Viola Solid Rock Assembly
The I Am in the Storm
Amen. Last week we talked about Jesus strolling on our fears. We talked about him walking on the water of the storms of our lives. And we've talked about where our focus should be during this storm and that being obedient and walking things out with God doesn't necessarily mean it will be smooth sailing. In fact, there are gonna be times in our lives that we face and walk right into storms. The thing is that the storm is not always a bad thing, right? Most of the time the storm serves a purpose and we're going to stay in the same vein this morning. In 2nd Corinthians 1-4 it says he comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others when they are troubled. We will be able to give about them the same comfort God has given us. Essentially he's saying we go through storms and he comforts us so that we can comfort others who go through the same storms. There are things that you've gone through in your life and there are people that you come in contact with that will be the only people that you're able that you're able to reach because of the storms that you've gone through in your life. Matthew chapter 14, verse 24 is where we're gonna start this morning and it's the same passage that we've been talking about the last three weeks. It says meanwhile the disciples were in trouble far away from land for a strong win as risen and they were fighting heavy waves. About three o'clock in the morning Jesus came toward them walking on the water and when the disciples saw him walking on the water they were terrified and 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. You know verse 26, it talks, you know, have you ever been in a situation where your reality was not the actual reality? You understand what I'm saying? What you thought in your head was not actually what was going on. There have been moments in my life. There have been times that I got in my own head and the reality of the situation was not exactly what I thought was the situation. All right. When you're a kid and you're walking through a dark room and you hear something you know your mind races and there are things that we've thought in our mind that is so real and so that is just, that is what happened and when it actually we see the big picture it's not what happened. It's like song lyrics. There are song lyrics that I am now hearing as an adult that I'm like I don't remember that being what was said. I'm not talking about secular songs either I'm talking about church songs. Like that is not what I remember singing when we sang those songs before. But verse 26 it says when the disciples saw him walking on the water they were terrified and in their fear they cried out it's a ghost. In the middle of the storm your mind will play tricks on you. You'll have thoughts that are out of character for you. You'll be all in your fields. And what I found is some of the most fierce storms we face aren't actual physical storms as much of storms and battles in our mind. They occur with our thoughts and our emotions. We can't see the wind but we can identify the enemy's attack. We can identify the destructive effects, right? We know it's happening. We can't see it but we know it's there. Second Corinthians two verse 11 says so that Satan will not outsmart us for we are familiar with his evil schemes. The word schemes here comes from the Greek word noema which means a thought or purpose. But his this word is also used to convey the idea of a design, the mind, the heart, the soul and the feelings. And Satan's schemes against us are aimed at our mind, our heart, our soul and our emotions. Do you know the biggest thing that people battle with is not something physical as much as something mental? More people battle with depression than people who battle with physical things that are holding them up. Most people who battle with an addiction started that addiction because they were depressed and battling in the mind. The battles in our mind are fierce. The battles in our mind are what happens and goes forward and keeps going and we can't seem to, we don't share with what's going on in our mind all the time. Some people do, they don't have a filter and everything that pops in their mind comes out their mouth. But a lot of times the battles that we internalize in our mind are the most fierce battles that we face. Because no one else sees it, but we hear it. I saw a video this week of this guy and he was talking about how when he goes to sleep, he goes to sleep, right? And his wife is like, how do you do that? I go to sleep, my mind shuts off and she's like, the best I get is noises. And she starts making the noises and it was just ridiculous noises. But I was like, it's interesting. When I go to sleep, I go to sleep. I don't think about it. She'll see, he's like, when you go to sleep, nobody bothers you. I'm like, they bothered me. I just don't, it doesn't affect me. The sudden fear because of news in our minds immediately go to the worst case scenarios. The worst phrase anyone can say is, hey, I need to talk to you later. No, tell me now what you want to talk about. Don't tell me, I want to talk to you later. My dad does that to me and like, he did that to me one time and I was thinking, man, I'm gonna get there. So I was on his way to his house. I want to get there and he's gonna tell me that he's dying. There's something bad wrong. And then I get there for