WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:08.179 And we are reading from the book of Mark, chapter 4, verses 35 down to 41. 00:00:09.179 --> 00:00:10.820 Jesus calms the storm. 00:00:12.460 --> 00:00:18.219 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, let us go over to the other side. 00:00:19.219 --> 00:00:24.100 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along just as he was in the boat. 00:00:25.060 --> 00:00:26.740 There were also other boats with him. 00:00:26.739 --> 00:00:33.739 A furious squaw came up and the waves broke over the boat, so it was nearly swamped. 00:00:34.820 --> 00:00:37.379 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. 00:00:38.739 --> 00:00:43.259 The disciples woke him and said to him, teacher, don't you care if we drown? 00:00:44.299 --> 00:00:49.200 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, quiet, be still. 00:00:49.959 --> 00:00:52.840 Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. 00:00:52.840 --> 00:00:56.880 He said to his disciples, why are you so afraid? 00:00:57.440 --> 00:00:59.100 Do you still have no faith? 00:00:59.900 --> 00:01:03.780 They were terrified and asked each other, who is this? 00:01:04.300 --> 00:01:06.620 Even the wind and the waves obey him. 00:01:07.219 --> 00:01:08.439 This is the word of the Lord. 00:01:08.439 --> 00:01:11.859 Thanks so much, Deborah. 00:01:12.179 --> 00:01:15.159 Do keep that Bible passage open in front of you. 00:01:15.239 --> 00:01:16.799 We're going to be working our way through it. 00:01:16.840 --> 00:01:21.099 This is the last one in our series in Mark's gospel for a little while. 00:01:21.739 --> 00:01:22.700 Let me pray now. 00:01:23.259 --> 00:01:24.939 Ask for the Lord's help as we look at his word. 00:01:26.319 --> 00:01:32.560 Father, we know ourselves well enough to know that we are slow of heart to listen to your word. 00:01:32.560 --> 00:01:36.040 There are many distractions, many things on our minds. 00:01:36.799 --> 00:01:46.640 Please, we pray, I pray for me, for all of us, that we just might have tender listening ears for your word this morning. 00:01:46.760 --> 00:01:49.159 Be at work by your spirit for your glory's sake. 00:01:49.900 --> 00:01:50.260 Amen. 00:01:50.260 --> 00:01:50.500 Amen. 00:01:52.600 --> 00:02:04.200 When I was training to be a pastor in South London, I was sent on a visit one evening to visit a church member who had been admitted to the Royal Marsden Hospital in Chelsea. 00:02:05.560 --> 00:02:08.460 She was a longstanding member of the church. 00:02:08.580 --> 00:02:14.360 She was critically ill and was due to have major cancer surgery the following day. 00:02:14.360 --> 00:02:23.000 I was probably in my late 20s, early 30s, and I went just to sit by her bedside and read the Bible and pray with her. 00:02:23.920 --> 00:02:30.360 And as I was sat there after a few moments, she turned to me as weak as she was and she said this. 00:02:31.080 --> 00:02:32.800 She looked at me in the eyes and she said, 00:02:33.140 --> 00:02:38.200 Tell me, Steve, God doesn't want me to die, does he? 00:02:40.080 --> 00:02:42.840 It was a heartfelt question. 00:02:42.840 --> 00:02:48.439 You know, there in her moment of need, lying there in the hospital. 00:02:49.219 --> 00:02:53.680 She had no doubt that the Lord Jesus had the power to heal her. 00:02:53.860 --> 00:02:55.439 That wasn't her struggle. 00:02:56.060 --> 00:02:57.039 She knew that. 00:02:57.759 --> 00:03:00.460 No, her concern was that Jesus might not want to. 00:03:02.539 --> 00:03:03.800 Has he forgotten me? 00:03:05.020 --> 00:03:06.319 Does he know I'm here? 00:03:07.860 --> 00:03:09.099 Has he heard me? 00:03:10.240 --> 00:03:12.560 Does he know the agony that I'm in? 00:03:13.640 --> 00:03:16.879 Does he know the scale of this crisis? 00:03:17.080 --> 00:03:18.360 Does he know what's ahead of me? 00:03:19.640 --> 00:03:25.340 And that question that she asked that night to me in the hospital is the disciples question in verse 38. 00:03:25.640 --> 00:03:26.300 Have a look at it. 00:03:26.360 --> 00:03:27.340 Look at the end of that verse. 00:03:27.900 --> 00:03:32.000 They say, teacher, don't don't care if we drown. 00:03:32.000 --> 00:03:35.800 Notice the significance of that. 00:03:35.900 --> 00:03:38.960 It's not so much that disciples doubt that he could do something. 00:03:39.099 --> 00:03:46.159 You know, they are pretty certain by now that Jesus, the one who they've met, who can heal all the diseases, he can cast out all the demons. 00:03:46.159 --> 00:03:50.960 Surely, surely this guy could do something about this storm. 00:03:52.379 --> 00:03:56.400 It's not, you know, Jesus, are you incapable right now? 00:03:56.439 --> 00:03:59.639 Are you not able to do anything in this life-threatening situation? 00:03:59.639 --> 00:04:00.739 No, it's not that, is it? 00:04:01.339 --> 00:04:07.500 Rather, like my friend in the Marsden, their problem is they're convinced that they're dying and Jesus is not bothered. 00:04:08.719 --> 00:04:09.879 He's unmoved. 00:04:10.219 --> 00:04:11.079 He's asleep. 00:04:11.819 --> 00:04:12.879 Don't you care, Jesus? 00:04:13.459 --> 00:04:14.219 That's the question. 00:04:14.219 --> 00:04:19.399 The question then at the heart of our passage this morning is that, isn't it? 00:04:19.459 --> 00:04:22.339 Is Jesus interested in me? 00:04:22.459 --> 00:04:23.779 Is he interested in you? 00:04:24.959 --> 00:04:29.839 You know, in the storms that we are facing, you know, maybe a storm of cancer. 00:04:30.000 --> 00:04:32.319 It may be the waves of marriage difficulties. 00:04:32.319 --> 00:04:39.220 It may be the tornado of exams that you're facing, the uncertainty of work, the family conflict, the visa stress. 00:04:39.819 --> 00:04:42.279 Jesus, do you care? 00:04:42.860 --> 00:04:43.480 Do you know? 00:04:44.220 --> 00:04:45.860 I thought you were my savior. 00:04:46.400 --> 00:04:47.620 I thought you were my friend. 00:04:48.620 --> 00:04:49.440 Are you asleep? 