[0:00] We shall turn to the Word of God for our reading this day. Our reading is in the Gospel of Luke, Luke chapter 8.
[0:18] Luke chapter 8. Luke chapter 8.
[0:36] And we shall read at the start of this chapter, we shall read the first three verses. And then we will go on to verse 16, down to the end of verse marked 25.
[0:55] So we shall read together the first three verses of Luke chapter 8. Soon afterward he went on through the cities and villages proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God.
[1:09] And the twelve were with him. And also some women who were healed of evil spirits and infirmities. Mary called Magdalene from whom seven demons had gone out.
[1:20] And Joanna, the wife of Chusa, Herod's household manager. And Susanna and many others who provided for them out of their means.
[1:32] And then moving on to verse 16. No one, after lighting a lamp, covers it with a jar or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light.
[1:48] For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light.
[1:59] Take care then how you hear, for the one who has more will be given. And from the one who has not, even what he thinks that he has will be taken away.
[2:16] Then his mother and his brothers came to him, but they could not reach him because of the crowd. And he said, your mother and he was told, your mother and your brothers are standing outside deciding to see you.
[2:32] But he answered them, my mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it. One day he got into a boat with his disciples and he said to them, let us go across to the other side of the lake.
[2:46] So they set out and as they sailed, he fell asleep and a windstorm came down upon the lake and they were filling with water and were in danger.
[2:59] And they went and woke him saying, master, master, we are perishing. And he awoke and rebuked the wind and the raging waves and they ceased and there was a calm. And he said to them, where is your faith?
[3:11] And they were afraid and they marveled saying one to another, who is this that he even commands? Even the winds and the water and they obey him.
[3:25] Amen and may the Lord bless to us that portion from his own holy word. We shall sing once again this time in Psalm 107.
[3:38] Psalm 107. Psalm 107 from verse 17 down to the end of verse 25.
[3:59] Fools for their sin and their offense do sore affliction bear. All kinds of meat their soul abhor. They to death's gate draw near.
[4:11] Down to the end of verse 25. For he commands on forth in haste the stormy tempest flies, which makes the sea with rolling waves aloft to swell and rise.
[4:24] Shall we sing these words together? Psalm 107 from verse 17 down to the end of verse 25. Fools for their sin and their offense do sore affliction bear.
[4:37] Fools for their sin and their offense do sore affliction bear.
[4:55] O kind of meat their soul abhor. O kind of meat their soul abhor.
[5:06] To death's gate draw near. Fear and grief their kind. Fear and grief their kind.
[5:19] To all these sin and their promise of fear. Save them from their midst of fear.
[5:31] Fear and grief their kind. If he stands in word. Then he is not there.
[5:42] From their destruction tree. Fear and grief their kind. Fear and grief their catching.
[5:59] Fear and grief their all. Fear and grief their soul abhor.eting, musichir. And for His works upon them Come to God and soul in And let them start with eyes to Him All reach of thankfulness And let them show out of His works His songs of joyful land
[7:06] Who God gives me in ships With them that deeply stand For His works upon them For He comes down For in His love And the best life Which makes the sea
[8:06] We're rolling with The best life of His works Let us once again turn to That portion of Scripture That we have read together In the Gospel of Luke Chapter 8 And we'll read once again These words that we find in verse 25 And He said unto them Where is your faith?
[8:55] And they, being afraid, wondered Saying one to another What manner of man is this? For He even commandeth Even the winds and the water And they obey Him I'd like to look at this section From verse 22 to 25 This day where Christ Quietens the storm And we shall take And we shall take And we shall take With regard to these verses The question that is asked In verse 25 As our text Where is your faith?
