"We may encounter obstacles when we submit to Jesus and are ready to serve. Our battle is between the Kingdom of God and the nation of Satan. Satan uses everything he can to prevent us from entering the Kingdom of God and to serve Him," according to the sermon from a house church preacher in Zhengzhou, Henan. However, God is always with us in our boat, and He gives us peace in the midst of the storms.
The message was Mark 4:35-41.
That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, "Let us go over to the other side." Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat.There were also other boats with him. A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?"
He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down and it was completely calm.
He said to his disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?"
They were terrified and asked each other, "Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!"
Jesus told the crowd parables about the Kingdom of Heaven before He went across to the other side of the sea. "Jesus is not a passive spiritualist." He isn't always preaching, but is a person of action." The message said, "One who obeys with sense and sensibility is also an active person, not passively silent."
However, there will always be difficulties and obstacles in the service. The boat of the disciples encountered storms. According to the message, "The Sea of Galilee is over 200 meters below sea level and surrounded by mountains. The wind currents increased on the sea and even though they had experience as sailors, they were still panicking." Storms in the Sea of Galilee were natural and inevitable. Storms also exist in the lives of those who serve.
In fact, there were great storms for the disciples even though they submitted to the commands of Jesus. The message explained that this can be understood as an attack - an obstacle to ministry.
Chapter five of Mark mentions that Jesus healed a Gerasene Demoniac. This means that Jesus had a purpose in crossing the sea. "The storm was there to stop Jesus' ministry. When we submit to Jesus and are willing to serve Him, we experience many obstacles too." These obstacles sometimes take the form of mockery from others, or things don't go well. The message pointed out that these are spiritual problems. "Satan uses everything to keep us from entering the Kingdom of God and serve Him." Therefore, Christians need to pray.
The most important thing, according to the message, is to rely on Jesus during the storm. The disciples were fishermen, but they couldn't do anything about the storm. Jesus, on the other hand, rebuked the wind and it ceased. "Jesus asked, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?" (Mark 4:40). Indeed, the disciples needed to believe that Jesus was more than just a great rabbi. He also controlled nature and had authority over the sea.
Furthermore, the disciples panicked in the storm. As a person, Jesus needed rest, and he fell asleep on the boat. In their hearts, the disciples blamed Jesus, so they woke Him and asked, "Teacher, do you not care if we drown?" The sermon said "We might, like the disciples, think that Jesus doesn't care about us. He is asleep and our prayers and expectations are not answered. In fact, He didn't abandon us. He is right there in the boat with us, but the storm is giving us the opportunity to improve our faith and know Him better.
"True believers don't just believe in doctrine or participate in spiritual activities in church like singing hymns. They cling to God no matter what. They will encounter storms, but they don't give up easily because God is in the boat with them and they have peace. Sometimes, there are failures, setbacks, and stress in life and work, but true believers don't give up or lack results. They don't just say they can't, or that they're having a breakdown.
"Although we can't see the future, we will be victorious as long as we cling to Jesus."
Translated by: Grace Hubl
