In Mark's Gospel chapter 4, just
previous to the verses we read a moment ago, let's pick up the
reading in chapter 4 at verse 35. And the same day when the
evening was come, he saith unto them, that is the Lord Jesus,
let us pass over into 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 said 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? This is the conclusion of a long
day in the life of our Lord, or rather it's drawing to a close. If you'd read the entire chapter,
you would find that the Lord had spent the day preaching to
multitudes of people in the open air. And he was tired. He was tired. He was wore out.
Imagine that. Is it any wonder that Paul said,
great is the mystery of godliness? God was manifest in the flesh. That one who created heavens
and earth, He that was very God, all of God, yet grew tired, grew
weary. But before he could end his day's
labors and retire for the night, there was one more thing that
he must do. One more thing. That's why in
verse 35 he commanded, let us pass over into the other side
for this one last thing he must do. The very same reason that
we read in another place, in John's Gospel, another verse
much like this one, where we're told that he must, needs go through
Samaria for one reason, just as it is here. Let us pass over
into the other side because on the other side, there's one there. He isn't aware of it yet. He
doesn't know it yet. He shall soon know it. But on
the other side of the sea, in the country of the Gadarenes,
there's one there that God the Father gave to his son, I was going to say long before
this, but that's not correct, before time ever was, This poor
man that we read of in Mark chapter 5, God the Father had loved with
an everlasting love and had entrusted that man's salvation, that man's
eternal salvation, into the hands of his darling son. That's why
the Son of God came for this man, sinners just like him. That's why he had lived as he
did before God's holy law fulfilling every jot and tittle, one that
he would rather soon die for, that he would lay down his life
for this one that the Father had given him. Now he must, for
that one, pass over the sea and to the other side to seek and
to save this one lost sheep. See the great shepherd as he
seeks his sheep. Look again, if you will. I know
we read it earlier, but look again at verse 1 of chapter 5.
And they came over to the other side of the sea, just as he said
they would, storm or not, into the country of the Gadarenes.
And when he was come out of the ship, immediately there met him
out of the tombs, a man with an unclean spirit. And notice
this man's condition. He's a picture of what we all
are by nature, helpless, hopeless, who had his dwelling among the
tombs. Paul in Ephesians 2 said, we
were all like everyone else, dead in trespasses and sins,
walking the course of this world, and were by nature the children
of wrath, even as others. That's what this man pictures.
And no man could bind him, no, not with chains, because he had
been often bound with fetters. and chains, and the chains had
been plucked asunder by him, and the fetters broken in pieces,
neither could any man tame him, and always day and night." What
a pitiful picture. What a pitiful, hopeless picture. He was in the mountains and in
the tombs crying and cutting himself with stones. But all of that was about to
change. All of that was about to change.
Look again at verse 6. But, but, this is why it was
about to change. But when he saw Jesus, because
the great shepherd had come to seek and to save the lost, he
cried with a loud voice, what have we to do with thee, Jesus,
thou son of the most high God? I adjure thee by God that thou
torment me not. For he has said unto him, Come
out of the man, thou unclean spirit." He's a trophy, or rather,
you have an example here again of our Lord's amazing power and
grace. Look down, if you will, at verse
15. And they came to Jesus, the townspeople,
and they see him that was possessed, past tense. He's not possessed
anymore. was possessed with the devil
and had the legion setting, oh, what a different picture this
is from what he was before. If any man be in Christ... No
exceptions. If any man's in Christ, he's
a new creation. Old things are passed away. Behold,
all things become new. So it was with this man, setting
and clothed and in his right mind, and they were afraid. The great shepherd said he came
to seek and to save the loft. He said other sheep he had, and
this man was one of them. Who would have thought that?
Who would have thought that? Seeing this lunatic, this demoniac,
out in the cemetery, completely out of his mind, if someone would
have told you, he's an object of God's everlasting love. He's
one the Son of God came for. And soon the great shepherds
will come to him and cast out every demon. and make him a trophy
of his sovereign grace. He was one that our Lord spoke
of when he said, other sheep I have which are not of this
fold, them also I like how he speaks, don't you? Them also
I must bring. But what if they're not willing?