[9:36] And as we go through These verses today My hope and prayer is That there will be something here To encourage us as believers Despite the fact that We've heard And many people preaching On this passage over the years And that even more importantly That there would be something here To challenge those Who have yet to place their trust In Christ So we shall look then At this section that Talks to us with regard To the testing Of the disciples' faith And we shall look at it Under four headings Four simple headings We shall see the calm Before the storm We shall look secondly At the storm itself And then thirdly We shall look at the calm After the storm And a word in conclusion Of the great storm And the great calm
[10:38] That is yet to come I wonder If there is anybody here Who has ever stared death In the face By that I mean Somebody who has thought That they had literally seconds Literally moments left To live in this world And you honestly thought That That was it for you That your time was over I am sure there is more than me With that experience In here today As a young 18 year old boy Driving to Harris With my boss's van Going to Avonsia Going round a single track road Going round the corner Up a hill And I went past the sidey
[11:40] So I decided to keep going To the next one While a 40 foot articulated lorry Was coming down the hill Fully loaded with salmon And all I had to do Was stop And reverse No more than Two or three minutes Two or three meters But as I saw This big beast Of a vehicle Coming head first Towards me And the driver Beeping his horn I closed my eyes And I froze I couldn't get The gears into reverse And I simply Closed my eyes That day And I said Till here I come I was convinced That was it And miraculously I came out of that Bashed van Without a scratch On this day The Lord's own disciples Were of the opinion
[12:41] Very much That they were But seconds Or moments Away from death There is no greater Question In the word of God To be asked Of you and I Today Than this question Where is your faith Because your answer And my answer To that question Will determine Where we will spend Eternity So let us look Then first of all At our first heading And we shall see The calm Before the storm And this begins In verse 22 Where we Read of This Sea of Galilee Where The Lord And his disciples Were travelling That day Were journeying The Sea of Galilee From what I Have read about
[13:41] Was in the region Of about Seven miles long From one side To the other And although Seven miles Wouldn't be long In a boat Nowadays We must remember That this boat Had no motor This boat Perhaps Had a sail But that this boat Was very much Worked by The sail Or by oars And around The Sea of Galilee Around where They were journeying There were many Many Many mountains And it is Reckoned That all these Mountains Have an average Height Of in excess Of 200 metres Above sea level So when the wind Came It came Funnelling Down All the Valleys That there were Between the mountains And in a sense What it would do It would attack The sea So that the sea Would become boisterous
[14:42] Exactly as we are seeing Round about us today In the opening Verses of this chapter In verses 1 to 3 We have read Of how Christ Has gone Throughout Every city And village Preaching And showing The glad tidings Of the kingdom Of God And that he is Accompanied By his disciples By his disciples And also By a group Of women Who followed him And went from Place to place Where Christ Preached And what you see Here As you read These verses Is that Christ Is in a position Where he has No rest At all He is He is Constantly Going from Place to Place The multitude Gives him No time To rest And as day After day Goes by He is Preaching
[15:42] And teaching The gospel That is why It was so Important For our Lord To find time To go So often To the mountains Or to places Where he would be By himself Even away From the disciples And after The introduction Of what is Taking place Here With where Christ has Been We come on And we read About the parable Of the sower And the parable Of the Candle And then we Reach this Section here And this Tells us As we read It In verse 22 Now it came To pass On a certain Day These are Wonderful words In scripture Whenever you Read in scripture Now it came To pass Upon a certain Day You can rest Assured That there is A lesson Here for us To learn We have These words In and through The gospels And we have
[16:42] These words In the old Testament too That there was A lesson For somebody To learn In this case It was for The disciples To learn And in our Case it is For us As readers Of the word To learn On this Day Christ was Going to Teach them On this Day Christ was Going to Prepare them For a time When he was Not going to Be with them And on this Day he was Going to Reveal to Himself To these Disciples A little Bit of His glory On the Boat And on The water And they Were going To see The glory Of Christ As the Son of God And they Were going To witness The glory Of Christ As the Creator Of even The seas And all And all That was Round And so We read In this Verse That they
