Viola Solid Rock Assembly
Strolling on Fear
Last week, we talked about where our focus should be during the storm and that being obedient and walking things out with God doesn't necessarily mean that it will be smooth sailing, right? That in fact, sometimes it takes us right into the heart of the storm. The thing is that the storm is not always a bad thing, right? Most of the time, storms serve a purpose, not all of the time, most of the time, sometimes the storm is the purpose is that you did something dumb, all right? But most of the time, storms serve a purpose. In 2 Corinthians chapter 1 verse 4, we talked about this last week, but he says he comforts us in all of our trouble so that we can comfort others and when they are troubled. We will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. Essentially, as he's saying, we go through storms and he comforts us so that we can comfort those who go through the same type of storms. But I noticed something last week when we were getting ready, when I was getting ready for this sermon or last week's sermon and I saw something and it just, it kind of resonated, but I didn't really look at it until this last week and I was starting to think about this a little bit more and I noticed something in Matthew chapter 14, that's where we were last week. Matthew chapter 14 verse 24, it says, "Meanwhile, the disciples were in trouble far away from land." And it says, "For a strong wind had risen and they were fighting heavy winds." About three o'clock in the morning, Jesus came toward them walking on water and when the disciples saw him walking on the water, they were terrified in their fear they cried out, "It's a ghost." But Jesus spoke to them at once, "Don't be afraid," he said, "take courage, I am here." And I started thinking about this and they were out in the water, they were doing what God talked about. We talked about this last week, they were doing exactly what Jesus had told him to do. He told them to get in the boat, go to the other side. So they get in the boat and they start going to the other side and they meet this storm and the winds were blowing directly at them and the waves were hitting at them. And so it was fighting, it was basically hindering them from doing exactly what Jesus was telling them to do. They were halfway across the sea at this point, right? There was no return, if you will. There's a point when you get to a certain point, you can't turn around and go back. We were talking about our first experience with the GPS. We were evangelists and we decided we were going to get this GPS and we were going to use it and the first trip that we went on. I knew where I was going so I didn't use the GPS but that night on the way, when we were leaving that Wednesday night to go home, I said, "Well, let's use it, let's see if it takes us a different way." It did. And it said, "Turn left," and I was thinking to myself, "The moment that I turn, because this is not, I don't think this is right." And pretty soon the road got narrower and narrower and narrower and narrower and then it says, "Keep going and I'm looking in front of me and going, 'That is a ditch. There is no bridge.'" And then I started looking around and we were in the middle of a bean field and that was their drainage ditch and there was nowhere to turn around. So I had to back up four miles in reverse to get back to where I could turn around. And there are points in our lives where we get to that point where there's no turning around, right? And they were at that point in the middle of the sea. There was no turning around and going back. They had to keep going forward but the storm developed so fast and the waves were against them. They were facing opposition. Jesus instructed them to cross the lake or cross the sea and this was obstructing their ability to do what they needed to do. They were supposed to cross to the other side and they had a decision, right? The decision really wasn't that hard to make. Do we turn around and try to go back or do we try to keep going? The thing is storms are going to come but if we are finding our refuge in God, He will strengthen us. Psalm 46 once says, "God is our refuge and our strength always ready to help in times of trouble." He's ready to help. He's there to comfort us. He considers is an opportunity of great joy, James says. Consider troubles an opportunity of great joy. James chapter 1 verse 2 says, "Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any kind come your way considered an opportunity for great joy, man, that sounds like so much fun. That sounds like so much joy that I'm going to face troubles when I'm trying to do what God is asking me to do. That sounds like what I want to do. The thing is, as we go through storms through trouble that should be expected. First Peter chapter 4 says, "Dear friends, don't be surprised. Don't be surprised. You act like it's something strange what's happening to you." Well thanks Peter, appreciate it. Give me a lot of hope. But when we face direct opposition, it can be disheartening. We can make us want to quit. But when we realize that God's agenda for His people is not just about believing. It is about becoming. It is not just about arriving in our destination. It is about flourishing in our destiny. It's not necessarily about where we're going. It's about thriving when we get there. The reason that we go through storms isn't to hinder us. It is to slow us down. It's to make us be better people. Matthew chapter 14 verse 24 in the NIV says, "The boat was already a considerable distance from the land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it. Their boat was being tossed around and they're trying to stay afloat. The waves were beating on them and the wind was against them. How many times in our lives have we felt like we were getting beaten up and tossed around? Right? I mean, you can't get ahead for falling behind. You take three steps forward and ten steps back. It just feels like it's constantly, constant, just beating on us. You've got beat up, you take a couple more steps and you get kicked back down the stairs. The Greek word translated to buffeted here though actually means to be tortured. How often have you felt tortured by the trials and troubles that are coming your way? To