A year later, with several detours into the Old Testament, I've reached chapter 14:22-33. Like most believers I had read this passage and recognised Peter showed courage in getting out of the boat. But as he took his eyes off the Lord he began to sink. Yes, he had to cry out to Jesus to save him. Yes, it seems that Peter acted before thinking. But that's not why he began to sink. Scripture records that he 'saw' the wind and began to sink. I think we're supposed to read that as the effect of the wind.
Now I'm not stupid and nor was Peter. He must have felt the effect of the wind before getting out of that boat so what's really going on here and are we supposed to be down on Peter for eternity because he started to sink? I think not.
When you really look at this event there are several things to be seen.
- 12 men are in that boat. 8 are not used to being on the water, 4 are experienced fishermen and have probably been caught in a storm before.
- The Lord had sent them on ahead to Gennesaret while he went up the mountain and took time to grieve for John.
- The wind gets up while Jesus is on the mountain and it's pushing the boat back so they can't get to the other side.
- The boat has been gone for hours when Jesus comes down the mountain in the 4th watch.
- Jesus is walking into the wind yet he is able to make progress despite the waves.
- The men in the boat must be soaked because of the spray since the waves were beating on the side of the boat.
- Jesus must have looked different to the disciples if they thought he was a ghost.
- Peter is the only one who asks Jesus permission to get ut of the boat and come to him on the water.
It's late at night, dark and there's a storm. The men in the boat aren't calm, they are frightened and it's taking ages to get to the other side of the lake. The 8 non fishermen are afraid they won't make it. If it were me I'd probably be hysterical and feeding off others hysteria too.
Even if Peter, James, John and Andrew were calm the noise of the voices and the wind would take it's toll on them. Certainly by the time they see Jesus they are so frightened they don't recognise him as human. What did they think a ghost would be doing there in the middle of the lake in a storm? And what did they fear this ghost would do to them?
When Jesus speaks He does two things:
- Commands them to take heart - in other words - have courage
- Assures them it is Him and they need not fear.
As a means of making that possible Jesus reassurance is intended to do the trick. It does but not for all the men.
Peter's reaction was really extreme to me until I really recognised what he did was nothing short of spectacular. He demonstrated faith in the most amazing way and I saw Peter, again, as a man of courage and faith not a blundering fool as people have tried to paint him.
The moment Peter hears Jesus voice He responds. His response is not as extreme as we might think. The boat is mayhem and he has been listening to the rising fear and hysteria for hours without anything changing. Enter Jesus, gliding along as if there's nothing to stop him.
You can almost hear Peter thinking "If he can do it why can't I". But Peter doesn't just get out of the boat. No, this guy is not stupid or crazy. He has the foresight to ask Jesus to confirm it's him and to command Peter to come to him on the water. This big fisherman is really clued up. He knows stepping out of that boat is certain death because he can't just climb back up the side again.
As soon as he gets Jesus ok Peter has no reason to delay. If I was him with his faith I'd have been breathing a sigh of relief because getting out of the boat meant getting away from the shrieking and arguments that he must have had to listen to for hours since the storm blew up.
Getting out of the boat was the most courageous thing he could have done because once on the water he's exposed to the full fury of the wind, there is no protection from the waves which were lashing the boat and now him, and there is nothing to grab hold of.
Nevertheless Peter gets down out of the boat. We get an impression that the boat is high sided. Once on the water he doesn't hesitate, he begins to move with purpose toward Jesus. He's not aware of the conditions until he has almost drawn level with Jesus. How do I know this?
Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. (Matt 14:31)
If Peter was further away Jesus could not have reached out his hand. He's not the stretchy guy from the fantastic four. The scripture mentions hand not arm so Peter is no further away than the distance from elbow to hand otherwise Jesus has unusually long arms and nowhere is this recorded. In fact everything we read about Jesus is to help us see him as ordinary not someone who stands out in his appearance.
This is probably a good place to mention that a year ago I was wakened in the middle of night by the Holy Spirit asking me a question about this event. He said....
"What do you remember about Peter walking on the water".
Dazed as I was I remembered the story. "Was Peter really a bumbling fool"?