00:04:50.440 --> 00:04:51.420 Do you even care? 00:04:53.380 --> 00:04:59.320 I wonder, we've not really looked at any in the passage yet, but can I just pause there for a moment and ask you whether you've ever asked that question? 00:05:00.700 --> 00:05:11.100 Do you know what that feels like to be in a storm like that, to have wave upon wave crashing over you, not sure what's going to happen, wondering whether God really cares? 00:05:11.100 --> 00:05:13.560 Let me say this morning. 00:05:13.560 --> 00:05:25.600 If you're a Christian and you've never felt this, if you've never had that question on the tip of your tongue or certainly deep in your heart, if you've never asked that question because you've never been in a storm like that, let me say it's only a matter of time. 00:05:25.600 --> 00:05:32.720 There's going to be a time when all of us ask this question. 00:05:32.820 --> 00:05:33.860 Jesus, do you care? 00:05:33.860 --> 00:05:42.720 Mark chapter 4 gives us, I think, essentially two big answers to the question that the disciples ask and that we're asking. 00:05:42.720 --> 00:05:44.680 And the first one is this. 00:05:44.860 --> 00:05:49.540 The first answer is, listen, Jesus is totally divine. 00:05:49.920 --> 00:05:51.280 He's totally divine. 00:05:52.240 --> 00:05:55.240 Now, it's hard to miss this as the big knockout blow of the story. 00:05:55.600 --> 00:05:57.340 That's what we were doing with the kids earlier, isn't it? 00:05:57.720 --> 00:06:01.320 Mark is not just claiming that Jesus is God in flesh. 00:06:01.500 --> 00:06:05.200 He is proving that Jesus is God in flesh by his actions. 00:06:05.199 --> 00:06:11.319 So if you look down at verse 39, there Jesus rebukes the wind and the waves with the words, quiet, be still. 00:06:11.819 --> 00:06:14.979 And remarkably, the wind and the waves listen to the voice of Jesus. 00:06:15.939 --> 00:06:18.800 So much so that we're told that the wind died down. 00:06:18.879 --> 00:06:20.339 It literally ceased. 00:06:21.039 --> 00:06:25.079 And it's not just calm, but it is mega calm in the Greek. 00:06:25.159 --> 00:06:26.459 It's completely calm. 00:06:27.300 --> 00:06:29.319 This is remarkable power. 00:06:29.319 --> 00:06:34.360 You're meant to read that and go, this is remarkable power, completely remarkable. 00:06:35.800 --> 00:06:41.659 You and I can't even cross the zebra crossing out there and get the cars to stop, can we? 00:06:41.699 --> 00:06:44.240 They're supposed to, and we can't make it happen. 00:06:44.719 --> 00:06:51.620 Jesus here speaks to the wind and the waves and complete calm comes as a result instantly. 00:06:53.699 --> 00:06:54.300 Why? 00:06:54.939 --> 00:06:57.199 Well, because Jesus is totally divine. 00:06:57.740 --> 00:07:02.199 Now, that point becomes even clearer when you read Mark 4 alongside the Psalms as we did earlier. 00:07:02.199 --> 00:07:07.839 Earlier, repeatedly in the Psalms, God is the one who is able to calm the storm. 00:07:08.539 --> 00:07:12.139 In Psalm 65, verse 7, God stills the roaring seas. 00:07:12.360 --> 00:07:17.339 In Psalm 107 that we looked at together, God stills the storm to a whisper. 00:07:17.459 --> 00:07:19.180 The waves of the sea are hushed. 00:07:19.599 --> 00:07:24.919 So the disciples who are raised singing the Psalms know this about God, don't they? 00:07:24.920 --> 00:07:31.060 If you ever meet God, you will know that you have met him because he's the one who is able to still the storm. 00:07:32.040 --> 00:07:34.620 I mean, they probably thought it was a metaphor, but it turned out not to be. 00:07:34.980 --> 00:07:36.960 Because here, Jesus is that God. 00:07:37.060 --> 00:07:38.379 He speaks and the waves are still. 00:07:39.800 --> 00:07:41.020 Mark underlines the point. 00:07:41.100 --> 00:07:46.620 If you look at verse 41, the disciples leave with this great fear, asking the question, who is this? 00:07:47.080 --> 00:07:48.960 Even the wind and the sea obey him. 00:07:48.959 --> 00:07:55.399 And Mark leaves that question hanging because he wants you and I to shout out in answer, no, we know the answer. 00:07:55.519 --> 00:07:56.259 This is God. 00:07:56.359 --> 00:07:57.139 This is God. 00:07:58.180 --> 00:08:00.479 Only the creator can command the creation. 00:08:02.219 --> 00:08:07.979 Interestingly, you've seen before, haven't we, that this great fear or this terrified state of the disciples, 00:08:08.099 --> 00:08:13.099 the beginning of verse 41, is the Bible signal that you've encountered God. 00:08:13.100 --> 00:08:20.620 Fear is what you do when you're confronted with the presence of a man who can speak to wind and waves and they listen. 00:08:21.980 --> 00:08:26.400 In some ways, you can summarize this section of Mark 4 by the transfer of fear, can't you? 00:08:26.700 --> 00:08:32.100 The disciples are initially afraid of the storm and now they are afraid of Jesus. 00:08:33.220 --> 00:08:35.920 They've realized that Jesus is more powerful than the storm. 00:08:37.639 --> 00:08:41.040 Now, I've not told you anything that's not obvious, have I, yet this morning. 00:08:41.039 --> 00:08:45.639 You know, if you go home and someone says to you, well, what did you, what do you hear at church today? 00:08:46.639 --> 00:08:49.919 Oh, well, the pastor was saying that Jesus was divine. 00:08:50.139 --> 00:08:53.939 And you go, well, duh, that's kind of what you expect in church, right? 00:08:53.959 --> 00:08:55.000 That's what we talk about. 00:08:55.519 --> 00:09:04.139 After all, Christians have always understood and always explained that the one God who made the world to whom we all belong is one in three and three in one, 00:09:04.299 --> 00:09:09.319 Father, Son, and Spirit, each fully divine, distinct, but together one Trinitarian God. 00:09:09.320 --> 00:09:12.379 That Jesus is God, the Son in human flesh. 00:09:13.480 --> 00:09:15.180 But there's more to it than this. 00:09:15.800 --> 00:09:18.300 Notice the significance of Jesus' divinity here. 00:09:19.600 --> 00:09:24.780 If the wind and the waves obey the command of God, then it begs the question in Mark 4, doesn't it? 00:09:25.160 --> 00:09:29.060 Not just who can calm the storm, but who brought the storm? 