To watch a video of this morning’s Worship Service (including the pastor’s message), simply click this link:
youtu.be/nLZD0Wl7-YQ?t=381
"Struggle"
Mark 6:45-52
The Internal Revenue Service decides to audit old Joey and summons him to their office. The IRS auditor isn’t surprised when Joey shows up with his attorney. The auditor says, “Well sir, you have an extravagant lifestyle and no full-time employment, which you explain by saying that you win money gambling. I’m not sure we find that believable.” Joey responds, “I’m a great gambler, and I can prove it. How about a demonstration?” The auditor thinks for a moment and says, “Okay. Go ahead.” Joey says, “I’ll bet you $1,000 that I can bite my own eye.” The auditor considers it and says, “It’s a bet.” Joey removes his glass eye and bites it. The auditor’s jaw drops. Joey says, “Now, I’ll bet you $2,000 that I can bite my other eye.” The auditor can tell Joey isn’t blind, so he takes the bet. Joey removes his dentures and bites his good eye. The stunned auditor realizes he’s wagered and lost three grand with Joey’s attorney standing there as a witness. He’s getting nervous.
“Want to go double or nothing?” Joey asks. “I’ll bet you $6,000 that I can stand on one side of your desk, throw that full glass of water into the wastebasket on the other side, and never get a drop anywhere in between.” The auditor, twice burned, is quite cautious now, but he studies the layout of the office carefully and decides there’s no way this old guy could possibly manage that stunt. So he agrees again. Joey stands on the desk and takes careful aim, but when he throws the glass, water covers the man’s desk, jacket, briefcase, and everything around it.
The auditor leaps with joy, realizing he’s turned a major loss into a huge win. But Joey’s attorney starts crying and puts his head in his hands. “Are you okay?” the auditor asks. “Not really,” says the attorney. “This morning, when Joey told me he’d been summoned for an audit, he bet me $10,000 that he could come in here and throw water all over your office and that you’d actually be very happy about it!”
Now what does that have to do with this scripture passage? Well, water of course, and struggling through troubled times! You see, there’s a lot of water in the Sea of Galilee, and the sea itself is often referred to in the Bible as a metaphor for our life’s most turbulent events. It’s deep and it’s dark and it’s mysterious. Plus, this sea in particular was known for the way storms so often just popped up out of nowhere. Haven’t there been a lot of storms that have popped up in your life out of nowhere?
A lot of you know that I’m an avid planner and scheduler. But that often carries over into making me an overthinker. It’s just that if life is like traveling on a roadway, then I’d like to know as much as possible where all the potholes lie so I can steer around them. But no matter how well I plan out any given day, I still plow into so many potholes. You may have tried this too. But you still splash into a whole bunch of potholes, don’t you? And some of those can be rough and deep and damaging and even rattling to you. Those complications in life just show up at the oddest times, don’t they? And we don’t always see them coming. There’s not one of us here who can say that our life hasn’t been surprised by pain or sorrow or distress.
Going up a hillside to pray, Jesus had sent His disciples on out across the water when the wind and waves kicked up. It got so bad that they were struggling with the oars just to try to keep the boat on course. That’s when Jesus came walking by—yes, on the water. Look closely and you’ll see that a disturbing part of this miracle is the response the disciples have to Jesus’ sudden appearance. For one, they do not recognize Him; and even worse, they are more frightened by His presence than His absence. Here He comes with all the power of God who controls the mighty forces of the wind and the sea; and He tries to reassure them by making Himself known in His glory and power, but it fails to calm their hearts. Instead, they are stupefied and frightened and confused.
But before we’re too critical of them, we need to realize that often Christ may pass by our lives in ways that we fail to see and that might frighten us. How do we see Him while we struggle in those dark, dim hours of the early morning, practically besieged by fret and worry? It may only become clear as we look back on it, as it did for those first disciples. Only later do we realize that in that horrible hour we were in the very presence of God and that Christ revealed His glory to us. But at the moment, we were too blind and too petrified to see it. We really should be alert then that in the times of discouragement and in the midst of our greatest fears, Christ is passing by, showing us His love and power and leading us across troubled waters.
