Turning to the Gospel of Mark, chapter 4, verse 41. The Gospel of Mark, chapter 4, verse 41. And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this, that even the wind and the sea obey him? and our subject is the dawning of conversion. Well, we read about this account in our scripture reading in the Gospel of Matthew, the parallel account. And here, if I can turn back to verse 37, we read, There arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full. It was more than a storm. It's described elsewhere as a tempest, and here as a very great storm. These records were written by those who had been fishermen. They were used to great storms on that sea, on that lake. But this one receives outstanding descriptions. It was something far beyond anything that would normally be encountered. And hardened fishermen, as most of the disciples of Christ were, were terrified, and their boat filled with water, and they thought they were going to perish. Well, you can imagine, that's much more serious than anything they would normally encounter. But Christ is described as being asleep in the stern of the vessel, untroubled, quite asleep, and they wake him up In their terror, and in verse 39, he arose and rebuked the wind and said unto the sea, peace, be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And it's recorded as something that happened instantly, immediately. Well, it was an act of Christ's lordship. It was a remarkable act. And you know, up until this point, it's quite early on in his ministry, I know, but up until this point, the disciples had not grasped his divinity. They did, from this and increasingly afterwards, until Simon Peter was able to say emphatically that he was the son of God, the Messiah, the expected one. But at this stage, they hadn't yet, although they had seen 12 individual remarkable healings. They hadn't grasped that he was divine. Did I say 12? Yes, 12 individuals had been healed, or miracles had occurred at close quarters, but actually many more had been healed. He'd healed thousands, entire crowds that came to him. Tremendous things had already happened and we read that one event he cast out demons out of many that were possessed and healed many more with all kinds of illnesses. He'd even raised a dead man and yet they hadn't grasped his divinity. And one thinks about that. How is it that with these remarkable healings that could not be accomplished by anyone else, How is it that they did not grasp his divinity? And yet, a storm at sea, well, that seems to really move them and seal things for them. And they exclaim, one to another, with great fear, what manner of man is this? They were afraid because of the tempest or the hurricane that almost caused them to be drowned. But now they He has calmed the sea. They continue to be afraid. They're even more afraid, one might say. Why would that be? You'd think they would be mightily relieved, because it's dawned on them that He is God, that He is divine, and that's a terrible thought for them. This is something they had not expected. They saw Him as a great prophet. They saw Him as an outstanding leader. They saw Him as probably, surely, they thought, the one who would get rid of the Roman occupation and would deliver the nation, not that he had ever said he would do any such thing, but they saw him in these terms. But to think he was the Messiah, he was God incarnate, this shocked and scared them. But why was it The hurricane and the storm at sea that achieve this. And as you think about it, I suppose I can offer you this poor explanation. However remarkable the healing, well, it's something which is, in a way, very limited. Well, here are men, they may weigh between 150 and 200 pounds weight, they may occupy a certain space, and it's a very small space on the face of the earth. Yes, that man is very, very sick, he's paralysed, his limbs are wasted and withered. How remarkable that he's restored and something you will never see today or at any time other than in the time of Christ. His withered limbs instantaneously fill out and are restored with muscle and proper tissues so that the man can walk and so on as strong as he ever was. Well, you'd think that was enough to prove the divinity of Christ, but it's all in small compass. It's just that man, that woman, even if there's a hundred of them or a thousand of them, it's a small thing, things that you see. But when it's the storm all around you, and it's a hurricane, and everything, if you could see anything at all, all you can see is angry clouds, And you hear the furious winds and you see the waves so high and they crash over your vessel and you're sure to die. And that massive scene is suddenly calmed in an instant. Then it comes home to you. You have the creator in the vessel. you have an act of lordship over all things. We reflect coolly, we may say, well, I think the raising of one person from the dead is more amazing than the quelling of a violent storm. But not when you're in that