← Back to sermon library

May turn in your Bibles to Matthew 
chapter 8 as we continue our exposition of the Gospel of Matthew. Just a bit of a reminder where 
we find ourselves, the Lord Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount, chapters 
5 to 7. Matthew tells us that he taught, 
the people were astonished because he taught them as one having 
authority, chapter 7 and verse 29. And then chapter 8 beginning 
in verse 1 all the way to chapter 9 verse 34 is a display or demonstration 
of the authority of Christ in his actions, in the way he goes 
about doing good. There are three series of three 
miracles in these chapters and they are interspersed with various 
lessons on discipleship along the way. Again, I think Matthew's 
point is that it's not enough for us to be amazed at what the 
Redeemer does, it's not enough to just marvel at what He does, 
but we must believe on Him. We must follow Him. We must take 
seriously the demand of discipleship. Last week, specifically, we noted 
the lessons on discipleship in chapter 8, verses 18 to 22. We 
had the man who says, I will follow you wherever you go. And 
Jesus says, the foxes have their holes, the birds have their nests, 
but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head. He is essentially 
telling that scribe he needs to count the cost. And then the 
next man says, Lord, let me first go and bury my father. Jesus 
says, let the dead bury their own dead. You follow me. So the 
first man represented speed without counting the cost. The second 
man was slow. He was supposed to be following 
the Lord Jesus, but he did not. And then that brings us to another 
section of Three Miracles, verses 23 of chapter 8 to chapter 9, 
verse 8. We have Christ and the storm 
Christ and the demoniacs and Christ and the paralytic. We'll 
take up Christ in the storm this morning verses 23 to 27 but I'll 
read the entire section beginning at verse 23. Now when he got 
into a boat his disciples followed him and suddenly a great tempest 
arose on the sea. so that the boat was covered 
with the waves. But he was asleep. Then his disciples 
came to him and awoke him, saying, Lord, save us, we are perishing. But he said to them, why are 
you fearful, O you of little faith? Then he arose and rebuked 
the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. So the men 
marveled, saying, who can this be, that even the winds and the 
sea obey him? When he had come to the other 
side, to the country of the Gergesenes, there met him two demon-possessed 
men coming out of the tombs, exceedingly fierce, so that no 
one could pass that way. And suddenly they cried out saying, 
what have we to do with you, Jesus, you son of God? Have you 
come here to torment us before the time? Now a good way off 
from there was a herd of many swine feeding. So the demons 
begged him, saying, If you cast us out, permit us to go away 
into the herd of swine. And he said to them, Go. So when 
they had come out, they went into the herd of swine. And suddenly 
the whole herd of swine ran violently down the steep place into the 
sea and perished in the water. Then those who kept them fled. 
And they went away into the city and told everything, including 
what had happened to the demon-possessed men. And behold, the whole city 
came out to meet Jesus. And when they saw Him, they begged 
Him to depart from their region. So He got into a boat, crossed 
over, and came to His own city. Then behold, they brought to 
Him a paralytic lying on a bed. When Jesus saw their faith, He 
said to the paralytic, Son, be of good cheer, your sins are 
forgiven you. And at once some of the scribes 
said within themselves, this man blasphemes. But Jesus, knowing 
their thoughts, said, Why do you think it evil in your hearts? 
For which is easier, to say your sins are forgiven you, or to 
say arise and walk? But that you may know that the 
Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins. Then he said 
to the paralytic, arise, take up your bed, and go to your house. 
And he arose and departed to his house. Now when the multitude 
saw it, they marveled and glorified God, who had given such power 
to man. Amen. Let us pray again and ask 
the Lord to send His Spirit and guide us. Father, thank you for 
this, your Word, and thank you for our Lord Jesus. We pray now 
that He would be preeminent in our minds and in our hearts, 
that we would love Him, that we would worship Him, that we 
would adore Him. And for those outside of Christ, we pray they 
would believe on Him, this One who is all-powerful, all-glorious, 
and worthy to be praised. And we ask in His most blessed 
name, Amen. Well, not only is there a geographic 
connection among these three particular accounts, the storm, 
the demoniacs, and the paralytic, there is a thematic connection 
as well. If, as we've argued from 8.1 
to 9.34, this idea of the authority or power of Christ is in the 
forefront, certainly it is within these three miracles. It is specified 
in the third, notice, in chapter 9, verse 6, but that you may 
know that the Son of Man has power on earth to forgive sins, 
or has authority. Verse 8 says, Now when the multitude 
saw it, they marveled and glorified God, who had given such power 
to men. And then working back, the same 
response is seen in the Decapolis. After these men are healed, these 
demoniacs are healed, the people want Jesus to go away from them. 
They are struck by something unique. They are struck by His 
authority or power. And certainly, that's what underscores 
the disciples' statement, after Jesus calms the sea, after He 
hushes the winds, they wonder, what manner of man is this? We 
have not seen such authority. We have not seen such power. 
