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[0:00] Mark 4 verse 35 through 41 And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full.

[0:47] And he, the Lord Jesus, was in the hindered part of the ship, asleep on a pillow. And they awake him, and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish?

[1:04] And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.

[1:18] And he said unto them, Why are you so fearful? How is it that ye have no faith? And they feared exceedingly, and said once to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him?

[1:39] Amen. The storm. A great storm. Verse 37 on Mark 4 And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full.

[1:57] They cried out, Master, carest thou not that we perish? Verse 39 And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm.

[2:13] He speaks to the storm. He commands the winds and the water, and they obey him. They obey him still. When the boat is full, when we are driven and in peril, he speaks peace.

[2:29] When storms cross our pathway, and friends, believers today, as believers, you will face those storms. They will come. Storms.

[3:07] It makes a difference. It is he. It is he. It is he. The saviour of the world. Our Lord and God. Look at some of the threads of this account.

[3:20] We see fear in the storm. Maybe you're in the storm, and there's fear in your storm today. Verse 37 The waves beat into the ship.

[3:31] A great storm. The disciples were afraid. Verse 38 Master, carest thou not that we perish? Storms can create fear.

[3:42] Chaos, tension, turmoil. And when your storm comes, will you face the storm with fear? Even though the Master is with you, will you still be fearful?

[3:55] People. Storms can be frightening things. They can drive us off course. We can lose our bearings. A storm can bring rains and gusty winds.

[4:06] We can get thrown about on the water. Doesn't the devil delight in throwing you off course? Doesn't the devil delight in that? He does. He does.

[4:17] We can lose our bearings, our direction. There's a shaking that goes on in the storm. I know there was a time I lived in Queensland. And the cyclone was coming. And people got all a bit jittery.

[4:30] A bit scared. They made some preparations. There's a shaking that goes on when the storm hits. You want to make sure everything is battened down and just so.

[4:42] We can lose our footing when the storm comes. You can imagine being on that boat. That boat that was full. That boat that was on that choppy sea. We can lose our balance in the storm.

[4:57] We can lose our nerve in the storm. And we can panic in the storm. Sometimes in the Christian life, when the storm hits your life, my life, we can lose our joy in the storm.

[5:14] We can lose our love. We can lose our peace. Lose our faith. To a degree. And we can risk being a man overboard.

[5:26] It's a fearful experience being in a storm. I know as a younger man, I know we travelled on a ship across the Pacific. And it was an amazing time.

[5:40] That was a big boat. Imagine being on this little boat. When the storm comes in. When the grey clouds are overshadowed. When the wind strikes your face.

[5:52] When the waves get choppy. It's a fearful experience. Do the storms come your way? And if they do, how will you respond?

[6:04] Will it be with fear? Will it be with fear? You know, the devil loves to rock the boat. He wants to rock the boat. He wants to rock the fellow ship. At times too. He wants to rock your Christian life.

[6:17] In scary ways. And he will shoot his fiery darts. In your direction. He can sand his stormy winds. And our boat can get full.

[6:28] Filled. Our lives can get filled. Filled sometimes with doubts. Filled sometimes with a feeling that our prayers go no higher than the ceiling.

[6:38] Our Christian lives can get filled with apprehension. When things don't seem to be just how we'd like them to be. We can be filled way down with the chaos of this world.

[6:51] Fearfulness can fill us in a time of storm. We can be overwhelmed by doubt, despair and danger. And the enemy of your soul loves nothing more than to unsettle you.

[7:02] To shake you. To stir you. To fear. And yet. As he seeks to drive you from God's heart.

[7:13] The storm should drive you closer. The storm should drive you closer to him. Closer to your saviour. Closer to your master. When the devil wants to tear your love and faith away from your master.

[7:25] It's the storm that should drive you to him. It's the storm that should drive you to cry out. Master. To that one who is holy. To that one who has the saving power.

[7:38] To that one who is good and godly. And when the storm clouds threaten your life. When the blasting stormy gales might come.

[7:49] When the violent howling winds shriek. That sand that chill down your spine. And convulse your heart with anxiety and dread.

