. If you can just walk with me Lord, if you can just peel off this layer from my perception to help me see you in every step, I'll go wherever you go. But what do you do when he's not on the boat?

That is precisely what's happening here. And to add to this description, John adds to it. John says in chapter six verse 16 this time. John six sixteen, when evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, got into a boat and started across the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark and Jesus had not yet come to them.

Jesus had not yet come to them. There's expectation for Jesus. And this is not the first time the disciples endured an uncomfortable storm. Right? You were here when we preached on that first time, but this is the second.

And the main difference between the first episode of the storm and this episode of the storm is that this time Jesus was not on the boat. He was the first time. He was taking a nap but he was there. I'll take Jesus having a nap on the boat then not having Jesus at all. This time, he's nowhere to be found.

This time, he left us to ourselves. And it's a good reminder that with these two episodes, you see a principle that Lord is trying to illustrate. He wants to mature us. And in wanting to mature us, he does so by allowing us to face circumstances that are more challenging than last. If you're gonna grow in Christ and expect to face greater trials, greater tests of faith.

And even this, I was thinking about this last night. You know, I have many conversations with people who have very awesome questions. And one of the questions that I've heard over the years is, Brother, is it true for you because it's been true of me that when I walk with the Lord and when I was walking with him in the beginning, God was just so real to me. It's like I went to bed with him being by me. I woke up with him being in the very same room when I went to work.

It was just this open heaven wherever I went. I just sensed the nearness of the Lord. I enjoyed him. There was uninterrupted devotion to him and and just him making himself known in specific ways, in ways that were tailor made for me. And I had those conversations with many sisters and brothers and then they all they always end up saying the same thing when they walk with the Lord long enough, but it's not really the same now.

I just feel like the testimonies are less. I I just feel like the the the warmness of that place in prayer is not as intense as it was when I first encountered him. And does this make sense to anybody? Okay. And it's it's a 100% always the same for those who are truly walking with the Lord, and I get it.

And I think this is a perfect illustration to explain why that is the case. Because when you start with him, he is so gracious with us. Is he not? He's so patient with us and he's always patient with us, but there's a special sense of who he is and where he is when we first start out. But then as time goes by, we sense that he pulls away.

And why is that the case? I'll tell you why it's the case, because he wants to mature your faith. Faith pleases God. And what will require from us often is for him to hide himself in order for you to simply take him at his word and not wait for a testimony or an experience to solidify your trust in him. And what better illustration than this, when the disciples were walking with the Lord early on, he went in the boat with them.

And after some chapters go by, he tells them to go without him. What is he doing here? He wants to train their faith. What is he doing here? He wants to pull out of them more trust and reliance on him, though they cannot immediately perceive him.

And so, like a actual child grows up, you sense this independence though you're not completely not relying on the Lord, but there's a sense in which the Lord will let you move forward and cloak himself as you go, so that when you go you're trusting in what he had said, not necessarily on how you feel him that morning, what he did in your life last weekend. I hope that gives you some kind of comfort. This is what the Lord wanted to convey, but the distant presence of Jesus did not mean that he was any less mindful. Right? Mark tells us that the watchful eye of Jesus was over the disciples.

The watchful eye of Christ was laser focused on those 12. And that no matter how far they were, they were never outside of his caring reach. That's the point here. The Lord monitors you. The Lord supervises you.

You might not be aware of it, but that doesn't matter. It doesn't make it any less true. He is there though it's dark. He is there though it's difficult. He is there though you feel deserted.

He's there. And he never ceases to oversee your going and your coming, and he is always ready to bring deliverance when the time is right. Here's Christ watching them. Oh, what what a sight. What a sight.

And he is ready to do just that, to come to their rescue. But before that, may I make a comment about the disciples? The disciples here were told were rowing when it was really challenging to do so. The wind was against them, but they didn't quit. They didn't quit.

All they had from Jesus was one short brief command. Go to the other side. That's all they needed. And when they went, they kept going. They did not give up.

You know how tempting it would have been to make a u-turn? The wind is now rushing against them. All they had to do is make a one eighty and the wind would support them and they would just come back to their original place and you know, call it a night and just go when the weather was better. But they didn't. Why?

