of the Gospel of Mark and we'll look at verses 35 through 41. That's Mark chapter 4, beginning with verse 35 and we'll read through verse 41. On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, let us go across to the other side and leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat just as he was and other boats were with him and a great windstorm arose and the waves were breaking into the boat so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion and 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 call. He said to them, why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith and they were filled with great fear and said to one another, who then is this? That even the wind and the sea obey him. May God richly bless both the reading and the hearing of his holy word. I want to continue to look at Jesus' challenge in the Gospel of Matthew that we are to lay our treasures in heaven and not on earth where things perish but as we have made it clear, Jesus is not telling us to go get some treasure and then send it to heaven. But rather what he is saying is that we ought to be driven and undergirded by the knowledge of our heavenly treasure and that ought to have implications in how we exhibit or how we live and interact in the earth. In other words, we are not to allow earthly possessions or situations to obscure our heavenly treasure but our heavenly treasure is what gives us balance in life and enables us to deal with all of the difficulties that come with living in a fallen world. Now last week, we looked at the fact that impatience, impatience, which is native to our fallen nature, is one of the things that hinders us from properly evaluating and standing on the heavenly treasures that we are given. Asaph and Psalms number 73 knows what God has said. He knows that God is good but what he sees in the world, he knows that God rewards the righteous and that he will judge the unrighteous but when he sees the unrighteous prosper, it causes him to diminish the value of the treasure that he has in heaven and it makes him anxious. It makes him anxious at what he sees and he acts and almost acts out of that anxiety. Now I would argue this morning that in addition to the problem of impatience, one of the things that hinders us from grasping the fullness and the weightiness of the treasure that we have in Christ is insecurity which is also an aspect of our fallen nature. Human beings since Adam come here insecure. Our insecurities play themselves out in a number of ways as we are insecure about a number of things. There is physical insecurity in which we are concerned, sometimes so concerned about our physical wellbeing that we can't be healthy. You know, some people are so anxious and nervous about what could happen. They end up creating a psychosomatic self-fulfilling prophecy. In other words, they are so convinced that something might happen to them, they call something to go wrong with them. We are insecure. We are insecure not only about our physical wellbeing but we are also emotionally and psychologically insecure. We come here anxious. We come here with security issues and therefore because we are insecure, our insecurities create anxieties, a number of anxieties. In fact, we know that even children play out at the youngest of levels. I remember in elementary school that usually the worst actor in class was acting out because he was insecure about not being able to read. I know that many of the bullies that we would see and encounter one of the reasons they were picking on kids was because they were ashamed that they were not able to wear big brand names and so sometimes our acting out is merely, sometimes our reactions to the world around us is merely individuals acting out of insecurities, insecure about their self-image, insecure about their physical stability and insecure about any number of things that something about our fallen nature has made us insecure. People are always trying to be liked and that's one of the reasons some people will change clicks and groups at a drop of the hat, whoever would accept them because we have security issues. We feel that people will leave us or people will not like us and so we dress a certain way, we speak a certain way, we avoid certain things because we are secure or insecure and because we are insecure, we often bring our insecurities to our religion. When it comes to the God that we choose to worship, we want the God that would give us a greater sense of security and even when it comes to the Christian religion itself, many of our self-efforts, many of our efforts of trying to gain God's favor, many of our even reworking what God has given us freely in grace and certainly I think of Jacob on this one, what God gives freely in grace, we try to offer back by works because we are insecure. Remember Jacob when he saw the vision of the Lord and the Lord told him, Jacob, here's what I'm going to do, I'm going to give you this and he gave him all of these great promises and when he remembered the ladder that came down and he said, I will bless you and I will do all of these things and then when Jacob woke up, he made a pledge, Lord, if you just save me, if you just keep me, if you allow me