BIBLE READING

Mark 4:35-41 NIV

[35] That day when evening came, he said to his disciples, “Let us go over to the other side.” [36] Leaving the crowd behind, they took him along, just as he was, in the boat. There were also other boats with him. [37] A furious squall came up, and the waves broke over the boat, so that it was nearly swamped. [38] 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?” [39] He got up, rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Quiet! Be still!” Then the wind died down and it was completely calm. [40] He said to his disciples, “Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?” [41] They were terrified and asked each other, “Who is this? Even the wind and the waves obey him!”

REFLECTION

This week we are starting a new series looking at a familiar story in Mark 4. Out of the hundreds of sermons I have preached over the past 10 years, few have impacted people more than the message based on this Bible text.

"Are we nearly there yet?" Remember when you were a child and you were going on a family trip in the car – wasn't this the question you asked your parents every two minutes. Even though we knew we weren't there, because the car was still moving. God has blessed me with a little 4 year old who constantly asks the same question: "Are we there yet? How much longer now?"

This is a question that we don’t just ask as children, but we all ask as we go through different stages and seasons of life. As we try to get from where we are today to where we know we need to be in the future. As we seek to move forward in life, grow, try to build something, reach goals, seek to move on from some things and leave the past behind us – we find ourselves asking: 'Am I nearly there yet? How much longer now?'

That's what I want to think about this week as we look at a familiar passage from Mark 4.

Let's start at verse 35:

“That day when evening came, he said to his disciples,‘Let us go over to the other side.’”

Jesus has been ministering all day on the shore of the Lake Galilee, it’s getting late, and Jesus says to the disciples: ‘Let’s us go over to the other side.’

What is the other side? For the disciples it was simply the other side of the lake. For you and I, 'the other side' could be many things.

The other side is not where you are today, but it’s where you want to be. It’s where you want to go in life in the days, weeks, months and years ahead.

The other side is your plan, it’s your dream, it’s your preferred destination, it’s your vision of what you want your life to look like, what you desire your marriage to be like, what you long for your business, career or finances to look like.

If you notice, it was Jesus who told them to go to the other side.

The other side is the place Jesus wants you to go. Jesus has maybe spoken to you clearly through His word or perhaps prophetically through other people and He has told you: 'I want you to go here. I want you to do this. I don’t want you to stay where you are. I want this to change. I want that habit, that attitude, that behaviour to change.'

You see the Christian life isn’t about getting saved and stuck in one place. It’s a dynamic life. It’s about moving forward, listening to the Holy Spirit, going where Jesus tells you to go. The Christian walk is about change, transformation, transition, growing, going deeper, going further than you have ever been before.

No matter how long you’ve been following Jesus - there’s always more. There’s always another side that Jesus wants you to go to.

Today ask yourself:

Where is 'the other side' for me right now?

What are my dreams, goals, aspirations and ambitions?

Is there anything Jesus is specifically speaking to me about at this time?

Am I being obedient to what He is asking?