Sermon Series: Getting to Know Jesus 

The Unsinkable Boat 

Mark 4:35-41

PSBC 2/10/02 AM

In a nutshell: When Jesus is in the boat, the boat won't sink and the storm won't last forever.

I. Introduction

A. Exhausted Examples

Have you ever been exhausted? I mean really exhausted-to the point where you just couldn't function or stay awake?

Illustration: I can recall many times in my life when I was so exhausted that I could hardly stand up: -Working 18 hour days on the farm during harvest, six days a week-week after week. -Working for Gospel Light Publishing Company when we would participate in Sunday School Conventions. We'd work 12 hour days, on our feet the whole time, working the booth and conducting training workshops, talking and answering questions all day long. -When we started our business in Scottsdale, back in 1989, I would call on clients, work on paper work, and do new construction cleaning during the days, then go out at night and supervise our cleaning crews who worked the night shift.

I'm sure most of you can identify with those kinds of exhausting work loads. But, in my experience, as tiring as those times were, nothing compares to the exhaustion I've experienced when I've been involved in spiritual battles. In those times, I have found that Satan is a far more relentless enemy than time, physical exertion, or mentally draining problems.

B. Jesus felt this exhaustion

I tell you that, so you understand what Jesus' condition was at the beginning of the portion of the Bible that we'll be looking at this morning. If you have your Bibles, I'd invite you to turn to Mark 4, and we'll begin at verse 35…

As you're turning there, let me show you a verse that describes what the beginning of this day looked like. Look at this first verse from this chapter…

Mark 4:1 1 Again Jesus began to teach by the lake. The crowd that gathered around him was so large that he got into a boat and sat in it out on the lake, while all the people were along the shore at the water's edge.

At the beginning of this day, Jesus was already surrounded by a huge crowd of people. Most of these people came to be ministered to in some way. In other words, most of them wanted something from Jesus.

In the days just prior to this day that we're considering, Jesus had been involved in a spiritual war with some of Satan's demonic forces. He had cast out a number of demons from people in that region, and had rebuked and faced demonic powers who were trying to disrupt His ministry.

Plus, many in the crowd came to Him for healing. And we know from other passages in the New Testament, that this healing had a physical effect on Jesus, when He performed these miracles. He felt power taken from Him when He healed people.

Then add to that the fact that He had to take time out from His teaching to re-teach His disciples what He had just taught the crowd, because they just weren't "getting it".

And you're left with one exhausted teacher at the end of the day. Take a look at the first two verses in our section of Mark 4 for today-verses 35 and 36…

Mark 4:35-36 35 That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, "Let us go over to the other side." 36 Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him.

In essence He says to the disciples, "Let's get out of here. Let's go to the other side of the lake-to the eastern shore about 5 miles away."

Now, before we continue, I want to point out the fact that Mark ads an interesting point of trivia in verse 36. He does this to reassure us that what happens on this five mile journey to the other side of the lake was not just a hallucination-

This is important information because of what some people want you to believe today. You see, a significant number of liberal Bible theologians take the stance that the miracle we're about to study, was in reality, no miracle at all. One commentator I read this week said that there was really no stilling of the storm. Instead, what happened was that Jesus calmed the fears of His disciples in the boat, and gave a great calm to their hearts. This calmness in their hearts is what made them think that the storm on the lake had calmed down.

But this seemingly small statement that Mark makes at the end of verse 36 shoots that theory right down. You see, Mark says, " There were also other boats with him." The fact that other boats were on the lake, experiencing the storm that we're going read about, tells us that there were eye witnesses to Mark's account of what happened. The occupants of those other boats saw the miracle and were eyewitnesses to the power that Jesus displayed as its recorded in the next three verses…

Mark 4:37-39 37 A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. 38 Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?" 39 He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.

II. The Drama Unfolds

In these three verses, you have all the raw elements of a good drama. -There is the Perfect Storm… of huge waves and raging waters that came suddenly upon these boats, out of nowhere. -You have the fearful disciples, whose boat is gradually taking on more and more water, and is close to sinking. -There is the human emotion of panic-these experienced sailors knew they were involved in something much bigger and more powerful than they could handle. -And you have our hero, Jesus, fast asleep from exhaustion, out of the way, in the back of the boat.

So, amidst the panic and hustle and bustle of baling water, rowing oars, lowering and stowing the sail, knocking each other down, getting in each other's way, and having no other place to turn…, the disciples shook Jesus awake, yelling at the top of their lungs, trying to be heard over the roar of the waves, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?"

