Contrary Winds

Q: What does the Bible say about God's sovereignty in difficult times?

The Bible teaches that God is sovereign over all circumstances, including trials and tribulations, and works all things for the good of those who love Him. In Mark 6:45-52, we see the disciples in a boat, facing contrary winds and difficult circumstances after witnessing the miraculous feeding of 5,000. Jesus had constrained His disciples to get into the ship, intentionally leading them into a situation that would test their faith. This underscores the truth that God often directs His children through trials to strengthen their reliance on Him. Romans 8:28 assures us that 'all things work together for good to them that love God.' Therefore, as believers, we can trust that the sovereign God uses life's storms for our growth and to manifest His glory.

Q: How do we know that God is with us during tough times?

God promises that He will never leave us nor forsake us, and He is always aware of our struggles. The account in Mark 6:48 illustrates how Jesus saw His disciples toiling in the midst of the sea, despite being on a mountain far away. This demonstrates His omnipresence and care for His followers. The disciples may have felt abandoned, but Jesus was aware of their struggle and came to them at the right moment. Believers can take comfort in Hebrews 13:5, where God assures us, 'I will never leave you nor forsake you.' This truth provides peace, knowing that even in our most challenging moments, God is present, actively engaged in our lives.

Q: Why is prayer important for Christians?

Prayer is essential for Christians as it fosters a personal relationship with God and helps us rely on Him during trials. In the sermon, it was emphasized that even Jesus, during His earthly ministry, took time to pray alone (Mark 6:46). This highlights the importance of seeking communion with God, reflecting our neediness and dependence on Him. Philippians 4:6 encourages us to bring everything to God in prayer, with thanksgiving. Prayer serves as an avenue for unburdening ourselves, casting our cares upon Him, and cultivating a deeper relationship with our Heavenly Father. Through prayer, we align our hearts with God’s will and seek the strength we need to navigate life’s storms.

Q: What does the story of Jesus walking on water teach us?

The story illustrates Jesus's divine power over nature and reassures us of His continued presence in our difficulties. In Mark 6:49-50, Jesus walks on water to reach His disciples amidst their struggle. This miraculous event shows His authority over creation and His ability to intervene in our lives. The disciples, frightened by His appearance, learned that the same Jesus who calmed the storm in another moment was now reassuring them in their fear. This tale reminds us of God's unfailing presence and assurance in our struggles; He may seem distant at times, but He is always watching over us and ready to come to our aid. As believers, we take comfort in knowing that Jesus has overcome the world (John 16:33), and we can find peace in His presence.

Q: How should we respond to trials in our lives?

We should respond to trials with faith and trust in God's sovereignty, knowing He uses them for our growth. The challenges faced by the disciples in Mark 6 serve as a poignant reminder of how we should approach trials in our own lives. They were called to row against contrary winds for hours, yet their journey was a lesson in reliance on Christ. Similarly, when we encounter difficulties, we ought to remember that God is using these experiences to shape us. We see in these moments an opportunity to deepen our faith and dependence on Him. James 1:2-4 encourages us to count it all joy when we face trials, as they produce perseverance. It is in the struggles that our character is tested and refined, leading us closer to Christ.