violent storm. That's when the divinity of the Lord really seems to be impressed upon the disciples. So it took them time, that's the point. It took them a good deal of time to realize that he was more than just a mighty prophet and a wonder-working man sent from God. He was God himself. They saw a prophet. They saw a miracle worker. They listened to a tremendous teacher, but they didn't realize he was divine. An earthly messiah, yes, but not a heavenly messiah. And why would it be? They were his companions. He was never vindictive. When they thought about it, they were astonished. He was never proud. He was never dishonest. He was never rude. He was never ill-tempered. He was never selfish. He was perfect. He was an amazing man. He knew everything. He knew their thoughts, He was amazingly kind to them, and He could do these remarkable deeds. But with all that evidence, they still didn't realize He was God. That was the explanation. That was why. They didn't give it deep thought. And then some of them, all the disciples, weren't gathered yet, but some of them saw the changing of the water into wine. Amazing, astonishing. Nobody else could possibly have done such a thing. That was at the wedding in Cana of Galilee. Then they knew about the healing of the nobleman's son from a distance. He came to Christ from Capernaum all the way to Cana, that little place. And Christ healed at a distance. And that went everywhere that was spoken of. Astonishing. But that didn't convince them. Then there was a paralyzed man in Jerusalem, in the sheep market, in Bethesda's porches. And he'd been in that state for 38 years, the record tells us. And he was all withered and hopeless and couldn't move. And they saw him instantaneously fully restored. He's a prophet, he's from God, but they still didn't realize he was divine. And then there was the first great draft of fishes. Simon Peter experienced that at first hand. Master, we've toiled all the night. You tell us to let down our nets for a catch. It's hopeless. We know what we're doing. We're experienced fishermen. And as soon as they let down the net, they caught so many fish that not one but two boats almost sank under the weight of them. And Simon Peter fell on his knees and he said, Depart from me, O Lord, for I am a sinful man. He realized Christ was holy, Christ was from God, but not that he was God. It seemed to take so long. And then there were the demon possessed. We read in our scripture reading of Simon Peter's mother-in-law, and she was sick with a fever, instantaneously healed, and well, so perfectly well, that she promptly got off her sickbed and served them, and they were astonished. And then lepers without number. And then another paralyzed man. The record's right here in Mark's gospel and in chapter 2. It's so famous. Again he entered into Capernaum after some days and it was noised that he was in the house. And straightway many were gathered together, insomuch that there was no room to receive them, no, not so much as about the door. And he preached the word. And then there came unto him four men bearing a man who was sick, paralyzed, sick of the palsy. And when they could not come nigh unto him, who doesn't remember this? They uncovered the roof where he was, and when they had broken it up, they let down the bed wherein the sick of the palsy lay. And when Jesus saw their faith, he said unto the sick of the palsy a curious thing to say, Not be healed, he said, son, thy sins be forgiven thee. Now the disciples should have realized he was God. Thy sins be forgiven thee. And later on he tells him to get up and to walk, to be healed. And he was. And so they see this firsthand. He has power to forgive sins. Surely he must be God himself. But they still didn't get it. It took so long, it would seem. And then there were others too. The man with a withered hand, an entire withered forearm, healed in a synagogue. And then another centurion with a servant who was healed again from a distance. And then they saw their first raising of someone from the dead, when they went to a tiny place called Nain. And Christ and his disciples ran into a funeral procession coming from that little town. And there was a widow, her only son, being taken for burial. And Christ had compassion and said, young man, I say unto thee, arise. And he sat up and began to speak. And that was all at close quarters. And they still didn't realize that he was divine. Amazing, yes. From God, yes. Holy, yes. A prophet, yes. Perhaps, they thought, the Messiah for Israel's earthly recovery. Why did they not listen to him? He constantly preached, we read this in parables and by direct language, what is called a message of repentance and remission of sin, telling the people they must repent of their sin to have the forgiveness of God and to know him. And he preached these things. As time went on, he even spoke about his death on the cross, but he hadn't mentioned that yet, and they didn't understand that he was