High Anxiety, Mark 4:35-41
How many of you are chronic worriers? You say, I never worry. I just suffer from anxiety. Some of you worry all the time. And if you don't have anything to worry about, you go out and invent something to worry about. I am temped to worry as much as anyone. But God has shown me over and over again that He loves me. And when I have His perspective, I also feel secure, and tend to feel less anxious than I otherwise
would have. These are very anxious times in which we live. Its hard not to be anxious-about your future, your families, etc. In the title of my message Jesus helps us to calm our high anxiety, by saying before the journey begins: Let’s cross over to the
other side, peace be still, and helps us to examine our own hearts by asking, “Why are you so fearful?”
I.First of all, we hear Jesus saying, "Let us cross over to the other side." Now, understand that whenever Jesus said something, there is more to be understood by it than just at face value. Every word He said was not only truth, but filled with meaning.
If Jesus looked out of the Sea of Galillee and somehow sensed or felt that they were not going to make it when they got into the boat, I doubt very seriously He would have allowed His disciples to get into it. There was purpose to cross over to the other side.
There was the Father's work that needed to be done. There were people to preach the Gospel to over in Decapolis. There were demons over there that needed to be cast out, and people who needed to be healed. Jesus said, "Let us cross over to the other side,"
because He knew the future. He could see what was coming and had every confidence that He was going where the Father wanted Him to be.
You say, "well, that is all very well and good, but I don't know the future, and I don't know what is going to happen." But you do know. At the very least, if you know the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord, you know the very one who not only
knows the future-He controls the future. My friends, that is even better, because of what good would it do you if you knew the future, and you couldn't do anything about it? And before you can even comprehend what it all means, there is something you will
need to do, and that is make a committment. Make a committment to what? Make the same commitment that the Disciples of Jesus Christ made when they decided to get into that boat with Jesus.They obeyed what He said, "Let us cross over to the other side."
To the other side? To the other side of what? You see, there was more than just a sea that needed to be crossed that day. These men had to cross over in their hearts from having control over their own lives to placing their lives into the hands of Almighty God. That is the first step to overcoming anxiety. Understand, up to this point, it had been fairly
easy for the disciples to follow Jesus. Other than the fact that Jesus had extended a call to them, there had not been that many demands placed upon them. They were what we call, "apprentice disciples." They were disciples who just listened to what Jesus said as
He spoke and taught. They had watched Jesus heal people. They had witnessed Him raising the dead.They had seen Him cast out demons,and do other mighty works in the context of that preaching and teaching. But all this activity never really required anything of them until Jesus said, "Let us cross over to the other side." That was when it was time to move up to the next level. It was time to move from being an apprentice disciple, to a journeyman. It was time to participate and know that what Jesus taught was true and real.
And I want to ask you this morning, "What is Jesus asking you now?" Is He saying to you, "Its time to cross over to the other side?" Is it time for you to move from being a spectator to being a minister? Is it time to cross over from being a pew-sitter to
being a participant? Just coming to hear good messages and Bible studies is not enough; for in order for any of the wonderful things that we hear about week in and week out about the life and ministry of Jesus Christ we have to apply and to put into practice for
them to do anything meaningful. It is not only a commitment to cross over, but also a commitment to go forward. Jesus said “No man who puts his hand first to the plow and then looks back is fit for the kingdom of Heaven.” Some people say they have
made the commitment to cross over, but really they haven’t. And no wonder they fret
and worry so much because when it comes to commitment to Jesus Christ, they always
try to leave the back-door open, just in case things don’t work out. The first sign of
trouble, out they go without giving Jesus a chance. It all boils down to
this-committment means putting Jesus in control. These Disciples, I think, understood
that. Perhaps they went reluctantly, perhaps they went eagerly. I do not know. But I do
know this-they were obedient. And in that boat they declared by their actions, not just
by their words, that Jesus was in control. They could not have one foot on the shore
and one foot on the boat. That is a recipe for disaster.
