Praise the Lord for this Sunday morning, the Lord's day, the day of Resurrection. The Church of Jesus Christ, our Lord, gathers around the globe to celebrate the Lord's victory and His power. I spoke with one of my nephews this morning at 7:00 AM - he lives with his family in UK. They are already in worship. I will be preaching this morning at our 10:30 AM service. Sunday school gathers at 9:30 AM. The Lord blessed our concert on Friday evening with Aric Phinney. The music was amazing, awesome, and anointed. We have planned many events for the remainder of the year to celebrate, to rejoice, and to share. It is a wonderful time to be alive and to be under the wonderful watchcare of Jesus, the Good Shepherd. We are always safe and secure under His care.
Alice and I will be driving to Boston today,
where I will be undergoing tests and treatment over the next two weeks.
We plan to return on November 13. Thank you all for taking time to pray
for us. May Jesus Christ be praised! I will be posting brief
updates on my facebook page while we are away.
One
of the most beautiful and exotic places in Israel is the Sea of
Galilee. When you spend some time by the sea of Galilee your heart
becomes refreshed and rejuvenated. Jesus spent much of his time
ministering near the Sea of Galilee. The first time I saw it, in
the early morning of October 1985, I was overwhelmed with the
mysteries and wonders that are associated with the Sea of
Galilee. When we travel to the sea of Galilee today we will
see the Kibbutzes, mango groves, bananas, grapes, all varieties
of citrus, almond groves.citrus, avocados, kiwi, guavas, mangoes, grapes, and dates. In the northern hills apples, pears, and cherries are grown, as well as Wheat and
barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, Olives, and Dates.
The
Sea of Galilee, where Jesus walked on water and where He had one of His last
Post-Resurrection appearances, is situated At
209 meters below sea level. It is the
lowest freshwater lake on Earth, and the second lowest lake in the world,
second only to the Dead Sea, which is
a saltwater lake. Matthew 14:24 tells us about a
storm that came upon the Sea of Galilee. Most of that Sea is surrounded
by mountains or hills, so strong winds can swirl around into powerful
storms very quickly and unexpectedly. When the disciples found themselves
in the storm, they kept trying to get to the other side, and yet for hours they
were making no progress, "for the wind was contrary" (v.24).
The wind and the waves were causing the boat to rock & sway violently,
threatening to capsize. They were in danger of sinking and perishing in
the midst of the Sea. Worst of all, Jesus was not physically with them.
In the last storm, Jesus was there with them, and after waking Him, He
quickly came to their aid, but this time Jesus was not with them.
In
the midst of the storm they no doubt wondered why Jesus had sent them out
alone. How they would look back at the dim outline of the hills, where
they knew He was, and wonder, "Why, Lord, did you send us out into this
storm?" What made the situation worse was the fact that v. 22 says
that Jesus "made His disciples get into the boat." He
instructed them to go on to the other side without Him, while He sent the
multitude away. As the Son of God, Jesus should have been able to
anticipate that His disciples would face a storm, yet He sent them out by
boat. To add to all of that, when the storm did come, Jesus did not
immediately come to their aid. Evidently, they struggled against the
storm for several hours. The length of the struggle is indicated in verse 25.
The fourth watch is from 3 to 6:00 a.m.
For these three hours the disciples had been harassed by the elements, and they were still a considerable distance from their destination. They must have really had a workout, as they were rowing as hard as they could against the elements, trying to get to the other side. The storm made them spiritually stronger as it exercised their faith. James 1:2-4 says that the testing of our faith produces patient endurance, which in turn takes us closer to maturity and perfection. That is why James says we should count it all joy when we find ourselves in the various trials of life. Trials have a way of strengthening our character. It has been said that the trees that grow in windy areas produce the strongest wood.
Many Christians have the mistaken idea that obedience to God's will produces "smooth sailing", but this is not true. In this case the storm came because they were in the will of God and not, like Jonah, out of the will of God. Some troubles we bring on ourselves, but at others times we can be in the center of God's will, and still experience a storm in our lives. We just have to face the fact that we live in a fallen, sin-cursed world, and we will experience storms and trials and troubles in your life. Jesus promised, "In the world you shall have tribulation, but be of good cheer for I have overcome the world" (John 16:33). The storm gave Jesus another opportunity to work in their lives. it led to an experience of His great salvation and victory over the storm.
The disciples realized
they couldn't fight the storm alone. If we had only verse 24 the
situation would be gloomy indeed - the violent wind, the darkness, the
angry billows, the absence of Jesus! But Jesus intervened in several
ways, and He is willing to intervene in our lives in many of the same ways
today.
In Jesus who calms the
storms:
Brown
