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Baal HaSulam. Shamati, 41. What Is Greatness and Smallness in Faith?
Baal HaSulam. Shamati, 41. What Is Greatness and Smallness in Faith?
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We live in a culture obsessed with big! We want big, we value big. We live big cars, big roads, big stores, big homes, and big bank accounts. But what about those moments when you feel small? Pastor JD shares a message on the value and importance of smallness. We hope this message blesses you and helps you live better. For more about ConnectCommunity, visit: https://www.connectcommunity.org
Today Mike is sharing about Smallness; achieving or doing something small and how it's the little things that add up to big change. In Luke 13, Jesus uses the metaphor of a mustard seed that grows into a tree. Small acts can lead to big change. Conviction // Faith // Humility // Trust WEBSITE :: https://www.goodlife.org.au/ and https://www.goodlife.org.au/church-notices SPOTIFY https://open.spotify.com/show/5tgYs0DLkpe3yxj15nTRUh?si=KWSJIsI-Q7auMNx4WLn6xg Goodlife Collective:: https://open.spotify.com/track/6AIpkihS5W6fyQb81U53ql?si=eae8759fd4d947f6&nd=1&dlsi=45435542515e4942 CONNECT via socials FACEBOOK :: https://www.facebook.com/goodlifecommunitychurch INSTAGRAM:: https://www.instagram.com/goodlifecommunitychurch/ YOUTH:: https://www.instagram.com/goodlife_youth/ COLLECTIVE:: https://www.instagram.com/goodlifecollective_/
We all are called on to embrace our divine power in order to become all that we hope to become. Even leaders, and those who assist leaders, may find it daunting at times to accept and step into their own magnitude of self. Join Terry Wildeman in this spirit-led meditation where we forgive ourselves and others for the times that we are fearful and stay small.Terry Wildemannhttps://www.facebook.com/TerryWildemannCard Decks: Deckible Terry WildemannPlease set the intention to receive then relax and enjoy!Enlightened World Network is your guide to inspirational online programs about the spiritual divinity, angels, energy work, chakras, past lives, or soul. Learn about spiritually transformative authors, musicians and healers. From motivational learning to inner guidance, you will find the best program for you.Check out our website featuring over 200 spirit-inspired lightworkers specializing in meditation, energy work and angel channelinghttps://enlightenedworld.onlineEnjoy inspirational and educational shows at http://www.youtube.com/c/EnlightenedWorldNetworkTo sign up for a newsletter to stay up on EWN programs and events, sign up here: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/su/FBoFQef/webEnlightened World Network is now available on Apple Podcast, Google Podcast, Podbean, Spotify, and Amazon Music.Link to EWN's disclaimer: https://enlightenedworld.online/disclaimer/#ArchangelMichael#dailymeditations#Christconsciousness#archangels#lightworkers
SCRIPTUREMatthew 17:20"Jesus said, 'If you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'move from here to there', and it will move. Nothing will be impossible to you.'"REFLECTIONSister CarolMUSIC"Ancient of Days" by David BauerPiano InstrumentalNOTES
Last time, Pastor Ricky started talking about the unassuming power of the Kingdom of God. In the world that we live in, it doesn't appear to have any power because evil seems to be reigning. Pastor Ricky will bring a word of comfort today. There's a coming day when all sickness will end. There will be no more death. Jesus will wipe every tear from our eyes and we will be with Him forever. This is the glorious kingdom that we wait for.
The world around us seems to be powerful and unrelenting. To those of us here in the US, we've been raised on the idea that the United States is the most powerful country on earth and for the most part, it's probably true. We're certainly the most blessed nation on earth but we aren't the first to experience it. Today Pastor Ricky shares how the Kingdom of God, though seemingly small and insignificant, towers in comparison to any and all countries that have ever existed.
In this mini-series, Stormy explores how to feel ALIVE AGAIN. How to overcome feelings of smallness and embrace a larger vision for life. Bridge the gap between current reality and desired dreams through actionable steps, visualization, and emotional connection. The concept of a 'heart vortex' is introduced as a tool for manifesting dreams alongside practical advice for daily actions that align with one's aspirations. Download the free guide for the ‘heart vortex' template at www.iamstormysage.com START 00:00 Introduction to Feeling Alive Again 01:00 Bridging the Gap to Your Dream Life 03:24 Creating Your Heart Vortex 04:43 Visualizing and Taking Action 06:44 Daily Actions to Stop Playing Small MORE FROM STORMY
Join us as Pastor preaches in Isaiah 40.
Christmas The Collect Almighty God, you have given your only-begotten Son to take our nature upon him, and to be born [this day] of a pure virgin: Grant that we, who have been born again and made your children by adoption and grace, may daily be renewed by your Holy Spirit; through our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom with you and the same Spirit be honor and glory, now and for ever. Amen. Old Testament Isaiah 9:2-7 The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; those who lived in a land of deep darkness-- on them light has shined. You have multiplied the nation, you have increased its joy; they rejoice before you as with joy at the harvest, as people exult when dividing plunder. For the yoke of their burden, and the bar across their shoulders, the rod of their oppressor, you have broken as on the day of Midian. For all the boots of the tramping warriors and all the garments rolled in blood shall be burned as fuel for the fire. For a child has been born for us, a son given to us; authority rests upon his shoulders; and he is named Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. His authority shall grow continually, and there shall be endless peace for the throne of David and his kingdom. He will establish and uphold it with justice and with righteousness from this time onward and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this. The Psalm Psalm 96 Cantate Domino 1 Sing to the Lord a new song; * sing to the Lord, all the whole earth. 2 Sing to the Lord and bless his Name; * proclaim the good news of his salvation from day to day. 3 Declare his glory among the nations * and his wonders among all peoples. 4 For great is the Lord and greatly to be praised; * he is more to be feared than all gods. 5 As for all the gods of the nations, they are but idols; * but it is the Lord who made the heavens. 6 Oh, the majesty and magnificence of his presence! * Oh, the power and the splendor of his sanctuary! 7 Ascribe to the Lord, you families of the peoples; * ascribe to the Lord honor and power. 8 Ascribe to the Lord the honor due his Name; * bring offerings and come into his courts. 9 Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness; * let the whole earth tremble before him. 10 Tell it out among the nations: "The Lord is King! * he has made the world so firm that it cannot be moved; he will judge the peoples with equity." 11 Let the heavens rejoice, and let the earth be glad; let the sea thunder and all that is in it; * let the field be joyful and all that is therein. 12 Then shall all the trees of the wood shout for joy before the Lord when he comes, * when he comes to judge the earth. 13 He will judge the world with righteousness * and the peoples with his truth. The New Testament Titus 2:11-14 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all, training us to renounce impiety and worldly passions, and in the present age to live lives that are self-controlled, upright, and godly, while we wait for the blessed hope and the manifestation of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. He it is who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purify for himself a people of his own who are zealous for good deeds. The Gospel Luke 2:1-14(15-20) In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. All went to their own towns to be registered. Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn. In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for see-- I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger." And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying, "Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace among those whom he favors!" [When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, "Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us." So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger. When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child; and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them. But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them.]
In her book Sacred Smallness, Jenny Papapostolou points out that, while Christian culture often heralds fame and wealth as the ultimate success, God is delighted in humble surrender, even when it leads to sacred smallness and holy hiddenness. Guest information: www.lovetothenations.com Our website: www.oasisnetwork.org
DateNovember 17, 2024SynopsisIn this sermon, we discover how a 19th-century French saint's radical embrace of smallness offers surprising wisdom for our exhausting, power-hungry world. St. Thérèse of Lisieux's "Little Way"—finding strength in weakness and trusting in small acts of great love—provides both a liberating alternative to our culture's demands for constant achievement and a radical roadmap for navigating our present moment of social upheaval and disillusionment. This message speaks directly to anyone feeling inadequate or overwhelmed, revealing how our perceived weaknesses might actually be the exact places where God shows up most powerfully.ReferencesScripture: Psalm 131; 2 Corinthians 12:2–10About The Local ChurchFor more information about The Local Church, visit our website. We're also posting good stuff on Facebook and Instagram. Feedback? Questions? Comments? We'd love to hear it. Email Brent at brent@thelocalchurchpbo.org.To invest in what God's doing through The Local Church and help support these podcasting efforts and this movement of God's love, give online here.
Today, Karen and I welcome Jenny Papapostolou of Love To The Nations to the show. In this episode, Jenny shares: The true definition of ministry and how we are all called to do our part. How God uses us in both small and big ways to build His Kingdom. Why we must always be ready, available, and obedient to God's call. "Do not despise these small beginnings, for the Lord rejoices to see the work begin." (Zechariah 4:10 NLT) To learn more about Jenny's ministry, click here. To purchase Jenny's book, "Sacred Smallness," click here.
Jonathan Martin explores the themes of suffering, divine guidance, and the significance of smallness through the lens of the Book of Job. In a world in which so much of our technology tells us "you're really, really big;" the message embedded in nature itself that "you are really, really small" is a liberating word. Sometimes your problems don't get smaller, until you do. While we are assigned infinite worth, destinies don't sit on our shoulders. Ultimately this is an invitation to trust in the goodness of God, and stop having to be in charge...yielding to the voice that tells you, "you don't have to carry it anymore."
Welcome to The Decoding Success Podcast for a brand new episode with Tom Turcich - the 10th person to ever walk around the world! And, the first to ever do it with his late pup, Savannah. Together, they walked 28,000 miles over 7 years and 6 continents. Today, Tom brings his wisdom here for a conversation on self-discovery and reflection through walking, finding joy through simplicity, navigating grief, processing emotions through movement, and more. YOUR PERSONAL BRAND
Guest: Bill Haskell, ArtistArtists and musicians will often cite a muse as their inspiration for their works of art, which is usually a love interest or dreams of success. But what about the weather? Can it be a muse? For us Weather Geeks, we find inspiration in the weather in every single model run and supercell structure, and it turns out that we aren't the only ones! Today on the show we have Bill Haskell to discuss how he incorporates the weather around him into his beautiful landscape paintings.Chapters00:00 Finding Inspiration in Weather02:14 The Power of Weather in Art07:45 Tornadoes as Metaphors13:01 The Appeal of Tornado Paintings18:32 The Smallness of Humanity23:17 Incorporating Weather in ArtSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.
The feeling of jealousy can be a good push for healthy competition if processed correctly.
