The Perfect Storm
May 29, 2022
No one gets through life without experiencing storms. What I mean by that, is that none of us are immune from encountering the difficulties, trials and sufferings of life that often take us by surprise and take about everything we have to get through them. Now, we’ve already prayed for those who are enduring a couple of the storms of life:
The storm of death – the sudden loss of life of those 19 children and two teachers in Uvalde, Texas. For those parents, brothers and sisters, grandparents, neighbors and friends, this storm is a devastating tragedy for those going through it. For along with the storm of death, they are enduring the storm of emotional trauma – battling feelings of hatred, anger, resentment and even despair. This is a storm that will have lasting effects on so many for many days, weeks and years to come. So this storm is very real to us, and especially to any of you who have ever lost a loved one to violence. But this is just one storm that is leaving us reeling this morning. But there are plenty of other storms that invade our lives that turn our lives upside down, disturb our peace and even test our faith. For example, some of you have or are currently experiencing the storm of injury or illness – your life has been turned upside down by trips to the Mayo Clinic, or to the hospital or endless Doctor Appointments. You long for life as you once knew it, but now you can’t do all those things you once did, and that too grieves you or makes you angry. Some of you are still recovering from the storm of death in your own life – still dealing with waves of grief, the loss of your life-long companion, or someone who was taken too soon. Then there are those of you who’ve known the storm of rejection – whether that came through the hurt of a divorce, the alienation of child, or the betrayal of a friend. And then there’s the storm of physical loss – the loss of your home, or a loss of a job, the loss of finances or the loss of security. No one gets through life without experiencing the storms of life.
But what do you do when trials or the struggles of life invade your life? How do you get through the pain of emotional trauma? How do you weather the storm of loss or rejection? How do you handle it when you’re in the midst of a storm and nothing you do seems get you through to the other side? And more importantly, what does God’s Word tell us about handling the storms of life that come our way?
Well, this morning as we return to the story of Jesus in the Gospel of John, we get to see what happens when a storm takes Jesus’ disciples by surprise. And as we do, we get to see what Jesus does for them in the midst of their storm, that should help us the next time we find ourselves in the midst of a storm. So, if you brought a Bible with you today, let me encourage you to find John 6:16-21 where Jesus’ disciples are about to encounter The Perfect Storm. Follow along as I read: When evening came, His disciples went down to the lake, where they got into a boat and set off across the lake for Capernaum. By now it was dark, and Jesus had not yet joined them. A strong wind was blowing and the waters grew rough. John 6:16-18
Now, if you haven’t learned this by now, John is the master of giving us significant and meaningful details as he writes the story of Jesus. And what we see here, is that John gives us three ingredients that create the environment for the perfect storm. The first ingredient was this: It was dark! Now normally we wouldn’t think anything of this bit of descriptive information. It is dark at night. But this was nothing new for the disciples. At least half of them were experienced fishermen who did most of their fishing at night. So, nothing unusual about this description, that is, until you realize that John makes it a point to tell us that it is dark. Why? Well, for John darkness and light are a theme throughout this gospel. In John 3:19, John told us that men loved darkness instead of light for their deeds were evil. In John 8:12, Jesus says, “Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness.” In John 13:30, immediately after Judas leaves the upper room to betray Jesus, he writes, “And it was night.” So, John uses darkness/night as a metaphor for evil. The same metaphor used by Paul when he wrote, “Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Ephesians 6:12 Now from a physical perspective, we learn how dark it really was: it was “about the fourth watch of the night” (Mark 6:48) or between three and six in the morning. In other words, they were crossing the sea during the darkest part of the night. It was dark. That’s the first ingredient of the perfect storm. Here’s the next:
Jesus was not with them Literally the passage reads, Darkness had come and Jesus had not yet come. Remember, that after feeding the crowds, the crowds had wanted to make Jesus king by force. Aware of this, Jesus withdrew to a mountain by himself. He had slipped away so He could spend time with the Father in prayer. At the same time, he instructed his disciples to go on ahead of him. John wants us to know that Jesus’ disciples were in this darkness alone. Jesus was not with them. Why is this important to note? We will see shortly.
