Scripture: Mark 4:35-41; Acts 12:1-19
Today’s sermon, I believe, is an important message for the new year: We talk a lot about New Year’s Resolutions… What if we made a resolution this year to overcome fear… to stop being afraid? To stop worrying? To stop feeling anxious? Is that crazy? I hope not, but let’s explore the question in three points. Point Number One: the power to change. Point Number two: the problem with the disciples in the storm. And Point Number Three: the proof that change can happen.
Just before New Year’s I started my new “read the Bible in a year” plan—I’m following a very old and popular one called the M’Cheyne Plan. It features four readings each day from different sections of the Bible. In one year, you read the entire Bible, but that includes reading both the New Testament and the Book of Psalms twice. Anyway, last week I was struck by something I read in Acts chapter 19, verses 1 to 7. It says the following:
While Apollos was in Corinth, Paul traveled through the interior regions until he reached Ephesus, on the coast, where he found several believers. “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” he asked them.
“No,” they replied, “we haven’t even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”
“Then what baptism did you experience?” he asked.
And they replied, “The baptism of John.”
Paul said, “John’s baptism called for repentance from sin. But John himself told the people to believe in the one who would come later, meaning Jesus.”
As soon as they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then when Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in other tongues and prophesied.
Some day, God willing, I’ll preach a sermon on this text. There’s much to say about it. But for now I want to quickly give you the highlights. Paul has just met these people in Ephesus, where he will spend the next three years of his life and ministry. And although they have some faith in Christ, they have an incomplete understanding of the gospel. So for the sake of their souls, Paul means to fix this problem. And since Paul’s question— “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?”—is the first thing that Luke has him saying to these men, then it surely represents, for Paul, the most pressing, the most urgent, the most crucial question he could possibly ask in that moment.
“Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?”
Because for Paul, it would be unthinkable and inexcusable that there might be so-called Christians who believed in Christ as their Savior and Lord, yet whose lives had not been radically changed and empowered and indwelt by the Holy Spirit! You can’t have one without the other, as far as Paul is concerned. You can’t be a true disciple of Christ without also having the Spirit.
And we Methodists, alongside most of the universal Church, agree with Paul on this point of doctrine. We believe that every regenerate Christian believer—who’s been born again through faith in Christ—by definition, will possess the Holy Spirit. If he or she doesn’t, that’s a deadly serious problem, as Paul understands.
Of course, I know all this… I’m pretty good with theology. But Paul’s question still convicts me…
Do I, like the apostle Paul, consider the Holy Spirit to be an indispensable part of my life? Do I appreciate the fact that my body, as Paul says in 1 Corinthians 6, is a temple for the Holy Spirit 1—such that the very Spirit of God that once hovered above the Ark of the Covenant in the Holy of Holies in the tabernacle, now lives within me… that God himself, the Third Person of the Trinity, now makes his home within me…
Do I really believe that?
Because, if that is all true, then guess what? That fact alone ought to make a profound difference in my life!
That fact alone ought to reassure me—and you, all of us together—that if Jesus commands us to do something, for instance, then we have all the power that we need to obey him. And if Jesus expects us to live our lives in a certain way, then that means we actually have the power to live like that. And if, more negatively, Jesus rebukes us for not doing what he says—or not living the way he says to live—it’s only because Jesus knows that we have the power to do otherwise!
And why am I talking so much about the power of the Holy Spirit?
Because of Jesus’ words in Mark 4:40: “He said to them, ‘Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?’”
Jesus is rebuking his disciples. He’s disappointed in his disciples. Why? Because he simply doesn’t think they ought to be afraid! Because he knows they have no reason to be afraid!
To say the least, this is hardly the only place in the gospels where Jesus says or implies or teaches that we disciples should not be afraid. There’s another episode on the Sea of Galilee, for instance, in Matthew chapter 14, when Jesus walks on water: Verse 27: “But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.’” Or how about the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 6:25: “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on.”2 Or Matthew 10:28: “And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul…” Or Matthew 10:29-31: “Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.”
Or how about John 14:27? “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.”