But after all, the disciples missed it too. And yet Jesus never gives up on them in spite of their failures. In fact, time and again He takes them through the whole process once again so that they may understand and grow their faith. No, He does not require His disciples to take in everything immediately. He does not condemn them for their natural bent to human hardheartedness or for their inability to grasp the mind-boggling reality that God is right there in their midst in the very person of Jesus. What might we learn from this? That Jesus is far more patient with us than we could ever imagine! He was patient with them; He is and will be with us too.
For there is one thing that no one can miss in this miracle: Jesus clearly cares for His disciples. He sees their distress and comes to them during the darkest part of the night, when they are having trouble in the deepest part of the lake. He shows patience when they fail to see what it all means but recoil in fear. There is no rebuke, only calm assurance. And He then delivers them safely to the shore. Once more, He is the Savior who brings calm and deliverance. I think you can imagine the early Christians who heard this story taking great comfort in it as they applied it to their own distressed situation. Maybe you and I can take comfort in it too.
But there’s another thing we shouldn’t miss about this miracle: Jesus does not rescue His disciples out of the sea, but He does enable them to continue the voyage. His coming on the water is a lot like the letters to the churches in Revelation. Those churches receive word that the Lord knows what they have endured and are encouraged to continue to endure. The Lord knows the works, toil, and endurance of Ephesus; He knows the affliction and poverty of Smyrna; He knows the faithful witness of Pergamum in the midst of Satan’s badgering; He knows the patient endurance of Thyatira; He knows the weakness of Philadelphia. Yet still, He does not relieve them of their struggle; He only promises victory if they are faithful. They must continue in the struggle and keep rowing the boat. But the power to cross over the sea of life and reach the final destination is not theirs. That belongs to the Lord.
No matter who you are, no matter how much money you have, sometime in your life, something terribly difficult is going to come into your life. And you’ll have to keep struggling with the oars. We have to acknowledge that bad stuff happens. Unplanned events will occur in life and rock your boat. When that happens, you have two choices: you can aimlessly wallow in your despair, or you can put your trust in the One who will be with you as you row all the way to the shore. It may take some time for you to do so—sometimes it sure does for me—but the best thing you can ever do is to finally trust Jesus to get you all the way home. When life gets the most complicated, the faithful among us turn their eyes to Jesus.
Still, the struggle is real. Whenever someone confesses to me that he or she is struggling with some biblical or moral issue, I excitedly respond by saying, “That’s fantastic!” Upon getting a really strange look, I explain my reaction by saying, “Look! If you’re not struggling with something, then I’ve got to wonder what all temptations you’re simply giving in to. Think about it: If you don’t struggle with being Christlike, then you’ll never make gains toward becoming more Christlike.”
I have to think that God enjoys our wrestling with Him. After all, He changed Jacob’s name to Israel. And Israel would soon become the name for the nation of His chosen people. And perhaps the best translation of the word Israel is “he who wrestles with God.”
As long as we’re on this earth, every one of us wrestles with something. As a matter of fact, life itself can sometimes seem like a real long wrestling match. If you see life as somewhat of a struggle, you’re most likely looking at it realistically—even biblically. Job 5:7 says that we are “born to trouble as surely as the sparks fly upward.” Do you often find yourself in a jam—in a struggle? With whom is your struggle? And what does that struggle teach you about being a whole human being?
Like Jacob of old, every person at some point must struggle with God. It is how a person emerges from that struggle that determines his or her eternal destiny. Some will nonchalantly walk away neither having sought nor having received the blessing that God yearns to give them. But at least a few will stay in the struggle, continuing to seek the blessing, and finally, upon their surrender to God, will emerge from the struggle having received the blessing of an eternal life with the Lord. So put your faith in the One who will join you in the struggle—who will help you in the struggle. Put your trust in the One who will be in the boat with you as He sees you to the shore.
