Sermon by Pastor Brent Kompelien
January 8, 2023
INTRO
Good morning! It is really good to see all of you after the holidays. Welcome to a new year!
We are jumping back into our series in the gospel of John called “Full of Grace and Truth” and so far we’ve seen the Apostle John reveal that Jesus is God himself in the flesh, the Light of the World, coming as the fulfillment of all the Old Testament promises about the Messiah.
But as the story has unfolded so far, people have started to flock to Jesus to witness his miracles and hear his teaching, but with their own expectations, desires, and demands. In other words, they come looking for signs and think they are the ones who have found the Messiah, when in reality (as we are going to see in our text today) it is Jesus who steps into the chaos and darkness and sin of this world to find us and save us.
You see, if we stop and consider the reality of our world, we see chaos and darkness all over the news, and hear about it in the lives of friends and family, and we experience it ourselves.
It can feel like we’ve stepped onto a carnival ride, buckled our seatbelts, and everything starts spinning and twisting and turning upside down.
ILLUST — How many of you like roller coasters and carnival rides? Any thrill seekers out there? (SLIDE 2, three clicks to start the GIFs)
I’m not! I’m getting a little sick just watching these. I don’t like not having control. I think if there was a steering wheel, I’d feel better.
I remember my first carnival ride like it was yesterday. How many of you remember the old fashioned Tilt-A-Whirl? (SLIDE 3) Did you know that the Tilt-A-Whirl was invented in Faribault, Minnesota? Herbert Sellner invented the Tilt-A-Whirl in his basement in Faribault in 1926. He built 14 of them in his backyard and the first one debuted at the Minnesota State Fair shortly afterward.
I distinctly remember when I was about 5 years old that my family went to a county fair, or maybe it was the MN State Fair, and everyone in my family wanted to go on the Tilt-A-Whirl. It look terrifying to me, so I dug my heels in and said I wasn’t going. Well, both my parents wanted to go and my siblings, and they couldn’t leave me standing there at the fair all by myself, so they literally picked me up and put me on the ride against my will!
When that lap bar came down and I was stuck on that ride, at the mercy of centrifugal forces and my siblings throwing their body-weight around, I felt out of control, like this was the end of my life.
Looking back, I actually love the Tilt-A-Whirl now. But at that moment, I was so furious and terrified at the same time that I vowed I would never go on a ride ever again!
You see, living in the chaos and darkness of this world can feel like that: It’s like you’re stuck in the spinning, the lap bar won’t budge, and you can’t get off, and everything feels out of control. (SLIDE 4)
What we’re going to learn this morning is that when the darkness closes in and the chaos seems to reign and we feel afraid, we can’t row our way out of it, we can’t try harder or fight the battle on our strength or make the world bend to our idea of what is best. The fact is that we need a Savior to reach into this mess and deliver us. We need Jesus to meet us in the chaos and in the reality of our sin to bring his power and deliverance that alone can bring peace and make us right.
PROP — So here’s what we’re going to do. We are going to zoom in on an incredible story in John 6 that is sandwiched between the feeding of the 5000 and Jesus explanation of why he provided bread for so many people. At the beginning of chapter 6 and at the end of chapter 6, the people are searching for Jesus, following him wherever he goes. But by the end of the chapter, the entire crowd deserts him. But here in John 6:16-21, rather than the people coming to Jesus with their demands and expectations, Jesus meets his disciples in the midst of a storm on the Sea of Galilee where they are rowing and rowing and not getting anywhere. Jesus reveals his power on his terms as a demonstration that he is the Deliverer who will bring peace to our chaos and forgiveness for our sin.
Let’s read our text. READ John 6:16-21.
ORG SENT — We’re stopping there because verse 22 is about the next day, so we will cover that next week. Here’s how we will tackle this: I want to walk verse-by-verse through this story in order to draw out some important symbolism and show you how this miracle is a purposeful demonstration of Jesus’ sovereign power over chaos and evil. And what we’re going to see is that when you have Jesus, you don’t need to be afraid.
