Before God pours out his righteous judgments on this earth, He has promised that something must happen first. There is an event that must take place before God judges the world for its sinful wickedness. That event is, He must first judge us, the church, for our sinfulness. The Bible says, “For the time is come for judgment to begin at the house of God...” – 1 Peter 4:17
The word “judgment” in this passage means, a verdict or decision made after a careful investigation. This is not the same judgment God will send upon this world. When God judges this world for its sinfulness and rebellion, He will judge it in His wrath. But when God judges the church it will be judged in His mercy. In other words when His judgment falls on the world, it will be to destroy, but when His judgments fall upon the church, it will be to refine and to purify.
Many Christians are going through very painful, perplexing and difficult times now. Persecution, affliction, loneliness, rejection, and strenuous testing seem to be their lot. As a result of these heavy times, some have even questioned God’s faithfulness to them and have accused Him of being unfaithful and uncaring about what they are suffering.
Others have prayed over and over again. They have wept in his presence and it seems as if God isn’t hearing them. They feel like Job and cry out from the anguish of their souls, “O God where are you?” They cannot discern God in anything they are going through and discouragement and despair has gripped them. But I want you to know today that God has heard your prayers and he has not forgotten you. He loves you with an everlasting love. The eternal fire of God’s compassion and grace is mixed with everything you now suffer and will ever suffer. You may not understand why all the suffering and pain, but God has his very best planned for you. What you are suffering are the instruments God is using to bring you to that place of fulfilling his purpose for your life. As the beloved puritan, Thomas Watson, once wrote, “God is most in his way, when we think he is most out of the way.” Beloved, we are in God’s school and he is teaching us to trust him even when we cannot trace him.
This brings us to a very familiar story; the story of Jesus and his disciples on the boat.
“That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.”
– Mark 4:35 NIV
Jesus had told his disciples these words and these words were a promise. When Jesus says, ‘we are going to the other side,’ regardless of how it may look or feel, we are going to the other side! I’m sure the disciples received that word Jesus spoke, because they set sail. I’m also sure they were relaxed and full of joy. The sun was probably shining and there was a great calm on the sea. But no sooner than they began to sail towards their divine destination (the other side) something transpired without warning to challenge the word Jesus had just given them.
“And there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full”. – Mark 4:37 KJV
The Bible says ‘a great storm arose’. This means it wasn’t something they saw coming afar off. It was something that just happened suddenly and unexpectedly. This was not a normal storm, it was a great storm, and it appeared to be life threatening to the disciples. The boat was filling with water and I’m sure they had thoughts of the boat capsizing and them drowning.
Many of us find ourselves in this same situation. You know that God has spoken to you concerning a particular thing. You’ve seen him confirm that word he’s spoken to you over and over. You’ve experienced the miracles he’s performed on your behalf and you’ve heard his voice of reassurance. You rejoiced in the light of these confirmations and miracles but now a great storm has risen in your life and come upon you without warning. This storm seems contrary to everything God’s spoken to you. You set sail in comfort and proclaimed with confidence the promises God’s prophetically spoken to you. But now, because of current circumstances and because of the way things look, the great storm has blinded you concerning the truth of God’s promise. What was once great light to you has suddenly become deep darkness.
The disciples had found themselves in this situation. Jesus gave them a promise of going over to the other side, but a storm arose to challenge that promise. What the storm was saying in so many words was, ‘I know what Jesus told you, but look at me, focus on me, look how big and how powerful I am. You will never make it to the other side; you will die in this storm’. Isn’t this what our storms tell us when we focus on them instead of focusing on God and on the promises he’s given to us? Some people are so focused on their storms right now that fear, worry, doubt and unbelief are choking the promise God has spoken to them. Their problems are all they can see and they are drowning in despair and depression.
Learning to trust God is not an easy task, but without learning how to wholly trust him, we can never have the lasting peace or lasting joy that is ours to possess as Christians. Jesus was using this storm, not to harm or to destroy his disciples, but to teach them a great lesson. This storm exposed the unbelief in their hearts. Instead of them trusting what Jesus said, they panicked. The Bible says:
“Jesus was in the stern, sleeping on a cushion. The disciples woke him and said to him, “Teacher, don't you care if we drown?”
– Mark 4:38 NIV
The disciples became so afraid and so intimidated by their circumstances they doubted whether or not Jesus cared for them. They could not understand why Jesus wasn’t restless and troubled as they were. They believed he had no sympathy for what they were going through. They knew he had power over the storm, but they were baffled by the thought and questioned, ‘why isn’t he helping us in this storm?’
Some of you reading this find yourselves here now. You have heard God speak to you and give you a promise, but now you can’t trace God and you are accusing him of being unfaithful and unloving. God promised someone that their children would be saved, but all they can see are disrespectful and disobedient God haters. God promised to restore marriages, but the spouse seems to be getting worse and wants nothing to do with you.
Some are struggling financially and are on the verge of losing everything. They are struggling to believe God’s promise that he will meet all of their needs.
But beloved, I hear the Spirit of God saying in this hour to the church, “Be still, your breakthrough is in your change of focus. Take your focus off of your circumstances and focus again on me and the promises I’ve spoken to you.” Your faith in the promises of God will bring back your peace and quicken your joy. God is with you in your loneliness. He’s heard your cry for freedom, and your cry for companionship. It’s already done. Trust him to bring it to pass in his own time. God is with you in all of your sufferings. He’s promised never to leave us nor forsake us.
The problems come when we try to figure God out with carnal logic and our own limited understanding. When we do this we set ourselves up for unnecessary disappointments. If we seek to trace God with emotions, circumstances, or anything other than faith, it is inevitable we will confuse ourselves. You cannot trace God; you must walk in faith and trust his promises. Faith is the God tracer. When your natural eyes cannot trace God, your faith will reveal Him.
Jesus gives us an example of how to weather our storms. The word says, “but He (Jesus) was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And they awoke Him...” (Mark 4:38) Jesus did not allow the storm, regardless of how great it was or how sudden and unexpectedly it came, to upset his rest. Jesus had heard from the Father. They were going to the other side. That word settled it for Him. He rested in that promise regardless of the storm.
It is God’s will that we also rest in our storms. One thing good about the storm is it doesn’t last always. It will eventually pass. Satan makes things look worse than what they really are. To rest means to cease looking, focusing and entertaining anything that is contrary to God’s promises to us. We must also beware of those who try to upset our rest while the circumstances and storms are raging. They may be as the disciples were, they have good intentions, but their good intentions are mixed with doubt and unbelief. All they see are the trials, the uncertainties, and impossibilities. Moreover, if you are not careful about what you hear and from whom you hear it, their doubts and opinions will produce uncertainty in you concerning what God promised you. So beloved, beware of what you hear but remember, when God speaks a word to you, rest in it! Don’t let anyone upset your rest or rob your peace by putting doubt in your mind about what God has promised you.
God is refining us (the church) and He is teaching us how to trust and to depend wholly upon Him. Our testimony of how we’ve learned to trust God will be the instrument used in these last days to bring multitudes to Christ. When fear, panic and unrest falls upon this earth and the world sees the refined church resting in God’s promises, walking in peace and in the joy of the Lord; they will say in their hearts ‘how have these people such peace in the midst of all this turmoil?’ Then we will be able to answer aloud with great confidence, ‘we have learned to trust a loving, compassionate, faithful God even when we could not trace Him.’ May this truth forever burn within our hearts and may these words become our testimony.
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