It was dark and Jesus was not with them. Now the third ingredient for the Perfect Storm: A sudden storm rises John says, ‘a strong wind was blowing and the waters grew rough.’ The lake, the Sea of Galilee is very large. It is 650 feet below sea level, 150 deep and surrounded by hills. These physical features make it subject to sudden windstorms that cause extremely high waves. That’s what has happened here. It was dark, Jesus was not with them, and now they were caught in a dangerous storm.
What John does here is give us a picture of what life is like for many people today, even people who say they follow Jesus. We live in a world that is characterized by darkness. It is a dangerous and evil place. Random murder and brazen crime is on the rise. Broken relationships are now the norm not the exception. Our culture is being tossed by the waves of secularism, division, hatred and violence. Chaos is ruling the day. Or should I say, “darkness” is ruling the day. It’s a day where Jesus’ absence is pretty telling. Where Jesus is present there is life, peace, and compassion. But where Jesus is absent there is alienation, fear and chaos. As a result, people are becoming more guarded, increasingly anxious and worst of all, they don’t know where to go, who to follow or where to turn when storms of life suddenly come crashing in.
This is where the disciples found themselves: When the night was at its darkest, when the storm was at its fiercest, and when they were at their weakest – struggling against the forces of a Perfect Storm – what they needed was The Perfect Rescuer. And that’s what we see next as we pick up the story in verse 19: When they had rowed three or three and a half miles, they saw Jesus approaching the boat, The disciples were in the middle of the sea, struggling against the waves in the darkest part of the night. They were frustrated, weary and not making headway against these waves. But here, when they’re at their most vulnerable, John tells us that they saw Jesus approaching the boat walking on the water… and they were terrified. For the second time in a day, they were witnessing the impossible, but this time instead of marveling at the miracle of Jesus’ power to feed the 5000, they are totally freaked out. Mark tells us they thought they were seeing a ghost. They were terrified. Have you ever been terrified? When it happens to you, you can’t move, you can’t think, you can’t even breath. In some cases, you are so filled with fear, so horrified by what you are witnessing that you become panic stricken. You become sick with fear. And when you become sick with fear in the midst of a fierce storm like this one where they were using every ounce of strength to survive, you might think you’re about to die. But it’s here, when they’re all at the point of losing it, we read: But He said to them, “It is I; don’t be afraid.” Then they were willing to take Him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the shore where they were heading. John 6:19-21
Here Jesus comes to his disciples as The Perfect Rescuer! He comes to them as their Savior. And once they recognize who He is, they invite him into their boat and make safely to the other side. Now, what’s so remarkable in this story, is what Jesus did for them, he can do for you, when you find yourself in the storms of life. In fact, there are at least four things Jesus does for us when we are caught up in one of the storms of life.
And the first thing he does isn’t recorded here in John, but we learn from Mark’s account of this rescue, what Jesus does for us. And that is this: Jesus sees our struggles In Mark’s account of this rescue we are told: He saw the disciples straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. About the fourth watch of the night he went out to them, walking on the lake. Mark 6:48 Now, we know that shortly after Jesus feed the 5000, the people were so inspired by his miracle, that they wanted to take Jesus by force and make him King. But before Jesus withdrew to the mountain to be by himself, he made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side of the lake. Then he went up on the mountain to pray. In this story Jesus had a vantage point where He could see his disciples struggling. But God’s Word tells us that Jesus sees our struggles. He is called “the God who sees.” This name was given to God by Hagar, when she being pregnant fled the household of Abram. The Angel of the Lord found her, sent her back to Sarah and promised a blessing on her child.