Because Jesus told them to go. And so they gave themselves over and you can imagine the muscle cramps and you can imagine the frustrating process, very slow. And we often see the disciples in a negative light, but here's a praiseworthy thing, they were committed to what Jesus had said. In this day of microwave results, right, it's becoming more of a trend for believers to be less committed. Less committed to their ministries, less committed to the local churches, less committed to devoting themselves to the things that Jesus told them to do.

And I could tell you the reason for that and it might sting, but it's okay. Christ is not their primary audience. All these disciples had was a word. All they wanted to do is please the master. And if Christ, my friend, is not your primary audience, then don't be surprised when you jump from ministry to ministry.

Don't be surprised if you find yourself jumping from church to church. Don't be surprised when you resign from one community and think it's gonna be better with another community. That is a sign of immaturity in the faith. Christ is worthy of loyalty. He is worthy of loyalty.

And if you don't have him as your motivation, then you will be tossed to and fro in different ways, and I don't want that for you. And I praise God that in this place, there are solid Christians who don't give up so easily. They row and they push and they fight. And in those days where their body betrays them or their schedule conflicts with them, they realize this is for my Jesus. He told me to do this and that's enough for me.

Wouldn't it be nice to gather yourself with 11 others who had the same conviction? Oh, may this be a boat filled with people who feel that way about Jesus. We're going forward. It's not easy, but we're going forward. We're going forward.

We're not seeing the results that we wish we would see. We're going forward. I'm not being promoted or recognized the way I would like to be promoted or recognized but it's not even about any of that. My Jesus told me. That's all I need.

Whether the fruit that I expected after two years of doing this is here or not. Whether the progress is slow, my Jesus told me and that's enough for me. That kind of caliber of Christianity makes the devil pull his hair. And Christ here sees this and he's gonna do something in a moment. Verse 48, we read in the beginning that he saw that they were making headway painfully for the wind was against them.

And about the fourth wash of the night, you know what time that is? Three to 6AM. Think about how long they were rowing for then. Hours. Hours.

When I try to paint something or chisel it, my shoulders get so sore after five minutes. These guys were these were expert fishermen. Yes. But not all of them. And here they are treading, wrestling, advancing till three to six in the morning.

And in those early hours, that's when Jesus decides to plant his feet on those vicious waves, on those bulldozing winds, and he makes it seem like a walk in the park, like it's a sunny afternoon in Galilee. He just makes his way and walks in their direction, and when he does, Mark tells us something unique. Mark tells us at the end of '48, walking on the sea, he meant to pass by them. Interesting and difficult to interpret. You have many people who believe different things about what this means.

What do you mean Jesus meant to walk by them? All these ideas. But this is not the only time we've seen Jesus do this. Right? This is not the only time we've seen the Lord planning to move ahead with his disciples when they were physically heading in a certain direction.

Do you remember those two sorrowful disciples on the road to Emmaus With heavy hearts, Jesus appears, hides his identity, and the way that he gives them a prescription for their weariness is a terrific old testament bible study. And he goes through the Hebrew scriptures and reveals Christ in them, and those heavy hearts begin to burn. And at some point during that several mile journey, Jesus and these two come to a crossroads. And when they come to the crossroads, Luke tells us what Jesus was planning to do. And in Luke twenty four twenty eight, so they drew near to the village to which they were going, he acted as if he were going farther.

He acted as if he was going farther. So here's the Lord with these two others. Emmaus is that way and the opposite direction is here and the Lord begins to make way in the opposite direction. Why? Why would why would he do that?

And why is the Holy Spirit telling us that he's doing that? Because the Lord in this moment after revealing so much of himself wanted to see if they wanted more. That's why. Christ is so precious. He is such a treasure.

And in his personality, he delights in seeing us seek him. He enjoys seeing us pursue him. And at times, he reserves himself in order to see if you're willing to, as you heard earlier, press on to know him. Do you want more truth? Do you want more revelation?

Do you want more understanding? Do you want more intimacy? There are times in your walk with the Lord will get quiet. And in becoming quiet, it's not because he's playing games with you. He wants to see if you want more of him.

These two disciples, they passed the test. They compelled him, it says, to come with him. You know what Christ did when he came over for dinner? He honored that and he opened their eyes even more. And they perceived who he was.

He disappeared and they made way to Jerusalem to tell him about the resurrected Christ. Could it be that Jesus is doing the same thing here? Here they are in this storm tossed moment, and through the wind and the waves you see somebody just strolling by. I wonder if he even looked at them. I don't think he did.