[17:43] Make their Way Onto A Ship Oh what a Delight this Must have Been For the Disciples Of the Lord As they Go on To this Ship With The Lord We read In verses 19 to 23 Of how Even the Mother of Christ And his Disciples Sought To time To be Able to Speak With them And a Time of Fellowship With them And we Read in These verses How they Couldn't Even get Near Christ Because of The Multitudes And now These Disciples Have Christ All to himself The Women Do not Board The Ship The Crowds Do not Board The Ship There is Just the Lord And his Disciples What a Blessing This was Going to Be For them As we Read Verses 19 to 21 We read Of a Group of
[18:43] Men That want Nothing But to Have Christ All for Themselves And now They have That And for As long As they Have That These Disciples Were in The safest Place That they Could Possibly Be In this Whole World Created By God And so They Here they Are and They are Embanking On a Journey And my Friends As we Read this And as We picture The journey They are Making Let us Remember Let us Never Forget That we Too are On a Journey And let Us ask Ourselves the Question Are we Making Are we Travelling On this Journey With Christ Accompanying Us As we
[19:44] Travelled Last week From Friday Into Saturday Was Christ Accompanying You As we Travelled From Saturday Into Sunday Was Christ Accompanying You And as we Travel today The Lord's Day In preparation Of tomorrow God willing If we see it Is Christ Accompanying Us We are But on A journey Remember These six Workers Filling Potholes On a Bridge In America And the Whole bridge Collapsed And they Lost their Lives Journeying Through Life Where Anything Can Happen At any Stage On any Bend On any Day On any Hour On any Minute As we Travel Through Life's Journey Are we Travelling With the Lord Jesus Christ This
[20:44] Day Not only Were they Travelling With Christ But when You read Verse 22 Christ is Speaking To them They are In Conversation It's not Just that They are With them In the Safest Place In the World But they Have Now Their Heart's Desire Of Fellowship With The Lord You know And is That not What we Have Is that Not why We are Found Gathered Here Today Is that Not why We come To church Is that Not why We gather In the Lord's House In the Hope That the Lord Will speak To us That is Surely Our Heart's Desire And what A joy It is When we Are able To say That truly This day The Lord Has spoken To me Or to You And how Does he Speak To us Well you Know the Answer to That yourselves My friends
[21:45] He speaks To every Single one Of us Every single Day of our Lives In and Through the Providence Every time Somebody Witnesses To you The Lord Is speaking To you Every time You hear The word Of God The Lord Is speaking To you Every time You read A bible The Lord Is speaking To you Every time You go To a wake Or a funeral The Lord Is speaking To you The Lord Is taking Us time After time After time Into this Place which Is called The valley Of decision And we Are in it Again today And for Some of us In here I hope And pray It's for All of us That whilst In the past In the valley Of decision We have Made the Decision That we Will cast Go on our Knees and ask The Lord To come into Our lives But you Will walk Out that Door today Once again Having been In the valley Of decision Every single Person That is at
[22:45] Home with The Lord In glory And is Worshipping In glory Just now Have walked Through the Valley of Decision Every Christian That you see In here today Has walked Through the Valley of Decision The wonder Of it is That we have Walked in it Many a time Before we Eventually cried Out to the Lord for His mercy I wonder Is there Anybody in Here today And the Lord is Asking you Today Where is Your faith Where is Your faith Is your Faith safe And secure In Christ Or are you Somebody Who Doesn't Quite still Get it And Would almost Say I Have no Faith at All Well I Hope and Pray that That's not True of Anybody in Here And so They launch Forth
[23:45] And so They make Their way To the Other side And this Is the Starting Of their Faith This is Where it All begins Warren Weersby In his One of His Books Says This That Faith Is Always Tested For At least Three Reasons Number One To prove Whether our Faith is Real Number Two To help Our Faith to Grow And Number Three To bring Glory To the Lord He goes On to Say Faith Must Be Tested Before It Can Be Trusted Faith Must Be Tested Before It Can Be Trusted Many Of you Will Know That At Home We've Got Twins And Many Of you Will Know That My Mother And Father Live Right Opposite Me And When Liam
[24:46] And Kiva Were We We We We Kids I Remember Going Up To Granny And Grandpa's House Many Times With Them And One Of The Things That They Loved The Most About Being In Granny And Grandpa's House Was The Staircase And Anybody With Young Children Or Grandchildren Can Understand This Where They Go To The Top Stair And Then They Do Bottom Bumps All The Way Down They Did Time After Time After Time And I Can Still Hear In My Mind Just Now The Squeals Of Delight As They Did That And I Remember This Particular Day Saying To Them As They Reached On Step Five And I Asked Them To Turn Round And I Said To Them Who Here Is Going To Be Brave Enough To Jump From That Step And I Catch You And They Wouldn't Step One They Jumped Into My
