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DATE |
CHURCH |
SUBJECT |
PREACHER |
BIBLE
REF. |
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10.08.08 |
All Saints Church |
Walking on Water |
Tony Higton |
Matthew 14:22-33 |
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There are some Christians who seem to think
Christianity is meant to be an insurance policy against all
difficulty and suffering. They dogmatically believe every sick
person should be healed and that God wants Christians to be
affluent. They think that life should be one uninterrupted
string of miracles.
But the Christian life isn’t like that. Such
people are ignorant of the world church (where millions of
Christians suffer much more than we do), church history (where
some of the greatest saints have suffered terribly) and of the
New Testament (which doesn’t support their views). And the
story in today’s reading begins with a difficult situation.
“Jesus made the disciples get into the boat
and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the
crowd. After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside
by himself to pray” (verses 22-23). But then, just when things
got difficult for the disciples, they had to face:
The apparent absence of
Jesus
“When evening came, [Jesus] was there alone,
but the boat was already a considerable distance from
land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it”
(verses 23-24). The disciples were facing a storm and Jesus was
not there. Apparently he didn’t know about their difficulties.
The fact is that sometimes it seems Jesus is
not there just when we need him. Our prayers are not answered.
In fact the opposite happens to what we prayed for. This
happened to my wife and me recently. We were praying about
something important and decided to have a time of fasting and
prayer. During that time there was a phone call and it seemed
that a positive answer to our prayers was coming. It was a
remarkable “coincidence” and we were encouraged. Then, three
hours later, just the opposite of what we had prayed for
happened. Have you had that sort of experience?
There is some truth in the saying: “Just when
it seems life can’t get any worse, it does.” It sometimes seems
that Jesus is not there or he’s not listening or he isn’t aware
of our needs and problems.
But that’s an illusion. The disciples felt
they were on their own, having to face the storm without Jesus.
Then, writes Matthew, “During the fourth watch of the night
Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake” (verse 25). Jesus
knew of their need and came to them.
Secondly, Peter was called upon to face:
The exciting challenge of
Jesus
“But Jesus immediately said to them: ‘Take
courage! It is I. Don't be afraid.’ ‘Lord, if it's you,’ Peter
replied, ‘tell me to come to you on the water.’ ‘Come,’ he
said” (verses 27-29).
So Peter was called out of the relative safety
of the boat to walk on the water like Jesus. This was a great
act of faith on Peter’s part.
Because our faith-relationship with him is the
most important thing in our lives, Jesus often challenges and
stretches our faith. He calls out of our comfort zones.
Here are some of the comfort zones Jesus calls
us out of: not letting on we’re Christians, not speaking about
our faith, not taking a stand for the truth.
However, there is another vital truth in this
story. That is:
The crucial centrality of
Jesus
Poor Peter. He made this amazing act of faith
and, to begin with, all was well. Nowadays he might have had
visions of travelling the evangelical/charismatic conference
scene, proclaiming the “Walking on the Water Ministry” which all
really switched-on Christians should be involved in!
Then, he took his eyes off Jesus. “Peter got
down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus.
But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink,
cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’ Immediately Jesus reached out
his hand and caught him. ‘You of little faith,’ he said, ‘why
did you doubt?’” (verses 29-31).
There is a spiritual lesson here. We “sink”
when we take our eyes off Jesus and look at the worrying,
threatening circumstances. We sink into anxiety, stress and
depression. Whilst we look at Jesus, i.e. remember he is with us
we shall “walk on the water” – have the faith to overcome
anxiety, stress and depression.
The boat may be rocking but he is here. The
storm may be raging but he is here. The shore may be far away
but he is here. And that makes all the difference.
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