The Christians Hour

Stan Smelzer: It's time for the Christian's Hour. This is the Christian's Hour. Welcome. I'm Stan Smelzer, program host. In this week's message from our series Only God, Gene Appel, lead minister with Eastside Christian Church in Anaheim, California, unpacks how our most significant fears come from the uncertainties that blindside us throughout our lives.

Today from the Bible's book of Mark, the writer shares how after a very busy day of ministry for Jesus and his disciples, they use a small boat to escape the crowds and go to refuel in a more restful place across a local lake. Their crossing starts off very peacefully and relaxing, and Jesus even falls asleep. Suddenly, an enormous storm overtakes them, and in the midst of the storm, something incredible, something life-changing takes place. Here's Gene with the lowdown on how to deal with fear.

Gene Appel: Daniel Gilbert, a psychology professor at Harvard University, wrote an intriguing article called "What You Don't Know Makes You Nervous." The focus of his article is that the reason so many of us have increased levels of anxiety these days is not because of the circumstances we find ourselves in—whether it's the economy, politics, a global pandemic, fires, or our relationships. He says happiness is down and sadness is up because of uncertainty.

He talks about this experiment where they separated volunteers into two groups. One group of volunteers was going to receive 20 electric shocks. By the way, who volunteers for these experiments? We've in the past had trouble getting people to volunteer in the nursery at church sometimes; they've got people volunteering to be shocked. So they've got one group to whom they are going to give 20 electric shocks. The second group they told were going to receive just three intense electric shocks.

But the difference between the two groups is that the group who's getting 20 electric shocks knows when the shocks are coming. They're told when it's coming. But group two, who gets three of these shocks, don't know when it's coming. It's a surprise. What they determined from this experiment is that those who received only three shocks, but didn't know when it was actually coming, actually have more psychological pain, more side effects, suffering, rapid heartbeat, and perspiration than those who received 20 shocks who knew it was coming.

The reason is because they didn't know it was coming. They didn't know it was going to happen. The thing that caused so much anxiety was not actually what happened to them; it was the uncertainty of what would happen. I just feel like that's the season we're in right now, that we all just keep bracing ourselves, wondering if another shock is coming, and then another. We all know that people throughout history have been through much worse times than we're going through right now. We realize that.

It's not necessarily the shocks we've been through; it's that we weren't ready for them. We didn't know they were coming. We don't know what's coming next, and it just seems like it's one thing after another after another. That's why today I've titled my message, "Only God Can Calm My Fears." What's interesting about fear is that over and over again in the Bible, you'll find two very different groups of people facing the same circumstances, and one responds with faith and the other responds with fear.

That's true in our text today, and here's the setting. Jesus and the disciples are out on a boat. They're on a great big lake called the Sea of Galilee. It's been a very busy day of ministry for Jesus and his disciples. Evening was approaching, and to escape the crowds and to get to a more restful place to refuel, Jesus said, "Let's take this boat to the other side of the lake." So Jesus and the disciples all get in the boat, and they start cruising to the far side of the lake.

Now, this boat is not a cruise ship, but it's a small wooden fishing boat. There's no twin four-stroke outboard motors on the back end, no big colorful sail with the words "Messiah 1" in bold colors. The boat is just big enough to hold 13 guys and some fish, not much more. It's a calm, placid, peaceful, uneventful ride—so much so that Jesus is exhausted after this busy day of ministry. He's back in the boat sleeping, just listening to the water lap up on the side of the boat, just refueling his body with rest. Because even though he was fully God, he was also fully human and got tired just like we do.

Well, all of a sudden, out of nowhere, without warning, without a chance to prepare, a fierce storm arose. High waves began to crash on the boat. The phrase the Bible uses to describe this storm is a Greek phrase, *mega seismos*. You don't have to be a Greek scholar to figure out what that means. *Seismos* is the word we get seismic or seismograph from; it means a shaking or a turbulence. Those of us who live in California are all familiar with that. *Mega* means great, big, and strong. So this was an enormous storm, a squall, a turbulent, shaking, a seismic-proportion storm that led to such rough waters that it nearly swamps the boat.

