Text: Acts 27:1-44 | Listen to Message
The Storms of Life
Given what the Bible says about the love and sovereignty of God, it’s hard to understand why He doesn’t rescue us from our storms. It’s not that we expect smooth sailing all the time. We understand that storms are a part of life in a broken world; but why do they have to be such a big part? And why do they have to last so long, and be so painful, and take so much from us?
Here are 5 simple principles to consider from Acts 27:
1. God never promised to save you from storms.
The TV preacher seems to think you’ll live a charmed life, magically insulated from storms, if only you have as much faith as he does. It’s a lie. God says it’s more a matter of when the storms will come, not if.
2. Storms do not mean God’s mad or is punishing you.
If you’re in Christ, you know this: on the Cross, Jesus took all the wrath and punishment you deserve, and there’s none left for you to bear. Ever.
3. The storms may be greater than you, but God is greater than the storms.
Storms have the power to ruin your plans and expose your limitations. Storms can wreck you emotionally, psychologically, financially, relationally, and spiritually. Storms can even kill your body. But every storm is ultimately subject to Christ. If he isn’t saying “hush, be still” to your storm, there must be a good and gracious reason why he allows it to rage on.
4. God uses storms to take you to a place where He is your only hope.
Functionally, we tend to put our hope in a lot of things that storms can steal or destroy – things like money, health, a stable job, marriage, reputation, or success. So even if it hurts like crazy, it is God’s grace that He take us to a place where we realize He is our only steadfast, unshakable hope.
5. No storm can ultimately ruin you because there was a day when a storm ruined Jesus.
If you’re in Christ, there’s one thing no storm can ever ruin. On the darkest day of history, Jesus was abandoned and destroyed on a Cross so that you can know once and for all that you will never be abandoned or destroyed. The real you is safe in Jesus, and no storm can ruin this ultimate hope; no storm can separate you from the love of God.
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