to return, then I will worship you and I will give you a tenth of everything that you've given me. Jacob, you don't get it, God has given that to you. You see and here's our problem, we are insecure. We are insecure and some are still working on the building because we are insecure. We act out, we lash out and most of it stems from our insecurities whether it be physical, spiritual or emotional. It is hard for us to believe that things won't leave us and brothers and sisters, one of the things that causes us an over attachment to the things that we see and we diminish the value of the heavenly treasures is because we are insecure. We talk about rainy days and we should, God doesn't tell us to be frivolous, but He also tries to wrestle us from our insecurities and so many people are more concerned about rainy days, so concerned about rainy days that we can appreciate the sunshine. And so brothers and sisters, here's what I want to do, I want to show us from the scriptures, this illustration of God dealing with insecure saints. And we want to look at real situation, there are metaphorical elements to it, but it's a real historical situation and it's one that manifests itself a thousand times over in our individual Christian lives as well as sometimes in our corporate Christian and church life. Let's look first off at three basic facts concerning this scenario, three basic facts. Number one, we see that Jesus in this passage declares a particular destination. Jesus clearly declares a destination. He says, let us cross over to the other side. Jesus does not say, you know, I hope we can get to the other side. He doesn't say, you know, what we ought to, we ought to aim at trying to get to the other side. Jesus clearly announces a destination. In fact, He not only announces a destination, but He invites individuals to go with Him. He doesn't commission them. He doesn't say, y'all go to the other side. Jesus says, let us go to the other side. Here's the second fact that is pertinent to this situation. Jesus who invited them to go to the other side was in the boat with them. We can't overlook these two facts. We know the scenario unveils itself in very dramatic fashion. There are a number of other things that take place, but whatever else takes place, we can't lose sight of two things. That Jesus said, let's go to the other side and that Jesus is in the boat. Now, I know what people are going to say when the lightning starts and the wind starts and the water gets in the boat. Yeah, but no, we can't let wind and we can't let storm. Nor can we let water in the boat overshadowed the fact that Jesus said, let's go and Jesus is in the boat. Those two things are there and those are bent rock. They are the bent rock of this whole scenario, but there's one other fact. One other fact that needs to, that plays a part here. There was a great storm. There was a great storm. In fact, we see that those storm had done some kind of damage that there was, it was breaking against the boat. It was breaking against the boat. In fact, there was water in the boat. There was water and it's pretty scary. I remember once we were flying from Los Angeles to Atlanta and it was a group of us that were together and everybody's having good time on the plane and we're laughing and enjoying one another enjoying the flight. All of a sudden, the plane dropped about 5,000 feet in one time and boy, conversation stops. That's a conversation killer. The dread was evident. No one had to say, be quiet. No, everybody, once we got over the initial, then everybody was voluntarily quiet and I think even some flight attendants were a little nervous and then it leveled off and then everybody kind of got cool and they were good. There was another flight I was on and I was coming from somewhere and from one strange, some strange reason I got bumped up to first class and there was a lady that was sitting next to me and you know, I'm not a big talker but I tried to greet her and everything and she didn't have anything to say. You know, that's all, okay, cool. And then we hit turbulence. She was holding on to me and so wow, that's strange. You hug before you speak but that's turbulence on sea or in the air, makes people uncomfortable and so here Jesus says, let's go to the other side. He gets in the boat with them and then a storm arises, not just any kind of storm, a storm at sea, not just any kind of storm at sea but one in which the waters had such an effect that it was already getting in the boat. You've often heard the saying that it's okay for water to be in the boat but when the boat or for boat to be in the water but when the water gets in the boat, you've got a problem and it might be okay. I've been on fishing boats where water will splash up on the deck but when somebody has to say get the buckets and start bailing, you've got a problem. Three facts. Jesus invited folk to go on the other side. Jesus was in the boat and then thirdly there was a great storm that attacked the boat. Here's the second thing I want to do. Let's look inside to the facts just for moment. Just look inside to the facts. Each one of these things that we've already considered. These are facts that are irreversible. That's the