If you would, turn to Mark chapter
four. Mark chapter four, and I'm gonna
begin reading in verse 35. And the same day, when the even was come, he saith
unto them, let us pass over unto the other side. And when they
had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he was
in the ship. And there were also with him
other little ships. And there arose a great storm
of wind and the waves beat into the ship so that it was now full. And he was in the hinder part
of the ship, asleep on a pillow. And they awake him and say unto
him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? And he arose
and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there
was a great calm. And he said unto them, Why are
ye so fearful? How is it that ye have no faith? And they feared exceedingly and
said one to another, what manner of man is this that even the
wind and the sea obey him? I have a title for this. It's called
Christ is in the Ship. This incident occurs after a
series of parables, which you can read in Mark 4. A wonderful series of parables.
You have the sower, and then you have the explanation of the
sower. Talks about a candle hidden under a bushel. And he says that,
if any man have ears to hear, let him hear. He speaks about the kingdom of
God. But here, in this account, which happens after all that,
we see in this account the Lord Jesus Christ. Shown to us in
this account is a clear presentation of the two-fold nature of Jesus. We see him, actually, in his
human nature, sleeping. Sleeping. Don't talk about that. Son of
man hath no place to lay his head, but he did sleep. Then we are given a glimpse,
just a glimpse, of his godhood, his divine nature. commanding
the wind and the sea, which immediately obey him. The scripture's clear. The wind and the sea were obeying
him. It won't obey me. It won't obey
you. But everything, everything, not
just everyone, everything Obeys the Word of God and the Word
of the Son of God So here we see the man God the God man Adam
Kedmon The Lord Jesus Christ is revealed here for who he is
he is both God and man What's it say behold the man Behold
the Lord Walter said it last week behold the Lamb of God And yet nobody asked, where is
he? That was a beautiful point. John the Baptist said it out
loud. He said, behold, the Lamb of God, which taketh away the
sin of the world. Wouldn't you want to know where
he is? Well, you guys would. But the world doesn't. The world
never has. The world didn't. While he was
here, he came unto his own, and his own received him not. But
here we see the one who is both God and man. And because of that,
he is the Lamb of God. Because the Lamb of God was to
be sacrificed. And only a man could die, but
only God could raise from the dead. It took one who was both
God and man to take away the sin of the world. to be a just God and a Savior. And the God-man is revealed here
in this passage. In this statement, let us pass
over unto the other side. Just a flat statement. And when
they had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he was
in the ship. That's why I said this title,
Christ is in the ship. Now, I'm not gonna go way off
into another illustration, you know, the ship of grace or the
church is the ship. No, this is very plain. Our Lord Jesus Christ was in
the ship, but he was with his people. That's the point here. He was in the ship, but there
are others in the ship with him. And it says here, there were
also, what? With him, others in little ships. The Lord Jesus Christ came to
seek and to save that which was lost. And he came to preach to
his people. And he did. And he came to be
with his people. And here, both man and God were
with him in the ship. Verse 39 says this. This is after the storm had happened,
and after the storm was there, and the boat was full, and he
was in the back part of the ship, and they asked him, master, cares
not that we perish? And it says, and he arose. That's what got me thinking about
it, Walter, this morning. And he rebuked the wind, and
said unto the sea, peace be still. And the wind ceased, and there
was a great calm. Jesus arose and spoke and what's
the result there was a great call Why how who it's the same
answer Jesus arose and spoke This is the voice of God This
is God Manifest in the flesh. He is the very voice of God who
spoke the world into being Who said let there be light and there
was light. I who said, let's divide the light
from the darkness, separated them. And he said, peace, and
there's peace. And he said, be still, and the
sea is still. He spoke, and it was done. He rebuked, and his rebuke is
not like our rebukes. His rebuke worked. And he said unto them, and here's
what I want to talk about, why are ye so fearful? Why are ye
so fearful? How is it that ye have no faith? This is the center of the matter. You understand his point? Disciples,
and these are his disciples. They sent away the multitude.
His disciples were upset. They were fearful of their lives
because of the storm surrounding the ship. Jesus Christ knew that. He's
not ignorant of the fact. He's not asking this question
in order to get an answer. He's asking this question so
that we can have an answer. Why are you so fearful? This
was the problem, fear, fear. He knew they were fearful, but
he asked them why. And notice very carefully, he
calmed the wind, he calmed the sea, everything was still, everything
was peaceful. He didn't turn to his disciples
and now, now, everything's okay. He didn't do that. There's a
time for comfort, And there's a time to be asked some questions.
