Matthew 8:23-27

[0:00] over creation, testifying to his power, his faithfulness. But the purpose of that is for the disciples' hearts, to spur them on to worship and to wonder the value of their Savior, right?

[0:13] And so I pray that today we, along with creation, can testify to his faithfulness, to his love, and to his power. That just hit me because we were doing that. All right, so today we're going to be in Matthew 8.

[0:27] But before I get there, a little story about my family. So around two and a half years ago, Jess and I became foster parents to two awesome little boys. And then approximately two years ago, we decided to take these two on a not-so-awesome vacation to Vermont.

[0:47] Before moving to our home, our oldest, who was then two and a half, had been in five different homes. And his younger brother, one and a half years old, who had been in four different homes. And so while Jess and I had no guarantees of the longevity of this foster placement, we trusted the Lord.

[1:02] And from day one, we committed to showing and communicating to the boys in every way we could a lifelong commitment and love. And God blessed us with quickly growing bonds with these boys.

[1:14] Originally, like, our interactions were full of, like, the one just kind of had a flat affect to everything, just wasn't phased, right? The other just was a fighter, kicker, screamer, like, bites and kicks and screams every time we tried to give them care, right?

[1:28] And so that was, like, our first experience caring for these boys. But God really blessed us. And very quickly, the normal interactions, which used to be these, became ones of, like, love and affection and kindness and laughing and really connecting.

[1:45] And so we're really blessed by that. And so, I mean, just to, like, paint a picture, like, when we, I remember crying the first time our oldest let me change his poopy diaper without fighting me. I was just like, thank you, buddy.

[1:57] Like, I want to help you so bad, right? And now it becomes a norm. Now it's like, then he was, like, you know, manipulating to get extra help, right? And so we kind of went through that strand.

[2:08] But it was great. So Jess and I were really encouraged, right? I remember smiling uncontrollably the first, like, quiet car ride we had, right? Because originally car rides were just full of screaming and the throwing of shoes and socks and any article of clothing that you could get off, right?

[2:22] And so the first car ride, I remember looking at Jess and being like, wow, and just, like, really smiling and feeling that joy. So all that to say, like, that's kind of all background. Jess and I, we were blessed.

[2:33] And the joy of that, like, intense transitional period, way out right, the difficulty and challenges of it. God was really good to us in that. So about five, six months in, we're like, I think we're ready.

[2:43] I think we're ready for a family vacation. And our hopes and dreams in this family vacation was like, hey, this would be another data point for our boys in recognizing that, hey, this is a stable home and that we love you and we're going out of our way to care for you.

[2:57] The boys, however, saw it very differently, right? They saw this trip as an attack against their stability. And their fear drove them to fight against our care again. And so instead of the calm, quiet car ride that had become the norm, we endured three and a half hours of high-pitched screaming.

[3:17] And at every stop, we got to play, have a scavenger hunt for shoes and socks. So we kind of reverted, and that whole trip was kind of a reverting back to, like, previous behavior. And what it showed me and Jess is that how powerful an influence or fear can be in the lives of our children, right?

[3:32] And so much so that they were fighting against the people that were looking to bring them lifelong stability because they felt unstable in that moment, right? And so fear caused them to stop seeing us and stop trusting us and actually become to work against us, right?

[3:49] And so while it's pretty raw in kids, you can kind of see their emotions and process. We know that fear is a big driving factor for all of people. We see that's a big driving factor for Jesus' disciples, and we'll see the disciples today faced with terror, what happens, where they turn, and what kind of resources Christ has for them.

[4:09] So with that, we'll jump into the text. So it's Matthew 8, 23 through 27.

[4:20] I think we have it on the screen. And when he got into the boat, that's Jesus, his disciples followed him. And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves.

[4:35] But he was asleep. And they went and they woke him, saying, Save us, Lord, we are perishing. And he said to them, Why are you afraid, O you of little faith? Then he arose, and he rebuked the wind and the sea, and there was a great calm.

[4:47] And the men marveled, saying, What sort of man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey him? Dear Heavenly Father, Lord, as we open this text, I pray that you might just help us.

[5:08] Help us to see you as you truly are. Lord, you desire for us to join the disciples, join creation in worship, and in wonder and marveling at our Savior Jesus, who came for us, for humanity, and displayed the power of God in very intimate and near ways to humanity, to us.

[5:29] God, I pray that you would just help us to see that. I pray that you would take our hearts and walk us along a path of worship, so that when we leave today, our view would be filled more with Jesus and less with ourselves, that a big view of Jesus would kind of obliterate our fears, that we could trust him in the midst of the storms of life, knowing that he has power, and that his power is for us, because he came for us, and because he's good.

