“Jesus
immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him,
"O you of little faith, why did you doubt?" And when they got into the
boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshiped him, saying,
"Truly you are the Son of God.” [Matthew 14:31-33]
"O you of little faith, why did you doubt?"
While
He was dismissing the multitude, Jesus told the disciples to get into
the boat and start back to the other side of the lake. Then He went up
on a hillside to pray. When evening came, He was alone there.
Meanwhile, the boat was now far from land and battling a contrary wind.
As the waves battered the boat, Jesus saw the disciples' plight. In the
fourth watch of the night (between 3:00 and 6:00 a.m.), He went to them
walking on the sea. Thinking it was a ghost the disciples panicked. But
immediately they heard the reassuring voice of their Master and Friend.
"Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid."
How true to our own experience! We are often storm-tossed, perplexed, in despair. The Savior seems far away. But all the time He is praying for us. When the night seems darkest, He is near at hand. We often mistake Him even then and push the panic button. Then we hear His comforting voice and remember that the waves that caused us to fear are under His feet.
When Peter heard the well-known, well-loved voice, his affection and enthusiasm bubbled over. “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” Peter sensed that Jesus’ commands are His enablements, that He gives strength for whatever He orders.
As soon as Jesus said, “Come,”.. Peter jumped out of the boat and began walking toward Him. As long as he kept his eyes on Jesus, he was able to do the impossible; but the minute he became occupied with the strong wind, he began to sink. Frantically he cried, “Lord, save me!” The Lord took him by the hand, gently rebuked his little faith, and brought him to the boat. As soon as Jesus went on board, the wind ceased. A worship meeting took place in the boat with the disciples saying to Jesus, “Truly You are the Son of God.”
The Christian life, like walking on water, is humanly impossible. It can only be lived by the power of the Holy Spirit. As long as we look away from every other object to Jesus only, we can experience a supernatural life. But the minute we become occupied with ourselves or our circumstances, we begin to sink. Then we must cry to Christ for restoration and divine enablement.
How true to our own experience! We are often storm-tossed, perplexed, in despair. The Savior seems far away. But all the time He is praying for us. When the night seems darkest, He is near at hand. We often mistake Him even then and push the panic button. Then we hear His comforting voice and remember that the waves that caused us to fear are under His feet.
When Peter heard the well-known, well-loved voice, his affection and enthusiasm bubbled over. “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” Peter sensed that Jesus’ commands are His enablements, that He gives strength for whatever He orders.
As soon as Jesus said, “Come,”.. Peter jumped out of the boat and began walking toward Him. As long as he kept his eyes on Jesus, he was able to do the impossible; but the minute he became occupied with the strong wind, he began to sink. Frantically he cried, “Lord, save me!” The Lord took him by the hand, gently rebuked his little faith, and brought him to the boat. As soon as Jesus went on board, the wind ceased. A worship meeting took place in the boat with the disciples saying to Jesus, “Truly You are the Son of God.”
The Christian life, like walking on water, is humanly impossible. It can only be lived by the power of the Holy Spirit. As long as we look away from every other object to Jesus only, we can experience a supernatural life. But the minute we become occupied with ourselves or our circumstances, we begin to sink. Then we must cry to Christ for restoration and divine enablement.
"But
these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the
Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name."
John 20:31
"So Peter...walked on the water..."
“So
Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus.
But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried
out, "Lord, save me."” [Matthew 14:29-30]
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