The Disciples and the Storm

Transforming Encounters with Jesus in Mark’s Gospel
Pastor Chris Kam, 28/03/2010
Pastor Chris shared a hymn which he thought encompasses the Gospel very well.
Living he loved me, dying He saved me
Buried he carried my sins faraway
Rising he justified freely forever
One day he’s coming O glorious day
Full lyrics here.



Where did Mark got his stories from? He was not an apostle. He was the assistant of the apostle Peter. Peter is an impatient person. In the Gospel of Mark, we read many references of “immediately” and “at once.” It also did not begin with the birth of Jesus but rather directly to his ministry.
When Jesus healed the paralytic, the people remarked that they had never seen anything like that.
Jesus communicated the Kingdom of God using parables. Jesus also took the disciples to explain what they didn’t understand. They received the knowledge but they could not relate to them. We could also have all the knowledge about Jesus without believing in him. That’s why we need faith. To encounter Jesus means to know the difference he made in our lives.
Did Jesus know a storm was coming? He did. He wanted to take the disciples through a storm for them to learn a lesson.
When asked, the demoniac identified himself (themselves?) as legion, which is 5,000 in the Roman army.

Introduction

life’s journey

Mar 4:35-41  Late that day he said to them, "Let's go across to the other side."  (36)
Jesus and his disciples were on a boat. There were other boats around. Jesus had been preaching and teaching the whole day. He was tired. In life, we all have a journey. Today can only happen when yesterday stopped. Tomorrow cannot come if today does not end. We need to move on in our journey. Time waits for no man.
A doctor told a patient he had bad news and worse news. The bad news is that the patient has 24 hours to live. The worse news was that he forgot to tell him the day before.
In computer games, you need to achieve certain things before you go to the next level. But we can pause the game to catch a breath and think logically before continuing.
In the movie Click, Adam Sandler found a universal remote control that can rewind, pause and fast forward life.
Time waits for no man and sometimes we run into surprising situations.
If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.
Even if you plan for everything, you will still fail.
How do we cope with our '”best of plans” which may still fail? When we are in the boat heading towards the storm, the important question is who is in the boat with us? There are 12 disciples and 4 of them are fishermen. In such situation, we want to depend on the fishermen. They could read the signs of coming storm and they know how to weather the storm. Are we alone in the boat?
Where we sit in the boat also matters. The boat could be calm at the moment but the boat will meet a storm.
We are all in the same boat came from the fact that when the boat encounters a storm, no one could jump off the boat.
Are you in a cell group? Prayer alone sometimes may not help. In a cell group, we have someone to support us. We need time to build up relationship too. We may have people in the cell group who can help us with their life experiences.
However, even with the four fisherman onboard, they could not do much. They panicked. When the people we counted on started to panicked, it is really a messed up situation.

life’s storms

Mar 4:37-38  A huge storm came up. Waves poured into the boat, threatening to sink it.  (38)  And Jesus was in the stern, head on a pillow, sleeping! They roused him, saying, "Teacher, is it nothing to you that we're going down?"

The paintings depict the sense of urgency of the disciples in the storm. How could Jesus sleep through the storm? He either was really tired or he had peace from the Father in heaven.
When Jesus was woke up he stilled the storm. He was not offended that he was woken up by the disciples. But he could be slightly disappointed that the disciples did not know who he really was.
Three types of storms in our lives:

• Part and parcel of the fallen world
• Due to our sins.
• God allows it for a reason – not all storms are from the devil.

God is in control.
There is nothing more God can give than Jesus his Son. There is nothing more precious.
Sometimes we get disappointed with God when things don’t happen the way we want or in the timing we want.
Isa 55:8-9  "I don't think the way you think. The way you work isn't the way I work." GOD's Decree.  (9)  "For as the sky soars high above earth, so the way I work surpasses the way you work, and the way I think is beyond the way you think.
We seek peace through three means:

1. We try to the change circumstances – we try to bring peace to the situation. Accidents that happen cannot be undone. Illness can be prolonged. Financial lost requires time to recover.
2. We try to forget our problems by numbing our minds. The problems remain even when we try to escape and distract our minds.
3. We blame our problems on other people or on God.

John 14:27  I'm leaving you well and whole. That's my parting gift to you. Peace. I don't leave you the way you're used to being left--feeling abandoned, bereft. So don't be upset. Don't be distraught.
Many of us have a false sense of peace. We see ducks being peaceful in a pond but we don’t see their feet paddling madly under water.
We hit the gym to become stronger. We build strength with repeated exercises. The beginning may not be pleasant.
John Wesley was sent to America. The shop encountered a storm that almost destroyed the ship. He in his fear saw a group of German Moravian Christians praying and singing. That had a great impact on John Wesley. He failed as a missionary to America. After he left Georgia, he went back to England. He wrote in his journal, ““I went to America to convert the Indians; but O! who shall convert me? Who shall deliver me from this heart of unbelief? O, who will deliver me from the fear of death?” That was the turning point in his life.

Life’s calm

(39)  Awake now, he told the wind to pipe down and said to the sea, "Quiet! Settle down!" The wind ran out of breath; the sea became smooth as glass.  (40)  Jesus reprimanded the disciples: "Why are you such cowards? Don't you have any faith at all?"  (41)  They were in absolute awe, staggered. "Who is this, anyway?" they asked. "Wind and sea at his beck and call!"
Rick Warren’s wife was going through cancer (she was a survivor of two bouts of cancer) said during an interview that one day his heart will stop but he will live on for trillion of years in heaven.
“One day my heart is going to stop, and that will be the end of my body—but not the end of me. I may live 60 to 100 years on earth, but I am going to spend trillions of years in eternity. This is the warm-up act, the dress rehearsal. God wants us to practice on earth what we will do forever in eternity.” said Rick Warren.
God is more interested in our characters that our comfort. God is more interested in make us holy and giving us a good life.
Some people think we go through ups and downs. But life is more akin to two train tracks, one is good things and the other bad things. Both happen at the same time.
When we are in troubles, sometimes we should ask what (we should do) rather than why.
The following two (2) verses kept running in Pastor Chris’ mind when his son was in the operating theatre to remove his tumour.
Heb 4:16  So let's walk right up to him and get what he is so ready to give. Take the mercy, accept the help.
Php 4:16-17  Even while I was in Thessalonica, you helped out--and not only once, but twice.  (17)  Not that I'm looking for handouts, but I do want you to experience the blessing that issues from generosity.
Mr. Stansky was Gospel singer. He compiled the hymns in a book and pass it to the publisher. He saw a hymn in the church and requested the publisher to include it in hymn book. It was originally written by Joseph Criven.
When he was sick in bed at the age of 66 (25+ years later), his neighbour visited him and discovered the song and discovered him as the writer. The hymn is entitled What a Friend We Have in Jesus.
Don’t go through life alone!
Questions for discussions:

1. How do you normally react to an unexpected problem or crisis?
2. What is the worst personal storm you have faced? How did the community of people around you help? How did Jesus help?
3. Are you going through a storm right now? Through this passage, has the view of who Jesus is changed to help you cope better with your storm? How? How can your cell members help you cope?

The various quotes, stories and photos can be viewed at this site.