Sermon
#491 Series:
Miscellaneous
Title: “There came down a storm.”
Text: Luke 8:22-25
Subject: Christ’s Calming the
Storm
Date: Sunday Evening –
Tape
# W-37a
Introduction:
[Matthew 8:23-27] "And when
he was entered into a ship, his disciples followed him. [24] And,
behold, there arose a great tempest in the sea, insomuch that the ship was
covered with the waves: but he was asleep. [25] And his disciples came
to him, and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us: we perish. [26] And
he saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then he arose,
and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm. [27] But
the men marvelled, saying, What manner of man is this, that even the winds and
the sea obey him!"
[Mark 4:35-41] "And the same day, when the even was
come, he saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side. (36) And when they had sent away the
multitude, they took him even as he was in the ship. And there were also with
him other little ships. (37) And
there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it
was now full. (38) And he was in the
hinder part of the ship, asleep on a pillow: and they awake him, and say unto
him, Master, carest thou not that we perish?
(39) And he arose, and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be
still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. (40) And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that
ye have no faith? (41) And they
feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that
even the wind and the sea obey him?"
[Luke 8:22-25] "Now it came
to pass on a certain day, that he went into a ship with his disciples: and he
said unto them, Let us go over unto the other side of the lake. And they
launched forth. [23] But as they sailed he fell asleep: and there came
down a storm of wind on the lake; and they were filled with water, and
were in jeopardy. [24] And they came to him, and awoke him, saying,
Master, master, we perish. Then he arose, and rebuked the wind and the raging
of the water: and they ceased, and there was a calm. [25] And he said
unto them, Where is your faith? And they being afraid wondered, saying one to
another, What manner of man is this! for he commandeth even the winds and
water, and they obey him."
We have read all three accounts of this event in the lives of our Lord’s disciples, because I wanted you to see both the importance of this story and the variations in way it is related by Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Both the story itself and the variations in each of these Gospel records are by divine purpose and infallible inspiration. They are written and written as the are for our learning and instruction. May God the Holy Spirit now teach us what he would have us learn from this event.
As
our Lord Jesus and his disciples were crossing the
The Lord Jesus arose, calmly
rebuked their unbelief, and by the mere power of his word calmed the sea and
the storm.
Few,
if any, of our Lord’s miracles were so likely to leave his disciples with such
an unforgettable, convincing demonstration of his divine omnipotence. At least
four of these men were professional fishermen and skilled seamen. In all
likelihood, Peter, Andrew, James, and John were very familiar with the
There are many important lessons taught in these
verses.
We would be wise to ask the Spirit of God to frequently remind us of them.
1.
Faith in and obedience to Christ do not exempt God’s saints from the
storms that other people face.
2.
The fact that our Lord was weary and required sleep demonstrates
clearly that he was a real man.
3.
The fact that the wind and sea obeyed his word demonstrated our
Redeemer’s complete deity. This Man is the Omnipotent God! The wind and the sea
knew the voice of their Creator! - Only One who is both God and man could
redeem us and save from our sins.
4.
The greatest saints in this world are still sinners; and the strongest
believers are sometimes filled with unbelief.
5.
Our Lord Jesus Christ is a tender, compassionate, forgiving Savior. - “Why are ye so fearful? -- How is it that ye
have no faith? – Where is your faith?”
6.
Our Savior’s reason for everything he does is the salvation of his
elect. He went to the other side of the sea because there was a wild, lost
Gadarene on the other side for whom the fulness of time had come.
7.
All who are in the good ship Grace with Christ are perfectly safe, as
they pass through the stormy seas of this world.
Those
seven lessons are a sermon in themselves, a sermon that I frequently preach to
you, in one way or another. They bear frequent repetition. However, tonight, I
want to use our text in another way.
I
want to use this event on the
If you will look with me at Psalm 107:23-31, you will see
that I have a good, biblical basis for using our text as a parable of our lives
in this world.
Psalms
107:23-31 "They that go down to the sea in ships,
that do business in great waters; (24) These
see the works of the LORD, and his wonders in the deep. (25) For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth
up the waves thereof. (26) They mount
up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted
because of trouble. (27) They reel to
and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wit's end. (28) Then they cry unto the LORD in
their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses. (29) He maketh the storm a calm, so
that the waves thereof are still. (30) Then
are they glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them unto their desired
haven. (31) Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children
of men!"
Proposition: The believer’s life is a
voyage across a troubled sea to our “desired
haven” on the other side.
Divisions: Tonight, I want to describe
the believer’s life as it is portrayed parabolically in our text as…
1.
A Voyage.
2.
A Voyage Across A Stormy Sea.
3.
A Voyage With Christ.
4.
A Voyage Marked By Miracles.
5.
A Voyage That Should Be Without Fear.
I. First, I want you to see that every believer’s life is A VOYAGE.
As we
embark on this voyage, the Son of God takes us into the good ship Grace and
says, “Let us go over unto the other
side.” Death is often spoken of poetically as a passing over, the crossing
of a sea or a river. We sing,
He will keep me
`til the river
Rolls its waters t my feet,
Then He’ll bear me safely
over,
Where my loved ones I shall
meet.”