What if they won't cooperate? What if they don't take the first
step? Will your hands be tied? Oh,
no, no, no. Them also I must bring and there
will be one fold and one shepherd. Oh, what a picture of his abounding
grace. Listen to what the great shepherd
tells this newly found sheep in verse 19. This recently converted
man, he tells them, go home to thy friends and tell them what
you did for God. No, that wouldn't be true. That
wouldn't be accurate. No, you go home and tell them
this. Tell them how great things the Lord had done for you. You
go home and tell them, to God be the glory, great things he
has done and have had compassion on thee. Go and tell them this
story of God's great grace and wondrous mercy upon you. Was this man qualified to do
that? I mean, he had just met the Lord. He had just been delivered. He
had just been saved. Was he qualified to go tell about
it? Absolutely. The moment he had
tasted of the grace of God, he could then go tell all around. The moment he had experienced
it and tasted that the Lord indeed is gracious, he was then qualified
to go and tell all around what a dear Savior he had found. Go home. Don't go and try to
preach. Don't go and argue the great
doctrines of the Bible, but just go home and in your own words,
in your own way, tell your own experience. Nobody else can do
that but you. And tell them what great things
the Lord has done for you. And that's exactly what he did. Now look back in chapter 4 at
verse 35. Verse 35. And the same day when
the evening was come, The Lord Jesus said unto his disciples,
said unto them, let us pass over unto the other side. As you well
know, our life is often depicted in scripture as a voyage upon
the sea. It's a voyage that we're not
waiting to take. but it's a voyage that we're
taking right now. Right now we're passing through
this world. It's a voyage that's often on
stormy seas, perhaps more often than not. Turn, if you will,
to Psalm 107. We have here one of the examples
of our life being depicted as a vessel upon a stormy sea in
Psalm 107. Psalm 107, verse 23. We read
here They that go down to the sea
in ships that do business in great waters, these see the works
of the Lord and his wonders in the deep. For he commandeth and
raiseth the stormy wind which lifteth up the waves thereof.
They mount up to the heaven. They go down again to the depths.
Their soul is melted because of trouble. They reel to and
fro and stagger like a drunken man and are at their wits' end. Can you identify with that? Ever
felt that? At your wits' end? Then, just
like the disciples did. Master, don't you care that we're
about to perish? Then they cry unto the Lord.
Not until the storm came, but then they cry unto the Lord in
their trouble, and he bringeth them out of their distresses. Yes, our life is often upon a
stormy sea, but that's not the whole story, is it? That's not
the whole story. Christ is with us on this voyage. He's in the ship, too. And that,
likewise, is a present reality. Presently, we're on a sea. Our life is a voyage upon a sea.
And sometimes, as we said, it's a stormy sea, but Christ is always
with us. Whether we're aware of it or
not, whether he has manifested himself to us or not, he has
promised, I will never leave you, I will never forsake you. Over waters still or troubled
sea, still tis God's hand that leadeth me. Again, in Psalm 107,
we read this. Then in verse 29, he maketh the
storm a calm, so that the ways thereof are still. Then are they
glad, because they be quiet. So he bringeth them unto their
desired haven. Verse 31. Oh, that men would
praise the Lord for His goodness and for His wonderful works to
the children of men. Oh, His wonderful works. The
voyage that takes us to the other side requires a miracle of God's
grace. It requires a great salvation. And it requires a great Savior. Our Lord is a great God and Savior,
just like I need. I can't get by with less than
that. Less than a mighty God. Less
than one that is mighty to save won't help this sinner. I need
a great God and Savior because I'm a great sinner. Now back
in Mark chapter 4, listen to the captain of our salvation.