[25:46] Arms And Then On Step Two They Went Up And They Jumped Into My Arms And Then To Step Three And Four And Five You See Faith Must Be Tested Before It Can Be Trusted Just As Warren Wearsby Says And This Is What The Lord Is Doing To Them You See The Lord Has Got To Go To The Other Side He Has Got A Ministry To Do On The Other Side Of That League And In This Chapter Alone We See In Verses 26 Onwards That Jesus Is To Go To Cast Out Demons In Somebody Somebody's Life In Gadara And Then In Verses 41 Onwards He Must Needs Go To Jairus Whose Daughter Has Died And He Must Rise From The Dead And Not Only That He Has So Christ Has To Go To The Other
[26:46] Side To Use His Power Over Death Over Disease And Over Demons With His Voice And Yet My Friends There Are People Who Continue To Refuse To Listen To The Voice Of Christ Is Here Today Who Still Is Not Listening To The Voice Of Christ Despite The Fact If All We Had About The Life Of Christ Was Luke Chapter 8 We See That The Voice Of Christ That Even Demons Death And Disease Have To Obey It And Yet A Sinner Will Continue To Refuse The Voice Of Christ What I Thought
[27:46] That Is That Is The Greatest Mistake That Anybody Could Ever Do And Make In This World Is Not To Have Faith In Jesus Christ And You Know There's An Eternity Of A Difference Between Having No Faith And Having Weak Faith There's An Eternity Of A Difference Between Having No Faith And Having Little Faith And Now In This Portion Of Scripture We Are Going To See That His Disciples Are Going To Make Yet Another Mistake With Regard To The Time With Christ It's Remarkable Isn't It The Blunders That They Do Time And Time And Time Again Three Years With The Lord And Yet They Still Don't Understand Who He Is Three Years With The Lord And Yet They're Still Puzzled As To Who Christ Is
[28:47] But We Are Thankful Are We Not That These Things Are Written About The Disciples They Are An encouragement to us. And we live, don't we, those of us who love the Lord, those of us who trust in the Lord.
[29:10] And we live day after day, time after time, with the devil whispering in our ears constantly that we are but weak and useless and pathetic Christians.
[29:24] And you know sometimes the devil is absolutely right. But my friends, there is something that is even more powerful than the whispers that the devil has with regard to what he whispers in the Lord's people's ear and in the people who have faith in Christ's ear as he whispers discouragement into their ears that these are powerful words.
[29:52] But let me tell you more powerful words on that. And that is the words of Christ, the benediction of Christ in Jude 24, where he says, Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, he will present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy.
[30:11] And that is what keeps us going in this world. That is what keeps us going. If we try to do something for the Lord's cause, you can be rest assured of the fact that you'll get assaulted by the devil for it, whatever you seek to do for the cause of Christ.
[30:36] And sometimes you get it even from the church itself and from the Lord's people themselves. If I was to ask you in here today, let me quote to you this little story.
[30:49] If I was to ask you today in here, if you have ever heard of a man called Mordecai Ham, I wonder, would there be anybody in here who's heard of Mordecai Ham?
[31:02] Probably not. But Mordecai Ham, he was an ex-boxer who got radically saved. And this man, Mordecai Ham, bought a tent and he began to hold evangelistic meetings across the south of America in the 1930s.
[31:22] On one occasion he went into a city and the churches there didn't want him and didn't approve of his outreach. So he went with his tents outside the city limits.
[31:35] One night a teenage boy came into the meeting and that teenage boy got saved. His name was Billy Graham. Remarkable, isn't it?
[31:48] And yet this man who wanted to do something from the Lord got nothing but no support from the Lord's people.
[31:59] and had the constant whisper in his ear. And the Lord alone knows how many people came to faith in and through that man's ministry too.
[32:15] My friends, the disciples made mistake after mistake. They made blunder after blunder. But let us never forget that they were still constantly and they were always a help and a comfort to Christ in his human nature.
[32:34] And then we read in verse 23 But as they sailed he fell asleep. And whenever you see a bud in the word of God you know too that something is going to happen.
[32:49] The bud is there the same as now it came to pass on a certain day. Christ eventually goes to sleep. And picture Christ as he goes to sleep.
[33:02] That teaches us two things with regard to Christ. It teaches us that in his humanity he had need of rest and he had need of sleep. And there's something else too.
[33:15] As Christ goes to sleep that day he knows full well that the storm is coming. And so we turn then to our second heading and we look at the actual storm itself.
[33:31] And we see that is taking place and shaping in verse 23 where we read and there came down a storm of wind on the lake. The storm comes unexpectedly to the disciples but it was as no surprise to the sleeping Christ.
[33:54] No surprise at all. Now it is very natural it is very possible rather that that was a natural storm like there have been and like there was many times on the Sea of Galilee.
[34:08] Like we have ourselves today. Storm Catherine I think it is. But I don't believe for one minute that that was a natural storm that day.
