Well, we can turn back to our reading in the Gospel of Mark, chapter 4.
And like I say, we're going to look at the end, verses 35 to the end of the chapter,
where we see Jesus with his disciples leaving the place of the where, as it says, going across the other side.
They go into the boat and they find themselves in the midst of a storm.
And then they cry out to him in verse 36.
The disciples, they woke him and said to him,
Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?
And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea,
Peace, be still.
And the wind ceased and there was a great calm.
Well, we've just had a storm, the first named storm of the year.
And because of the way that they now name the storms, and you get a long list of the names of the storms,
there's always that sense that, well, one's passed, but another one's coming.
Storm Amy has passed.
Then we have Storm Bram, whenever that may come.
Then it goes on to Siege and Andra.
There's that storm.
They've all got a name.
And there's that sense, well, there's always going to be another storm coming.
And we know that very well, where we live, that as we go into the winter months, that that is just the case.
And when we come into a storm, we can end up with things being in short supply.
If a storm goes on and the ferries don't sail, we find things being in short supply.
When you go into the supermarkets, go into the shops, they've run out of different things,
whether it's fruit and veg or bread and milk, there's things in short supply.
But when we think about it in our own situation, it's not just about these storms that come in a physical sense,
but the storms that come in life.
And there are many of them.
And it seems like we go from maybe one storm to the next, to the next.
When all our lives just seem to be full of trials and difficulties that come our way,
they can be personal ones when it's just ourselves that are going through them.
They can be family ones.
They can be trials in our community.
They can be trials in our congregation.
They can be trials in our nation and the world in which we live.
And we see all kinds of things going on that just leave us feeling that sense of being overwhelmed by the situation that we're in.
And when we're in these kinds of storms as well, when they're personal, when they're collective storms,
there can be a sense of things lacking in these storms as well.
There can be a sense maybe of patience lacking.
When we become an impatient people in some of the situations that we find ourselves in.
And we just have to look at our lives and our congregation, our community, our nation, and the world.
And we think of all these different things going on around us.
And we're losing patience.
We may be, in our personal circumstances, are losing patience with people around us,
or services around us.
We're losing patience because things don't seem to be going as we would desire.
We can be losing patience as a congregation.
When we think of the vacancy and the situation there, and we've had that bulletin update today,
where there can be a sense of our patience being tested.
Where are we going?
What's going to happen?
How are we going to go forward?
There can be that sense of patience being lost.
It can be in so many different ways.
We can lose patience with government.
We can lose patience with leaders.
We can lose patience with the world in which we live in.
But it always takes us to the point where we start to lose patience with God.
We start to lose that trust in God.
And that's when it becomes even more dangerous.
When we start to think that God, as we see with the disciples here crying out,
do you not care?
And that's the cry that we can have in so many different situations.
Lord, do you not care?
Do you not care what's going on in my life or in our congregation or in our world?
Do you not care what's happening?
And then we can lose other things.
We can find other things in short supply as well.
That sense of joy, that sense of peace.
They can go and we can lose that sense of these things as well.
When we are in days of testing,
when we are in days when our patience is being tested,
we can lose that joy and that peace.
We don't see things in perspective.
When we lose sight of the perspective under which we should be looking at things.
Because there are other ways of looking at things.
Besides our own thoughts, beside our own impatience, despite ourselves,
there are other ways that we can look at things.
And we see that there are two perspectives in this passage that we've read.
In this account of Jesus with the disciples in this storm,
there's two different perspectives in the very same situation.
And the first perspective we see is that of the disciples.
Their perspective in this is that Jesus doesn't care.
They have a sense of fear in the midst of the storm.
They don't know what's happening.
They don't know where they're going or what's ahead of them.
There's this sense of fear because that's their perspective on things.
But there's another perspective.
And that's the perspective of Jesus.
And when you look at Jesus in this passage,
even in the midst of the storm, he's sleeping.
But in the midst of the storm, he's reminding them that he has power,
that he has authority, that he is able to give peace and calm.