[5:57] And so, Lord, I'm not sure how we're going to get there. I have some ideas, but ultimately, I pray that you would lead our church in a way that you impress this truth, the preciousness of Jesus upon our hearts, so that we can walk out today free and confident and marveling at our Savior.

[6:15] Amen. So this passage is intended to do three things. First, it tells a story. Second, it teaches us a lesson. And finally, it reorients our perspectives.

[6:27] So let's consider the story. Now, many of us, both churched and non-churched, have heard this story. We know the outcome, and thus, we have the tendency to gloss over the details, to miss the peril, to miss the relief, and to miss the marvel of the story.

[6:41] But I hope that you don't do that this morning. This passage has much to show us, and if you listen carefully, I believe you will be strengthened by what Matthew intends for us to learn. So let's, we're going to try to make this story a little bit more fresh, but we're just going to consider some of the unexpected elements, right?

[6:57] We've read it many times. We've heard it. It's been taught to us. And we don't, we don't, we don't see what's unexpected anymore, right? But we're going to try to step back into the, the shoes of the disciples, and really like, so this is a pretty crazy unexpected story.

[7:11] First, this storm was unexpectedly intense. The text calls it a great storm. And farther explains that the boat was being swamped by the waves. Mark recounts the same thing, saying the waves were breaking into the boat, so the boat was already filling.

[7:24] Well, Luke simply says they were filling with water and that they were in danger. Now, I've never been much of a mariner, but I know water in the boat's not a good thing. And the disciples are looking and seeing water filling the boat, and they know that the time that they have is limited, right?

[7:39] And they sense that peril, right? They feel that. They see their boat taken on water, and they know it's not a good thing, right? And based on other places in Scripture, right, we know that at least four of the disciples were fishermen by trade before they followed Christ.

[7:55] Then when Christ comes back, we see there's seven of them out fishing when he comes to reveal himself. So there's, a good portion of these disciples were fishermen by trade, right?

[8:06] And I guess all that to point out, this isn't Joe City Boy out here scared of a couple waves. These are experienced fishermen. These are people that are used to the Sea of Galilee. They're not surprised by its typical weather patterns.

[8:19] So this storm is something special. This storm is something intense. It must have been because it got this group of fishermen to turn to Jesus, who was the son of a carpenter for their rescue, right?

[8:32] And as they turn to him, in their peril, right, so they, in moments, these confident fishermen are spun into panic by the ferocity of this storm. And in their moment of terror, they turn to their teacher for rescue, and they find their teacher sleeping, right?

[8:47] Like, how unexpected was that for the disciples, right? And we got to see this great contrast between a sleeping Jesus and the panicking disciples. You might have expected Jesus to be sleeping because you've heard the story before, but had the disciples had the fortitude to process everything in the midst of the chaos, they would have been dumbfounded.

[9:05] There is no way they expected him to be asleep in the midst of all this chaos. Yet he was, and thus the stark contrast is painted. Jesus' peaceful sleep couldn't be farther on the spectrum of responses from the disciples' frenzied panic, right?

[9:20] And so you have these two extremes. And do you see that contrast?

[9:31] Do you feel it? I know the disciples did, right? I mean, probably later on in life, it was like, hey, Peter, do you remember that time when you were so scared you were whimpering? Ha, ha, yes, yes, John, I remember. And then there was Jesus, sleeping like a baby the whole time.

[9:45] How crazy was that? And that was only the beginning, right? So these disciples, they are experiencing this live. They're feeling all the tension, and I think sometimes we forget that. We forget the peril because we sit back here and we read it from a long time ago.

[9:58] We've heard it a long time. Jesus' response is also unexpected, right? Jesus is awakened from what must have been a deep sleep to panicking disciples rushing water and battering waves. And his initial response is to take a moment to press into their hearts and to teach them a lesson, right?

[10:14] How wild, like, how unexpected is that? He takes a time to make an observation about their faith in the midst of this storm. Disciples just want to not die, right? And he's like, oh, let me teach you a lesson, right?

[10:26] And so that is unexpected. And then even after this short lesson, Jesus' then response is unexpected, right? He completely calms the storm. The disciples were just hoping not to die, right?

[10:39] They didn't know what they were expecting, but they for sure weren't hoping for the complete calming. So the text says that Jesus rebuked the winds and waves, and it brought a great calm.

[10:52] You know, this calm, like, right? So the Sea of Galilee is, like, kind of in an indivit, and it's, like, in a, I guess, a divit, right? It's, like, 600 feet below sea level, right?

[11:04] And it's surrounded by mountains and cliffs. And so for the Sea of Galilee to be completely calm, that's kind of an unnatural thing, right? And so Jesus takes complete chaos and turns it into complete peace within a moment, right?

[11:19] There's no way the disciples expected that. Are you filled with marvel at the abundance of peace and power on display?