We have not been in the presence of one like this. We want to 
do three things this morning. First, notice the storm on the 
sea, verses 23 to 25. Secondly, the ruler over the 
sea in verse 26. And then the amazement of the 
disciples in verse 27. So let's first look at the storm 
on the sea. This is a great passage. I'm 
hopeful that you've already thought that before you showed up here 
this morning. But it's an exhilarating passage. It's a wonderful passage. 
It's a glorious passage. I was sharing this morning with 
the people in the study of the confession. My son got in an 
accident on Friday night. I know God is sovereign in the 
decreed will. There are no accidents, but I'm 
using the term conventionally. He and five buddies rolled in 
their car three times. and he was not injured. He said, 
just as they went into this slide, he prayed, and then he wondered 
what was going to happen when this was all over. He said he 
had a peace and a calm. And then yesterday, Rebecca and 
I were talking to him on Skype, and he asked her, I said, you 
need to listen to our service this morning, because he didn't 
have a car anymore to drive to church and mountain home. And 
he said, what are you preaching on? I said, Christ and the storm. 
And I thought to myself, and I shared this this morning, I'm 
sorry for the repetition, but I thought, you know, what relevance 
does Christ and the storm have to a 19-year-old airman who just 
flipped his car on a Friday night and, you know, is so far from 
home? It has every bit of relevance. The Christ and the storm in this 
particular passage has relevance for you, it has relevance for 
me, it is absolutely crucial that we pay attention to what 
goes on in this boat, what goes on on this sea, because it sets 
forth to us Christ. As I mentioned again, commentators 
come to this particular section and they say that discipleship 
is at the forefront. And I think there is an argument 
to be made that discipleship is present. He's just taught 
on discipleship. He's just told a man that he 
needs to count the cost and follow him. He's just told another man 
that he needs to let the dead bury their own dead and follow 
him. So these disciples, I take it as the 12 that get into the 
boat, actually do what these two men were told. They actually 
do what these two men should have done. So discipleship is 
certainly here in the passage, and we'll make some application 
relevant to that theme. But Christology. is what I think 
is Matthew's point. Remember that Matthew wants to 
peel back the curtain and show us Jesus. He wants to demonstrate 
who this Messiah really is. Remember when Jesus is healing 
and casting out demons, Matthew reaches back to the prophet Isaiah 
and he says, this is the servant of Yahweh. So this morning what 
we find in the boat, what we find at the Sea of Galilee, is 
the God-man. We find the mediator. We find 
the glorious Lord himself. So let's look at this storm on 
the sea. Note first the occasion. Back 
in verse 18, when Jesus saw great multitudes about him, he gave 
a command to depart to the other side. They're in the northern 
part of the Sea of Galilee, and he wants to go to the other side. 
They end up at the Gergesenes. So they make a path like this. 
So we find in this particular account, in verses 23 to 27, 
a narrative of that boat ride. They want to get from point A 
to point B. So the master gets into the boat. It's probably about a 12 to 13 
body boat. 12 to 13 people can get into this particular boat. R.T. 
Frantz says maybe it was a good thing those other two men didn't 
follow along because there wouldn't have been room in the boat for 
that. It was a fishing boat and so the master gets in and then 
the disciples get in behind him. They follow Jesus, the disciples 
do, what the scribe said he would, and what the other was told to 
do. Again, I don't think discipleship is missing, I just don't know 
that it's the forefront. Both elements are highlighted 
in this particular narrative. Notice, secondly, the crisis. 
And suddenly, a great tempest arose on the sea. And suddenly 
a great tempest arose on the sea. And I did a little research 
what this meant. It's apparently a regularly occurring 
thing on the Sea of Galilee. One commentator says this occurred 
regularly on that lake since it was 600 feet below sea level. and ringed with mountains to 
the east, so that the air would surge through the mountains and 
kick up huge waves, sometimes eight to nine feet high. The 
waves were large enough that they began to fill the boat with 
water, threatening to swamp it." We need to understand as we approach 
this particular scene, this is a real threat. This is a real 
danger. In the parallel account in Luke 
chapter 8, it says, we are in danger. We are in jeopardy. The New King James translates 
it there. So these, and at least four of them, are experienced 
fishermen. The first men that Jesus called 
to follow him were fishermen, the sons of Zebedee and Peter 
and Andrew. They knew what it was to be on 
the Sea of Galilee. This is where they made their 
money. This is where they had their livelihood. Certainly, 
if a storm comes upon them and they panic to the point of saying, 
we are perishing, we must assume that it was a big storm. If fishermen 
are going to seek out the assistance of a carpenter, we must surmise 
that the danger was in fact real. They wouldn't come to me if I 
was asleep on this boat and say, give us a hand. They would navigate 
themselves. So it's a real crisis. And Spurgeon 
makes this very appropriate observation. He says, they were wise to follow 
him and safe in so doing, but they were not therefore secure 
from trial. I think this is a theme or a 
lesson that we find in this narrative concerning discipleship. Being 
present with Jesus doesn't mean the absence of trial. Being with 
Christ in the boat, as safe a place as it is, doesn't mean there 
will be no storms. We don't preach, come to Jesus 
and your life will be happy, healthy, and wise all your days. We preach, come to Jesus for 
a righteousness that avails with God. Come to Jesus for the pardon 
of sin. Come to Jesus for everything 
you need in terms of a righteous status before a thrice holy God. We don't preach, come for health, 
wealth, and prosperity, because when you get into that boat with 
Jesus, you are as susceptible to the trials, to the storms, 
to the tempests, and to the crises that face your unconverted neighbors. Spurgeon goes on to say, in the 
boat with Jesus is a happy place, but storms may come even when 
we are there. And then notice. Suddenly a great 
tempest arose on the sea so that the boat was covered with waves. I've already mentioned Luke 8, 
23. And a wind storm came down on the lake and they were filling 
with water and were in jeopardy. This was a frightening, difficult, 
menacing situation. So what is the response of the 
parties in the boat when we come to this storm on the sea? Don't 
you just love the way the narrative says, and he slept? But he was 
asleep. Isn't that glorious? Isn't that 
amazing? Isn't that wonderful? But he 
was asleep. You see, storms don't freak out 
our gut. Storms don't cause him to panic. Storms don't alarm him. Storms 
don't make him bite his fingernails. He doesn't have bloody thumbs 
like yours truly here. He doesn't have knocking knees. 
