Thinking about walking on water?

Last Sunday's sermon was about Peter’s experience about walking in water.  Over the years, I have heard a few sermons about walking on water and I started thinking about it.  All of them have taught me something.  I would like to share my thoughts and observations about Peter’s experience.

Only two people in recorded history have walked on water, Jesus and Peter.  These two people were and are quite different from each other.  Peter was an ordinary man with the propensity to often act and/or speak before thinking.  As a result, we see him often with his foot in his mouth.  Jesus was not anything like Peter.  He was fully man and fully God, perfect.  Yet they both walked on water.  It is easily understandable that Jesus could and did walk on water.  God, the father, spoke the water into existence.  Jesus was the Word become flesh.  But Peter, why him?

There are two other people in the Bible who had experiences that could very well have been opportunities to walk on water, Jonah in the Old Testament and the apostle Paul in the New Testament.  Both were in boats, in storms, in trouble, found themselves in the water and in need of saving.  Neither walked on water.  Jonah was “saved” by a whale and Paul had to swim or cling to a chunk of wood to get to shore.  Peter and Paul were following the Lord’s directive.  They were in/on the right boat heading in the right direction.  The same cannot be said for Jonah.  He was on the wrong boat heading in the wrong direction.  It is easy to understand why he did not walk on water, since he was in direct disobedience from what God had instructed him to do.  Paul, however, was doing what the Lord had directed him to do and yet he ended up in the middle of a storm and in the water.  God did protect him and provide a way of escape; but he had to swim just like all the others in the boat.

Now, now getting back to Peter.  He along with the disciples was told by Jesus to “get in the boat” (Matt 14:22) and go to the other side of the lake.  I find it interesting that this incident in recorded in the books of Matthew, Mark and John; but, Luke did not include it in his gospel and only Matthew records the part of Peter walking on the water with Jesus.  I have never heard anyone mention this or try to expound on it; but if I had been there, I would think I would have included it. 

Peter was the only one of the twelve that is recorded to have said anything, even though they all were afraid of this “ghost” walking on the water.  Again Peter was quick to speak and act; but he was the only one to get the chance to walk on water.  He asked Jesus that if it was really Jesus for him to come.  Jesus said come.  Peter got out of the boat ONLY AFTER receiving a direct command from the Lord. 

Before getting out of a boat and trying to walk on water, make sure you are in the right boat, heading in the right direction and following a direct command of Jesus.  I have heard many people use the example of getting out of the boat encouraging others to take a chance and step out in faith saying they have heard from the Lord.  If God wants you to walk on water, he will tell YOU.

Now once Peter gets out of the boat, he starts walking on water; but when he saw the waves, he started to sink.  He took his eyes off Jesus and started looking at his circumstances.  What did Jesus do?  He said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt”.  Now some may say that this was not a rebuke but an encouragement; but, if it was me and Jesus said that to me, I think I would seen it as a rebuke.  There are four other occasions that Jesus used the phrase “ little faith”.   All four were in speaking to His disciples.  On one occasion he commended someone for their “great faith”, the centurion, a Gentile.  I find it interesting that Jesus used these men of “little faith” to turn the world upside down and gave them power against demons to cast them out and to heal all manner of sickness. Matthew 10:1. At the same time He did not “do many mighty works” in Nazareth because of their “unbelief”.  God can use people of “little faith” but He cannot use people with unbelief.

Now after being told the he had little faith, he had to get back to the boat.  He either swam or walked on water, hand in hand with Jesus.  I think they walked.  No time for a pity party. I think Peter might have been thinking about the eleven still in the boat.  They did not have enough faith to step out of the boat.  He at least got out of the boat and walked a little way on water.  "Hey Jesus, how about telling those guys in the boat that they have no faith".   Today, nobody wants to hear about having little faith.  WE are people of faith!  God’s answer must have been “no” or “not yet”.  It could not be because of my “little faith” or “unbelief”.  How arrogant can we be?

People are encouraged to “get out of their boat”, get out of their comfort zone, based on what someone who portends to speak for God.  At the same time, we are not following direct commands from God because it does not fit our image of God.  It does not fit in our theology, what we have been taught.  We don’t anoint the sick with oil.  We don’t lay hands on the sick.  We don’t believe that we have the power to do these things, in spite of what Jesus taught, commanded and charged us to do.  Maybe we fit in the “unbelief” category, rather than the “little faith”.  God, the Father, not only gave us the authority but instructed us, "He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father."(John 14:12)  How much simpler and more plain can He tell us?  Now there is a "get out of the boat" command!!!  Jesus said it!  I believe it! That settles it!

Jim Elliot, the missionary murdered by the Auca Indians in Ecuador at the age of 28, said:

“ It makes me boil when I think of the power we profess and the utter impotency of our action.  Believers who know one-tenth as much as we do are doing one hundred times more for God, with His blessing and our criticism. Oh if I could write it, preach it, say it, paint it, any thing at all, if only God’s power would become known among us”.