Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
It is always amazing when we read the Matthew 14 account of Jesus walking on the water and then Peter walking on water. The mere Truth that both walked on the water is mind boggling to us. It defies physical laws or the law of physics. I always laugh when I hear scientists and those that purport to subscribe to science tell us that until it can be proven, it is not fact. There is an absolute truth to what they are saying. It is not fact, it is Truth. And Truth supersedes fact. The higher power has the ability to suspend the lower power’s laws. There are many examples in The Scriptures where physical law is suspended by Spiritual law: the parting of the Red Sea and the Jordan River, Moses arms being held up by Aaron and Hur so the Israelites won the battle against the Amalekites, the sun standing still while Joshua and Israel defeated the Amorites, Jesus calming the storm with The Word and then the boat immediately being at the shore, the feeding of the 5,000 and the 4,000, Jesus and Peter walking on water, Jesus and the disciples raising the dead, and many more accounts. And, if you will notice, it is always done by words and deeds decreed and acted upon in faith by Believers.
Let’s bring the focus of Jesus and Peter walking on the water to a more defined point. This miracle of Jesus and Peter walking on the water happened during the night of the day when Jesus and the disciples fed the 5,000 men (we know it was more likely 15-25,000 people including women and children). The disciples had seen and participated in the miracle of two fish and five loaves feeding the huge crowd of people until they were full. There were twelve baskets of bread fragments gathered when the crowd was done eating. Jesus then directed the disciples to row to the other side of the lake while He stayed on land and prayed. A storm arose and the disciples were battling to row to the other side.
The Scriptures tell us Jesus walked out to the ship on the water the fourth watch of the night (3AM to 6AM). The disciples thought he was a ghost, and you can understand why. Had they ever seen a human being walk on water? Of course not. But Jesus identifies Himself. Once Jesus does this, notice what Peter had to say and the exchange with Jesus.
Matthew 14:28-29
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.
Notice Peter’s question of Jesus: “..Lord, if it be Thou, bid me come…..” Ok, you’re wondering. What is the big deal, Jesus told Peter to come? Remember, we’re students of God’s Word. We don’t just read, we study. Jesus actually did not tell Peter to come walk on the water. Jesus answered Peter’s question, “….if it be Thou, bid me come…” Jesus answered Peter’s question Truthfully. Notice, Jesus’ reply of “come.” Jesus did not say “come walk on the water to Me.” He only answered Peter’s question of “..Lord, if it be Thou, bid me come….” So, you’re now saying, “so what. Peter said, ‘…..bid me come unto Thee on the water.’ Jesus had to understand Peter meant ‘bid me come and walk on the water to you.'” What Peter meant and what Jesus answered are two different things. Jesus answered the question of “if it be Thou” and Peter took it to mean “come unto me on the water.” Jesus never said this.
Have we ever heard of the word, “presumption?” Presumption means, “an idea that is taken to be true, and often used as the basis for other ideas, although it is not known for certain.” Peter was actually presumptuous in his response of stepping out of the boat because Jesus answered, “come.” So, what does this have to do with anything? Everything. Have we ever known someone, or have we ever personally asked The Lord about something, received the answer, and inferred more from the answer without going back to The Lord for further guidance? If we’re honest, we’ve all done this a few or many times. And we get ourselves into trouble and, as Peter did, cry out unto The Lord to save us. Jesus answers Peter’s cry to save him while he is beginning to sink. Jesus does help us clean up a lot of messes in our life after we’ve presumptuously moved forward. What we don’t avoid is some of the immediate consequences of presumptuous decisions.
The Word of God gives us a lot of guidance and direction to seek Him in every step of our journey, decisions, actions, words, etc. God encourages us to do this so we avoid the consequences that cannot be avoided when we step out in our wisdom and understanding verses God’s.
Proverbs 3:6
In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths.
Psalm 37:23
The steps of a good man are ordered by The LORD: and he delighteth in His way.
Proverbs 16:3
Commit thy works unto The LORD, and thy thoughts shall be established.
Psalm 119:133
Order my steps in Thy Word: and let not any iniquity have dominion over me.
Proverbs 16:9
A man’s heart deviseth his way: but The LORD directeth his steps.
Psalm 85:13
Righteousness shall go before Him; and shall set us in the way of His steps.
There are hundreds of other verses speaking to God directing our steps, our thoughts, our hearts, etc., if we seek, ask, and allow Him to do so. Being presumptuous is what gets a lot of well-meaning Believers into trouble. What I have found, especially with weightier matters, is The Lord will not always give me all the answer at once. I have to come back to Him with every step I take to ensure I’m not deviating from His path because of presumption. Notice what the verses above say – steps, thoughts, paths, works, every. God is into every step, every thought, every path, every work, and every “every” that we do or take. Why? Because He loves us dearly and wants the very best for us. And why would we rely on our thinking, our knowledge, or our wisdom when we can have God’s? This is an easy choice.
We’ll continue to look at the account of Jesus and Peter walking on the water for the next couple of weeks to learn the greater lessons of this account. It is very rich in Spiritual teaching.
Blessings,
Larry