Leaving the Boat

Everyday life is filled with practical matters: what to wear, how to comb our hair, what to eat at meal times. The list is never-ending and goes from the small, mundane matters already listed to the larger, life-changing ones such as where to live, where to work and who, or if, to marry. These are the "practical" matters

God is our faith. Or, at least, where our faith as Christians should lie.

Sometimes we forget to include God in the practical matters, big and small. Sure, we turn to Him in our worry and fear, but what about for everything else? Do we look past the practical to faith?

I want to use Peters' experience of walking on water as my example of looking past the practical and looking to our faith. Let's read Matthew 14:22-32*.

22. And straightway, Jesus constrained (basically, He ordered them) His disciples to get into a ship, and to go before Him unto the other side, while He sent the multitudes away.
23. And when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, He was there alone.
24. But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary.
24. And the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea.
26. And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, it is a spirit; and they cried out for fear.
27. But straightway Jesus spake unto them saying, Be of good cheer; it is I, be not afraid.
28. And Peter answered Him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.
29. And He said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.
30. But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.
31. And immediately Jesus stretched forth His hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?
32. And when they were come into the ship, the wind ceased.

Jesus had just finished feeding 5,000-plus people. He needed a little time alone with His Father so He ordered the disciples to cross the Sea of Galilee without Him while He dispersed the crowd. It was likely a reluctant group of disciples that boarded that small ship and left, not because they were worried about wind and water since most of them were experienced fishermen, but because they didn't like leaving Jesus alone. But they obeyed Him and left.

Jesus sent the crowd home and, climbing the mountainside, took time to pray and commune with His Father. While He did this, a huge wind kicked up on the Sea of Galilee and really gave the disciples a hard time. Let's turn to Mark 6:48-50a.

48. And He saw them toiling in rowing; for the wind was contrary unto them: and about the fourth watch of the night He cometh unto them, walking upon the sea, and would have passed by them.
49. But when they saw Him walking upon the sea, they supposed it had been a spirit, and cried out:
50. For they all saw Him, and were troubled and immediately He talked with them,

It's clear that, wherever Jesus was praying at, He was able to keep watch on His disciples (just like he kept His eye on His disciples, so we are never out of His sight or care). It's also clear that they were in no danger since Mark says He was going to pass by until the disciples cried out in fear. Only then did Jesus turn toward them, to reassure them and calm their fears.

Let's focus a moment on these men, these friends and students of Jesus. Most of them are fishermen, experienced with the sea and her ways, but they're having a hard time. The Bible says the wind was boisterous and contrary. I'm pretty sure we can take that to mean the sea was rolling like a wild ride at a theme park since God's sense of humor leans toward the understated. We also know the wind was too strong to raise sail since the Bible specifically says in Mark 6:48 " And He saw them toiling in the rowing;".

So here are 12 exhausted, probably worried men in the middle of a heaving inland sea when they espy the impossible. Maybe one of the men sees a flicker of movement against the waves. Perhaps he catches a glow from the corner of his eye. Whatever caught their attention, these men all see the figure of a man moving ON TOP of the water.

Some preachers criticize them for not recognizing Jesus, but they forget the setting. These men are tired and, having worked for an eye doctor for nine years, I can tell you that the more tired a person is, the lower his or her visual acuity becomes. Also, it was dark with wind and water raging all around (I defy anyone but a cat to see in the dark), so they've got salt water stinging their eyes, making it even more difficult to focus. When human fear is added to the mix, faith can get superceded by what is perceived as the practical.

The practical, in this case, was that they were in the middle of an inland sea and there appeared to be something moving where there should only have been water. The (not-so) practical human mind jumps to an improbably practical conclusion and someone yells "GHOST!"

Jesus paused to reassure them and Peter, fighting his fear, called back to his Lord, asking to come meet Him across the water and Jesus told him "Come". Peter immediately got down out of the boat. No hesitation, no worry about the wind and water or drowning, he just climbed right out, absolutely positive in his faith that he was going to walk on the water as if it were solid land to go meet his Lord. I believe Peter looked past the practical - past his fear and past the wind and waves around him - to the faith he held that this was the Christ, the Son of the living God, waiting out there for him.

Peter seems to have been the only disciple to have responded to Jesus and have the faith to leave the boat. The Bible doesn't mention a single one of the other 11, not even when Peter climbed out. As far as we know, no one even tried to convince him it was suicide to leave or that he couldn't be sure that was really Jesus out there.

I sort of picture the other disciples all huddled at the back end of the boat, eyes wide with fear as Peter climbed over the front end and dropped to the miraculously supportive surface of the water.

Well, Peter got out and headed for Jesus when he realized just how boisterous the wind was outside of the boat. He looked past his faith (Jesus) back to the practical (the wind & waves) and let his human fears creep back in. When that happened, he started to sink.

This is much the same thing that happens to us in daily life. We forget that Jesus is there for us in the small matters and take Him for granted. Then Satan can take our worries or fears and magnify them all out of proportion so that we get our focus completely off our Faith (Jesus) and only on the practical (our worries).

I can't imagine the water got much past Peter's ankles before he wrenched his vision back toward his Faith and cried out to Jesus for salvation. Bible scholars (as well as our own common sense when reading this account) tell us that Peter was too far from either the boat or Jesus to make a grab and save himself, but I don't belive he sank very much deeper before Jesus was at his side to save him. Surely a Man who can walk ON water isn't going to be hampered by mere distance.

Jesus "immediately...stretched forth His hand and caught him [Peter]" and lifted him back on top of the water. He takes time to gently admonish Peter, not for his lack of faith but for the lack of size of his faith ("O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?"