This
event on the Sea of Galilee is directed to Jesus' disciples, while
the feeding of the 5,000 was not only for His disciples but also for
the crowd. Jesus' disciples trusted Jesus for the food, now they
will have to trust Him in a storm. Jesus was not in the boat with
His disciples when a storm came up that threatened their lives.
Without Jesus, the disciples could not come against this fierce storm
and save themselves. Jesus will come to save them as He came to earth
to save all sinners from the darkness of sin and spiritual death.
The
Darkness and the Storm
The
disciples were in the midst of the sea in complete darkness fighting
against a ferocious storm. These disciples were fishermen so they
were well aware that the Sea of Galilee was prone to fierce storms.
They saw that a storm might be coming up so they wanted to make it
across the lake before the storm. In spite of this knowledge, these
disciples obeyed Jesus' instruction to cross over the lake to the
other side. While fighting the storm and trying to rescue themselves, they become exhausted.
The power of the wind and waves was too strong for their strength.
They are lost in the midst of the sea and darkness. They thought they
were going to die! Jesus wasn't with them to rescue them. The Bible
says that without Jesus, we can do nothing. Through this experience,
Jesus is teaching them that they can KNOW that in any storm of life
or darkness that may come against them, He “sees” them and will
come to their rescue. He wants all who love and follow Him to
understand this also. We can trust Him.
Fourth
Watch
Matthew
14:25 says
that it was the fourth watch when Jesus came to his disciples walking
on the water. The fourth watch is just before the break of dawn of a
new day – between 3 am and 6 am. Just before the light of a new
day, Jesus will come to save His disciples. There is an old saying
that “it is always darkest before the dawn.” These disciples
were surely in deep darkness and thought they were going to die. BUT
Jesus, the Light of the world and Savior, will come at the right time
to save them from the darkness and the strong wind that was blowing against them. (John
6:18) His
disciples were in darkness and powerless without Jesus. They were
way off course and lost.
When
Jesus came into the world as a newborn babe, the world was in
darkness with no one to save humanity from the ruler of darkness.
God's voice had been silent for over 400 years. In His time and with
the depth of His love, God sent His Son into the world to save it
from sin and the kingdom of darkness. God didn't send Jesus into the
world to give us an “easy” life, but an eternal, holy life.
Jesus
Comes to His Own Walking on Water
Water
in scripture symbolizes the Anointed Word. In other words, the water
of the Word of God anointed by the living water of the Holy Spirit.
Jesus is the Living Anointed Word of God from beginning to end. Jesus came to earth walking on the water of Truth -- the Anointed Word. He only did what the Father told Him to do and only spoke what the Father told Him to speak. He was completely submitted to His Father's will.
The
waters had to part for man – Moses and the Israelites, Joshua,
Elijah and Elisha, but not for Jesus because He created the waters
with the Godhead at Creation and is the bridge between the waters of
heaven and the waters of earth. Job 9:8 says, "He (God) alone stretches out the heavens and treads upon the waves of the sea." Everything that Jesus did as He walked the earth was in fulfillment of some Older Testament scripture or scriptures.
At
creation God separated the waters of heaven and the waters of earth.
“Let
there be an expanse between the waters to separate water from water.”
So God made the expanse and separated the water under the expanse
from the water above it. And it was so. ”Genesis 1:6-7 Jesus,
by His death and resurrection, bridged the expanse (gap/atmosphere)
between
the waters of heaven and earth for all who come to Him for salvation.
When Jesus ascended to the Father, He paved a way for us to also
bridge the gap between heaven and earth. Because Jesus is holy, He paved the "high" way of holiness to the throne of God. We can now come boldly to
God's throne of grace because of the sacrificial blood of Jesus and
the highway of holiness He provided for us.
What
is the spiritual message that Jesus is conveying in His walking on
water in the darkness and storm? God
answered this question for me! A few years ago, I was in a Church
one Sunday and the man of God giving the sermon was preaching on
Jesus and Peter walking on water. In his talk, this man of God said,
“I'm glad God doesn't ask me to walk on water. How about you?”
As clearly as if God was standing in front of me, the Lord said, “I
do ask you to walk on water, Sandy. I ask you to walk on the
water of My Word.” Jesus is the Anointed Word, so He also walks on
the water of His Word. He walked on the Word wholly and perfectly.
He wants those who love and follow Him to walk according to His Word
with the help of the Holy Spirit. There are many winds that come
against us: the wind of rejection or unforgiveness or unbelief,
unfaithfulness, betrayal etc. When the storms of life come against us, we can trust Jesus and
the mighty wind of the Holy Spirit so rescue us. We must walk on His
Word of Truth and stand firm believing that He will come at His
appointed time and save us from the storm. He sometimes comes to
us at the greatest extremity of our trial when our faith is being
tested to the max! Notice Jesus didn't prevent the trial. He used
the trial to increase His disciples' faith and trust in Him, and show that
they can trust Him in any circumstance.