the point that you felt like, "This is more than I can endure." I can't take it anymore. I can't keep doing this. If you have never gotten to that point, you will some point because there have been days that I've prayed, "God, I don't know how much more I can take." Last night I didn't really say that but I said, "God, why?" Went out of nowhere. The TV fell off the stand and busted. Not that TV. You are looking back there. My TV at my house last night just put the two of the kids to bed and one of them is sitting in my lap and the TV just fell on the floor, shattered. If anyone needs an LG remote, I have one for sale. To the point, there's times that we get to that point though. Second Corinthians chapter 1 verse 8 and 9 says, "We think you ought to know." This is Paul. He says, "We think you ought to know, dear brothers and sisters, about the terrible or the trouble that we have went through in the provenance of Asia. We were crushed and overwhelmed beyond our ability to endure and we thought we would never live through it. In fact, we expected to die but as a result, we stopped relying on ourselves and learned to rely only on God who raises the dead. I've talked to people who essentially disappear out of the church, they're here week in, week out and then all of a sudden they're just gone. Can you ask them where they've been or what's going on?" Their answer goes something like this, "Well, I'm just going through some stuff." Or "I'm just dealing with some stuff." Or "I'm going through a storm. I'm going through trouble." And instead of turning and finding their refuge in God, they're going to try to do it on their own. I talked to a guy just a couple weeks ago. I said, "Hey man, I haven't seen your church in a while. Yeah, I've just been going through some stuff." Well, you think if you've been going through some stuff that God would be where you would turn, right? I'm just trying to figure it all out. That's what he said. "Well, okay, we'll wait until you realize that you can't rely on yourself any longer." But what happens is we get in those situations and we think no one will understand so there's no point in me going. They'll understand what I'm going through. They'll have something to say and I don't want to hear it. We tell ourselves that and we get away and we stop going, we get out of the habit and the devil has a foothold now and the storm that we've gone through, it just gets worse and worse and worse and worse. All we have to do is turn to him. We try to rely on ourselves rather than turning to God. We try to deal with it on our own rather than letting God take care of it. Paul is a result of the trouble as a result of the storm that got them to this point of saying, "This is more than I can endure," Paul says, "but as a result, we stopped relying on ourselves and learned to rely on God who raises the dead." When we stop relying on ourselves and start relying on God, that's when things will begin to happen. I've heard people in my whole life say, "Well, God won't give you more than you can handle." God is incorrect according to this scripture, because if He didn't give you more than you could handle, then you would not have to rely on Him. You could rely on yourself and He said, "I'm doing this so that you'll learn to rely on me instead of yourself." When we stop relying on self and start relying on God, we will see things happen. When we're going through storms of life, self-reliance is not the best plan of action. It's vital that we find refuge in the Lord and rely on Him. Matthew 14, 25 says, though, about 3 o'clock in the morning Jesus came toward them walking on the water. The disciples had been fighting for survival for hours. They had been fighting for their lives. The wind is not the problem. The waves are the problem. The wind is blowing against them. The waves are buffeting them, torturing them. The water on the outside is fine. It's the water that's getting on the inside that's threatening to capsize the boat that's the problem. Because if the boat capsizes, they're too far from land to get there, and they're the only ones crazy enough to be out in the storm. The disciples have been fighting. They're fighting for their lives. They've probably gotten that boat about 6 or 7 o'clock in the evening. It's 3 o'clock in the morning. They've been there for a while. The storm came out of nowhere. They've been there a while fighting the storm, fighting for survival, despite the wind, despite the waves, here comes Jesus walking on the water. Everything, nothing, can stop Jesus from coming to our aid. No wind, no waves, no storm. When the disciples were beginning to question, if they would make it, Jesus shows up. Taking a morning stroll. Hey guys, see you later. He was going to pass them up, James. He was going to leave them, and then they saw him. He's like, "Man, it's like in Walmart, we're trying to get in and get out, no one's seeing. Everybody sees you." That's what happened. He was just strolling on by. Well, we'll see how they take care of this. And then they saw him. He's like, "Man, now I've got to help him." I don't know if that's really what he did, but I like to think Jesus had a sense of humor. When people have exhausted all avenues of healing, and it seems hopeless, that's when the dealer of hope shows up, they're exhausted, they're struggling, they're fighting for survival, and they see Jesus coming. They don't even know who it is. They can't even tell, and then he begins to speak to them, "No, worry, guys, it's me." Mary and Martha were mourning the death of Lazarus, and the three-day waiting had passed, and nothing had happened, because they thought Jewish people believed that for three days they still believe this, actually, that for three days, this your spirit hovers over your body, and that it can come back in in that three-day period. Jesus closed the window and said, "I'm coming on the fourth day." He was already done, he had already, the spirit had done departed, since you believe that. And so he waited, and when he gets there, he showed hope. He showed hope in the storm, and he brought the dead man back to life, when a man who had laid paralyzed for 38 years with no hope of ever walking again, yet Jesus shows up and gives him hope, and he gave hope, and he rose up and