Let us pray: Lord, for those of us in need of committing our hearts to You, we acknowledge our sinful ways and ask that You, by the blood You shed on the cross, forgive us; we confess our belief that You alone are able to save us; and we thank You for such immense love and mercy and grace. And for those of us who have turned aside a bit and need to rededicate our lives to You, we pray that You would renew our faith, that You would get us back on the right path, and that You would strengthen our resolve and commitment to live for You. In Jesus’ name we pray.
youtu.be/nLZD0Wl7-YQ?t=381
"Struggle"
Mark 6:45-52
The Internal Revenue Service decides to audit old Joey and summons him to their office. The IRS auditor isn’t surprised when Joey shows up with his attorney. The auditor says, “Well sir, you have an extravagant lifestyle and no full-time employment, which you explain by saying that you win money gambling. I’m not sure we find that believable.” Joey responds, “I’m a great gambler, and I can prove it. How about a demonstration?” The auditor thinks for a moment and says, “Okay. Go ahead.” Joey says, “I’ll bet you $1,000 that I can bite my own eye.” The auditor considers it and says, “It’s a bet.” Joey removes his glass eye and bites it. The auditor’s jaw drops. Joey says, “Now, I’ll bet you $2,000 that I can bite my other eye.” The auditor can tell Joey isn’t blind, so he takes the bet. Joey removes his dentures and bites his good eye. The stunned auditor realizes he’s wagered and lost three grand with Joey’s attorney standing there as a witness. He’s getting nervous.
“Want to go double or nothing?” Joey asks. “I’ll bet you $6,000 that I can stand on one side of your desk, throw that full glass of water into the wastebasket on the other side, and never get a drop anywhere in between.” The auditor, twice burned, is quite cautious now, but he studies the layout of the office carefully and decides there’s no way this old guy could possibly manage that stunt. So he agrees again. Joey stands on the desk and takes careful aim, but when he throws the glass, water covers the man’s desk, jacket, briefcase, and everything around it.
The auditor leaps with joy, realizing he’s turned a major loss into a huge win. But Joey’s attorney starts crying and puts his head in his hands. “Are you okay?” the auditor asks. “Not really,” says the attorney. “This morning, when Joey told me he’d been summoned for an audit, he bet me $10,000 that he could come in here and throw water all over your office and that you’d actually be very happy about it!”
Now what does that have to do with this scripture passage? Well, water of course, and struggling through troubled times! You see, there’s a lot of water in the Sea of Galilee, and the sea itself is often referred to in the Bible as a metaphor for our life’s most turbulent events. It’s deep and it’s dark and it’s mysterious. Plus, this sea in particular was known for the way storms so often just popped up out of nowhere. Haven’t there been a lot of storms that have popped up in your life out of nowhere?
A lot of you know that I’m an avid planner and scheduler. But that often carries over into making me an overthinker. It’s just that if life is like traveling on a roadway, then I’d like to know as much as possible where all the potholes lie so I can steer around them. But no matter how well I plan out any given day, I still plow into so many potholes. You may have tried this too. But you still splash into a whole bunch of potholes, don’t you? And some of those can be rough and deep and damaging and even rattling to you. Those complications in life just show up at the oddest times, don’t they? And we don’t always see them coming. There’s not one of us here who can say that our life hasn’t been surprised by pain or sorrow or distress.
Going up a hillside to pray, Jesus had sent His disciples on out across the water when the wind and waves kicked up. It got so bad that they were struggling with the oars just to try to keep the boat on course. That’s when Jesus came walking by—yes, on the water. Look closely and you’ll see that a disturbing part of this miracle is the response the disciples have to Jesus’ sudden appearance. For one, they do not recognize Him; and even worse, they are more frightened by His presence than His absence. Here He comes with all the power of God who controls the mighty forces of the wind and the sea; and He tries to reassure them by making Himself known in His glory and power, but it fails to calm their hearts. Instead, they are stupefied and frightened and confused.
But before we’re too critical of them, we need to realize that often Christ may pass by our lives in ways that we fail to see and that might frighten us. How do we see Him while we struggle in those dark, dim hours of the early morning, practically besieged by fret and worry? It may only become clear as we look back on it, as it did for those first disciples. Only later do we realize that in that horrible hour we were in the very presence of God and that Christ revealed His glory to us. But at the moment, we were too blind and too petrified to see it. We really should be alert then that in the times of discouragement and in the midst of our greatest fears, Christ is passing by, showing us His love and power and leading us across troubled waters.