00:09:29.879 --> 00:09:30.540 Who put it there? 00:09:30.539 --> 00:09:40.159 You see, Jesus, the one who they suspect might not care about them, was in fact in charge of the storm all along, right? 00:09:41.579 --> 00:09:44.139 Not only when it was quiet, but also when it was raging. 00:09:45.019 --> 00:09:47.939 The sea and the wind obey the word of God. 00:09:48.279 --> 00:09:50.179 So God is in charge. 00:09:50.179 --> 00:09:56.719 He's directing it, which means that the splashing and the crashing on the boat, all of that was always fully under Jesus' control. 00:09:57.839 --> 00:09:59.859 Now, that doesn't mean that the boat was never going to sink. 00:09:59.939 --> 00:10:06.439 There's no indication here that the disciples, most of whom were like seasoned sailors, were panicking unnecessarily. 00:10:06.739 --> 00:10:08.599 No, boats do sink. 00:10:09.679 --> 00:10:12.939 The point is that the boat would only sink if God would let it. 00:10:14.000 --> 00:10:14.779 God is real. 00:10:14.779 --> 00:10:16.699 He's in charge. 00:10:17.339 --> 00:10:18.539 And he's with them in the storm. 00:10:18.620 --> 00:10:19.220 That's the point. 00:10:21.740 --> 00:10:26.519 Let me just pause here and try and underline the significance of this, because we might miss it. 00:10:28.139 --> 00:10:32.720 In the midst of the storms in our lives, of the things that kind of crash over us, 00:10:32.980 --> 00:10:37.360 we tend to evaluate God's care of us, or maybe even his existence, 00:10:37.839 --> 00:10:42.299 on whether we think that God is doing what we would do in that given situation. 00:10:43.279 --> 00:10:44.659 You know the sort of dynamic, don't you? 00:10:44.779 --> 00:10:49.379 You know, I'm facing poor health or failing health. 00:10:49.779 --> 00:10:51.919 I'm facing grief or loss. 00:10:52.600 --> 00:10:57.199 So if God were to exist, he would do in this situation what I would do in this situation, 00:10:57.199 --> 00:10:59.079 which is take that away. 00:10:59.939 --> 00:11:01.720 Take all the storms of life away. 00:11:02.699 --> 00:11:08.079 And when that doesn't happen, when I find myself in the midst of a storm, like the disciples did, 00:11:08.319 --> 00:11:10.919 and it looks to all intents and purposes like we're going to sink, 00:11:10.919 --> 00:11:16.019 my conclusion is that God mustn't care because he's not doing what I would do if I was him. 00:11:17.599 --> 00:11:19.919 That was my friend's battle, wasn't it, in the master? 00:11:20.799 --> 00:11:26.479 She was convinced that the fact that she was lying there meant that Jesus probably didn't care about her, 00:11:27.479 --> 00:11:28.899 that he'd forgotten her. 00:11:28.899 --> 00:11:32.379 But do you see how Mark 4 challenges that conclusion? 00:11:33.500 --> 00:11:40.360 Mark 4 tells you that God is real, he is in charge, and he is with us, 00:11:40.360 --> 00:11:45.539 not because he's doing the sort of things that we would expect him to do, 00:11:45.539 --> 00:11:48.439 or even the things that I would do if I were him, 00:11:49.079 --> 00:11:52.679 not because he's overseeing my personal fulfillment at every turn, 00:11:52.959 --> 00:11:57.240 not because he's keeping me out of the cancer ward or giving me a job that I love 00:11:57.240 --> 00:11:58.860 or relationships that I find easy, 00:11:59.219 --> 00:12:01.779 not because I find that my family get along all the time. 00:12:01.879 --> 00:12:06.099 No, if God was at my beck and call like that, I would be God. 00:12:06.719 --> 00:12:07.879 He would be my genie. 00:12:08.959 --> 00:12:10.019 No, Mark 4 says, 00:12:10.019 --> 00:12:15.500 I can know that God is real and God is in charge because he's shown up, 00:12:16.100 --> 00:12:19.360 leaving the glories of heaven in the person of the sun, 00:12:19.879 --> 00:12:23.399 living and walking amongst us so that we can know him and know that he's real. 00:12:24.360 --> 00:12:27.399 Not always because he does what I would do if I was him 00:12:27.399 --> 00:12:29.120 or because I understand what he does. 00:12:30.620 --> 00:12:32.319 None of that changes the reality. 00:12:32.519 --> 00:12:33.779 In fact, it underlines it. 00:12:33.899 --> 00:12:37.399 God is here, and to prove it, Jesus stands on the boat, 00:12:37.559 --> 00:12:38.939 speaks to the waves, and they listen, 00:12:38.940 --> 00:12:40.380 and only God can do that. 00:12:41.460 --> 00:12:42.920 And as the disciples worked out, 00:12:43.980 --> 00:12:47.540 our lives are lived in the fearful and inescapable presence 00:12:47.540 --> 00:12:49.120 of a God of that kind of power. 00:12:50.060 --> 00:12:51.740 Jesus is totally divine, 00:12:51.980 --> 00:12:54.360 and the storms of our life prove that. 00:12:54.820 --> 00:12:56.220 They're sent to teach that. 00:12:57.160 --> 00:13:00.620 Pushing us, pushing these disciples into the arms of the Lord Jesus, 00:13:01.100 --> 00:13:03.640 who alone has the power over the wind and the waves. 00:13:04.520 --> 00:13:07.700 Robbing them of the pretension that they were sufficient or in charge 00:13:07.700 --> 00:13:09.520 are able to control the outcomes of life. 00:13:09.519 --> 00:13:17.779 Now, I don't know what particular storm that you're in at the moment. 00:13:17.879 --> 00:13:19.199 I know some of them in this room. 00:13:20.500 --> 00:13:25.299 I've been in pastoral ministry long enough to know that there are many more storms 00:13:25.299 --> 00:13:27.439 in this room than I know of personally. 00:13:27.440 --> 00:13:31.600 But let me tell you that it is a lie of the devil 00:13:31.600 --> 00:13:36.240 that says the existence of a storm in your life means that God doesn't care 00:13:36.240 --> 00:13:38.020 or that God's not real. 00:13:39.060 --> 00:13:44.100 Because God's existence is secured outside of the reality of your circumstances. 00:13:44.100 --> 00:13:51.100 And for God to be God, he must be free to do what he chooses with you, 00:13:51.560 --> 00:13:55.460 not what you would choose, not what you would expect, 00:13:56.019 --> 00:13:57.899 not even maybe what you would want. 00:13:58.440 --> 00:14:02.639 And that freedom that God has, that storm-sending power that God has, 00:14:02.700 --> 00:14:04.680 that sovereign control over all that happens, 00:14:05.100 --> 00:14:09.340 that is meant to drive you to him and away from yourself. 