It is only a Test
NAU Matthew 14:22-33
22Immediately
He made the disciples
get into the boat
and
go ahead of Him to the other side,
while He sent the crowds away.
23 After
He had sent the crowds away,
He went up on the mountain
by Himself to pray;
and
when it was evening,
He was there alone.
24 But
the boat was already a long distance
from the land,
battered by the waves;
for the wind was contrary.
25 And
in the fourth watch of the night
He came to them,
walking on the sea.
26 When
the disciples saw Him
walking on the sea,
they were terrified,
and said, "It is a ghost!"
And
they cried out in fear.
27 But
immediately
Jesus spoke to them,
saying,
"Take courage,
it is I;
do not be afraid."
28 Peter said to Him,
"Lord, if it is You,
command me
to come to You on the water."
29 And
He said,
"Come!"
And
Peter
got out of the boat,
and
walked on the water
and
came toward Jesus.
30 But
seeing the wind,
he became frightened,
and
beginning to sink,
he cried out,
"Lord, save me!"
31 Immediately
Jesus stretched out His hand
and
took hold of him,
and
said to him,
"You of little faith,
why did you doubt?"
32 When
they got into the boat,
the wind stopped.
33 And
those who were in the boat worshiped Him,
saying, "You are certainly God's Son!"
IT IS ONLY A TEST
Matthew 14:22-33
Main Idea: Storms are designed to help you see Jesus like you
I. God uses storms to test your faith (vv 22-25)
a. God directs you into some stormy situations
b. God’s delay may seem to be at the worst time of the storm
c. God decides when to enter into your storm
II. Faith in Jesus is all you need to get through the storm (vv 26-31)
a. Jesus is the difference in midst of your storm
b. Demand to do things beyond human ability
c. Don’t allow your circumstances to diminish your faith.
III. Storms are designed to help you to see Jesus like you never seen Him before (vv 32-33)
a. Storms don’t last always
b. It is only a test
IV. Conclusion: Nobody in His Class – 1954 Chevy
This pericope of scripture occurs in Jesus’ third year of ministry on earth. His disciples have been following Him for some time now and they have witnessed many of His miraculous works. Water into wine; the healing of a leper; the raising of the widow’s son at Nain; they have even experienced it through the great catch of fish; the healing of Peter’s mother-in-law; the calming of the sea in Matthew 8 when they were in a storm; and they have heard His teachings and listened to His parables but the fact still remains that they still don’t truly know who Jesus really is. Many of you this morning, having been coming to church for long time, singing in the choir all your life, preaching in the pulpit, praying in the pews, having a time of devotion, serving on the usher board, hearing the testimony of God’s goodness to others while experiencing the His miraculous power for yourself but the truth of the matter is, we truly don’t know who Jesus really is. Jesus had just completed one of His most memorable miracles, the feeding of the five thousand plus with two fish and five loaves of bread of which the disciples collected the leftovers, twelve full baskets. The gospel of John says, the crowd called Jesus the Prophet to come and wanted to make Him king. Yet, all four gospels record no response from those who should have known Him best and responded in great awe, his disciples.
So God uses storms to test your faith. Storms rattle your cage of convenience and rock your world of comfort. Storms are personal, purposeful, and powerful in moving you to the next level in your spiritual journey with God. The text says, that Jesus made them; He compel them; He strongly urged them; in other words, He forced them to get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side while He sent the crowds away. Jesus is the only one who knew what was about to happen. So that tells me that there are times when God directs you into some stormy situations. There are some storms that are not a result of Satan or of your own stupidity but are God sent. There are some storms that you may find yourself in all because you were being obedient to God’s word. There are some storms that are coming that you can’t see but God has ordained for you enter into alone apart from Him. Because God uses storms to test your faith. The text says, that after Jesus finished sending the crowds away He went on the mountain alone to pray. And He prayed, and He prayed, and He prayed, then He prayed some more because verse 24 tells us that by the time Jesus finished praying that the boat was a long distant from the land. John’s gospel says, they were three or four miles out. Mark’s gospel says, that they were in the middle of the sea. They were not just a long way from Jesus but they found themselves being tossed and turned by the wind. They found themselves in the storm of all storms that had control of the vessel that they were trying to operate and facing opposition beyond their power. The text uses, “but”, a contrasting conjunction, meaning that while Jesus was praying they were trying to persevere. That while Jesus was praying, they were trying to keep from perishing. That while Jesus was praying, they were trying to preserve for their lives. Now you know, that if they were afraid back in Matthew chapter 8 when they found themselves in a storm and Jesus was in the boat with them, you can imagine how fearful they must be when Jesus is nowhere around them. Here is what I want you to see, God’s delay in coming to you seems to be at the worst time of the storm. When it seems that you are at the end of your rope in dealing with your husband or your wife and the next step is the courthouse, you wonder where is God at. When the situation on your job has gotten worst not better and you are ready to quit and cuss somebody out, you wonder where is God at. When your health continues on a downward spiral and you think all hope is lost, you wonder where is God when you need Him most. When that wayward child is in trouble again and your training, your guidance, your instruction in the things of God and your prays seems to have been all for not, you wonder if God really cares about me. What you have to understand is, not only does God direct you into some