God. They did not hear that message of repentance and remission. We might think that's remarkable, except that it's probably true of us, or many of us. What is Christianity? What is it about? What does the Bible teach? Why did Christ come? What is the meaning of it all? Repentance and remission of sin. And that bit, somehow, we don't hear. Intellectuals don't hear it. Able scholars don't hear it. It's astonishing how slow we are to listen to the message that we are sinners, we are alienated from God, we must be judged by Him, we do not know Him, we are under His judgment. And the only hope for us is that Christ has purchased forgiveness for us by bearing the punishment of sin on behalf of all who will be forgiven throughout the history of time. And that we need to repent of our sins sincerely before God, not to a priest, not to a minister, not to a husband or wife, though you may do that too. But to God, most of all, in the secrecy of your heart, and sincerely, and with regret and shame, and ask him for forgiveness and new life. That's the gospel. And then we're related to God. Then he works in our hearts. Then he changes us. Then he puts us on the highway to heaven, and we walk with him. But that we do not hear. It can be explained to us in Sunday school, in church, with great care, over many years, and we may never get it. Why? Human pride. That's not what we want to hear. That I am rejected, and that I must humble myself and repent of my sin, and trust in Christ, I don't want to hear that. And somehow I screen it out and I don't hear it. And the disciples don't appear to have ever really heard, not for a while, this message of repentance and forgiveness of sin. And so they didn't understand that he was divine, a member of the Trinity, the triune Godhead, come to Earth to represent men and women, and to suffer and to die on our behalf, and they didn't get it. And I think you see also they were so earthly, and so are we. We think in terms of this world, this world, this world. my job, my future, my house, what I'm going to put on, what I'm going to eat and drink. This present world and material things consumes us. And we don't think of the soul. We don't think of God. And we don't think of eternity. And nor did they anything like as much as they should have done. And because we're so earthly, we say, If God sends a savior, a messiah, surely it's to make the world a better place. It's to make this a happier place to live in. It's to improve mankind. And people have, well, from time way back, criticized the Christian faith on these grounds. And they've scoffed and they've said, if Christ came to make the world a better place, he hasn't succeeded in 2,000 years. Only the big mistake is that's not what he came to do. Christ said this world would get worse and worse, that this is a doomed world because of the sin of man. That's exactly what he told us to expect, that he had come to save souls, to relate us to God, to be with us through this earthly journey, and then take us into eternity, into heaven forever. That's what he's come for, but the disciples made the same mistake that we made. Surely if a Messiah has come, it's to deliver us from the Romans, to restore national prosperity, to make us rich and comfortable and happy on earth. And because that's what they expected, they didn't grasp he was divine. They were looking for the wrong kind of Messiah. And we're the same in so many ways. And I think too that for all the fact they were humble men, and very ordinary men, with only one or two exceptions, I believe they had great confidence in the human ability to please God and to deserve their own heaven. And I think, like us, they said to themselves, well, if there is a heaven and if there is a God, surely, with a little effort, I can make it. I'm not so bad. I can be accepted. I will deserve to go there. And we don't realize that's not the case. We think we can make it. And one of the reasons why they would have made that mistake is because that's the sort of thing their mistaken clergy were teaching at that time. You just keep the Jewish ceremonial law perfectly and you'll go to heaven to eternal glory. That's what they told the people, and that was wrong. You never go to heaven by anything we can do. Our debt of sin is too great. It's too big. We need the free forgiveness of God, and there's only one person who can secure that for us, and that is Christ. Sin must be punished. And the only solution for us to be forgiven and to go to heaven is that somebody dies in our place. And that's what Christ alone has done. In indescribable love, he's come and taken our place, the place of those who believe in him, and give him their lives. Now the disciples didn't understand that at this stage. And so it took that storm before they finally said to each other, miracle healing number 13, not to mention the great crowds of healings. They at last said, when it was the calming of the tempest at sea on the lake, what manner of man