Hey everybody! Thank you for joining me in daily Bible reading as we seek to glorify Jesus, know Him more, and interpret the truth of His Word.
If this is your first time going through the Bible, I am incredibly excited to have you here. If this is your 5000th time, I am humbled that you are here and hope you grow in your relationship with Jesus along with me. May we all seek to know Him more and apply what we learn to further our mission of spreading the gospel. If you missed a day and want to catch up, visit the archives page HERE! But there is no shame if you start today! Day 171, Matthew 14:30-33 — Peter’s Doubt Matthew 14:30-33 (NASB1995) “But seeing the wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’ 31 Immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him, and said to him, ‘You of little faith, why did you doubt?’ 32 When they got into the boat, the wind stopped. 33 And those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, ‘You are certainly God’s Son!’” Discussion Yesterday, we read about Jesus walking on water. Following the feeding of the five thousand, Jesus made the disciples get into a boat and cross the sea while He stayed back to pray (14:22). The disciples were about three to four miles into the Sea of Galilee when waves started crashing upon the boat and high winds tossed it around. The disciples likely feared for their lives as they did during the storm Jesus calmed earlier in Matthew 8:23-27. After praying, Jesus came to the disciples by walking on the sea (14:25). They cried out in fear, thinking He was a ghost, but Jesus told them to take courage. He then declared “I AM,” solidifying His eternal nature and symbiotic relationship with the Father. This statement parallels God’s self-revelation to Moses (Ex. 3:14) and Isaiah (Is. 43:10) when He tells them not to fear His presence. As Jesus approached the boat, Peter asked to join Him to prove it was truly Him (14:28). Jesus then welcomed Peter to join Him on the water (14:29). Today, we read about Peter’s doubt on the water. Jesus’ invitation to come into the water proved to Peter that He could do what Jesus did. After all, Peter and the other disciples had done many of the wonders that Jesus displayed to this point. Why would walking on water be any different? Peter wholly trusted Jesus and believed He could do what His Master was doing, and so he did. In v. 30, we see Peter successfully join Jesus on the water after asking Him to prove His identity. But this endearing moment of peace and conquering of the sea lasted just for a moment. Matthew writes, “But seeing the wind, he [Peter] became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, ‘Lord, save me!’” The image here is of a great wave. Matthew says Peter saw the wind, but the wind cannot be seen. Thus, Peter must have seen enormous waves crashing all around him, which took his gaze away from Jesus. Peter’s faith then shriveled away into fear and doubt amid the great storm. Certainly, the storm’s ferocity was reason enough to fear but there was no fear in the presence of Jesus. Peter’s initial confidence and trust in the power of Jesus allowed him to walk on water with Jesus. There was nothing He did but trust in the LORD and gaze at Him. It was only when Peter took His eyes off Christ that he acknowledged his surroundings and began to fearfully sink. Notably, Jesus’ response to Peter’s doubt and fear is not disappointment or frustration but inexplicable love and support. Matthew continues, “31 Immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him, and said to him, ‘You of little faith, why did you doubt?’” Jesus’ initial response to Peter’s ‘failure’ in doubting was to pick him up and console him, not degrade or cast a shadow of displeasure. How often do we forget that our God loves us and does not look for our demise or cast shame upon us when we fail? How often do we forget that He wants us to grow in our faith and pick us up when we fail? The same image is seen here. Jesus does not praise or patronize Peter in his doubt but questions it. Peter’s faith in Christ empowered him to walk on water but his doubt drowned his faith causing him to sink. Jesus’ question is authentic and from a place of love. Peter was doing it—he was walking on water! Jesus knew Peter could do it as long as he focused on Him, but he doubted. So, why did he doubt? He lost focus on the peace and power of Christ and allowed his fear and doubt to overtake him. In this story, we see that faith in Christ can make anything possible according to His power and will, while fear leads to a faith that sinks amid surrounding storms. After saving Peter, they got into the boat and the storm calmed. Jesus stopped this storm as the forces of nature know their master,[1] proving His marvelous power and authority as God once again. “33 And those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, ‘You are certainly God’s Son!’” Application The juxtaposition of Peter’s walk on water blows me away because he had so much faith at the start. His faith in Christ, by the power of Christ, allowed him to walk on the sea. But in just a moment, his faith was gone as his fear pulled him under the water. How much does this story reflect the juxtaposing highs and lows of life? How often do we get excited about something only to shrivel away because of anxiety or fear? In Christ, it is possible to have genuine peace in all circumstances until the moment we take our gaze off of Him. While it is easy to make this passage about us, I believe we need to focus on how it reveals the power, authority, and love of Christ. Jesus walked on water and allowed Peter to do so through Peter’s faith in Him. Then once Peter failed, Jesus did not become disappointed but immediately helped him. It is so easy to forget God’s deep love and care for us, especially when we fail or fear. How often does shame shadow over us when we sin? Guilt when we are uncertain? Condemnation when we admittedly fail time and time again? Thankfully, our LORD and Savior is there for us in these moments. We can come boldly to His throne of grace in our time of need—in our sin, our fear, our guilt and shame, and our failures. He is there to lift us as we look to Him for our peace and salvation. He will never abandon or forsake us, never patronize us, or leave us dead in our sins if we humbly come to Him. Sure, this story can stretch to provide an application to always focus on Christ during the storms of life, but most importantly, it reveals the greatness of our God. May we praise, worship, honor, and glorify Jesus every day in all that we do while continually pursuing righteousness, holiness, and forgiveness as He forgave us. Looking Ahead Thank you for joining today’s daily Bible reading! Next, we read Matthew 14:34-36. I hope you join me! I have made commenting available, so please feel free to discuss the reading and ask questions. If you do not want to discuss publicly, you can reach out to me privately. We are on this journey together. References [1] Doug O’Donnell, “New International Greek Testament Commentary.”
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
WRITTEN BY
|