And Peter answered him,
"Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.”
He said, “Come.”
So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus.
But when he saw the wind, he was afraid,
and beginning to sink he cried out,
“Lord, save me.”
Jesus immediately reached out his hand and
took hold of him, saying to him,
“O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”
And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshiped him, saying,
“Truly you are the Son of God.” (Matthew 14:28-33)
Peter walked twice on water
You might never understand it without having a vision of it and finding yourself in the boat with the disciples.
We all know that in the middle of the night the disciples
thought Jesus was a ghost.
Jesus told them to be at peace and then Peter asked Jesus,
"If it you Jesus can I too walk on water."
Well Peter got out of the boat and began to really walk on water.
But as we all know he took his eyes off Jesus and looked at the
size of the waves and began to sink.
Peter was about eight feet away from the boat. Jesus was about twenty feet from Peter.
Now as a professional fisherman the boat was a lot closer to him,
if he had of turned around and asked for a rope, they most probably would have been able to throw it to him.
But Peter didn't look back to men, or rely on men's logic,
but asked for another miracle by asking
Jesus to help.
Jesus moved the twenty feet within a
half a second.
He met Peter and lifted him up out of the waves.
He had a little chat to him and then
Jesus and Peter walked the eight feet back to the boat
ON TOP OF THE WATER.
You see once Peter walked on Jesus' word,
"Come."
Then the second time
Peter walked hand in hand
with the Word.
The story of Jesus walking on water appears in three of the four gospels
(Matthew, Mark, John).
But, only in Matthew do we also learn that Peter also walked on water!
Immediately before Peter walks on water is the story of Jesus feeding the 5,000 (Matthew 14:13-21).
The disciples’ faith has to be at an all time high.
They just witnessed a few loaves of bread and fish feed a large crowd.
Matthew 14:22-23 says after this Jesus immediately made the disciples get in the boat to go ahead of him to the other side of the sea of Galilee.
After this Jesus dismisses the crowd and goes
up a mountain side to pray by himself.
So far, all pretty normal… But it’s about to get good.
Later that night a storm picks up. Matthew records that there were violent waves and a strong wind. They were experienced fisherman and storms in this area were common. But still the sea had claimed many lives and it wasn’t something to be messed with. (Matthew 14:24)
Things are about to get interesting.
As dawn approaches and the
faintest light starts appearing,
Jesus decides to go to the disciples.
How? He walks.
On the still stormy water.
Jesus walks on water toward the disciples in the boat who
are still a long way off. (Matthew 14:25)
The disciples can’t quite tell
what or who is walking toward them.
They assume it must be a ghost.
A common superstition among seafarers of the day was those who drown would haunt the waters. They didn’t know what they saw,
but they certainly didn’t think it could be Jesus. (Matthew 14:26)
And honestly who could blame them.
Up to this point no one had walked on water.
Knowing their fear Jesus calls out to them.
“Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”
Matthew 14:27
Jesus’ response to their fear centers on “It is I.” These words were a term that Jesus often used to claim deity. In other words,
Jesus is saying the disciples can take courage and fear not because
Jesus was there with them.
Peter Walks On Water Peter is known for being a little headstrong. He’s quick to speak before he thinks things through. And while that got him in trouble from time to time, it also lead him to experience things no one else did.
Simon Peter responds to Jesus’ claim with a bold claim. “Lord, if it’s you, tell me to come to you on the water.” (Matthew 14:28)
Jesus responds with a single word, “Come.”
With remarkable trust and courage Peter climbs over the side of the boat.
I know we like to criticize Peter for what happens next. But stay in this moment for a minute. In the middle of strong winds and waves Peter trusts Jesus to step out of the boat. That’s an incredible display of faith in Jesus. None of the other disciples dared step foot out of the boat.
Matthew 14:29 simply states that Peter walks on water toward Jesus. Those first steps must have been surreal.
But… Matthew 14:30 interrupts this incredible moment with a conjunction: but. As Peter walks on water he starts to notice how powerful the wind and waves are, and he takes his eyes off Jesus. He gets distracted by his harrowing circumstances and he sinks. Peter’s doubt was about to take him out.
Matthew records that he was afraid as he began to sink. You think? He must have been terrified. I imagine as he gasped for one last breath before he went under he cried out,
“LORD SAVE ME!”
Jesus doesn’t wait. Matthew 14:31 says that immediately
Jesus reached out his hand and caught him.
After Peter was safe Jesus rebuked him for his little faith.
'Jesus rebuked him for his weak faith even though it was stronger than that of the other disciples who remained in the boat. Jesus used this rebuke to help Peter and the other disciples see that consistent confidence in Himself was absolutely necessary. Peter became both a good example and a bad one. Jesus rescued him as God had rescued many others from watery graves.”