In a dream over life's sea, now
in the storm of death, o'er sweeping mounds, whisper, O truth, of
truth be stilled in time. Whoever old Anatolius was, Anatolius,
he believed that Jesus Christ is God of God. Let's hope for
that man, isn't it? Light of light, truth of truth. All right, Mark chapter 6 now. Mark chapter 6. Do you remember
the story just a week or two ago about the disciples at sea
when the Lord was asleep in the hinder part of the ship? Do you
remember that? Chapter 4. The hinder part of
the ship. Do you remember why he was in
the hinder part of the ship? That's where the captain always
is. The hinder part. Anyway, this
is another similar story, and that is by design. This happened
very shortly after that other seafaring story. These always,
I love these stories. I love to read seafaring books. But this has happened on purpose,
according to our Lord's wisdom and purpose. And so we're going
to look at it, though similar. And I think you'll know why in
a moment, why we have it again. Now, right after feeding the
multitude, right after feeding 5,000 people, it says in verse
45, straightway or right away, he constrained his disciples
to get into the ship. Straightway, that is, immediately,
he told the disciples, now get back in the ship. There are several
things to be seen from this. Again, everything is by design. Every word is God's marvelous
wisdom. Straightway, immediately, he
said, get back in the ship. Once again, the disciples had
been thronged. They got in the middle of 5,000
people, 5,000 men. That means there were probably
over 10,000 men, women, children. They were in the midst of this
huge crowd, huge throng, and so the Lord constrained them,
constrained them to get back in the ship, just the 12 of them,
get back in the ship. Do you remember that in that
story? How the Lord told them to get in the ship? Because this
is where we get our rest and repose, this fellowship of the
saints. Right here, this little ship,
this little ark right here on top of the hill. This is where
the gospel is, where Christ meets, this is the only One of the only
times that we have true fellowship together around the gospel, this
is a time of rest and repose, a little oasis in the wilderness.
That's why our Lord said that, right? They were in a big crowd
again. He said, get back in the ship. So they had a little time together.
Now, they should have. They should have. been thinking
about what just happened. You know. It was amazing what
our Lord did, wasn't it? Feed 5,000 with five loaves and
two fish. Wasn't that amazing? Surely they
wouldn't forget that. Surely not. They hadn't been in that boat
a day. We read it. They forgot it. Because their
hearts were hardened. Surely we wouldn't forget last
Sunday's message. Surely we wouldn't forget that.
We do. We sure do. But really, the disciples,
and so should we, we ought to try to reconsider what we've
seen and heard previously. Keep rehearsing it in our minds,
chewing on it. Well, our Lord constrained them
to get in the ship immediately. Immediately now. Now here's another
thing and we looked at Sunday morning at how the Lord fed.
We're fed with the word sit down and make them sit down. Well
right after they had this they were feeding the Lord had them
get back in the ship and they weren't any time at all back
out to sea. Now, this is a picture, also,
that after we feed on the Word, it's just right after that we
have to go back out in that sea and get back out there, the sea
of life, if you will. And that sea, out there at sea,
these disciples are going to be tossed to and fro. They're
going to be just storming. It's going to be storming, tempestuous.
So it is for us, right after we feed on the Word, a time to
strengthen and renew ourselves and get back out there again.
Storms of life again. And so the Lord has them do that
for our learning. And I'll tell you why this happened
so closely after the last seed. time they were together on the
sea in the miracle. Remember, the Lord stilled the
ocean? This happened very shortly after
that. And we just looked at that, and here it is again. Our Lord
has them go through a similar experience to reconfirm, to reconfirm
to them that, yes, He is the Sovereign Let's see, he's the
master of all things. He has the mastery and he'll
care for them. Because they quickly forgot that.
And so do we. So here we are considering much
the same story again. We quickly forget them. I bet you, if you were like me,
you heard that message on the Lord's still in the ocean, it
would have stilled your heart while you heard it, didn't it?
It did mine, and it helped me. I know there's some of you I
spoke with, and you seemed to enjoy it. Well, it didn't stay