The contrast is stark. The crisis is presented. Suddenly, 
a great tempest arose on the sea so that the boat was covered 
with waves. Again, these are experienced 
fishermen, at least four of them. When they come and say, save 
us, we are perishing. We need to understand that this 
isn't a perceived threat. This isn't a made-up thing. They're 
not overreacting. You or I or someone inexperienced 
could go on a boat and have a bit of a rumble and freak out. Not 
for fishermen. These men know what they're doing. But he was asleep. Again, Psalm 3, Proverbs 3, 24 
to 26. R.T. France says it this way. It's beautiful. Listen. He says, 
Jesus had taken the opportunity for a rest since the boat is 
in the competent hands of Galilean fishermen. Jesus, get this brethren, was 
tired. His real humanity is set forth 
in the passage. We studied this morning, why 
did Jesus eat? Because he was hungry. Why did 
Jesus drink? Because He was thirsty. Why did 
Jesus sleep in this boat? Because He was tired. He's real 
humanity. We've got one person, the Lord 
Jesus. Two natures, divine and human. And what is expressed here in 
this reality is that He was asleep. Frantz says, Jesus had taken 
the opportunity for a rest since the boat is in the competent 
hands of the Galilean fishermen who are the only disciples so 
far identified. Chapter 4. He says, his continuing 
to sleep in such circumstances may be attributed to natural 
exhaustion. He was tired. I love that. He slept. You know 
what it says in Mark's gospel account? He slept on a pillow. He wasn't a Spartan. He wasn't 
an ascetic. He didn't believe in monkery. 
He didn't want to put his head on a hard surface, so he got 
a pillow. Chamberlain makes the observation, 
and I think it's probably right on. Matthew doesn't mention the 
pillow, not because there's a contradiction, but because Jesus said, the Son 
of Man has nowhere to lay his head. Knuckleheads like us would 
say, well, where did he get that pillow? He's tired. He's exhausted. He sleeps. France goes on. Continuing to sleep in such circumstances 
may be attributed to natural exhaustion as much as to supernatural 
confidence. He says, but it provides the 
setting for a remarkable reversal of roles in that the experienced 
fishermen appeal for help to a man who, as far as we know, 
had little experience of boats. Nazareth is up in the hills. 
It's about a day's walk to the lake. Jesus wasn't experienced 
in this regard. Jesus wasn't the navigator. Jesus 
wasn't one who had the experience on the Sea of Galilee. So when 
we look at this crisis on the sea and we see the response of 
the master, he was asleep. Notice the response of the disciples. This is where we find ourselves. 
They panic. They see it in the worst possible 
light, don't they? You ever notice that when something 
happens to you? It's not we may crash. We are 
perishing. We're destined for doom. The 
smallest crisis becomes the biggest thing. Now, I'm not minimizing 
this crisis. I'm just noticing a trend that disciples manifest. 
They come, they wake Jesus up. Notice that the storm didn't 
bother the Son of Man. The disciples bothered the Son 
of Man. The Son of Man is sleeping happily and peacefully in the 
midst of this particular tempest, and they won't Jesus. Spurgeon 
says they caused him more disquiet than the storm. Then they cry 
out to Jesus. They say, save us, Lord. And 
we could hyper-spiritualize this and say, wow, look at the picture 
of salvation. But we mustn't forget the reality. They're afraid because the wind 
is blowing, because the waves are eight to nine feet high, 
because they're taking on water, and they're concerned with the 
reality that they're going down. Possibly they're concerned with 
the idea that the Messiah is going down. If this is the one 
whom God sent, he certainly can't die on this boat. He certainly 
can't be prey or fall victim to the Sea of Galilee. He must 
continue his messianic task. So there's an urgency that these 
men manifest. His disciples come to him. They 
awoke him. They say, Lord, save us. We are perishing. The danger 
is real. The four men on board that are 
experienced understand the perceived threat, and they cry out to Jesus 
in this particular instance. You see the scene? Do you see the scene? It's important 
for us to get this. Because what we see next is completely 
unheard of. How would you comfort these fishermen? 