is this? We've got to think this out. This isn't a man who can do these things, and after that they realize he's divine, he's God, and they begin to say so. So it takes some time for us to realize these things. If you are going to go to heaven, You are going to have your life changed now and be made a true child of God. You are going to be forgiven. The first thing, dear friend, is God to dawn on you. He is divine. Jesus Christ is God, second person of the Trinity, and it's got to dawn on you what he's done, and what he's done for your soul, so that you trust in him, so that you repent of your sin to him, so that you ask him and look to him for a new life, a spiritual life, to be a different person, a better person, a child of God, to walk with him now and forever. That's what's essential. That's what's necessary. Now they begin to see it. After this, it's such a valuable verse. Let me read it again to you. They feared exceedingly. They weren't relieved. They were relieved. But now they had a new concern. He is God. and said one to another, what manner of man is this that even the wind and the sea obey him? They'd seen a version of the creating power of God, and from that moment they saw him in a new light, and soon it would be thou art the Christ, the son of the living God. Well, they saw his power over the elements, They saw his kindness and his love. They saw all the tokens and signs that he was God. He was so consistent, as I've said, without sin, so patient, so full of forgiveness, so full of compassion. You know, the scripture says that there is none righteous, no, not one. When you tell people this, they sometimes argue with you. They sometimes say, oh, I can't believe that. There are none. There is no one righteous. No, not one. I know righteous people. You mean perfect people? Oh, yes, they say, beginning to sound a little unsure of their assertion. Well, name one. Name somebody who's perfect. Well, there's somebody in the world who's perfect. Somebody knows someone who's perfect. Name some great person who's perfect, who never needs to be debunked. After the death of that great one, you'll never read a biography showing you all their warts and flaws and sins and hidden things. There isn't such a person. Only the eternal Son of God incarnate, Jesus Christ, there is an unrighteous. No, not one. We've all sinned, we're all far from God, we're all under His judgment, and we need His forgiveness and His reconstructing love and power that brings us to Himself. Those disciples in due course, they'd hear Christ saying and warning them that he was going to be arrested and crucified and slain. They shrugged it off. But soon he would be arrested in apparent weakness. He allowed it to happen. Don't you remember that when Christ was arrested, just for a moment, He allowed just a shaft of his power to emerge and all the people who had come to arrest him with staves and sticks and clubs fell to the ground helpless. And by the time they'd picked themselves up and gathered their scattered wits and faced up to him again, he allowed them to arrest him. Just a tiny demonstration of how powerless they would have been arresting the son of the living God if he hadn't allowed himself, in apparent weakness, to be arrested. And then they saw him go to Calgary's Cross It almost broke their faith. What is our Messiah? Who is divine? Who is God? Having his life brought to an end like this for? Now he's crucified, and we thought it would be he who would deliver the land and the people. And they were momentarily crushed. But they soon realised their foolishness, and they recovered themselves, and they grasped that this was the fulfilment of all the ancient prophecies, that he would come and he would suffer and he would die for sinners. And so he appeared to them, the resurrected Lord. He rose from the dead, and in a wonderful, glorified body he appeared, came through the walls and the doors to where they were gathered and where they were worshipping, and spoke with them more than once, and to others of them also, and how uplifted they were. And then he rose, ascended into heaven before their very eyes. And then the Spirit came down and brought power into their hearts. And they preached Christ and his resurrection from the dead, and how he died for sinners. And thousands of the very people who shouted for the death of Christ, repented of their sin and were dramatically and wonderfully changed. And the church formed in Jerusalem and grew and grew and then went everywhere. The Christian church began by the power of God and everybody knew Christ is God, He is Lord, He has been to earth, He is our Saviour and He has risen now and ascended up on high and He is directing the gathering in of a great harvest of souls from heaven and in every day and age, in every land and nation, people will be converted and come to know Jesus Christ in a real and deep and personal way. And so the greatest empire in the history of the world will be built