Years ago, when my wife was about to give birth to our first child, I took her to
the doctors office for a check-up. But when we arrived, we discovered that the doctor
was called out to deliver a baby at the hospital, and we were asked if we could return in
about two hours. It was very hot in Pittsburgh that summer. Since we were some
distance from home, we decided to go over to nearby North Park and relax and pass the
time until it was time to return to the doctor's office. We watched people getting in and
out of small row boats on a dock by the lake and we thought how nice it would be if we
would go out for a while in one of those little boats. So at the boat landing I paid the
fee for the boat for about an hour and the young man at the dock threw life vests at us to
put on. I helped Robin on with hers, and then I started to put mine on. But I had
forgotten to tell Robin not to do anything until I got to the boat to help her into it. Well,
Robin decided to save me the trouble, and started to step into the boat herself. She took
a step into the boat as the guy at the dock just watched her, holding the rope in his hand.
The boat started moving away from the side of the dock and slid out from underneath of
her with her other foot still firmly on shore. That was when I heard her scream just in
time to watch her fall right into the lake. There wasn't anything I could do except watch
her fall in. Thankfully, because of her nine-month condition, and because of her
life-vest, she did not submerge. Let me ask you this morning, if you are now suffering
from anxiety, have you yet made that commitment to cross over with both feet planted
in the vessel under the control of the Lord Jesus Christ?
II. Jesus and His disciples were securely into the boat and were making passage when
the Scriptures tell us that a great windstorm began to foam and churn the waters of the
Sea of Galillee. The waves of the sea beat upon that boat and the boat even began to
take on water. This threatened to be a very perilous voyage and the disciples began to
panic. Yet the very next verse, 38, tells us "But Jesus was in the stern, asleep on a
pillow." If you know anything at all about ships, you know that the stern-that is, the
rear of the ship, is the most secure and smooth part of the ship. Jesus was there. Not
only that, but Jesus wasn't wandering around from rail to rail, and from bow to stern
panicking about the big waves that were about to crash over him. No, the Bible already
says that "evening had come." And what else are you supposed to do when evening
comes? Jesus was asleep. And why shouldn't He be? He was peaceful, confident of
the loving and protecting hand of His Heavenly Father the whole time.
I remember flying from the states over to Amsterdam one year and I sat behind
what seemed to be two college students from India. One was very content to do what
Jesus did-he wanted to sleep. But the other was figity and anxious the whole trip. He
constantly was up and down, nervous the whole time. He kept me awake with his
constant restlessness and incessant talking. One time we went through some
turbulence, and the pilot announced on the loud-speaker that we were going to be a
bumpy ride so put on our seat belts and put our seats in the upright position. This
turbulence, as it turned out, was more violent than usual, but we were in no danger. But
the one student started to panic, tapped on his friend who was covered up by a blanket
with his head against the window and said in a rather loud voice, "Wake up! I think we
are going to crash!" Well, that is not the most comforting thing that could be said on
board an aircraft and within a moment one of the flight attendants came to the young
man's seat. She said, "Sir, we are only going through some turbulence. I've been
through this thousands of times. Its nothing. Can I get you anything? Why don't you just
relax and try to sleep like your friend here?" The young man said, "Well I'm really
nervous!" Then his friend said, "Look, stop worrying. If the plane crashes, there isn't
anything you can do about it! Why don’t you just go to sleep!" IF its time for you to go,
its time for you to go! To that the nervous young man said, "I understand. But what if its
the pilot's time to go?"
That must have been the thought when now the disciples, upon seeing Jesus
resting and snoozing so comfortably, decided to awaken him and asked, "Teacher, do
You not care that we are perishing?" Imagine asking such a thing of Jesus? This one
who had nearly exhausted Himself because of His compassion; ministering to and
healing people by the hundreds at their last preaching point! Then to be asked, “Jesus,
don’t you care?” Basically they were inditing not only Jesus, but God that He no longer
cares for them and has no more concern for them than to allow them to drown in the
Sea of Galillee. Lest we be too hard on them, its what many of us do-sometimes even
before we sight the storm. At the slightest trouble, "God, you don't care about me!"