[34:20] I believe that that was a supernatural storm. A storm that was sent by the devil himself. A storm that was sent by the prince of the power of the air as he seeks to plan to destroy Christ yet again.
[34:43] Now there is something very interesting about this storm on the lake that we don't often hear about. In Mark's account we read in chapter 4 and in verse 36 and when they sent away the multitude they took him even as he was in the ship and there were also with him other little ships.
[35:11] You see on that day we can't assume that that was the only boat on the lake. There were other boats on the lake. Remember the devil's first plot to destroy Christ as a child where every child under the age of two years of age was to be killed by King Herod.
[35:34] Where the innocent were going to be put to death it mattered not to the devil and the lives of these other people on the boats on these small boats mattered not either.
[35:45] All he wanted to do was to bring an end to this life. The life of Christ. But again we stress that the disciples were in the safest place that they could possibly be on that day.
[36:07] And whatever boat was going to sink that day it was not going to be the boat that Christ was in. Because Christ did not come into this world to die in some sea tragic accident.
[36:23] And I say this my friends with all reverence that might be the fate of you and I one day.
[36:35] Many of us have lost loved ones through sea accidents. Even myself the memory of uncles that I can barely remember and you'll know them too.
[36:53] And you know people in your own lives and even in the fishing industry in Tolstoy and in other places. But Christ was not going to die in regard to a sea accident.
[37:11] Christ is on that boat knowing that the death, whose death was only going to be at Calvary. And I believe that this storm happened in an instant.
[37:28] I believe that this storm happened as quick as a click of your finger. I believe that the sea went from calm to stormy in a moment.
[37:42] On this boat there are disciples and some of these disciples are seasoned fishermen. and in an instant they are terrified.
[37:54] In an instant they are fearing for their lives. And these fishermen as they set off that day crossing the sea of Galilee if they had looked up and seen any kind of warning whatsoever in the skies or on the waters they would not have sailed.
[38:12] But of course there was no warnings. And we read that so much happens that they are actually, what is actually taking place is that the boat starts to fill with water and the words that is used is that they are in jeopardy.
[38:30] They are in fear of their lives. Here are disciples and they are in fear of their lives and yet they know as the Lord's people that if they die in this tragic accident they are going straight home to glory.
[38:44] But yet they are in fear of their lives. They were terrified. Well can you picture that hopeless scene? Can you picture their helpless scene on that day?
[38:57] If there was a sail on the boat then probably the sail was down. Can you picture them rowing against the waves? Can you picture them rowing and getting nowhere as the wind blows them further back from their destination?
[39:14] Can you picture the waves coming over the boat? Can you picture them with their hands seeking to throw the water out over the side of the boat? Can you picture them trying to grab whatever they could to get the water out of the boat?
[39:30] They are helpless and they are in a hopeless state. And you know sometimes that's our experience too.
[39:42] Even as Christians. Christians. Sometimes we can reach the point where we go through life's journey and we sometimes can feel as if even the Lord has left us to fend for ourselves in the midst of the storm that we are going through.
[40:00] Sometimes we can feel even as believers in the Lord that in the providence that we are going through that Christ is somehow asleep without knowledge of what we are going through.
[40:14] But oh my friends these are but whispers of the devil. Because divine care never ever takes a break. Sometimes as the Lord's people all we have is a broken hallelujah.
[40:33] hallelujah. And when we have that broken hallelujah whether we are the Lord's people or not. Whether we are a people of faith or whether we are a people of no faith.
[40:47] When all that you have is that broken hallelujah you will go one of two ways. We go to the word of God for comfort or we shake our fists at the Lord for this providence that he is dealing with us.
[41:01] and we will say this isn't fair, this isn't just, this isn't right. How could you do this to me? Why is Christ exposing them to this storm?
[41:18] He is exposing them to this storm to prepare them for a time when Christ is not going to be with them anymore. He is preparing them for a time where Christ himself knows that when he is gone they are going to face persecution, imprisonment and death for their trust and for their faith in Christ.
[41:48] As the time will come when they will accept and be no more disciples but become apostles and set out with the word of God. And then we see how they reacted, the disciples, in verse 24.
[42:01] How do they react? They came to him and they awoke him. They do exactly the right thing. They did the right thing in the time of need.
