"When the Wind Blows" - an interactive sermon from Mark 4:35-41

(1) Introduction – the Bible as Living Drama

We have described the Bible as a reference book and guidebook for the proper living of life. The Bible is where we go when we need encouragement, or to understand more about God and following Jesus, or when we have to make decisions. But the Bible is more than that. It is certainly far more than knowing the past or considering the future. The Bible, in each generation, intersects with, and communicates to, the here and now.

The Bible is a living drama, involving people in their search for God. This is both those involved at the time, but also those in each generation who are the readers of the text. That of course includes us! We are being invited to see ourselves in the narratives, and learn from the dynamic situations and responses there.

It is true that in Mark’s gospel the disciples are often seen in a negative or challenging light – either being fearful or lacking in understanding. We should always remember however that these first disciples (or at least eleven of them) were in the process of becoming significant missionaries and thus heroes of the Christian movement and faith. They were very ordinary humans trying to grasp a whole lot of new radical material in a very short time. Yet their shortcomings have been displayed for all to see – why?? Was it so that we might criticise them? Absolutely not! Rather, so that we can clearly learn what it really means to be a follower of Jesus (on the road)!

(2) Where are You in the Narrative?

It helps us to understand and apply the story if we see where we might fit into it.

It could be that we see ourselves in the crowd. When Jesus says “let’s go…” we either think he’s not talking to us, or even if he is, we’re still not going to join him – we do not see ourselves as a Jesus follower.

It could be that we are in one of the other boats. We’re a little bit interested in Jesus and maybe where he is going, but we haven’t yet got into Jesus’ boat – the boat in which his true disciples travel.

It could be that we are in the boat that Jesus is in. And this of course is where the modern reader is being drawn … into a seat in Jesus’ boat! In fact the order of proceedings was:
· first … Jesus’ call to “go across to the other side”
· second … the disciples deciding to obey and get the boat going
· third … the disciples taking Jesus along with them (and just as well they did)!

This shows that Jesus’ call to “go” persists into the era when Jesus was not physically present, yet could still be taken with the disciples on all their missionary journeys. In fact, if they didn’t take Jesus with them, then they would be doomed to failure.

This boat that Jesus travelled in first appeared in chapter 3, Jesus asking his followers to find him a boat ... so that he could teach from it at the seaside, without being crushed by the crowd on the shore. Then, at the beginning of chapter 4, Jesus again taught his disciples and the crowd from this boat, this time using parables.

The teaching of the parables would now be supplemented by a real life incident, which would serve as a significant metaphor for discipleship. The call toward being good soil … prepared and cultivated well to receive the seed of the Kingdom of God is now supplemented by the call to journey through life in Jesus’ boat, dealing with the blowing of any strong winds through his presence and strength.

Jesus had been to the seaside before (the edge of the Sea of Galilee). He had called his first four disciples there – the four fishermen (1:16). Following some earlier teaching beside the sea, he called Levi (from his tax-booth) to also be a follower (2:13-14). It was just as if the movement of Jesus and his disciples was always (even from the very beginning) moving towards the challenge of sailing “to the other side”!

(3) The Other Side

What was on “the other side”? Why did Jesus want to go to the “other side”??

That’s where the Gentiles – the non-Jews were. God wanted to reach the Gentile peoples with the good news of salvation as well. Jesus’ mission to the world was to all people groups. The Jewish people may have wanted to hang on to an exclusive ownership of their God; however God’s plans had always included all of the earth’s peoples. And now the move was on!

Mark’s Christian community in Rome in the 1st Century would have included many Gentiles; and here they would be reminded of God’s deliberate and concerted approach toward them. In becoming Jesus followers they had certainly aligned themselves with the true living God’s plans and purposes. They too were now part of the missionary enterprise. [Perhaps we too have been 'rescued' from the other side, but now are part of the Jesus missionary movement.]

If we were to go to the “other side”, where would that be for us???
· to people very different from us
· to anyone who hasn’t heard the gospel
· to those who have been rejected by the mainstream.

Basically, to go to “the other side” would be to seek and respond to any opportunities to connect people up with God. And with the great ignorance around about who God is, and what God is like, many people can often only begin to imagine what God is like through looking at us!! Therefore, connecting people up to God, involves forming and developing relationships with people ourselves. This would firstly and naturally be with people we have something in common with. However, to really “go across to the other side” would suggest being prepared to step out of our comfort zones, and connect relationally with people who we would not consider it easy to do so.

Isn’t this exactly what we heard about last week from Kevin Maddock of Prison Fellowship! We might say, well that’s okay for Kevin and Nevil to be visiting and sharing with murderers and thieves, but that’s not for me! Well, Jesus called all of his disciples into the boat, for the purpose of going to “the other side”. We mightn’t be specifically called to prison work, as Kevin and Nevil have; thank goodness … because I haven’t been built or wired for that sort of ministry myself! But we all have been called to embrace something of the “other side” and interpret God for those there. The “other side” for you, may just be that difficult person at work, who just drives you mad. But when you start to reflect on why that person is so hard, you discover elements of their need for God.