with you, did it? It did again. So here it is again,
all right? Our Lord is going to still the
raging ocean again. All right? Verse 45. Well, He
straightway immediately constrained His disciples to get into the
ship and go to the other side before unto Bethsaida, while
He sent away the people. Verses 46 and 7, when he had
sent them away, he departed into a mountain to pray. And when
evening was come, the ship was in the midst of the sea, and
he was alone on the land. So he told his disciples to get
into the boat and go to the other side, though he himself was not
in the ship. Or was he? Well, listen now, everything
concerning The disciples of Christ, them and us, concerns our Lord. They are his children. They are
his sheep. He's the shepherd. A good shepherd
never leaves the sheep. Never. And though it appears he is not
with them or with us in a thing or in a thing, though it appears
he's not in something where we are or what we're going through,
yet all things concerning us, all things, are working together
according to His purpose and for our good. All things, all
things. Our all-wise Heavenly Father
is always leading His children, always leading, always teaching.
His eye, He said, His eye is always on His children. He's
always thinking of us like you as parents. You don't go very
long without your children on your mind, do you? And everything
that happens to us, our Lord sends our way to teach us. And
notice, he sent them away while he stayed on the land. He sent them out to the sea to
be tossed and to get in all kinds of trouble. That's a picture
of our Lord that this is the way our Lord deals with his children. He doesn't shelter them from
troubles and trials and doesn't take them out of the world problems
and put them in a commune off to get together where there's
nothing that will harm them. No, sir. No, sir. You put some right out there
in the midst of the stormy sea. That's how you learn. That's
the only way you can learn, really. You know? It's the only way. Well, it says he departed, verse
46. Now, this is important. When he had sent them away, he
departed into a mountain to pray. He, our Lord, departed into a
mountain to pray. If our Lord did this, got off to Himself to pray, how
much more should we pray? How much more? Our Lord had perfect
knowledge, perfect faith, yet if He felt the need to pray,
to get off alone and pray, How much more should we weak, helpless
sinners? How much more? And he got alone
to pray. One of the men was speaking to
me about prayer. And our Lord leaves us an example
here. He departed into a mountain to
pray. He found a solitary place and
called upon his God, and so should we, a solitary place. Now, let
me give you a little lesson here about what our Lord is showing
us here. He departed into a mountain to
pray. The best way to get to know someone is to get alone
with them. You know that? I urge everyone to have the brethren
in your home, but not too many at one time. You can't really
have close fellowship. It's fine if you do that. I'm
thankful for whatever, whenever, and however you have God's people
in your home. But the old saying, two's company,
three's a crowd, and so forth. But if you just have a few people
or go somewhere with somebody, Get to know them. Sit and talk
to them. Get to know them. Well, how much
more should we get along with our God? Get along with Him? The best way to get to know your
children, the best way to get to know your children is to get
along with them. I mean individually, not collectively,
but individually. Brother Marvin Stoniker, Now,
every one of the children, when they had a birthday, he would
take each one of them, he personally, not Marvin or Linda, but Marvin,
would take each one of them out to dinner. They'd get dressed
up, and he and her, and he and Hannah, or Becca, or Sarah, or
Gabe. Anyway, just the two of them
would go out to eat a long, lengthy, casual dinner. Talk to one another. That's the best way to get to
know somebody, isn't it? Huh? You're nobody else around. You're
not so self-conscious. You pour out your heart. Philippians
4, verse 6, says this. Philippians 4, verse 6. And this
is the same with our Heavenly Father. How we need communion
with Him alone. Pour out our hearts. And Philippians
4 verse 6 says, Be careful for nothing. That is, don't be full
of care for anything. How can you get rid of that care? How can you not be full of care?
Cast it on somebody else. Daddy, tell Dad, let him have
it. You know what I mean by let him.
God better let Christ, but get rid of it. Unburden yourself.
That's what prayer is, unburdening yourself to your Father. Verse 6, with everything, in
everything. Was there anything that you,
could you tell your dad anything, Hannah? Anything? I mean the