How would you comfort these men? I'd say grab wood. Tighten your 
life vest. Get on your knees and pray. That's 
about the counsel I would have, and I think that's probably good 
counsel. In the midst of a sea storm, that's good. Grab on, 
tighten up your life jacket, and pray. Good counsel. See what 
you get here? You get, you know, how to cope 
on the sea. You need to appreciate the sea. 
Lord, save us. We are perishing. I will read 
Spurgeon. He does spiritualize it in a 
good way. Men in a storm cannot be very 
select in their language. Think about it. You're in the 
storm of sin. You don't need to read five books 
on how to address God. I was thinking about this recently. When my kids, when they were 
little, they asked me for things. They didn't have to go on and 
on and on. I'm not against importunate prayer. I'm not against earnestness 
at the throne of grace. I'm certainly not against perseverance 
at the throne of grace. But are we like the heathen that 
think we will be heard for our many words? This one's short, 
it's sweet, it's to the point. They didn't have time to flower 
up the language. They didn't have time to learn 
eloquence at the school of prayer. Virgins says men in a storm cannot 
be very select in their language, but they learn to be very earnest 
and eager. The appeal of these disciples may suit many. Here 
he's speaking to sinners. Listen to their plea. Here was 
reverence for Jesus, Lord. Here was an intelligent supplication, 
save us. And here was an essential argument, 
we are perishing. You see, if you understand that 
in light of the storm of sin, this is a model prayer. Lord, 
address him with reverence and respect. Save us, that's my problem. Not give me health, wealth, and 
prosperity. Not make all my sunny days, or all my cloudy days sunny. 
But Lord, save us. and then set forth the argument. 
Don't you love this? We are perishing. This reminds 
me of a psalm, Psalm 2511. Pardon my iniquity, Lord. What's 
the argument? For I'm a good guy. Pardon my 
iniquity, Lord, because I'm trying really hard. Pardon my iniquity, 
Lord, because I've done the best I can. No, in Psalm 2511, he 
says, pardon my iniquity, Lord, for it is great. It's the best 
argument he can present. The greatness of my sin cries 
out for the greatness of the Savior. And that's what these 
men on the sea are doing. They see the crisis. They see 
the despair. They see the distress. Again, 
it's a real menacing situation. So they go to a man from Nazareth 
who has no display of nautical skill, and they wake him up. They knew they couldn't spare 
themselves. They knew they couldn't undertake. Certainly, it would 
have dawned on them to grab wood, tighten up their life jacket, 
and pray. They go to the one who's able 
to help. If you were here this morning 
in your sin, you need to go to the one who's able to help. Your 
parents can't help you other than to direct you to this Lord. 
Your spouse can't help you but to direct you to this Lord. Your 
pastor can't help you but to direct you to this Lord. Now, 
I understand that's great help, but it's the Master who saves. 
It is Christ who has the power. It is Christ who has the ability. 
It is Christ who has the sufficiency. You can't clean it up. You can't 
make the storm go away. They didn't just think real hard 
and see the sea calm before them. They cry out, Lord, save us. 
We are perishing. And you know, when we look at 
this crisis on the Sea of Galilee, and we do paint the picture in 
our eyes, and we do liken it to an experience that we've had 
in our past, it's scary, isn't it? I remember being a little 
kid one time on the beach, Seal Beach in Southern California, 
going under the water and having a raft over me. I don't know 
why I was in that particular position, but I couldn't get 
out. It was terrifying. Drowning doesn't 
seem like a good way to go to me. I don't mind going. It's the path that lies between 
me and the getting there that often scares me. But drowning 
seems like a particularly nasty way to me. So imagine the scene. 
Use your mind. Use your imagination. When you 
read biblical narrative, jump into it. Don't read it like it's 
the phone book. Don't read it like it's your 
computer programming manual. Don't read it like it's your 
Nintendo or your Xbox handbook. Read it like the living word 
of God that it really is and put yourself in the crisis. It's 
dangerous. It's threatening. There's jeopardy. 
There's problems. There's issues confronting these 
men. But they are nothing compared 
to the crisis of sin. compared to the crisis of being 
dead, compared to the crisis of not wanting God, compared 
to the reality that if you were to die right now, you'd end in 
hell. That's a crisis that far exceeds this and demands from 
man this, Lord save us, we are perishing. Much better to perish 
on the Sea of Galilee and go to heaven. Much better to perish 
on the Sea of Galilee and go to heaven than to perish of old 
age and pass into hell. Listen to what goes on in this 
particular section. We've seen the storm on the sea. 
