Hearing Jesus and the Danger of Suffering

Transcript

Now that the 277 days of January are done, we can finally jump into a new month, but we’re still thinking about our series on suffering. In her book Fear and Faith, author Trillia Newbell directs us to consider God deeply: “We’re so familiar with the message that the Lord forgives sin, and perhaps that’s the ultimate expression of His safety (safety from His wrath), but rarely do we talk about this aspect of His character. There is safety in God. You and I think we must control how we are viewed or what others think, but God says no, we are safe. We think we need to worry about the harm others could inflict, physical or otherwise, so we withhold speaking about Jesus, but God says no, we are safe. [Fear] leads us into a trap, like a caged animal, but the fear of the Lord leads us into the arms of a safe Father. How amazing is that? … right now, be in awe that you are secure in the Lord.

“Perhaps this is your first time facing the fear … for what it is. Remember, the Lord desires that we not remain as we are. You and I don’t want to be like the man who looks in the mirror and forgets what he looks like (James 1:23–24). If God brings the sweet grace of conviction, He will provide the sweet grace of escape, forgiveness, and repentance. Ask God to give you a vision of who He is, and then trust that He is who He says He is. You are safe in Him.

I bring this quote from Trillia up at the start because suffering often poses a danger to us. We struggle with a practical theology that moves from our heads to our hearts. We know full well that what Jesus says is best, and He’s promised to be with us, and this is the best place to be. But when we actually try to live this way, it gets, well, complicated. 

Today, we turn to Luke’s Gospel account. We spent time in Luke’s Gospel the past year, so I won’t go overboard in reminding you what Luke was seeking to accomplish in his account of the life and work of Jesus. But, that word “confidence” is what we kept returning to. Imagine having confidence in who Jesus is and what He’s doing to such a degree that you can face the storms of life full of faith. I, for one, long to be there. Maybe some of you manage this better than others in the body, and that’s why God has put us together so that we can comfort and encourage one another until we see Him. And it’s worth reminding you that because Jesus’s life ended in resurrection, we can be confident that, united to Him, resurrection is and will be ours. He’s resurrecting us now and will resurrect us fully one day. I hope you long for heaven when you are going through suffering. But I’m already digressing.

Today, we’ll return to the boat with Jesus and the disciples. Again, we’ll be challenged in our faith. So, I hope that this will prove helpful. Many of you have commented on how valuable these weeks have been, and that is our aim. We know so many of you are going through it. And God wants us to be encouraged in our relationship with Him. So, let’s dig in again to see 3 ways hearing Jesus informs the danger of suffering…

Read Luke 8:22-25 (This is God’s Word; thanks be to God)

3 ways hearing Jesus informs the danger of suffering…

I. Hearing Jesus leads us into danger. (22-23) 22 One day, he got into a boat with his disciples, and he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side of the lake.” So they set out, 23 and, as they sailed, he fell asleep. And a windstorm came down on the lake, and they were filling with water and were in danger.

Before we dig into v.22, I need to set up the context and why “hearing Jesus” is the theme that is at play in this section. As we see where Luke has put together his narrative, we see in chapter 8, the big theme of hearing. The parable of the Sower to start chapter 8 would be enough. Still, then, we get a “doubling down” on this theme beginning with the light under a lamp in v.16. Listen to how Luke builds into this story: 16 “No one after lighting a lamp covers it with a jar or puts it under a bed, but puts it on a stand, so that those who enter may see the light. 17 For nothing is hidden that will not be made manifest, nor is anything secret that will not be known and come to light. 18 Take care then how you hear, for to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he thinks that he has will be taken away.” Jesus wants to ensure His closest followers get the message: hearing Him is crucial for navigating life. Then, we continue in v.19: 19 Then his mother and his brothers came to him, but they could not reach him because of the crowd. 20 And he was told, “Your mother and your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see you.” 21 But he answered them, “My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and do it.” If any of us were an “older brother” to Jesus in our day and age, we may remind Him of who He’s talking about. “That’s your Mom, bruh.” But, then, knowing who Jesus is, we have to reorient our thinking: that hearing and acting on what Jesus is saying is essential. There’s really nothing new under the sun; after all, Ecclesiastes ended with such an admonition: “The end of the matter; all has been heard. Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man” (12:13). And, as a Bible church, this is scratching us right where we itch (so far).