way Mark records it. So let's look inside to the facts. Here's the first thing. First look inside to the fact. The one who determined the destination is not just some guy. Here's the destination. The destination that has been spoken and determined is it's been spoken by Jesus and Jesus who is the son of Mary is also the son of God. We can't overlook the fact. We've got to look into that. Who is it? That said let's go to the other side because if it's Peter then Peter, he at best he can just read the signs in the sky and give us an estimate of what the weather might be like. But if it's Jesus who says let's go to the other side, his word carries a little more weight than the word of Peter. We have to understand this is important here. Jesus has never tried to do anything. He does what he intends to do and he goes where he wants to go. He had to make that point clear to his disciples because he had been teaching about his impending crucifixion and he says listen let me make some. Let me ease your mind. No one takes my life. I lay it down. So I'm going to die. No doubt. I'm telling you I'm going to be delivered up into the hands of the religious leaders but he says don't get it twisted. Don't think that I'm a victim. I'm laying down my life. Who is it that has determined the destination? That's critical for us in the Christian journey. That's critical for us in our individual Christian walk. It's critical for us as a corporate body to know whose word we're standing on. Jesus determined the destination and who is he who has determined the destination? Well, the one who said let us go is the one by whom the whole world was created and so Jesus is the speaker and Jesus is the determiner of the destination. That's critical because Jesus said let us go to the other side. Here's the second fact that we need to look into. He was in the boat and here's what we have to understand that his presence in the boat and his declaration of the destination meant that the safest thing on the face of the earth was those who were in the boat. I remember hearing the well-intended preacher he was trying to make a point and I think he missed but he was trying to make the point about Mary. He says she was an at-risk teenage mother. I said the safest pregnancy in the history of human pregnancies is the pregnancy of Mary because Jesus was not put in the womb of a woman hoping that he would be born. God since before the foundation of the world determined that the sun would be born of a woman and there was nothing that would be those that would try but there was nothing that could defeat that pregnancy. She was safe and brothers and sisters on a stormy night. On a stormy night if you want to be in a boat it's not a good thing. Doesn't mean you won't get seasick but if Jesus is in the boat then here's what you can be assured of. You going to get to the other side. It's the inside of the facts. We need to know who's speaking and then that's how come it's important in our churches when people get up and say well the Lord told me who's speaking here because if it's you you at best might be 99% right and that's on a good month of Sundays but our destination is not determined by individual visions. If God said it there's no maybe. I like what you know people are they mean well they say well God said it and I believed it and that settles it. No God said it that settles it and you can believe it or not. The fact that he said it is what settles it and the issue is who said it who said the destination. That's why when Jesus says upon this rock I'll build my church and people say oh the church is gone. Did you not hear what he said? Did you not hear what he said upon this rock I'll build my church and I dare the hell the gate of hell to stand up against it. I'll pump this rock I'll build my church. That's what he tells Peter upon this rock and there is nothing that's going to now local congregations will fall apart but the church is the safest institution on the planet because Jesus who declared its determination is in the church. Jesus was in the boat and Jesus determined the destination but here's the third fact inside of the fact storms happen. Storms happen. Storms happen in a fallen world whether Jesus is in the boat or not. Storms happen. Storms happen and sometimes water in a scary way gets inside of the boat. Doesn't change the fact what Jesus said and it doesn't change the destination storms happen. Three facts. Jesus said let's go to the other side. Jesus got into the boat and thirdly a storm arose. So looking inside of those those facts we need to be mindful of who it is that set the destination be mindful of the are mindful of the fact that he's in the boat and be mindful of the fact that storms happen. He can't stop him until we get home. That's why in the book of revelation the it's described the sea in the before the presence of the throne is described as glassy in other words smooth because when he comes he will bring he will take the turmoil out and it will be a calm and pleasant place there will be neither wars nor rumors of wars but until he comes storms happen. Well let's now thirdly look at an analysis of disciples because we're not talking about just common folk. We're