him to tell me where he was putting something. So there's something happening. I would know where he put it. And I was like, this could have been told a long time ago and it would have saved me a whole lot of, what is wrong? It wasn't that important, Ronnie. (audience laughing) But we run into the millions, the million of the worst things that could possibly happen in those moments. Our minds will play tricks on us. We'll start, we'll start trying to figure it out before we even know the problem. And we'll start, we'll start over analyzing it before we even know the problem. Second Corinthians 10 verse five says, chapter 10 verse five says, we destroy every proud obstacle that keeps people from knowing God. We capture their rebellious thoughts and teach them to obey Christ. The word says we have to take captive the thoughts and make them obey Christ. Our thoughts, our thoughts, we have to take captive of. We can let our thoughts run. And it gets us in trouble. But the scripture says we must take captive of our thought and make them obey Christ. We gotta take control of it. It's important that we guard our thoughts. But it's also important that we monitor our mindset, making sure that we're focused on Christ. We can't let our problem be the lens that we look at the Bible through. We have to look at the Bible. And see the Bible and look at our problem through the lens of the Bible, not the other way around. Our problem can't be the lens that we look through. The word has to be the lens that we look through. We can't look at all the situations and the circumstances and say, well, this is why this is happening. And not back that up with scripture. And I'm not saying go cherry pluck a scripture out of the Bible that you only take half of it and say, well, this is what this mean. Matthew 14, 26. So when the disciples saw him walking on the water, they were terrified and in their fear, they cried out, it's a ghost. I've read and thought about this scripture a million times. I've preached on it a lot. And I've always in my mind thought about Jesus walking on this water in my picture, in my mind, I have him, it's like a highway and he's just walking on this smooth water and the waves are all around him but where he's walking, it's smooth. In this week, I was reading a book about this passage of scripture. And he said something, I read something in the book and I was like, I've never thought about it that way but probably that's the way that it was. He said, we often think about that Jesus was just walking on a piece of ice, so to speak, water, clear path. But what if what he was actually doing was walking up over waves and back down and back up and over the waves? It wasn't a smooth path with waves around him but he was actually walking over the waves like one would walk over a hill. So he gets to the top of the waves and the disciples could see him and then as he stopped and walked down the wave, then they couldn't see him so they could see him and then they couldn't and the reason they were like, we don't know what's going on is they saw a guy and then they didn't see him and then they saw him and then they didn't see him. Mine's playing tricks on you. That bush is not a deer, it's still a bush. (audience laughing) They couldn't see him, he was there and then he was gone and then he was there and then he was gone out of sight. And sometimes we may recognize the Lord in the middle of the storm, sometimes we may not. Sometimes we'll see him and he disappears from our sight and then reappears and then disappears and we think we've not seen him at all. I've had plenty of experience throughout storms where I've seen and then he's gone and then he's back again and then he's gone. And I've thought in those moments, that's not really him. And that's where the disciples were, probably when they first saw him, they said, that looks like Jesus, but then he disappeared and they're like, yeah, and then there he was again and they're like, yeah, but when he disappeared the second time, they're like, it wasn't him, it's a ghost. Our mind is playing tricks on us. He was never there, it's something else. First of all, how could he be walking on this water the first place? Only God can defy the laws of physics and gravity and you're heavier than water, David, I hate to tell you. We all, if we got out on there, we are not walking on water and don't, you teenagers don't go get some water bottles and say, oh, I'm walking on water, no, some of y'all, I gave you a thought, you didn't even think about it. The fact of the matter is, is we're denser than water and we will sink. He defied all laws of science. He's walking on the water over the waves and back down and over and back down and there he is and then he disappears and in those moments when we see him and then he's gone and he's seen and then he's gone and we think to ourselves, must have not been him at all. There have been other times that in the midst of the storm I've just wondered if he was even anywhere around. God, where are you? We're going through this situation, the circumstance, the storm, where are you, God? Where are you? Psalms 10, one says, oh Lord, why do you stand so far away? Why do you hide when I am in trouble? You ever felt that way? The thing is, is even if you thought you felt that way, you obviously weren't the first one. And there are times in our lives that it feels like that he's standing far