Notice, secondly, the ruler over the sea. Verse 26. There is first his response to 
the disciples and then his response to the sea. Notice his response 
to the disciples. He said to them, why are you 
fearful? Why are you afraid? What's going on? We might say, 
what's your problem? You're with the one who has absolute 
authority. You're with one who's just cast 
out demons. You're with one who's healed 
Peter's mother-in-law. You're with one who's healed 
a servant from a distance. You're with one who cleansed 
a leper. Why are you afraid? If you can't be at peace, if 
you can't be at home, if you can't be with comfort in the 
midst of the Savior, you've got problems. Matthew Henry said 
he does not chide them for disturbing him with their prayers. That 
might have been my response. Why are you waking me up? Matthew 
Henry said he does not chide them for disturbing him with 
their prayers. Rather, he chides them for being 
disturbed by their fears. Isn't this the ongoing battle 
of the disciple of Christ is to fear not? You take your concordance 
and you look up that word, fear, in the Bible. How many times 
is it said by God to his disciples? A lot. How's that for exegesis? A lot. Why? Because we don't get the 
lesson. We don't receive it. We've got 
thick heads. We've got hard hearts. Why does the Lord God Almighty, 
why does the ruler over the sea have to tell us not to be afraid? 
Because it is our tendency, it is our disposition, it is the 
natural trajectory of the disciple's heart to distrust his master. The disciple is not to fear in 
the presence of the master. The son of man who has authority 
to cleanse lepers, to heal servants, to heal mothers-in-law, to cast 
out demons, and to heal all manner of sickness is one that we can 
find comfort in the presence of. If he's got the demons under 
control, if he's got the fever under control, if he's got the 
leprosy under control, he's certainly got the elements under control. Why are you fearful? And then notice what he says, 
O you of little faith. Notice it's not no faith. He 
doesn't say you unbelieving wretches. How in the world could you deny 
me? No, he chides them for little faith. What do we learn here? That faith displaces fear. The presence of fear manifests 
little faith. When we are struggling with a 
fear, when we are worrying, when we are in all kinds of turmoil, 
what is that evidence? We're not trusting God. Same 
words used in Matthew 6, verse 30, in the context of real life 
stuff. Don't be anxious about what you'll 
put on. Don't be anxious about what you'll 
eat. Don't be anxious about what you'll drink. Why are you of 
little faith? Does not the God who clothes 
the lilies and feed the birds, does he not have your best interests 
in mind? You think Jesus comes into this 
world, selects twelve to be his personal assistants, brings them 
onto this boat, and then he's going to allow them to die in 
transit? Why are you of little faith? 
Faith drives out fear. If you're a fearful person, if 
you worry a lot, if you're anxious, what ought your prayer to be? 
Take away everything that makes me this way, Lord. No, give me 
faith. I'm really worried about this 
situation. Make it go away. That's how I pray. I really don't 
want to deal with this, Lord. Make it stop. No, what's the 
biblical response? Increase our faith. You see, in the boat with Jesus 
does not mean the absence of storms. We need to pray that 
in the midst of the storm, in the midst of the trial, in the 
midst of the calamity, in the midst of the difficulty, we come 
to the Lord God and say, increase my faith. This is the problem. People fall into various trials. 
And what do we do? We respond with bitterness. We 
respond with anger. We respond with murmuring. We 
respond with things like, why in the world are these things 
happening to me? I've had one thing after another, after another, 
after another. What we ought to do is say, God, increase my 
faith. Give me the ability. Give me the grace. Give me the 
perseverance to weather these storms. That's the point. That's 
what Jesus is saying. Why are you fearful, O you of 
little faith? It is a settled reality in biblical 
religion, both Old and New Testaments. You will have tribulation. It is inevitable. It is inescapable. When the non-Christian says, 
hey, I see you go through storms too. Yeah, I go through them 
because of my master. No non-Christian can say, well, 
the Bible must be fake because my neighbor, he's a believer, 
and bad things happen to him all the time. Imagine Job's neighbors. Imagine Job's friends. Listen 
to these men. Terrible counselors. Speaking 
words of wind to this man. It wasn't until he got a theology 
lesson from God Most High himself that everything began to make 
sense. You see, the presence of Christ does not mean the absence 
of trial. What we need to pray in the midst 
of these storms is, God, increase my faith. It's a great example 
of this later, I believe it's in Matthew's Gospel, certainly 
in Luke's Gospel, when Peter says, Lord, my brother sins against 
me seven times in a day, do I forgive him? I bet Peter was thinking 
he was just really benevolent. I bet Peter thought he was just 
the most magnificent man. Lord, I'm willing to forgive 
somebody who sins against me seven times a day. What's Jesus 
say? Seventy times seven. It is in 
Luke's Gospel. After Jesus says that, you know 
what the disciples' response is? Lord, increase our faith. What's the implication? Without 
faith, we can't forgive like that. Without faith, we will 
hold grudges. Without faith, we will seek vindication. Without faith, we will be irritable 
people. Lord, increase our faith. They 