The storm is raging for the disciples. What's Jesus doing? Jesus is in the back of the boat. He's just sleeping like a baby. He's not disturbed by the wind and the waves. The fearful screams of the disciples don't even wake him up. That's how it was when our kids were babies; they'd cry at night, and I'd just sleep through it. At least Barbara thought I was sleeping through it. Well, the disciples are ticked off at Jesus for sleeping through it. After all, he's the one who suggested they take this little stupid boat ride in the first place.

A number of them were fishermen who used to make their living on this lake. They know the body counts these angry storms have claimed. The text says in Mark chapter four, verse 38, "Jesus was in the stern sleeping on a cushion." There's that pillow. The disciples woke him and said to him, "Teacher, don't you care if we drown?" Haven't we all cried out to God with questions like that in the midst of our storms, in the midst of our fears? God, how could you leave me all alone to raise these kids all by myself? Don't you even care?

God, how could you allow this financial calamity into our lives? Don't you even care? God, how could you allow my stepfather to do such awful things to me? Don't you even care? God, these were supposed to be our best years, the retirement years, but the cancer, the stroke, the heart attack—don't you even care? God, we worked so hard to build this business, but now with COVID and the economy, we don't see a way out. Don't you even care? God, I've tried to bring my best to this marriage, and I've been faithful, and now I discover the betrayal and the deceit. Don't you even care?

Friends, if you've ever been afraid, if you've ever been in a fearful storm, you've cried out to God with questions like that. So the wind is blowing, the rain is pelting, the waves are beating against the boat, the water is pouring over the side, the disciples are panicking, probably clinging to their life vests, pleading with Jesus. In the midst of this *mega seismos* storm, verse 39 says Jesus got up. Maybe he got up holding his pillow, and he rebuked the wind and the waves: "Quiet! Be still!" Then the wind died down, and it was completely calm.

Instantly, the winds cease and the water is like glass. Isn't that mind-boggling? It's just boggling. The storm instantly stopped. Now, the miracle is not that the storm stopped because eventually all storms stop. The miracle is how it stopped—instantaneously. The winds didn't slowly diminish. The waves didn't gradually die down over a period of time. This wasn't a miracle by Stormcrafters, a division of LensCrafters, where we'll calm your storms in about an hour. No, just like that, and it was over.

Then Jesus looks at the disciples. Maybe he kind of readjusted his pillow as he was going back down for his nap, and he says to them in verse 40, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?" Same situation, same circumstances, two very different responses. One overcome by fear, one completely at ease by faith. Now, the last verse of this section is very revealing. Yes, the disciples are terrified by the storm, but now there's another thing that terrifies them even more. Verse 41: "They were terrified and asked each other, 'Who is this? Even the wind and waves obey him.'"

Who is this man who is not afraid in the midst of the storm? Who is this man even the wind and waves obey? Who is the man that instead of bringing a life jacket to a *mega seismos* storm brings a pillow? That's a great question, and it's one of the most important questions you will ever wrestle with in your life. Who is this man? It's interesting to me that they were initially afraid of the storm, and so Jesus calms it. When he does, they're terrified of him. Thus the question: who is this man that even the wind and waves obey him?

If you're like me, I kind of thought from an early age that Jesus was born on Christmas day. I mean, that's what we sing, right? "Silent night, Christ the Savior is born. Christ the Savior is born." But follow along as I read from Colossians chapter one, verses 15 through 17. "Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before God made anything at all and is supreme over all creation. Christ is the one through whom God created everything in heaven and earth. He made the things we can see, the things we can't see: kings, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities. Everything has been created through him and for him. He existed before everything else began, and he holds all creation together."

Who is this man that even the wind and waves obey? Who is this one who can sleep through a storm? He's the God who spoke the world into existence. I had a professor in college who was from Belgium and had this high-pitched voice. He used to talk about this. He would say, "Students, God created the world *ex nihilo*," which is Latin for "out of nothing." If you said, "I made these cookies from scratch," no you didn't. You started with ingredients. "I made this table right here, I made it from scratch." No you didn't. You started with ingredients. You can't create something out of nothing.