00:14:09.340 --> 00:14:14.259 We're going to sing a song at the close of our service that goes like this. 00:14:14.320 --> 00:14:15.960 It has a verse in it that says, 00:14:16.600 --> 00:14:18.940 What truth can calm the troubled soul? 00:14:20.040 --> 00:14:20.820 God is good. 00:14:21.740 --> 00:14:22.580 God is good. 00:14:23.639 --> 00:14:27.680 Where is his grace and goodness known in our great Redeemer's blood? 00:14:29.420 --> 00:14:32.740 Who holds our faith when fears arise? 00:14:33.460 --> 00:14:36.060 Who stands above the stormy trial? 00:14:36.059 --> 00:14:43.259 Who sends the waves that bring us nigh and to the shore, the rock of Christ. 00:14:43.779 --> 00:14:45.459 That's what's going on here, isn't it? 00:14:45.739 --> 00:14:48.939 The waves are driving the disciples to Jesus, 00:14:49.799 --> 00:14:54.159 the divine son who alone has power over the wind and the waves. 00:14:55.500 --> 00:14:56.859 Perhaps I could put it this way. 00:14:57.719 --> 00:15:01.500 I think that the problem that we think we have 00:15:01.500 --> 00:15:04.059 is not the same as the problem that we really have. 00:15:04.059 --> 00:15:10.079 The problem that we think we have is that we might assume that God doesn't care, 00:15:10.179 --> 00:15:12.879 that we might be trusting in a God who is either not there 00:15:12.879 --> 00:15:15.219 or who perhaps doesn't care for me. 00:15:15.759 --> 00:15:17.759 That's what we think is the big danger in our lives. 00:15:17.819 --> 00:15:22.159 So we think that God owes it to us to reveal himself 00:15:22.159 --> 00:15:24.459 by doing what we would expect him to do. 00:15:25.019 --> 00:15:27.479 But the storms of life and Mark 4 say to you, 00:15:27.559 --> 00:15:29.559 No, no, no, no, that's not the big problem in your life. 00:15:29.559 --> 00:15:32.939 The big problem in your life is not that you might trust a God 00:15:32.939 --> 00:15:34.679 who you think doesn't care and is not there. 00:15:35.039 --> 00:15:37.399 No, the big problem in your life is that you might trust yourself. 00:15:38.219 --> 00:15:39.479 That's the problem in life. 00:15:40.159 --> 00:15:42.659 And the storms of life are meant to prove to you 00:15:42.659 --> 00:15:44.419 that you're not the God you thought you were, 00:15:45.059 --> 00:15:46.759 over and over again. 00:15:48.059 --> 00:15:49.919 Think about how that works for you this morning. 00:15:50.559 --> 00:15:52.119 Those circumstances that you're facing, 00:15:52.120 --> 00:15:53.519 the storm, 00:15:54.480 --> 00:15:58.919 the difficulties are not there to prove you of the absence of God, 00:15:59.000 --> 00:16:00.480 but to drive you to him. 00:16:01.399 --> 00:16:04.060 Doesn't your weakness in the face of your failing health 00:16:04.060 --> 00:16:06.519 or your search for work or your divorce 00:16:06.519 --> 00:16:08.700 or your struggles at school or the trouble in your family, 00:16:09.039 --> 00:16:11.399 doesn't that prove to you that you're not God? 00:16:12.860 --> 00:16:15.740 There are problems that you cannot work your way out of. 00:16:15.799 --> 00:16:17.279 You can't buy your way out of them. 00:16:17.340 --> 00:16:18.740 You can't talk your way out of them. 00:16:18.740 --> 00:16:22.120 They push you on to the divinity of Christ alone. 00:16:23.399 --> 00:16:25.740 The one who alone has power to say, 00:16:25.940 --> 00:16:27.060 quiet, be still. 00:16:28.399 --> 00:16:29.740 Oh, sing hallelujah. 00:16:30.600 --> 00:16:32.159 Our hope springs eternal. 00:16:32.340 --> 00:16:35.700 Oh, sing hallelujah now and ever we confess 00:16:35.700 --> 00:16:37.580 Christ our hope in life and death. 00:16:38.080 --> 00:16:39.720 That's what the storms are meant to teach you. 00:16:41.039 --> 00:16:43.240 The second point here though about Jesus is, 00:16:43.440 --> 00:16:44.759 as well as being totally divine, 00:16:44.899 --> 00:16:46.820 he is also perfectly human, 00:16:47.259 --> 00:16:48.159 perfectly human. 00:16:48.980 --> 00:16:50.440 Just come back to the story with me. 00:16:50.519 --> 00:16:52.240 And I don't think you can miss this reality either, 00:16:52.320 --> 00:16:54.360 that while Jesus is fully God, 00:16:54.440 --> 00:16:58.620 he is at the same time in possession of a fully human nature. 00:16:59.519 --> 00:17:02.879 So you might notice if you turn back to the beginning of Mark chapter 4, 00:17:02.960 --> 00:17:05.500 that Jesus has been teaching all day, right? 00:17:05.539 --> 00:17:07.079 So he's been teaching parables. 00:17:07.279 --> 00:17:09.539 He got into this boat in chapter 4 verse 1 00:17:09.539 --> 00:17:11.880 because the crowds are pressing in on him 00:17:11.880 --> 00:17:14.359 and he needs a way to retreat from the crowd 00:17:14.359 --> 00:17:15.519 so that he can teach them. 00:17:15.519 --> 00:17:19.279 Then in verse 35, we find that it's now the evening 00:17:19.279 --> 00:17:22.319 and this instruction, I think, to go over to the other side 00:17:22.319 --> 00:17:25.759 is presumably because he needs some rest, right? 00:17:25.759 --> 00:17:28.359 Jesus, if you like, in one sense, 00:17:28.359 --> 00:17:30.079 he's kind of clocking out for the day. 00:17:33.379 --> 00:17:36.220 Got that intriguing line, haven't you, in verse 36, 00:17:36.339 --> 00:17:39.799 that Jesus was taken along just as he was, 00:17:39.900 --> 00:17:41.039 just as he was. 00:17:41.680 --> 00:17:43.559 It's kind of obvious, I suppose, isn't it? 00:17:43.559 --> 00:17:46.640 But the point is that Jesus doesn't fly across into the boat, 00:17:47.059 --> 00:17:48.859 doesn't zap across space. 00:17:48.859 --> 00:17:50.419 No, he's in the boat like the rest of them, 00:17:50.479 --> 00:17:51.879 just like any other bloke. 