most minute thing to the most soul-revealing secret, could
you? Our God already knows. Before you tell him, it does
you good to tell him. You know? Unburdened, exposed. First thing,
with everything about prayer and supplication, what does that
mean? Requests. Requests. Can you ask your dad
for anything, Allen? He don't mind if I use you tonight,
do you? Could you ask your dad for anything? I know, I know
another hand that could. That I want. Anything. And if I think it's
good for, and if I can afford it, sometimes even if I can't,
Stephen, I go ahead and try it anyway, don't you? How much more
our Heavenly Father's supplication with, now don't, don't forget
this, with Thanksgiving. Don't you dare forget to be thankful.
Above all things, with all, Paul said, Thanksgiving. Let your
requests be made known unto God. And look at this, look at the
next verse. Nancy, you like this verse, don't you? And the peace
of God, which passes understanding, that is, natural understanding.
So keep your hearts in mind through Jesus Christ, through Jesus Christ,
your mediator. So, get along with your Lord. Our Lord did. Our Lord did. How much more should
we? We're needy, poor and needy.
All right, back to the text. So he went into the mountain
to pray. And it says in verse 47, Mark
6, verse 47, When evening was come, the ship was in the midst
of the sea, and he alone on the land, though not actually in
the ship this time, yet he's with them. He's with them. He's always with them. He said,
I'll never leave. Didn't he? When he left this
planet, he said that. That's the last thing he said.
I'm with you, even to the ends of the world. What about us?
You're a disciple, aren't you? All right, read on. Verse
48. And he saw them toiling in rowing for the wind was contrary
unto them. So they began to row in sailing.
In a sailing vessel, this is they didn't have motor motorized
boats back then, so they went under the wind power sailing
vessels back then. All right. In a sailing vessel. If the wind is not blowing right, you have to strike the sail,
that is, take all the sails down and get out the row of the oar
and start rowing. Now, if you've ever done any
rowing, you ever done any rowing a boat? I don't mean going down
the lazy river, you know, downstream in a little canoe and just paddle
like some people I know that don't. I'll not tell it, Sammy. To make other people do all the
paddling. Anyway, if you've ever done any
real rowing, I mean against the stream, it's tough. I don't know of anything. more
strenuous. Honestly, I don't know anything
more difficult and more strenuous. Well, these fellas, now they're
out in the ocean. Boisterous waves, crashing and
water and everything. And they're trying to row. Row
in a boat to get to the shore. They're having a hard time. Can you imagine? Twelve of them.
They're all rowing. Now, our Lord said this about
this life. You must, through much tribulation,
enter the kingdom of heaven. Our Lord never promised one disciple
smooth sailing, ever. If you're one of the... Every
one of these disciples had it, Didn't it? Every one of them
were in that ship, and they were rowing hard, and it was tough. I'll tell you how tough it was
in a minute. But our Lord has his children.
This does away with all this separatism of these religious
cults. Our Lord has his children live in this
world and toil and labor. and go through difficult and
trying time to teach us. He teaches us many things. One
thing he teaches us, if you have a hard time in this world, what
he teaches us is there's no rest in this world. Right? You have here no continuing city. They didn't want to stay on that
boat. They were looking forward to getting to the other side.
Weren't they? It could have been a nice lazy
day in the wind, just going along there, chewing on, you know,
oranges. Peter was strumming the guitar,
you know. Oh, this is wonderful. Let's not be such a hurry to
get that. Huh? But no, it was tough. Everyone,
I'll sure be glad when I get to shore. Hmm? You must, through much tribulation,
enter the kingdom of heaven. And God has his people go through
so much trial and suffering in this world until you reach a
point you say, I can't wait to get to the other side. I can't wait. And there's just
enough happiness and good times here to keep you from killing
yourself. OK, but he teaches us also our
utter dependence upon Him. They were rowing and rowing and
rowing. People, it says the wind was contrary to them. The wind
was contrary to them. The wind wasn't for them, it
was against them. Brother Henry, it was all going
against them. It wasn't with them, it wasn't
helping them, it was against them. You know what that's talking