A. What bothered the disciples?

1. Indifference

Now, the phrasing of their question is an interesting one. As you read it, you get the impression the disciples are not only panicked, but they are angry about something, as well.

You see, according to Marks' account, the storm had already begun, when Jesus went to the back of the boat with a pillow and lay down to take a nap. And it was out of anger, frustration and panic that the disciples became indignant that at the moment of their greatest need, their leader decided to take a nap. You see, if Jesus had gone to sleep immediately upon leaving the shore, when the disciples woke Him, they would have awakened Him to let Him know about the storm. But instead, they rebuked Him because Jesus seemed to be saying, "I don't care." They thought their leader was being indifferent to their needs.

2. Have you ever felt that way?

Have you ever felt like that? Friends, let me tell you…these miracles aren't just statements of facts that happened 2000 years ago. They are also stories that illustrate exactly what happens to us in the spiritual realm of our lives.

Let's be honest, who of us hasn't felt that way at one time or another? Here we are in trouble or discouraged, or feeling helpless, or in great despair… and it seems like God doesn't care. -Nothing seems to happen when we pray to Him. -We don't hear from Him when we are in panic. -In our distress, His doesn't cause anything to happen to rescue us. -We cry out, and there's no answer.

Now, I ask you, "Is this the reality of things?"

Well, after the disciples woke Jesus, He showed them the reality of things. He stood up, and without saying a word to those panic stricken men who were looking to Him to help bail water, He looked out over the sea and rebuked the storm-literally the Greek says, "He muzzled the sea".

Now, I don't know what the disciples expected, but I guarantee you, that this wasn't it! Jesus uttered three words, "QUIET! BE STILL!" And what happened astonished the disciples-because suddenly there was a great calm that came over the entire lake.

B. The Real Miracle

Friends, one of the thing I want you to understand this morning is that the miracle that Jesus did was not calming of the storm. Nature would have taken care of that, eventually. No, the miracle was in the suddenness in which it happened. -All of a sudden, the wind, which had been roaring and beating about their ears…stopped! - All of a sudden there was absolute stillness. - All of a sudden the waves that had been crashing over the bow and filling the boat with water were suddenly still. - All of a sudden it was as if a giant hand had pressed them down and crushed them flat. This is what impressed the disciples. From one end of the lake to the other, it was suddenly calm as glass. And they realized that they had just experienced a mighty supernatural event.

When Jesus rebuked the wind and the water, we need to understand that He wasn't talking to the inanimate objects of wind and water. Those things have no more understanding than the carpet on this floor-there is no mental understanding in inanimate objects. It does no more good to talk to the wind and water than to talk to a hotdog or a piece of furniture.

No, friends, Jesus was speaking to the invisible. He was speaking to the demonic forces behind that sudden storm. Are all storms demonic? The answer is NO. But sometimes they are. The story of Job contains a good example of this…

Job 1:18-19 18 While he was still speaking, yet another messenger came and said, "Your sons and daughters were feasting and drinking wine at the oldest brother's house, 19 when suddenly a mighty wind swept in from the desert and struck the four corners of the house. It collapsed on them and they are dead, and I am the only one who has escaped to tell you!"

In this instance Satan had the power and permission from God to do anything short of killing Job, in order to get him to curse God. So Satan used the wind to knock down the house of one of Job's children, so the whole family inside would be killed.

Jesus understood this storm to be of a similar demonic nature. I say that because He rebuked it in the same way that He rebuked the demons in…

Mark 1:25 25 "Be quiet!" said Jesus sternly. "Come out of him!"

You have the same wording and the same forcefulness applied to the demons as was applied to the storm. Why? I mean, why would Satan be trying this kind of tactic? The Bible isn't clear, but let me tell you what I think (stand away from pulpit)…

I believe this was an attempt on Satan's part to kill Jesus at a time when He was sleeping and vulnerable out of sheer human exhaustion. If Satan could kill Jesus, he would thwart God's plans for salvation to come to the human race.

Friends, we can never forget that when we follow Jesus, we are in a war. Remember always the words of the apostle Paul…

Ephesians 6:12 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.

III. The Disciples Questioned

Then Jesus asks the disciples a very probing question…

Mark 4:40 40 He said to his disciples, "Why are you so afraid?… "

Isn't that a strange question to ask men whose very lives had just been rescued from mortal danger? Just seconds ago they were being tossed up and down on the Sea of Galilee like lettuce at the Olive Garden! This storm was so bad that it even panicked Peter, James, John and Andrew-four guys who had spent their entire lives on boats, on this very body of water. For goodness sakes, why shouldn't they be afraid?!? It seems like they would have every right to be terrified!??? …Yet Jesus asks them, "Why are you so afraid?"