were on the right track. In the midst of the storm, the 
Lord Jesus says to these disciples, Why are you fearful, O you of 
little faith? That is his response to the disciples. Notice his 
response to the storm. There's a man in the Pacific 
Northwest. I've read one of his books, and he claims to have 
the gift of healing. I've heard him on audio, or a 
video clip, where he claims to have visions. I'd really like 
to see him walk out into the midst of the Pacific Northwest 
and stop the rain. Then we'll talk. Go to Southern California. I 
mentioned Seal Beach earlier, Huntington Beach, a little further 
down the coast. There's big waves there. When 
one of these keelers can stand up and tell the waves to stop, 
and they stop, I'm not saying I'll be convinced, but I'll be 
a little bit more intrigued. Note the pattern. Note the display 
of authority. He cleanses lepers. He heals 
servants when he's nowhere near them. He heals a mother-in-law 
with a torch. He can tell the wind to stop. This is what Matthew wants us 
to understand. Why are you fearful? Why do you 
have little faith? Look who you stand in the presence 
of. He rose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a 
great calm. Knox Chamberlain says, Jesus, 
who just said that he lacks even the natural provisions granted 
to animals, now shows himself to be master of nature. The authority 
he has been demonstrating over afflictions, he now exerts over 
the raging sea of Galilee. He speaks according to Mark and 
Luke. He rebukes according to Matthew. And what happens? The wind stops. The sea calms. So he rebukes 
the wind. But notice as well, he rebukes 
his disciples. He doesn't say anything, does 
he? He doesn't say, I now rebuke you for discounting the fact 
that you are with me. He doesn't need to say anything. 
The fact that there is calm on the sea, the fact that the wind 
has stopped blowing is rebuke to them for their little faith 
and their great fear. When He speaks to the wind and 
hushes it, He is speaking to His disciples and hushing them. He is silencing them just as 
much. When our Lord rebuked the winds, 
He did in the best manner rebuke their unbelief. That's Spurgeon. He's spot on. While it does not 
tell us He rebukes the disciples, He most certainly does. And then 
that brings us thirdly to verse 27, the amazement of the disciples. They were fearful, and they marveled. Verse 27, so the men marveled, 
saying, Who can this be, that even the winds and the sea obey 
him? Here Matthew records for us that they marvel. Mark 4.41 
says, And they feared exceedingly. Again, it's not a contradiction. Well, Mark says they feared, 
and Matthew says they marveled. They marveled and feared. In 
fact, Luke tells us they marveled and feared in Luke 8.25, and 
they were afraid and marveled. You see, they were fearful in 
the presence of one who could speak to the wind. They marveled 
when they were in the presence of one who could speak to the 
wind. They marveled. They were dumbfounded. This is the first time in the 
narrative that it's recorded that they marveled. I imagine 
they marveled at the cleansing of the leper. I imagine they 
stood amazed when that centurion's servant was healed. I imagine 
it blew their mind when he touched Peter's mother-in-law and she 
had her fever left. But it's in this situation, with 
reference to his control over nature, with reference to what 
he is as ruler over the sea, that they stand amazed. They 
are dumbfounded. And then notice their question. 
Who can this be? I think this is what Matthew 
wants. This is another opportunity for Matthew to say, behold your 
Messiah. Behold the Christ. This question 
is appropriate, isn't it? We cannot fault them for this. 
We cannot discredit what they say here. Who can this be? Why would they ask this question? 
Because we just sang the Covenant Psalm, Psalm 89. What does the 
Covenant Psalm, Psalm 89, tell us? You rule the raging of the 
sea. When its waves rise, you still 
them. Who's the you in the Covenant 
Psalm, Psalm 89? It's Yahweh of Israel. They're 
standing in the presence of Jesus of Nazareth, and he says to the 
wind to be still, and it listens. They see the Sea of Galilee that 
was raging with waves eight to nine feet high. Stop raging. It is an appropriate question 
for them to settle back for a moment, to scratch their melons, to stand 
in amazement, and to be exceedingly fearful. They're in the presence 
of God. Job 38, or who shut in the sea 
with doors when it burst forth and issued from the womb. When 
I made the clouds its garment and thick darkness its swaddling 
band. When I fixed my limit for it 
and set bars and doors. When I said, this far you may 
come and no farther, and here your proud waves must stop. You 
see, sometimes a preacher might say, when you read this or when 
you hear this, you should think about this. These men did. They were skilled and schooled 
in the Old Testament Scriptures. They would know Psalm 29, 3, 
and 4. The voice of Yahweh is over the waters. The God of glory 
thunders. The Lord is over many waters. 
The voice of the Lord is powerful. The voice of the Lord is full 
of majesty. They would know Psalm 65, verse 
7. You who still the noise of the 
seas, the noise of their waves, and the tumult of the peoples." 
They would know Psalm 107, 23 to 30, specifically verse 29, 
that says, he calms the storms so that its waves are still. 
They would remember the story of Jonah. One man goes to great 
lengths to parallel this situation of Jesus on the sea with Jonah, 
but it falls apart. The analogy isn't strict, but 
there are some similarities that we learn from Jonah chapter 1. 