[7:59] When those storm clouds overshadow you. When you face the darkness, the gloom. The crashing waves, the lightning. When the enemy storms into families.

[8:11] Into marriages. Into everyday lives. Perfect love. Casts out all fear.

[8:23] Perfect love. Casts out all fear. And where can you find that? Where can you find perfect love? Not a selfish love.

[8:34] Not a carnal love. But a selfless, unconditional, undeserved love. Agape love. The love of your saviour.

[8:45] It's perfect love, isn't it? To know his love. To know his care. When dashed hopes are bound. When there's despair. When there's hopelessness. Perfect love casts out all fear.

[8:56] And he is personified. Personal. Precious. Perfect love. Perfect love. So don't quit. When you may face those storms of life.

[9:09] And you will face them. Yea, many storms. Many storms. Let Jesus replace your fear and doubts. Let that perfect love. That lovely one.

[9:20] The lover of your soul. Let him be the one that you cry to. And upon his short promises. You can certainly stand. He can replace that fear and doubt.

[9:32] Here's what an old time preacher said. Andrew Murray said this. When we're feeling like we're in a storm situation. He says.

[9:44] Some pointers you can take to heart. First. Say. He brought me here. It is by his will I am.

[9:54] In this straight place. In that fact I will rest. He brought me here. Secondly. Next. He will keep me here. He will keep me here. In his love.

[10:06] And give me grace to behave like his child. He brought me here. He's going to keep me. Thirdly. He will make the trial a blessing. He will make the trial a blessing.

[10:17] Teaching me lessons that he wants me to learn. Working in me the grace that he wants to give. And lastly. In his good time. He can bring me out. He can bring me out again.

[10:29] And how and when he knows. So to recap. Let me say. I am here. I am here by God's appointment. In his keeping.

[10:40] Under his training. And for his time. Let that be your stand in the storm. That you trust him. You trust him. The storm may come.

[10:50] But know this. He never fails. He never fails. I know. I've read this in a previous message. But I want to read it again. I think we could heed it again.

[11:00] I trust. He never fails. He never fails. He never fails. The soul. That trust in him. Though disappointments come. And hope burns dim.

[11:11] He never fails. Though trials surge. Like stormy seas abound. Though testings fierce. Like ambushed foes abound. Yet. This.

[11:21] My soul. Like millions more. Has found. He never fails. He never fails. He never fails. The soul. That trust in him. Though angry skies.

[11:32] With thunder clouds. Grow dim. He never fails. Though icy blasts. Life's fairest flowers lay low. Though earthly springs of joy. All cease to flow.

[11:43] Yet still tis true. With millions more. I know. He never fails. He never fails. He never fails. The soul. That trust in him.

[11:54] Though sorrow's cup. Should overflow the brim. He never fails. Though off the pilgrim way. Seem rough and long. I yet shall stand.

[12:05] Amid. Yon white road throng. And dare I'll sing. With millions more. This song. He never fails. He never fails. There's fear in the storm.

[12:18] There's fear in the storm. But who's in your boat? Get a hang of that today. Get a hold of that. That he is in your boat. Even though fear may come.

[12:29] Even though distress. Disquiet. Gales and storms. And choppy seas. He is there. Despite your fear. Let perfect love.

[12:42] Abide. And secondly. We seek peace. In the storm. Verse 39. They woke him. And he arose. And rebuked the wind. And said. Unto the sea.

[12:53] Peace. Be still. And the wind ceased. And there was a great calm. Peace. In the storm. You know. We. We can't imagine.

[13:04] What it would have been like. Can we? In that little craft. As it was full. You know. I just re-read it. Again. And saw. The boat was full. You know.

[13:15] This was desperate. This was a desperate. Situation. You know. I've not ventured out. In little boats. Too often. On the sea.

[13:28] Especially not. A stormy sea. But to think of a boat. Filled. It was desperate. This was. Chaos. This was a violent.

[13:40] Unpredictable. Place to be. A place of unrest. A place of distress. Maybe you're in that place today. This very day. Our brother shared.

[13:51] A troubled people. A troubled place. And I've been thinking of this much. Of late. Of this mission field. Where we live.