And I could go on and on… A few of you told me last week that the Bible says in 365 places that we shouldn’t be afraid. Three-hundred-sixty-five times… Once for each day of the year. I had never heard that before; I was skeptical. So I did what I always do when I don’t know the answer: I asked ChatGPT on my phone. It put the number around 110, but it admitted that “if you include passages that imply ‘do not be afraid’ without directly using the phrase, the number could rise significantly. For example, themes of trust, peace, and courage are pervasive in Scripture.” And of course that’s true.
For instance, since I began this sermon talking about the Holy Spirit, think of what Paul says in 2 Timothy 1:7: “For God gave us a spirit not of fear, but of power and love and self-control.”
In this verse, Paul says, in so many words, that the Holy Spirit living within you is incompatible with the spirit of fear that so often characterizes our lives! So don’t be afraid!
Or what about the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. The Holy Spirit is supposed to be developing these virtues in our lives, right? One of these virtues is peace… Peace is the opposite of fear, of worry, of anxiousness… which so often characterizes our lives.
So my question is, do we believe God’s Word on this subject of fear? Do we believe the words of Jesus when he asks—in Matthew’s version of this event—“Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?” Do we believe that even in these tense, terrifying moments in the dark… on the Sea of Galilee… in this tempest-tossed fishing boat… during this life-threatening storm… we should not be afraid? Is Jesus serious? Is he putting us on?
There’s a famous painting by Rembrandt about this very episode in the gospels. Preachers often point out that Rembrandt pulls a little prank in this painting: he paints himself into the painting… One of the disciples, in other words, is a self-portrait… He’s the guy near the front holding onto his hat. And he looks worried… And the reason Rembrandt painted himself into the picture is because why? Because he identifies with these fearful disciples. And preachers like me often point out this detail so that we, too, can identify with these fearful disciples.
But maybe it’s time we stop identifying with them so much!
My fear is, we often read this scripture from Mark 4 and say, “Thank God… Yes, I may be a fearful person… Jesus commands me not to be afraid, and I keep on breaking that command without giving it a second thought! But it’s okay that I don’t obey Jesus. I’m just like Peter, James, and John… and all the rest: Because like them, I too am afraid when I’m in the midst of one of life’s proverbial storms! Whew! What a relief! I don’t really have to obey Jesus when he tells us not to be afraid!”
To say the least, that’s the wrong lesson to take away from this scripture!
Which is why Jesus rebukes his disciples… Jesus expects them to be different… to change. And guess what? Inasmuch as you and I are fearful people, Jesus expects us to change, too!
No more excuses! Because we all have the power we need right now to change.
There’s a new Apple Watch commercial that talks about New Year’s Resolutions. In a voiceover a man says, “Most people quit their New Year’s resolutions by the second Friday in January. It’s called Quitters Day. Look it up. But what if we didn’t quit right after starting…?”
And the commercial goes on to say that the Apple Watch—surprise, surprise—can give us extra motivation not to quit.
I’m not endorsing the Apple Watch.
But I do like that the commercial at least challenges us to imagine that our lives can be different…
And that’s what I want to do in this New Year’s sermon: I want us to imagine that we can live our lives without fear. After all, how much money would you be willing to pay for not worrying, for not being anxious, for not being afraid? For not flying off the handle in anger, whose root problem is often fear. How much would you pay for that?A small fortune?
And you may say, “But I have real things to worry about! I’m not making it up! It’s not ‘in my head.’ I’m not imagining these very serious problems.” And I want to say, “Yes, but these disciples thought they were going to die—soon. Does it get more serious than that? They had good reason, from a worldly perspective, to worry.” And Jesus still says they don’t have to!
So… by God’s grace, through faith, with the Holy Spirit working within us, we simply don’t have to be afraid… of anything! If “overcoming fear in 2025” were a New Year’s resolution, I want us to believe that God is giving us a power that is infinitely better than an Apple Watch… because he has given us, and continues to fill us with, his infinitely powerful Spirit…
And that’s Point Number One… the power to change.
Point Number Two: the problem with these disciples in the storm.
We already know, in general, that the disciples’ problem was fear—which comes from a lack of faith. But what exactly did the disciples do or say in today’s scripture that demonstrated to Jesus this fear and lack of faith the first place? In other words, what did they do or say that motivated Jesus to rebuke them?
Let’s look at verses 37 and 38:
And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?”