With that context and knowing that the following story relates to a demon-possessed man hearing Jesus and acting obediently, we can enter vv.22-23. And, oddly, Luke begins saying, “One day…” You can translate this as “the first day.” I got some insight on that from Nicholas Perrin, who suggested: “The seemingly innocent segue one day, plausibly to be translated ‘on the first day,’ may be carrying more freight than first meets the eye, especially since Luke uses the same phrase to introduce Jesus’ healing of the paralyzed man (5:17). Given that similar language also marks the first Easter morning (‘but on the first day of the week,’ 24:1), Jesus’ imminent stilling of the storm, together with the healing of the paralyzed man (where questions of Jesus’ divine prerogative are in play), may be pointing forward to the new creation of resurrection. It is not implausible that Luke intends both miracles, themselves concerned with authority, as harbingers of the divine authority more fully to be revealed at the resurrection.” So, we are to read this passage as a first fruit of the types of things that we can expect God the Son to accomplish when He “rights the wrongs” of this world. And this invites us into an active faith.

Jesus gets into the boat with His disciples. Notice how the hearing Jesus plays out. Remember, hearing and doing matters (according to the verse before). Jesus says, “Let’s go across to the other side of the lake.” So, they set out. Easy come, easy go. Jesus speaks, and they do. But hearing Jesus gets this into quite the mess. Look at v.23, “As they sailed, Jesus fell asleep. And a windstorm came down on the lake, and they were filling with water and were in danger.” I know that, at this point, we are familiar with this story. Let me repeat the details: “[The Sea of Galilee is] actually a large lake, but because it is below sea level, the winds that come down across it can cause it to act like a sea. That means big waves and storms can come up suddenly. That’s what happened in verse 23. The Lord fell asleep in the boat, and a windstorm swept the lake. These are professional fishermen. They know these waters and have likely been out in storms before. But this one is so violent that the boat starts to fill up with water, and these grown fishermen start screaming, “Master, Master, we’re going to die!” (v. 24a).” 

If you’re following the text, you can see that these disciples have done nothing wrong except to hear Jesus and do what He has said, which has gotten them into danger. It’s such a simple encouragement, but it is needed for so many of us who have a mistaken image of God, who’s always punishing us. Hearing Jesus and doing what He says can lead us into danger. Not because we’ve done anything wrong, but because, in His sovereignty, He determined it so. We could say a lot about God's purpose in leading us into danger but don’t conclude that He’s simply punishing you. Hearing Him and doing what He says leads us into danger.

Secondly, we begin to dig into the response of these followers as we see that II. Hearing Jesus leads us to doubt in danger. (24) 24 And they went and woke him, saying, “Master, Master, we are perishing!” And he awoke and rebuked the wind and the raging waves, and they ceased, and there was a calm.

The disciples go and wake Jesus, saying, “Master, Master, we are perishing!” While [in the Gospel of] Matthew’s disciples try to rouse Jesus with the title ‘Lord’ (Matt. 8:25) and [in the Gospel of] Mark’s disciples call him ‘Teacher’ (Mark 4:38), Luke’s terrified sailors address him as Master—twice in fact, as a realistic expression of their franticness. Their panic is understandable, as they believe they are perishing.” This “Master, Master” phrasing is used intentionally to show that “Jesus is at once the disciples’ human master and the lord of the universe! The same incarnational theology underwrites Jesus’ remarkable ability to sleep through the furious squall. As the fully faithful man, the sleeping Jesus exhibits complete trust in the providential care of his heavenly Father; as God incarnate, Jesus is roused on the model of Yahweh, who likewise is awakened by the faithful to quell the forces of chaos.”

He awoke, and in Luke’s Gospel, simply spoke, and the wind and raging waves cease, and there is calm. Think of the power of Jesus. He’s trying to teach His followers how to hear Him and do what He says, and what He gives them is a living picture. He speaks, and the waters do what He says. “Jesus does not do anything; He doesn’t put up His arms and hold the storm back. He simply tells the storm to stop, and it obeys Him.”

