Matthew 14:22-36
Verse 25 Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake.
We are going to back up a day or so and talk about the follow up story to the feeding of the 5000 because it wasn’t the only miracle that He performed that evening that spoke of His power over the natural portions of creation.
After sending the people home with full bellies, Jesus sends the disciples on their way too and then He heads for the mountainside to pray. After hours of pouring Himself out to the people He had come to save, Jesus needed to be filled up by the only relationship that would fill Him, His relationship with the Father.
We don’t know what He prayed about that night but we can know that it was a blessing to Him because it would have always blessed Him to be alone with the Father. He understood the necessity of getting alone with the Father and telling Him the burdens of His heart. We should find the same to be true for us.
Jesus was on the mountain for most of the night and then knowing His disciples were in danger as a strong storm was coming across the lake, He decides to go to them. These men were fishermen but that didn’t mean that they felt okay with storms at sea. Remember they were in a wooden boat which would more easily break up than the metal or fiberglass building materials that are more common in our day. He wasn’t physically with them but He was with them in heart and knew He needed to go to them.
He didn’t break His humanity to just appear in the boat with them. Wouldn’t that have freaked them out?! No, He uses His human nature to get there but also His power as Creator to overcome the natural force of gravity. He could have just as easily told the storm to stop without even going to them but that wasn’t the only thing that needed to happen. Walking on water could be seen as a miracle but the real miracle was that He also allowed Peter to defy gravity so that Peter could know the truth of His power. It also gave Peter a memory that he wouldn’t be able to shake. He was a “show me” kind of guy and Jesus allowed him to experience something that only Jesus had been able to do. It also gave the other disciples reason to believe He was the Son of God. While the making all that food didn’t seem to reach them, the walking on water and calming the sea was enough for them to understand the truth.
Making It Personal
How important is time in prayer to you? Do you tell the Father all that is bothering you or just ask Him to fix things? What are things that you have seen God do that built your faith in Him?
Making It Personal Kids
Do you take time to pray? What things do you pray about? What are some things that you have seen that Jesus alone could do?
Closing Prayer
Father, thank You for being willing to listen to us no matter the time of day or night. And thank You for being willing to reveal Your power to us so that we can believe more deeply in who You are. Help us use that faith to grow in our relationship with You and to share You with others. In Jesus’ name, amen.