[11:30] By the simple word of his mouth, Jesus instantly turns chaos into order, turmoil into peace, and fear into wonder. So we just kind of recount some of those details, because I think sometimes we can get too far away from the story, and we don't really understand the peril, the feelings, the expressions that the disciples are going through, and thus the relief that Jesus brings.

[11:54] Now, maybe you're here today, and you hear stories like this, and you're a bit skeptical, right? You know, how can an intelligent, science-believing person believe in all these miracles, right?

[12:05] Maybe you like the teachings of the Bible, you like its moral compass, but every time you come up to a story like this, you're like, ugh, I just, I have trouble with that, because it just doesn't meet what we know in the laws of nature.

[12:17] Well, I want to tell you, you're not the only one, right? The disciples didn't expect this either, right? Yeah, maybe the disciples are less educated than we are today, but they weren't ignorant, right?

[12:28] People weren't going around talking to the weather and making it stop in their day, nor are they today, right? And so, so we got to expect, like, we got to see that this isn't unexpected things for the disciples, right? And they're observing this, and they're recording their observations, and they're telling the world, like, who is this man that even the winds and the waves obey his voice, right?

[12:46] And, and I guess, like, if you have, if you have a problem with this, or if this is a hard thing for you to understand, the God of the Bible is a God who created this world, right? So for the God who created the world to be bound by its natural laws just doesn't make sense.

[12:59] So if you, if you have trouble with the miracle stories within scripture, I would just encourage you, like, no, no, take your argument up with creation, because if we serve a creating God, miracles are not only possible, they're kind of expected, right?

[13:12] Because he is the one who has the ability, and that's part of the things this text is trying to teach us, right? It is linking God's power, God's creative power to this Jesus who is walking on earth, right? And so that's one of the big lessons here, um, that this Jesus is the powerful God who has control over the world that was created, right?

[13:30] Um, so, I, I guess more on that later, but I guess if you, if you have skepticism, know that the people then did as well, right? And they're just as surprised as we are when they hear, you know, well, we might not be that surprised because we heard the story a lot, but, you know, they're, they're discovering this new of Jesus's power.

[13:46] So, um, rest assured. And then if you have questions concerning the validity of a creator God, I would point you to the creation account and those kind of things.

[13:56] If you have questions on that, feel free to talk to me or lots of people in this church. That was a bit of a tangent, sorry. Um, so let's move forward and consider the lesson that Jesus teaches.

[14:12] So what is this lesson? Where's it kind of rooted in, right? We, I alluded to it earlier, uh, you, you kind of had this unexpected response from Jesus. The disciples want a rescue and he teaches them a lesson.

[14:24] He says, why are you afraid, O ye of little faith? O you of little faith. But what does, what exactly does Jesus mean by this? Um, does he mean that more faith would have made them more safe?

[14:39] I, I, the answer is obviously no, right? The disciples didn't have any ability, no matter what they did, to secure their safety in this situation. No amount of faith would have changed this. So what is Jesus getting at here?

[14:50] Um, I think we need to look at this kind of, this contrast between Jesus's peace and their fear, right? Um, there's several locations within the Old Testament where, uh, sleep within the midst of, like, turmoil, um, symbolizes a peaceful confidence in God.

[15:05] Right? And this is likely the message here. Jesus is sleeping in the midst of the storm because he's confident that the storm is no threat to him. He is confident in his power over the storm. Right? The disciples are not there.

[15:16] Right? They don't understand what it looks like to trust this Jesus. Um, and so you see this, this fear. Right? Uh, Jesus, and Jesus says, why are you afraid? To the disciples, the answer seems obvious. Right?

[15:27] Uh, and, and we got to remember, Jesus asked them questions, asked them this question before he actually calms a storm. Uh, so, so the response to the disciples, it's obvious. It's like, they must have, they didn't answer, but they must have been thinking, like, well, because we're going to die.

[15:40] Like, of course we're afraid. Like, we just, we just said that when we woke you up. Like, we're in peril. Um, you know, um, but then in an instant, all is calm.

[15:52] The fear is gone and it's replaced with marvel. And they ask each other, what sort of man is this? You see that Jesus took the time to teach each of them because he desired that they walk in peace and not fear.

[16:04] Um, because they didn't need to have fear as long as he was with them. They didn't understand that. And so he encourages them. He presses into their hearts with this question, uh, to encourage their faith so that they might be free of anxiety and confidence in the midst of earthly peril.

[16:18] So, I mean, I guess, like, were, were the disciples, were the disciples ever really in danger?

[16:29] Right? I think that's one of the points of the text, right? Were they ever really in danger? And, and I think that the answer from the text is no, right? Because no matter what they were experiencing or the anxiety that they had or the fear that they had, Jesus was with them in the boat the entire time.