Jesus, unlike the disciples, was obviously notafraid. At all. How do we know? Because he was fast asleep. We all know from experience that it is very difficult, if not impossible, to fall asleep when we are terrified… when we’re anxious… when we’re worried. Jesus is sound asleep because he has no fear whatsoever.
Should the disciples follow Jesus’ example? WWJD, after all? Should the disciples say, “Looks like a storm is coming. Time to take a nap!”
Should these disciples also be asleep in this storm? Of course not!
Whatever these disciples were doing to keep the boat from capsizing—bailing water, adjusting the sails, “battening down the hatches”—they were doing perfectly good work. Just because Jesus was asleep doesn’t mean he wanted his disciples to sleep. No, Jesus had been working very hard… in a uniquely challenging ministry… battling the devil himself in the most intense spiritual warfare ever waged. And now, because Jesus was fully human, he needed sleep; so he needed his disciples to sail the boat to the other side of this large lake while he slept.
Living life without fear, therefore, does not mean passively accepting whatever happens to us. Living without fear often means rolling up your sleeves and getting to work! But you can do that work without fear.
Okay, so the work they were doing wasn’t the problem… Was the problem that they came to Jesus in the first place and woke him up?
No… When they saw that they needed additional help—or indeed, that apart from Jesus they were utterly helpless—the very best thing they could do was to go to Jesus, to wake him up,to ask for his help! Think about it: the disciples, by going to Jesus, are doing nothing other than praying—literally: because they were talking directly to Jesus! That’s always a good thing! Prayer is always a good thing! Right?
“Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.” Hebrews 4:16. These disciples needed help in their time of need, and they asked the Lord for it!
If anything, the disciples probably should have woken Jesus up and asked sooner!
Here’s a handy rule of thumb: The moment you start feeling afraid, take it to the Lord in prayer!
My mom was a worrier. Not a “warrior,” a worry-er. I bet some of you had parents who worried. And I’m sure that has negatively influenced us. God bless her, but worry came as naturally to Mom as breathing… In an unhealthy, misguided way, worrying constantly about her family was one way that she showed love. How could she love us if she didn’t worry about us?
But that’s wrong!
If you want to love someone, pray for them! My mom did not do that very often!
How about this? “Don’t be a worrier. Be a warrior instead—a prayer warrior!
Living a life without fear means that we will pray… early and often!
As I said, if anything, the disciples wait too long, but… better late than never… And the disciples pray a bad prayer, to be sure… But better a bad prayer than no prayer at all! Because notice even though this is a bad prayer, Jesus graciously gives them what they pray for.
Why is it a bad prayer? Because they say, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” It’s not simply, “Help us, Lord! We can’t fight the wind and waves without you!” They are instead impugning Christ’s character: “Do you not care” means something like, “We believe that you should have woken up a long time ago… that you already should have been helping us… instead of letting us struggle for so long. There’s something wrong with you. You have let us down! We’re disappointed in you. You have not proven to be a trustworthy friend!”
And let’s face it: When we’re afraid, aren’t we usually second-guessing God? Doubting God? Believing that God shouldn’t be allowing us to go through this? Believing that God couldn’t possibly have any good reasons for it.
But listen: If you are a Christian, literally nothing can happen to you that God hasn’t planned on happening. Did you hear that? Nothing can happen to you that our Lord hasn’t planned on happening. Therefore we can trust that God has good reasons for either causing or permitting it to happen!
Even in today’s scripture: Look at verse 35: “On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, ‘Let us go across to the other side.’”
Jesus is not a lousy meteorologist. He knew before he sent them into this storm exactly how bad it was going to be for his disciples. He sent them into this storm, anyway. This was his plan all along. Because he knew, as difficult as it was, it was for the best. Which will always be the case for us who are God’s children through faith in Christ.
As these disciples were in a panic, they forgot this truth… And that’s the problem. And that’s Point Number Two…
Point Number Three: proof that change can happen.
Over Christmas, I finished reading an excellent novel from 2001 by British author John le Carré, called The Constant Gardener. In it, a mid-level British diplomat named Justin Quayle, who works at the British embassy in Nairobi, Kenya, summons the courage to get to the bottom of his wife’s recent murder—which officials within his own government are trying to cover up. His wife, you see, was a fearless campaigner for human rights. She risked her life and reputation on multiple occasions to stop a corrupt pharmaceutical company from poisoning impoverished Africans—finally, she crosses the wrong people and gets herself killed.
