Sunday 10 August 2008
- Bible Book:
- Matthew
] made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, but by this time the boat, battered by the waves, was far from the land, for the wind was against them. And early in the morning he came walking towards them on the lake. But when the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified, saying, 'It is a ghost!' And they cried out in fear. But Jesus immediately spoke to them and said, 'Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid'." (v.22-27)
Background
Jesus has just fed a large crowd with only loaves of bread andfish (Matthew14:13-21). He then hastens the disciples into the boat while hedismisses the crowd. The sense of urgency that Jesus seems todemonstrate may have been to avoid being forced into politicalleadership by the crowd and his disciples (who were longing for aleader to free them from Roman oppression).
The disciples find themselves in a difficult, maybe evenlife-threatening, spot - in a boat in the midst of a squall. Theyhave been battling the wind and waves for hours. (Some translationssay this took place in the "fourth watch of the night" which was3am to 6am.) As if things weren't bad enough for them, they thenthink they see a ghost. (Of course they would think it's a ghost... Who ever heard of a man walking on water?) Sure enough, it wasJesus walking on the water towards them.
Wow! How cool is that? Walking on the water. Can you imagine? Yougo to the beach for your holiday. Everyone's enjoying themselves inthe sun and surf and you decide to go for a stroll across theEnglish Channel. Tell me that wouldn't be cool.
Normally when I read this story my attention is drawn to Petergetting out of the boat and being the second person in all ofhistory to walk on water. That's not necessarily a bad thing. Peterchallenges me. He challenges my faith. He calls into question someof my fears. I relate to Peter (especially when he's sinking like arock).
But read the story again, two or three more times. This time don'tpay attention to Pete. Pay attention to Jesus. This account tellsus far more about Jesus than it does about us. It's definitely apassage worthy of our investment of time.
To Ponder
What does Jesus' walking on water tell us abouthim?
Jesus immediately deals with the disciples'fears. What does that tell us about how he might deal with us andour fears?
What do you make out of Jesus not letting Peterdrown or calming the wind and the waves?