Still that’s not the last miracle. As soon as Jesus and Peter climb back into the boat the wind and waves miraculously calm. This passage contains
three miracles:
1. Jesus walks on water.
2. Peter walks on water.
3. The calming of the storm.
And yet none of those incredible events are the climax of the story. Matthew 14:33 is the climax of this story. It’s not the miracles, it’s the disciples worship of Jesus. This is the first time they have addressed Jesus as the Son of God.
5 Lessons From Peter Walks On Water
Jesus walks on water and Peter walks on water. But what does that mean for us today? Let’s end by looking at 5 practical lessons we can pull from
Matthew 14:22-33.
Peace Is Not Found In The Absence Of The Storm,
But In The Presence Of Jesus
When Jesus bid Peter to come to him he didn’t calm the storm. Rather, he invited Peter out into the storm, into the rough seas. The rebuke of Peter’s lack of faith was because he took his eyes off Jesus and instead focused on the storm.
We think peace is found when the waves of life are calm. But Jesus never promised us smooth sailing. Instead he promised to always be with us. Peace is found in the presence of Jesus, even in the middle of a storm.
Peter’s walk on the water teaches us that in the middle of storms we can have peace IF we keep our eyes on Jesus. The storms of life give us good reason to be afraid. But Jesus is bigger than even the scariest of storms.
Faith Requires Stepping Out Of The Boat We like comfort. We like safety. And that’s not all a bad thing. But we often over inflate our desire for these things. Sometimes Jesus is going to ask you to take a risk and trust him. Sometimes, you have to step out of the boat.
Just like the apostle Peter, sometimes we will step out of the boat and then be overcome by fear. We will sink. But Jesus is right there to catch you. You might stumble, but you won’t drown.
My guess, the next time Peter “stepped out of the boat” he did so more confidently. His faith and trust in Jesus was greater. The same will be true for you. The more steps of faith you take the easier it gets. Once you see God’s faithfulness it’s easy to trust him more and more.
So, step out of the boat.
Without Jesus You Will Sink Peter’s walk on the water was short lived. It was short lived because he took his eyes off Jesus. Peter learned an important lesson that day that we shouldn’t ignore. When we take our eyes off Jesus the storms of life will quickly overcome us.
As a pastor I see this all the time. When Christians stop looking to Jesus they quickly sink. They get sucked into temptations. They get overwhelmed by life. They forget who’s in control.
Life is full of storms. Big storms. Storms that will destroy. Unless you keep your eyes on Jesus. With Jesus you cannot only endure, you can walk on water above the storm. Keep your eyes on Jesus.
Worship Is Our Response
Maybe the most important lesson from the Peter walks on water story is our response to the power of Jesus. It’s worship.
When we encounter Jesus we should worship him. Matthew intentionally highlights this moment because that’s the point. This story wasn’t about Peter and his faith, or lack there of. Ultimately it was about the power of Jesus.
Our response to Jesus Christ should be the same as the disciples. When we encounter him it should bring us to a place of worship. It should remind us of who we are and who he is.
When You Follow Jesus He Will Do Incredible Things Through You
I'm convinced God wants to tell an incredible story through your life.
He wants to do things in you and through you that you can’t even imagine.
God has walk on water moments for you.
God wants to tell a good story in your life. But often we settle for
boring and safe stories.
I bet Peter was talking about the time he walked on water for the rest of his life. It’s a great story! Why? Because he took a risk. He didn’t play it safe.
God wants the same for you. He wants to tell a good story in your life.
Will you let him?
Examining Peter walking on water
in response to Jesus’ walking on water, we learn eight things.
- Look for Jesus and keep looking to Jesus. Although a storm surrounded Him, Peter looked to Jesus. The only problem was that he stopped looking at Jesus. The principle is clear: especially when life is a tumultuous storm, look for Jesus and keep looking to Jesus. What does looking to Jesus look like for you?
- When Jesus commands you, obey Him. Jesus told Peter to “come” to Him on the water. Even though it made no sense, Peter did what Jesus said. This is what obedience looks like–doing what Jesus says.
- Faith is simply taking the next step. Peter took one step to get out of the boat and onto the water. Peter was doing just fine when he was focused on the next step, and got into trouble when he lost sight of his next step.
- Faith unleashes the supernatural. Peter did not experience the supernatural power of God that allowed him to walk on water until he trusted as evidenced by his actions. Is there anything you need to be doing differently in faith?
- Fear will sink you. When Peter had faith, he walked on water. When he had fear, he sank in the water. The same is true for you. Fear will sink you. Is there any fear that is gripping and controlling your decision making?
- Jesus saves you from many things. Jesus not only saved Peter from hell, but on this occasion Jesus saved Peter from drowning. What things has Jesus saved you from?
- A little faith is better than no faith. The Lord Jesus spoke of Peter’s “little faith”. This means that he was capable of even greater sustained faith. But, the guys in the boat apparently had no faith.
- You can choose to worry or worship. In an instant, the men went from worrying about their circumstances to worshipping their Christ. How is your worship of the Lord going?
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