[14:03] A desperate place. Desperate people. Desperate people. Do desperate things. We've had things stolen. The last few days. Things stolen. Desperate people.

[14:14] A street culture. You know. Dog eat dog. That's the life. People live. Here.

[14:26] And many where. Many places. Troubled. Souls. Troubled. Souls. And the wicked alike.

[14:40] The troubled. See. And when I say wicked. I'm not saying. The wicked. Same. The wicked.

[14:51] Without Christ. If there's anyone here. You might be in a church. But you're lost. As hell. There's no hope for you. If you're lost. If you're outside of Christ. You're wicked. You're like a troubled sea.

[15:03] Yeah. And I was one. I was one. And such were. All of us. Once. Outside of Christ.

[15:13] The wicked alike. The troubled sea. Isaiah 57. 20. When it cannot rest. His waters cast up. Mire and dirt. There is no peace.

[15:25] Saith my God. To the wicked. The troubled sea. It casts up the mire. The muck. The dirt. Like a troubled sea. Such.

[15:37] Was this place. A troubled sea. No peace. To those outside of Christ. Just an empty searching. A vain searching. Without finding.

[15:48] No rest. Dear soul. Are you like the troubled sea today? Are you like the troubled sea? Dear soul. Today. Be like these ones.

[15:59] That were perishing. And cry out. Master. Master. Master. Master. Cry out. His hand will still save. His hand still saves today.

[16:12] In Isaiah 59 verse 1. It says. Behold. Look at this. Behold. The Lord's hand is not shortened. That it cannot save. Neither his ear heavy.

[16:24] That it cannot hear. If you're outside of Christ today. Cry out. Master. His ear still hears today. Master. Let his ear hear that cry.

[16:36] Master. Let that cry come from your lips today. Master. His ear is not heavy. That it cannot hear. His hand is not shortened. That it cannot save.

[16:48] The Prince of Peace can be with you. In the storm. The Prince of Peace to one. This one you can cry out. Master. And that is what makes the difference. The Master speaks peace.

[17:00] He rebukes the wind. He calms the waters. His voice brings great calm. Neighbor. Is your soul troubled? Oh soul. Are you weary? In trouble?

[17:12] There is safety in his care. And we can know absolute soul peace. Even in the storm. Even in the storm. The Prince of Peace is there.

[17:23] If you'll but trust him. And believer in the midst of all your tribulation that you may face. You can have peace. Peace that passeth all understanding.

[17:35] That you'll keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. And the winds and the water, they obey him. Learn to call on the Lord and be at peace in your storm.

[17:48] Realize that God is working out something. Something through this. Something through the storm. An old time preacher, A.B. Simpson said this. You will have no test of faith that will not fit you to be a blessing if you are obedient to the Lord.

[18:04] I never had a trial. I never had a trial. But when I got out of the deep river, I found some poor pilgrim on the bank that I was able to help by that very experience.

[18:15] You know, we can empathise through such things, can't we? I know there was a time when I couldn't empathise with someone who had a flood go through their house. I can now. I can now.

[18:27] Amen. And maybe you've been through some dread sickness. Some awful suffering. Some affliction of spirit. Of mind. Of body.

[18:38] You can help someone now. God's going to use you now. Amen. You can comfort those that God, the God of comfort wants you to comfort. Fear in the storm.

[18:50] Peace in the storm. Lastly, faith. Faith in the storm. Verse 40. He said unto them, Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no faith? Verse 41.

[19:01] And they feared exceedingly and said one to another, What manner of man is this that even the wind and the sea obey him? There is one.

[19:12] One with power over all. He has care. He has authority. And the very forces of nature bow to his command. He is the author and the finisher of our faith.

[19:23] He is the source of our faith. He is the object of our faith. He is the giver of our faith. And he is the one who is faithful. Faith will hold you fast through the storm.

[19:35] Sister, brother today. Faith will hold you fast. Faith will hold you. And he calls you to that faith. Faith in the midst of storm. Faith in the master of the storm.

[19:45] And the Lord wants us to grow in faith. Yet, how sad it is to see so many, so many who claim Christian life living with a retarded faith.

