Matthew 8:18-27

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18 Now when Jesus saw a crowd around Him, He gave orders to depart to the other side of the sea. 19 Then a scribe came and said to Him, ``Teacher, I will follow You wherever, You go.'' 20 Jesus said* to him, ``The foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere, to lay His head.'' 21 Another of the disciples said to Him, ``Lord, permit me first to go and bury my father.'' 22 But Jesus said* to him, ``Follow Me, and allow the dead to bury their own dead.''

23 When He got into the boat, His disciples followed Him. 24 And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being covered with the waves; but Jesus Himself was asleep. 25 And they came to Him and woke Him, saying, ``Save us, Lord; we are perishing!'' 26 He said* to them,``Why are you afraid, you men of little faith?'' Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and it became perfectly calm. 27 The men were amazed, and said, ``What kind of a man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?''

NOTE that when Jesus sees the crowd, He departs in another direction. What is it that He is thinking when He does this? It sure is different than any church growth thinking and example on the scene today.

In the presence of the Messiah real follow-through and devotion is required. 1. Scribe-wants to be a follower of Jesus, but apparently came across as if it was going to be a great ride. Well, following Jesus is a great ride, but it is filled with some discomforts and sacrifices along the way. That's Jesus' response to his excitement.

2. Another disciple-to "bury his father" meant to handle all of the affairs of the family since his father's death seems imminent. Jesus' response was that someone else can handle those things. When you're in the presence of the Messiah, total devotion is required!

Why do you think Jesus took His disciples on a boat ride? I think it was a field trip! The theme of this mini-retreat? It was devotion again, but this time it was measured by how they trusted Jesus in the midst of a crisis. And what was their response? It was to panic and see only the negative-"We are perishing!" Jesus got up, rebuked the winds and the sea became perfectly calm. What kind of response was Jesus looking for?

As then, Jesus still is inviting His followers to trust Him. Think about it! 1. Jesus took them on a boat ride. 2. It was obviously the place He wanted them all to be in. 3. Now, what's the problem?

I WONDER if their response should have been to wait on Him rather than be in a panic about it all? You see, everywhere Jesus sends you, He is right there with you. So, don't panic. He knows and is very capable of getting you through all of the tough waters you may encounter.