On today's episode, we're diving deep into what it feels like when your dreams start to feel like that favorite sweater that's gone through the dryer one too many times—tight, itchy, and just plain wrong. Meg Thompson is here to spill the tea on why this happens, how to stop clinging to outdated dreams, and what it really takes to step into your expansive self. Here's what we're unpacking:Why Your Dreams Feel Like They Shrunk in the WashLearn why outgrowing old dreams is a sign of growth, not failure, and how to gracefully let go of what no longer fits without spiraling into an existential crisis.Reality is Optional, Babe We're flipping the script on what's “realistic” and redefining what freedom and abundance look like on your terms.Navigating the Awkward Gap Between Who You Were and Who You're BecomingThere's a chasm between letting go of the old and embracing the new, and it can feel like you're free-falling. We're talking tips, tricks, and mindset shifts to help you make peace with the in-between.Bitter Medicine and Sweet HarvestsNot every seed you plant is gonna taste like candy. Sometimes, the fruits of your labor are a little… bitter. And that's okay. Discover how to use those less-than-sweet moments as compost for your next big leap.Tune in and get ready to break up with smallness. Your bigger, more authentic self is waiting!T H E P L A Y G R O U N D waitlist - CLICK HERESend us a message and let us know what you love about this episodeLinks:Want this forecast in your inbox? https://megthompson.myflodesk.com/co66g4uvl5Get on the THE ONE waitlist for working with Meg 1:1 : CLICK HEREMeg's Website - www.MegThompson.comInstagram - www.instagram.com/iammegthompson
Getting through the unexpected. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/pamela-m-staton/support
The sermon from the Sunday, June 23, 2024, worship service of Atlanta First United Methodist Church by Lead Pastor Rev. Jasmine R. Smothers. Sermon “Make A Choice: Smallness or Openness” in the worship series “The Gospel According to Disney-Pixar's Elemental,” and scripture lesson: 2 Corinthians 6:1-13 (The Message).Support the Show.
The first fruits offerings upon which the day of Pentecost is established reflect a biblical principle in which a small portion of a very large crop is presented before God. This tiny portion offered has a sanctifying effect upon the whole. Smallness is built into the symbolism of the first fruits! God chooses to work with only a small portion now and leaves the rest for later. God's work of spiritual creation is rolled out in stages. It starts small... then grows bigger. In this way God distributes the work of proclamation and instruction among human beings. God likes to get others involved. Get a FREE copy of our eBook "What Really Happens After Death?" Full details are at this link: http://eepurl.com/ddB0yb Photos by Unknown author is licensed under CC BY-NC. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/
Chapter, Verse, and Season: A Lectionary Podcast from Yale Bible Study
Brandon Nappi and Ned Parker discuss gardening, the lectionary, and the impact of little things in reference to Mark 4:26-34. The text is appointed for the Fourth Sunday after Pentecost in Year B of the Revised Common Lectionary.More Yale Bible Study resources, including a transcript of this episode, at: https://YaleBibleStudy.org/podcastBrandon Nappi is Executive Director of Leadership Programs and Lecturer in Homiletics at Yale Divinity School and Ned Parker is Associate Dean for Institutional Advancement at Andover-Newton Seminary at Yale and a Lecturer in Homiletics at Yale Divinity School.Connect with Yale Bible Study: Facebook: @YDSCCE Twitter: @BibleYale YouTube: youtube.com/c/YaleBibleStudy LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/yds-center-for-continuing-education Thank you for listening!
Prayer for Leaving Smallness Behind for her Daily Spiritual Espresso published on May 7, 2024 which you can access here: https://powerofloveministry.net/2024/05/leaving-smallness-behind/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
We hope you enjoy today's Scripture reading and devotional aimed at motivating you to apply God's word while strengthening your heart and nurturing your soul. Today's Bible reading is Psalm 8. To read along with the podcast, grab a print copy of the devotional. Browse other resources from Leeann Stiles. ESV Bible narration read by Kristyn Getty. Follow us on social media to stay up to date: Instagram Facebook Twitter
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Sr. Josephine Garrett, CSFN, host of Hope Stories, is joined by FOCUS missionary alumna Samantha Ayers for an inspiring conversation on how simple invitations can bear great fruit. Sr. Josephine loves the transformational power and gift of stories, and their ability to reveal deep truths about the purpose and meaning of our lives. Hope Stories explores extraordinary stories of hope hidden within the ordinary lives we leadRegister at seek.focus.org
Speaker 1:This media has been made available by Mosaic Boston Church. If you'd like to check out more resources, learn about Mosaic Boston, or donate to this ministry, please visit mosaicboston.com.Speaker 2:Heavenly Father, we thank You that, in this Christmas season, we can meditate upon what it means that God is with us, that Jesus is Emmanuel. That Jesus, You, the great I am, Yahweh of the Hebrew scriptures, You came to be with us. We thank You, Lord Jesus, that You call us to be Your disciples, Your followers. And that doesn't mean that You call us to an easy life, often it means that You do call us to seasons of trials and testing and I pray, Lord, fill our hearts with joy when we encounter the trials, when we encounter the tests. As James tells us, count in all joy, my brothers and, when you meet trials of various kinds, knowing that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness and let steadfastness have its full effect so that you may be complete and perfect, lacking in nothing. Lord, You do test us in order to equip us, in order to empower us, in order to use us and You do it in order to deepen our revelation of You and deepen our faith in You.And Lord, I pray from the holy scriptures today, encourage us, show us that, when Jesus Christ became man, when God took on flesh, You came into our struggles, You came into our trials in the same way that You came to the disciples walking on the water, You came into the boat and You saved them from the storm, You welcome that same salvation and You offer it to each one of us. I pray, if there's anyone here today who's not sure where they stand before the God of the universe, I pray that they meet Jesus Christ, I pray that You give them the gift of repentance so they do repent of their sins and leave them and I pray that You save them from their sin and give them power over sin to walk in ways of righteousness. Holy Spirit, we love You and we pray that You come and minister to us, encourage us, edify us and continue to work out Your will in our lives. We pray this, in Jesus Christ's name, amen.We're continuing our sermon series through the Gospel of Mark called Kingdom Come and the idea is that Jesus has come to inaugurate the Lord's kingdom. He said the kingdom of God is at hand, therefore, repent and believe and then He calls us, as His followers, to establish His kingdom and that starts with praying. And in the Lord's prayer, He teaches us to pray, Lord, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done. The title of the sermon today is Take Heart, I am with You. A famous phrase in combat sports is there's levels to this and the idea can be applied to just about any sphere of life but it's made famous in combat sports because, whenever the winner at the end of the match, when he's interviewed, the microphone, post-victory, is put in front of his face or her face and they say, "How did you win?"And usually, the answer is something like, "There's levels to this," meaning I reached a level that my opponent has not. And there's levels in striking, footwork, defense, strength, speed, conditioning but the level that must be reached if victory is to be tasted on a regular basis is can you remain calm in the face of adversity. As the great philosopher, Mike Tyson, famously put it, everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth. And often, in following Jesus Christ, we get punched in the mouth and it's the punch that you don't see coming that knocks you out. Therefore, we, as followers of Christ, we should be ready, we should be ready for whatever the life throws at us.Can you calm your nerves when the pressure is the highest? Well, same goes for faith. Can we keep trusting in the Lord, trusting in His sovereignty when it feels like we're in the middle of a storm rowing in place because the winds are so strong and our strength is so minuscule in comparison? And then can we remain sensitive to the Lord? Can we remain tender-hearted when frustration begins to creep in? Lord, this is not what I signed up for. Lord, this is not what I've been asking for. The text before us today seems so similar to the episode where Jesus was in the boat with the disciples, they're caught in the storm and Jesus was sleeping in the stern, His head on a cushion. And in that text, it's similar to our text, there is a storm and it almost seems like the text is redundant but, in this episode, Jesus is not physically in the boat with the disciples.He isn't in the boat in our lives physically, He's not here physically but His physical presence isn't necessary for His sovereign rule to continue reigning because He is the great I am. That's His name, Jesus says, "I am," unchangeable, unflappable, immutable. He's as much with His disciples overseeing their struggles and suffering, superintending their pain from a distant mountain in our text as if He were in the boat with them. The context is the disciples had returned from a short-term missionary trip where they were preaching the word of the kingdom, they were exorcizing demons, they were healing many in the name of Christ and they were accepted by many, rejected by more. And then they come back and Jesus sees that they're absolutely exhausted and He says, "Let's go to a desolate place so that you can rest."As they're going to their vacation destination, so to speak, 5,000 men find out that they're coming and then Jesus and the disciples end up teaching for another full day and then the crowds are hungry. The disciples say, "Jesus, send them away so they can get some food," and Jesus tells them, "You feed them." And then Jesus takes the five loaves and the two fish and multiplies them exponentially, feeds the thousands and the disciples spend hours more, they were already exhausted, hours more carrying food back and forth to the groups of 50s and a hundred. So, the disciples are bone tired and now Jesus, in our text, commands them to get into the boat and, unbeknownst to them, He's sending them into another storm, this time by themselves.They spend hours in the storm rowing in the darkness against the thick of the stormy winds. And the question is how will they respond this time? Will they level up their faith? Will they take the lessons they've learned and apply them in the new test or will they remain hardened and frustrated by the pain that Jesus has allowed? In Mark 6:45 through 56, that's where we find ourselves. Would you please look at the text with me?Immediately, He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He dismissed the crowd and, after He had taken leave of them, He went up on the mountain to pray. And when evening came, the boat was out on the sea and He was alone on the land and He saw that they were making headway painfully for the wind was against them and, about the fourth watch of the night, He came to them walking on the sea. He meant to pass by them but, when they saw Him walking on the sea, they thought it was a ghost and cried out for they all saw Him and were terrified but immediately He spoke to them and said, "Take heart, it is I, do not be afraid."And He got into the boat with them and the wind ceased and they were utterly astounded for they did not understand about the loaves but their hearts were hardened. When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret and moored to the shore and, when they got out of the boat, the people immediately recognized Him and ran about the whole region and began to bring the sick people on their beds to wherever they heard He was. And wherever He came, in villages, cities or countryside, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and implored Him that they might touch even the fringe of His garment and, as many as touched, it were made.Well, this is the reading of God's holy, inerrant, fallible, authoritative word, may He write these eternal truths upon our hearts. Three points to frame up our time. First, when life gets overwhelming, keep praying. Second, when life gets overwhelming, keep rowing. And third, when life gets overwhelming, keep believing. First, when life gets overwhelming, keep praying. Jesus had just ministered to thousands, preaching God's word to them and we see in this text that Jesus just needs to pause. You see this often in the Gospel of Mark where He serves, serves, serves, serves and then, all of a sudden, He's just out. He's like, "Okay, I'm going to a mountain. I need to pray." Jesus as God did not need to pray but Jesus the man certainly did.And Jesus is the divine Son without beginning of life or end of days who was dwelt in the glory and the blessedness of the Trinity in perfect fellowship with the Father and the Holy Spirit forever but here, in our text, we see that Christ is human. He is a man and, as a man, Mark highlights for us Christ need to pray. As God, He doesn't need to pray but, as man, He could not neglect to pray so He sends His disciples off to give them a breather from the crowd, leaves the crowd with a last sermon, a benediction, if you will, and now Jesus needs to go and restore the ammunition, so to speak, the spiritual resources that He needs to continue. He understands that what He's doing is waging spiritual warfare and, in warfare, you need ammunition and where does Jesus get the resources, where do we get the resources, the power to and the strength? We get it from prayer.And it seems that the disciples didn't want to leave, they saw Jesus perform this incredible miracle and perhaps they wanted to go and pray to the Lord with Jesus but the text tells us in verse 45 that Jesus makes them get into the boat. Immediately, He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He dismissed the crowd. We're not sure why Jesus does this but He abruptly sends them out and He Himself goes to pray. The parallel passage in the Gospel of John gives us a hint as to why, abruptly, He goes to pray to the Father. Perhaps He is wrestling with the same temptation that Satan came to Him with in Matthew 4.But in John 6, the parallel passage, it says, "When the people saw the sign that He had done, they said, 'This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world,' perceiving then that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king. Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by Himself." Jesus had just spent all day teaching them what His kingdom is like, that His kingdom is an inside-out kingdom, that He has come to save people from their sins, give them new hearts so they want to submit to God from the inside out, it's an inside out kingdom but that's not what they wanted. They didn't want this talk of repentance, of submission to God, of submission to His word and His law. No, they wanted an outside in kingdom, a king that would force people into submission, force the enemies of Israel into submission.A change of heart? No, they wanted a change in politics. They didn't care about a new heart, all they cared about was that their stomachs were filled. And who wouldn't want a king who can provide an endless supply of food? Forget Herod, forget Pontius Pilate, forget Caesar, we have someone who can always feed us. Philippians 3:18, Saint Paul writes for many of whom I've often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction, their god is their belly and they glory in their shame with minds set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven and, from it, we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like His glorious body by the power that enables Him even to subject all things to himself.Jesus knew that these crowds were not followers, they were just fans. They were consumers and seekers, not subjects and servants. These are the same people who will turn on Jesus in just a couple of years when He fails to give them what they want. They demand a political king, they demand someone who can meet their physical needs. Spirituality, the kingdom of heaven, repenting, believing the word of God meant nothing to them and that's why, when they were given the choice, "Do you want Barabbas or do you want Jesus? Which one do you want free?" They said, "Give us Barabbas the thief. Jesus, crucify Him." Their sin, which is the root cause of all their suffering, blinded them to see what they needed most which is forgiveness from the Lord and a new heart.The heavenly Father sent Jesus to conquer humanity's greatest enemy. Our greatest enemy is sin, not the Roman Empire, not big religious establishment. He came as Israel's messianic king but not just Israel's and we have all sinned and we are all under condemnation and we all desperately need the Lord to fill our souls with His presence. Also, becoming an earthly king the first time around must have been a temptation for Jesus. Jesus, in the human form, was tempted as we are. He was tempted with taking the crown without enduring the cross and that's what Satan tempted Jesus with in the desert when Christ was fasting in Matthew 4:8.Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory and he said to Him, "All these I will give You if You will fall down and worship me." Then Jesus said to him, "Be gone, Satan. For it is written, you shall worship the Lord your God and Him only shall you serve." Jesus said, "I've come to make people worshipers of God, the Father seek those who worship Him in spirit and in truth." So, Jesus dismisses the crowds, dismisses the disciples and He goes to pray. He goes to spend time with the Heavenly Father, this is how He fought temptation, this is how He gained perspective, this is how He was reminded of his mission. That's verse 46. After He had taken leave of them, He went up on the mountain to pray.The Lord taught us in the Sermon on the Mount how to pray. In Matthew 6:5, when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward but, when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to the Father who is in secret and Your father who sees in secret will reward you. And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them for your father knows what you need before you ask Him. Pray then like this, "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our debts as we also forgive our debtors and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil."He says, "Your heavenly Father knows what you need even before you ask. And sometimes the Lord provides even before we ask, He loves to meet our needs." But what needs does Jesus have? He multiplied five loaves and two fishes and feed thousands, His need wasn't for bread, His need was for the presence of God the Father. He wanted proximity to the Father, He wanted a visitation with the Father, that's why He prays. And this is also how Jesus waged spiritual warfare. Ephesians 6 tells us that there is a spiritual war happening all around us, therefore, we are to stand firm in the Lord in the strength of his might. And in the text later it says praying at all times in the spirit, with all prayer and supplication to the end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints.And that's what Jesus was doing, He's praying in the spirit and who's He praying for? He's praying for the saints, He's praying for the disciples. He went to the mountain, not just to rest, not just to sleep, but to wage spiritual war in prayer. He was interceding for the disciples as He currently is interceding for us. He is the one mediator, as 1 Timothy 2:5, for there is one God and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus who gave Himself as a ransom for all which is the testimony given at the proper time. Satan wants to destroy every single human being, he wants to destroy every single soul and he even wanted to destroy the disciples. Scripture says that he wants to deceive even the elect, if he could.Jesus, in one time, in Luke 22 says this to Peter, He says, "Simon, Simon, behold Satan demanded to have you that he might sift you like wheat but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers." This is Jesus praying for His disciples, He's praying for their faith so it does not fail as they are in a great storm. This kind of prayer is work, it's labor, it's struggle. You should pray so hard sometimes that you break a sweat and you're even surprised by it. At community group recently, we have community group at my place and, at the end, we break up, the sisters stay in the living room and the brothers go into the kitchen and I always say, "Men in the kitchen, where they belong," and everyone laughs and they belong eating the snacks.And we were praying and there were just immediate needs and we felt the heaviness of the Holy Spirit and we're praying, we're praying and we're praying, we're done praying. And I look at the brother's foreheads, they're all drenched, I needed a change of shirt, I just sweat a lot. Sometimes, prayer is work, it's labor. We have to pray fervently, fiery prayers, zealous prayers. In Colossians 4:12, St. Paul says, "Epaphras, who was one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus greets you, always struggling on your behalf in his prayers that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God." Do you emulate Christ with your prayer? Do you pray for the saints as He did? Do you pray for the conversion of the lost? Do you pray for revival? Have you ever spent hours in prayer? Have you continued all night in prayer even once?And if you want more power to get through the storms of life when life gets overwhelming, pray. If you want more power to see the power of God in your life doing the impossible, pray. And if you want to be used mightily by God, pray even as our Lord did. So, Jesus up on the mountain praying for His disciples so, when life gets overwhelming, pray and, second, when life gets overwhelming, keep rowing. This is verse 47. And when evening came, the boat was out on the sea and He was alone on the land and He saw that they were making headway painfully for the wind was against them. So, Jesus is up on the mountain, I love this image, perhaps He sees by moonlight, He sees them struggling, He sees them striving but His eye is upon Him. And this is assuring that, even when we're going through trials of life, the Lord, His eye is upon us.Psalm 32:8, I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go. I will counsel you with my eye upon you. Be not like a horse or a mule without understanding which must be curbed with bit and brittle or it will not stay near you. It seems like, whenever Jesus leaves the disciples alone, they're in trouble but Jesus' eye is upon them, He's watching over them. They're experiencing the contrary wind, there's darkness, perhaps the boat is filling up as in the previous story and it says that they were making headway painfully, making tortuous progress. So, the wind is against them, the sails are down, you can't use the sails when the wind is against you. So, the oars are out, they're rowing, they're being tormented in their rowing as one translation says. They were not making any progress, rowing was a struggle.Verse 48 says, "About the fourth watch of the night, He came to them walking on the sea, He meant to pass by them." So, if they left that dusk, I don't know, 7:00 p.m., 8:00 p.m. and now Jesus comes to them walking in the water in the fourth watch of the night, that's between 3:00 and 6:00 a.m. So, you're talking about they're rowing against the wind six to eight to nine hours and the storm wasn't just a sudden squall as in the previous text, this is a continuous headwind necessitating heavy back-breaking rowing. Have you ever rowed? Is there a rowing machine in your gym? Five minutes on that thing, you're like, "I'm done. I got my workout for the week."I rowed for a season in college on the crew team and there's a reason why I did it for a season, it is awful, it was so bad. But the workouts were an hour on this erg, an hour, you're going at heavy pace and painful, painful. You're exhausted by the end and famished. And this is why I wonder, Jesus fed the 5,000 and how many baskets were left over? Twelve baskets. Remember that? One basket for each disciple. He's like, "Here you go, gentlemen. Here's some bread and carbs for the storm that I'm sending you into." And even in that, we see the Lord's incredible provision that He provided for them, provided energies for them, food for them as they're rowing. And this whole episode is a tremendous illustration of the life of a disciple, the life of following Jesus Christ. It really is a life of testing and then deliverance.The Lord allows a test in your life, gets you to the point where you're out of energy and that's when you ask for the Lord's deliverance and that's when He shows up. And I do want to point out that the storm here isn't them deviating from God's plan, the Lord didn't send the storm as punishment for their disobedience, no, they did exactly what Jesus said. They end up in the boat because Jesus made them get in the boat and, at this point, they could have become frustrated. Jesus, why'd You allow this again? We would much rather be on the mountain with You praying and snacking on our bread and fish. But now, we're in this boat rowing nine hours into the wind. And what's the lesson here?Well, if you're doing the Lord's work, if you're in the middle of the Lord's will and it feels like everyone and everything is against you, you just keep going, you keep rowing. He will supply you with strength even as He supplied the disciples with food. And then, at the darkest hour of the night, in their time, their moment of greatest need, in a totally unexpected way, Jesus comes to the rescue. In both of the storms at sea, it must have seemed to the disciples that Jesus doesn't care and that's what they said the first time, "Jesus, don't you care? We're perishing." And here, it seems like Jesus doesn't care, allowed us to go into the storm and He's up on the mountain but, in both occasions, the Lord strengthened them with deeper revelations of who He is.There He showed that He is God over creation and here He's going to show that He is the God of the Old Testament, He is Yahweh. And the Lord often allows hardships in our life of all kinds, loneliness, persecution, afflictions of the body, disappointments and frustrations of life and then death itself. But how many of the Lord's choice saints would say, "Even when I'm battered in the storms of life, that's when the Lord was closest, that's when the Lord came to the rescue."