[16:45] And it was the entire time that Jesus had power over that storm, right? And so what Jesus is getting at, this lesson is not to critique their faith or to condemn them, but to point them like, hey, you can walk in peace because I am with you.

[16:59] You, there is a better way. You can rest in my power because I am with you, right? And so this whole lesson, I think, that Jesus is trying to teach them and teach us is that in the midst of this, this peril, our fear, we know that Jesus is with us, right?

[17:12] And, and, and when we have faith, we, we can walk in that peace, walk in that freedom, walk in that confidence, right? And so, so what's at stake here is not the disciples' safety because Jesus was with them the whole time, right?

[17:25] That boat wasn't going to go down, right? But what was at stake was their peace in the midst of the turmoil. So I think this is the lesson. And I guess if we go back to the story with my kids, right?

[17:40] On this vacation, though our boys experienced fear, right? They, they thought they were losing stability. The objective fact is that they were just as stable as they were when they were at our house in a place that was comfortable, right?

[17:55] Because Jess and I were with them and we were going to ensure their safety, right? But they didn't know that. They were still learning to trust us. They were still learning what we were all about, right? But, but the fact of the matter is their experience of that situation, though it is important and powerful, it didn't really have any bearing on the objective fact that they were safe and stable under our care.

[18:15] Likewise for the disciples, right? They were under Jesus' care the whole time. Um, and, and Jesus is fighting and driving this lesson into their heart because he desires that they walk in peace in the midst of the chaos.

[18:30] Um, he's after their experience. So, I guess an application of this part.

[18:50] How about you? What areas of life, what areas of your life are you allowing fear or anxiety to inform your experience rather than Jesus' power and care? Right? Because that's, that's what's happening here, right?

[19:03] They're allowing their objective experience to cause them to forget the powerful one who is with them, right? Uh, and so where in your life are you allowing the storms of your life to, to cloud your view and your understanding of the compassionate and powerful savior that you have?

[19:22] Um, but before we get into all those examples, we need to also recognize that not all fear is wrong, right? We're not saying all fear is wrong. We're actually made to fear. Um, and in fact, uh, God desires that our fears drive us to him, right?

[19:37] Uh, the issue comes when our fears cause us to forget our God and to not trust his power. A fear becomes a bad thing when it becomes a driving thing, right? Because, because we are driven out of our, our faith in Christ and our love for Christ, right?

[19:50] Um, so maybe you're experienced, experiencing restless nights because you are constantly playing out scenarios in your head.

[20:02] Uh, the what if scenarios in your head, right? Uh, if this is the case and you're likely forgetting that you serve a God who controls the unknowns, right? Um, and so turn to Jesus with your unknowns, recognize his power and his provision.

[20:15] If your parenting is accompanied, uh, with constant anxiety of your child's development, uh, are you doing enough for them? Um, are you feeding them all the right foods?

[20:27] Do you have them in the right educational system? Are they in the right programs? Are you providing the right pathways? Then you're likely forgetting God's grace and what he creates, and that his grace is what creates effective parenting, not all the externals, right?

[20:41] Um, and he has the ability to produce flourishing in your children, uh, in the midst of any circumstances. Uh, maybe you're constantly worried about what other people think. You are forgetting, uh, that other people's opinions can never confirm you in the way that your Savior, Savior's love does.

[20:58] Uh, do you fear, like many of this past week, you know, the physical, that a physical storm, that the damage a physical storm can be, right? Uh, and who do you turn to in these times? Do you turn to your storm planning? Do you turn to your local weather channel?

[21:09] Uh, do you, do you try to get the most update information all the time so that you can be prepared? Um, you know, all those things are good, right? But, but it's what is driving us and where is our trust, right?

[21:22] So we, we all need to, to like Jesus asked the disciples, uh, say, why are you afraid? Oh, you have little faith. Like, where is that intersection between your fear and faith? Who is it that you're really trusting in, right?

[21:33] And if we're finding these anxieties welling up in us, uh, it's likely that we've forgotten the power, the powerful Savior that has, uh, come to, to, to be with us, right?

[21:45] Um, and so the list of fears could go on, right? Um, do you fear losing someone or something precious to you, the loss of, do you fear losing the loss of reputation, the loss of comfort, the loss of health, the loss of income?

[21:58] I don't know what fear you might be struggling with, but one thing I do know that Jesus is sufficient to provide peace in the midst of it. Um, will you go wake him up, right? The disciples, they didn't really know what was going to happen, but they knew and they turned to Jesus, right?

[22:11] They turned to him and they woke him up and they found his power to be sufficient and his compassion to be sufficient. So in the fears that you're dwelling in, the anxiety that wells up in you, the question is, will you turn to Jesus, right?