MAIN 1 — Jesus Walks On Water (vv. 16-21). (SLIDE 5a)
Let’s set the scene a little bit here.
It was evening. Jesus had just miraculously fed thousands of people with 5 barley loaves and 2 fish. And the people tried to make Jesus king by force, but he withdrew to a mountain to pray.
The disciples headed off toward the Sea of Galilee and they probably waited for Jesus for a little bit, wondering if he was going to join them for the trip across the water back to the city of Capernaum where they were staying.
It was getting dark and Jesus didn’t show up, so the disciples, most of whom were fishermen and knew the Sea of Galilee very well, decided to head off in the boat toward Capernaum.
Don’t miss this…it’s dark. (SLIDE 5b) This isn’t an accident. When was the last time we saw an event in the gospel of John that happened in the cover of darkness? Nicodemus! (SLIDE 5c) John chapter 3!
If you remember what happened, Nicodemus came to Jesus at night under the cover of darkness with questions, and the darkness symbolized his lack of spiritual understanding about who Jesus is and what it means to be saved. But Jesus reveals the most important truth to Nicodemus: That you must be born again! That God sent his Son to save the world, and whoever believes in him will have eternal life!
Now in chapter 6, the disciples are in the dark. (SLIDE 5d) This marks another dividing line moment. You see, the crowds thought they knew Jesus and they thought they could make Jesus king on their terms. The disciples up to this point in the gospel of John haven’t faired much better, and they seem to be confused and not really sure what to do with Jesus either.
It is this moment, when the disciples are in the dark, that Jesus chooses to show them his power over creation and his deliverance that brings peace.
KEY: If you’re in darkness today, that’s exactly the place where Jesus will meet you and bring his light. You see, the Light of the World is revealed to those who are confused, struggling, and lost in darkness! In the gospel of John, these are exactly the moment and the type of people to whom Jesus reveals his power and his truth!
Look at what happens next. Not only are the disciples in darkness, there is also a storm and the wind and waves grow rough on the Sea of Galilee. (SLIDE 5e)
Let me tell you a little bit about the Sea of Galilee.
Sea of Galilee = 64 square miles, 700 feet below sea level, 33 mile circumference, 13 miles north/south, 8 miles east/west, 141 feet deep.
1/3 the size of Mille Lacs
3 times the size of Lake Minnetonka.
Cool air from the southeast can come up to meet the warm-moist air over the water of the lake to cause sudden violent storms with high winds and rain.
Remember, this is the ancient world where they only have sails and oars. If a violent wind suddenly came up on the Sea of Galilee, it was incredibly dangerous to be out on the water.
The text says in verse 19 that they rowed about 3 or 4 miles, which would have been almost exactly in the middle of the lake (remember, the lake is 8 miles across). (SLIDE 5f)
This is so important — They are literally rowing and rowing, going against the wind, and not really getting anywhere. They are expending all their strength, fighting the sea, getting worried that they aren’t going to make it.
APPLY — Anyone feel like that at some point in your life? Or maybe you feel like that right now. We can experience seasons of life, trials, challenges, or dark and chaotic events, and when we try to get through them on our own strength we get nowhere and we realize that this is hopeless and fear and anxiety set in!
ILLUST — I remember feeling like that when Sarah and I were living in San Francisco and doing church planting work. We experienced a number of false-starts, difficulties, and failures. And I felt like I was beating my head against the wall. My family was struggling, and I knew we couldn’t keep doing what we were doing.
You see friends, sometimes we encounter things that are outside our control. You may have faced illness, loss, or rejection this last year. Or maybe you are encountering the consequences of your sin or feel stuck in patterns you can’t change on your own strength.
I’ll tell you, it was the feeling that I was rowing and rowing on my own strength, failing and running out of steam, that finally brought me to my knees in desperation for Jesus. Through that struggle, I learned how to pray. It finally taught me how to surrender everything to the Lord.