? Here, Jesus meets them by walking on the sea, this shows His divinity but it's also reminiscent of Israel. Israel fled Egypt and they walked across the sea, the sea was parted. Jesus is using these themes from the Old Testament as He's creating a new Israel.And Israel, if you remember, they didn't enter the promised land because of their bickering and complaining against God. God had them, for 40 years, walk around in circles in the wilderness because they didn't trust God, they didn't believe Him and they complained about the circumstances they found themselves in. And this is what's happening here, Jesus is testing the new Israel. Are you going to complain? Are you going to grumble or are you going to learn the lessons that would have you to learn to do all things without grumbling and complaining? It says He meant to pass by them, what does this mean? Well, perhaps it was to test their faith. Just as He was sleeping in the stern of the boat on the previous occasion, if they had sufficient faith, they would be content even without His presence with them. Smallness of faith is a failure to remember God's work in the past and apply that knowledge to present problems.But I think this phrase to pass by is an allusion to the Old Testament and on two occasions where God revealed himself to Moses and God revealed himself to Elijah, the preeminent prophets of the Old Testament. It says, at both times, when they asked for theophany, asked for the glory of God, asked to see Him, it says He passed by them. Meaning He's like, "I want to give you a deeper revelation but, if I show you all of myself, you're going to die because of your sin." So, even these great, great preeminent prophets, they're only given a glimpse of the Lord and the glimpse of His glory because Christ had not yet come.For example, in Exodus 33:17, and the Lord said to Moses, "This very thing that you have spoken I will do for you have found favor in my sight and I know you by name." Moses said, "Please show me your glory," and He said, "I will make all My goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you My name, the Lord," and here the Lord is Yahweh, I am that I am, "And I will be gracious to whom I'll be gracious and I will show mercy on whom I will show mercy." But he said, "You cannot see My face for man shall not see me and live." And the Lord said, "Behold, there is a place by Me where you shall stand on the rock and, while My glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft of the rock and I'll cover you with My hand until I've passed by. And then I will take away My hand and you shall see My back but My face shall not be seen."So, in this text where God says, "Here's My name, I am, I am Yahweh," that's what Yahweh means, I am that I am, "I'm going to reveal to you My name, I'm going to reveal to you My glory. But only just a glimpse, I have to pass by," because of the sin nature of each one of us even Moses. Same thing happened with Elijah, 1 Kings 19:9. And there he came to a cave and lodged in it and behold the word of the Lord came to him and He said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" He said, "I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts for the people of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, thrown down Your altars and killed Your prophets with the sword and, I, even I only am left and they seek my life to take it away."And He said, "Go out and stand on the mount before the Lord." And behold, the Lord passed by and the great and strong wind tore the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord but the Lord was in the wind. And after the wind, an earthquake, but the Lord was a not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake, a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire, the sound of a low whisper. When God reveals Himself in a whisper to Elijah as He passed by, the Lord passed by in order to reveal Himself on a deeper level but, before Christ had come, they weren't ready for the full revelation, the full effulgence of His glory.And that's what's happening here and that's what Jesus is doing, He's revealing to His disciples, He's trying to take them to the next level of their faith, show them that He is the God of the Hebrew scriptures, He is Yahweh, He is the great I am. Point three is, when life gets overwhelming, keep believing. Verse 49, and when they saw Him walking on the sea, they thought it was a ghost and cried out for they all saw Him and were terrified. But immediately He spoke to them and said, "Take heart, it is I, do not be afraid." The disciples, all they could see was the wind, the storm, all they could see was the oars, all they could feel was the exhaustion, they weren't expecting the Lord, therefore, they're shocked. They were perhaps crying out in their heart of hearts but they didn't ... How could you even imagine something like this, Jesus walking on the water?And it says that they were terrified and who can blame them? They're exhausted, cold from the rain and the spray and then, all of a sudden, Jesus is here and He says, "Take heart," be encouraged, "It is I." And it is I in the Greek, it's ego eimi, it's I am. Not just I, it's I am. And He uses the same exact name as God of the Hebrew scriptures uses to define Himself. You see this all throughout the Hebrew scriptures, all throughout the Old Testament but in particular in Exodus 3:13 through 15 when God reveals Himself to Moses at the burning bush and Moses asks God for His name. Verse 13 of Exodus 3, then Moses said to God, "If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, the God of your fathers has sent me to you and they ask me what is his name, what shall I say to them?"And God said to Moses, "I am who I am." And He said, "Say this to the people of Israel. I am has sent Me to you." God also said to Moses, say this to the people of Israel, "The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob has sent me to you. This is My name forever and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations." Every Jew knew from memory these famous words in Exodus 3:14 that Yahweh spoke to Moses in the burning bush I am that I am. And these are the words that Jesus applied to Himself in John chapter 8 and His religious audience, the Pharisees, knew exactly what He was saying that's why, immediately after He says I am, they picked up stones to execute Him for blasphemy because, if He wasn't God, if He wasn't the great I am, then He deserved to be executed.This is John 8:56. Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see My day, he saw it and was glad. So, the Jews said to him, "You are not yet 50 years old and have you seen Abraham?" Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was I am." So, they picked up stones to throw at Him but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple. And these texts are all based on Exodus 3:14 in which God reveals His name is ego eimi, I am the one who is. It denotes that He is everlasting presence. There was never a moment that God was not, there will never be a moment that God will not be. Same thing with Christ, there was never a moment that Christ did not exist. Yes, he took on human form, yes, He was born but he preceded that with His existence.In John 18 where Jesus is being arrested, betrayed by Judas, one of His disciples, in the garden of Gethsemane, there's a little detail that ... It's never included in any of the Jesus movies. It's a detail where Jesus says I am and, all of the soldiers, they fall. I love that because Jesus is saying I could kill all of you, I choose not to. This is a John 18. When Jesus had spoken these words, He went out with His disciples across the brook Kidron where there was a garden which He and His disciples entered. Now, Judas who betrayed Him also knew the place where Jesus often met there with His disciples. So, Judas, having procured a band of soldiers and some officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, went there with lanterns and torches and weapons.Then Jesus, knowing all that would happen to Him, came forward and said to them, "Whom do you seek?" They answered Him, "Jesus of Nazareth." Jesus said to them, "I am He." Judas who betrayed Him was standing with them and Jesus said to them, "I am He," they drew back and fell to the ground. Jesus' self-identification here as I am He connects to the Hebrew scriptures. I am was also part of the 10 Commandments that He gave Moses and, all throughout the Hebrew scriptures, I am was the name of God that Jesus attributes to Himself. Deion Sanders, the formerly glorious, in human terms, football player, he started coaching college football in Colorado and his son was a quarterback and they won the first game and it was apparently a big deal and then that's where they lost their momentum.Right after, he was being interviewed and they said, "Tell us about your son. Why is he so good?" And he said, Deion Sanders said, "He is him." And as soon as he said that, I'm like, "No, he's not." That only applies to Jesus. Jesus, He is Him because He is the great I am. And they're season tanked after that, God doesn't like blasphemy. So, Jesus is calling Himself the great I am, He's calling Himself that's who He is. In verse 51, He got into the boat with them and the wind ceased and they were utterly astounded for they did not understand about the loaves but their hearts were hardened. And how is this the punchline? How is this the end of this text? You see the miraculous Jesus walking on the water saving His disciples and the text ends with a rebuke. Rebuke that's incomprehensible. It's incomprehensible that the disciples do not comprehend who Jesus is.This is the most astonishing part of the text especially if you realize where we are in the Gospel of Mark and what they have witnessed. They have been privileged to see miracle upon miracle. Simon Peter's mother-in-law gets healed, a leper is cleansed, the paralytic is given the power to walk, a man with a withered hand is restored to wholeness, Jesus casts out a legion of demons, a woman with the flow of blood is healed in a moment and then Jesus raises Jairus' daughter from the dead. He calms the sea, he feeds the 5,000 and they still, it says, they did not get what was happening, their hearts were hardened. And here you got to pause and say where have we seen this phrase of hard hearts?We saw that phrase in the Old Testament with Pharaoh, Pharaoh hardened his heart. We saw that phrase with the people of Israel. When things would get difficult, they hardened their hearts against the Lord. Even to the point where they said, "Lord, we want to go back to Egypt. We'd rather be in chains eating meat than here out in freedom eating manna." Meaning that, the times of suffering, that's when our faith is tested, will we remain tender-hearted recognizing that God has sovereignly orchestrated this trial in our life, it's going to test us, it's going to produce steadfastness that's going to lead to completion and perfection or are we going to say I'm not counting this as joy, this is not joy to me.And here are the disciples, they saw the miracle of the loaves and the fish but their hearts were hardened even back then. Perhaps it's because they were exhausted, they wanted rest, Jesus promised them rest and then, all of a sudden, there's more ministry and it's like they're saying, "It's not worth the sacrifice, Lord." And here I just want to pause and say that, in this text, there is a warning for us, there's a warning for those who profess to be disciples of Jesus Christ and it's a warning that we ought not to pass over. It is possible to be a true believer in Jesus Christ, a disciple in reality, not just in profession, and still experience a hard heart for a season. Why do they experience the hard heart? Perhaps it was the frustration, perhaps the suffering, we're not told, but it's probably because they forgot what Jesus called them to, a life of faith.He said, "Repent and believe." And those two commandments, we never grow past them. On a daily basis, we need to repent and believe. Maybe they were so focused on their obedience, so focused on their works for the Lord, so focused on their sacrifice for the Lord that they forgot to trust in the Lord, that they forgot that the one who commands them to do this is also the one who loves them so, if He commands them, it's always for their good. And what do we need in moments of hardheartedness? Well, we need a fresh encounter with Jesus Christ. We need Jesus to bring us back to tenderness of heart, receptivity to His word, we need further revelation. That's what He gives them, I am, this is who I am. The disciples had every privilege imaginable, they saw the son of God himself and still their hearts were hardened.So, be careful, watch your own heart, see that your own heart does not get hardened toward the Lord, that's what the enemy wants. Along with the rebuke, we see a word of rescue, we see the marvelous grace of Jesus Christ in this story. He saw their hardheartedness and He meant to pass by and He should have passed by. They did not deserve Him getting in the boat and calming the storm, they did not deserve that at all. They were bickering, they were grumbling, they were hardened toward Him and still the Lord gets in the boat. They believed in Him but not enough to keep trusting Him and He got into the boat with them, it shows His incredible grace toward us. Sometimes we need a word of rebuke from the Lord and sometimes we need more grace to melt our hearts and grace is the great thawing agent of our hard cold hearts.Is a sacrifice worth it, friends? Is the sacrifice of following Jesus Christ worth it? For the disciples, they had their questions, they had their doubts. Lord, is it worth it? It's too painful, it seems, to follow You. Yes, You seem to be God, yes, You teach but it seems like taking up my cross daily is a lot of work. And so, where do we get the power to take up our cross daily and follow Jesus Christ? We get it by looking to the cross on a daily basis. Jesus Christ endured the most excruciating physical and spiritual torment of any human being that has ever lived as He bore the penalty for our sins, He bore the wrath of God for us. By taking our sins upon Himself, He even became our sin and said He who knew no sin became sin so that we might become the righteousness of God.He experienced the full gamut of suffering on the cross and why was he willing to do it? Hebrews tells us, for the joy that was set before Him. He knew that the joy was coming, the joy of saving, the joy of sanctifying, the joy of redeeming Christians, saints, His church. And so, we look to the cross and we see Him enduring these trials, enduring that suffering for us and you say, "Jesus, was that worth it?" And He said, "Yes, it was worth it. That sacrifice was worth it," and whatever sacrifice He calls us to is definitely worth it. So, now, with softened hearts, Jesus is in the boat and the disciples are back to serving people. Did they get the rest that they were promised? They got a deeper rest, they got the rest of the presence of Jesus Christ. It's a rest that's promised to us when we trust in Him.In Mark 6:53, when they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret and moored to the shore. And when they got out of the boat, the people immediately recognized Him and ran about the whole region and began to bring the sick people on their beds to wherever they heard He was. And wherever He came, in villages, cities or countryside, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and implored Him that they might touch even the fringe of his garment and, as many as touched it, were made well. I don't know where you are in your faith journey but, if you're not sure where you stand before God today, we had a bomb threat, I found out. Whenever I see people moving around briskly around the room and then talking to each other, I'm like, "Oh, what's going on?"The Brookline Police here with a big German shepherd and there's a bomb threat in synagogues nationwide and I was thinking, "You know what? Any moment, it could be our moment. Any moment." And by the way, this is a tremendous way to go because we go as a church together to heaven, no one's left behind and ... You got to be ready, you got to be ready and the way that you know that you are ready to meet your maker, to meet God is if you trust in Jesus Christ. And like these people, they believed, You have the power to heal me, I just need to reach out and touch.Just reach out with faith in prayer to Jesus Christ and say, "Lord Jesus, have mercy on me as a sinner. And Lord, I repent of my sin. Lord, it breaks my heart that I broke Your commandment and my commandment breaking broke your Son and, Jesus, you were willing to do that for me. So, of course, if You forgive me, when You forgive me, I'm going to follow You the rest of my days." And then the Lord saves you and all your sins are forgiven and you're indwelled with the power of the Holy Spirit and the Lord will encourage you no matter the tests that He throws at us.I'll close at Hebrews 4:1-11 which promises this rest that is beyond works, beyond self-righteousness, beyond works, righteousness, a rest that God offers each one of us. Therefore, while the promise of entering His rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it. For good news came to us just as to them but the message they heard did not benefit them because they were not united by faith with those who listened. For we who have believed enter that rest as He has said, as I swore My wrath, they shall not enter My rest. Although His works were finished from the foundation of the world for He has somewhere spoken of the seventh day in this way and God rested on the seventh day from all His works and, again, in this passage He said, "They shall not enter My rest."Since, therefore, it remains for some to enter it and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience. Again, He appoints a certain day, today, saying, through David so long afterward in the words already quoted, today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts. For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on. So, then there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God for whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from His works as God did from His. Let us, therefore, strive to enter that rest so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. When life gets overwhelming, keep praying, keep rowing, keep believing and keep striving to enter that rest. Let us pray.Lord God, we thank You for the rest that You offer us in Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Jesus, we thank You that You did all of the heavy lifting, You did all of the work by living a perfect life on our behalf. And instead of us, You took our penalty for our law-breaking upon Yourself. And Lord Jesus, we thank You that You offer us rest, You offer us rest for our souls and, Lord, You offer us the presence of God. And Jesus, in the same way that You went and You sought the Father's face, Lord, we seek the Father's face. And Lord, we thank You that You provided a way even for Moses and even for Elijah to see the face of God and they saw the face of God in your face in the mountain of transfiguration, You revealed your glory to them.And why is that text there? It's to show us, that apart from Jesus Christ, we can't experience the presence of God because of our sin. It's Jesus, the new Moses, the new Elijah, it's Jesus who came to save us from our sin, to save us from the very presence of it, from the penalty of it, from the power of it and, Jesus, You did that in order to offer us the presence of God. And Lord, I pray that You continue to empower us as a church to go out and proclaim the gospel. And we do pray for the lost all around us, we pray for those who are still in darkness, for those who still have not seen the light and I pray, Lord, use us powerfully to get that message across. Prepare hearts and give us opportunities to preach Your word, to proclaim Your gospel and we pray this, in Jesus' name, amen.
Speaker 1:This media has been made available by Mosaic Boston Church. If you'd like to check out more resources, learn about Mosaic Boston, or donate to this ministry, please visit mosaicboston.com.Speaker 2:Heavenly Father, we thank You that, in this Christmas season, we can meditate upon what it means that God is with us, that Jesus is Emmanuel. That Jesus, You, the great I am, Yahweh of the Hebrew scriptures, You came to be with us. We thank You, Lord Jesus, that You call us to be Your disciples, Your followers. And that doesn't mean that You call us to an easy life, often it means that You do call us to seasons of trials and testing and I pray, Lord, fill our hearts with joy when we encounter the trials, when we encounter the tests. As James tells us, count in all joy, my brothers and, when you meet trials of various kinds, knowing that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness and let steadfastness have its full effect so that you may be complete and perfect, lacking in nothing. Lord, You do test us in order to equip us, in order to empower us, in order to use us and You do it in order to deepen our revelation of You and deepen our faith in You.And Lord, I pray from the holy scriptures today, encourage us, show us that, when Jesus Christ became man, when God took on flesh, You came into our struggles, You came into our trials in the same way that You came to the disciples walking on the water, You came into the boat and You saved them from the storm, You welcome that same salvation and You offer it to each one of us. I pray, if there's anyone here today who's not sure where they stand before the God of the universe, I pray that they meet Jesus Christ, I pray that You give them the gift of repentance so they do repent of their sins and leave them and I pray that You save them from their sin and give them power over sin to walk in ways of righteousness. Holy Spirit, we love You and we pray that You come and minister to us, encourage us, edify us and continue to work out Your will in our lives. We pray this, in Jesus Christ's name, amen.We're continuing our sermon series through the Gospel of Mark called Kingdom Come and the idea is that Jesus has come to inaugurate the Lord's kingdom. He said the kingdom of God is at hand, therefore, repent and believe and then He calls us, as His followers, to establish His kingdom and that starts with praying. And in the Lord's prayer, He teaches us to pray, Lord, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done. The title of the sermon today is Take Heart, I am with You. A famous phrase in combat sports is there's levels to this and the idea can be applied to just about any sphere of life but it's made famous in combat sports because, whenever the winner at the end of the match, when he's interviewed, the microphone, post-victory, is put in front of his face or her face and they say, "How did you win?"And usually, the answer is something like, "There's levels to this," meaning I reached a level that my opponent has not. And there's levels in striking, footwork, defense, strength, speed, conditioning but the level that must be reached if victory is to be tasted on a regular basis is can you remain calm in the face of adversity. As the great philosopher, Mike Tyson, famously put it, everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth. And often, in following Jesus Christ, we get punched in the mouth and it's the punch that you don't see coming that knocks you out. Therefore, we, as followers of Christ, we should be ready, we should be ready for whatever the life throws at us.Can you calm your nerves when the pressure is the highest? Well, same goes for faith. Can we keep trusting in the Lord, trusting in His sovereignty when it feels like we're in the middle of a storm rowing in place because the winds are so strong and our strength is so minuscule in comparison? And then can we remain sensitive to the Lord? Can we remain tender-hearted when frustration begins to creep in? Lord, this is not what I signed up for. Lord, this is not what I've been asking for. The text before us today seems so similar to the episode where Jesus was in the boat with the disciples, they're caught in the storm and Jesus was sleeping in the stern, His head on a cushion. And in that text, it's similar to our text, there is a storm and it almost seems like the text is redundant but, in this episode, Jesus is not physically in the boat with the disciples.He isn't in the boat in our lives physically, He's not here physically but His physical presence isn't necessary for His sovereign rule to continue reigning because He is the great I am. That's His name, Jesus says, "I am," unchangeable, unflappable, immutable. He's as much with His disciples overseeing their struggles and suffering, superintending their pain from a distant mountain in our text as if He were in the boat with them. The context is the disciples had returned from a short-term missionary trip where they were preaching the word of the kingdom, they were exorcizing demons, they were healing many in the name of Christ and they were accepted by many, rejected by more. And then they come back and Jesus sees that they're absolutely exhausted and He says, "Let's go to a desolate place so that you can rest."As they're going to their vacation destination, so to speak, 5,000 men find out that they're coming and then Jesus and the disciples end up teaching for another full day and then the crowds are hungry. The disciples say, "Jesus, send them away so they can get some food," and Jesus tells them, "You feed them." And then Jesus takes the five loaves and the two fish and multiplies them exponentially, feeds the thousands and the disciples spend hours more, they were already exhausted, hours more carrying food back and forth to the groups of 50s and a hundred. So, the disciples are bone tired and now Jesus, in our text, commands them to get into the boat and, unbeknownst to them, He's sending them into another storm, this time by themselves.They spend hours in the storm rowing in the darkness against the thick of the stormy winds. And the question is how will they respond this time? Will they level up their faith? Will they take the lessons they've learned and apply them in the new test or will they remain hardened and frustrated by the pain that Jesus has allowed? In Mark 6:45 through 56, that's where we find ourselves. Would you please look at the text with me?Immediately, He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He dismissed the crowd and, after He had taken leave of them, He went up on the mountain to pray. And when evening came, the boat was out on the sea and He was alone on the land and He saw that they were making headway painfully for the wind was against them and, about the fourth watch of the night, He came to them walking on the sea. He meant to pass by them but, when they saw Him walking on the sea, they thought it was a ghost and cried out for they all saw Him and were terrified but immediately He spoke to them and said, "Take heart, it is I, do not be afraid."And He got into the boat with them and the wind ceased and they were utterly astounded for they did not understand about the loaves but their hearts were hardened. When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret and moored to the shore and, when they got out of the boat, the people immediately recognized Him and ran about the whole region and began to bring the sick people on their beds to wherever they heard He was. And wherever He came, in villages, cities or countryside, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and implored Him that they might touch even the fringe of His garment and, as many as touched, it were made.Well, this is the reading of God's holy, inerrant, fallible, authoritative word, may He write these eternal truths upon our hearts. Three points to frame up our time. First, when life gets overwhelming, keep praying. Second, when life gets overwhelming, keep rowing. And third, when life gets overwhelming, keep believing. First, when life gets overwhelming, keep praying. Jesus had just ministered to thousands, preaching God's word to them and we see in this text that Jesus just needs to pause. You see this often in the Gospel of Mark where He serves, serves, serves, serves and then, all of a sudden, He's just out. He's like, "Okay, I'm going to a mountain. I need to pray." Jesus as God did not need to pray but Jesus the man certainly did.And Jesus is the divine Son without beginning of life or end of days who was dwelt in the glory and the blessedness of the Trinity in perfect fellowship with the Father and the Holy Spirit forever but here, in our text, we see that Christ is human. He is a man and, as a man, Mark highlights for us Christ need to pray. As God, He doesn't need to pray but, as man, He could not neglect to pray so He sends His disciples off to give them a breather from the crowd, leaves the crowd with a last sermon, a benediction, if you will, and now Jesus needs to go and restore the ammunition, so to speak, the spiritual resources that He needs to continue. He understands that what He's doing is waging spiritual warfare and, in warfare, you need ammunition and where does Jesus get the resources, where do we get the resources, the power to and the strength? We get it from