This is good news. While the disciples were struggling on the sea, Jesus was praying for them in the hills. They were never out of His sight. And the good news for us today, is that you are never out of His sight. You see, when we’re struggling in our own storms, we often think we are alone in our struggle, that no one knows, no one sees, and no one cares. But take heart. Jesus sees you in the midst of your storm. He is seated today at the right hand of God where He pray for His followers. Where He prays for you. That means He is not indifferent to your plight. He sees you straining against the oars. He sees your strength giving out. He sees your weariness. He knows your frustrations. He sees your battle in this present darkness. He sees and prays… but that’s not all he does. Here’s what else He does:
Jesus comes to us in the midst of the storm When you’re struggling in the dark, that’s when Jesus will come to you. You see, one of the names of Jesus is “the bright morning star.” Do you know when the Morning Star comes out? When the night is at it’s darkest. Jesus came to his disciples at the darkest part of night – when they’d been struggling for hours. When the storm was the fiercest. When they were near the end of their rope, and possibly the end of their hope. That’s when Jesus came to them. And if he came to them in their darkest hour, He’ll do the same for you. That’s good news.
For that’s how the Gospel works. God sees you. God sees your struggle in this present darkness. He sees your waning energies. He sees your frustrations and discouragement. He sees your struggles with loss, rejection, emotional pain, illness and injury – but He is not indifferent. No, He comes to you, to be with you in your storm – to comfort you, encourage you and help you. Sometimes He comes in the form of a loving brother or sister. Sometimes He comes with a healing touch of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes He will come in the midst of message or in your reading of His Word, or in the gathering of believers. But when He comes, He always comes to bring you hope, encouragement, and help. God sees you and comes to be with you to help you through your storm.
In this encounter, Jesus came to rescue His disciples. And with His presence comes His peace. That’s what we see next as Jesus arrives in the midst of the storm:
Jesus calms our fears. Remember that when Jesus appears, the disciples think they are seeing a ghost? No wonder they were freaked out. But immediately, in midst of their panic, Jesus speaks. And He says two things. First, he says, “It is I.” The literal reading for “It is I” is “I am.” It is the same as saying, “The I AM is here: or “I, Yahweh am here.” The One who created the heavens and earth has come to be with you in your storm.” “I, Yahweh, the One who exists to do good to you is here to be with you.” Jesus speaks and identifies Himself as bigger than the storm they are struggling with. Now, let that sink in for a moment.
Then he commands them, “Do Not fear.” Literally, “Stop being afraid.” While his appearance at first, struck fear in their hearts, His words spoke peace to their souls. The I Am is with you, Do not fear.
That’s why Jesus came – to calm our fears. There is peace in His presence. Jesus Himself promised to give us His peace. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. John 14:27
I think one of the common threads of the storms of life is they do unsettle us. They take us out of our comfort zones. We don’t feel safe. We become anxious and fearful. And yet, it’s in the midst of our storms God comes to give us peace.
I’m pretty sure this is why Jesus left his disciples to face this storm alone. For earlier that day they’d witnessed a pretty inspiring miracle. Jesus had done the impossible. But now, on their own, away form Jesus, they needed another lesson to see how much they needed Jesus. Warren Wiersbe puts it this way: “The feedingof the 5000 was the lesson, but the storm was the examination after the lesson.”
I’ve always remembered what one of my Seminary Professors taught us about suffering. He said, “It’s pretty easy to live for Jesus when life is good. It’s easy to praise God when all is well. But it’s when we’re in the midst of a trial, when life is hard, that’s when we have the best opportunity to show that Jesus is real.” He told us this in the context of his own storm. His daughter had cancer. He was driving home from her doctor’s appointment and the grief of her condition overwhelmed him. He had to pull over to the side of the road. And there he asked, “Why, God, does my girl have to suffer?” And then it struck him: God was bigger than her cancer. God was with her in her cancer. And God was with him in the midst of his grief. And right then and there, God removed his grief, and peace filled his soul.