Listen to the master of the sea speak. Verse 39, can you just
picture this? At least four of these fellas
were experienced fishermen. They'd seen storms before, so
this apparently was a very fierce one because even they were fearful
for their lives. So the Lord stands out on the
deck of that ship. He arose, verse 39, and rebuked
the wind. What manner of man is this? And
said unto the sea, Peace be still. And the wind ceased, and there
was a great calm. Listen at verse 40. Why are ye
so fearful? How is it that ye have no faith? Why are ye so fearful? Was he
still not on board? Is he still not the mighty God? Does he not declare, I will lose
none? Has he not promised us, I will
never leave you or never forsake you? Yes, he's still in the ship. Compared to that storm, compared
to the storms that's in our life, he has his way in the storm. He has His way in the storm and
the clouds are but the dust of His feet. What storm can compare
to Him? What storm in your life can compare
to Him? What storm can be greater than
His power and grace? Is He up to the challenge? If
He be for us, if He be for us, who can be against us? Now let's
notice just two or three things here in these last few verses
of Mark 4. And I hope that there'll be a
comfort to your soul. Notice again 1st verse 35. Our Lord says, let us pass over
unto the other side. Let us pass over. I'm so glad
that he put it that way, aren't you? He didn't say, you go. You're on your own. Do the best
you can. No, no, no, no. He said, let
us. That includes him. Not us without
him, but us with him. And this wasn't just a suggestion. This was a command. If not, none
would ever reach the other side. I mean, none would ever reach
heaven. None would ever reach glory. None would ever be with
the Lord. None would ever be to this blessed
place. Turn, if you will, to Revelation
chapter 21. If Christ be not with us, if
Christ doesn't lead all of his dear children along, then this
will never be realized. What we read up here in chapter
21 of Revelation, John said, I saw a new heaven, a new earth. Peter said, one in which dwelleth
righteousness. Sin is being purged. No more
sin, no more darkness. And I saw a new heaven and a
new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth were passed
away, and there was no more sea. And I, John, saw the holy city,
New Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as
a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out
of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men,
and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people,
and God himself shall be with them and be their God. And God
shall wipe away all tears from their eyes. And there shall be
no more death, neither sorrow nor crying, neither shall there
be any more pain, for the former things are passed away. And he
that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I do this. I do this. Behold, I make all
things new. And he said unto me, Write, for
these words are true and faithful. And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning
and the end. I will give to him that is a
thirst of the fountain of the water of life. Look down here
in verse 22 of Revelation 21. And I saw no temple therein,
for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it.
And the city had no need of the sun, neither of the moon to shine
in it, for the glory of God did lighten it, and the Lamb is the
light thereof. He says, let us pass over unto
the other side. where i am there he she'll be
also without him there would be no us Without our glorious
bridegroom, there would be no bride. Without the head, nobody,
no church. Oh, but with him, we read there
in Revelation 21, John saw the church, the New Jerusalem coming
down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for
her husband. Who prepared her thus? Who prepared
her? The bridegroom, of course. We're
his workmanship. As he told that demoniac, you
go home and tell your family. Tell your friends what God did
for you. When they ask the reason of the
great change that's in you, you tell them what God's done for
you, what great compassion He's had upon you. Turn, if you will,
to Isaiah, Isaiah chapter 54. Here we have the promise of our great God
and Savior concerning his faithfulness to his church in Isaiah chapter
54. Remember what he asked his disciples? Why are ye so fearful? Why are ye afraid? Fear not,
in verse 4 of Isaiah 54, fear not, for thou shalt not be ashamed,
neither be thou confounded, for thou shalt not be put to shame.
For thou shalt forget the shame of thy youth, and shalt not remember
the reproach of thy widowhood any more. For thy maker is thine
husband." And what a husband, what a faithful, faithful husband
our Lord is to his own. The Lord of hosts is his name,
and thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel, the God of the whole
earth shall he be called. The Lord hath called thee as
a woman forsaken and grieved in spirit, and a wife of youth,
when thou wast refused, saith thy God. For a small moment have
I forsaken thee, but with great mercies will I gather thee. In
a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment, but with
everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the Lord
thy Redeemer. For this is as the waters of
Noah unto me, for as I have sworn that the waters of Noah shall
no more go over the earth, So have I sworn that I will not
be wroth with thee, nor rebuke thee. For the mountains shall
depart, and the hills be removed, but my kindness shall not depart
from thee, neither shall the covenant of my peace be removed,
saith the Lord that hath mercy on thee." Oh, thank God that
he put it that way. Let us pass over. Not long before he was made sin
for us, he said, except the corn of weeds fall into the ground
and die, it abideth alone. But if it die, if it die, what's
the outcome? It bringeth forth much fruit. Brother, our Lord did not die
for a perchance. He did not die for a maybe. The prophet said he'll see it
