Unforgettable Stories - Examples For Us

Memory Verse: John 1:1 “Before anything else existed, there was Christ, with God. He has always been alive and is Himself God” (TLB)

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (HSCB)

IN THE beginning [before all time] was the Word (Christ), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God Himself. (Amplified)

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2He was with God in the beginning. (NIV)

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (NASB)

In the beginning was the one who is called the Word. The Word was with God and was truly God. (CEV)

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. (NKJV)

Your memory verse says, “Before anything else existed”, or “in the beginning” Christ or the Word existed. And the Word was God or Christ was God.

What is John saying? (Jesus is the Word –Jesus is God— Jesus always existed—Jesus is uncreated)

That is quite a statement to make!

What evidences do we find in the Bible to support the declaration that Jesus is God? (Many different miracles of healing and superseding the laws of nature and gravity by calming storms, and walking on water, changing water to wine, raising people from the dead, multiplying a few loaves of bread & fish to feed 5,000 people, loading the nets with fish etc., etc., The Bible is full of these stories about Jesus.

Let’s look at a few of them.

Matthew 8:23-27 23 Then Jesus got into the boat and started across the lake with His disciples. 24 Suddenly, a fierce storm struck the lake, with waves breaking into the boat. But Jesus was sleeping. 25 The disciples went and woke Him up, shouting, “Lord, save us! We’re going to drown!” 26 Jesus responded, “Why are you afraid? You have so little faith!” Then He got up and rebuked the wind and waves, and suddenly there was a great calm. 27 The disciples were amazed. “Who is this man?” they asked. “Even the winds and waves obey Him!”

Mark 4:35-41 35 As evening came, Jesus said to His disciples, “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.” 36 So they took Jesus in the boat and started out, leaving the crowds behind (although other boats followed). 37 But soon a fierce storm came up. High waves were breaking into the boat, and it began to fill with water. 38 Jesus was sleeping at the back of the boat with His head on a cushion. The disciples woke Him up, shouting, “Teacher, don’t you care that we’re going to drown?” 39 When Jesus woke up, He rebuked the wind and said to the waves, “Silence! Be still!” Suddenly the wind stopped, and there was a great calm. 40 Then He asked them, “Why are you afraid? Do you still have no faith?” 41 The disciples were absolutely terrified. “Who is this man?” they asked each other. “Even the wind and waves obey Him!”

Luke 8: 22-25 22 One day Jesus said to His disciples, “Let’s cross to the other side of the lake.” So they got into a boat and started out. 23 As they sailed across, Jesus settled down for a nap. But soon a fierce storm came down on the lake. The boat was filling with water, and they were in real danger. 24 The disciples went and woke Him up, shouting, “Master, Master, we’re going to drown!” When Jesus woke up, He rebuked the wind and the raging waves. Suddenly the storm stopped and all was calm. 25 Then He asked them, “Where is your faith?” The disciples were terrified and amazed. “Who is this man?” they asked each other. “When He gives a command, even the wind and waves obey Him!”

Matthew 14:22-33 22 Immediately after this, Jesus insisted that His disciples get back into the boat and cross to the other side of the lake, while He sent the people home. 23 After sending them home, He went up into the hills by Himself to pray. Night fell while He was there alone. 24 Meanwhile, the disciples were in trouble far away from land, for a strong wind had risen, and they were fighting heavy waves. 25 About three o’clock in the morning Jesus came toward them, walking on the water. 26 When the disciples saw Him walking on the water, they were terrified. In their fear, they cried out, “It’s a ghost!” 27 But Jesus spoke to them at once. “Don’t be afraid,” He said. “Take courage. I am here!” 28 Then Peter called to Him, “Lord, if it’s really you, tell me to come to you, walking on the water.” 29 “Yes, come,” Jesus said. So Peter went over the side of the boat and walked on the water toward Jesus. 30 But when he saw the strong wind and the waves, he was terrified and began to sink. “Save me, Lord!” he shouted. 31 Jesus immediately reached out and grabbed him. “You have so little faith,” Jesus said. “Why did you doubt me?” 32 When they climbed back into the boat, the wind stopped. 33 Then the disciples worshiped Him. “You really are the Son of God!” they exclaimed.