So they picked up Jonah and threw him into the sea, and the sea 
ceased from its raging. Then the men feared the Lord 
exceedingly and offered a sacrifice to the Lord and took vows. You 
see, what's the implication when you stand in the presence of 
someone who says to the wind, stop blowing, and it stops, you 
marvel and you're afraid. Nahum 1.4, he rebukes the sea 
and makes it dry and dries up all the rivers. Understand their 
biblical mindset. Understand their knowledge of 
the Psalter. Understand their knowledge of the prophets. Understand 
the reality that they perceive great threat, great danger on 
the Sea of Galilee. Understand that they're standing 
in the presence of one who's more scary to them. Who's more 
scary to them than these eight and nine foot waves. They were 
exceedingly fearful. Brethren, that's what Matthew 
wants us to understand. So in conclusion, there is a 
lesson on discipleship, the primary emphasis on Christology. Let's 
just look at some lessons on discipleship from the passage. 
The presence of trials in the Christian life is a reality. Foxes have their holes, birds 
of the air have their nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere 
to lay his head. In this world you will have tribulation, 
but be of good cheer, I've overcome the world." If you're thinking 
about discipleship, if you've listened to the preaching of 
God's Word, and you're counting the cost, as you well should 
be, let me just tell you here and now, that coming to Jesus 
does not ensure a life of health, wealth, and prosperity. It might 
mean the absence of all three. But as I said last week, don't 
treat it like this miserable, horrible... The cost of the kingdom is commensurate 
with the value of the kingdom. So if we lose health and wealth 
and prosperity and get Jesus, We've gained much. We need to 
understand this. The presence of trials in the 
Christian life is a reality. Here's how Ryle put it. He didn't 
sound to me like Benny Hinn or Joel Osteen either. He says, 
if you are a believer, you must reckon on having your share of 
sickness and pain, of sorrow and tears, of losses and crosses, 
of deaths and bereavements, of partings and separations, of 
vexations, disappointments so long as you are in the body. 
What are you trying to tell us, Bishop Ryle? The Christian life 
is hard. He says, Christ never undertakes 
that you shall get to heaven without these. He has undertaken 
that all who come to him shall have all things pertaining to 
life and godliness, but he has never undertaken that he will 
make them prosperous, or rich, or healthy, and that death and 
sorrow shall never come to their family. It is a settled fact 
in biblical religion that the presence of the Master does not 
mean the absence of difficulty. You will have storm. You will 
have trial. Not everybody's going to like 
you. There's not going to be a blog out there dedicated to 
how great you are. People aren't going to celebrate 
you on their Twitter feed. People aren't going to Facebook 
that they came into contact with you. The sun isn't going to shine 
from your being. The Christian life is hard. It is one of cross. It is one of trial. It is one 
of storm. It is one of great difficulty. 
But a second lesson that we learn from Christ in the sea is that 
Christ is present with us in the midst of those trials. Isn't 
that the beauty of Psalm 23? For yea, though I walk through 
the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil. Why? Because 
you're with me. Your rod, your staff, they comfort 
me. Notice the reality that there 
is a valley of the shadow of death. But notice the faith. I walked through it. I'm not 
going to die in it. I walked through it. Why? Because 
you're with me, Lord. You are in my presence. You will 
see me through it. That's a second observation that 
we need to understand. The believer's faith should dispel 
fear. The believer will face great 
difficulty. There will be a we are perishing, 
save us, Lord moment in your Christian experience. But know 
that Christ is there. He does answer their prayers. 
He does deliver them. There may be instances like Horatio 
Spafford where he doesn't spare his wife and kids, but you know 
they're ushered into the presence of the Lord and one day Horatio 
is going to be there with them. And then the power of Christ 
over all things. I think we need to see ourselves 
in this narrative. Why are you fearful, O you of 
little faith? I don't want to psychologize 
the passage, I don't want to get weird with the passage, but 
I certainly think that most of us have trouble with strong faith 
in our Lord. Anxiety, panic, worry. You know those people that don't 
evidence such things, don't you? They're few and far between. 
Why don't you freak out like I do? I've noticed this in married 
couples. God usually puts two opposites 
together. Two people that freaked out all 
the time, they'd kill each other, nothing would ever get done in 
the house, and it would just be a mess. They'd sit around 
and panic. God gives a panic machine, and 
he gives someone that's very calm. He gives the disciples 
on the boat, saying, Lord, we're perishing, and someone else who 
remains asleep. Wake up! Don't you know I'm perishing? Don't you know I've got troubles? 
Don't you know I've got trials? Jesus Christ possesses power 
over everything. The one who says, hush, be still 
to the wind, calms the wind. He can certainly intervene in 
our issues, in our trials, and in our difficulties. Lessons 
on discipleship. Secondly, the primary emphasis 
in the passage is on Christology. And Matthew shows us two things 
concerning our Christ. He shows us his real humanity. 