[20:03] A retarded faith. A faithlessness that cannot hear him speak. A doubtfulness, unable to trust the unseen hand. A blindness that sees not the master.

[20:16] Dear Christian, be not moved despite the storm. He will not move. He's rock solid. And you can count on this one. And rest secure in him.

[20:28] In the time of adversity, he will bring you to stream. And in all the noise and turmoil, stop and hear his voice. Peace.

[20:39] Be still. Above the crashing waves. His voice still speaks. And so the circumstances threaten. There is hope in the master's voice.

[20:51] Cry out, as these ones did. In your troubled waters, cry out. Sister, sister, sister. Brother, brother, brother. Cry out. While you have voice to cry.

[21:03] Cry out. Master, save us. Christian, be valiant in the day of storm. Be not faithless, but believing. The mighty saviour is with you.

[21:14] That one who is the Prince of Peace. That one who is the mighty saviour. There is a storm warning today. A storm warning for this community.

[21:25] A storm is coming to this nation. A storm is coming to this land. To this city. A storm is coming. Will you be found safely under the shelter of his covering wings?

[21:39] Will you find the shelter that he wants you to have? That he beckons to you to give? He will sustain you. He will deliver you. Have faith in his promises.

[21:50] Where once there was a great storm, there is a great calm. And God can use the storms. Friends, another poem.

[22:00] Out of the darkness. Out of the dark. Forbidding soil. The pure white lilies grow. Out of the black and murky clouds. Descends the stainless snow.

[22:12] Out of the crawling earthbound worm. A butterfly is born. Out of the sombre shrouded night. Behold. A golden morn. Out of the pain and stress of life.

[22:25] The peace of God pours down. Out of the nails. The cross. The spear. The cross. Redemption. And a crown. God can use the troubles that come.

[22:40] I've got to be careful. When I preach a sermon like this, I usually get in all sorts of trouble afterwards. God tests me out to make sure I'm living it. Amen.

[22:51] It can be hard. You know. Pray for patience. He's going to give you something to cop. To test your patience. Amen. And some of you that are hearing this, these are not just words spoken into the air.

[23:05] This could be real for you this week ahead. The storm could yet be coming for you. And we know this dear Jenny suffering awfully with sickness and sad things happen to God's people.

[23:20] But yet he's there. The peace of God can be with you even in the storm. It's like someone said this. In adversity we usually want God to do a removing job. But what he wants to do is an improving job.

[23:33] We want God to remove the storm. But God's actually improving you through the storm. To realise the worth of the anchor, we need to feel the storm. Let me wrap up with a story.

[23:45] It touched me when I read it. And I think it will touch you. A man called David. During the Vietnam War, he went through rigorous training.

[24:00] In the elite special forces team of the US Navy. He went on a dangerous search and rescue mission. It was a night time raid.

[24:13] On an enemy stronghold. And David experienced the greatest trial of his life. When he and his men were pinned down by machine gun fire, he pulled a phosphorus grenade from his belt and stood up to throw it.

[24:26] But as he pulled back his arm, a bullet hit the grenade. And it exploded next to his ear. Lying on the bank of the muddy river, he watched part of his face float by.

[24:38] His entire face and shoulder alternately smouldered and caught on fire. David knew that he was going to die.

[24:52] Yet miraculously, he didn't. They airlifted him. They airlifted him. And his problems were just beginning as they laid him on the table for surgery. The surgical team, as they cut away the tissue that had been burnt by the phosphorus of the grenade, the oxygen would hit the phosphorus and ignite it again.

[25:12] And the doctors and nurses ran out of the room because they were fearful that the surgery would explode because of the oxygen in the ward.

[25:23] And he had one of the most severe burn and injury cases of the war. Lying next to him was another man. David knew that he was a grotesque picture.

[25:40] David had been a handsome man. And he knew he had nothing to offer his wife or anyone else because of his appearance. And he felt worthless, more worthless than he had ever felt in his life.

[25:51] But David wasn't alone. There was another man. Another man wounded. Another man wounded with grotesque injuries. A nightmarish sight. He'd lost an arm, a leg.

