Getting Out of the Boat - Matthew 14:22-33
22 Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. 23 And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, 24 but the boat by this time was a long way from the land, beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them. 25 And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea. 26 But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” and they cried out in fear. 27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.”
28 And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” 29 He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. 30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.” 31 Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” 32 And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. 33 And those in the boat worshipped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”
Last night a student talked about the graduates as being in a boat and God standing with them in the storms. Today I want to talk about getting out of the boat from Matthew 14. To the ten graduates I say that you have been in a boat here at Eastwest College. You have made good friends and you have been in that boat with eleven other friends and united by your joint love and commitment to Jesus as were those disciples. And, believe it or not, I think for most of you these days will be the best of your life. All right, yes some days have been hard, some days it’s been cold, some days the fishing has been poor, some days have been stormy, but every morning you have got up, you have known where you should be, at what time, and which classes you’re taking. You knew that there would be a roof over your heads, and a bed to sleep on, even if you have not been able to afford all your fees. You knew that there would be lunch at 12.30 and evening meal at 5.30. There is a measure of security here. For most of you this has been going on for two years.
Suddenly as from graduation all that Eastwest security will come to an end. You are going to have to get out of the boat. Maybe once you said to Jesus I will go anywhere and do anything for you. You may have said to Jesus, “If it is you Lord ask me to come over to you and walk on water.” And he says “Come!” Yikes! If you want to get out of the boat, you have to walk on water.
In fact you will have to get out of the boat. Christianity is a supernatural faith. We believe in the resurrection of the body, we believe in the work of the Holy Spirit. The Old Testament is a world of floating axe heads, a world where jars of oil never run out, where the sun stands still or even goes backwards through the sky, a world of angelic deliverance. In the New Testament men and women are raised from the dead; they are healed of diseases; God’s people walk on water and where evil haters of God are transformed into devoted followers of the Lord. A world where God speaks to men and women, not about the theory, but about the practice of the walk of faith. Where people believe this and experience this, this is where God is working today …
You may not actually walk on the Sea of Galilee, but you are going to be walking on water defying the world’s way of doing things. Living and serving in a spiritual world where you will have to see God provide funds contrary to human wisdom, where you will have to see God provide visas, food, protection and housing against the odds, a spiritual world where people who are traditionally totally opposed to the things of God will respond to your message.
But Christian missions is also a world where the believer not only walks on water also sometimes sinks, when the waves seem to be just too big and the wind too strong – but you know what? Jesus will be with you when you walk on water and he will be with you when you sink into the water in unbelief. He will be with you on the shore and on the mountaintop. He answers the shortest prayers, like the three words of Peter: “Lord save me!” He is going to stretch out his hand and say – “O you of little faith!” – and he will still pull you up.
Firstly, you need to know that there are no surprises for our Lord. He told the Twelve to go over to the other side. He knew exactly what was going to happen on the lake that night – that was one reason why he came out to walk on the water to them. There will be no surprises for Jesus when you end up sinking. He has told you to go to Central Asia or to Egypt. You know, Jesus is going to be in those places too – helping you to walk on water and stretching out his hand to save you when you sink.
Secondly, Jesus is not a ghost – he is not a figment of our imagination. He is a real person, a real personality, even though he walks on water and calms storms. He will remain with you. The same Jesus who walked in Galilee on water 2,000 years ago is with us now with us in this room and will remain with you wherever you go.
And, thirdly, you know why he does these things? So that he is glorified. At the end of it all, those in the boat worshipped him. It was not about Peter and his 10 seconds of excitement on the water. It isn’t about YOU and YOUR ministry, it’s all about Jesus.
Tomorrow afternoon, ten of you are going to get out of the boat – Do not be afraid, Jesus will be with you. Indeed – as he says, “I will be with you always even unto the end of the age.”