about? Sure you do. You've been here
a long time now. Rarely is the wind at your back,
is it? The wind was contrary to them,
and the winds of God's providence in this life seem to be contrary
to us, winds of change, this world, winds of worldly opinion,
winds of change and so forth. Our God changes not, the truth
changes not, but this world and everything else is against us. And it's getting more and more
against the truth and against those that walk according to
the truth. Read that in Isaiah 59. Remember
where it says truth is way backward, judgment is way backward. Truth,
equity. Truth falleth in the streets.
Equity cannot enter. And those that depart from evil,
those that don't go with the flow, got a tough time of it,
don't they? Why, the whole world's against
them. Boy, really bad. Everybody's against you. But there's one for you. Huh? What's Romans 8? 31? What's
that say? It's God before us. Who or what
can be against us, huh? But let me tell you something
here. Seemingly, the winds were contrary
to them. But not a child of God. No, no,
really not. All things work together, right? Even contrary winds. work together. This was going to bring about
Christ's glory. They're going to see His glory.
And they're going to be further broken and dependent. And their faith is going to be
strengthened. And that's exactly what trials
are all about. Strengthen our faith. And so
those things don't seem to go our way. Things are not going
my way. I'll tell you whose way it is
going now. Everything is going in God's
way. Everything. All things work together for
good to them that love God, who are called according to His purpose. So they appear to be contrary
winds, but they're working out His purpose. They're contrary to the way they
wanted it, but it's working out. God sent the wind. All right,
verse 48, he saw them toiling and rowing, and the wind was
contrary to them. And about the fourth watch of
the night, now this is three o'clock in the morning, now they
left right after dinner, about six or seven o'clock. Now it's
three o'clock in the morning. Count that out now, Bob. You know how far they got? Three
miles. Over in John, this story is recorded
three times. In the book of John, it says
they were about 25 furlongs, which is about three miles. They weren't making much progress.
Where is it? Do you get the picture? Rowing
hard and not getting anywhere. How about you? Feel like you're
just treading water? I guarantee you. Progress is being made toward
the other shore. Nine hours at sea, they'd only
come three miles. Long, hard labor, hadn't made
much progress, and now it says it's night time. See if you can't
enter into this. Night time. Everything is worse
at night. Isn't it? Everything is worse
at night. I know you would like me to wake
up in the middle of the night and start thinking about whatever
bills to pay, or your children, or whatever it is, huh? It's worse at night, isn't it?
Because all you've got to do is lay there and think about
it. That's what the Scripture said.
David said that in Psalm 130. He said, waiteth for thee more
than they that watch for the morning." They that watch for
the morning. I'll be glad when the sun comes
up. And our Lord said this too. He
said, Yea, weeping endureth for a night. Ah, but joy comes in
the morning. And the morning always comes,
doesn't it? Doesn't it always come? Doesn't the morning always come? Doesn't that sun come up? Doesn't
that sun arise with healing in its wings? Every time, huh? Has it ever failed to come up?
You've been at night time and things have been just real bad
and you thought it's helpless, it's hopeless. Doesn't that sun
come up and you have a renewed hope? Every time. These fellas are out there at
night time. Been rowing for nine hours. Gone three miles. It's pitch black. They wanted
to sleep, couldn't sleep. Let's just drown. Then He comes. Then He comes. Now, it won't be long before
we'll go to Him, but He always comes to us first, you know?
Right in the midst of our rowing. Yes, He does. Say that, look
for Him. He comes. Verse 48, He saw them
toiling and rowing. He saw them. How could He see
them? He's up on a mountain. They're out in the midst of the
sea, three miles out of the sea, and He's on. Because He's the
God that seeth us. That's how our God seeth us. He's the omniscient, omnipresent
One, ever-present, all-seeing, all-knowing God. He seeth us. He saw them toiling, and the
wind was contrary to them. And about the fourth watch, He
came unto them. He cometh unto them, walking
upon the sea. Walking upon the sea. Now again,
let me warn you about something. This religious world, this blasphemous
world, blasphemes God on every hand. And you'll hear people