away, that he's hiding when we need him the most. It feels that way. I'm not saying that it doesn't and it's okay to vocalize that to him. Where are you, God? I need you in this situation. I need you in this circumstance. I can't do this on my own. But even though it feels this way, we know that he promises he'll always be with us. When the disciples cried out in fear and declared that they were seeing a ghost, they were totally convinced. They're perceived to be the first one. Seeing a ghost, they were totally convinced. Their perception and opinions were correct. The record of this vent does not indicate that they had any doubt on their part that they were seeing a ghost. Nothing, nowhere does it say that one of them said, oh guys, it's not a ghost. It records that they saw it and there was no doubt that they were seeing a ghost. Their experience likely aligns with the experiences that we have all had when we're totally convinced of something that turns out to be false. There have been things that people have said to me in situations that I'm thinking, that's completely false. But you don't know the whole story. There have been times at the campgrounds that I've been sitting around in some person is telling a story like they were there and I'm like, you were like three years old when that happened, I'm certain that you were not there. I've had people take credit for things that I did at the campgrounds and I just let them in laugh and walk away. But in their mind, in their mind, it's true. In the people sitting around them that know the truth, they're like me, they just laugh and walk away. We have a political environment right now that things are being said, that people are taking, that it's the truth. But the more that we get, the further we get along, the more we're realizing that it's false. The disciples are positive that they were seeing a ghost in the middle of the storm, their minds were wondering, their thoughts were filled with dread and fear for their lives. They were afraid, they were ready to give up. They've already been rowing against the storm. The waves in the wind is beating them up. Now they see a ghost, but Matthew 14, 27 says, but Jesus spoke to them at once, don't be afraid. He said, take courage, I am here. I thought about this statement. It's depending on what version you read, take courage is sometimes in front of, don't be afraid. And I think about it, and it's like, we don't use that terminology, right? When I think about it, he like walking in the scene, take courage, I am here. I think, man, this is like a superhero movie, right? He just showed up and take courage. I don't know, I don't know who would say that, maybe Superman, I don't know. But it just, every time I read that, I think, man, what a weird verbiage here, right? It's just not what we would say. But he follows that up with, don't be afraid. Don't be afraid, I am here. Have you ever noticed that the standard greetings of the supernatural in the scripture is, don't be afraid? It's like God told him before he tells him what to tell the people he said. But first, before you tell him what I'm telling you to tell him, tell him, don't be afraid. Every angel visitation, minus one, that I could think of right now, scripture, they say, don't be afraid. Thanks for telling me that, but too late. (audience laughing) I have a friend who's in ministry and he's told me, he said, I used to pray all the time that God would show me an angel. He said, I used to pray that all the time. And he said, one night I had the sheet up over my head. And he said, I was praying that God would show me an angel. And then I pulled the sheet down and there was this bright light coming from the hallway because someone had turned the hallway light on. And he said, I jerked the covers back over my head and I was scared to death. And God said, he said, God told him that, that's why I don't show you an angel. You're scared of a light. (audience laughing) But it's a standard greeting, don't be afraid. In many translations, the phrase, don't be afraid appears 366 times. Once for every day, even during the leap year. And he tells them not to be afraid. He gives them the reason to not be afraid. He doesn't just say, don't be afraid. Have you ever told your kid, don't be afraid, but you don't give them the reason to not be afraid? There are plenty of times growing up that someone an adult would say to me, don't be afraid, but it wouldn't give me the reason why I should not be afraid at this moment. But Jesus says, don't be afraid. And then he says, the reason that you don't have to be afraid is I am here. Jesus was assuring the disciples that he was not a ghost. He tells them not to be afraid. He gives them the reason not to be afraid. He positively identified himself to his terrifies disciples with the phrase, it is me, it is I actually is what he said, it is I. Jesus was assuring the disciples that he was not a ghost. The phrase, it is I, is a translation of the original Greek text that reads, ego, emie, which is a phrase that is used in some of the most significant passages in the entire New Testament. Ego, emie is also and translated into I am. Instead of it is I, I am. It's the same phrase used in John 635, when Jesus replied, I am the bread of life. In John 812, when he said, I am the light of the world. In John 10, seven, when he said, I tell you the truth, I am the gate or the door for the sheep. In