God, you just brought me here to die! God, you must be punishing me! God, why?"
And on and on we go in our indictments against the caring concern of Providence
Himself. Its really blasphemy if we think about it. We need to stop and think about
what we are saying. Philippians 4:6 “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by
prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”
Isn't it something how we will allow ourselves to get so worked up inside that one
minute we are thanking God for all His goodness to us, and in almost the same breath?
That is no way to get anywhere with God. For Jesus also said in Matthew 6:27, For
which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? The fact is, we can’t. If
anything, fretting and worry will do nothing but take away from us. If we would just
calm down for a for a moment, we might be able to here the same words that Jesus
spoke as “He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, “Peace, Be Still.”
And the wind ceased and there was a great calm.” v.39.
Are you looking for peace? Are you looking for that place where the wind ceases and
the calm descends upon your life? If so, know that no matter where you on Earth you
go, those storms are going to follow you, or they are going to find you. Even when you
are looking for a change of pace, they will find you. The question is, when they do find
you, what are you going to do about them? Will you try to squelch the tempest yourself,
or will you rest in the sufficiency of the presence of the only One who can say, “Peace,
be still,” and the wind and the waves will obey Him? Will you rest confident in the
arms of the One who promised in the Psalm “Be still and know that I am God. I will
be exalted in the Heavens, I will be exalted in the earth.”
III. Jesus not only rebuked the wind and the waves, but He also somewhat rebuked the
Disciples, too and said to them Why are you so fearful? How is it that you have no
faith? These are no doubt questions we ought to ask ourselves the moment we find
ourselves in that place where the wind howls, and the waves roll. You understand that
up until now, these Disciples looked for all the world as men who had allowed Christ to
be in control of their lives. At least, they were willing to do so as evidenced by the fact
that they got into the boat. But the sky was clear when they got into the boat. What I
find amazing is that the Disciples became confused now about which to be more afraid?
The great storm brewing around them, or the fact that the wind and the waves ceased
the moment Jesus commanded them? Dr. J. Vernon McGee says that “it was not so
much the fact that He quieted the storm but that it responded immediately. It just
leveled out; there was a sudden calm. This miracle was so great it made these men
afraid.” There they stood- awestruck-at the power of God in this One with whom they
shared deskspace and said, “Who can this be, that even the wind and the sea obey
Him?” Oh, they knew the answer to their own question. That is why they became so
afraid-this time no longer out of anxiety, but out of awe and reverence for the power of
the One who shared their boat.
And that is the question that confronts us today. “Why are you so fearful?” Jesus
asks. “How is it that you have no faith?” My friends, Hebrews 11:6 tells us “Without
faith, it is impossible to please Him, for He who comes to God must believe that He
is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” If Jesus can stretch
out His hand over a hurricane and say, “Peace, be still,” imagine what He can do for the
one whose life is tossed by the tumults and cares and concerns that we face in this life.
For when we come face to face with Jesus, we become so awestruck by the might of His
majestic power that we too can experience a calm that is just as real as what these
Disciples realized when those churning seas became like a plane of glass. A century
ago, hymist Edward Hopper wrote these words:
Jesus, Savior, pilot meOver life’s tempetuous sea:
Unknown waves before me roll, Hiding rocks and treach’rous shoal;
Chart and compass come from Thee-Jesus, Savior, pilot me!
Jesus has promised to do just that for you. He is not just sleeping in the boat. He
desires that you cross over to the other side with Him. He will not leave you or forsake
you. Ask yourself, what are you afraid of. Why is it that you have no faith? Repent of
your faithlessness and place Jesus upon the deck of your hearts-put Him in command
today. Your problems may not go away, but your high anxiety will.