all the time joking about walking on water. Don't you do it. Don't you dare do it. You know, I told you not to use
the term scapegoat. Don't use anything from God's
Word. Any truth. Anything from God's
Word. In jest, or familiarly, or carelessly,
or irreverently. Don't do it. We fear God, and
we tremble at His Word. We don't use it as a clever little
clichÃ© or something. No, sir. We tremble at it with
glory in it. This is a marvelous story. It's
true what our Lord did here, and He did it for us. He came
walking on the water. Now, He actually did. He actually
walked on the water because he's the master of the sea, billows
his will over him. Because everything truly is at
his feet. Is it not? Everything is at his
feet. Our Lord, now listen, our Lord
as a man, now he's a man. This is what's marvelous about
this. Our Lord, as a man, went through the same troubles and
trials that his disciples went through. He went through the
same troubling seas, yet he walked perfectly by faith. Now, we've looked at
this before. Our Lord was a man, flesh and
blood, and he walked by Now this is not to tell us that if you
try hard enough you can walk on the water. No sir. But if
there was a reason for it. Well, if there's a reason, if we had God's leadership, the
disciples did things. You remember when our Lord said,
when I lead greater things, you'll do greater things than what I
do. You remember that? The apostles, they did some marvelous
things. If there was a reason, a need
for it, raising the dead and so forth. But there's no reason. You know, we don't need to walk
on the water. We don't need to walk on the water. But listen
to this. Do you remember when Peter, and this was in John's
account, do you remember when Peter said, Lord, bid me come to you
on the water? Remember, the Lord was walking
on the water. and looked like he was going to pass by. And
Peter said, and I believe Peter what it was, was like, remember
when Peter saw the Lord on the shore at the end? And nothing and nobody was going
to keep him from getting to the Lord. Remember? He dove in the
water and swam a long way away. He had to get to Him. And I believe
Peter wasn't saying, I've not tried that. he wouldn't do it
they were so scared they were scared and peter recognizes the
lord he tells them in a minute i want to come to you i want
to have this ship that's what happened that's what happened
bid me come to you come on peter won't come to me that bad what
peter did nothing's going to keep him.
He started walking on the water. Well, it didn't last long, because
he didn't have perfect faith, you see. He didn't have perfect
faith. Everything opened up. What am
I doing? How am I supposed to keep up?
Then he started down. Well, these things overcome us,
but nothing in this world overcame our Lord. Did it? Nothing. Nothing. There was a purpose. His children
were out there at sea, toiling. They needed to see His power
and His glory, and there was only one way to get to Him. His
flesh and blood walked across that ocean to get to Him. And for them to
see His glory and His power And to teach us, too, that our Lord
has overcome all. I'll be of good cheer. I've overcome
this world. What will take you down did not
take me down. I'm above it, and I did it for
you. I did it for you. Established
the perfect righteousness for you. Oh, your sins be over your
head, and they're under my feet. Did you hear that, John? Huh?
David said in Psalm 38, My sins have gone over me. I'm drowning
in my sin. Christ said, they're under my
feet. He did that to me. He overcame that. They have good
cheer. We'll not be overcome by it. The head's above water. Alright, look at verse 48. This
is good. It says, He looked as though
He would pass by them. See there? He would have passed
by them. Or He made as though He would have passed by them.
He was walking, and there in the ship, you know, rowing, and
they see Him, and He walked as if He was just going to go right
on by. Now, our Lord did this several times. On the road to
Emmaus, remember? On the road to Emmaus, He was
talking to them and talking to them, and they came to Emmaus,
and He looked like He was going to go right on by. What did disciples
do? Oh, no, no, don't go, don't go.
No, come in, come in. Well, our Lord, you see, our
Lord, they saw him, verse 49, when they saw him walking upon
the sea, they supposed it had been a spirit and cried out,
but they saw him and were troubled. They saw him, but they couldn't
believe their eyes. That's what that's saying. They saw him. They saw him. They knew it was
him, but they thought, what, this is not, I can't, believe
this. So they just refused to believe
it. And they were afraid. They saw the unknown and couldn't fathom it and were