And here’s the thing: Justin Quayle is a nice guy, but he’s a middle-aged man who, up to this point in his life had always played it safe. Whereas he watched his wife risk her life to do the right thing, he would hardly risk a promotion. Because he was afraid… of what people might say about him… how they might harm his career. He’s afraid!
Until his wife dies. And he finds within himself a reservoir of courage he didn’t know he possessed. At one point, some goons break into his hotel room and beat him to a bloody pulp—warning him, “Next time, we’ll kill you.”
And when they leave, as he is lying on the floor in unimaginable pain, his hands and feet bound, le Carré writes the following:
He stirred in his bonds and had a sensation of rolling into burning charcoal. He lay still again and a terrible pleasure began to wake in him, spreading in a victorious glow of self-knowledge. [He told himself:] They did this to me but I have remained who I am. I am tempered. I am able. Inside myself there’s an untouched man. If they came back now, and did everything to me again, they would never reach the untouched man. I’ve passed the exam I’ve been shirking all my life. I’m a graduate of pain.3
That’s what I want for myself! How about you? No matter what happens to me, I want to be able to say, “They did these things to me (whoever ‘they’ happens to be)—or… the devil did this to me—or… these difficult circumstances happened to me—or… I have endured this difficult trial—or… I have been tested by God… but I have remained who I am, a faithful follower of Christ, my faith unshaken. I am tempered—in other words, God has used this difficult trial to strengthen me, to harden me… like steel… to give me the courage that comes through faith in Christ… and not to give in to fear. Not to let mere circumstances or current events or enemies or the devil himself—threaten the beloved child of my heavenly Father that I know I am. To keep trusting in Christ instead of surrendering to fear. To remain an ‘untouched man’—because, after all, if God is for me, who can be against me?”
That’s what I want, but even more, brothers and sisters, I’m becoming that man… The Lord is making me into that man… When I told my family this a couple of weeks ago, my daughter said, “Look out, Satan.” But it’s true! Slowly but surely God is doing this in me! Praise God, he’s doing it. He is breaking through a stronghold of fear that has too often characterized my life. It’s happening!
And God can do the same for you. And in case you doubt it, consider Peter, the same man who, in today’s scripture is terrified—who says, along with the other disciples, “Do you not care that we are perishing?”
In other words, “How can you sleep at a time like this, Lord?”
Well, good news! Peter finds the answer to this question many years later… as recounted in Acts chapter 12. Days earlier, King Herod Agrippa I arrested Peter’s dear friend and fellow apostle James… brother of John. And Herod executes him. And he has every intention of doing the same to the number one apostle of Jesus, to Peter. So Peter is arrested and imprisoned. He’s facing trial the next day. He’s facing death the next day. And listen to verse 6: “Now when Herod was about to bring [Peter] out, on that very night, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries before the door were guarding the prison.”
Notice my three favorite words: “Peter was sleeping…” It was a deep sleep, too. The angel had a hard time rousing him.
It’s hard to sleep when you’re scared… when you’re anxious… when you’re worried.
I guess Peter has become a bit more like his Lord, hasn’t he?
One final thought: Maybe, like Peter, you feel as if you’ve been shackled by chains… Invisible chains in your case, but you feel trapped, stuck, imprisoned in the same way… These are chains of fear… of worry… of anxiousness…
And freeing yourself from these chains seems as impossible to you as it must have seemed to Peter.
But there’s an important difference between our chains and Peter’s… and that difference isn’t that our chains happen to be invisible…
No… the difference is this: Peter couldn’t have known for sure that it was God’s will to miraculously release him from his chains. As I said, in the past couple of days Peter watched James get killed; God didn’t spare James’s life. Why would God spare Peter’s?
But when it comes to our chains of fear, we’re not like Peter… Why? Because we know for sure that it is God’s will to release us from our chains! Because Jesus tells us over and over, “Do not be afraid.”
It is God’s will for you, even you, to live your life without fear. And he has already given you the power to do it. Amen.