If knowing the answer to the first question was easy the second was not so easy to answer. I had accepted what I had been taught. I had seen it for myself in the scriptures - Peter took his eyes off Jesus and that's why he sank. I even told myself there was a lesson for me and other believers. I was convinced that as long as I kept my eyes on Jesus I wouldn't get into trouble. I was content with my understanding until that night.
When the Holy Spirit had finished bringing revelation I was ashamed of myself, I had never really looked at Peter through the Holy Spirits eyes, I was complacent in my understanding even though it was childish and needed deepening.
There are three parties involved in this event - 11 disciples, Peter and Jesus. Jesus comes into the picture later so we'll leave him for now.
The Holy Spirit showed me that Peter got out the boat but he would have heard a barrage of negative comments from his companions :-
- you're a fool, Peter,
- you'll drown
- don't get out of the boat, it's too dangerous
- why can't you wait, Jesus is coming
- you always have to make a scene, don't you
- what do you think your doing
Eleven men in a boat decided to stick with the concensus opinion. They were in unison and they were happy with that so they stayed put. But they thought Peter should stay with them, they thought their reasoning was logical, sound, safe and rational so therefore Peter was irrational and could not be safe or sound. They believed they were right to berate Peter and remain where they were in the boat. They didn't get it and they were not prepared to try. So they believed their collective agreement meant Peter had to be wrong and in danger.
Those eleven men were being tossed about in that boat, soaked through and maybe even seasick but they were determined to stay there no matter what. Peter on the other hand did something so risky and so extreme he was effectively putting his life on the line. For what? To be where Jesus was no matter what the conditions were like. Now does this sound like a man who is impetuous, foolish and a blundering idiot? I suppose it depends where you're standing and if you're in the boat you would say yes. But I happen to think Peter is a fine leader and a good example of what faith can do.
This incident tells us three things. We've seen that the group stuck together and were convinced it was the right thing to do.
One man, Peter, did something different and he too was convinced it was the right thing to do. He got out of the boat in the midst of the storm. He made a conscious decision to walk on the water and come to Jesus. He made a conscious decision that he would ignore the wind and waves because Jesus appeared to be doing the same and He was not sinking. So Peter, having checked it is ok with Jesus goes to meet him.
Now when I was wakened up the Holy Spirit showed me that Peter was the only one of the 12 who experienced Jesus catching him and stopping him from sinking further than his ankles or thereabouts because he had only begun to sink when he cried out for help. He also showed me that Peter was the only one who knew the encouragement Jesus gave him on the way back to the boat. Peter was also the only person to know what it felt like to walk on water and only he 'saw' the wind. Meanwhile the 11 waited until Jesus came to them and the storm abated as he got into the boat.
That night I felt sorry for those 11 men. They were content to stick with what they knew, they didn't want to push through so they missed out. Oh yes they were in the boat and Jesus calmed the storm but Peter walked on water in the midst of the storm. If I was asked to choose to stay in the boat or come to Jesus on the water I hope I would be like Peter and throw myself into coming to Jesus
Having looked at the incident with the Holy Spirit I decided that I needed to look more closely at Peter and to study him as a man of faith and his journey to becoming the 'rock' that Jesus would build His Church on.
When I looked at this in context as I studied Matthew's gospel I saw all of the above but then I began to see something new and I was both upset and angry. How easy it was for the 11 to condemn Peter - and we would have done the same because we can't see or understand what he can see and understand. Whilst he chose to move out of a type of comfort zone and risk all for Jesus the rest huddled in the boat expecting Jesus to come all the way and when he got there to do something about the storm. That is what they expected because he had done it in the past and they at least had confidence he could do something for them.
Peter doesn't think like that. He thinks - what can I do. He says, tell me to come to you. He might sound impatient but he wants to be where Jesus is even in a storm. Then I began to wonder why he asks for Jesus permission. It wasn't long before the Holy Spirit reminded me that Matthew chapter 11 held the answer so I went back and looked at the passage.
Peter got out of that boat because he had heard Jesus say previously:
28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.
14 “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me
(John's Gospel chapter 10
Jesus may have said he had little faith but I don't believe for one minute that was an insult. I believe he took the opportunity to explain to Peter what had caused him to start sinking rather than his faith was so small. Hadn't they all heard Jesus say that though a mustard seed was small still it had the potential to become a great tree and to support the birds and provide shelter and nesting. (Matt 13)
So we see Peter knows the sound of Jesus voice. We see him coming to Jesus in response to his earlier teaching. We see this immediate recognition of Jesus illicits an immediate desire to be where Jesus is. We see Peter is comforted by Jesus after his cry for help. We hear the encouragement and explanation. We hear this but the men in the boat hear nothing, it's not even clear if they can see anything with the wind whipping up the waves.