And that's how we should look at the perspective of our lives as well.
Whatever we are going through,
when we see things from our own perspective that seems out of control,
no direction, uncertainty, all of these things we can see,
well, the Lord has control, that he has power,
that he has authority over all things,
that he is able to reveal his will to us
in the midst of everything that comes our way.
And a lot has happened for the disciples.
It's been some day for them when you look at this chapter,
when they've heard, as we read some of the teaching
that they'd been under.
When you see the parable of the growing seed,
the parable of the mustard seed,
and other things that Jesus had been teaching
before we came to this point.
They've heard so much from Jesus.
They've already seen so much from Jesus.
And then it says in verse 35,
on that same day, when evening had come,
he said to them, let us go.
And so what we see here is that Jesus is with them.
He's reminded them of the significance of his kingdom,
a kingdom that is coming, a kingdom that is growing.
And now we're going to see how he reminds them
that it's for them as well,
that it's a very personal kingdom,
a kingdom when he shows his own,
the power and authority that he has.
And so as they're caught in this storm,
Jesus challenges them.
And that's what he does with us in our own storms as well.
He challenges us.
And the challenge is this.
Do you trust me only when things are going well?
Or will you trust me in the storm as well?
Will you trust me when things seem out of your control?
Will you trust me?
That's the challenge.
And there's five things to take from these verses for us to do.
We have first, trust.
We have trouble.
We have tone.
We have teaching.
And we have turning.
I just briefly want to touch on these five things.
Trust, trouble, tone, teaching, and turning.
And the first thing we see is trust.
Trust.
And the situation starts in a setting of trust.
What we find is that on this day,
as Jesus has been teaching with them,
that same day Jesus spoke to them and said,
let us go across to the other side.
And what do you notice?
They don't ask why.
They don't ask where are we going.
They don't ask any details about how.
All it says is,
leaving the crowd,
they took him with them in the boat,
just as he was.
They left immediately.
And what you see here is,
there was a sense of trust.
They've only been with Jesus a short time,
but they are trusting him.
And it's shown just in how they go.
And they go immediately.
Over the time of following Jesus,
seeing what he is doing,
the miracles he's performing,
the teaching that he is giving them,
why wouldn't things go well now?
They're beginning to see,
well, Jesus has a plan.
He has a purpose.
He's done all these amazing things.
And it's almost like,
well, we're expecting more.
They might say,
well, it's always going to be like this.
It's always going to be easy.
It's always going to go well,
because Jesus is with us.
It's going to be smooth.
It's going to be plain sailing.
So there's this element of trust.
And so there should be.
There should be an element of trust,
because they've seen what he has done.
But the question that they find themselves here is,
but how much do they trust him?
How much are they going to listen to him?
How much are they going to keep on trusting?
Because you see, trust isn't just for a moment.
Trust isn't just for a short time or certain situations.
Trust is what we need going forward all the time.
As we approach winter once again,
one of the things that you'll begin to see on the television again
is winter skiing.
It's amazing to watch downhill skiing,
doing the slalom through all the gates
and all of these things.
It's amazing to watch
and the speed that they get up to.
And as I watch it, I think,
well, that's not something
that I would be very keen on trying myself.
It looks quite terrifying.
But imagine doing it when you're blind
or only partially sighted.
Well, people do.
And it's part of the Paralympics now.
It's part of sport now,
where people with disabilities
will do all of these sports.
But imagine going down a hill on skis
and you can't see where you're going.
How is it possible?
Well, what they do is they're paired with someone who can see.
And they're trained to ski first on the flat,
just learning how to ski and finding their way around.
And eventually, they go on the slopes
and they start to do the slalom,
going in between the gates.
And you ask yourself, but how?
Well, it's because the person who's able to see
and skiing with them is giving them direction.
Turn to your left.
Turn to your right.
And so it goes on.
But they have to listen.
They have to trust that person beside them.
Because if they don't completely trust,
it's going to be catastrophic.