scared to death. But it's Him. You listen here now. You'll
get some comfort here. We run into the unknown like
this. And we can't fathom it. We don't
know what it's all about. The Lord's there. The Lord's there. Our Lord, it says, He would have
passed by them. Our Lord will have us call upon
Him in the day of trouble. Every time. Our Lord knew He
was going to stop at that ship. That's why He went out there.
That's why he walked out there. He was going to get in that boat.
He was going to take them to shore, but he acted like he was
going to. But that won't cut the coal on
him. You see that? Do you know the story over there
in Ezekiel 36? Tell all about that. Am I blowing it again? Do you know the story over there
in Ezekiel 36 where it says, the Lord keeps saying, I will
give them a new heart. I will cleanse them from all
unrighteousness. Create a new spirit in them. I will save them. I will. I will. I will do this. I will do that. But next year,
the end of the chapter, he said, but they're going to ask me to
do it. But he known unto God are all
his works from the beginning. He said, I will. I'm going to
say, oh, Henry, so, oh, Glenford, so I want to save him. I'm going
to do this for him, but he's going to ask me to do it. That's just his purpose. Nobody's saved that doesn't call
on the Lord. And these disciples are going
to cry out. Look at verse 49. It says they cried out. What
did they cry? What did they cry? What do you
think they said? You know what they said. God
help us. not in, you know, cursing. They
were crying unto God, Lord, save us or we perish. Lord, if it's
you. They cried out, every one of
them, crying unto God. They were about to perish again,
again. And they cried unto their God,
what the Lord help us. And let me tell you this, it
was Him. The things that frighten us,
whatever it be, are but the means and the hands and the feet of
our Lord. Yes, they are. They're the means.
They're the instruments of our God. And it says in verse 50,
how did He calm them? How did He calm them? Immediately.
When they cried, immediately talked with them. He spoke to
them. The Word is what soothed them,
isn't it? What did He say? What calmed them? What was it? Be of good cheer. It is I. Be not afraid. It is I. It is I. Be of good cheer. It
is I. Be not afraid. And that's the only thing that'll
calm us. Through God, through His Word,
He tells us, I am that I am. Be of good cheer. in everything. Oh, do you see
what happened in New York City on September 11th? It is I. Are you not afraid? Oh, but, but,
but, but, it is I. It's the Lord. Whatever it is. When's the contrary? Oh, everything's
against us. Be of good cheer. The world may
sorrow as those who have no hope, but don't you be of good cheer. It is I. Be not afraid. I did this. I did that. I kill. I make alive. I wound. I heal.
I the Lord do all these things. It is I. Be not afraid. That's the only thing that will
calm us mortals here on this rocking boat. Now, right now, everybody in
here has got a pretty major piece. Don't you, huh? You believe,
Nancy? You believe? Hmm? Roberta? Go back tomorrow morning. Now, you know why he said this
again? This is exactly what they went through before. They just
went through this, Stephen. They just went through this,
remember? We're drowning, Lord, don't you
care if we perish? He got up and said, Hush up,
Ocean. We'll never doubt Peter. I bet
you Peter said, I'll never doubt him now. Don't you know? I'll never doubt. Oh, I believe.
They got on Ocean, on land, and he's up. Lord, I know you. Nothing
gonna bother me from here on out. Yeah. Right. There's only one thing that will
calm us, His Word. Now you know, do you need a better
reason to come here? Do you need another reason to come
here? At least for an hour. All your troubles are over. Huh? And your faith is strengthened.
be of good cheer, it is I." And verse 51, it says, he went up
unto them and to the ship, and the wind ceased. Oh, and the
Lord is with you. The Lord will come near to you
through his word, through the preaching, through the fellowship
of the saints, and speak peace to your heart. Oh, the wind will
cease. And you'll see it's not contrary to me at all. Everything's
for me. the Lord before me. And they
were sore amazed in themselves. You see that? They were sore
amazed in themselves, beyond measure and wonder. Now, there's
several ways you can look at that. They were amazed at Him,
personally. They were sore amazed. I mean,
in our modern languages, they just absolutely were just completely
bum-fuzzled about Him. astonished. Remember that? They
were astonished. Amazed in themselves beyond measure
at Him. Wondered at Him. He's a wonder
of wonders alright. Forget all these wonders of the