You see, what you need most is to meet Jesus in the midst of the storms, in the midst of the darkness, and in the midst of the chaos in life. You can’t row your way out of it! Go ahead, turn to your neighbor and say, “I can’t row my way out of it!”
As Jesus approaches the disciples in the darkness and in the storm, walking on the water, he is intentionally connecting to a larger biblical theme of God’s deliverance. (SLIDE 5g)
You see, across the Bible the sea usually represents chaos, disorder, and evil. It was powerful and mysterious, but also very dangerous and foreboding.
Over and over throughout the Bible, God delivers his people through the chaos and evil of the sea:
It happened with Noah and his family at the flood in Genesis 6-8. They were spared from the flood and God ensured they made it to dry ground.
It happened with Moses and the Israelites at the Exodus in Exodus 14. They had their backs against the wall, but God made a way and they arrived safely on the other side of the Red Sea.
It happened again with Joshua and the Israelites when they crossed the Jordan River in Joshua 3. The presence of God went ahead of them in the Ark of the Covenant, and the people made it across to the shores of the Promised Land.
And now here is the (SLIDE 6a) greater Noah, the perfect Moses, and the new Joshua coming to the aid of his 12 disciples, symbolizing a new people of God, delivering them through water, commanding the wind and waves, and miraculously bringing them to safety at the shore.
This is the Deliverer we need! We need a Savior who is so powerful that he commands the storm itself. We need a Savior who meets us in the darkness, who brings order to the chaos, and who in our failure to save ourselves in our own strength will say these words…Do not be afraid.
APPLY
Friends, there is nothing more scary than when you feel like things are out of your control. There’s nothing more terrifying than feeling helpless to do something on your own strength, feeling like you are at the mercy of some evil or some trial you can’t overcome.
ILLUST — A friend told me a story once about such an experience. He used to live in southern California and loved going to the beach. One afternoon he went out for a swim in the ocean and got caught in a rip tide. If you’re not familiar with a rip tide, it is a violent current of water that will pull you out to sea in a matter of seconds, but with waves crashing on top of you and swirling and pushing you under water.
My friend said that he remembers struggling to swim as he was getting pushed under water by the waves, while constantly being pulled farther and farther out to sea, everything was swirling around and around and he didn’t even know which way was up. It was kinda like one of those carnival rides I mentioned earlier, but this was real, he was really out of control and at the mercy of the ocean.
He remembered that you’re supposed to swim parallel to the beach, not toward the beach, in order to get out of the rip current. But no matter how hard he tried, the waves kept crashing on top of him over and over, pushing him under water.
My friend said he remembers a moment when he was sure he was going to drown and he prayed, “Lord, help me.” And a few moments later he was thrown out of the rip current and managed to swim back to the beach and laid there grasping for breath.
Maybe you feel like that in the circumstances of your life. You may know what it feels like to be at the mercy of the waves, to fall into bed at night completely exhausted, to not know if you’re going to make it through another day.
This is what Jesus says to you, “It is I; don’t be afraid.” (SLIDE 6b)
The order of these words is so important.
Did you notice the first three words…It is I. (SLIDE 6c) His presence is the most important thing. It comes first. His presence is why you don’t have to be afraid. (SLIDE 6d) His presence guarantees that no matter what happens in the short run, Jesus is the Deliverer who promises that you will be ok. He will be with you. He will guide you. He will bring you safely home.
It is the presence of God that changes everything. It reminds me of God’s promise to Joshua in Joshua 1:9 — (SLIDE 7) “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.”
Strength and courage to face difficulty, or to face change, or to deal with the sin and evil in this world does not come from you trying to row and row and row…it comes from God’s presence, his power at work in you and through you, and the nearness of Jesus who will comfort you, deliver you, and bring you safely to the shores of his Kingdom.