00:17:52.779 --> 00:17:55.419 And then presumably because he's so tired from the day, 00:17:55.519 --> 00:17:58.699 he falls fast asleep on a cushion at the back of the boat. 00:17:59.919 --> 00:18:01.759 Can you see what Mark is doing here? 00:18:01.839 --> 00:18:03.599 He is, at the same time, is telling you 00:18:03.599 --> 00:18:05.219 that Jesus is the one who calms the storm. 00:18:05.319 --> 00:18:07.799 He is, at every point, underlining to you 00:18:07.799 --> 00:18:09.099 the humanity of Jesus. 00:18:09.240 --> 00:18:10.119 Jesus was tired. 00:18:11.839 --> 00:18:14.359 He felt like every teacher feels at the end of term. 00:18:14.500 --> 00:18:15.219 He had enough. 00:18:15.639 --> 00:18:17.839 He wanted just to get his head down and get some rest. 00:18:17.839 --> 00:18:23.980 He's submitting himself to the weakness of a human body. 00:18:25.039 --> 00:18:28.579 He's not using his divinity to compromise his humanity. 00:18:30.059 --> 00:18:33.759 Jesus is fully man, got into the boat just as he was, 00:18:33.799 --> 00:18:34.619 like the rest of them. 00:18:35.519 --> 00:18:36.939 But there's more to it than just that, 00:18:37.000 --> 00:18:38.879 because the contrast isn't really just between 00:18:38.879 --> 00:18:41.119 Jesus' divinity and his humanity, 00:18:41.519 --> 00:18:42.659 but more than just that, 00:18:42.720 --> 00:18:44.759 it's between the humanity of Jesus 00:18:44.759 --> 00:18:46.980 and the humanity of the disciples. 00:18:47.839 --> 00:18:50.119 It's between the man Jesus 00:18:50.119 --> 00:18:52.079 and the man of the disciples, 00:18:52.379 --> 00:18:53.519 the men in the boat. 00:18:54.019 --> 00:18:56.819 Because what you've got is you've got sleeping Jesus. 00:18:57.279 --> 00:19:00.079 Jesus, in his humanity, is sleeping 00:19:00.079 --> 00:19:04.000 at the same time as the men are panicking. 00:19:04.379 --> 00:19:05.519 They are stressed. 00:19:06.099 --> 00:19:08.899 One is calm, and the other is at peace. 00:19:09.099 --> 00:19:10.619 One is frantic, 00:19:10.619 --> 00:19:12.359 this one, sorry, is frantic, 00:19:12.579 --> 00:19:15.000 and the other is resting, sleeping. 00:19:15.679 --> 00:19:17.299 And the disciples find that annoying. 00:19:18.599 --> 00:19:20.000 That's what stress does to you, isn't it? 00:19:20.039 --> 00:19:20.139 Right? 00:19:20.379 --> 00:19:21.819 You know when you're stressed out, 00:19:21.839 --> 00:19:23.939 because you encounter someone who is not stressed out, 00:19:23.979 --> 00:19:26.959 and they are the most irritating person in the world, 00:19:27.019 --> 00:19:27.319 aren't they? 00:19:27.859 --> 00:19:30.479 Do you not understand, you say to them. 00:19:31.039 --> 00:19:32.699 And that's the disciples here, aren't they? 00:19:32.739 --> 00:19:34.259 They are super stressed out, 00:19:34.259 --> 00:19:35.420 and they look at Jesus asleep, 00:19:35.480 --> 00:19:35.779 and they go, 00:19:36.259 --> 00:19:37.660 don't you understand? 00:19:40.220 --> 00:19:41.960 But they're entirely wrong, aren't they? 00:19:42.539 --> 00:19:44.759 Jesus is not sleeping because he doesn't care, 00:19:45.039 --> 00:19:46.940 or because he doesn't understand the peril. 00:19:47.500 --> 00:19:49.660 He's not even sleeping just because he's more tired 00:19:49.660 --> 00:19:50.039 than they are, 00:19:50.099 --> 00:19:51.480 because he's worked harder than they are. 00:19:51.819 --> 00:19:53.359 He's not sleeping because he's unaware 00:19:53.359 --> 00:19:54.879 that boats sink in storms. 00:19:54.880 --> 00:19:57.120 No, he's sleeping because of what? 00:19:57.780 --> 00:19:59.980 Because in his perfect humanity, 00:20:00.560 --> 00:20:04.460 he knows that he can trust his father, 00:20:04.940 --> 00:20:06.540 even in the midst of a storm, 00:20:07.020 --> 00:20:08.060 and sleep. 00:20:08.600 --> 00:20:08.840 Right? 00:20:09.540 --> 00:20:12.180 You get that because it's underlined for you in verse 40. 00:20:12.480 --> 00:20:13.140 Look at verse 40. 00:20:13.180 --> 00:20:14.080 Let me read it to you again. 00:20:14.700 --> 00:20:15.560 He said to the disciples, 00:20:15.700 --> 00:20:16.740 why are you so afraid? 00:20:18.440 --> 00:20:19.680 What was going to come next? 00:20:19.760 --> 00:20:20.820 Why are you so afraid? 00:20:21.380 --> 00:20:22.560 The waves aren't that big. 00:20:22.840 --> 00:20:23.900 Get a grip, guys. 00:20:23.900 --> 00:20:25.820 You know how to row a boat. 00:20:26.140 --> 00:20:27.540 You've done this all your life. 00:20:28.340 --> 00:20:29.300 Why are you so afraid? 00:20:29.540 --> 00:20:30.480 It doesn't say that, does it? 00:20:30.720 --> 00:20:31.900 It says, why are you so afraid? 00:20:32.720 --> 00:20:34.620 Do you still have no faith? 00:20:35.640 --> 00:20:36.540 Do you see what's happening here? 00:20:36.620 --> 00:20:37.920 Jesus thinks that their panic 00:20:37.920 --> 00:20:40.480 is not so much because the storm is so big, 00:20:40.540 --> 00:20:42.240 but because their faith is so small. 00:20:42.960 --> 00:20:44.460 In other words, Jesus is sleeping, 00:20:44.660 --> 00:20:45.600 not because he doesn't care, 00:20:45.680 --> 00:20:46.720 and not because he's more tired, 00:20:47.000 --> 00:20:48.860 but rather because in his perfect humanity, 00:20:49.000 --> 00:20:50.300 he has faith in his father, 00:20:51.019 --> 00:20:53.300 that his father can be trusted to do what is right, 00:20:53.299 --> 00:20:54.599 whether he lives or dies. 00:20:56.240 --> 00:20:57.000 And this is it. 00:20:57.079 --> 00:20:58.019 Can you see this with me? 00:20:58.099 --> 00:21:00.319 That Jesus' point is that it should be possible 00:21:00.319 --> 00:21:02.019 for his disciples to know 00:21:02.019 --> 00:21:05.500 and trust God in such a way 00:21:05.500 --> 00:21:09.119 that they too would be able to sleep 00:21:09.119 --> 00:21:11.980 in a stormy sea in a boat. 00:21:13.379 --> 00:21:14.419 Now, it doesn't matter this morning 00:21:14.419 --> 00:21:15.919 whether you call yourself a Christian or not. 00:21:16.000 --> 00:21:17.480 Can I ask you whether you've seen this 00:21:17.480 --> 00:21:18.559 about Christian faith? 00:21:18.559 --> 00:21:21.579 The Christian faith, 00:21:21.679 --> 00:21:23.200 faith in Jesus, trust in him, 00:21:23.359 --> 00:21:24.740 it's not an invitation 00:21:24.740 --> 00:21:26.599 to live your life without storms. 