In this world we will have trouble. Sudden storms will overtake us. We will experience grief, loss, emotional trauma, hurt and pain. But we will never be alone. For Jesus has come to be with us. In in His presence there is peace. Jesus calms our fears. And finally, as our rescuer:
Jesus carries us home You see, as Jesus calmed their fears something happened with in them. John tells us that at this point “Then they were willing to take Him into their boat.” They wanted Jesus with them. And that’s what happens when you come to know who Jesus truly is: You want him in your boat! You want him in your life. You’re done struggling on your own against the storm. And when the disciples welcomed Jesus into the boat the second miraculous work of Jesus took place: immediately the boat reached the shore where they were heading. John 6:21
Don’t miss this miracle. Just moments prior to Jesus’ arrival the disciples had been struggling against the oars, fighting in the darkness and going nowhere. They were in the middle of the sea, some 3 miles or more from shore. But as soon as they took Jesus on board, Jesus carried them through the storm and brought them safely to the shore. This happened immediately. No more rowing. No more struggling. No more fear. Jesus had rescued them and brought them safely to shore.
You see, in many ways, when Jesus rescued his disciples from the storm, this became a perfect metaphor for how he has come to rescue us. For God’s Word tells us what God did for us when we were willing to invite Jesus into our lives. It was His rescue mission for us who were lost in the darkness. God’s Word declares: For He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:13-14
That’s what Jesus has done. That’s what makes Him the perfect rescuer – Our perfect Savior. He sees us struggling to save ourselves. But he sees that we’re not getting anywhere in our own strength. So He himself comes to rescue us. But when He comes, He tells us who He is. He is the great I Am. He is God in the flesh. He’s the One who made us and loves us. And then He commands us to: “stop being afraid.” And it’s at that point we have a choice. Will we invite him into our boat? Or more personally: will we invite him into our lives?
You see, the disciples were willing. They wanted Jesus to rescue them. They wanted Jesus with them. They were willing. But are you willing? Are you willing to take Jesus into your boat? Are you willing to take Jesus into your life? Are you willing to trust Jesus to rescue you?
In this life, you and I will face all kinds of trials and storms. No one gets through life without experiencing a storm. But the good news is that
No one gets through life without experiencing storms. What I mean by that, is that none of us are immune from encountering the difficulties, trials and sufferings of life that often take us by surprise and take about everything we have to get through them. Now, we’ve already prayed for those who are enduring a couple of the storms of life:
The storm of death – the sudden loss of life of those 19 children and two teachers in Uvalde, Texas. For those parents, brothers and sisters, grandparents, neighbors and friends, this storm is a devastating tragedy for those going through it. For along with the storm of death, they are enduring the storm of emotional trauma – battling feelings of hatred, anger, resentment and even despair. This is a storm that will have lasting effects on so many for many days, weeks and years to come. So this storm is very real to us, and especially to any of you who have ever lost a loved one to violence. But this is just one storm that is leaving us reeling this morning. But there are plenty of other storms that invade our lives that turn our lives upside down, disturb our peace and even test our faith. For example, some of you have or are currently experiencing the storm of injury or illness – your life has been turned upside down by trips to the Mayo Clinic, or to the hospital or endless Doctor Appointments. You long for life as you once knew it, but now you can’t do all those things you once did, and that too grieves you or makes you angry. Some of you are still recovering from the storm of death in your own life – still dealing with waves of grief, the loss of your life-long companion, or someone who was taken too soon. Then there are those of you who’ve known the storm of rejection – whether that came through the hurt of a divorce, the alienation of child, or the betrayal of a friend. And then there’s the storm of physical loss – the loss of your home, or a loss of a job, the loss of finances or the loss of security. No one gets through life without experiencing the storms of life.
But what do you do when trials or the struggles of life invade your life? How do you get through the pain of emotional trauma? How do you weather the storm of loss or rejection? How do you handle it when you’re in the midst of a storm and nothing you do seems get you through to the other side? And more importantly, what does God’s Word tell us about handling the storms of life that come our way?