stormy situations and not only does God’s delay seems to come at the worst time of your storm, but also, that God decides when to enter into your storm. The text says, Jesus came to them in the fourth watch of the night. The Romans divided their guard duty into four periods from 6pm to 6am. The fourth watch of the night was between the hours of 3am and 6am. Jesus did not come in the first watch, 6pm to 9pm, or the second watch, 9pm to midnight, neither did He come in the third watch, midnight to 3am, but the text says that it was in the last watch. He came to them when they least expected Him but when they needed Him the most. He came to them in a way that they have never seen Him come before. Both of these tell me that you can’t put God in a box. God does not always show up when you think He ought to show up. And God does not always come in the same way He might have come in the past. But I tell you that He is a on time God, yes He is. And when He shows up, He shows out. The text says that He came walking on the sea, meaning that the very thing that is causing you so much trouble; so much pain; so much heartache and grief; He already has under His control. But the text also said that He came to them, meaning that He knew exactly where they were at all times. Psalm 121 says, The Lord will guard your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forever. God always knows where you are and what you are going through and He decides when it is time to enter into your storm. God uses storms to test your faith:
· Noah in building an Ark when it had never rain before
· Abraham in offering up Isaac, the son whom he loved
· Moses in going back to Egypt where he was wanted dead or alive
· The children of Israel, with the Egyptians on one side and the Red Sea on the other
· Daniel, stop praying to your God or be prey in the lions den
· Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego bow down or burn in the fiery furnace
· Peter and John imprisoned for healing and speaking in the name of Jesus.
· Paul beaten for teaching and preaching in the name of Jesus.
I tell you, God uses storms to test your faith. Faith in Jesus is all you need to get through the storm.
(See Old Sermon)
The text says, the wind stopped when they got into the boat. The very thing that had been tormenting them ceased when Jesus brought Peter back into the boat. This tells us two things. First, storms don’t last always. You might be in a storm, coming out of a storm or even heading toward a storm but you can be assured that it will come to an end. The second thing it tells you is that the storm was only a test. It was never meant to destroy you; nor was it ever meant to damage your faith. Storms have a means to an end. The text says, that those who were in the boat worshipped Him. They went from worrying to worship. They went from crying out for help to celebrating with praise. But more than that, in Matthew chapter 8 when Jesus got up and rebuked the wind, their response was what manner of man is this. But here they have come to understand that He is more than just:
· A man
· Mary’s baby
· A carpenter’s son
· A healer or doctor in a sick room
· A lawyer in the court room
They said, You are certainly God’s Son. You are truly the Son of God. They came to understand what I want you to leave here with this morning; Storms are designed to help you see Jesus like you never seen Him before.
Conclusion: In 1971, my father decided that he was going to take his 1954 Chevy out to the drag races, Green Valley Speedway. Where dragsters and funny cars as well as non-street legal race cars went to demonstrate their power. Now you have understand, that there was nothing special about this car. It was not a hotrod. It didn’t have the souped-up engine. He was not Mario Andretti or Dale Earnhardt. But some how he had decided that he was going to race his car. So, as kids, me and my brothers had to go see this embarrassing moment. We went, and in the first race my dad had barely got started before the other car was already down the track and across the finish line. We laughed and laughed and laughed. Then he said that he was going to race again. So he did and the same result and we laughed some more. When he came back to where we were standing, he said, come on, let’s go get my trophy. We said, what trophy? Man, you got burnt. There is no way you are getting a trophy. You must be tripping. You didn’t win not a single race. So we go over to the awards office and show-nuff he gets a trophy. We are puzzled, so we ask how in the world did you get that trophy. He said, what you don’t understand is that none of those cars where in my class. And that is all I am trying to tell you today is that you might have the power that other folks have. There might not be anything special about you. It might look like you lost to others. But when it is all said and done, you win, because there is no Jesus like your Jesus. There is no God like your God. There is no one in His class.
Introduction:
From 1963 to 1997 the Emergency Broadcast System was used as the emergency warning system in the USA. It was initiated as a civil defense mechanism that would allow the president to address the entire nation in an emergency situation. Although the system was never used for a national emergency, it was activated more than 20,000 times between 1976 and 1996 to broadcast civil emergency messages and warnings of severe weather hazards. Radio and television stations were required to perform a Weekly Transmission Test Of The Attention Signal and Test Script. Some of us can still hear that signal now. It would interrupt normal programming and the next things you would hear is “This is a test. For the next sixty seconds, this station will conduct a test of the Emergency Broadcast System. This is only a test.” St. John’s, I came by here this morning to interrupt your normal programming and tell you that whatever you are going through it is only a test. It might last sixty seconds; it might last six days; it might last six months; or it might even last six years but I came by to give you a message not from the Emergency Broadcast System but from the _________________________________.
IT IS ONLY A TEST.