And there's a time for thought. And this, he did not comfort
them. He admonished them. He said, after he dealt with
the immediate concern of the storm, why are you fearful? Why are
you fearful? Being fearful is the natural
state of man. That's our natural state. We
are fearful of things we don't understand and we're fearful
of things we do understand. That's the way we are. It's in
our nature and we need to know that. He was in the ship. Christ was in the ship. Why were they fearful? Because
that's the natural reaction to things that are outside of our
control. He knew why they feared, but
we need to know. And he answered this question
with another question. How is it that ye have no faith? In Matthew, it's actually recorded
as a statement. He says, O ye of little faith. Christ knew, but he wants us
to know the natural state of man is unbelief. And unbelief leads to fear. You can't deal with your fear
from a position of unbelief. You can't handle your fear from
a position of unbelief. It can't be done. These are the
words of Christ. Why are you fearful? Oh ye of
little faith. That's why you're fearful. He
was in the ship. He was in the ship. He said,
let's go over to the other side. Where were we going? We're going
to the other side. It don't matter what happens
in the middle because he's already said it. And that word where
he said, let us pass over to the other side is just as strong
and just as powerful as peace be still. and the wind and the
sea obey, and the sea was calm. That is a word of faith from
the Lord of glory. Why are you fearful? I said we're
going over, we're going over. And if you want to point out
just the fact of the way it's written, let us pass over. The reason they passed over is
the Passover lamb was in the boat. I throw that in for free. That's
right, when God sees the blood, he's gonna pass over. He has
passed over. And Christ said, we're gonna
pass over. So guess what? We're gonna pass
over. Why do you fear? Unbelief. Unbelief. Lack of faith. That's the natural
state of man. This is the natural state of
our old nature. Unbelief. Because it's written very clearly
in the scriptures that we have now two natures. We have the
old man and we have the new man. And thank God for the new man,
otherwise all we'd be stuck with is just what unbelievers are
stuck with, the old man. Unbelievers only have one nature.
I used to be there. I used to be there. I didn't
know how ignorant I was. I didn't know how much I unbelieved.
How's that for good English? But it's the truth. I was so
dead I didn't know I was dead. There are two natures. If you
want to see it, you can look in Romans 7. Paul talks about, and I don't
care what anybody says about this, because there's all kinds
of theories, but here, Paul talks about how he was, past tense. But he doesn't stop there. He
talks, he writes about how he is, present tense. What did he
say? I am carnal. Not I used to be carnal, not
I was carnal. Then at the end he gets down,
oh wretched man that I was. Oh no, hang on he says, oh wretched
man that I am. Christ was dealing with these
fellas where they lived. Now granted, I'll say this. These men did not have the Holy
Spirit living in them. He said the Holy Spirit's with
you, but he shall be in you. But these are his disciples,
plus Judas. But here it is, they were all
fearful of that storm, even though he's in the ship. How fearful do you need to be
when Christ is with you? You don't need to fear at all.
We do. We do. We are still carnal. There's a war in our members.
In my mind, it's the law and the spirit. The flesh and the spirit, and
they don't get along. And circumstances affect us,
and usually not well. And this is what Christ wants
us to know. There's no reason to fear when he's with you. We will, we do, but come to yourself. Socrates supposedly wrote this
great epitaph, know thyself. Sometimes I don't want to know
myself. It's a lot more fun, a lot better for me to know Him. To know myself is depressing
sometimes. Because we are creatures that
live in fear naturally. And Jesus here reveals to these
men and to us the source of fear. If you're fearful, this is where
it comes from. But fear comes from the lack
of faith in the Son of God. I don't know how to be any plainer
than that. And I'm not saying anything against
the faith of God's elect or the faith, because his faith is perfect. What he's talking about here
is our believing. And our believing is far from
perfect. Sometimes we fall way short of believing God the way
we should. I read one writer, and he said
this, and I liked it, and I wrote it down. Unbelief is absurd. Unbelief is absurd. How can you
not believe in the only begotten Son of God? And how can you be
in the ship with the only begotten Son of God and look at Him and
say, carest thou not that we perish? God manifest in the flesh was
in the ship with them. But we are so depraved and so
fearful that we can look God in the eye and say, don't you
care that I perish? Why? Because of circumstances,
because of a lack of faith. How absurd is it This is the
one who was in glory and came down condescended, was born of
a woman, born under the law, what to redeem them that were
under the law. And yet unbelief can look that
man, that God-man right in the eyes and say, don't you care
that we perish here? After he's already said we're going to pass
over. Now how can anyone say that our
depravity is not total? Come on now. And these are people
that were following him, that believed him. You mean believers have unbelief?
Yes. That's exactly what I mean, and
that's exactly what he's pointing out here. Of course unbelievers
don't believe. Come on. There's no sense in
pointing that out. But believers have a lack of
faith sometimes. They don't believe like they
should. And I'm as guilty of it as anybody else. Circumstances
affect me and not well. This is the way we are. And after he asked him this,
they feared exceedingly. He's already said you feared
and why do you fear? Like a fake guess what they feared
exceedingly and said one to another what manner of man is this that
even the wind and the sea obey him They were following him and
they didn't quite know it Guess what you follow him and
you're gonna still learn of him as you go The revelation of the
power of God in Jesus, Jesus Christ, causes fear in man. This is a fact. We are powerless
creatures. Now we might think we're strong.