Well, this morning as we return to the story of Jesus in the Gospel of John, we get to see what happens when a storm takes Jesus’ disciples by surprise. And as we do, we get to see what Jesus does for them in the midst of their storm, that should help us the next time we find ourselves in the midst of a storm. So, if you brought a Bible with you today, let me encourage you to find John 6:16-21 where Jesus’ disciples are about to encounter The Perfect Storm. Follow along as I read: When evening came, His disciples went down to the lake, where they got into a boat and set off across the lake for Capernaum. By now it was dark, and Jesus had not yet joined them. A strong wind was blowing and the waters grew rough. John 6:16-18
Now, if you haven’t learned this by now, John is the master of giving us significant and meaningful details as he writes the story of Jesus. And what we see here, is that John gives us three ingredients that create the environment for the perfect storm. The first ingredient was this: It was dark! Now normally we wouldn’t think anything of this bit of descriptive information. It is dark at night. But this was nothing new for the disciples. At least half of them were experienced fishermen who did most of their fishing at night. So, nothing unusual about this description, that is, until you realize that John makes it a point to tell us that it is dark. Why? Well, for John darkness and light are a theme throughout this gospel. In John 3:19, John told us that men loved darkness instead of light for their deeds were evil. In John 8:12, Jesus says, “Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness.” In John 13:30, immediately after Judas leaves the upper room to betray Jesus, he writes, “And it was night.” So, John uses darkness/night as a metaphor for evil. The same metaphor used by Paul when he wrote, “Our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Ephesians 6:12 Now from a physical perspective, we learn how dark it really was: it was “about the fourth watch of the night” (Mark 6:48) or between three and six in the morning. In other words, they were crossing the sea during the darkest part of the night. It was dark. That’s the first ingredient of the perfect storm. Here’s the next:
Jesus was not with them Literally the passage reads, Darkness had come and Jesus had not yet come. Remember, that after feeding the crowds, the crowds had wanted to make Jesus king by force. Aware of this, Jesus withdrew to a mountain by himself. He had slipped away so He could spend time with the Father in prayer. At the same time, he instructed his disciples to go on ahead of him. John wants us to know that Jesus’ disciples were in this darkness alone. Jesus was not with them. Why is this important to note? We will see shortly.
It was dark and Jesus was not with them. Now the third ingredient for the Perfect Storm: A sudden storm rises John says, ‘a strong wind was blowing and the waters grew rough.’ The lake, the Sea of Galilee is very large. It is 650 feet below sea level, 150 deep and surrounded by hills. These physical features make it subject to sudden windstorms that cause extremely high waves. That’s what has happened here. It was dark, Jesus was not with them, and now they were caught in a dangerous storm.
What John does here is give us a picture of what life is like for many people today, even people who say they follow Jesus. We live in a world that is characterized by darkness. It is a dangerous and evil place. Random murder and brazen crime is on the rise. Broken relationships are now the norm not the exception. Our culture is being tossed by the waves of secularism, division, hatred and violence. Chaos is ruling the day. Or should I say, “darkness” is ruling the day. It’s a day where Jesus’ absence is pretty telling. Where Jesus is present there is life, peace, and compassion. But where Jesus is absent there is alienation, fear and chaos. As a result, people are becoming more guarded, increasingly anxious and worst of all, they don’t know where to go, who to follow or where to turn when storms of life suddenly come crashing in.
This is where the disciples found themselves: When the night was at its darkest, when the storm was at its fiercest, and when they were at their weakest – struggling against the forces of a Perfect Storm – what they needed was The Perfect Rescuer. And that’s what we see next as we pick up the story in verse 19: When they had rowed three or three and a half miles, they saw Jesus approaching the boat, The disciples were in the middle of the sea, struggling against the waves in the darkest part of the night. They were frustrated, weary and not making headway against these waves. But here, when they’re at their most vulnerable, John tells us that they saw Jesus approaching the boat walking on the water… and they were terrified. For the second time in a day, they were witnessing the impossible, but this time instead of marveling at the miracle of Jesus’ power to feed the 5000, they are totally freaked out. Mark tells us they thought they were seeing a ghost. They were terrified. Have you ever been terrified? When it happens to you, you can’t move, you can’t think, you can’t even breath. In some cases, you are so filled with fear, so horrified by what you are witnessing that you become panic stricken. You become sick with fear. And when you become sick with fear in the midst of a fierce storm like this one where they were using every ounce of strength to survive, you might think you’re about to die. But it’s here, when they’re all at the point of losing it, we read: But He said to them, “It is I; don’t be afraid.” Then they were willing to take Him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the shore where they were heading. John 6:19-21
Here Jesus comes to his disciples as The Perfect Rescuer! He comes to them as their Savior. And once they recognize who He is, they invite him into their boat and make safely to the other side. Now, what’s so remarkable in this story, is what Jesus did for them, he can do for you, when you find yourself in the storms of life. In fact, there are at least four things Jesus does for us when we are caught up in one of the storms of life.