Inventors and scientists can make many things, but not *ex nihilo*, not out of nothing. I heard a joke one time about a group of scientists who decided they no longer needed God in their lives. They picked one of them to go tell God, and the scientist said, "God, we've decided we no longer need you. We can clone people. We can do many miraculous things with our technology. Why don't you just make like a tree and leave?" Well, God listened patiently and kindly to the scientist, and when the scientist was done talking, God said, "Okay, but how about this? Let's have a human-making contest first."

The scientist said, "Great idea." But God added, "Now, we're going to do it just like I did back in the old days when I made Adam from the dust of the ground." The scientist said, "Sure, no problem." The scientist bent down and grabbed a handful of dirt, and God just looked at the scientist and said, "Oh no, no, no. You've got to create your own dirt." You see, apart from the existence of an eternal God, science has no explanation of original cause. How did everything get here? Where did that dirt come from?

Scientists have studied it, debated it, dissected it, lost sleep over it because many believe it's one of the most powerful explanations for the world that exists—that in the beginning, God created what is out of nothing, *ex nihilo*. God creates the heavens and the earth. So who's this man who can sleep through a mega-seismic storm? He's the one who spoke the world into existence. He's the one through whom it was all created and who holds it all together. He's the one who the wind and the waves obey, and he's the one who can calm our greatest fears.

Sometimes I think we just forget when we're going through a storm and we're afraid; we forget how big, how powerful, how mighty, how awesome is the God of all creation. I think sometimes we feel more comfortable when we can reduce God just to a little symbol or an image that we can carry on some beads, or hang on a wall, or put around our neck. Or we reduce him to a little figurine that we can set on a fireplace mantel. Or we condense God down into a little box called a church building, where God shows up and only lives inside a building with steeples and stained glass and crosses.

Hey, listen, one of the things I'm thankful for during the COVID-19 era, when we haven't been able to meet in church buildings, is that we have been reminded—powerfully reminded—that God is not contained to church buildings. He's with me. He's with you. He is so much bigger and greater. Usually, in the Bible, whenever God appears to someone, the typical reaction of the person was not, "Hey, cool. God's here." The typical reaction to God was fear or even terror. In fact, there are 150 different times in the Bible where it talks about the fear of the Lord. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. The fear of the Lord is a fountain of life.

You say, "Well, then why is the most common command in scripture to 'fear not,' to 'not be afraid'? And yet we're told to fear the Lord? How does that compute?" Friends, when you really figure out who God is—this God who controls the wind and the waves—there's a sobering reverence and awe that sets in. It's a holy fear. But God doesn't want us to be afraid of him in a way that keeps us distant from him. So right away, whenever people encounter God, he comes along and says, "Fear not," to let us know he has come along to help and support and love. That's why Jesus came.

God got small enough not to be feared, but he came to be known and loved. The Bible says it's his perfect love that casts out fear, which leads to two very significant questions I've got to ask you today. First, have you admitted that you need him? This God of all creation, this God who even the wind and the waves obey. This is about the only thing the disciples got right. When they were afraid, they admitted they were in trouble. They admitted they needed a God who could calm their storms. Let me ask you: are you at a point in your life where you're getting close to admitting you need him too?

I bet some of you are. I bet some of you are getting drawn more and more close to God. Life and circumstances are uncertain, and only God is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Only God is an all-powerful God who never changes. Only God is a rock on which we can stand when the storms come. When you really understand who God is, it can be a terrifying thing, an overwhelming thing. But then when you come to realize he came as Jesus to come close to you, to walk with you, to fill your life with grace and meaning and hope, he's awfully hard to resist.

When Jesus is at the center of your life, peace will be at the center of your soul. I hope, if you haven't already, you will say yes to him very soon, or if you've gotten distant from him, that you'll come back to him very soon. Now, here's the second question: will you move in faith toward the very thing you fear? Jesus asked the disciples, "Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?" I want to show you what maybe is the classic passage in all of the Bible on how to respond to fear. It's Psalm 46. Psalm 46 was written by a person who knew fear for people who sometimes struggle with fear.