[42:12] They go and they wake Christ. They go to the one who is the ultimate protector. They go to the Lord who is on their boat. They do the right thing but they say the wrong words.
[42:31] Master, Master, we perish. I wonder have you ever thought of Christ waking from his sleep?
[42:44] This is no pretend sleep. Christ was asleep. And can you imagine when they wake him?
[42:54] can you imagine how they wake him? Well, I can imagine them going in and shouting and shaking the Lord.
[43:11] It wouldn't have been a gentle tap on the shoulder like we do to our young children to wake them up for school. and Christ sees the fear in their voices.
[43:28] And Christ, he hears the fear in their voices and he sees the fear in their eyes and the Lord is going to deal with that in a very near future. Can you imagine how disappointed Christ must have seen been when he realises that yet again these disciples have failed in this test?
[43:57] Well, what does that say to you and me? Are we sometimes like the disciples? Weak faith. To read in the word of God that they would have shouted and woken and shaken the Lord and said Master, we perish is bad enough.
[44:19] But to read that it was said twice Master, Master, we perish. That's a hard read.
[44:31] That's a sad read. But will I tell you what's even harder? Will I tell you what's even sadder? It's Mark's account of this time where Mark writes, and he was in the hinder part of the ship asleep on a pillow and they awake him and they say to him, Master, carest thou not that we perish?
[44:58] Of all the things to say to Christ and yet they are in the safest place where they could possibly be with Christ on this boat. And so the Lord is going to deal with them and the Lord will address this and these disciples you see they still haven't realised who Christ is.
[45:23] They still don't understand that the fear that they have it is needless fear because Christ is with them. And then we read that Christ arises.
[45:38] And notice when Christ arises there is absolutely no panic with the Lord. And that is because it is the devil's work to raise up storms and it is the Lord's work to calm the storms that the devil raises up.
[46:04] And Christ knows already all he has to do. All he has to say. And the storm is over. And let's read then look at our third heading as we look now at the calm after the storm.
[46:23] All these things are in these four verses. He rebukes the wind and the raging of the water. And this is the first of two rebukes that Christ does.
[46:36] He first of all in verse 24 he rebukes the wind and the raging of the water and then in verse 25 he will go on to rebuke the disciples and say to them where is your faith?
[46:56] Can you picture that scene my friends? As Christ rebukes the water. Can you picture the sea becoming calm? and again I would put to you that it was immediate.
[47:10] Again I would put to you it was as quick as that. As quick as a click of a finger. What a reaction we see here when creation listens to the voice of the creator and Christ shows his glory as the son of God the God man on the sea of Galilee to these disciples and they still don't get it.
[47:44] They still don't fully understand who he is. But you see the wind and the rain and the seas recognize the voice of the creator and they obey that voice immediately.
[48:03] The same as the demons in this chapter the same as death in this chapter and the same as disease in this chapter. What power Christ has over nature as Christ goes and speaks to them to the sea and it is calm.
[48:30] One of the things I always loved to do when there was a storm was go down the croft. I'm always fascinated at the bottom of our croft where the shore is and I used to take the kids down when they were wee and watch the waves crashing over the shoreline and sometimes the spray would come up the croft a good 50, 60, 70 metres.
[49:01] You couldn't reach anywhere near the bottom of the croft where the fence was because the wind and the rain and the water was coming over from the shore.
[49:13] Imagine me going down there just now and saying peace be calm. nothing would happen but it happened this day on the Sea of Galilee.
[49:28] And let me tell you something else. Whenever I look out the kitchen window in our house and look at Port Waller Bay there and see the seas there, you can always tell when a storm is coming.
[49:42] You can always see as the hours go by the waves, the white waves starting to form and then the rollers coming in.
[49:55] But on that day it was immediate and even the storm we have outside just now crashing down the bottom of my croft.
[50:07] If the wind ceased completely, just now it would take hours for these waves to go calm. But at the voice of Christ, they are calm immediately.
[50:18] picture the scene now if you can. Picture the disciples now. Picture them as they look around and they see all the dark clouds gone and the sky now clear.
[50:34] Picture them as they look down and they see their own reflection once again in the sea. All is calm. No more dark clouds, the sea is still.
[50:45] Can you picture the expression on their facial appearance? all fear is gone. They are safe once again and they are peaceful once again.
[50:59] All this in a moment of change by the word of God. And not just that, my friends, but they have witnessed something supernatural on that boat.