And the first thing he does isn’t recorded here in John, but we learn from Mark’s account of this rescue, what Jesus does for us. And that is this: Jesus sees our struggles In Mark’s account of this rescue we are told: He saw the disciples straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. About the fourth watch of the night he went out to them, walking on the lake. Mark 6:48 Now, we know that shortly after Jesus feed the 5000, the people were so inspired by his miracle, that they wanted to take Jesus by force and make him King. But before Jesus withdrew to the mountain to be by himself, he made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side of the lake. Then he went up on the mountain to pray. In this story Jesus had a vantage point where He could see his disciples struggling. But God’s Word tells us that Jesus sees our struggles. He is called “the God who sees.” This name was given to God by Hagar, when she being pregnant fled the household of Abram. The Angel of the Lord found her, sent her back to Sarah and promised a blessing on her child.
This is good news. While the disciples were struggling on the sea, Jesus was praying for them in the hills. They were never out of His sight. And the good news for us today, is that you are never out of His sight. You see, when we’re struggling in our own storms, we often think we are alone in our struggle, that no one knows, no one sees, and no one cares. But take heart. Jesus sees you in the midst of your storm. He is seated today at the right hand of God where He pray for His followers. Where He prays for you. That means He is not indifferent to your plight. He sees you straining against the oars. He sees your strength giving out. He sees your weariness. He knows your frustrations. He sees your battle in this present darkness. He sees and prays… but that’s not all he does. Here’s what else He does:
Jesus comes to us in the midst of the storm When you’re struggling in the dark, that’s when Jesus will come to you. You see, one of the names of Jesus is “the bright morning star.” Do you know when the Morning Star comes out? When the night is at it’s darkest. Jesus came to his disciples at the darkest part of night – when they’d been struggling for hours. When the storm was the fiercest. When they were near the end of their rope, and possibly the end of their hope. That’s when Jesus came to them. And if he came to them in their darkest hour, He’ll do the same for you. That’s good news.
For that’s how the Gospel works. God sees you. God sees your struggle in this present darkness. He sees your waning energies. He sees your frustrations and discouragement. He sees your struggles with loss, rejection, emotional pain, illness and injury – but He is not indifferent. No, He comes to you, to be with you in your storm – to comfort you, encourage you and help you. Sometimes He comes in the form of a loving brother or sister. Sometimes He comes with a healing touch of the Holy Spirit. Sometimes He will come in the midst of message or in your reading of His Word, or in the gathering of believers. But when He comes, He always comes to bring you hope, encouragement, and help. God sees you and comes to be with you to help you through your storm.
In this encounter, Jesus came to rescue His disciples. And with His presence comes His peace. That’s what we see next as Jesus arrives in the midst of the storm:
Jesus calms our fears. Remember that when Jesus appears, the disciples think they are seeing a ghost? No wonder they were freaked out. But immediately, in midst of their panic, Jesus speaks. And He says two things. First, he says, “It is I.” The literal reading for “It is I” is “I am.” It is the same as saying, “The I AM is here: or “I, Yahweh am here.” The One who created the heavens and earth has come to be with you in your storm.” “I, Yahweh, the One who exists to do good to you is here to be with you.” Jesus speaks and identifies Himself as bigger than the storm they are struggling with. Now, let that sink in for a moment.
Then he commands them, “Do Not fear.” While his appearance at first, struck fear in their hearts, His words spoke peace to their souls. The I Am is with you, Do not fear.
That’s why Jesus came – to calm our fears. There is peace in His presence. Jesus Himself promised to give us His peace. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. John 14:27
I think one of the common threads of the storms of life is they do unsettle us. They take us out of our comfort zones. We don’t feel safe. We become anxious and fearful. And yet, it’s in the midst of our storms God comes to give us peace.