up, the Kingdom of Christ. It doesn't look the greatest at any single time on earth. But when you consider how all the human empires rise and fall and disappear into oblivion, and this one goes on to the very end, and there will be vast numbers, billions of people in glory, in heaven, because they've been converted into the kingdom of Jesus Christ. And how, by repenting of their sin and trusting in Christ, all the disciples were to be totally convinced that he was the son of God and he'd come for this special, this unique task. You must grasp this. Like them, if you don't grasp who Christ is and what he was doing on that cross of Calvary, you cannot be saved by him. You must grasp it. You must depend upon him. You must give yourself to him. You must ask for his forgiveness. That's the way to have that great change, which we call Christian conversion. See your need. Oh, say to him, I am without spiritual life. I am a human being, but I have no spiritual life in me. I cannot really pray, I cannot walk with God, I cannot prove Him and experience His touch and His power in my life. I have a record of sin which will dash me down and cause my loss everlastingly. I am alienated from God and I cannot do anything about it. I cannot earn my own salvation. I cannot change my sinful ways and my deep-stained character and life. My future is one of judgment and punishment. O Lord, help me. I depend upon Thee. I believe in the cross of Calvary and the atoning death of Christ. I believe this to be the greatest miracle, the most amazing act of love, that the eternal second person of the Godhead should come to earth for a creature like me, to suffer and to die in love for me? Oh, this is the most astonishing gift that I can have life now and eternal life given by Christ out of his pity and compassion and sympathy for a sinner like me. Isn't it amazing that people attack the Christian faith? Oh, dear friends, I think so. Some of the militant atheists today and the things they say, and they put it about, that Christianity, all religion they say, but Christianity in particular, is harmful to society and damaging. And they've got people who know no better believing this. And there's one man, I won't name him, there's a number of them, but there's one man who's highly esteemed and respected, he doesn't deserve to be, I'm afraid, who in a best-selling book has accused religion of being behind all the wars of the world. And how can you ever utter the man's almost a fanatic? He's getting fanatical in his assertions. If anything is easier to disprove than that, I'd like to know what it is. What astonishing libels against the Christian faith that all wars are at heart religious wars. What? How can they say such things? The two world wars? No way were they religious wars. The ideological wars of the atheists, the pogroms of Stalin, the actions of Chairman Mao, Pol Pot, the millions and millions and millions of people who've died in the worst wars in the history of humanity in the last hundred years were not religious wars, they were the wars of atheists. They were the wars of people who feared not God, no fear of God in their eyes. It's historical bunk. It's so easy to disprove and dismiss. It's very sad that people are taken in by such nonsense, friends. But oh, to slander Christ and the Christian faith, when as I'm trying to explain what is Christianity all about, Christ who came from glory out of astonishing love. Almost irrational love, but we would never say that. Almost unreasonable love for you and me, rebels against him, to take our punishment, to purchase our salvation. The love of God in Jesus Christ is wonderful, amazing, astonishing. Oh, dear friends, you need Him. You must turn to Him. You must have Him. The salvation which Christ gives is personal. You come yourself to Him. It is free. There is nothing you can contribute to it. You hand over your sin-wracked life and you say, oh Lord, clean me up, remake me, give me a new character, a new heart, change me. And it's eternal. What he does for you is a far greater miracle than anything he did to flesh and blood in his time on earth. All those people who were healed, Even those few who were raised from the dead all had to die again. But when you come to him for spiritual life, that spiritual life will never be taken from you. Never, friends, come to him, obey him. We all need him. There is no other way of salvation. How much we need the forgiveness and the power and the new life that comes only from Jesus Christ. Let's pray together. O God, our gracious Heavenly Father, look upon us all and help us this night. O Lord, deal with us, make it impossible for us to go away and to continue to live our lives with no realisation of who Christ is and what he has done, no awareness of our own deep need and eternal need Come, Lord, move in our hearts, and deal with us, and save, even this night, that we may know thee, and find thee. We ask it in the name of our Saviour, and for his sake. Amen.