Matthew 14: 28-31 28 “Lord, if it's You,” Peter answered Him, “command me to come to You on the water.” 29 “Come!” He said. And climbing out of the boat, Peter started walking on the water and came toward Jesus. 30 But when he saw the strength of the wind, a he was afraid. And beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me!” 31 Immediately Jesus reached out His hand, caught hold of him, and said to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?”
Why was Peter able to write such stirring and encouraging words later in his life when facing trials and persecution? Because his faith had already been tested and prepared long before.
We've all heard the encounter where Jesus walked on water, may have even seen illustrations of it, in fact we've heard it so much we often overlook some of the details. This was no calm stroll on still water near the shore. This was Jesus strolling out into a storm tossed, wind blown sea. This was a boat full of disciples who had been rowing against the storm for hours, being blown off course and exhausted from the exertion. They were tired, they were frightened, they were being forced to go the wrong way by forces larger than them.
Then comes Jesus and at first they are even more afraid to see Him! But then good old Peter calls out and asks Jesus to command him to get out of the boat and step into the storm.
I've seen many illustrations of this incident where Peter is depicted as timidly hanging on to the boat and barely putting a toe in the water. I don't think that rings true. Look at the biblical description of Peter and you see that he was anything but timid. He was bold and brash. This was the same man who famously boasted that he would never leave Christ, never deny Him even if everyone else did and even if it meant his own death! Of course we know how that worked out.
Remember it is Peter who initiated this encounter by asking the Lord to command Him to come out on the water. I picture Peter confidently getting out of the boat and striding on the waves for a step or two... until he realizes how big the storm is. How high the waves are and how strong the winds are.
In my mind how it plays out is that Peter sees Jesus unflappable in the storm and thinks I can do that, as long as I am following Jesus the wind and waves won't touch me and he steps on out. But then he gets out there and even though he is walking on water, even though he is not sinking and is safely doing the impossible, he still feels the wind and the waves. He is still getting wet and feels the pressure from the wind, the water crashing against his legs and then he gets scarred.
This isn't what he was expecting! Now we finally get our first cry out to God in this story “Lord, save me!” and it is not an expression of faith in God it as an expression of a lack of faith in God. He did not trust Jesus to bring Him safely to Him. That is why Jesus responded: “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” We sometimes think that following Jesus through the storm means we will never get wet, but more often than not it simply means we will make it through to the other side. That is what happens to Peter here. He was perfectly safe as long he stayed focus on Jesus but the moment he pulled his eyes off of Jesus he began to sink.
I've seen many illustrations of this incident where Peter is depicted as timidly hanging on to the boat and barely putting a toe in the water. I don't think that rings true. Look at the biblical description of Peter and you see that he was anything but timid. He was bold and brash. This was the same man who famously boasted that he would never leave Christ, never deny Him even if everyone else did and even if it meant his own death! Of course we know how that worked out.
Remember it is Peter who initiated this encounter by asking the Lord to command Him to come out on the water. I picture Peter confidently getting out of the boat and striding on the waves for a step or two... until he realizes how big the storm is. How high the waves are and how strong the winds are.
In my mind how it plays out is that Peter sees Jesus unflappable in the storm and thinks I can do that, as long as I am following Jesus the wind and waves won't touch me and he steps on out. But then he gets out there and even though he is walking on water, even though he is not sinking and is safely doing the impossible, he still feels the wind and the waves. He is still getting wet and feels the pressure from the wind, the water crashing against his legs and then he gets scarred.
This isn't what he was expecting! Now we finally get our first cry out to God in this story “Lord, save me!” and it is not an expression of faith in God it as an expression of a lack of faith in God. He did not trust Jesus to bring Him safely to Him. That is why Jesus responded: “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” We sometimes think that following Jesus through the storm means we will never get wet, but more often than not it simply means we will make it through to the other side. That is what happens to Peter here. He was perfectly safe as long he stayed focus on Jesus but the moment he pulled his eyes off of Jesus he began to sink.
Before we are too tough on our friend Peter remember this: at least he stepped out of the boat! There were eleven other men in the boat who were too frightened to even do that! Peter put that little faith he had into action and even though he struggled, even though he failed this time, his faith was built stronger. He would have more stumbles, take a few more falls but each time his faith grew a little more so that when the real trials and storms came, when God placed him as a leader of the church during some of it's darkest days, he and his faith were ready. His eyes would be focused squarely on Jesus and he would lead others through the storm and to Christ.
We are all frightened by the storms that swirl around us, that push us off course, but you can not allow yourself to be frozen by your fear. You will never be strong enough to face the storms of life unless you are willing to take your faith and step out of the boat, into the storm, and towards Jesus.
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