The last focus has got to be on Jesus who has been grieving. He had gone up the mountain alone to seek the Lord and find comfort. Jesus is up the mountain for hours while the wind gets up. The boat is some way from him before he comes down in the 4th watch of the night. At approximately 6am* He makes his way down the mountain to join the men in the boat. Walking on the water even though the wind is against him and whiping up his clothes Jesus appearance is different from normal. He looks spectoral, why? Jesus has been up the mountain in the presence of the Lord for hours. Even now it's obvious because his appearance frightens 11 of the 12 but not Peter. Peter knows his master' voice because it has an authority that is hard to mistake.
Jesus hears the fear and angst and speaks into it to calm the situation but the 11 will not be calmed. They even try to dissuade Peter from going to Jesus even though Jesus has given him permission. So Jesus is greeted by Peter alone because 11 men ruled by fear will not leave the place of fear. Because they are happy to remain as they are they cannot hear the authority of the one who sees clearly and can save them.
Jesus told Peter he was a rock the first time he met him rather than Simon the shifting sands. He was not wrong to select Peter as the one who would become the leader of the Church. A rock, rather than a pebble or large stone, is substantial in size and height, and once it is in place it will take some effort to shirt it. Jesus knew Peter was in place. Jesus knew Peter had listened to his teachings. Jesus saw the progress Peter had made in his understanding and in his ability to hear from the Holy Spirit when he answered the question about who men said Jesus was. Finally Jesus saw that Peter was willing to apply and learn from the things he was being taught. Jesus saw Peter was prepared to lay down his life to be where he was. Jesus also saw the eleven were gripped by fear and the only thing that would comfort them was for Him to get into the boat and calm the storm.
So this event or incident in the march toward Calvary is not about Jesus or Peter walking on the water. We can make it that if we want to but ther bigger picture is that both Jesus and Peter are aware of the power of the Holy Spirit. Both decide the storm will not stop them pursuing their goals. Both are in agreement as far as their faith is concerned. Both come together at a time and in circumstances that others see as dangerous. Peter's courage and faith were rewarded and he learned how he had gone wrong. Peter got back into the boat with Jesus -climbed up into it - the storm is calmed so they continued their journey. This is another excellent example of the 'out of.....into' principle of scripture.
Two men would share an experience that 11 determined they could live without. Eleven men would forever testify that Peter came to Jesus on the water while they waited for the master to come to them in their situation. Peter would testify that he, pushed by the wind toward Jesus, felt the touch of the master's hand and heard his enouragement as they walked together back to the boat. One event, several different perspecitvies but what did I get out of this?
I have to say it was very personal and very poignant. I saw myself often misunderstood because I could see thing others couldn't. I could see the struggle to stay focussed on Jesus throughout. I also saw that we can come so far and still lose our focus. Peter got so far on dogged determination and will power, in the end it was Jesus who covered the distance lifting a man up so that he would not be overwhelmed.
I'm sure Peter felt like a fool for beginning to sink but the key word here is 'beginning'. He didn't sink because as soon as he recognised there was a problem he cried out for help which came instantly. How often do I call out the instant I recognise I'm in trouble?
I've beaten myself up for things like that in the past and poured over it again and again as though I could have avoided the problem. Even if I could have done I didn't and that's what matters.
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I read this a few days ago and realised Jesus had a lot to say to me and it was encouraging. As long as I am willing to be where He is others would never know what he is saying to me. They would never know the thrill of moving as Jesus moves because they are trapped in that boat waiting, confident in the knowledge that Jesus is coming and will do something for them - eventually.
Peter inspires me. I see his faith and his passion for his master but it isn't blind faith, he has his eyes wide open and he is not missing anything. I hope I can become like him, keep my passion and my desire to be where Jesus is - even in the storm, even if it means leaving the perceived safety of the boat. And I hope you do to.
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* http://www.bible-history.com/smiths/W/Watches+of+night/
Originally posted in 2012 then withdrawn.
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