prayer.And it seems that the disciples didn't want to leave, they saw Jesus perform this incredible miracle and perhaps they wanted to go and pray to the Lord with Jesus but the text tells us in verse 45 that Jesus makes them get into the boat. Immediately, He made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He dismissed the crowd. We're not sure why Jesus does this but He abruptly sends them out and He Himself goes to pray. The parallel passage in the Gospel of John gives us a hint as to why, abruptly, He goes to pray to the Father. Perhaps He is wrestling with the same temptation that Satan came to Him with in Matthew 4.But in John 6, the parallel passage, it says, "When the people saw the sign that He had done, they said, 'This is indeed the Prophet who is to come into the world,' perceiving then that they were about to come and take Him by force to make Him king. Jesus withdrew again to the mountain by Himself." Jesus had just spent all day teaching them what His kingdom is like, that His kingdom is an inside-out kingdom, that He has come to save people from their sins, give them new hearts so they want to submit to God from the inside out, it's an inside out kingdom but that's not what they wanted. They didn't want this talk of repentance, of submission to God, of submission to His word and His law. No, they wanted an outside in kingdom, a king that would force people into submission, force the enemies of Israel into submission.A change of heart? No, they wanted a change in politics. They didn't care about a new heart, all they cared about was that their stomachs were filled. And who wouldn't want a king who can provide an endless supply of food? Forget Herod, forget Pontius Pilate, forget Caesar, we have someone who can always feed us. Philippians 3:18, Saint Paul writes for many of whom I've often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction, their god is their belly and they glory in their shame with minds set on earthly things. But our citizenship is in heaven and, from it, we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like His glorious body by the power that enables Him even to subject all things to himself.Jesus knew that these crowds were not followers, they were just fans. They were consumers and seekers, not subjects and servants. These are the same people who will turn on Jesus in just a couple of years when He fails to give them what they want. They demand a political king, they demand someone who can meet their physical needs. Spirituality, the kingdom of heaven, repenting, believing the word of God meant nothing to them and that's why, when they were given the choice, "Do you want Barabbas or do you want Jesus? Which one do you want free?" They said, "Give us Barabbas the thief. Jesus, crucify Him." Their sin, which is the root cause of all their suffering, blinded them to see what they needed most which is forgiveness from the Lord and a new heart.The heavenly Father sent Jesus to conquer humanity's greatest enemy. Our greatest enemy is sin, not the Roman Empire, not big religious establishment. He came as Israel's messianic king but not just Israel's and we have all sinned and we are all under condemnation and we all desperately need the Lord to fill our souls with His presence. Also, becoming an earthly king the first time around must have been a temptation for Jesus. Jesus, in the human form, was tempted as we are. He was tempted with taking the crown without enduring the cross and that's what Satan tempted Jesus with in the desert when Christ was fasting in Matthew 4:8.Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory and he said to Him, "All these I will give You if You will fall down and worship me." Then Jesus said to him, "Be gone, Satan. For it is written, you shall worship the Lord your God and Him only shall you serve." Jesus said, "I've come to make people worshipers of God, the Father seek those who worship Him in spirit and in truth." So, Jesus dismisses the crowds, dismisses the disciples and He goes to pray. He goes to spend time with the Heavenly Father, this is how He fought temptation, this is how He gained perspective, this is how He was reminded of his mission. That's verse 46. After He had taken leave of them, He went up on the mountain to pray.The Lord taught us in the Sermon on the Mount how to pray. In Matthew 6:5, when you pray, you must not be like the hypocrites for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners that they may be seen by others. Truly, I say to you, they have received their reward but, when you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to the Father who is in secret and Your father who sees in secret will reward you. And when you pray, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. Do not be like them for your father knows what you need before you ask Him. Pray then like this, "Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come, Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our debts as we also forgive our debtors and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil."He says, "Your heavenly Father knows what you need even before you ask. And sometimes the Lord provides even before we ask, He loves to meet our needs." But what needs does Jesus have? He multiplied five loaves and two fishes and feed thousands, His need wasn't for bread, His need was for the presence of God the Father. He wanted proximity to the Father, He wanted a visitation with the Father, that's why He prays. And this is also how Jesus waged spiritual warfare. Ephesians 6 tells us that there is a spiritual war happening all around us, therefore, we are to stand firm in the Lord in the strength of his might. And in the text later it says praying at all times in the spirit, with all prayer and supplication to the end, keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints.And that's what Jesus was doing, He's praying in the spirit and who's He praying for? He's praying for the saints, He's praying for the disciples. He went to the mountain, not just to rest, not just to sleep, but to wage spiritual war in prayer. He was interceding for the disciples as He currently is interceding for us. He is the one mediator, as 1 Timothy 2:5, for there is one God and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus who gave Himself as a ransom for all which is the testimony given at the proper time. Satan wants to destroy every single human being, he wants to destroy every single soul and he even wanted to destroy the disciples. Scripture says that he wants to deceive even the elect, if he could.Jesus, in one time, in Luke 22 says this to Peter, He says, "Simon, Simon, behold Satan demanded to have you that he might sift you like wheat but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers." This is Jesus praying for His disciples, He's praying for their faith so it does not fail as they are in a great storm. This kind of prayer is work, it's labor, it's struggle. You should pray so hard sometimes that you break a sweat and you're even surprised by it. At community group recently, we have community group at my place and, at the end, we break up, the sisters stay in the living room and the brothers go into the kitchen and I always say, "Men in the kitchen, where they belong," and everyone laughs and they belong eating the snacks.And we were praying and there were just immediate needs and we felt the heaviness of the Holy Spirit and we're praying, we're praying and we're praying, we're done praying. And I look at the brother's foreheads, they're all drenched, I needed a change of shirt, I just sweat a lot. Sometimes, prayer is work, it's labor. We have to pray fervently, fiery prayers, zealous prayers. In Colossians 4:12, St. Paul says, "Epaphras, who was one of you, a servant of Christ Jesus greets you, always struggling on your behalf in his prayers that you may stand mature and fully assured in all the will of God." Do you emulate Christ with your prayer? Do you pray for the saints as He did? Do you pray for the conversion of the lost? Do you pray for revival? Have you ever spent hours in prayer? Have you continued all night in prayer even once?And if you want more power to get through the storms of life when life gets overwhelming, pray. If you want more power to see the power of God in your life doing the impossible, pray. And if you want to be used mightily by God, pray even as our Lord did. So, Jesus up on the mountain praying for His disciples so, when life gets overwhelming, pray and, second, when life gets overwhelming, keep rowing. This is verse 47. And when evening came, the boat was out on the sea and He was alone on the land and He saw that they were making headway painfully for the wind was against them. So, Jesus is up on the mountain, I love this image, perhaps He sees by moonlight, He sees them struggling, He sees them striving but His eye is upon Him. And this is assuring that, even when we're going through trials of life, the Lord, His eye is upon us.Psalm 32:8, I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go. I will counsel you with my eye upon you. Be not like a horse or a mule without understanding which must be curbed with bit and brittle or it will not stay near you. It seems like, whenever Jesus leaves the disciples alone, they're in trouble but Jesus' eye is upon them, He's watching over them. They're experiencing the contrary wind, there's darkness, perhaps the boat is filling up as in the previous story and it says that they were making headway painfully, making tortuous progress. So, the wind is against them, the sails are down, you can't use the sails when the wind is against you. So, the oars are out, they're rowing, they're being tormented in their rowing as one translation says. They were not making any progress, rowing was a struggle.Verse 48 says, "About the fourth watch of the night, He came to them walking on the sea, He meant to pass by them." So, if they left that dusk, I don't know, 7:00 p.m., 8:00 p.m. and now Jesus comes to them walking in the water in the fourth watch of the night, that's between 3:00 and 6:00 a.m. So, you're talking about they're rowing against the wind six to eight to nine hours and the storm wasn't just a sudden squall as in the previous text, this is a continuous headwind necessitating heavy back-breaking rowing. Have you ever rowed? Is there a rowing machine in your gym? Five minutes on that thing, you're like, "I'm done. I got my workout for the week."I rowed for a season in college on the crew team and there's a reason why I did it for a season, it is awful, it was so bad. But the workouts were an hour on this erg, an hour, you're going at heavy pace and painful, painful. You're exhausted by the end and famished. And this is why I wonder, Jesus fed the 5,000 and how many baskets were left over? Twelve baskets. Remember that? One basket for each disciple. He's like, "Here you go, gentlemen. Here's some bread and carbs for the storm that I'm sending you into." And even in that, we see the Lord's incredible provision that He provided for them, provided energies for them, food for them as they're rowing. And this whole episode is a tremendous illustration of the life of a disciple, the life of following Jesus Christ. It really is a life of testing and then deliverance.The Lord allows a test in your life, gets you to the point where you're out of energy and that's when you ask for the Lord's deliverance and that's when He shows up. And I do want to point out that the storm here isn't them deviating from God's plan, the Lord didn't send the storm as punishment for their disobedience, no, they did exactly what Jesus said. They end up in the boat because Jesus made them get in the boat and, at this point, they could have become frustrated. Jesus, why'd You allow this again? We would much rather be on the mountain with You praying and snacking on our bread and fish. But now, we're in this boat rowing nine hours into the wind. And what's the lesson here?Well, if you're doing the Lord's work, if you're in the middle of the Lord's will and it feels like everyone and everything is against you, you just keep going, you keep rowing. He will supply you with strength even as He supplied the disciples with food. And then, at the darkest hour of the night, in their time, their moment of greatest need, in a totally unexpected way, Jesus comes to the rescue. In both of the storms at sea, it must have seemed to the disciples that Jesus doesn't care and that's what they said the first time, "Jesus, don't you care? We're perishing." And here, it seems like Jesus doesn't care, allowed us to go into the storm and He's up on the mountain but, in both occasions, the Lord strengthened them with deeper revelations of who He is.There He showed that He is God over creation and here He's going to show that He is the God of the Old Testament, He is Yahweh. And the Lord often allows hardships in our life of all kinds, loneliness, persecution, afflictions of the body, disappointments and frustrations of life and then death itself. But how many of the Lord's choice saints would say, "Even when I'm battered in the storms of life, that's when the Lord was closest, that's when the Lord came to the rescue."