It's going to end in a crash.
And it's a vivid picture of the Christian life in this world.
Because the reality is that we cannot see ahead of us
everything that's ahead of us.
We can only see in part.
Spiritually, we're so often blind
about what course our lives are going to take,
what course we're going to take going forward as a congregation.
We don't have the eyes to see.
But we have to trust.
We have to trust that there is one with us
who promises to give direction,
who speaks to us through his word,
who reveals himself to us through prayer.
So trust is important.
Trust in Jesus is an essential part
of any relationship that we are to have with him.
A personal relationship, trust him that he will guide.
A collective relationship, trust him that he will guide.
We need to trust.
So the disciples here, they immediately responded
to the call to go over to the other side
with that sense of trust.
Trust.
But there's more to trust than just good times.
Trust is something that is often tested
and proved in more difficult times.
And that's what we see secondly here.
Because trouble comes.
The disciples were doing as the Lord asked.
And they find themselves in trouble.
And it says that as they went out in the boat
and others with them, in verse 37,
a great windstorm arose.
This storm came quickly.
And it's the kind of storm that can happen
in these regions.
And especially fishermen,
and many of the disciples were fishermen,
would be aware of this,
just how quickly these storms can come.
But yet, even they seem to be caught out by this.
They don't seem to understand
why would Jesus take us out
and this horrendous storm has come.
The waves were breaking into the boat
so that the boat was already filling.
The way Jesus has told them to go
has led to trouble.
And that's so often the reality
of following Jesus as well.
The reality of following Jesus
isn't that life is always going to be plain sailing.
It's a reality that there are going to be
troubles and trials and testing along the way.
How many troubles do we face in life?
Health issues, relationships,
personal issues, financial issues.
The list is almost endless.
We all have these troubles
that we have to face up to.
But we can learn in these troubles.
And that's what the disciples have here as well.
They're not immune from trouble.
And none of us are.
But God's word is there to help us.
And to help us through them all.
Through everything that we have to face up to.
The Lord promises to be with us.
James Packer, again quoting from
Your Father Loves You, that book.
He says this,
This is the ultimate reason from our standpoint
why God fills our lives with troubles
and perplexities of one sort and another.
It is to ensure that we shall learn to hold him fast.
The reason why the Bible spends so much of its time
reiterating that God is a strong rock,
a firm defense, a sure refuge,
a help for the weak,
is that God spends so much of his time
showing us that we are weak,
both mentally and morally,
and dare not trust ourselves
to find or follow the right road.
And so there he's giving reminders to us.
It is to trust God.
But then he goes on to say,
When we walk along a clear road feeling fine
and someone takes our arm to help us,
it's likely we will just impatiently
shake that person off.
But when we are caught in the rough country road,
in the middle of dark and a storm brewing
and our strength spent,
and someone takes our arm to help us,
we would thankfully lean on him.
And God wants us to feel that our way
through life is rough and perplexing
so that we may learn to thankfully lean on him.
And he says,
Wait on the Lord.
That's so often the advice
that the Lord gives in his word.
Wait on the Lord.
So in the midst of our trouble,
we have the Lord to lean on.
The third thing we see here is the tone.
How do the disciples react
when they are afraid?
What do they say?
The boat is filling,
it's being overwhelmed,
but Jesus is in the stern,
asleep on the cushion.
And they woke him and said to him,
Teacher,
do you not care
that we are perishing?
Do you not care
that we are perishing?
Look at the tone
in these words.
You can sense it.
There's frustration
in these words.
There's fear
in these words.
There's doubt
in these words.
Do you not care
that we are perishing?
If we are drowning,
there are times
in trouble
when we can turn to God
in this way
and we can have that tone
of anger
towards God.
Whatever it is,
we can turn in frustration
and say,
Lord,
do you not care
where we are going?
Do you not care
what's happening to us?
As a congregation,
do you not want us
to grow and to flourish?
Do you not want us
to have another minister
come in?
We can cry out
in all kinds of frustration.