He is in fact the son of man of chapter 8 verse 20. He is 
the son of man who needs to lay down and rest after having a 
long and wearying day. He shows us the genuine humanity 
of Christ the Lord. He is weary. He sleeps. Secondly, 
however, He shows us the mercy and the power of Christ. Hasn't 
that been a recurring theme in the healings up to this point? 
What does the leper say? If you are willing, you can cleanse 
me. He knows Jesus has the power. 
He says, if you are willing. What does the centurion do? He 
comes to the Lord, and he sets forth the case. He says, my servant 
is home, he's paralyzed, he's tormented, he's in a great bit 
of dismay. And what does the implicate, 
what do we have to imply there? He knows that Jesus can heal 
him. He understands that reality, but he's wondering about the 
will. Jesus Christ is both willing 
and able. See, if Jesus was just humanity, 
Jesus would have told them to grab wood, to tighten up their 
life vest, and to pray to God. But Jesus is the God-man. He tells them, not by direct 
words, but he rebukes them for their little faith and their 
fear by shutting this wind down. Matthew is converging to teach 
us that Jesus is man, Jesus has mercy and power, and ultimately, 
Jesus is God. See, we have something the disciples 
in the boat didn't have. We have Matthew 1, right? So 
we forget that, don't we? They didn't have Matthew 1. They 
didn't have the introduction. There's a story of Jesus Christ, 
son of Abraham, son of David. They didn't have the genealogy. 
Well, they knew these things were there, but they didn't have 
a written manual that they could appeal to in this boat. You know, 
when trials come and storms come, we go and look in our Bibles, 
and well, we should. If they would have looked in 
their Bible, they didn't have Matthew 1.23. What does Matthew 
1.23 underscore for us? That Jesus will be called Emmanuel. Why? Because God is with us. It's interesting. The time that 
the disciples proclaim that Jesus is the Son of God is in Matthew 
14.33. It's another account where Christ 
exercises sovereignty over nature. It's when Jesus walks on the 
sea. It's then that they confess that 
He is the Son of God. What Matthew is telling us, what 
Matthew is presenting to us, is that Israel's Messiah is man, 
to be sure, but He is God. He is the God of absolute sovereignty, 
the God of unrivaled power, the God of unrivaled majesty. in 
this particular small section that we're dealing with. This 
will be conspicuous in Matthew chapter 9. But that you may know 
that the Son of Man has power to forgive sins on the earth, 
I tell him to pick up his mat and walk. It is a display of 
the power of Christ in His divine function of forgiving sin. It 
is certainly being stumbled upon at this point, in verse 27, when 
these disciples say, Who can this be? What manner of man is 
this? When exceeding fear grips their 
hearts, when they see a man who speaks to the wind and it calms 
down. And then, interestingly enough, what they are perplexed 
about, what they are scratching their heads over, what they are 
right to be curious concerning, the very next section, pericope, 
if you like, the very next section, when Jesus heals the demoniacs, 
what's their confession? They call him the Son of God! 
What's Matthew's point? Behold. Look at Jesus. What does Christ and the storm 
have to do with you? Everything. Behold your God. Behold your Savior. Behold your 
Lord. Matthew is a mastermind of theology. Matthew is weaving together for 
us in his narrative this beautiful tapestry of the person and the 
work of Christ. Matthew wants you to understand 
that what he's announced in Matthew 121 is coming to fruition. You will call his name, Jesus, 
and it is he who will save his people from their sins. If you 
have come to this point and you have not believed, believe! Look 
and live! The crisis of sin far exceeds 
this storm. The crisis of depravity. Your 
state and place in Adam. There's only one alone who can 
help. There's only one who can reach down. There's only one 
who can save. And it's this one to whom the 
disciples cry out, Lord, save us. We are perishing. Matthew 
wants you to look. Matthew wants you to believe. 
Matthew wants you to live. Matthew, as his argument says, 
this is the Messiah. This is the Christ. This is the 
Son of God. This one who has power. This 
one who has authority, not only over wind, not only over demoniacs, 
not only over paralytics, but that which is far more wretched 
sin. That's the point of the narrative. Learn the lessons of discipleship 
to be sure, but do not miss the lesson concerning who Jesus Christ 
is. That's what Matthew wants you 
to get. So in conclusion, fear is appropriate 
in the presence of Christ. Amazement is appropriate in the 
presence of Christ. When you read this narrative, 
you can say, wow, that's awesome. But you need to believe in Christ. You need to look to Christ. You 
need to understand Christ. You need to flee to Christ. You need to seek refuge in Christ. You need to say with these disciples, 
Lord, save me, for I am perishing. Well, let us pray. Father, thank 
you for your word and thank you for this account concerning our 
Lord Christ. We thank you for his power. We 
thank you for his authority. We thank you that he is, in fact, 
a God-man, the one alone who is able to save his people from 
their sins. We ask, Lord, that this gospel 
would be proclaimed throughout the earth, that you would send 
your spirit and that you would cause men, women, boys, and girls 
to believe on him and to have everlasting life. And we pray 
in Jesus' name, amen.