[22:26] Right? And, and as we get farther in text, I, I hope that, that turning to Jesus becomes even more compelling to you. So you're letting your fears cause you to forget that Jesus is with you.

[22:37] He is with you in the midst of the storm. The question is, will you go wake him up? Will you go to him? Uh, this is a side note, but I thought it was really interesting and it's not really a side note because it's in the text, right?

[22:47] It's, it's, it's kind of a subtle point that the text makes. Jesus doesn't condemn little faith, right? They turn to him, they have no expectations, right? That he's going to calm the storm.

[22:58] They're just kind of in terror and panic trying to do something, right? Um, and it's neat to see that Jesus doesn't condemn little faith, right? And that weak faith and little prayers are effective in scripture.

[23:11] So we'll, we'll step out of this text and I want to go to Acts 12. It's really cool. Um, so this is a story of Peter and the early church. So Acts 12, I think it's the beginning. You don't have to turn there.

[23:22] I can read it. It's more narrative than anything. Um, but it says, Acts 12, 1, it says, about the time Herod the king laid violent hands on someone, oh, wait, about that time Herod the king laid violent hands on some who had belonged to the church.

[23:37] He killed James, the brother of John, with a sword. And when he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. And when he had seized him, he put him in prison, delivering him over to four squads of soldiers to guard him, um, intending after the Passover to bring him out to the people.

[23:55] So Peter was kept in prison. But earnest prayer for him was made by, by God, made to God by the church. All right, so, so this is right after, um, Jesus died, rose again, ascended to heaven, right?

[24:11] And then the, the church is filled with, with spiritual power, right? And so, so Peter is boldly preaching, right? And he gets arrested, right? Uh, it's causing an uproar with the, with the Jewish people. Uh, Herod is kind of the, like, uh, the, the kind of puppet king over the Jews for Rome.

[24:26] He's kind of Rome's king, right? And so what he wants is stability, right? And so basically what happens is he, he takes James and he kills him, right? And he sees that it pleases the Jews because the Jews don't like this teaching about Jesus.

[24:38] And, and so that, that's basically his, his, his popular majority, right? So he did this thing because it made his popular majority happy, right? And so then he takes Peter and the church is afraid, like, what is Herod going to do?

[24:50] Uh, we know he wants to appease the Jews and the Jews, the Jews want us snuffed out, right? At this point, at this point in, uh, uh, narrative. Not all Jews, right? Some of the, the, the disciples were Jews, right?

[25:01] But, you know, that's kind of the, the Jewish rulers and leaders at that time, uh, were kind of opposing the, the message of Christ, right? And so then, then, so what happens is the church goes and prays, uh, and they go to Mary's house, uh, and they pray that, that God would rescue Peter, right?

[25:18] Or they pray for Peter. They go to God on Peter's behalf. Um, and then Peter, uh, an angel comes to Peter in prison and, and leads him out of prison. And then Peter's not even sure if this is an angel or a vision.

[25:31] And he's not really sure, like, if he's being rescued or just having a vision. And then he ends up, the, the angel leads him to Mary's house where all these believers are praying for him. Uh, and then he knocks on the door.

[25:42] At this point, he realizes, like, oh, like, God just rescued me. He knocks on the door and Rhoda, the servant, hears him knocking. And this is what the text says in verse 14. Recognizing Peter's voice and her joy, she did not open the gate, but ran and reported that Peter was standing at the gate.

[25:58] So Peter just got rescued from prison. And she's like, oh, that's Peter. Hold on. You know, leaves him knocking, right? Uh, uh, escaped convict knocking at the door while she goes and tells people. But, but when she goes and tells people, um, verse 15, um, the, the people respond and they say to her, you are out of your mind, but she kept insisting that it was so.

[26:18] And they kept saying, it, it is his angel. But Peter continued to knocking. And when they opened, they saw that and they were amazed, right? And so you see these people, they had gathered, like, with a lot of faith, playing fervently for Peter.

[26:30] And God actually gives them what they're praying for. And they're like, nah, it's not true. You're crazy. Like, you're, you're, you're mistaken. It's not him. Oh, he keeps knocking. It's probably just an angel, whatever, you know. I didn't know we all had angels, but, you know, maybe they thought that.

[26:44] Right? I don't know. Not getting into that. But the point is, like, they weren't expecting, they weren't expecting this response, right? But, but God rewarded their weak faith and little prayers, right?

[26:57] Um, and that makes sense to everything we believe biblically. Because we don't believe it's anything in us. It's not the size of our faith or the strength of our commitment that does anything but the size of our God and the compassion of our Savior, right?

[27:10] And so these disciples, though their faith is little, uh, they reach out to Jesus. And he comes and he brings peace, right? And he calms a storm and he rescues him, right? And so, so we can be confident that even when we're washed back and forth with our fears and our anxieties, if we go to Jesus, he will honor us and he will help us because he cares, right?