Jesus
has taught His disciples through the Samaritan woman at the well that
He is the giver of Living Water of life. (see
Revelation
21:6; John 4)
Next, He taught them through the feeding of the 5,000 that He is the
multiplying Bread of Life sent down from heaven that feeds our spiritual hunger and thirst. His message to us
is -- not only are we to eat and digest His Word (Bread),
we
are to walk according to His Word if we are to have the victory over
darkness and the storms of life. The Word of God and the mighty wind of the Holy Spirit strengthen us.
Jesus
knew right where His disciples were and the circumstance they were
in. He did not leave them or forsake them. Instead, He came and
saved them when they were at the end of their own strength to rescue
themselves and all hope seemed lost. Sometimes Jesus has to let us
come to the end of ourselves and our own efforts so we will learn to
trust Him and His timing.
In
the Midst of Great Darkness, there Came a Great Light
“When
they had rowed three or three and a half miles, they saw Jesus
approaching the boat, walking on the water, and they were terrified.”
v19 At
first, they thought they were seeing a ghost. Why? He was
surrounded in His light and glory in the midst of the darkness. He
looked like a ghost! They were terrified! In the midst of great
darkness, Jesus is giving His own a revelation of His great light and
glory and His saving grace. He gave His disciples the miracle of His
presence! They saw
Him in His glory and light and then they heard
His
voice. “It
is I.” When
God was speaking to the prophet Isaiah regarding His people knowing
His Name, He said, “that
I am He who speaks. Yes, it
is I.”
The
King James version translates this as “I am.” (Greek eimi
meaning
to
be
or to
exist)
Jesus is telling His disciples that He is the I AM. Jesus
identified Himself as the I AM eight times in the Gospel of John,
once in Matthew and once in Revelation. He is all of these things.
I am the Son of
God – Mt. 37:43
- I am the Bread of Life – John 6:35, 41, 48
- I am the Light of the world – John 8:12
- I am the Door of the sheep – John 10:7, 9
- I am the Good Shepherd – John 10:11
- I am the Resurrection and the Life – John 11:25
- I am the Way, the Truth and the Life – John 14:6
- I am the Vine – John 15:5
- I am a king – John 18:37
- I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End – Revelation 21:6
As
He walked the earth, Jesus was the coming of God's glory to mankind.
In the Older Testament, God's glory had no shape or form. His
shekinah glory appeared among men many times – before manna fell
from heaven; before God gave Moses the ten commandments; when the
tabernacle was completed according to God's instruction; when the
temple was completed and dedicated to the Lord. Isaiah and Ezekiel
saw the glory of the Lord in a vision of the heavenly temple. But
in the New Testament, Jesus is the visible presence of God on earth.
John and the other disciples saw His glory. When we look at Jesus,
we see a “new” glory – one that walks, talks, lives and
breathes! He is the tabernacle and temple of God not made with human
hands. The glory that Jesus has is transmitted to those who love and
serve Him. What God did for Jesus and Jesus did for God, Jesus does
for us!
Don't
be afraid
Jesus'
disciples are in deep darkness and threatened with death. The
headwinds have come against them. There will be headwinds that come
against believers also opposing our path. But Jesus will come at the
right time to rescue us. We must not fear but have faith that Jesus
sees us and will rescue us at the appropriate time. He wants us to
believe His Word, stand our ground, hold our course and pray. Fear
is the opposite of faith. This is why both God and Jesus told their
own not to fear but have faith in them. Without Jesus in the boat,
His disciples were losing the battle.
When
every human effort to save themselves failed, Jesus came and got into
the boat with His disciples. The storm calmed. The very things that
came against His disciples – wind and water – Jesus walked on!
They were under His feet! It is sometimes in the storms of life that
we draw closer to Jesus and He to us. He wants us to walk on the
water of His Word by the power of the wind of the Holy Spirit through
the storms of life. In so doing, the storm will calm as we trust in
Jesus and His Word. At His perfect timing, He will come and rescue
us.
The
disciples' fear blinded them to Jesus' identity. He looked different
than they had ever seen Him. He was surrounded by light and glory
looking almost like a ghost. It wasn't until He spoke His Word and
revealed Himself that they recognized Him. Fear will often blind us
to the presence of God in the midst of our storm. God said through
the prophet Isaiah, “Fear
not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are
mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; when you
pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you.” 43:1-2
This is God's promise to
His own.
Once
the disciples recognized Jesus by His voice (Word),
they invited Him into the boat with them. The storm calmed and they
quickly reached their destination
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