to develop his soul and he shall be satisfied. Romans 8, we know
that all things work together for good to them that love God,
to them who are thee called according to his purpose. For whom he did
foreknow, he did also predestinate to be conformed to the image
of his son. Why? That he His son, our glorious
bridegroom, should be the firstborn among many brethren. Why did Jesus Christ come? Call his name Jesus. our Joshua,
our Savior, the salvation of the Lord. Call his name Jesus,
for he shall save his people from their sins. And again, the prophet said,
he shall not fail. He shall save all of his people
from all of their sins, and he shall not fail. He shall bear
their sins away in his own body on the tree, and he shall not
fail. We shall be made the very righteousness
of God in him, and he shall not fail. Turn, if you will, to John's
Gospel, chapter 6. I know this is a very familiar
passage of scripture. Like me, you probably know it
by heart, but let's look at it again. Here is the captain of
our salvation, the master of the sea, speaking at verse 35,
and he says this, I am the bread of life. He that cometh to me
shall never hunger, and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. But I say unto you that ye also
have seen me and believed not, Does that make the purpose of
God void? Oh no, no. Our Lord says in verse
37, all that the Father giveth me shall come to me. And him
that comes to me I will in no wise cast out for I came down
from heaven not to do mine own will but the will of him that
sent me. And this is the Father's will which is sent me, that of
all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise
it up again at the last day. And this is the will of him that
sent me, that everyone which seeth the Son and believeth on
him may have everlasting life, and I will raise him up at the
last day. The same day at evening the Master
may come." Just as we read there in verse 35. The master may come
and call for thee. Remember what our Lord said in
this high priestly prayer, Father, I want them, I will, that all
those you gave me be with me where I am. How could he possibly
be satisfied? If one that the Father entrusted
to him, one that he lived and died for, should not be with
him in glory, oh no, he shall see it to develop his soul and
be satisfied. I want them with me where I am. Who's going to prevent that?
Who's going to stop that? What power is that that can prevent
the Son of God from having all for whom he suffered and died
with him in heaven forever? Oh, he says, let us pass over
into the other side. Who's the most important person
in the ship, in the vessel? On whom does the success of the
journey depend? Upon the disciples? Upon them? Preachers tell poor sinners the
bad news that God's done all he can do and now it's up to
them. Oh no, that's not good news and
that's not the message of the gospel. Look what the disciples
said in verse 38. They're just a picture of perfect
weakness and fear. Master, don't you even care that
we perish? He would have to perish first.
Before they would perish, He would have to perish with them.
Oh, I'm glad that it's not depending upon them. They're a picture
of you and I. Have we not all done the same?
Anybody here not guilty? Have we not all said to ourselves,
Perhaps more than once we're going to perish. Don't you care?
God, aren't you aware of what's happening now? Oh, I think far
too much, far too much of myself and not near enough, not near
enough of the faithfulness, the power, the love, the mercy, the
greatness of my Redeemer. Not nearly enough. I make too
much of myself and not nearly enough of him. Now notice verse
37. And there arose a great storm
of wind and the waves beat into the ship so that it was now full. And so it happens. So it happens. Remember who gave the command?
He makes all the difference. Who sent the storm? For his own
glory and for their good. As we sing, when the storms of
life are raging, stand by me. The storms come. God sends the
storms in His own good and wise purpose and providence. He sends
the storms our way. Oh, but He also sends the sufficiency
of His grace, His Word, His promise, His presence, and He stands by
us. And we come through those storms,
and like the disciples, we say, what manner of man is this? Oh,
what a Savior! What a Savior is our Lord and
Savior Jesus Christ. Let me read a few more verses
to you from Isaiah. Isaiah chapter 44. Another promise
of our God to his church, his chosen, his people. In Isaiah
chapter 44 verse 21. Listen to this sweet word. Remember
these, O Jacob. Isaiah 44 and 21. Remember these,
O Jacob. In Israel, that's us. For thou
art my servant, I have formed thee. Thou art my servant, O
Israel, thou shalt not be forgotten of me. Thou shalt not be forgotten
of me. I have blotted out as a thick
cloud thy transgressions and as a cloud thy sins. Return unto
me, for I have redeemed thee. Sing, O ye heavens, for the Lord
hath done it. Shout, ye lower parts of the
earth. Break forth into singing ye mountains, O forest, and every
tree therein. For the Lord hath redeemed Jacob
and glorified himself in Israel. chapter forty-nine in Isaiah.
Isaiah chapter forty-nine, verse thirteen. Sing, O heavens, and be joyful,
O earth, and break forth into singing, O mountains, for the
Lord hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his
afflicted. But Zion said, The Lord hath
forsaken me, that's what the disciples said, and my Lord hath
forgotten me. Can a woman forget her sucking
child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her
womb? Yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold,
I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands, thy walls are continually
before me. What about that one we made mention
of this morning, that poor dying thief? Someone said he was at
the very trap door of hell, and he asked the Lord Jesus Christ
in that moment, of all moments, he said, Lord, remember me. Remember me. Lester, not much else matters. Not much else really matters.