Just graciously and heavenly like walking by them. Perhaps wanting to teach him to cry out. To cry out. To cry out for his holy company. For him to be nearer, closer.

The Lord desires that from us. And it wasn't until they did cry out that he turned his attention toward them and actually comforted them and entered into the boat. But maybe there's something deeper with this. Maybe maybe that is part of it, but maybe the Lord had a deeper desire in wanting to pass by. Could it be that in passing by, he wanted to display his glory?

This is not the first time that the Lord has passed by some of his servants with the sole intent of demonstrating his beauty. Remember, Moses said, oh Lord, show me your glory. Show me your glory. And the Lord agrees to that. But he gives him a set of instructions.

He says, I am gonna allow my glory to pass by you. But I'm gonna put you in the cleft of the rock, and I'm gonna put my hand over you until I do pass by you. That's Moses. In Exodus 33, what about Elijah in first Kings nineteen eleven? Elijah's distraught.

He is defeated. He's depressed. The Lord gives him a meal, a drink, a couple of naps, and he tells him to go on Mount Horeb. Elijah goes, and we're told there in first Kings nineteen eleven that the Lord passed by. And when the Lord passed by, a wind came and it broke some of those mountains.

And after that wind came, an earthquake came. And after an earthquake came, fire came and he wasn't and either of those things, finally a low whisper came. And the Lord spoke. The Lord passed by Moses and he he had a glimpse of his glory. The Lord passed by Elijah and he got a glimpse of his glory.

Could it be that the Lord is passing by these disciples to give him a glimpse of his glory? That might be speculation, but there might be validity to that when you see what Jesus says to them, when they understand that it is him or at least at least discover after these words. What does he say here in verse 50? For they all saw him and were terrified but immediately he spoke to them and said, take heart, it is I. Do not be afraid.

Take heart, it is I. Do not be afraid. Take heart, it is I. Three English words. Right?

Those three English words are two in the Greek. Ego am I. Do you know what that translates as? Take heart, I am. Take heart, I am.

Don't doubt that that is a direct reference to how God revealed his personal name to Moses in Exodus three fourteen. When Moses was to go to the people of Israel, God told him, tell those people I am sent you to them. And here is Jesus passing by, And as he passes by and they cry out, he comforts them with this revelation. Take heart, the great I am. I am was walking on those waters.

And in Job nine eight, we are told that God alone is the one who spreads out the heavens and who tramples on the sea. I am. Is it no wonder that in Matthew's version, they fall down and they worship him in that boat? This is what Jesus is doing. He's revealing his glory.

He's revealing his glory and he did indeed reveal it. But that's not how the disciples interpreted it as first. They didn't see glory at first. You know what they saw? A ghost.

You saw glory, I hope, and me explaining this. That's what that's what we perceive. They didn't. They they thought they saw a phantom. Isn't that what we see here?

Verse 49. But when they saw him walking on the sea, they thought it was a ghost and cried out. They thought it was a ghost. Wonder if this is exhaustion playing with their minds. You wonder if there was superstition.

What was it? I mean, it's not common that you see rabbis walk on water. I get it. But a ghost of all things. They were terrified.

And we might feel the right to criticize these men because they didn't put the pieces together, but be very slow with your criticism. Can we be humble this afternoon? Can we be humble and admit that what happened to them is often what happens to us when it comes to our perception of Jesus during our trials and our tribulations? How often do we discern Christ in our troubles? Come on, be honest.

Be honest. This is church. You have to be honest. How often do we calmly consider the sovereign God in our storms. You know what Christians are more quick to do oftentimes?

Acknowledge and confess the presence of Satan and demons in their trials and difficulties. It's very rare to hear a believer, though I praise God, it's not rare here for them to assess what is going on in their lives and be able to say, but Christ is here. God is here. I know that he is here. I may not fully understand it.

I might be very tired, but I know that he is here. Some good hearted believers, unfortunately, don't. They are more willing to admit that they are being harassed by Satan. But listen, if you're walking in obedience like these disciples were, he can't harass you and he can't haunt you. And whatever affliction might be upon you, you know that Christ permitted it to sanctify you.

No. When you're in that boat, the boat that Jesus told you to be in and to go where Jesus told you to go, you don't have to be afraid of ghosts. You don't have to be afraid of anything. There are many believers in 2023 who are in faithful churches who believe that they can have a curse placed on them. They believe in the power of witches and warlocks.