Then, Jesus answers His own question. Look at the end of verse 40… "…Do you still have no faith?"

A. Faith is the Answer

Listen friends, the main reason people become afraid…is that they lose faith. That's because faith is always the answer to fear. In fact, I would submit that when there is faith, there can be no fear. They are as incompatible as light is with dark, or Rush Limbaugh is with Hillary Clinton.

Faith is always the answer to our fears, regardless of what those fears are. Jesus put His finger smack dab on the problem-"Do you still have no faith?"

Illustration: I heard Gary Smalley talk on this passage once at a Family Camp I attended. And he said that the disciples should have been having a party, and splashing around in the puddles in the boat. He went on to say, "They would do that, if they had great faith. The problem was, they had dinky faith!"

If the disciples had faith at all, I agree with Gary Smalley-it was dinky, at best. They had forgotten all the things Jesus had said to them in the Sermon on the Mount about the extent of God's care for them…

Matthew 6:26 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?

Think of it this way… -they had just seen Him cast demons out of a whole bunch of individuals. -They saw Jesus heal many sick individuals with all kinds of diseases. -And here He was, in the boat with them-not any of the other boats that were on the lake-but He was personally in their boat. -And their fate would be His fate.

But the disciples failed to realize one of the most important facts a follower of Jesus Christ could ever know…(WIG's)

When Jesus is in the boat, the boat won't sink, and the storm won't last forever.

B. When Christ is in the Boat…

Illustration: This past weekend, I had the opportunity to counsel a 60 year old Christian lady who rides with our motorcycle club. This lady had been in a long term marriage with a really terrific guy… -But suddenly, last year, her husband of 40 years, died of a heart attack. -Also in the past few months, her only daughter and her grandkids moved from here in southern California, to the Midwest, because of a job change. -Just two weeks ago, she found out that she has diabetes. Because of what was happening in her life, she was confused, discouraged, concerned, and depressed. She was literally afraid because of the circumstances of her life. And she came to me for advice.

Friends, I told her what I'm telling you right now… When Jesus is in your boat, the boat won't sink and the storm won't last forever!

This story of Jesus calming the storm teaches us that it's our faith that is the answer to our fears. -Faith in the goodness and care of God for His followers; -Faith that He loves us unconditionally; and -Faith that He is stronger than any of our circumstances.

C. Failure in faith can be a doorway to greater faith

But knowing that, there's one other lesson we can learn from this event. That lesson is found in the next verse, verse 41…

Mark 4:41 41 They were terrified and asked each other, "Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!"

The word that's translated "terrified" in our Bibles could also be translated, "fear". But this is a different kind of fear than the fear the disciples showed when they thought they were going to drown.

The fear they demonstrated when they thought they were going to drown was cowardly fear. If they could, they would have turned tail and run right out of that situation, rather than go through it. So, now that they came safely through that first fear, they now had a different kind of fear. This fear went much, much deeper.

The fear that's signified by the word "terrified" literally means reverence, respect, or to submit with humble obedience.

In other words, we could say that out of the failure of their faith there came a deeper understanding of Jesus. And this new understanding filled them with such a deep sense of awe, that they said…"Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!" In other words, "We want to know who this really is-this person who even controls the forces of nature!"

Friends, this is really a wonderful lesson for each of us this morning. The disciples failure to have strong faith when they were in the boat, offered them an opportunity to grow a stronger faith for the next time.

And God still does that with us. When our faith is weak, God will not let the boat sink. He will not let us collapse under the weight of difficult times. He demonstrates in this story that -He will hold us up, -He will see us through, -He will care for us, …and somehow in the process, He will lay a foundation of a new understanding of His might and power. That's what will enable us to grow stronger for the next time.

IV. Conclusion

Friends, I think I can sum up the key point of this story like this-Jesus is Lord of all. Nature, circumstances, disasters, disappointments, fears and trials are no match for the Lord of all those things-Jesus Christ.

And when Jesus is Lord of our personal lives-by that I mean, He is given pre-eminence, and prominence, and trust, and commitment… then we can be assured, beyond a shadow of a doubt, THAT THE BOAT WON'T SINK, AND THE STORM WON'T LAST FOREVER!

Do you want that kind of help in "the boat that is your life"? You can. But it starts at the same place for everyone-Jesus has to be invited into the boat. It starts with a personal relationship with Jesus as the forgiver of your sin. Once that takes place, He can be the leader of your life. (Plan of salvation)

Amen