But it's to wait
on the Lord.
It's through personally.
It's through collectively.
It's through
in all aspects of life.
The Lord has a plan.
But our cry
is so often
frustration.
It can be frustration
towards God.
It can be frustration
towards others,
how we speak to others.
Our tone can be off.
Our frustration
can be vented
in so many different ways.
You see,
we are sinners.
The disciples
are sinners.
And they are crying out
in their frustration,
Teacher,
do you not care
that we are perishing?
And so can we
do that as well
because sin
robs us
of peace?
We can lose
that peace
and we are just
looking at it
from our perspective.
As you drive,
especially on the mainland
or more so
on the mainland,
when you are driving
on busy roads
and you see signs
at the side
of the road
or above the road
if you are on the motorway,
one of the most common
ones you see
is frustration
causes accidents.
And it's true.
When you become
frustrated
and impatient
and try to overtake
in the wrong place
or do a manoeuvre,
it causes accidents.
And frustration
in life
causes so many
problems
as well.
They have done
what Jesus
told them
and this is
where they end up
and they cry out
in frustration.
Teacher,
do you not care
that we are perishing?
And you see the tone.
It's like Psalm 107
when the sailors,
they cry out
in the midst
of the storm.
They cry out
in their fear.
The tone
can be there
and it can be
an off tone.
Let us be careful
how we address God
and how we address
one another
in the midst
of our frustrations,
whatever
they might be.
But then we see
fourthly
there is teaching
here.
What teaching
do we have here
as Jesus rebukes
the wind
and the waves?
It says in verse 39
he awoke
and rebuked
the wind
and the sea
and said
peace
be still
and the wind
ceased
and there was
a great
calm.
Well Jesus
here is teaching.
He's teaching
them
trust me
in the storms
as well.
Who is this
is the cry
that they come to
and who is it?
It is the Lord.
It is God
that is with them.
The storm
is changed
into a calm
by his word.
That's the power
that he has.
Now when we see
a storm
around us
the sea
doesn't just
immediately
go calm.
It can take
hours and days
for the sea
to settle down
once again
but here
it's instant.
Just at his
word
there is peace
there is calm.
And that's the
teaching
that we would
want to take
from this
as well.
That we can
trust God
to change
the storms
that we face
and to give
us calm
because he
is God.
He is God
who is able.
As someone
said once
to realise
the worth
of an anchor
you need
to feel
the storm.
And whatever
storm we face
whatever
comes
our way
and whatever
way and shape
it feels
like it's
overwhelming
us.
Jesus
is able
to calm.
He is able
to say
these words
peace
be still.
He has
control.
There's a
poem
My Father's
at the
Helm.
It comes
in maybe
different forms
but this is
one.
It's talking
about a
little
bark
so that's
a little
boat.
The curling
waves
with awful
roar
a little
bark
assailed
and pallid
fears
distracting
power
over all
on board
prevailed.
Save one
the captain's
darling
child
who
fearless
viewed
the storm
and cheerful
with composure
smiled
a dangerous
threatening
form.
And can
you smile
a semen
cried
while
terrors
overwhelmed.
Why should
I fear
the boy
replied
my father's
at the
helm
so when
our worldly
hopes are
crushed
our earthly
comfort's
gone
we still
have one
sure
anchor
left
God
helps
and he
alone.
We will
have storms
when things
seem to be
out of our
control
but we have
that anchor
God's
help
and he
alone
can help.
So finally
we just
want to
see in
the midst
of the
teaching
there's
a turning
there's a
turning as
we see
at the
end.