John 11, 25, he said, I am the resurrection and the life. In John 10, 11, he said, I am the good shepherd. In John 14, six, he said, I am the way, the truth, and the life. In John 15, five, he said, I am the vine. You're the righteous. He's saying, I am. These are some of the most celebrated and beloved verses in the entire New Testament. It's the I am's. And in every case, the phrase, I am in English, comes from the words, ego, emmy, and Greek. It is I. He's walking on the water. He's walking towards his disciples and he said, I am here. I am. In the importance of this phrase, the importance of what was going on here, it wasn't just a, it wasn't just a saying, I am here. What is significant was because every time Jesus used the phrase, I am, his listeners would be reminded of Moses. In Exodus 3, 13 and 14, it says, but Moses protested, if I go to the people of Israel and tell them, the God of your ancestors says, sent me to you, they will ask me, what is his name? And then what should I tell them? And God replied to Moses, I am who I am. Say this to the people of Israel, I am has sent me to you. Ever since he delivered his children from Egypt, the phrase I am has been linked to God himself. One of the reasons that the Pharisees hated Jesus so much is because every time he made I am statements, they realized he was claiming to be God's Messiah. The I am was there in the storm. The I am was walking on the water in the midst of everything that was going on in their minds and in their physical realities of the storm, I am was in the midst. He was there, Matthew 14, 27 says, but Jesus spoke to them at once, don't be afraid, he said, take courage, I am here. He wasn't just identifying himself, he was simultaneously declaring and demonstrating that he was indeed God's Messiah by saying, I am by walking on the storm he sees. He was there, he was there in their midst. Hebrews 13, five says, for God has said, I will never fail you, I will never abandon you. He'll never leave you or abandon you, he'll never fail you. Even in the storms when it seems like he's nowhere in sight, he is there, when things are spiraling out of control, he is there, when hope seems lost, he is there, when fear has set in, he is there to put out all fear. The disciples were having an internal battle in their minds, they were battling fear, they were battling self-doubt, they were battling depression, they were battling addiction, they were battling suicidal thoughts, they were struggling with all of these thoughts that were pure, that weren't good, all of the thoughts that we struggle with. The thought that we aren't good enough or worthy enough for him, that because of our failures, God can't do something in our lives, that because of our past, our future is wrapped in failure, that we have no future because of our past, that we have no future because of our past, all the thoughts that we struggle with, all the storms that we battle, all the things that we can't seem to grasp sometimes, and the I am is in our midst. We say, he's not in our storm, he doesn't care about our measly little storm, but he does. He cares enough to know the count of hairs on your head. He cares enough to know the count of hairs on your head. He cares, he cares, he cares. He cares, he cares. When our thoughts are spiraling, when we don't know where else to turn, when it seems hopeless, I am still there. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. We have no future because we don't know where else to turn. I think you for what you're doing in this place, Lord, I thank you for moving in the ways that you've moved. Lord, I thank you for miracles that have taken place in this house. I thank you for healings that have happened in this place. And Lord, I just pray that today that you help us with our thoughts. Lord, our thoughts that we struggle with day in and day out. The thing that we have a battle with. Lord, I pray that if there's anyone in this room that's battling with thoughts, Lord, thoughts of suicide or thoughts of being unworthy, Lord, I pray that today that you show them their worth. [ Pause ] Maybe you're here this morning and you're battling with some thoughts. Maybe they're not just pure bad thoughts, but maybe you're just battling in your mind. There's some things going on and you've been battling in your mind. And you need God to show up. You need the "I Am" to show up in the middle of your storm today. I want to invite you to come. I want to invite you to come. You've been battling some things in your mind. You've been battling some thoughts. You've been having an internal struggle in your mind this morning. I want to invite you to come. This doesn't mean you're a bad person. We all from time to time have an issue that we battle in our minds. Maybe you've just been having some thoughts that you need God to help you with because they don't line up with Scripture. They say, "I just need help getting capture of my thoughts. I want to invite you to come." Don't miss it this morning. Don't miss it. Lord, I thank You right now. Lord, I pray that in this house that You'll take control. That You'll take control of our minds, our thoughts. That it won't be what we say or what we do. But that it'll be your thoughts through us, God. If you feel let it come and pray around the Psalter, feel free to do so. If you feel let it come and pray for the ones that are here, feel free to do so. [BLANK_AUDIO]