not just talking about garden variety centers here. Jesus didn't just invite anybody to be in the boat with him. Those who were in the boat with Jesus were those who belonged to him. So what do people do when Jesus is in the boat and Jesus has determined the destination? Well that part is great that's what we shout about that's what that's what we we give the Lord high fives for because Jesus is in our boat and Jesus is determining our destination. At that point we start turning cartwheels down our church aisles and and we have a whole book of praise songs to talk about Jesus as our destination and Jesus in our boat but then storms come and all of a sudden we stop turning cart cartwheels. This is not these aren't unbelievers. These are believers who know it is who it is that spoke. These are those who have seen him heal the paralytic man. These are those who have seen his word go out and cast out diseases and then a storm comes up and look at what happens. Two things first off there's something natural. You see what's natural is for them to be afraid and that's why when Jesus he says why he doesn't say why are you afraid? His question I do like the ESV here. His question is why are you so afraid? It's not he doesn't say well oh man up Christians ought not be a concern when storms occur. He doesn't rebuke them for being concerned. He rebukes them for being so afraid. So here's what we see the storm comes up. Christians are on the boat and they go beyond being afraid because you see the next thing that they do is they cry out and what they what they cry out is not Lord help us they don't cry that out but but here's where insecurity kicks in and here's the the brand of the level of insecurity that stifles much of our ability and notice what I'm not saying I'm not saying it doesn't mean that if you're insecure it doesn't mean you can't be a Christian no your security is not what saves you as your faith in Jesus but our faith in Jesus is sometimes challenged by what we see. Notice how their insecurity comes out. They don't just say Lord what's the matter? Will you help us? No they question Jesus love for them. You don't care that we perish one thing one human being fallen human being ought not do ever to another human being in this case an unfallen one that is question what you can't see you should never put any motive to anyone's heart because you don't even know your own let alone be able to properly diagnose the heart from which the action no matter how harsh it might seem you are not able to give a fair accurate unbiased analysis of another human heart and here's what they do with Jesus they challenge his heart they don't say Lord would you save us they assume that he must not care because he's sleep and they're afraid that's what anxieties that's what what insecurities and anxieties do one of the reasons people who are emotionally they are emotionally insecure some of them are clingy and the reason they are clingy is because they are afraid maybe they've got abandonment issues and they are maybe they remember someone who walked out on their life and so when you leave they cling and sometimes they don't cling say oh I need you they'll cling by saying where are you going then and they'll pester and the reason is there's an insecurity there that they don't want to be left alone Jesus deals with this insecurity with his disciples in the upper room he says they said Lord where are you going where are you going why can't we go and that's all it is is insecurity they've been in the presence of of Jesus they've been in the presence of the word made flesh they knew what it was like to be without him and now they've enjoyed three years of being with him and they were clingy and Jesus has don't worry about it I'm not going to leave you I'm not going to leave you as orphans and even after his resurrection and he has taught them for some 40 days and and he's been with them and they go with him to the top of the mountain Jesus reassures them because his saints are insecure he says hello I am with you always even until the ends of the world brothers and sisters we've lived with disappointments we've lived with people who have made promises that they have not kept we've depended on upon people being there who said they would be there and they walked away some died some some forgot and somehow we have this complex built within us that if he leaves I'm in trouble or this shows up that I'm in trouble they've experienced storms before but perhaps they've never experienced a storm with Jesus on the boat and the storm makes them wonder if Jesus still loves them you don't care that you we perish brothers and sisters you they don't don't don't be too critical of them but there is a great theological lesson they're overlooking here you see here's the one that's in the boat the one who was in the boat in the beginning says John was the word and the word was God and the word was with God and there was nothing made that was not made by him