He said
to them
in verse
40
why are
you so
afraid
have you
still
no
faith
but then
they said
who then
is this
that even
the wind
and sea
obey him
have you
still
no
faith
it can
be easy
to come
and trust
Jesus
when things
are going
well
and we
might be
interested
in coming
to know
Jesus
and to
follow
Jesus
and think
even as
we're going
through this
well if I
trust Jesus
he's going
to give
me peace
and everything
is going
to be
great
again
but he
can give
peace
but it
doesn't
mean that
the storm
always
goes
sometimes
he just
gives
peace
for the
storm
but we
can see
that he
is with
us
and that
he is
able
to help
when we
are entrusting
ourselves
to him
and his
plans
and his
purposes
and his
will
he can
give us
peace
in it
all
the writer
Andrew
Murray
he once
wrote this
and he's
talking about
times of
trial and
testing
he said
first
he brought
me here
it is
by his
will
I am
in this
straight
place
in that
fact
I will
rest
next
he will
keep me
here
in his
love
and give
me grace
to behave
as his
child
then
he will
make the
trial
a blessing
teaching me
the lessons
he intends
me to
learn
and working
in me
the grace
he means
to bestow
last
in his
good time
he can
bring me
out again
how
and when
he knows
let me
say I
am here
he said
by God's
appointment
in his
keeping
under his
training
for his
time
can we
apply that
to ourselves
today
whatever
our circumstances
whether we're
looking at
individually
or collectively
we are
here
by God's
appointment
we can
rest
in that
fact
we are
here
in his
keeping
that his
love
is always
faithful
we are
here
under
his
training
that he
can teach
us
in the
midst of
everything
and we
are here
for his
time
he can
bring us
and will
bring us
through
the disciples
would apply
it as their
lives would
go on
to see
that they
wouldn't just
answer
who is
this
that even
the wind
and the
waves
obey him
but that
they would
see
this is
the
Christ
that's
what they
would come
to recognize
as life
goes on
for them
they would
see this
is the
Christ
the one
who gave
his life
for his
church
for his
people
and they
would see
and glorify
him
all the
more
does he
care
of course
he does
more
than they
would
ever
recognize
fully
until that
point
where they
would see
him on
the cross
and see
him risen
from the
grave
who is
this
it is
the
Lord
and it's
the Lord
who is
with us
we might
not see
him fully
when we
think just
of the
perspective
of our
trials
whatever
they are
but by
faith
we can
see him
fully
who is
it that
is with
us
it is
the
Lord
and as
we trust
him
and know
that he
is with
us
and as
we rest
in his
will
as we
rest
under
his
love
as we
seek
his
teaching
and
guidance
he is
the one
who will
bring us
through
may we
find
that joy
and peace
in him
let us
pray
Lord
our
gracious
God
we do
thank you
that you
are one
who is
able to
turn
every
providence
for your
glory
the things
that we
cannot
understand
the things
that seem
beyond our
comprehension
we thank you
that you
already have
plans and
purposes
and so we
seek
your will
be done
that you
would guard
us by your
love
by your
peace
that you
would keep
us by
your
spirit
and that
you would
assure us
of guiding
us and
keeping us
on the
way
we ask
all for
the glory
of our
Lord and
Saviour
amen
we're going
to conclude
by singing
to God's
praise in
psalm 27
page 32
of the
psalm books
psalm 27
we'll sing
from verse
11 to the
end of the
psalm
teach me
O Lord
how I
should live
and lead
me in
your way
make straight
my path
because my
foes
oppress me
every day
and then you
have this
confidence at
the end of
the psalm
in verse
13
yet I am
sure that
in this
life
God's
goodness
I will
see
and in
this
command
wait for
the Lord
be strong
take heart
for him
wait patiently
we'll sing
verse 11 to
the end of
the psalm
to God's
praise
teach me
O Lord
how I
should live
and lead
me in
your way
make straight
my path
because my
foes
oppress me
every day
give me
not over
to the
will
of the
enemies
for
liars
rise
to
slander
me
and
plead
thy
cruelties
yet
I
am
sure
that
in
this
life
God's
goodness
I
will
see
wait
for
the
lark
be
strong
take
heart
forever
with
patiently
after the
benediction
I'll go to the main door
we'll close with the benediction
now may grace
mercy and peace
from God
Father
Son
and Holy Spirit
rest upon
and abide with you all
now and forevermore
Amen