[27:30] And what, we're going to see more of that here in a bit. But, but the Bible doesn't condemn, you know, he encourages us to, to strong faith. But for the disciples, we see here that, that what it did is just like, it allowed them to live in more freedom and to live in more peace, right?

[27:46] Um, so weak faith and little prayers are effective. And that's because power is not based in our faith or our prayers, but in our God. Uh, this is a major lesson in this story. So go to Jesus with your fears. Let fear drive you to a Savior who is willing, uh, to bring instant peace.

[28:00] Go to him in your storm and wake him up. So there's kind of like this idea, this offer piece is a really cool thing, right? It's a really good thing. Um, but this isn't the main point of the story, right?

[28:14] Um, the main point of the story is to reorient our perspective. Uh, somebody said the purpose of scripture is not just to inform us of what happened, but to transform us through what happened, right? So, so the main point of this is, is, is a change in us, right?

[28:29] Um, God wants to change our perspective on things. And he wants to do this in two ways. First, he wants to show us, do this by showing us who Jesus is. And he wants to show us what Jesus is like. And, uh, in the end text we see that, um, he shows us who Jesus is.

[28:44] Um, you know, this, this text isn't primarily intending to teach us a lesson, but to show you who Jesus is and to bring us into worship. We know this because the end of the story, the story doesn't end with the disciples kind of assessing this lesson on faith and peace.

[28:58] Uh, but in them marveling at Jesus, right? Um, and, and showing us who Jesus is is one of Matthew's greatest endeavors in his book. Let's take a recap of a few things.

[29:09] Matthew 1 roots Jesus' identity in biblical history, linking him to all of God's promises to bless and rule the world. In Matthew 2, we see Jesus' miraculous birth, the worship-filled, uh, visits of foreign dignitaries, and a king's insufficient attempts to snuff him out.

[29:24] In chapter 3, we see Jesus being confirmed, uh, by the Father and the Spirit, followed by a battle for humanity's sake against sin, the devil, and temptation. And then we get to chapters 5 through 7, where we are introduced to Jesus, the authoritative teacher, where we learn what God's kingdom is supposed to be about.

[29:40] Um, and Matt mentioned this last week. So, if chapters 5 through 7 reveal the way of the kingdom, then chapters 8 and 9 reveal the power of the kingdom. But what we learn is that this power is personal, right? This power is being displayed in the person and work of Christ.

[29:53] Um, so this power is not far off, but it walks with man, in man's place, undoing the things that are broken. Um, so thus far in Matthew 8, we've kind of, uh, we took a little break from a Matthew series, you've come back to it.

[30:06] In Matthew 8, we've seen Jesus kind of, uh, confirming his message by kind of showing his power, right? Uh, showing that, that he is from God, right? And so he shows his Jesus' power to triumph over disease, over illness, and over demon possession.

[30:20] Um, and earlier in Matthew 8, Jesus even shows that he can heal from a proximity, right? The centurion comes to him, and he doesn't even go there. He just heals a servant from a distance, right? And so, so the disciples have been seeing this, and they've recognized this.

[30:32] But now this passage extends this picture of who Jesus is by showing that his, his power covers an entirely different realm. He is showing that his authority extends to even the weather.

[30:43] Uh, and this makes good biblical sense. Um, and it provides a not-so-subtle statement about the deity of Jesus. Uh, for according to, like, kind of Jewish culture and Jewish teaching, based on Old Testament teaching, right?

[30:54] God, the one, the one true God was the only one that had the power over nature, right? And, and God used this in many cases on the benefit of the people, right? He parted the Red Sea. He brought the plagues. He led them by a pillar of fire at night and a cloud during the day.

[31:07] Um, he, you know, did, did many miraculous things where he controlled, he made the sun and the moon stand still, right? Um, and so for the Jewish listeners, to see Jesus controlling the weather is a powerful statement on his deity, right?

[31:22] Um, it's a powerful statement that, hey, this Jesus is exhibiting the same power that we believe is only reserved for the creator God, right? Um, and so this is kind of a profound statement, and, and the disciples are learning this as they go.

[31:37] Uh, but I think also, other than just showing us objectively who Jesus is, it shows us what he's like. So for the disciples, Jesus' power over the weather does more than simply make a statement about his deity.

[31:48] It shows them his heart, right? Think about it this way. The disciples were already impressed by the healings of Jesus, but here they, they have a front row seat to experience another wellness of power in a situation where they desperately needed it.

[32:00] And this is not the point, right? Jesus is bringing his power to a situation where they desperately need it, right? So it's not only showing us his power over the storm, right? But he's showing that he's personal, and he's using his power for their benefit, right?