? Here, Jesus meets them by walking on the sea, this shows His divinity but it's also reminiscent of Israel. Israel fled Egypt and they walked across the sea, the sea was parted. Jesus is using these themes from the Old Testament as He's creating a new Israel.And Israel, if you remember, they didn't enter the promised land because of their bickering and complaining against God. God had them, for 40 years, walk around in circles in the wilderness because they didn't trust God, they didn't believe Him and they complained about the circumstances they found themselves in. And this is what's happening here, Jesus is testing the new Israel. Are you going to complain? Are you going to grumble or are you going to learn the lessons that would have you to learn to do all things without grumbling and complaining? It says He meant to pass by them, what does this mean? Well, perhaps it was to test their faith. Just as He was sleeping in the stern of the boat on the previous occasion, if they had sufficient faith, they would be content even without His presence with them. Smallness of faith is a failure to remember God's work in the past and apply that knowledge to present problems.But I think this phrase to pass by is an allusion to the Old Testament and on two occasions where God revealed himself to Moses and God revealed himself to Elijah, the preeminent prophets of the Old Testament. It says, at both times, when they asked for theophany, asked for the glory of God, asked to see Him, it says He passed by them. Meaning He's like, "I want to give you a deeper revelation but, if I show you all of myself, you're going to die because of your sin." So, even these great, great preeminent prophets, they're only given a glimpse of the Lord and the glimpse of His glory because Christ had not yet come.For example, in Exodus 33:17, and the Lord said to Moses, "This very thing that you have spoken I will do for you have found favor in my sight and I know you by name." Moses said, "Please show me your glory," and He said, "I will make all My goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you My name, the Lord," and here the Lord is Yahweh, I am that I am, "And I will be gracious to whom I'll be gracious and I will show mercy on whom I will show mercy." But he said, "You cannot see My face for man shall not see me and live." And the Lord said, "Behold, there is a place by Me where you shall stand on the rock and, while My glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft of the rock and I'll cover you with My hand until I've passed by. And then I will take away My hand and you shall see My back but My face shall not be seen."So, in this text where God says, "Here's My name, I am, I am Yahweh," that's what Yahweh means, I am that I am, "I'm going to reveal to you My name, I'm going to reveal to you My glory. But only just a glimpse, I have to pass by," because of the sin nature of each one of us even Moses. Same thing happened with Elijah, 1 Kings 19:9. And there he came to a cave and lodged in it and behold the word of the Lord came to him and He said to him, "What are you doing here, Elijah?" He said, "I have been very jealous for the Lord, the God of hosts for the people of Israel have forsaken Your covenant, thrown down Your altars and killed Your prophets with the sword and, I, even I only am left and they seek my life to take it away."And He said, "Go out and stand on the mount before the Lord." And behold, the Lord passed by and the great and strong wind tore the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord but the Lord was in the wind. And after the wind, an earthquake, but the Lord was a not in the earthquake. And after the earthquake, a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire, the sound of a low whisper. When God reveals Himself in a whisper to Elijah as He passed by, the Lord passed by in order to reveal Himself on a deeper level but, before Christ had come, they weren't ready for the full revelation, the full effulgence of His glory.And that's what's happening here and that's what Jesus is doing, He's revealing to His disciples, He's trying to take them to the next level of their faith, show them that He is the God of the Hebrew scriptures, He is Yahweh, He is the great I am. Point three is, when life gets overwhelming, keep believing. Verse 49, and when they saw Him walking on the sea, they thought it was a ghost and cried out for they all saw Him and were terrified. But immediately He spoke to them and said, "Take heart, it is I, do not be afraid." The disciples, all they could see was the wind, the storm, all they could see was the oars, all they could feel was the exhaustion, they weren't expecting the Lord, therefore, they're shocked. They were perhaps crying out in their heart of hearts but they didn't ... How could you even imagine something like this, Jesus walking on the water?And it says that they were terrified and who can blame them? They're exhausted, cold from the rain and the spray and then, all of a sudden, Jesus is here and He says, "Take heart," be encouraged, "It is I." And it is I in the Greek, it's ego eimi, it's I am. Not just I, it's I am. And He uses the same exact name as God of the Hebrew scriptures uses to define Himself. You see this all throughout the Hebrew scriptures, all throughout the Old Testament but in particular in Exodus 3:13 through 15 when God reveals Himself to Moses at the burning bush and Moses asks God for His name. Verse 13 of Exodus 3, then Moses said to God, "If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, the God of your fathers has sent me to you and they ask me what is his name, what shall I say to them?"And God said to Moses, "I am who I am." And He said, "Say this to the people of Israel. I am has sent Me to you." God also said to Moses, say this to the people of Israel, "The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, the God of Jacob has sent me to you. This is My name forever and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations." Every Jew knew from memory these famous words in Exodus 3:14 that Yahweh spoke to Moses in the burning bush I am that I am. And these are the words that Jesus applied to Himself in John chapter 8 and His religious audience, the Pharisees, knew exactly what He was saying that's why, immediately after He says I am, they picked up stones to execute Him for blasphemy because, if He wasn't God, if He wasn't the great I am, then He deserved to be executed.This is John 8:56. Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see My day, he saw it and was glad. So, the Jews said to him, "You are not yet 50 years old and have you seen Abraham?" Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was I am." So, they picked up stones to throw at Him but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple. And these texts are all based on Exodus 3:14 in which God reveals His name is ego eimi, I am the one who is. It denotes that He is everlasting presence. There was never a moment that God was not, there will never be a moment that God will not be. Same thing with Christ, there was never a moment that Christ did not exist. Yes, he took on human form, yes, He was born but he preceded that with His existence.In John 18 where Jesus is being arrested, betrayed by Judas, one of His disciples, in the garden of Gethsemane, there's a little detail that ... It's never included in any of the Jesus movies. It's a detail where Jesus says I am and, all of the soldiers, they fall. I love that because Jesus is saying I could kill all of you, I choose not to. This is a John 18. When Jesus had spoken these words, He went out with His disciples across the brook Kidron where there was a garden which He and His disciples entered. Now, Judas who betrayed Him also knew the place where Jesus often met there with His disciples. So, Judas, having procured a band of soldiers and some officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, went there with lanterns and torches and weapons.Then Jesus, knowing all that would happen to Him, came forward and said to them, "Whom do you seek?" They answered Him, "Jesus of Nazareth." Jesus said to them, "I am He." Judas who betrayed Him was standing with them and Jesus said to them, "I am He," they drew back and fell to the ground. Jesus' self-identification here as I am He connects to the Hebrew scriptures. I am was also part of the 10 Commandments that He gave Moses and, all throughout the Hebrew scriptures, I am was the name of God that Jesus attributes to Himself. Deion Sanders, the formerly glorious, in human terms, football player, he started coaching college football in Colorado and his son was a quarterback and they won the first game and it was apparently a big deal and then that's where they lost their momentum.Right after, he was being interviewed and they said, "Tell us about your son. Why is he so good?" And he said, Deion Sanders said, "He is him." And as soon as he said that, I'm like, "No, he's not." That only applies to Jesus. Jesus, He is Him because He is the great I am. And they're season tanked after that, God doesn't like blasphemy. So, Jesus is calling Himself the great I am, He's calling Himself that's who He is. In verse 51, He got into the boat with them and the wind ceased and they were utterly astounded for they did not understand about the loaves but their hearts were hardened. And how is this the punchline? How is this the end of this text? You see the miraculous Jesus walking on the water saving His disciples and the text ends with a rebuke. Rebuke that's incomprehensible. It's incomprehensible that the disciples do not comprehend who Jesus is.This is the most astonishing part of the text especially if you realize where we are in the Gospel of Mark and what they have witnessed. They have been privileged to see miracle upon miracle. Simon Peter's mother-in-law gets healed, a leper is cleansed, the paralytic is given the power to walk, a man with a withered hand is restored to wholeness, Jesus casts out a legion of demons, a woman with the flow of blood is healed in a moment and then Jesus raises Jairus' daughter from the dead. He calms the sea, he feeds the 5,000 and they still, it says, they did not get what was happening, their hearts were hardened. And here you got to pause and say where have we seen this phrase of hard hearts?We saw that phrase in the Old Testament with Pharaoh, Pharaoh hardened his heart. We saw that phrase with the people of Israel. When things would get difficult, they hardened their hearts against the Lord. Even to the point where they said, "Lord, we want to go back to Egypt. We'd rather be in chains eating meat than here out in freedom eating manna." Meaning that, the times of suffering, that's when our faith is tested, will we remain tender-hearted recognizing that God has sovereignly orchestrated this trial in our life, it's going to test us, it's going to produce steadfastness that's going to lead to completion and perfection or are we going to say I'm not counting this as joy, this is not joy to me.And here are the disciples, they saw the miracle of the loaves and the fish but their hearts were hardened even back then. Perhaps it's because they were exhausted, they wanted rest, Jesus promised them rest and then, all of a sudden, there's more ministry and it's like they're saying, "It's not worth the sacrifice, Lord." And here I just want to pause and say that, in this text, there is a warning for us, there's a warning for those who profess to be disciples of Jesus Christ and it's a warning that we ought not to pass over. It is possible to be a true believer in Jesus Christ, a disciple in reality, not just in profession, and still experience a hard heart for a season. Why do they experience the hard heart? Perhaps it was the frustration, perhaps the suffering, we're not told, but it's probably because they forgot what Jesus called them to, a life of faith.He said, "Repent and believe." And those two commandments, we never grow past them. On a daily basis, we need to repent and believe. Maybe they were so focused on their obedience, so focused on their works for the Lord, so focused on their sacrifice for the Lord that they forgot to trust in the Lord, that they forgot that the one who commands them to do this is also the one who loves them so, if He commands them, it's always for their good. And what do we need in moments of hardheartedness? Well, we need a fresh encounter with Jesus Christ. We need Jesus to bring us back to tenderness of heart, receptivity to His word, we need further revelation. That's what He gives them, I am, this is who I am. The disciples had every privilege imaginable, they saw the son of God himself and still their hearts were hardened.So, be careful, watch your own heart, see that your own heart does not get hardened toward the Lord, that's what the enemy wants. Along with the rebuke, we see a word of rescue, we see the marvelous grace of Jesus Christ in this story. He saw their hardheartedness and He meant to pass by and He should have passed by. They did not deserve Him getting in the boat and calming the storm, they did not deserve that at all. They were bickering, they were grumbling, they were hardened toward Him and still the Lord gets in the boat. They believed in Him but not enough to keep trusting Him and He got into the boat with them, it shows His incredible grace toward us. Sometimes we need a word of rebuke from the Lord and sometimes we need more grace to melt our hearts and grace is the great thawing agent of our hard cold hearts.Is a sacrifice worth it, friends? Is the sacrifice of following Jesus Christ worth it? For the disciples, they had their questions, they had their doubts. Lord, is it worth it? It's too painful, it seems, to follow You. Yes, You seem to be God, yes, You teach but it seems like taking up my cross daily is a lot of work. And so, where do we get the power to take up our cross daily and follow Jesus Christ? We get it by looking to the cross on a daily basis. Jesus Christ endured the most excruciating physical and spiritual torment of any human being that has ever lived as He bore the penalty for our sins, He bore the wrath of God for us. By taking our sins upon Himself, He even became our sin and said He who knew no sin became sin so that we might become the righteousness of God.He experienced the full gamut of suffering on the cross and why was he willing to do it? Hebrews tells us, for the joy that was set before Him. He knew that the joy was coming, the joy of saving, the joy of sanctifying, the joy of redeeming Christians, saints, His church. And so, we look to the cross and we see Him enduring these trials, enduring that suffering for us and you say, "Jesus, was that worth it?" And He said, "Yes, it was worth it. That sacrifice was worth it," and whatever sacrifice He calls us to is definitely worth it. So, now, with softened hearts, Jesus is in the boat and the disciples are back to serving people. Did they get the rest that they were promised? They got a deeper rest, they got the rest of the presence of Jesus Christ. It's a rest that's promised to us when we trust in Him.In Mark 6:53, when