The words are simple to read but difficult to practice. Psalm 46, beginning in verse one: "God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging." Not only does the psalmist declare that God is our refuge and strength and ever-present help in trouble, but there's a decision: "Therefore we will not fear."

Is that because the storms have gone away and the fearful winds have stopped blowing? No. "Therefore we will not fear though the earth give way and though the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though the waters are roaring and foaming and though the mountains are quaking with their surging." I am deciding to move in faith toward that which I would be tempted to fear because the God of all creation is my refuge and strength and ever-present help in a time of trouble. So let me ask you: what fear could you start moving toward in faith today? Can you name it?

Maybe it concerns your career, and you're afraid your performance isn't meeting expectations, or there's a problem between you and your boss, or you're feeling trapped in a position that doesn't tap into your passions or strengths. Will you step toward that fear in faith, knowing God is with you? Maybe it's a hurt, a habit, a hang-up in your life. You've done a lot of crazy things in your life. You've taken financial risks, maybe you've jumped out of airplanes, but you've struggled to muster the courage you need to bring this into the light and say, "This is who I really am," or to sit down with a trusted friend and counselor and say, "This is what's really going on."

Will you do it? Maybe you're afraid you're really sick. There's something inside of your body and you're avoiding going to the doctor because you're afraid to know. Friends, we all know early detection of an illness is one of the best forms of treatment. So will you move in faith toward your fear? Maybe your fear involves your marriage or your family, and you're afraid of the pain, you're afraid of the confrontation and the mess it would open up if you really faced it. Will you boldly take that step? Moving from fear-based living to faith-based living always takes a courageous step of faith to move toward the very thing that you fear.

But faith isn't faith until it risks. Faith isn't faith until it acts, until you take a step toward the very thing that you fear. Who is this man that even the wind and waves obey him? He's the God of all creation, and only God can calm our fears. This is the God who created the universe *ex nihilo*, out of nothing. When you're going through a storm, listen, you'll find him in the same place Barbara and I have found him when we've experienced storms in our lives and in our marriage that we really wondered if we could weather.

You'll find him where I found him when I faced heartbreaking disappointments and the shattering betrayal of friends I thought I could trust and honor their word. You'll find him where I found him when I was 14 years old and my dad, the greatest man I've ever known, suddenly died. I'm telling you from my own personal experience: cry out to Jesus. Cry out to the one who says to a storm, "Peace, be still." Cry out to the one who says when you're going through a storm, when the winds are blowing and the waves are crashing and your fear is rising: "Just bring a pillow." Stand in his love. Come to the one who says, "Do not fear, I am with you." Because only God can calm your fears, and he's with you. He's with you. He's with you.

Song Performance: Acappella: Peace, peace be still.

Peace, peace be still.

Lift His hand.

He's peace, be still.

Like a child, the winds obey him,

When He says, peace be still.

He says peace, peace be still.

He says peace, peace be still.

Lift His hand.

He's peace, be still.

Like a child, my heart obeys him,

When He says, peace be still.

He says peace, peace be still.

Peace, peace be still.

His voice, peace be still.

Peace, be still.

Stan Smelzer: Gene shared two significant questions to help us navigate our fears. First, have you admitted you need God? And then, if you find that difficult, why do you think that's so? Try reading again Psalm 46, verses one through three. Let the words of that psalm point you to God, not only to soothe your fears but also to inspire God-based courage in you. Our prayer today is how you will respond to God's offer to calm your uncertainty, to calm your fears.

For a free copy of today's program, just call us: 515-770-2241. That's 515-770-2241. Leave your name and mailing address; we'll send you a CD. It's free for the asking. Our phone number again: 515-770-2241. You're also free to download your own copy from OnePlace.com, iTunes, Google Play, or from our website, thechristianshour.org. That's thechristianshour.org. For more information about the ministry and music of Acappella, go to www.acappella.com. Thanks for listening today to the Christian's Hour. Please join us again next week for another message from God's word.