then John says in the word was made flesh and dwelt among us here's the way Paul puts it he says that he did not he was obedient to the Father had let this mind be in you that was also in Christ Jesus that although he was equal with the Father he did not count that equality as something to be grasped but emptied himself made himself of no reputation and reputation and and took on the form of a servant and it was humble even to the point of death here's my point brothers and sisters do you think that Jesus became flesh to die and to allow you to die in a storm he left his mighty throne in glory not so that he could try to get folk across the divide of a little lake brothers and sisters do we hear ourselves and we look at anything around us that is uncomfortable to us that calls us to question God's love for us here Jesus is the God who neither slumbers nor sleeps is sleep for your sake and you want to know whether or not he is it cares whether not you perish the very fact that he's in the flesh is proof that he does not want you to perish your problem your problem if we could speak back to these disciples is that they think their greatest danger is the storm when their greatest danger is God therefore they are seeking from Jesus something that is temporal and don't understand the everlasting treasure that they have on board therefore Jesus issues to rebukes first off he rebukes the wind and the storm he it's not like he says go away storm don't ever come back he does it really for the benefit of his distressed disciples he says just be still be still peace bring peace be still and the winds and the waves sat down the wave sat down the wind went back to wherever it was and then Jesus once he rebukes the storm he now rebukes the saints and his rebuke is why are you so afraid and the question is what do you mean by so afraid so afraid that it is cause you to question my commitment to you and then he says where's the is this all the faith that you have did you not hear me when I spoke I said we're going to the other side I invited you into the boat what kind of captain do you think I am did you not believe I could do what I said I would do what is the storm greater than the one who's sleeping
brothers and sisters we get insecure about a lot of things and sometimes no matter how much we love Jesus and we do love him you'd be surprised at the storm that would cause you to question whether or not he really loves you I know people who have lost family members and that's made them question whether or not God really loves I know of Christians who have had difficulties and sometimes a sick child I mentioned this morning in our Sunday school class that that my my sister who died two years ago she was born with two holes in her heart by the time she was a year and a half she had two open heart surgeries and young parents wondering what to do sometimes when you get a serious and a grave diagnosis it wonders it causes us to wonder does God really love us because someone else failed me does he really love me as if we would say proof of God's love for us is him calming the storm no proof of his love for us is sending his son who can get in a boat with us and set our destination our greatest treasure is Jesus and if Jesus is in the boat and if Jesus has determined the destination the winds may rise water may get in boats may break down but there is no safer place than to be in the arms of Jesus and brothers and sisters there is nothing that we can possess understand this the storms can destroy your possessions you know it's it's amazing I've never experienced a hurricane but boy I I understand hurricanes they can come through and what took years to build up can be wiped right out I have experienced earthquakes and earthquakes they're all the damage the amazing you see these these scenes of earthquakes doing damage you know how long they last if a earthquake lasts longer than 30 seconds it's probably the end they last for seconds and buildings that took years to build up will fall down that's why Jesus says don't put your treasure in stuff on the earth which earthquakes and hurricanes can destroy but put your treasure in heaven where earthquakes can't get in and hurricanes can't get in and here's what we know that if we have our treasure in heaven it gives us a better perspective on our earthly treasures so that we know that if Jesus is in the boat that whatever rainy stormy day that he directs us if he has directed the course and brothers and sisters here's the fact no storm can hinder it no one leaving you and nothing that you lose can cause you to lose sight of where Jesus said let's go you know how the story ends yeah they marvel we get that but you know how it ends with them getting to the other side with them getting to the other side look at all what happened they they probably oh dude I said that I didn't say that because we do have a tendency to become drama queens when storms hit and when the weather clears we get amnesia and we talk about how we braved it and that's why I think I do appreciate the sentiment of the song my soul looks back and wonder how I got over but when we get over we'll know the reason we survive brothers and sisters is not because we're smart the reason we survive is not because we have developed great survival techniques the reason we will survive is because Jesus set the course and Jesus is in the boat and if he sets the course and he's in the boat you'll get home amen