[51:18] But I put it to you, all the other little boats that were out on the sea that day witnessed it too. And they must have been wondering what on earth is going on.
[51:31] But Christ was not with them on their boats. not with them but he was with the disciples. There is a lesson in the storms of life.
[51:47] None of us want the storms of life in our own experience and rightly so. But sometimes, sometimes, that is where the greatest blessings of all is to be found, are in the storms of life.
[52:01] life because the Lord is with us. And we can go through things that we wouldn't want anybody to go through in this world. And yet, weeks later, months later, years later, in reflection, we can thank the Lord for the experience of being in these storms of life.
[52:19] Because he was right with us, as he was with the disciples that day. Is that not what the poem footprints is all about? Where in a time of the greatest distress, we were carried when we thought we were alone?
[52:38] Where is your faith? Christ then says to them, what a rebuke this is from the Lord. What a rebuke. He has already rebuked the wind, he has already rebuked the seas, and now he rebukes the disciples.
[52:56] But he rebukes them in love. love. He rebukes them in love. And there is not one disciple there that is exempt from the rebuke of Christ.
[53:12] Not even John, the beloved disciple. Not even doubting Thomas, who would go on to say to the Lord that he would die for him, and whoever would die for him, he would be willing to die for him.
[53:29] They are all equally rebuked. Compare that, my friends, to the words, Master, carest thou not that we perish?
[53:45] The rebuke that they gave him on that day. And this goes on to show us and to prove to us. You know, my friends, when we stand before the Lord in eternity, we will be like the disciples.
[54:03] None of us exempt from excuses. None of us exempt from excuses. And of all, as I've said already, all we had was Luke chapter 8.
[54:19] There's enough in this chapter, there's enough in these verses to more than persuade us to place our trust in the Lord. In Matthew's account of this story, in verse 26 of chapter 8, we read that Christ said unto them, Why are you fearful, O ye of little faith?
[54:46] O ye of little faith. faith. But my friends, little faith is not no faith.
[54:58] There's an eternal difference between little faith and no faith at all, as we have already said. And as astonished as the disciples were with what they have seen with regard to the seas and the winds, they are equally astonished when Christ rebukes them.
[55:19] So much so that they go on to say, What manner of manners is? For even he commandeth the wind and the waves to obey them. They still don't fully understand who Jesus is.
[55:32] do you fully understand who Jesus is? Do you fully understand what Christ did at Calvary in order that you would have faith in him?
[55:53] Let us just have a few moments on our last heading, the storm and the calm that is yet to come. can you picture the disciples there still in their shock and in their disbelief?
[56:08] Can you picture the puzzling face that they would have had? Can you picture what is going through their minds as they say these words, what manner of man is this?
[56:19] when we read this portion of scripture in verse 25 and go on to 26, it's almost as if this portion of scripture at 25 in a sense ends almost abruptly because as soon as the disciples are questioning who he is, then we read that he arrived at the country of the Garderines.
[56:57] Why does it end so abruptly as this? It ends as abruptly as this in order that you and I can stop and meditate and think upon what it is that we have actually read.
[57:12] If Luke chapter 8 was a psalm, the word Selah would be written between verses 25 and 26 and Selah in the psalms is there for us to stop, reflect, meditate and think about what it is we have just read.
[57:39] Well my friends, the greatest storm of all is yet to come and it's going to come to you and I and it's going to come to you and I one day very soon when the great clouds of death will gather to call each and every single one of us into eternity.
[58:06] The only way that is not going to happen is as if Christ comes again in our lifetime which is more than possible.
[58:22] And for some on that day when these clouds of death start to hover overhead, for some it will mean that there will be an eternal storm from which they will never ever get out of.
[58:44] There will be an eternal storm awaiting for every single person who refuses to place their trust in Jesus Christ as saviour and friend.
[58:56] And in this eternal storm, torment will be increased moment by moment by moment, moment by moment in the depths of hell itself.
[59:14] But there is also an eternal calm that is awaiting those who have faith.
[59:27] Whether you have little faith, whether you have great faith, faith, if you have faith, you will one day be found in a place of eternal calm where each moment, as we know moments, will become more and more and more glorious.
[59:56] Where will we spend eternity? where is your faith? That is what the Lord is asking.
[60:10] Where is your faith? That will determine whether we spend eternity in heaven or in hell. Where is your faith? Oh, surely, surely, there's nobody here who would choose to spend eternity in an endless storm and torment.
