Title: That Fear Changed (Matt. 14:25-33)
Many people today live in "fear". The cold hiding of 'fear' is hiding in the lives of every generation, everyone. Some people are afraid of business and work. Some people are afraid of problems with their children. In recent years, people are afraid of their own health problems. And looking at the danger of an accident, I am afraid. Brothers and sisters, what are you afraid of now? What's the problem with your fears?
So what is fear and where does it come from?
Need to know this! Wouldn't that be the only way to find a solution? What is fear! If you look at the dictionary meaning, it is defined as 'a painful emotion caused by surprise, anxiety, or fear'. In other words, fear is a state of mind in which we accept something unpleasantly, negatively, and fearfully. The place of fear is our mind.
To know the starting point of fear, we go up to the Garden of Eden in the distance. Fear is as old as sin. It begins with the day when Adam and Eve disobeyed God and ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Humans fell into the temptations of the devil and sinned by disobeying God. In the hearts of those who sinned, I thought I would become the master instead of God, but the devil settled down and began to act as the master. Then, in Genesis 3:8, it says that Adam and Eve were afraid and hid in the woods of the garden. Fear entered man with sin, and since that tragic day, man has become a slave to sin, a servant of the devil, and fear has unstoppably penetrated and settled in man's heart. That is why we are afraid from childhood, and we fall into this fear when we are young, when we grow up, and when we are old and when it is time to die.
But the problem is that this fear leads us humans to ruin. A fear that weighs us down under the heavy burden of sin, makes us anxious, stresses people more than necessary, which incapacitates us, makes us sick, and eventually puts us in another predicament and ruins! This is undoubtedly an obstacle to be solved and overcome first of all, and it is an enemy of the Christian life, for us believers who live a successful life in the Lord and pursue a blessed life.
So, what is the solution to overcome this fear of destroying humans?
In today's text, we can find the key. Today's sermon is an incident where Jesus' disciples met a storm on the Sea of Galilee. It was the fourth view of the night, a very deep night. The 4th view is the darkest time before dawn, from 3 am to 6 am. In the middle of the night, the disciples were crossing the Sea of Galilee and encountered a great storm. Jesus tells his disciples to cross the sea first. While crossing with the disciples, they encountered a storm. When the disciples faced a storm and suffered hardship and were in failure, discouragement, suffering and despair, the Lord knew the disciples' problems and walked on the water.
Why did you come on foot? Perhaps you have come to help your beloved disciples quickly. Just praying for the disciples from afar directly from Jesus will be enough to calm the storm. But Jesus wanted to come and be with him.
Our Lord knows our problems. And he comes to solve the problem in that fear. All other religions are people to visit. But looking for it, looking for it, and not finding it. It's just the history of the devil looking for something. You will be fooled again. However, please believe that our Christianity is a religion of true love where the Lord comes first, gives grace, and shows miracles. The Lord Himself came and said: He reassures us and promises peace by saying, "Do not be afraid, I am." I have come, so do not be afraid. What kind words are you? There are no words of consolation. The Lord came running on the water because he wanted to say these words. When the disciples heard the word of the Lord, they had faith.
At this time, Peter, who liked to take the lead the most, saw Jesus and cried out. “Lord, if it is you, command me to come on the water.” The Lord says, "Come." Peter got off the boat because he had instant faith. And I walked a few steps on the water. I walk briskly on the water. I go to Jesus. But this man, who was walking well, at some point saw a storm, and doubts arose again in Peter's heart. They did not look only at the Lord, but at the environment around them. I have seen the world, I have seen the wind. And shaken by the winds of doubt, they begin to drown. Doubt brought fear again. Finally, Peter exclaimed, "Lord, save me." The Lord stretched out his hand and took hold of it, saying, O you of little faith, why did you doubt?
Then Jesus takes his hand. And you say “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” He took Peter into the boat. “They went into the boat together, and the wind stopped” (verse 32). It was. When the Lord got into the boat, all the storms were gone and the fear was gone.
To summarize today's sermon, when did fear come?
Undoubtedly, when the disciples doubted, they were in fear. The disciples were not afraid because of the storm. Although he was suffering from the storm, he did not seem to have any fear yet. The Bible does not say that they were suffering and were afraid. However, when the Lord came to rescue them, they did not come by boat by activating emergency measures and came to them in a miraculous way, they doubted. That's when I got scared, and I screamed.
The same goes for Peter. However, when I saw the wind again and fell into doubt, I fell into fear. So, the Lord rebuked him for why he doubted. That's right. The devil tricks us into fear through doubt. The storm is not the problem. It came to the Lord to solve it. The problem is doubt. When we doubt the omnipotence of the Lord, doubt His love, doubt and doubt the miracles of God, we cannot be freed from fear.
Then why did you doubt? Because he saw the wind. You don't see the world, you don't look at people. My father puts a ladder on the roof and climbs to the roof to fix the rain. The child who was looking at this figure also wanted to climb up once. Yes, step on the ladder. As far as I had gone, I suddenly looked down. In a moment, the child becomes terrified. I can't move and I'm shaking. Seeing the contemplative child, the father quietly says: "Don't look down, only look at this father." The child barely raises his head and looks at his father. There, the father is smiling with a sultry look. Then the child is at peace. Just looking at his father's face, his frozen legs begin to move.
How was your fear resolved? That is faith. Ladies and gentlemen, we must look up. We must keep looking to the Lord above. That is faith. Then the Lord will hold us in that big, tender hand. He will give you strength and give you victory. When we believe in the Lord, we believe that when we believe in His Word, our fear will disappear. Only faith dispels fear. In the face of faith, fear is just an illusion. Faith not only transforms fear, but rather brings victory, joy, and miracles. Abraham obtained Isaac by faith at the age of 100, Moses parted the Red Sea by faith, Joshua destroyed the walls of Jericho by faith, and made the mid-heaven moon and sun stop all day. I did. Jesus also saw faith, healed diseases, and miracles appeared in God's power and faith.
But even if you believe, if you doubt, you fall into fear again. We may also fall into the abyss of ruin. At this time, we must call on the Lord again and pray. We need to restore our faith. Lord! Help me! Calling on the Lord and asking for help, this is faith. Then I believe that the Lord will hold our hand.
Dear saints, Now, the solution to fear is clear.
We believe in the Lord who came to us, the Lord who came to save us. Only faith, faith, can overcome this fear. It is to cry out to the Lord and surrender to the Lord. Fear doesn't depend on how good or bad things are. It depends on our response to the problem. It depends on our mindset. In the mind of doubt, a fear of falling into ruin. However, in front of the heart of absolute faith in Almighty God, fear is just an illusion. Will you go to the sea of grace by faith? Will you go out into a sea of fear and ruin with doubt?
-Amen-