Oh, if I am his and he is mine, not much else matters. And he
does remember us. He'll never forsake or forget
one of his own. Remember me, and you remember.
You remember well our Lord's answers of that dying thief.
Today, today thou shalt be with me in paradise. This thief had
nothing to plead. He had no works. He wasn't even
baptized. He had no merit whatsoever. But he had this. The Lord said,
today thou shalt be with me, with me, crossing over Jordan,
with me before God, with me forever. And what's true of that dying
thief is true of every redeemed sinner. We sing, the dying thief
rejoiced to see that fountain in his day. And there may I,
though vile as he, wash all my sins away. Yes, I can. Yes, I can. Bless his name. His blood doesn't lose its power. That thief, that morning, was
in a state of fallen nature, as we all are, lost and without
hope. By noon, by noon, he's in a state
of grace. And before the sun went down
that day, he was in glory with his Redeemer. Christ said, with
me today in paradise, with Christ himself. Notice again here in
Mark 4 verse 39. Verse 39, last of all, and our
Lord arose, he arose, oh can you picture him, in glorious
sovereign majesty, possessing all power in heaven and in earth,
and he arose Oh, they must obey the voice of their master, their
creator. He created the heavens and the
earth. They obey his command and his voice. And he arose and
rebuked the wind and said unto the sea, peace be still, and
here's the result. And the wind ceased immediately.
And there was a great calm. The prince of peace alone can
produce peace with just the word of his gracious mouth. To every
troubled heart, the Prince of Peace can speak peace, and in
an instant, there'll be a great calm. We've all experienced it,
haven't we? Haven't we? Hasn't He come to
us? When the storms of life are raging,
when we think to ourselves, the next wave will be the end of
me, I can take no more, and He comes as only He can. Others
have come and they've tried to speak to us. They've tried to
comfort us to no avail. Oh, but when He comes, He comes
and takes us up and He whispers a word of grace, peace into our
hearts. I'm with you. I'm here, I'm not
abandoned ship, I'm with you always, and oh, He produces a
great calm. He's done for us what only He
can do. Nothing is too hard for our Lord. And our reaction is just as theirs
was. What a Savior. What a savior. Never a man spake like this man. This is what they said in verse
21. They feared exceedingly and said
one to another, what manner of man is this? That even the wind
and the sea obey him. Oh, for grace. Oh, for grace
to trust him more. The story began with our Lord's
command. Let us pass over into the other
side. Well, did they? Did they? Well, of course they did. Verse
1 of chapter 5, and they came over unto the other side. And so shall we. So shall we. Turn, if you will, to Revelation
chapter 7. I know I often read this portion
of God's Word to you, but it's one of my favorites. Here's a
picture. Here's a picture of all of his redeemed passing over
into the other side in Revelation 7, verse 9. And after this, I beheld and
lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations
and kindreds and people and tongues stood before the throne and before
the land, What a sight. What a sight. Clothed with white
robes and palms in their hands and crowded with a loud voice. saying, Salvation to our God,
which sat upon the throne and unto the Lamb. And all the angels
stood round about the throne and about the elders and the
four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces and
worshipped God, saying, Amen. Blessing and glory and wisdom
and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be unto our God
forever and ever. Amen. And one of the elders answered,
saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes,
and whence came they? And I said unto him, Sir, thou
knowest. And he said to me, These are
they which came out, which crossed over every stormy sea, every
trial, every heartache. They came out. They weren't overcome
by it. They weren't overthrown by it.
It worked together for their good. These are they which came
out of great tribulation. What a testimony to the sufficiency
of God's mighty grace, that every one of them came out. They all
experienced it. None of them were exempt. They
all went through storms. But bless His name, they all
came out, not one perished, and have washed their robes and made
them white in the blood of the Lamb. are they before the throne
of God, and serve him day and night in his temple. And he that
setteth on the throne shall dwell among them. They shall hunger
no more, neither thirst any more, neither shall the sun light on
them, nor any heat. For the land which is in the
midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto
living fountains of waters. And God shall wipe away all tears
from their eyes through many dangers, Through many dangers,
toils and snares, we have already come. It is grace that's brought
us safe thus far. And grace, His grace, will lead
us home. Amen. Amen. God bless you.