world. He's the wonder of wonders. His name is called Wonderful. Full of wonder. And they were also amazed in
themselves. They were amazed at their own
lack of faith after all that they'd been through, after all
the Lord had brought them through. Let me pick on you again, Henry.
Seventy-some years old. You've been there and done that.
Hadn't you? Anybody here ought to have faith. But we'll be just like you, buddy.
When we hit seventy, we'll be forgetful days. But we ought
to have faith, shouldn't we? After all the Lord brings us
here, miraculously, after all His wonderful provisions and
sovereign providence, all our days, thirty, forty, fifty years,
my, my, we ought to just not be afraid of anything. But He
knows our prayers. He remembers we're dust. And
so we come back again to teach us the same lessons over and
over again. It says in verse 52, they considered not the miracles
of the loaves. Well, it's just eight hours ago,
nine hours ago. Their heart was hardened. What
hardened it? That means their heart, they
forgot what happened. They forgot what happened. Their
understanding was, it left them. Their minds were blank. Their
hearts were full of fear. What was it? The world. Troubles
they got into. And so it is with us. Thank God
he has compassion on ignorance, huh? It's simple. Let's read
these verses so we don't have to deal with them Sunday morning,
all right? Verses 53 and following. So when they passed over, They
came into the land of Gennesaret and drew to the shore. They got
to the shore, didn't they? All of them? No, we lost Bartholomew. His faith wasn't strong enough.
He wasn't hanging on enough. But let my dwelling man. The Lord wouldn't have been much
of a captain, would he? A savior. They all got there. They got
the shore, and so shall you. So shall you. All that Christ
comes to and that come to Christ, they'll make it to the shore.
Yes, you will. We shall meet on that beautiful
shore. And when they were come out of
the ship, straightway they knew Him, the people did. They all
ran over when we get to glory. That'll be something. We'll know
each other, and we'll know Him. and ran through the whole region
roundabout and began to carry about in beds those that were
sick, where they heard he was, right back into the midst of
it they got, didn't they? Right, Ron? They were in the
midst of thousands of people and the Lord said, get in the ship. And, you know, the wind
wasn't contrary at first, Brother Sam. Let's see here, oh man, let's
start trouble, rowing, trouble. And the Lord gets them out of
that, get the shore, okay, right back in the midst of people,
grabbing around. Tomorrow is what? Thursday morning.
Prepare to get them back in the thick of it. And it says they,
with us wherever he entered, into villages, or cities, or
country, they laid the sick in the streets, and saw him that
they might touch, if it were, but the border of his garment
Anybody hears of this garment provided, righteous, anybody
that touches, anybody that comes, anybody that asks, it's made
perfectly whole and righteous. Anybody. Anybody. All right. Let's sing that hymn
again now. Let's try it again. I think we might be able to really
sing it. From every stormy wind. Let's sing it in the green book.
It's a lower tune. The Green Book, hymn number, what is it, John?
The Green Book, it's 355. 355. A lower hymn, a tune. I like the words on that Blue
Book, though. All right, let's stand. From every stormy wind that blows,
from every swelling tide of woe, there is a calm, a sure retreat. which is found beneath the mercy
sea. Verse three. There is a scene
where spirits blend, where friend holds fellowship with friend. Oh, son, look for my pain. around one common mercy seat. Ah, whither could we plead for
aid, when tempted, desolate, dismayed, or how the host of
heav'n deceit? Prince ain't no mercy tree. Ah, there on eagle wings we soar,
and sin and since more let no more, and heaven comes down our
souls to dream. While glory crowns our mercy
seat.

Contrary Winds

What does the Bible say about God's sovereignty in difficult times?

How do we know that God is with us during tough times?

Why is prayer important for Christians?

What does the story of Jesus walking on water teach us?

How should we respond to trials in our lives?

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Contrary Winds

What does the Bible say about God's sovereignty in difficult times?

How do we know that God is with us during tough times?

Why is prayer important for Christians?

What does the story of Jesus walking on water teach us?

How should we respond to trials in our lives?

Sermon Transcript

About Paul Mahan

Comments

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