And we may even be considered strong by another worm. A man,
excuse me, I'm not supposed to say worm. But when you come to
see the one whom the wind and the sea obey, it shows us just
exactly how without strength we are. When you are confronted
with the power of God in Jesus Christ, you will fear. And yet he tells us, fear not. Why? I am with thee. Where was
he? He's in the ship. He was with
them. He was in the ship. Who? The
God-man. Even though we see, we are less
than a drop in that ocean. Less than a drop in that sea.
He is with us. Now we can talk about this among
those we know and those who know him. What manner of man is this? He's the God man. He's the God
man. He is both man and God. And right now he is seated at
the right hand of the majesty on high. Believe Him. Believe Him. No matter the circumstance, no
matter what the problem is, no matter what we think the problem
is, our true problem with us is, always has been, and always
will be, unbelief. Our faith. That's the source.
A lack of faith and lack of believing on my part. It's not a lack of
the gift that he gave. The gift that he gave is perfect.
The fact is that I'm not perfect. And my old nature is carnal,
just as carnal as it was when I started. The problem with us is always
unbelief. And Mark five and verse one says,
and they came over to the other side of the sea into the country
of the Gadarenes. It doesn't matter how fearful
you are. If he says you're gonna make it to the other side, you're
gonna make it to the other side. Because it ain't up to you. It's
never been up to you. It's never been up to me. It
will never be up to me. God thank God and God help me
from ever thinking it's about me. Cause that's a form of unbelief. You remember that goofy song,
God's gonna get you for that. Ain't no use to run and hide
for he knows where you at. All people sang that song, they
just love that. If God's gonna get you, you're
dead. This is the one who says, let
us pass over to the other side. And they passed over to the other
side. And there's a lot of fear in
between that, in that little journey, just that one little
trip across that sea. But the fear didn't matter in
the course of the trip, because the course of the trip from beginning
to end is in the power of him that was in the ship, the God
man. They came over to the other side.
Why? How? Because he was in the ship
and he had spoken it. They're going to the other side
because he spoke it and he brought it to pass. He purposed it and
he did it. Christ Jesus has never promised
to keep you calm. He has promised to keep you.
God has never promised to keep you happy, but he has promised to keep you
in joy. The Lord has never promised to
keep you feeling safe, but he has promised to keep you safe. Jesus Christ has never promised
to keep you worry-free. A lot of preachers are promising
that, but Jesus Christ never promised that. He promised to
keep you freely. I like that, I like that. God
has never promised to keep you in the place you wanna be. He's
promised to keep you and to put you where He wants you. And the Lord's never promised
to keep you healthy. But He has promised to keep you and to bring
you home. Notice the pattern here. Because
whatever the Lord has promised comes to pass. I like that saying. I've spoken
it. I will bring it to pass. It's not up to us. It's not up
to me. It's not up to you. It's up to
Him. And He is going to do exactly
what He has said. He has purposed it and he's gonna
do it. Christ is in this ship. He has promised to never leave
you nor forsake you. Believe, fear not. God, I almost picked that song
this morning, Walter. God has not promised skies always
blue. flower-strewn pathways all the
way through. But he's promised strength is
our day, and he's promised light on our way. And here's some of
the light. I believe, help thou mine unbelief. It's still there. It's still
there. It's his ship. Now, just to be honest about
it, it's also his ship if he's not in it. Everything's his. There are other little ships,
but it says what? They were with him. However, it is safe in his ship. His ship is the safest place
to be. There is absolutely no reason
to fear in the ship with Jesus. Even if it sinks? Especially
if it sinks. What if it never makes it to
shore? That means you didn't need to be there. I'm not saying
this lightly or flippantly, this is the way it works. What he
says goes, and that means whether you live or die. I'm not trying
to be harsh, I'm not trying to be flight, I'm not trying to
be flippant, I'm trying to be a pastor at times. this is what happens to us there was a comedian told a joke
you know the thing about this life is nobody makes it out alive
that's pretty much it unless he comes we're not going to make
it out alive and there's going to be trials on the way and yes
you will fail in unbelief but take heart Well, I want to say this, right?
Let me get to it here. If he is with you, then you are
with him. And you will never be without
him. That's the thing. Because if he is with you, you
are in him and he is in you and he will never leave you and he
will never forsake you no matter your circumstances no matter
whether you feel it or not because there's times you don't
feel it there's dark times but he is the light He was in the ship and those
men were safe, even though they feared for their lives, even
though they feared exceedingly after they saw his power, they
were still in the ship. They were still with him and
they were still safe and they were still going to the other
side, just exactly as he had said. He doesn't need our belief to
work out anything. But it's better for you to believe
than to be an unbeliever. That's it. There's only two places to be
in this world. In Him and without Him. Don't trust in yourself. Believe
Him. I understand doubts and fears
arise. But don't doubt the Son of God. He's in the ship. He's in the
ship. And that ship is going to pass
over to that other side just exactly as He said. Believe and fear not. It's not fear not and then believe.
Believe you'll fear not Our Heavenly Father we're thankful again for
this time this place But most of all thankful For
your word which you have given to us words of grace words of
mercy That you will take care Of those you have called out
in this world through this life and through the end of it. Help us to take that to heart
and to believe and help our unbelief. In Christ's name we pray.