[32:13] In love, in compassion to them. Uh, so Jesus' power is near, it's personal, it speaks in the realm of real people's lives in moments and areas of great need. And I hope you see how Jesus beautifully embodies both power and compassion here.

[32:32] He is unmatched in power, but his power is tender, loving, and people-seeking. Uh, this has got to be the experience of the disciples, right? They reach out to him in their peril, and he, he shows his complete power to bring peace.

[32:44] Um, and, and he does this to help them with their anxiety, right? Um, so if we just think about it, like a simple display of power captures our attention, and it amazes our minds, right?

[32:57] But the display of tender, loving, and personal power captures our hearts, stirs our affections, and obliterates our fears, right? Um, and this is kind of a byproduct of seeing who this Jesus is, right?

[33:12] Because not only do we learn that he's powerful, but we learn that he is for us. He is for those who are his, right? Um, and so, um, I don't know.

[33:22] I, I think that's a, that's a big lesson that the disciples are learning as they walk through this path of discipleship with Jesus. Um, but peace, right? Peace is a byproduct, right? When, when the disciples learn that this Jesus commands power, and this Jesus is with them, right?

[33:38] Uh, it had to affect their peers, their, their fears, and give them peace, right? Um, but peace is just a byproduct, right? Um, it's not the main point. Jesus is the main point. Uh, so we make peace the main point.

[33:51] We make this story about ourselves, right? The disciples were brought into great calm. They didn't have the luxury, uh, to make the story about themselves, or how could they? How could they think of themselves? They couldn't because their minds were blown by amazement over Jesus.

[34:06] And so I think this is the main application, right? Um, we want to allow the storms of our lives to draw us into Jesus, where you will discover just how powerful he is. Right?

[34:17] Um, it is one thing to know he's powerful. It's another to experience it, right? And so here, Jesus' disciples are firsthand experiencing Jesus' power in a way that is relevant and meaningful and needed to them, right?

[34:30] And, and they see the personal-ness of it, right? Um, and, and it leads them to worship, right? When, when you have received this great grace and this great kindness, uh, you stop thinking about yourself.

[34:42] Your view goes to this one who just commanded the weather to, to meet your needs, right? And, and your needs fade away and, and your wonder at the Savior increases, right?

[34:53] And so that's what happens with the disciples, right? And so at the end of the text, at the end of the text, they are sitting there marveling, um, at, at this, at this Jesus, right? Um, and so, yes, they get peace, but that's a byproduct, right?

[35:06] Um, and if, if we make it the main thing, then, then we lose the Savior in the midst of it, right? Um, and so we, as followers of Christ, uh, we, we can, we can know his powers for us, but that should turn us first to worship.

[35:22] And then, then a byproduct of that is our peace and our confidence in life and life's turmoils because we can trust and look to the Savior, uh, who has, um, died for us, right? Um, here the disciples experience his power in a profound way.

[35:37] The result is wonder, amazement, a view that transcends their fears because their view is now filled with Christ, right? Once that calm came, they don't care about the storm anymore. They're just amazed at their Savior.

[35:48] They're just thankful for their Savior. They're just in wonder, right? Um, so I guess, I'm not sure if I've communicated this well, but I think this is what makes Christianity unique.

[35:59] So if you're here and you're not Christian, right, um, the Bible offers you great peace in the midst of any circumstance, right? But, but this offer is a byproduct, right?

[36:12] So much of what the world says is, hey, you can get peace by doing these things, right? By building up your security, by building up your 401k, by, by having a good, you know, life planning specialist or, or whatever, right?

[36:25] Um, and so, so in all those things, like peace and security and stability, are the goal, right? In Christianity, that's a byproduct. It's a byproduct because you come face to face with the God of the universe who has personally reached out to you and died for you and brought you in to his life, right?

[36:42] Um, and so, so it gives Christians, it gives us so much peace in the midst of any circumstance, right? So we can go and we could list all kinds of circumstances, but, but what's universally through, true for all of those is that you are Jesus' disciples.

[36:55] He is with you in them, right? You can turn to him in them. Um, and we'll get more on why that is later, but, but we have Jesus always, right? Um, and, and so like if, if you're not sure about Christianity and you're like, yeah, I want, I want peace, right?

[37:13] And I see that Christians around me have peace, um, you gotta know that that's a byproduct of knowing Christ, right? That's a byproduct of being, uh, just in wonder at all that he's done for you, right?

[37:27] And so, uh, if we make peace the main thing, right, then, then we start seeking peace and when we don't have it, we don't have peace, right? So if you make peace the same thing, the thing you're always looking for and stability, as soon as peace or stability breaks down, your life falls apart, right?