They believe that the devil can have his way with their lives, and that he's in charge of the direction of their boat. And all they do is live with fear seeing ghosts, Thinking that Satan has somewhat the same level of power and there's a tug of war happening in the invisible realm. No. No. No.

No. God has all the rope and Satan is on the end of it like a leash. They saw a ghost. No. It's Christ.

It's not a ghost. We see our suffering, and we see Satan, and we see a forgetful God, and we see all these different things when in fact it's Jesus. And he's on top of the water, the very same water that you're afraid of. And he is standing still though those waves seem to, and those winds seem to push you from left to right. Can I give you a life verse?

Let me give you a life verse in Isaiah 50 verse 10. And I would love to hear those Bible pages turning to Isaiah fifty ten. There it is. What a sweet sweet sound. Because I want you to see it with your own eyes.

Isaiah 50 verse 10. Make this a banner over your heart. Make this a banner over your future. Isaiah fifty ten declares, who among you fears the Lord and obeys the voice of his servant? Pause.

I hope you can read that and say, me? I do. Who among you fears the Lord? Lord, I fear you. Who among you obeys the voice of his servant?

I try to. I desire to. You you should stop at verse 10 and say, me. If you're questioning that, then the rest of this doesn't apply to you. But if you can confidently say, my conscience is clear.

I do want to fear God. I do want to make my life of obedience to him. Then the next part is for you. Let him who walks in darkness and has no light Hold on. You just asked from the readers who fears God and who obeys the voice of his servant.

Why are you talking about darkness and not having light? Isn't that for the person who doesn't fear God and who doesn't obey? No. This darkness is not talking about the darkness of disobedience or sin or being in the dominion and the domain of Satan. That's not the darkness that we're talking about here.

He already clarified and screened the audience by saying, okay, let's just determine this first. Who here fears God? Who here obeys the voice of his servant? Good. So you can expect something in your walk and as you fear him, you might find some darkness along the path.

Meaning what? You may not perceive. You may not know. You may feel a sense of lack of direction. You may not understand what is happening.

You may not have light on the current circumstance. That can happen to those who fear God and obey the voice of a servant. And so when you do come to that season where there doesn't seem to be light, somebody switched the light off, and now you're aimless or you're stuck or or there's something there that's frustrating you, and your progress, and your advancement, and your confidence of what tomorrow will bring, what are you gonna do? Trust in the name of the Lord and rely on his God. That's what you do.

I can't tell you how how many times this verse has consoled my soul and I give it to you if you haven't heard it before. To lock it deep down inside and realize even for those who fear him and obey him, you might walk in some season of darkness. And what are you supposed to do? See ghosts? No.

Trust in the name of God and rely on him. He'll pull you through. He can come and everything can change in one moment. That's what happens here. Everything changed in one moment.

Verse 51 of Mark six, and he got into the boat with them and the wind ceased. He got into the boat and the wind ceased and they were utterly astounded. You know what John tells us? That not only did the wind cease, but right away the boat was transported to shore. There was this like form of teleportation that happened.

The moment Jesus got in the boat, not only did the waves and the wind quiet down, but within a blinks eye they show up on the dock. That's for another time. But what's interesting here is we expect this reaction, but look at the commentary of Mark about their astonishment in verse 52, for they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened. That's interesting. You know what this tells me?

They were utterly astounded rightfully so. But you know what Mark says? In some sense, where was this reaction when Jesus multiplied the bread and the fish? It wasn't there. When Jesus did that, they they were not utterly astounded the way they are here.

Though that miracle demanded this kind of recognition, it was missing. It was missing. And this shows me at least the patience of Jesus Christ. The absolute steadfastness of his love that even when he made himself known so powerfully, the disciples didn't give him what was his due and he did not give up on them nonetheless. He worked in a way to soften those hardened hearts, and this is an extremely important point that I wanna make.

Your heart and mine can be hardened even in the midst of God doing amazing things. Isn't that a sad reality? God can place you in an amazing local church. God can put wonderful people in your lives. He can bless you through and through and he can make things appear when they were not there and still, what I see here is a commentary what's possible with us, our hearts can still be indifferent.

We still don't get it and we don't give the Lord the worship that is his due and we don't offer him the zeal that he deserves and we don't commit ourselves the way we should be committed despite all that he displays, we still can remain hardened. And what I see here is that those hardened hearts were obviously softened. And God knows exactly what to do with our hardened hearts. You know what he doesn't do? He doesn't give up on us.

