By
Allen White
Immediately 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. Later that night, he was there alone, and the boat was already a
considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was
against it.
Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them,
walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were
terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear.
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.
Then 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?”
And when they climbed into the boat, the
wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly
you are the Son of God.”
Matthew 14:22-33
Often the line that stands out in this
passage is “You of little faith,” yet the most used command in all of Scripture
is “fear not.” Starting with the Lord telling Abraham not to fear (Genesis
15:1, KJV) to Jesus’ words to John in the Revelation, “Fear not; I am the first
and the last” (Revelation 1:17, KJV), God tells us to “fear not” more than any
other command in the Bible. We are only commanded to “not kill” three times.
Jesus is the only person alive who
doesn’t live in fear. Fear comes from a lack of knowledge or a lack of
experience. Anyone giving a speech for the first time understands fear. Anyone
facing uncertainty experiences fear. Jesus is all-knowing. He is God. There is
no knowledge that He lacks. Yet, as a person on earth, Jesus sought out
solitude to spend with His Father.
You and I don’t know everything. (Go
ahead, forward this to your mother-in-law). But, we know God, and God knows
everything. And, His command to us is “Fear not.”
If the Son of God felt the need for
solitude with His Heavenly Father, how much more do we, His little brothers and
sisters, need time alone with the Father. He might not tell us everything we
want to know, but He will give us all that we need to know.
Jesus has all knowledge. Jesus has a
close connection to the Father. Jesus also knew His power over creation. He
could walk on water.
I’m not sure which is the greater
miracle: walking on water or catching up to the boat. Our impression is the
boat is not anchored in the storm. They were progressing to the other side.
Jesus with supernatural buoyancy, balance and speed crossed the sea and caught
up with His disciples in the boat.
We like to look down on Peter. He was
so flakey. He was so impetuous. Yet, Peter is the only one who asked to walk on
the water. Peter was the only one who got out of the boat. He lacked the faith
to sustain, but he certainly had the faith to start. The other disciples were
huddled in the boat.
Calm in the storm comes from solitude
with God. If our attention is drawn to the wind and the waves and away from
Jesus, this is evidence that our time with the Father is lacking.
“But, I’m busy. But, I’ve got little
kids who need my attention. But, but, but…” As John Maxwell says, “If if’s and
but’s were candies and nuts, we’d all have a Merry Christmas.”
Lock yourself in your car, your closet,
your bathroom – you pick the chair. You don’t need half a day. Try half an
hour. When do you come out? When you hear “Fear not.”
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