[37:42] Uh, but for the Christian, like, that's not the main thing, right? That's, that's a byproduct because, because nothing is going to take Jesus from us, right? Nothing can take him from us. And for those of you who do know Christ, consider all the ways that Jesus has impressed his tender, loving power in your life.

[37:57] Consider how he's orchestrated situations to prove his care. So, back to our trip to Vermont with our kids. Part of the reason why we did that trip, um, we thought it'd be fun, but we also had the holidays coming up.

[38:15] And for us, the holidays are in Ohio. So that's a 12-hour car ride, uh, with toddlers, right? And so, we, we picked Vermont knowing that it would be like, hey, like, four, four-ish hours, right?

[38:26] It would be a good warm-up, right? We had never traveled with the boys and all that kind of stuff, right? And so we orchestrated this situation. Um, and, and while that trip was very painful, what happened was that the boys learned to trust us in the midst of it.

[38:40] Uh, they learned to trust us. And so, a month later, when we went to Ohio for Thanksgiving, uh, 10, 11-hour trip was a breeze, right? Uh, because we had showed them through experience that we were committed to them and that we would love them and that we would bring them home and that we would maintain the stability, right?

[38:57] Um, and, and I think that's what this call to discipleship is, right? We, we see that Jesus calls it discipleship, right? Our text last week was like, hey, consider the cost of discipleship. But in this text, it's like, hey, but also, like, consider the cost of discipleship, but also know that Jesus is going to walk with you through it.

[39:14] And in the hard times, he's going to prove himself to you, right? So just like we proved ourselves to our children, Christ is proving himself to us in his love and his intimate love in each of our lives. So I would encourage you, as the storms of life come up, or, or think back on storms before, and consider the faithfulness of Christ.

[39:30] Consider how he has so intimately and kindly reached into your hard moments, brought truth, brought value, brought good things out of it, right? And those kind of are data points, right?

[39:40] And so if you look at the disciples' life, right, the disciples here are fearful, right? They're about to, they're about to die in a boat and they're like, ah, we're gonna, you know, whatever. But then, but then later in their lives, right, they turn the world upside down, right?

[39:51] They boldly walk into situations where they know they're going to be beaten and imprisoned because they have learned the value of Christ. And, and their view is filled with the wonder of Christ.

[40:02] And, and, and so now the, the, the temporary things of life don't become fearful anymore, right? Um, and, and they can give their lives in service to their king because they recognized his kind and tender care for them.

[40:15] Um, so remember the story of Jesus' power being poured out for their benefit. But, um, and, and remember, so for the disciples, um, it's just a reiteration of a point, but, so turn to Jesus in the midst of your storms and let the many experience of his powerful faithfulness and loving care build your trust and drive you to worship.

[40:39] And as your view fills with amazement at Jesus, I guarantee your fears will fade. For you will learn from God's word and from experience that Jesus and all of his power is for you.

[40:50] You will also learn, uh, that Jesus, as Jesus grows more precious in your sight, your fears will fade because you have nothing to fear because nothing can separate you from him, the person who is of most value to you.

[41:03] Uh, so the disciples remembering, uh, that this story of Jesus' power being poured out for their benefit was just one data point in, in the many experiences of discipleship with Jesus.

[41:18] And so we see, you know, we just see how that understanding Jesus in this situation and the power and care that he can provide just gained confidence for them, right?

[41:29] And, and this, this call towards discipleship is a call towards life. We live our lives seeking Jesus. And as we do that, as we give him more of our lives, as we bring him into more of our situations and tendencies, right, we gain trust.

[41:42] And over time, that trust leads us to do crazy things like the disciples, right? They, they, they gave all they had because they found this preciousness of Christ, right?

[41:52] And that was over time, through experience, through his love, that they, they learned these things. Uh, so that's all I have. Uh, I'll pray. Uh, dear only Father, Lord, thank you for this text.

[42:06] Um, God, I'm not sure if I communicated it well. Uh, but I was just so impressed by the personalness of Jesus.

[42:18] Um, it didn't matter much to Jesus whether the storm was calm or not, because he wasn't worried about it. Um, but yet he took action on his disciples' behalf so that they might understand who he is and therefore find peace in life and all of life's circumstances.

[42:38] Uh, we thank you that you are a God who is for us. Um, as we go into communion a little bit here, we'll really see where the meat of that comes at the cross. Uh, but even outside the cross, like even in this situation, you were so personal and kind to disciples to see what they needed in the midst of this turmoil and to point their eyes to something bigger that would give them freedom and hope in the midst of future circumstances of turmoil.

[43:04] And God, I pray that we would learn that and that we would walk through this life. And when trials come and storms come, in whatever variety they may be, may we turn to Jesus. May we look to him.

[43:14] May we wake him up and may we go to him. And may we find his power to be sufficient and his grace to be compelling. Amen. Amen. Amen.