00:21:28.159 --> 00:21:29.720 There are preachers in this city 00:21:29.720 --> 00:21:31.720 who teach Christianity like that, don't they? 00:21:31.839 --> 00:21:32.500 Come to Jesus, 00:21:32.639 --> 00:21:34.179 you'll never have another storm in your life. 00:21:34.639 --> 00:21:36.339 Come to Jesus, you'll always be fulfilled. 00:21:36.599 --> 00:21:37.099 Come to Jesus, 00:21:37.200 --> 00:21:38.759 you'll never have any more money worries. 00:21:39.440 --> 00:21:39.980 Come to Jesus, 00:21:40.059 --> 00:21:41.339 you'll get the job of your dreams. 00:21:41.819 --> 00:21:42.460 Come to Jesus, 00:21:42.559 --> 00:21:44.059 and you'll get the partner of your dreams. 00:21:44.639 --> 00:21:45.960 It's a load of rubbish, right? 00:21:45.960 --> 00:21:49.000 Becoming a Christian is not an invitation 00:21:49.000 --> 00:21:50.200 to life without storms. 00:21:50.340 --> 00:21:51.700 No, it's better than that, right? 00:21:51.740 --> 00:21:53.079 The Christian faith is an invitation 00:21:53.079 --> 00:21:56.420 to know God in the midst of storms. 00:21:57.079 --> 00:21:58.140 More than that, 00:21:58.660 --> 00:22:02.740 to especially know God in the midst of storms. 00:22:03.920 --> 00:22:05.299 So that Jesus here, 00:22:05.440 --> 00:22:06.759 in his perfect humanity, 00:22:06.880 --> 00:22:08.000 with his faith in his Father, 00:22:08.079 --> 00:22:10.340 is able to sleep while others are panicking 00:22:10.340 --> 00:22:12.140 because his faith brings him a peace 00:22:12.140 --> 00:22:13.519 that passes understanding. 00:22:13.519 --> 00:22:16.700 Now, it's worth pausing here 00:22:16.700 --> 00:22:17.839 and thinking about how this works. 00:22:17.920 --> 00:22:19.799 How does faith bring that kind of calm? 00:22:20.200 --> 00:22:21.480 What is faith? 00:22:22.139 --> 00:22:24.220 What is the faith that Jesus is rebuking them 00:22:24.220 --> 00:22:24.960 for not having? 00:22:26.039 --> 00:22:27.639 Well, faith here knows, 00:22:28.619 --> 00:22:30.019 Jesus knows, doesn't he, 00:22:30.059 --> 00:22:31.259 that God, his Father, 00:22:31.599 --> 00:22:34.240 is bringing in him a new kingdom, 00:22:34.359 --> 00:22:36.519 a kingdom of glory and power, 00:22:36.639 --> 00:22:37.759 an eternal kingdom 00:22:37.759 --> 00:22:40.099 where all wrongs will be put right, 00:22:40.099 --> 00:22:41.779 where God the Father, 00:22:41.939 --> 00:22:42.480 God the Son, 00:22:42.539 --> 00:22:43.179 and God the Spirit 00:22:43.179 --> 00:22:45.059 will live with their people 00:22:45.059 --> 00:22:48.199 in all eternity for his glory, right? 00:22:48.500 --> 00:22:49.679 He knows that. 00:22:49.779 --> 00:22:50.779 That is his faith, 00:22:50.879 --> 00:22:52.480 that God is bringing that to pass 00:22:52.480 --> 00:22:53.619 in his ministry, 00:22:53.719 --> 00:22:54.619 that he is here 00:22:54.619 --> 00:22:55.879 as the king of a new kingdom. 00:22:56.379 --> 00:22:57.759 I have come, says Jesus, 00:22:57.879 --> 00:22:59.279 as the king of a new kingdom. 00:22:59.879 --> 00:23:01.519 Repent and believe the good news. 00:23:01.879 --> 00:23:03.199 The kingdom of God is at hand. 00:23:04.119 --> 00:23:06.019 And that transfers to us too, doesn't it? 00:23:06.019 --> 00:23:07.740 Faith for me this morning 00:23:07.740 --> 00:23:08.859 is the confidence that 00:23:08.859 --> 00:23:10.039 though I am a sinner 00:23:10.039 --> 00:23:11.740 who does not deserve 00:23:11.740 --> 00:23:13.639 a membership of God's kingdom, 00:23:13.759 --> 00:23:15.799 I can, through faith in Jesus 00:23:15.799 --> 00:23:17.220 and his death on the cross 00:23:17.220 --> 00:23:18.000 on my behalf, 00:23:18.420 --> 00:23:19.660 receive citizenship 00:23:19.660 --> 00:23:21.039 of the kingdom of heaven. 00:23:21.859 --> 00:23:23.440 I can belong to a place 00:23:23.440 --> 00:23:24.960 of eternal life and glory. 00:23:26.019 --> 00:23:27.619 I can call Jesus 00:23:27.619 --> 00:23:29.619 my brother and my friend 00:23:29.619 --> 00:23:31.900 and I can belong to him 00:23:31.900 --> 00:23:33.700 because of his death on the cross 00:23:33.700 --> 00:23:34.839 and his work on my behalf. 00:23:34.839 --> 00:23:36.599 And I get to glimpse 00:23:36.599 --> 00:23:37.599 that kingdom today 00:23:37.599 --> 00:23:38.659 in the life of the church, 00:23:38.759 --> 00:23:40.339 but I don't fully see it 00:23:40.339 --> 00:23:41.599 until Christ returns. 00:23:42.159 --> 00:23:43.539 That's faith, isn't it? 00:23:44.659 --> 00:23:45.919 That's what Jesus understood. 00:23:46.019 --> 00:23:46.859 That's what he knew. 00:23:48.299 --> 00:23:49.579 And that's the faith 00:23:49.579 --> 00:23:50.399 that Jesus says 00:23:50.399 --> 00:23:51.919 can make you sleep in a storm. 00:23:53.599 --> 00:23:55.039 Let me just try and illustrate this 00:23:55.039 --> 00:23:56.159 to see that we've got it. 00:23:56.339 --> 00:23:57.419 It's not a perfect illustration, 00:23:57.579 --> 00:23:58.459 but hopefully it will at least 00:23:58.459 --> 00:23:59.819 give you an opportunity 00:23:59.819 --> 00:24:00.939 just to think, right? 00:24:02.459 --> 00:24:02.859 Imagine, 00:24:03.099 --> 00:24:03.919 this is not going to be hard 00:24:03.919 --> 00:24:04.539 for some of you, 00:24:04.539 --> 00:24:05.259 especially Jeff 00:24:05.259 --> 00:24:06.279 on the back row here, right? 00:24:06.639 --> 00:24:08.200 Imagine you love cake. 00:24:09.859 --> 00:24:11.740 Chocolate cake, right? 00:24:12.039 --> 00:24:14.119 And you have in your possession 00:24:14.119 --> 00:24:16.159 a chocolate cupcake. 00:24:16.839 --> 00:24:19.519 It's a delightful chocolate cupcake. 00:24:20.539 --> 00:24:21.799 You know, it's small. 00:24:22.599 --> 00:24:23.839 It'll get eaten up quickly, 00:24:24.299 --> 00:24:25.680 which is kind of stressing you out 00:24:25.680 --> 00:24:26.079 a little bit, 00:24:26.159 --> 00:24:28.240 but it is beautiful 00:24:28.240 --> 00:24:29.680 and wonderful 00:24:29.680 --> 00:24:30.740 and you're enjoying it. 00:24:32.019 --> 00:24:32.820 And then, you know, 00:24:32.920 --> 00:24:34.080 you're holding this cupcake. 