[26:03] His face was badly torn and scarred. And as David was recovering from surgery, this other man's wife walked in. She walked into the room, took one look at her husband, and she became nauseated.

[26:15] She took off her wedding ring, put it on the nightstand next to him and said, I'm sorry, but there's no way I could live with you looking like that. And with that, she walked out the door.

[26:27] He could barely make any sounds through his torn throat and mouth, but the soldier wept and shook for hours. Two days later, he died. That woman's attitude represents, in many respects, the way the world views a victim of an accident or injury.

[26:44] The world says ugly is bad. It attaches value to how people look. For this poor wounded soldier, knowing that his wife saw no value in him, was more terrible than his wounds.

[26:57] It blew away his last hope that someone somewhere could find worth in him because he knew how the world would perceive him. Three days later, David's wife arrived.

[27:08] After watching what had happened with the other soldier, David had no idea what kind of reaction his own wife would have towards him. And he dreaded her coming. His wife, a strong Christian, took one look at him, came over and kissed him on the only place on his face that wasn't bandaged and said in a gentle voice, Honey, I love you.

[27:29] I'll always love you. And I want you to know that whatever it takes, whatever the odds, we can make it together. She hugged him where she could to avoid his injuries.

[27:43] And watching what happened with the other man's wife and seeing his own wife's love for him gave David tremendous strength. More than that, her understanding and accepting him greatly reinforced his own relationship with the Lord.

[27:57] And in weeks and months that followed, David's wound slowly but steadily healed. It took dozens of operations and months of recovery and agonising recovery.

[28:09] But today, miraculously, David can see and hear. And he testifies to what God has done. And he has a burden to reach others. And David experienced a trial that no parents would wish on their children.

[28:23] Yet, in spite of all the tragedy, God, God worked. God turned David's storm. God turned David's troubled times into fruitful ones because he could be a voice that ministered the gospel in dramatic ways.

[28:41] Friends, we can brave the storm. You can brave the storm. You can shelter under the wings of this one, the one who is our strong refuge, our defence.

[28:53] Psalm 59, 16. But I will sing of thy power. Yea, I will sing aloud of thy mercy in the morning. For thou hast been my defence and refuge in the day of my trouble.

[29:06] Unto thee, O my strength, will I sing. For God is my defence and the God of my mercy. Friends, today, you might feel weighed down.

[29:17] There might be storm clouds hovering. It could be you're feeling like there's a lack of God's peace. There might be fear in your storm.

[29:28] See the one who casts out all fear. That one who is perfect love personified. There might be a lack of faith in your storm. Cry out, Master, Master.

[29:42] There can be peace in your storm. A great calm. You need not be like the troubled sea. Yet there are some here who are.

[29:53] A troubled sea. A troubled sea. You know not Christ. I urge you today. Make peace with God. Bow to his terms.

[30:06] His ultimatum. It's unconditional surrender. They're the terms that he offers to you. Unconditional surrender. Bringing nothing.

[30:18] Bringing nothing but your unworthiness. So that worthy one. The worthy lamb. I urge you to trust him.

[30:30] Now in some churches, we can make that offer today. They extend an invitation. You might wish to come to the front and pray.

[30:44] And maybe there's someone that could come and pray for you. As you respond. If you're in a storm, there's no other one who can help you today.

[30:56] I'm the master of the storm. And I urge you. We're not going to make some big song and dance routine. Or play some spooky music.

[31:07] Or make some emotional plea. But it's from your heart. You must respond. You must respond to that one. If you're outside of Christ, please make peace with him today.

[31:19] Surrender. Ultimate, unconditional surrender. That's his terms this morning. And if you'd like prayer, you might want to turn to a Christian near you and say, I'd like you to pray for me.

[31:31] I want to know Christ. I want to be saved. And if you're a believer today, you're struggling through storms, go to a brother or sister you respect and say, brother, sister, pray for me.

[31:41] I need God to help me in this time of storm. And I trust that you'll be led by the Spirit, those who are asked to pray, and those who seek to pray, that God will touch your life.

[31:55] I need God to help you.