The doubt is reflected in their thinking that the Master of all would allow them to perish at that moment. Jesus tries to awaken them with the question of v.25, “Where is your faith?” “Jesus, for his part, wonders where the disciples’ faith has gone. So, the implicit question for us is: What kind of faith do we have?” Consider this challenge from Mike McKinley: “It is easy to trust God when the sailing is smooth. We enjoy God’s help and blessings when we can see how everything will work out well. However, we can tell a great deal about what we really believe about Jesus’ identity when we see how we respond in a time of crisis. Do we panic and wonder if he really cares about us? Or are we able to trust him in the storms of life? We need to feel that challenge. Then, we need to remember the good news—that Jesus helps the disciples (and us) even though they fail to trust him as they should.” Hearing Jesus leads us into danger and leads us to doubt amid danger. 

Third and finally, III. Hearing Jesus invites us into faith in danger. (25) 25 He said to them, “Where is your faith?” And they were afraid, and they marveled, saying to one another, “Who then is this, that he commands even winds and water, and they obey him?”

We’ve already hit on the first of the two questions in v.25, “Where is your faith?” They responded with fear and marveling, speaking to one another the other question: “Who then is this, that He commands even winds and water, and they obey Him?” In other words, what kind of person are we dealing with here? Is He really the God we think He is? He commands winds and waters, and they obey. 

Notice when the fear is highlighted: “But Jesus had taken care of [the storm that had caused them to wake Him]. It was calm now. Their fear is noted after the storm, which is tied to what Jesus did. If, at this moment, we could have been ‘text-messaging’ with the disciples, we might ask, ‘Why are you trembling? The storm’s over, the danger’s past.’ They would tell us that we don’t understand—they are not shaking because of the storm but because of Jesus. Think about what they had to think: they are sitting in a boat with a man at a certain latitude and longitude on the Sea of Galilee, and He tells the winds to stop blasting away—and they do just that. Who can command winds and water but the Creator, the God Psalms 106 and 107, for example, speak of? And yet He’s sitting with them in a boat! And a short time before He fell asleep (v. 23a). He has all the everyday needs of humanity and yet speaks with the voice of deity, and that’s enough to cause brain tremors.” Our facing danger is an invitation to see the “bigness” of Jesus.

Jesus connects all they had heard and seen—this fantastic display of power—to faith. Will they lean in and believe? Or will they allow fear to paralyze them? When we hear Jesus, our faith will be affected. And by faith, I mean every aspect of what we believe. Hearing Jesus will give us more certainty about who He is. Hearing Him will provide us with certainty no matter how long or short we’ve been in a relationship with Him. Hearing Him will bolster our trust in Him when we are ‘fraidy cats,’ thinking that Jesus has abandoned us to die. During this mess, He speaks so that faith is matured in us.

In conclusion, today we’ve seen 3 ways hearing Jesus informs the danger of suffering…

I. Hearing Jesus leads us into danger. (22-23)

II. Hearing Jesus leads us to doubt in danger. (24)

III. Hearing Jesus invites us into faith in danger. (25)

Today, faith is on the table, and by faith, I mean who do we trust in or believe when faith comes? I’m so tempted to think and rest in myself or calm weeks or easy going. But hearing Jesus will not keep me in those situations all the time. Hearing Jesus will invite me into storm-tossed waters just like these followers. Will I respond with doubt or faith? Today, consider this in your life: when the testing comes, is Christ the foundation you hold on to, or is it something or someone else? What would it look like for you to go deeper with Jesus? Trust in Him today. 

And, for those of us who are believers, I hope this passage has brought more encouragement to you—part of this passage has driven us to hear Jesus more. So, yes, this may mean that we don’t give up hearing Him when the dangers of suffering come. Do you hear His voice? If we are committed to hearing Him, let’s not give up when the trying times come. God’s people have always been storm-tossed. Yet, He remains our foundation and chief Cornerstone. He has said that this life is not the end for us. He is with you in the fire. He will eternally calm the waves and give us rest. Let’s go all in with Him, pressing to know Him and make Him known. Let’s hear Him and be people who glorify and enjoy Him forever.

In this sermon from Luke 8:22-25, Phil Auxier connects hearing Jesus to the danger of suffering.

Explore the Library