However, this passing over the sea is not something
we shall do some day. It is something we do every day. We are, right now,
passing over the sea of time unto the other side. We are, right now, walking
through the valley of the shadow of death.
The
sea is a fit emblem for our lives and all the varied circumstances of our lives
in this world. How quickly we pass across the sea!
James
Job 7:6 "My days are swifter than a weaver's
shuttle, and are spent without hope."
Job
As I
look into your faces, I think to myself, “There
go the ships, not painted ships upon a painted sea, but immortal souls, rising
and falling upon the billows of time, disappearing one by one over the horizon
of time into eternity.” Soon, we must all pass over that horizon.
Perhaps, the horizon seems
very far away to some of you. Do not be so foolish. Soon, you will pass from
this changing world of time into the unchanging world of eternity. How will it be for you in that day? How
will it be for you in the swelling of the
II. Secondly, Let me show you that this life is not only comparable to a voyage, but
it is A VOYAGE ACROSS A STORMY SEA.
[Luke 8:23] "But as they
sailed he fell asleep: and there came down a storm of wind on the lake; and
they were filled with water, and were in jeopardy."
We must often sail into the tempests of sorrow, affliction, adversity, and grief; but Christ’s presence assures us of safety no matter what the storm may be.
Notice: These disciples were not acting in disobedience. They followed the Master into the ship at his command.
Loyalty and obedience to Christ is often the surest course to trouble. The path
of faithfulness is always right through the eye of the storm.
Though our storms are many
and varied, basically, all our trials and troubles in this world arise from two
sources:
A. The contrary winds of our circumstances without.
B. The waves of sin and unbelief within.
Romans
7:14-24 "For we know that the law is spiritual:
but I am carnal, sold under sin. (15) For
that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate,
that do
Psalms
73:1-3 "Truly God is good to Israel, even to
such as are of a clean heart. (2) But
as for me, my feet were almost gone; my steps had well nigh slipped. (3) For I was envious at the foolish, when I saw the prosperity of the
wicked."
Psalms
73:21-28 "Thus my heart was grieved, and I was
pricked in my reins. (22) So foolish was I, and ignorant: I was as a beast before thee. (23) Nevertheless I am continually with thee: thou hast
holden me by my right hand. (24) Thou shalt guide me with thy
counsel, and afterward receive me to glory. (25) Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is none upon earth that
I desire beside thee. (26) My
flesh and my heart faileth: but God is the strength of my heart, and my
portion for ever. (27) For, lo, they
that are far from thee shall perish: thou hast destroyed all them that go a
whoring from thee. (28) But it is good for me to draw near to God: I
have put my trust in the Lord GOD, that I may declare all thy works."
III. Thirdly, Let me hasten to tell you that our life in this world is A VOYAGE WITH CHRIST.
A
voyage, yes. A voyage through stormy seas, yes. But, blessed be God, it is a
voyage in the company and constant presence, protection, and care of the Son of
God, our Savior.
The
Lord Jesus does not say, “Go over to the other side and I will meet you there.”
He said, “Let us go over unto the other side.” And, though “there arose a great storm, and the waves beat into the ship, so that
it was full,” though “there came down a storm of
wind on the lake; and they were filled with water, and were in jeopardy” we read that the Lord Jesus
was in the ship with them. Mark tells us that he “was in the hinder part of the ship.” He was silent; but he was there. So it is with us. Our Lord
may appear to be asleep. He may be silent. It may even appear at times, to our
feeble, sinful hearts, that he does not care if we perish! But he is always
with us!
How I
pray that God will teach me and teach you to believe him. Did not our Savior
say, “Lo, I am with you alway”? Did
he not promise, “I will never leave thee”
(Heb. 13:5)?
Isaiah
41:10 "Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea,
I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my
righteousness."
Isaiah 43:2 "When thou passest through the waters, I
will be with thee; and through the
rivers, they shall not overflow thee: when thou walkest through the fire, thou
shalt not be burned; neither shall the flame kindle upon thee."
Philippians
4:4-7 "Rejoice in the Lord alway: and again I say, Rejoice. (5) Let your moderation be known unto
all men. The Lord is at hand. (6) Be careful for nothing; but in
every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be
made known unto God. (7) And the
peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds
through Christ Jesus."
IV. Fourthly, ours is A VOYAGE MARKED BY
MIRACLES.
[Luke 8:24] "And they came
to him, and awoke him, saying, Master, master, we perish. Then he arose, and
rebuked the wind and the raging of the water: and they ceased, and there was a
calm."
The
charismatics talk about miracles. We experience them. They put on a show of
sham tomfoolery; but God’s saints are men and women whose biographies are
histories of God’s miraculous works.
·
The Miracle Of Redemption
·
The Miracle Of Regeneration
“It took a miracle to put
the world in place.
It took miracle to hang the stars in space.
But when God saved my soul,
Cleansed and made me whole,
It took a miracle of love
and grace!”