But after all, the disciples missed it too. And yet Jesus never gives up on them in spite of their failures. In fact, time and again He takes them through the whole process once again so that they may understand and grow their faith. No, He does not require His disciples to take in everything immediately. He does not condemn them for their natural bent to human hardheartedness or for their inability to grasp the mind-boggling reality that God is right there in their midst in the very person of Jesus. What might we learn from this? That Jesus is far more patient with us than we could ever imagine! He was patient with them; He is and will be with us too.
For there is one thing that no one can miss in this miracle: Jesus clearly cares for His disciples. He sees their distress and comes to them during the darkest part of the night, when they are having trouble in the deepest part of the lake. He shows patience when they fail to see what it all means but recoil in fear. There is no rebuke, only calm assurance. And He then delivers them safely to the shore. Once more, He is the Savior who brings calm and deliverance. I think you can imagine the early Christians who heard this story taking great comfort in it as they applied it to their own distressed situation. Maybe you and I can take comfort in it too.
But there’s another thing we shouldn’t miss about this miracle: Jesus does not rescue His disciples out of the sea, but He does enable them to continue the voyage. His coming on the water is a lot like the letters to the churches in Revelation. Those churches receive word that the Lord knows what they have endured and are encouraged to continue to endure. The Lord knows the works, toil, and endurance of Ephesus; He knows the affliction and poverty of Smyrna; He knows the faithful witness of Pergamum in the midst of Satan’s badgering; He knows the patient endurance of Thyatira; He knows the weakness of Philadelphia. Yet still, He does not relieve them of their struggle; He only promises victory if they are faithful. They must continue in the struggle and keep rowing the boat. But the power to cross over the sea of life and reach the final destination is not theirs. That belongs to the Lord.
No matter who you are, no matter how much money you have, sometime in your life, something terribly difficult is going to come into your life. And you’ll have to keep struggling with the oars. We have to acknowledge that bad stuff happens. Unplanned events will occur in life and rock your boat. When that happens, you have two choices: you can aimlessly wallow in your despair, or you can put your trust in the One who will be with you as you row all the way to the shore. It may take some time for you to do so—sometimes it sure does for me—but the best thing you can ever do is to finally trust Jesus to get you all the way home. When life gets the most complicated, the faithful among us turn their eyes to Jesus.
Still, the struggle is real. Whenever someone confesses to me that he or she is struggling with some biblical or moral issue, I excitedly respond by saying, “That’s fantastic!” Upon getting a really strange look, I explain my reaction by saying, “Look! If you’re not struggling with something, then I’ve got to wonder what all temptations you’re simply giving in to. Think about it: If you don’t struggle with being Christlike, then you’ll never make gains toward becoming more Christlike.”
I have to think that God enjoys our wrestling with Him. After all, He changed Jacob’s name to Israel. And Israel would soon become the name for the nation of His chosen people. And perhaps the best translation of the word Israel is “he who wrestles with God.”
As long as we’re on this earth, every one of us wrestles with something. As a matter of fact, life itself can sometimes seem like a real long wrestling match. If you see life as somewhat of a struggle, you’re most likely looking at it realistically—even biblically. Job 5:7 says that we are “born to trouble as surely as the sparks fly upward.” Do you often find yourself in a jam—in a struggle? With whom is your struggle? And what does that struggle teach you about being a whole human being?
Like Jacob of old, every person at some point must struggle with God. It is how a person emerges from that struggle that determines his or her eternal destiny. Some will nonchalantly walk away neither having sought nor having received the blessing that God yearns to give them. But at least a few will stay in the struggle, continuing to seek the blessing, and finally, upon their surrender to God, will emerge from the struggle having received the blessing of an eternal life with the Lord. So put your faith in the One who will join you in the struggle—who will help you in the struggle. Put your trust in the One who will be in the boat with you as He sees you to the shore.
Let us pray: Lord, for those of us in need of committing our hearts to You, we acknowledge our sinful ways and ask that You, by the blood You shed on the cross, forgive us; we confess our belief that You alone are able to save us; and we thank You for such immense love and mercy and grace. And for those of us who have turned aside a bit and need to rededicate our lives to You, we pray that You would renew our faith, that You would get us back on the right path, and that You would strengthen our resolve and commitment to live for You. In Jesus’ name we pray.
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