Mark 6:30-44 30 The apostles returned to Jesus from their ministry tour and told Him all they had done and taught. 31 Then Jesus said, “Let’s go off by ourselves to a quiet place and rest awhile.” He said this because there were so many people coming and going that Jesus and His apostles didn’t even have time to eat. 32 So they left by boat for a quiet place, where they could be alone. 33 But many people recognized them and saw them leaving, and people from many towns ran ahead along the shore and got there ahead of them. 34 Jesus saw the huge crowd as He stepped from the boat, and He had compassion on them because they were like sheep without a shepherd. So He began teaching them many things. 35 Late in the afternoon His disciples came to Him and said, “This is a remote place, and it’s already getting late. 36 Send the crowds away so they can go to the nearby farms and villages and buy something to eat.” 37 But Jesus said, “You feed them.” “With what?” they asked. “We’d have to work for months to earn enough money to buy food for all these people!” 38 “How much bread do you have?” He asked. “Go and find out.” They came back and reported, “We have five loaves of bread and two fish.” 39 Then Jesus told the disciples to have the people sit down in groups on the green grass. 40 So they sat down in groups of fifty or a hundred. 41 Jesus took the five loaves and two fish, looked up toward heaven, and blessed them. Then, breaking the loaves into pieces, He kept giving the bread to the disciples so they could distribute it to the people. He also divided the fish for everyone to share. 42 They all ate as much as they wanted, 43 and afterward, the disciples picked up twelve baskets of leftover bread and fish. 44 A total of 5,000 men and their families were fed from those loaves!

Mark 6:45-52 45 Immediately after this, Jesus insisted that His disciples get back into the boat and head across the lake to Bethsaida, while He sent the people home. 46 After telling everyone good-bye, He went up into the hills by Himself to pray. 47 Late that night, the disciples were in their boat in the middle of the lake, and Jesus was alone on land. 48 He saw that they were in serious trouble, rowing hard and struggling against the wind and waves. About three o’clock in the morning Jesus came toward them, walking on the water. He intended to go past them, 49 but when they saw Him walking on the water, they cried out in terror, thinking he was a ghost. 50 They were all terrified when they saw Him. But Jesus spoke to them at once. “Don’t be afraid,” He said. “Take courage! I am here!” 51 Then He climbed into the boat, and the wind stopped. They were totally amazed, 52 for they still didn’t understand the significance of the miracle of the loaves. Their hearts were too hard to take it in.”

This man that they ate with, talked with, joked with, worshipped with, traveled with, performed these amazing miracles. In all physical appearance and functioning Jesus was a man just like any other man. He hurt, He could be wounded, He had to eat, He got calluses on His feet, He sweated in the heat of the day, and He required sleep and had to rest. Yet, this same man healed lepers and healed the blind, fed 5,000 people with a few loaves of bread and some fish, calmed a huge storm in the middle of the lake, walked on water, raised the dead to life again – these were things no ordinary man could do. Many of them could not understand – how could a mere man do these awesome miracles?? The answer – mere man could not, but God could and did. The answer was that this was God in the flesh.

Many of His followers could not reconcile the idea that Jesus was God with the human man they knew. They couldn’t imagine that God would love them so much He gave His only begotten Son to die for their sins and for the sins of all mankind. Even after all the miracles they had witnessed, some of them still didn’t believe. They could not understand how this man Jesus, who ate, drank, slept and got tired just like they did, could be the promised Messiah and therefore God in the flesh.

Their faith was weak. Even Peter, who got out of the boat and actually walked on the water, started to sink when he looked at his circumstances and stopped focusing on Jesus. What caused Peter to start sinking?

As long as Peter focused on Jesus he was safe. As soon as his focus left Jesus and centered on himself and his situation, he started sinking. What does this tell you about where our focus should be when we are in a “storm” of life? Should we concentrate our efforts on saving ourselves or solving the problem ourselves? Where should our focus be?

What was the apostles’ reaction to Jesus calming the storms – when the storm and the wind stopped and the water became calm? Since Jesus created the universe and everything in it, including the wind and weather, can’t He also control those things? What does this indicate as an application to your lives and the problems you face everyday? Can you trust Him when your life gets a little “stormy”? Are you willing to get out of the boat and trust Jesus to see you through your storm? Does that mean that every time you get in a life storm that Jesus will get you out of it?

Is God a genie in a bottle to be summoned and given a list of wishes to be granted? Absolutely not! God will always see you through the storm. He may choose to get you out of it or He may choose to allow you to go through it.

What would be a reason that God would allow you to go through or suffer through a trial? (To teach you something you need to know – patience, empathy for others, compassion or forgiveness. To use what you learn going through the trial to possibly bring others to know Him)

Whatever He decides to do will be for your ultimate eternal good – maybe not necessarily in the here and now but from an eternal standpoint).

How do we take our eyes off Jesus? (Try to solve it ourselves; get involved with worldly pursuits and stop maintaining our relationship with Him)

These wonderful stories were given to us to give us hope and encouragement that we serve a mighty God, an all- powerful God, and a God that knows what it was like to be human just like you. Keep your eyes on Jesus. Read these and the other stories that have been given to you in your Bible to learn about Him. Stay focused on Him and on your relationship with Him and He will be with you and see you through any storms that may arise in your life.

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