00:24:34.200 --> 00:24:35.360 You're eating it little by little, 00:24:35.460 --> 00:24:36.100 nibble by nibble. 00:24:36.160 --> 00:24:37.900 And then along comes a friend 00:24:37.900 --> 00:24:39.480 and they take a big bite out of it. 00:24:40.140 --> 00:24:41.180 That's annoying, isn't it? 00:24:41.980 --> 00:24:42.960 Why have they done that? 00:24:43.820 --> 00:24:44.799 And then as you're kind of 00:24:44.799 --> 00:24:45.480 breaking a bit off 00:24:45.480 --> 00:24:46.100 to put it in your mouth, 00:24:46.200 --> 00:24:47.100 a big chunk of it 00:24:47.100 --> 00:24:48.039 falls to the floor. 00:24:48.920 --> 00:24:49.680 I can't eat that. 00:24:50.240 --> 00:24:50.920 It's on the floor 00:24:50.920 --> 00:24:51.660 and the floor is dirty. 00:24:51.660 --> 00:24:54.820 But then imagine, 00:24:55.040 --> 00:24:56.220 I come along to you 00:24:56.220 --> 00:24:57.480 and I offer you, 00:24:57.500 --> 00:24:57.960 I don't know whether 00:24:57.960 --> 00:24:58.640 such a thing exists, 00:24:58.740 --> 00:24:59.220 but just imagine, 00:24:59.340 --> 00:25:01.120 I offer you a ticket, 00:25:01.460 --> 00:25:03.480 a lifetime supply 00:25:03.480 --> 00:25:05.440 of cakes 00:25:05.440 --> 00:25:07.540 from John Lewis's, right? 00:25:08.120 --> 00:25:09.240 So you can go in 00:25:09.240 --> 00:25:10.060 anytime you like. 00:25:10.500 --> 00:25:11.560 You can get as much cake 00:25:11.560 --> 00:25:12.100 as you like. 00:25:12.580 --> 00:25:13.040 You can eat 00:25:13.040 --> 00:25:14.380 whenever you want to. 00:25:14.440 --> 00:25:15.100 You can just go in 00:25:15.100 --> 00:25:15.759 off Oxford Street. 00:25:15.880 --> 00:25:17.360 You can go into the cafe 00:25:17.360 --> 00:25:18.320 and just help yourself 00:25:18.320 --> 00:25:19.040 from the cake cupboard. 00:25:20.320 --> 00:25:21.640 Now, if I do that, 00:25:22.000 --> 00:25:22.900 what do you feel 00:25:22.900 --> 00:25:24.300 about your cupcake, right? 00:25:25.480 --> 00:25:27.620 Well, still delightful 00:25:27.620 --> 00:25:28.960 and beautiful 00:25:28.960 --> 00:25:29.480 and wonderful 00:25:29.480 --> 00:25:30.580 and you're enjoying it, 00:25:31.080 --> 00:25:32.019 but you're not stressed out 00:25:32.019 --> 00:25:33.019 about it anymore, are you? 00:25:33.360 --> 00:25:34.200 A bit drops to the floor, 00:25:34.259 --> 00:25:34.980 a bit drops to the floor, 00:25:35.019 --> 00:25:35.640 I'm on my way 00:25:35.640 --> 00:25:36.420 to John Lewis's 00:25:36.420 --> 00:25:36.980 on Oxford Street 00:25:36.980 --> 00:25:37.920 and I'm going to fill 00:25:37.920 --> 00:25:39.560 my boots with cake, right? 00:25:39.800 --> 00:25:41.040 And eat as much as I can. 00:25:42.400 --> 00:25:44.960 Now, in a roundabout way, 00:25:45.320 --> 00:25:47.100 that's what's going on here, right? 00:25:47.820 --> 00:25:49.640 Our lives are the chocolate cupcake, 00:25:50.560 --> 00:25:51.500 but we have been offered 00:25:51.500 --> 00:25:52.279 through Christ, 00:25:52.359 --> 00:25:53.579 a place in his kingdom, 00:25:53.779 --> 00:25:56.000 a wonderful, eternal life 00:25:56.000 --> 00:25:57.400 of glory and joy 00:25:57.400 --> 00:25:58.819 and bliss and wonder. 00:25:59.660 --> 00:26:00.779 And so all of a sudden, 00:26:01.079 --> 00:26:02.839 I am not that stressed out 00:26:02.839 --> 00:26:04.259 in the same way 00:26:04.259 --> 00:26:05.700 by the storms of this life 00:26:05.700 --> 00:26:06.579 because they are only 00:26:06.579 --> 00:26:08.279 taking bites out of my cupcake 00:26:08.279 --> 00:26:09.940 and not out of my membership 00:26:09.940 --> 00:26:11.460 of John Lewis's cake counter. 00:26:11.799 --> 00:26:12.380 This, we've entered 00:26:12.380 --> 00:26:14.039 a surreal parallel universe, 00:26:14.119 --> 00:26:14.339 haven't we? 00:26:14.599 --> 00:26:15.799 If anyone is just listening 00:26:15.799 --> 00:26:16.940 to this part of the recording, 00:26:16.940 --> 00:26:17.640 I'm really sorry, 00:26:17.860 --> 00:26:19.259 it's very confusing, 00:26:19.380 --> 00:26:20.140 but you know what I mean? 00:26:21.100 --> 00:26:22.000 God in Christ 00:26:22.000 --> 00:26:22.720 has offered you 00:26:22.720 --> 00:26:23.980 eternity with him 00:26:23.980 --> 00:26:26.680 in a place of endless bliss 00:26:26.680 --> 00:26:28.120 where you will know God, 00:26:28.180 --> 00:26:29.840 your creator and savior, 00:26:30.019 --> 00:26:31.279 and be in relationship 00:26:31.279 --> 00:26:32.539 with him in a way 00:26:32.539 --> 00:26:34.259 that brings out the joy 00:26:34.259 --> 00:26:35.519 that you always intended 00:26:35.519 --> 00:26:36.420 to be made for. 00:26:36.980 --> 00:26:37.120 Yeah? 00:26:37.559 --> 00:26:38.720 And so right now, 00:26:38.759 --> 00:26:39.920 the storms of this life 00:26:39.920 --> 00:26:40.779 are just bashing 00:26:40.779 --> 00:26:42.660 into your chocolate cupcake. 00:26:42.660 --> 00:26:45.680 And so here it is, 00:26:45.800 --> 00:26:47.400 Christ is asleep in the storm. 00:26:49.180 --> 00:26:50.220 So can I ask you, 00:26:50.320 --> 00:26:52.019 have you got this kind of faith? 00:26:53.240 --> 00:26:55.019 Do you turn to Jesus like that 00:26:55.019 --> 00:26:55.800 for forgiveness, 00:26:56.880 --> 00:26:57.980 for new life, 00:26:58.580 --> 00:26:59.200 for membership 00:26:59.200 --> 00:27:00.360 of his heavenly kingdom? 00:27:02.640 --> 00:27:03.740 Because, you know, 00:27:03.779 --> 00:27:04.779 this is the offer of 00:27:04.779 --> 00:27:05.920 the best thing 00:27:05.920 --> 00:27:06.820 that we could ever have, 00:27:06.860 --> 00:27:07.300 isn't it? 00:27:07.300 --> 00:27:08.840 It's all that we hope for 00:27:08.840 --> 00:27:09.980 in him. 00:27:09.980 --> 00:27:13.160 My friend 00:27:13.160 --> 00:27:14.019 in the Marsden 00:27:14.019 --> 00:27:14.779 went in for her 00:27:14.779 --> 00:27:15.700 cancer operation 00:27:15.700 --> 00:27:17.140 the next morning. 00:27:18.160 --> 00:27:19.299 But the truth is, 00:27:19.360 --> 00:27:20.339 that night was the last time 00:27:20.339 --> 00:27:20.940 I saw her. 00:27:21.839 --> 00:27:22.700 She only lived for 00:27:22.700 --> 00:27:24.019 a couple of days afterwards 00:27:24.019 --> 00:27:25.079 and I took her funeral. 