We shall talk more about the “other side” when we get to chapter 5.

(4) Risk and Danger

No-one should deny the risk involved in going across “to the other side”. For us we may be going into unchartered waters, places where we are only just now being equipped to handle. We will be learning on the water. On our journey we will have to deal with the mundane necessities of life, like fishing for our dinner, washing the nets for tomorrow’s catch, keeping the boat clean and secure. At the same time we will encounter challenging people who will stress us to the limit, yet so much need to recognise the truth. We will encounter danger from both the normal areas of life, as well as when we step off the boat onto the other shore.

The windstorm arose, the waves got larger and larger and were spilling into the boat – certainly all aboard were in danger. This boat and all its occupants could be crushed into oblivion. The disciples, somewhat understandably, yet still unnecessarily, panicked! This in the face of Jesus simply sleeping!!

Jesus wasn’t oblivious to their worry and panic – he was rather just representing the peace of God in his heart and mind. In the face of risk and danger enters God’s peace. When called upon, Jesus proved where this peace could be based – on God’s ability and availability to control the forces of nature. Jesus would absolutely be with all those who step out on mission to the “other side” with him. History proves that this, unfortunately, doesn’t mean that all missionaries will personally survive; but it does mean at least two very important things:
· the mission itself will always go on, and
· the seeds sown will always find sufficient good soil to bear fruit.

Having said this, sometimes we envisage a whole lot more danger than will ever be a reality. This may be a convenient get-out-clause mechanism for us, or it may be fed by our own understandable insecurities. Either way, Jesus says to the powers of our concerns – “Peace! Be still!”

Then and there the wind ceased, the sea became completely calm, and the danger for now had passed. This reminds us to bring Jesus into all our fears and apprehension, to have him with us in our boat, and allow him to bring us his peace. The disciples may have panicked and lacked faith, but at least they were wise enough to have taken Jesus along!

The disciples, like us, were still trying to work out who Jesus was for them in everyday life. In the traditions of the Hebrew Scriptures, such a windstorm would represent an evil that only God could quell. What did it mean that Jesus could likewise calm the storm-front?

The disciples, like us, were still wrestling with their fear on their journey towards faith. The disciples’ fear of the storm began to overwhelm their prior commitment to and trust in Jesus. Here they were exposed, but at least they had got into the right boat, and had taken Jesus with them. When danger arose, they wisely called to Jesus for help, and thereby experienced his peace.

Mark’s community of Jesus followers some forty years later, were being challenged to endure the persecution they were experiencing, deepen their faith, and continue on mission. What will be our challenge today?
· To get out of the crowd and on to the right boat, and/or
· To experience God’s offer of peace in the midst of turbulent seas!!

(5) Conclusion – Being Interpreters of the Ever Present God

It’s interesting that Jesus didn’t just save the occupants of his own boat – he calmed the waves sufficiently to save all of those who were out on the sea in other boats (and even those on the shore that the windstorm may also have badly affected)! God is not only working in the lives of his disciples, but also those to whom these disciples will go!!

We don’t have to take God into so-called ‘godless’ places, and begin from scratch. God is already there, challenging and encouraging us forward, waiting for us to be his interpreters to others. Think of messages being interpreted from one language to another – from the speaker’s ‘first language’ into the ‘first language’ of the listeners.

We are that point of interpretation from what is unknown to what can be known.

Christmas By The Lake - looking back then forward

A beautiful day dawned on Saturday December 1st 2007. This was the day when the eagerly anticipated 3rd annual Christmas By The Lake was to be held in Sanctuary Lakes. This is the major event for the Point Cook community to participate in and attend together. There were rides, show-bags, presentations and music. There was a really happy atmosphere, faces were being painted, a variety of food was being consumed, and volunteers were being run off their feet. Families were able to gather with their neighbours and forget about their busyness for a few hours. Many thousands of people passed through; or settled in with blanket, glow-stick and coffee to enjoy all the entertainment. A gold coin donation, with a raffle ticket given in return, raised $2000 for White Lion. Could anyone achieve a hole-in-one on the golf course? Well no – better luck next time. Santa arrived on the fire-truck, and such was the anticipation, that once again he was mobbed by adoring children. And what about that great fireworks display at the end! Speaking of next time – here’s the date for your diaries. On Saturday December 6th the Point Cook community will again gather for an even bigger and better Christmas By The Lake 2008. The committee is already busy planning improvements and gaining new sponsors. Thanks must go to all existing sponsors, especially the Point Cook Community Bank who has supported this event from its inception.