You know what he doesn't do? He doesn't put us on the shelf and and recruit more disciples for your place. No, he doesn't. He works on you. But here's the part that some people don't get.

You ready for this? Listen. Sometimes it requires a storm. You know what I learned about some Christians? Blessing doesn't do them very good.

Blessing doesn't really keep them close. And they appreciate it in in the spontaneous moment of receiving it, but afterwards they go their own way and their hearts are hardened. You know how God softened the hearts of these hardened men? He put them on a boat and he send them into the sea and he allowed waves and wind to come to wake them up. That might be true of you because as you sit here and you've been sitting here week after week, nothing has changed.

You know what's gonna happen? If God loves you, he's gonna realize that the 100 sermons you've heard haven't worked. So here comes a storm. And when that storm comes and you realize that you were not standing on solid rock as you thought and things begin to fall apart all around you, can I give you a word of suggestion? Cry out to him.

If you forgot anything with this sermon, remember that. Cry out to him when the storm comes. And when the storm comes and you cry out to him and he reveals himself in his grace and mercy, stay with him. Matthew gives us a different angle on this and this is how we're gonna end. Go to Matthew chapter eight.

Matthew's way of teaching is a little different about what happened with the disciples, but it's encouraging still. Now, do you remember when the disciples went through the first storm? Do you remember their response? If you don't, look what Matthew eight twenty six says. And he said to them, why are you afraid, oh you of little faith?

Then he rose and rebuked the winds and the sea and there was a great calm. It's not the same incident. This is the this is the first one. And look what happens in verse 27. And the men marveled saying, what sort of man is this that even winds and sea obey him?

They marveled and rightfully so. But what happened when they underwent the second storm? What happened with the following episode? The Spirit of God records for us their reaction in that as well and you will notice the difference. Matthew eight is the first storm.

Matthew 14 is the second storm. And then Matthew 14, I want you to see here in verse 32, what happened after Jesus got on the boat. And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased and those in the boat worshiped him. Saying, truly you are the son of God. The first time they marveled and they questioned his identity.

This is different. I've never seen a Pharisee do that. Have you, Andrew? No. I've never seen a Sadducees do that.

No. This rabbi is different. Who is this man? And they left it at that. The second time, you're the son of God.

And they didn't just marvel. They praised him. They worshiped him. And guess what? Jesus didn't deny their worship.

He received it. The first time they marveled, the second time they worshiped. Do you want you do you know what you see here? An increase in their faith. Growth in their understanding.

And I love how the Holy Spirit teaches that in the context of storms. Because that's what storms do. That's what trials do. They stretch your soul. They help you see who Christ is.

They train you. They they bring you to a clear understanding of his person. And if you respond correctly he receives more glory from you. They marveled and then they worshiped. Truly, we go from glory to glory.

And truly, our paths are determined no matter how unique they might look in comparison to the person sitting beside you. The goal is the same, to take you into greater understanding of who he is and to take you from one degree of glory to another and for him to receive greater glory from one degree to another. This is Christ. He doesn't just see you in your service, he sees you in your struggle as you serve him. And perhaps you are in a place today where you're tired.

And the last you looked, you're here because you've been following Jesus. And you're wondering, Lord, I remember the early days where it wasn't really like this. He sees you. He sees you, he knows you, he perceives you, he studies you, and at the right time he'll pull you through. Let those who walk in darkness and have no light trust in the name of the Lord and rely on his God.

Lord, we thank you for these glorious truths. Lord, we pray Strengthen our stride. Thank you for not giving up on us when our hearts become hard And we don't give you what you deserve. And we eat from your hand, and we're blessed by your power, but we don't give you the honor in that moment. Thank you that when we walk with calloused hearts, you know how to deal with us accordingly to soften us again.

And yes, it is true that your goodness and kindness leads us to repentance, but Lord, it is also true that you afflict us for our good. Oh, Lord, we love you. You're an awesome god. Lord, our prayers for the people here that they may know you. And perhaps some have come here and they marvel about you and they marvel about sermons about you, but they have not yet worshiped you.

We ask so that the Holy Spirit would bring into that place and they would confess he is the son of God. And I wanna give my life to him. Only you can do that. In Jesus' name. Amen.