walked. He gave hope to the blind man. When the blind man said, "I just want to see," and Jesus said, "Okay," and he gives him hope. When the demon possessed man and terrorized his towns, and the towns around him and chains couldn't hold him, and there was no hope, Jesus showed up and gave hope and freedom to this man and sent the demons into a pig's. The most dangerous thing the disciples faced was the waves capsizing the boat, drowning them. The crashing waves were terrifying, and when Jesus showed up that early morning, he was strolling on their problem. He was strolling on their problem. He was walking on what was terrifying them. He was walking on what was terrifying them. When Jesus showed up, hope came back. Everything that scares us and everything that threatens us is under his feet. He can literally walk on anything that threatens us. Last week we talked about the people of Israel walking across the Red Sea, if they hadn't found themselves with their backs against the sea, they would have never known that he could split the water. If Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego hadn't been thrown in the furnace, we would know that he could rescue us from the flame. Every crisis we face, every storm we face in life is under his feet, and he can take care of it. This Corinthians 15 verse 27 says, "For God has put everything under his feet." Now when it says that everything has been put under him, this clearly does not include the one who put everything under him. Ephesians 1, 22 says, "And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church." Everything is under his feet. Everything is under his feet. Every fear, every trouble, every storm that we face, he's already over. He's already seen it through. He's already seen us through it. We just have to believe and trust him. We have to rely on him. We have to take refuge in him. Genesis chapter 3 verse 15 says, "And I will cause hostility between you and the woman and between you and your offspring and her offspring and he will strike your head and you will strike his heel." This is a reference, this is God talking to the serpent, and it was a reference to Jesus, the Messiah, the Savior of the world, coming from the very beginning. Everything in the universe, including the forces of darkness, had been placed under his feet under the feet of Jesus. Every force of evil is under his feet. Everything that threatens you is under his feet. As a child of God, there's nothing in our lives that Jesus can't defeat. There's not one thing out there that he can't take care of. But yet time and time again, we try to rely on ourselves. We find ourselves in a situation or a circumstance, a storm, and we, instead of turning to him, we try to do it on our own. We try to do it by ourselves. We think, "Huh, I got this." But everything has been already placed under his feet, and as a child of God, there's nothing in our lives that Jesus can't defeat. And so when we lean into him, when we lean into his presence, say, "God, I can't do this on my own. I can't carry this bird any longer. I can't make it through this storm. I'm relying on you. I'm relying on you to change the circumstance and the situation. I'm relying on you to take away the addiction and the desire. I'm relying on you to heal my body. I'm relying on you to change the circumstances of my life." No matter what storm you're facing, we can take comfort in the fact that the thing that scares us doesn't scare him. The things that scare you don't scare him at all. A death sentence doesn't scare him. He's conquered death. He's conquered the grave. He's raised people to life time and time again. That's easy. What are we afraid of? What storm is in our life that we can't seem to get past? What's the obstacle keeping us from our destiny? What do you need to let him stroll on this morning? What fear has been gripping you? What doctor for as you in fear? What do we need to let him stroll on this morning? It's already under his feet. Why don't we go ahead and give it to him? Stop relying on ourselves. That's ever one that would just stand to your feet. Lord, I thank you for today. I thank you once again for the opportunity you've given us together in your presence. Lord, I thank you. I thank you for showing up time and time again. I thank you for time and time again that you've showed up in this house and you've healed, you've delivered, you've changed lives, you've done miracles in this house. And Lord, I know that there are people in this room that are facing storms. I know that there are people in this room that are facing situations and circumstances that are beyond their control. And God, I pray that you help them to realize that they need to stop relying on self and start relying on you. And Lord, as they begin to rely on you, Lord, I pray that you begin to get them through the storm. The moment that you got in the boat, the winds and the waves died. Lord, I just thank you for today. I thank you for getting me through storm after storm. And Lord, I pray that you do it again in this house. Maybe you're in here this morning and you're facing a storm. You're facing a situation, a circumstance that you just don't see any hope in, that it's just hopeless and you need God to show up and give hope. I want to encourage you to move. You need hope this morning. I want to encourage you to move. You're facing a bad report. You're facing a situation that you need God to show up in. I want to encourage you to move this morning. You got some fears that you need Jesus to stroll on this morning. I want to invite you to come. Lord, we just thank you right now. Lord, I thank you right now. I thank you for what you're doing in this house, Lord. I thank you for what you're doing, and Lord, I pray that you just continue. Lord, if there are others that need to be at this altar, Lord, I pray that you begin to prompt them even now, God, that you begin to move on their hearts even now. Lord, I pray that no person leaves this place with the storm that they brought in, but that you get them through it today, God. Oh, we just thank you, we praise you. If you feel like they're going to pray around this altar, feel free to do so. If you feel like they're going to pray for the ones that are here, feel free to do so. [BLANK_AUDIO]