[60:36] When there is an endless calm available for everybody who trusts in Christ. Is glory not the place of ultimate calm?
[60:49] Is glory not the place of ultimate tranquility? Of course it is. Perfect peace, perfect joy, no more storms, perfect beauty, a place where your devil will never ever whisper in your ear again, you're nothing but a failure, an eternity without these whispers.
[61:13] A place of perfect union and communion with the Lord. How can you refuse a place like that? how can you refuse a Christ like this as he asks, where is your faith?
[61:33] And have you ever noticed the last two words of this section? Obey him. Obey him. This is the purpose of our lives.
[61:47] Our purpose of our lives is to obey him. Pity help any of us if we disobey him. Surely we can say of everybody that you have ever known that is in glory right now, all those that you worshipped with, all those that were your family members, all those that you worked with, all those that you loved in this world and are in glory right now.
[62:15] Why are they in glory? because they obeyed him. Do you obey him? Where is your faith?
[62:29] Let me conclude with two more quotes. D.L. Moody once spoke to a woman who came running up to him and recognized him and she said, I have found a wonderful promise and she quoted Psalm 56 verse 3, What time I am afraid I will trust in thee.
[62:55] D.L. Moody replied to the woman, that is truly a wonderful quote, but let me give you an even better one. And he quoted Isaiah 12 verse 2, Behold, God is my salvation and I will trust and not be afraid.
[63:14] and my friends, if you're in here today and you can say, Behold, God is my salvation, I will trust and not be afraid, you are on your way to glory.
[63:27] In this book, and it's a wonderful book, well worth reading, Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus, the author Nabel Qureshi, who was a Muslim who turned to Christ.
[63:45] He says on page 26 of his book with regard to seeking God, this is what he wrote, Only you can rescue me. At your feet I lay down everything.
[63:59] I have learned, and I will give my entire life to you. Take away what you will, be it my joy, be it my family, be it my friends, or even my life, but let me have you, O God.
[64:21] But let me have you, O God. That man wrote three books as a converted Muslim and died of cancer at the age of 34.
[64:36] and is in glory right now. May this be our cry as we walk out that door today. Let me have you, O God.
[64:49] Amen. May the Lord bless to us his thoughts from his own holy word. We shall conclude with singing once again in Psalm 107. Psalm 107.
[65:03] And this time we shall sing from verse 26 to the end of verse 31. Psalm 107, verse 26. They mount to heaven and to the depths, they do go down again.
[65:16] Their soul doth faint and melt away with trouble and with pain. Down to the end of verse Mark 31. Oh, that men to the Lord would give praise for his goodness then, and for his works of wonder done, and to the sons of men.
[65:32] shall we sing these words in conclusion. Psalm 107, at verse 26, they mount to heaven and to the depths. they mount to heaven and to the depths, they do so then dado the two ultimately blow breeze onto them in the pitasti c On your shield Up.
[66:54] To praise Him to the God Of His call and I will So that the rich which raised before The quiet and the Lord come still Then are they glad because of this A quiet and quiet may be So give the gift that He in their dreams Will save His time to see
[68:01] Oh, that may the rich that the Lord will give A softness in the same And for His praise of one Take them And to the self of Him Can I once again give thanks to the minister of your congregation And to your Kirk session For giving me the privilege of being asked to preach here again And just to let you know I'm not going to go to the door today Seeing as it's so windy and wild outside So that you can all get to your cars And get to your homes safely
[69:01] The wind was blowing right in there As I came earlier on today So let us pray in conclusion Oh Lord our God We pray that as we leave here this day We pray Lord that as we walk through the door Exiting this building We pray Lord that we would be able to realise That once again we have been in the valley of decision And that once again Lord You have been asking us Where is your faith And we pray Lord that we will have a reply to that And that for each and every single one of us Our faith would be in Christ So that we will be kept in this world And we will spend eternity with you In the next Lord God we plead with you That none that are found gathered here Will be eternally lost In the eternal storms Of damnation and hell itself
[70:02] May we all spend eternity In the eternal calm waters of glory Bless Robert tonight As he preaches in here And as he takes the evening service Grant him Lord much peace Grant Robert France much peace And may we grant him Lord The presence of the Holy Spirit And great liberty as he preaches Part us now with your blessing In Jesus precious name Amen