·
The Miracle Of The
Resurrection
Still,
there is more, much more to consider. It
is upon the dark background of our great troubles that our Lord most clearly
displays his wondrous power and grace. It is in the fiery furnace of
adversity that we know the preserving power of his presence. It is only in the
lions’ den that we see the Lord’s dominion over the lions. The Lord God who is
with us and for us is the God who is able to deliver us. He is God alone. He is
God indeed!
V. Now, in the last place, I
want you to see that our voyage with Christ across the stormy sea of life is A VOYAGE THAT OUGHT TO BE FREE OF FEAR.
The voyage we are on is a perfectly safe voyage.
[Matthew 8:26] "And he
saith unto them, Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith? Then
he arose, and rebuked the winds and the sea; and there was a great calm."
[Mark 4:40] "And he said
unto them, Why are ye so fearful? how is it that ye have no faith?"
[Luke 8:25] "And he said
unto them, Where is your faith? And they being afraid wondered,
saying one to another, What manner of man is this! for he commandeth even the
winds and water, and they obey him."
The
disciples’ fear arose from their unbelief. Fear is the rank weed of nature that
grows wild in the soil of unbelief. These poor disciples were so much like us.
They should have been perfectly calm. They were on the Master’s business. They
were in the Master’s presence. They had repeatedly seen and experienced the
Master’s power. They should have most reasonably looked to Christ; but they
didn’t. Instead of looking to the Lord God omnipotent, they looked at…
·
The Terrible Storm.
·
Their Own Weakness.
·
The Apparent Frailty Of
Their Ship.
Let us, each one, take the Lord’s gentle
rebuke personally. As I prepared this message, I tried to apply it to myself. I
hope God will enable you to do the same. Our greatest difficulties, our
greatest temptations, our greatest falls are always the result of unbelief.
Yet, unbelief on the part of one who has experienced the saving power and grace
of God in Christ is the most absurd and unreasonable thing in the world. “Why
are we so fearful? Why is it that we have no faith?’ – “Where is your faith?’
A. Our Savior is the sovereign God of providence, omnipotent, wise, and
good.
B. Christ is in the boat with us!
1.
He is in the boat of your
heart.
Colossians
1:27 "To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this
mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:"
1 John 4:4 "Ye are of God, little children, and
have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in
the world."
2.
The Son of God is in the
boat of his Church.
Deuteronomy
23:14 "For the LORD thy God walketh in the
midst of thy camp, to deliver thee, and to give up thine enemies before
thee."
Psalms 46:5 "God is
in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early."
Revelation
2:1 "Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus
write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand,
who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks."
The
Church of God, the true Church, is safe. She will pass over this sea. She will
be brought to her desired haven. She will reach the other side. Not one
passenger aboard the good ship Grace will be lost at sea.
3.
Christ is in the boat of
Holy Scripture.
His Word is forever settled in heaven. It
cannot be broken. All the shifting winds of pseudo-science and waves of
unscholarly criticism will not sink this vessel. We have no reason to fear the
carpings of reprobate men. The Word of God abides forever. When their laughter
is turned to weeping and their criticisms burn as fire in their souls, the Word
of God will still be forever settled in heaven!
4.
Our Lord Jesus Christ is in
the boat of Providence.
Not only is he in the boat, he is at the
helm. We do not trust providence, or worship providence (We are not Deists.);
but the Lord God almighty whom we do trust and worship is the God of
providence; and we rejoice to know it!
The
Lord Jesus Christ, who is with us, has the whole world in his hands. All power
in heaven and earth is given unto him. He holds the reins of universal
dominion. This omnipotent God bids us cast our care upon him with these
assuring words, “For he careth for you!”
He says to us, “Be not afraid, only
believe.”
Application: Now, let me finish by
applying this story to you who are yet without Christ. I trust that God has
brought you into deep waters and begun to cause you to reel to and fro like a
drunken man by reason of your souls’ trouble.
1.
The storm of God’s wrath is beating your little boat.
2.
Cry out from your soul to Christ, the Master. Appeal to his great
compassion - “Master, Master, I perish!”
3.
May the Son of God now arise and speak peace to your troubled heart.
4.
If he will speak by his Spirit, his Word of grace will bring great
calm; and he will bring you to your desired haven!
Psalms
107:23-31 "They that go down to the sea in ships,
that do business in great waters; (24) These
see the works of the LORD, and his wonders in the deep. (25) For he commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth
up the waves thereof. (26) They mount
up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted
because of trouble. (27) They reel to
and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wit's end. (28) Then they cry unto the LORD in
their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses. (29) He maketh the storm a calm, so
that the waves thereof are still. (30) Then
are they glad because they be quiet; so he bringeth them unto their desired
haven. (31) Oh that men would praise the LORD for his goodness, and for his wonderful works to the children
of men!"
Psalms
107:42-43 "The righteous shall see it, and rejoice: and all iniquity shall
stop her mouth. (43) Whoso is wise, and will observe these things, even they shall understand the
lovingkindness of the LORD."
Amen.
1 [i] See Misc. Sermon # 1367 preached in Danville on Tuesday evening September 21, 1999 -- Pikeville, KY - (9/23/99) Madisonville, KY - (02/09/00), New Castle, IN (04/30/00)—Ball, LA (03-04-00) – Spring Lake, NC (05-27-00)