they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret and moored to the shore. And when they got out of the boat, the people immediately recognized Him and ran about the whole region and began to bring the sick people on their beds to wherever they heard He was. And wherever He came, in villages, cities or countryside, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and implored Him that they might touch even the fringe of his garment and, as many as touched it, were made well. I don't know where you are in your faith journey but, if you're not sure where you stand before God today, we had a bomb threat, I found out. Whenever I see people moving around briskly around the room and then talking to each other, I'm like, "Oh, what's going on?"The Brookline Police here with a big German shepherd and there's a bomb threat in synagogues nationwide and I was thinking, "You know what? Any moment, it could be our moment. Any moment." And by the way, this is a tremendous way to go because we go as a church together to heaven, no one's left behind and ... You got to be ready, you got to be ready and the way that you know that you are ready to meet your maker, to meet God is if you trust in Jesus Christ. And like these people, they believed, You have the power to heal me, I just need to reach out and touch.Just reach out with faith in prayer to Jesus Christ and say, "Lord Jesus, have mercy on me as a sinner. And Lord, I repent of my sin. Lord, it breaks my heart that I broke Your commandment and my commandment breaking broke your Son and, Jesus, you were willing to do that for me. So, of course, if You forgive me, when You forgive me, I'm going to follow You the rest of my days." And then the Lord saves you and all your sins are forgiven and you're indwelled with the power of the Holy Spirit and the Lord will encourage you no matter the tests that He throws at us.I'll close at Hebrews 4:1-11 which promises this rest that is beyond works, beyond self-righteousness, beyond works, righteousness, a rest that God offers each one of us. Therefore, while the promise of entering His rest still stands, let us fear lest any of you should seem to have failed to reach it. For good news came to us just as to them but the message they heard did not benefit them because they were not united by faith with those who listened. For we who have believed enter that rest as He has said, as I swore My wrath, they shall not enter My rest. Although His works were finished from the foundation of the world for He has somewhere spoken of the seventh day in this way and God rested on the seventh day from all His works and, again, in this passage He said, "They shall not enter My rest."Since, therefore, it remains for some to enter it and those who formerly received the good news failed to enter because of disobedience. Again, He appoints a certain day, today, saying, through David so long afterward in the words already quoted, today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts. For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken of another day later on. So, then there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God for whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from His works as God did from His. Let us, therefore, strive to enter that rest so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. When life gets overwhelming, keep praying, keep rowing, keep believing and keep striving to enter that rest. Let us pray.Lord God, we thank You for the rest that You offer us in Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Jesus, we thank You that You did all of the heavy lifting, You did all of the work by living a perfect life on our behalf. And instead of us, You took our penalty for our law-breaking upon Yourself. And Lord Jesus, we thank You that You offer us rest, You offer us rest for our souls and, Lord, You offer us the presence of God. And Jesus, in the same way that You went and You sought the Father's face, Lord, we seek the Father's face. And Lord, we thank You that You provided a way even for Moses and even for Elijah to see the face of God and they saw the face of God in your face in the mountain of transfiguration, You revealed your glory to them.And why is that text there? It's to show us, that apart from Jesus Christ, we can't experience the presence of God because of our sin. It's Jesus, the new Moses, the new Elijah, it's Jesus who came to save us from our sin, to save us from the very presence of it, from the penalty of it, from the power of it and, Jesus, You did that in order to offer us the presence of God. And Lord, I pray that You continue to empower us as a church to go out and proclaim the gospel. And we do pray for the lost all around us, we pray for those who are still in darkness, for those who still have not seen the light and I pray, Lord, use us powerfully to get that message across. Prepare hearts and give us opportunities to preach Your word, to proclaim Your gospel and we pray this, in Jesus' name, amen.
Host Nicole Laino welcomes a special guest, Alessandra Caprice, the founder of Money Breathwork. This conversation dives into the transformative power of breathwork, especially in the context of financial well-being and personal growth. Alessandra, with her unique blend of clinical therapy experience and a deep understanding of holistic practices, unveils the concept of Money Breathwork. This innovative approach combines the physical aspects of breathwork with focused intentions to break through financial barriers and unlock new levels of abundance. Nicole and Alessandra explore how Money Breathwork is not just about financial gains but also encompasses a broader spectrum of personal development, including visibility, sales, and overcoming limiting beliefs. Alessandra shares her journey from understanding her own financial blocks to developing this potent tool, providing insights into the practical application of breathwork in everyday life. The episode is gold for entrepreneurs and individuals looking to harmonize their financial goals with their personal energy and design. Whether you're familiar with breathwork or new to the concept, this episode promises a fresh perspective on how intentional breathing can lead to significant shifts in your financial and personal life. Tune in to discover how to harness the power of Money Breathwork and become an unshakeable force in your journey towards financial freedom and personal fulfillment. Stay Connected with Alessandra: Check out her website, moneybreathwork.com Connect with her on Instagram, @AlessandraCaprice More about Alessandra: Alessandra Caprice is an Energetic Business Mastery Coach who has founded a unique combination of business strategy and breathwork in her Money Breathwork method. She is a former private practice psychotherapist who after 3 years as an online Business Strategist for mentors, coaches, changemakers, and healers, realized there was something missing from the business growth and development sector. She believes that in order to advance in business and to actually sustain big money months, own their bigness, and make more money, women need to heal their limiting beliefs, money traumas, and take off their, what she calls, Armors of Smallness™ while simultaneously expanding into what was possible. She is paving the way for the use of breathwork as a business expansion tool, being one of the first to do so focusing on Money, Visibility + Marketing, and Sales. When using her methods, her clients experience exponential results. Learn more about your Human Design and get your full chart for free. Click here to get your free chart. Be sure to visit nicolelaino.com/podcastlinks for all of the current links to events, freebies, and more! If you enjoyed this week's episode, I'd so appreciate you doing a few things for me: Please subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen! Rate and review the podcast on Apple Podcasts. Tag me @nicolelainoofficial on your IG stories with a story of you listening to the podcast and I'll make sure to share your post! Interested in learning more about working with me? Click here to learn more about how we can work together.
God's Majesty - Man's Smallness (Psalm 8) - Evening Sermon
Message from Kyle Burkholder on November 19, 2023
From Every Moment Holy by Douglas McKelvey. “We praise you, O Lord, for our limits! limits you have given us for our good and for your glory.” The subtitle of Blessed Are the Rest of Us is “How Limits and Longing Make Us Whole.” I love that word “limits.” Limits speaks to more than weakness, more than failure, more than the ache in us for justice. Our limits in the presence of the divine is part of the core of who we are. Limits, as the prayer says, are for our good. Find Every Moment Holy by Douglas McKelvey here. This reflection and practice were also published this week in The Slow Way Newsletter. Find a transcript of this episode here. Find Micha's website and sign up for her weekly newsletter here Find Micha on Instagram Find Micha on Threads. Micha's other (award winning!) podcast, The Lucky Few, is all about Down syndrome advocacy. She cohosts it with Heather Avis and Mercedes Lara. Preorder my new book Blessed Are The Rest of Us: How Limits and Longing Make Us Whole at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and available everywhere books are sold.
What makes a great leader?Dena Patton is an elite business coach and transformational speaker who has worked with thousands of purpose-driven business owners and world-changing leaders around the globe by helping them find their greatness in leadership.In this episode, Dena walks us through the three pillars of great leaders, starting with authenticity by having a clear vision, values and purpose for your leadership. The second is to create clarity on the structures and systems for people to succeed. And third, is about greatness sparking greatness by elevating your team's awareness of the gifts they're bringing to the table.Listen to this episode to discover how you can shift from smallness to greatness leadership.References: Website: https://denapatton.com/Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/denampatton/Instagram: @denamariepattonSoaring to New Health: The Glass is Half HealthySDOH: why they are important and how they can play a role in more efficient careListen on: Apple Podcasts Spotify Champion Your Culture with Ryan McCarty and George RogersA weekly live show exploring the power of culture and leadership in business.Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifySupport the showJoin us in our mission at The Leadership Project and learn more about our organization here. https://linktr.ee/mickspiersYou can purchase a copy of the Mick Spiers bestselling book "You're a Leader, Now What?" as an eBook or paperback at Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09ZBKK8XV
Welcome to GratitudeSpace Radio, the podcasting network for one of the largest Gratitude Groups in the world, GratitudeNow, on Facebook. Kick your week off with some Monday motivation by listening to "Fired Up" with David Freedman. Listen to other shows weekly by group members of our community. -Mondays, "Fired Up," with David Freedman -Tuesday, "Take the Higher Ground," with your gratitude guru Loren Kell. -Wednesdays, a new inspirational reading by Bobby Kountz, "TheTheEarthHeARTist." -We have "3 for Thursday" with The Gratitude Dude, Dave Linn, on Thursday. -Fridays, "Sip of Gratitude," with Shannon Halliday -Saturdays, "Meditations," with Elaine Pardi Listen now on Apple Podcast, Spotify, or wherever you listen to finer podcasts. GratitudeSpace Radio is the podcasting network for one of the largest Gratitude Groups in the world, GratitudeNow, on Facebook.
Sometimes we use superlatives and don't stop to recognize the profound significance. Slow down and recognize that you can dive into the limitless wisdom of God. When we reflect on our limited human comprehension of God, we realize the transformative, healing, and life-changing power available to us. What freedom there is in recognizing our smallness and resting in His greatness! For more information, visit lakepointe.church/dailydrive
We hope this message, Let's Get Weird, encourages and inspires you!Want more like this from CoastLife Church?YouTube: CoastLife Church - YouTubeFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/mycoastlifechurchInstagram: https://instagram.com/coastlifechurch...GIVE: https://www.mycoastlifechurch.com/give Looking to get connected? We'd love to meet you! We offer several different ways to connect and be in community: Join a Together Group, Register for CoastLife+, or become a part of our Serve Team today by visiting: CoastLife Connect Card - CoastLife Church (churchcenter.com) Give: To support and be a part of or growth and global impact click here: https://www.mycoastlifechurch.com/give
Dena Patton is an elite business coach and transformational speaker who has worked with thousands of purpose-driven business owners and world-changing leaders around the globe. She helps her clients to build GREAT companies that break records in their revenue AND their impact. She founded Dena Patton Coaching & Training Company 22 years ago while living in New York City where she created her world-class Greatness Methodology. Her 3-Pillar coaching approach helps businesses to build: the systems to be a well-oiled company, the strategy to be a well-marketed company, and the greatness mindset to be a well-led company. As a speaker, coach and best-selling author Dena has garnered over 60 media stories and she leads from 6 core values: Courage, Accountability, Authenticity, Faith, Integrity, and Fun!! What are the 5 messages of smallness? Perfection Doubt - imposter Fear (of success, failure, judgment) Overwhelm Distraction and confusion In this episode, we talk about how we get stuck with these messages and how to overcome them on our way to becoming the highest version of ourselves. Dena's website: www.DenaPatton.com --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/morehappylife/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/morehappylife/support
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