I’m pretty sure this is why Jesus left his disciples to face this storm alone. For earlier that day they’d witnessed a pretty inspiring miracle. Jesus had done the impossible. But now, on their own, away form Jesus, they needed another lesson to see how much they needed Jesus. Warren Wiersbe puts it this way: “The feedingof the 5000 was the lesson, but the storm was the examination after the lesson.”
I’ve always remembered what one of my Seminary Professors taught us about suffering. He said, “It’s pretty easy to live for Jesus when life is good. It’s easy to praise God when all is well. But it’s when we’re in the midst of a trial, when life is hard, that’s when we have the best opportunity to show that Jesus is real.” He told us this in the context of his own storm. His daughter had cancer. He was driving home from her doctor’s appointment and the grief of her condition overwhelmed him. He had to pull over to the side of the road. And there he asked, “Why, God, does my girl have to suffer?” And then it struck him: God was bigger than her cancer. God was with her in her cancer. And God was with him in the midst of his grief. And right then and there, God removed his grief, and peace filled his soul.
In this world we will have trouble. Sudden storms will overtake us. We will experience grief, loss, emotional trauma, hurt and pain. But we will never be alone. For Jesus has come to be with us. In in His presence there is peace. Jesus calms our fears. And finally, as our rescuer:
Jesus carries us home You see, as Jesus calmed their fears something happened with in them. John tells us that at this point “Then they were willing to take Him into their boat.” They wanted Jesus with them. And that’s what happens when you come to know who Jesus truly is: You want him in your boat! You want him in your life. You’re done struggling on your own against the storm. And when the disciples welcomed Jesus into the boat the second miraculous work of Jesus took place: immediately the boat reached the shore where they were heading. John 6:21
Don’t miss this miracle. Just moments prior to Jesus’ arrival the disciples had been struggling against the oars, fighting in the darkness and going nowhere. They were in the middle of the sea, some 3 miles or more from shore. But as soon as they took Jesus on board, Jesus carried them through the storm and brought them safely to the shore. This happened immediately. No more rowing. No more struggling. No more fear. Jesus had rescued them and brought them safely to shore.
You see, in many ways, when Jesus rescued his disciples from the storm, this became a perfect metaphor for how he has come to rescue us. For God’s Word tells us what God did for us when we were willing to invite Jesus into our lives. It was His rescue mission for us who were lost in the darkness. God’s Word declares: For He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:13-14
That’s what Jesus has done. That’s what makes Him the perfect rescuer – Our perfect Savior. He sees us struggling to save ourselves. But he sees that we’re not getting anywhere in our own strength. So He himself comes to rescue us. But when He comes, He tells us who He is. He is the great I Am. He is God in the flesh. He’s the One who made us and loves us. And then He commands us to: “stop being afraid.” And it’s at that point we have a choice. Will we invite him into our boat? Or more personally: will we invite him into our lives?
You see, the disciples were willing. They wanted Jesus to rescue them. They wanted Jesus with them. They were willing. But are you willing? Are you willing to take Jesus into your boat? Are you willing to take Jesus into your life? Are you willing to trust Jesus to rescue you?
In this life, you and I will face all kinds of trials and storms. No one gets through life without experiencing a storm. But the good news is that we have a God who sees your struggle. We have a God who’s not indifferent to your plight. And we have a God who takes it upon Himself to come and rescue you. Now, you may not recognize him at first. You may even be frightened by him. But He wants you to know who He is. For He is the great I am. The One who created you and loves you. And when you recognize His love for you, His love will drive out all fear. And then, if you are willing, you will take him into your life… and then He will carry you safely home. That’s the Perfect Rescuer. For He’s the Perfect Savior. And His name is Jesus.
So are you willing to take Jesus into your boat? And then, if you are willing, you will take him into your life… and then He will carry you safely home. That’s the Perfect Rescuer. For He’s the Perfect Savior. And His name is Jesus.
So are you willing to take Jesus into your boat?
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