00:27:26.920 --> 00:27:28.319 But the truth was, 00:27:28.519 --> 00:27:30.380 and as I said to her 00:27:30.380 --> 00:27:32.279 and I said to her husband, 00:27:33.559 --> 00:27:34.519 that's not because 00:27:34.519 --> 00:27:35.620 God doesn't care for you. 00:27:36.819 --> 00:27:38.120 God has not robbed her 00:27:38.120 --> 00:27:38.620 of anything. 00:27:39.980 --> 00:27:40.579 Instead, 00:27:40.839 --> 00:27:42.200 he has generously given her 00:27:42.200 --> 00:27:43.579 more than she ever imagined. 00:27:44.319 --> 00:27:45.440 A glory that is 00:27:45.440 --> 00:27:46.779 incomparably better 00:27:46.779 --> 00:27:48.299 than anything this world 00:27:48.299 --> 00:27:48.940 has to offer. 00:27:50.400 --> 00:27:51.299 And so for you and me 00:27:51.299 --> 00:27:51.980 this morning, 00:27:52.700 --> 00:27:53.620 perhaps it feels to you 00:27:53.620 --> 00:27:54.539 that in the midst of everything 00:27:54.539 --> 00:27:55.339 going on in your life, 00:27:55.440 --> 00:27:56.759 oh, maybe God doesn't care for me. 00:27:58.259 --> 00:27:59.079 Can I tell you that 00:27:59.079 --> 00:28:00.000 nothing can be further 00:28:00.000 --> 00:28:00.559 from the truth 00:28:00.559 --> 00:28:01.640 God does care? 00:28:02.480 --> 00:28:03.019 In fact, 00:28:03.079 --> 00:28:04.360 he cares in such a way 00:28:04.360 --> 00:28:05.860 that he has perfectly designed 00:28:05.860 --> 00:28:07.039 the storm in your life 00:28:07.039 --> 00:28:08.180 to drive you to him 00:28:08.180 --> 00:28:10.060 and to reveal to you 00:28:10.060 --> 00:28:10.700 the glory 00:28:10.700 --> 00:28:11.539 and the wonder 00:28:11.539 --> 00:28:12.720 of what he has offered you 00:28:12.720 --> 00:28:13.840 in the Lord Jesus Christ. 00:28:15.500 --> 00:28:16.940 He offers you peace, 00:28:18.080 --> 00:28:19.480 stillness in the storm. 00:28:20.140 --> 00:28:21.220 Not something that comes 00:28:21.220 --> 00:28:22.140 from ignorance 00:28:22.140 --> 00:28:23.279 or pretending that things 00:28:23.279 --> 00:28:24.500 are better than they really are, 00:28:24.900 --> 00:28:25.960 but a peace that comes 00:28:25.960 --> 00:28:26.500 from knowing 00:28:26.500 --> 00:28:27.900 that what we have in Christ 00:28:27.900 --> 00:28:29.000 is richer 00:28:29.000 --> 00:28:30.259 and sweeter 00:28:30.259 --> 00:28:31.380 than anything we could lose 00:28:31.380 --> 00:28:31.980 in this life. 00:28:31.980 --> 00:28:36.120 unto the grave, 00:28:36.480 --> 00:28:37.680 what shall we sing? 00:28:39.000 --> 00:28:40.519 Christ he lives, 00:28:41.319 --> 00:28:42.400 Christ he lives. 00:28:43.059 --> 00:28:44.240 And what reward 00:28:44.240 --> 00:28:45.220 will heaven bring? 00:28:46.339 --> 00:28:47.920 Everlasting life with him. 00:28:49.079 --> 00:28:50.420 There we will rise 00:28:50.420 --> 00:28:51.500 to meet the Lord. 00:28:52.539 --> 00:28:53.279 Sin and death 00:28:53.279 --> 00:28:54.319 will be destroyed. 00:28:55.319 --> 00:28:56.660 And we will feast 00:28:56.660 --> 00:28:57.740 in endless joy 00:28:57.740 --> 00:28:59.759 when Christ is ours 00:28:59.759 --> 00:29:01.220 forevermore. 00:29:02.259 --> 00:29:03.500 Let's have a moment of quiet 00:29:03.500 --> 00:29:04.019 and we can pray 00:29:04.019 --> 00:29:04.759 in our own hearts 00:29:04.759 --> 00:29:06.180 and then I'll pray for us. 00:29:19.180 --> 00:29:20.460 Loving Heavenly Father, 00:29:20.599 --> 00:29:21.220 thank you 00:29:21.220 --> 00:29:22.579 that through 00:29:22.579 --> 00:29:23.920 the Lord Jesus Christ 00:29:23.920 --> 00:29:24.839 it is possible 00:29:24.839 --> 00:29:26.619 to know peace 00:29:26.619 --> 00:29:27.679 in the midst of storms. 00:29:28.879 --> 00:29:29.459 Thank you 00:29:29.459 --> 00:29:30.259 that the waves 00:29:30.259 --> 00:29:30.839 and storms 00:29:30.839 --> 00:29:31.599 in our lives 00:29:31.599 --> 00:29:32.619 are only sent 00:29:32.619 --> 00:29:33.799 to drive us to you 00:29:33.799 --> 00:29:35.980 and that even there, 00:29:36.139 --> 00:29:37.240 especially there, 00:29:37.339 --> 00:29:38.159 you meet us 00:29:38.159 --> 00:29:39.259 as we come 00:29:39.259 --> 00:29:39.819 to the end 00:29:39.819 --> 00:29:40.459 of ourselves 00:29:40.459 --> 00:29:41.419 and our own resources 00:29:41.419 --> 00:29:42.339 as we realise 00:29:42.339 --> 00:29:43.240 that we're not the gods 00:29:43.240 --> 00:29:44.220 we pretend to be. 00:29:45.000 --> 00:29:46.000 How we thank 00:29:46.000 --> 00:29:46.799 and praise you 00:29:46.799 --> 00:29:48.079 that we find you 00:29:48.079 --> 00:29:48.799 to be loving 00:29:48.799 --> 00:29:49.459 and gracious 00:29:49.459 --> 00:29:50.119 and kind 00:29:50.119 --> 00:29:50.699 and merciful 00:29:50.699 --> 00:29:52.039 and giving us 00:29:52.039 --> 00:29:52.599 a treasure 00:29:52.599 --> 00:29:53.899 that we could never earn. 00:29:53.900 --> 00:29:55.420 We thank you 00:29:55.420 --> 00:29:55.880 for Jesus. 00:29:56.980 --> 00:29:57.920 We pray please 00:29:57.920 --> 00:29:58.900 especially for anyone 00:29:58.900 --> 00:29:59.440 in this room 00:29:59.440 --> 00:29:59.980 this morning 00:29:59.980 --> 00:30:01.160 who is facing 00:30:01.160 --> 00:30:02.100 a particularly 00:30:02.100 --> 00:30:04.220 sharp storm. 00:30:04.940 --> 00:30:05.400 May they know 00:30:05.400 --> 00:30:06.060 your peace 00:30:06.060 --> 00:30:06.560 we pray. 00:30:07.259 --> 00:30:07.780 May they know 00:30:07.780 --> 00:30:08.380 your presence 00:30:08.380 --> 00:30:08.920 with them. 00:30:09.620 --> 00:30:10.519 May the waves 00:30:10.519 --> 00:30:11.340 drive them 00:30:11.340 --> 00:30:12.580 to trust more deeply 00:30:12.580 --> 00:30:13.740 in you we ask 00:30:13.740 --> 00:30:15.300 in Jesus name. 00:30:16.060 --> 00:30:16.620 Amen. 00:30:16.960 --> 00:30:17.240 Amen. 00:30:17.240 --> 00:30:17.420 Amen. 00:30:17.420 --> 00:30:17.460 Amen. 00:30:17.460 --> 00:30:17.460 00:30:17.460 --> 00:30:17.460 00:30:17.460 --> 00:30:17.460 00:30:17.460 --> 00:30:17.460