What If Jesus Is Asking You to Step Out of the Boat?

By Pastor John Erickson

Some of the most memorable stories in the Gospels involve Jesus and a boat.

And, apparently, Jesus' disciples had a habit of encountering terrible weather when they were in one.

In Mark 4, Jesus is asleep in the boat during a storm. The disciples panic, wake him up, and he calms the waves.

Then in Matthew 14, they're in another storm, on the same lake. Only this time, Jesus isn't sleeping in the boat.

He's walking on the water.

That's one way to make a sequel more interesting.

But what stands out to me isn't only the miracle. It's what happens to Peter-and what that says about how we follow Jesus when we're scared.

Sometimes Obedience Takes You into Hard Places

Matthew 14:22 says Jesus directs the disciples to get into the boat and cross the lake while he goes away to pray.

By the time evening comes, the disciples are far from shore and struggling against the wind. They spend hours trying to make progress.

The funny thing is, they are doing exactly what Jesus told them to do.

We have this idea sometimes that obeying God ought to come with calm conditions. If the next step is difficult, we start wondering whether we misheard him.

But the presence of a storm doesn't always tell us anything about whether we were supposed to get in the boat.

I've discovered that some of the times I've grown the most have also been some of the hardest seasons of my life. Not because the pain was fun. It wasn't. But because I learned things there that I would not have learned by staying comfortable.

I do not say that as someone whose life has been smooth sailing. Gina and I have faced painful seasons, and there have been times when I seriously questioned whether I could keep going as a pastor. Help from others mattered. I am not grateful for every painful thing, but I am grateful that God met us there and helped us grow.

The disciples had already been through one storm with Jesus. Now they're learning something else.

Jesus Can See You Even When You Can't See Him

Matthew tells us that Jesus had withdrawn to pray. The disciples are out on the water, fighting against the wind, and Jesus seems far away.

I can imagine them thinking, Where is he? We could really use a little help here.

But their inability to see Jesus doesn't mean he has lost track of them.

This is something I think many of us need to remember. We look around at our circumstances, and because we can't see what God is doing, we assume maybe he's not paying attention.

But Scripture tells us that Jesus intercedes for his people. Romans 8:34 describes Christ at the right hand of God, interceding for us.

We may be straining against the wind and unable to see very far. He has not forgotten us.

And then, in Matthew's story, Jesus doesn't simply send some encouragement from shore. He comes to them.

Walking on the water. Naturally.

"Take Courage. It Is I."

When the disciples see someone approaching across the waves, their first thought isn't, Oh good, Jesus has arrived.

They think it's a ghost.

Honestly, can you blame them?

It's dark, the water is rough, and now there's a person walking on top of it. I think that might be enough for me too.

But Jesus tells them to take courage and not be afraid. He identifies himself before asking them to do anything.

That's important. Courage doesn't begin with pretending the wind isn't blowing. It begins with recognizing who is calling us.

Then Peter does something remarkable.

He says, in effect, 'If that's really you, tell me to come to you.'

And Jesus says one word: 'Come.'

Peter Actually Gets Out

I wonder what I would have done. Would I have climbed over the side of the boat, or would I have been the guy saying, Peter, that is a terrible idea? We have a perfectly good boat here.

I once used a rowing machine at Planet Fitness for about six minutes before moving on to the elliptical. Six minutes. So I have some sympathy for disciples straining at the oars through the night. My fitness routine has not prepared me to criticize them.

Peter gets out. And for a little while, he does the impossible.

He walks on water toward Jesus.

It's easy to focus on what happens next. We know that Peter gets distracted by the wind, becomes afraid, and starts to sink.

But don't move past the first part too quickly. Peter actually stepped out in faith.

Sometimes we talk about the disciples as though eleven of them failed because they stayed in the boat and Peter failed because he started sinking.

But that's not the point of the story. Jesus doesn't leave the other disciples to drown because they weren't bold enough to jump overboard. He comes to them too.

Not everybody takes the same step at the same time. Some of us are still gripping the sides of the boat. And as we learn to trust Jesus, maybe our grip gets a little looser.

Then one day we find ourselves taking a step we didn't think we could take.

When Peter Sinks, Jesus Reaches Out

The moment Peter notices the wind, fear takes over. He begins to sink and cries, 'Lord, save me!'

And Matthew says Jesus immediately reaches out and catches him.

Immediately.

That's what I love most about the story. Peter doesn't have to explain himself while he's going under. Jesus doesn't give him a ten-minute lecture before helping him. He takes his hand.

Yes, Jesus challenges Peter's doubt. But he does it while rescuing him, not instead of rescuing him.

How often do we assume that a failure of faith means we've lost our chance? I got distracted. I worried. I didn't follow through. I took my eyes off Jesus.

Peter's story reminds us what we can do next.

'Lord, save me.'

It doesn't have to be a fancy prayer.

Don't Carry Every Storm with You

I have a bad habit when I'm worried. I rehearse conversations in my head. I imagine something that could go wrong, and then I mentally play through all the ways I might respond.

I pace around. Sometimes I even start moving my mouth while I'm having one of these imaginary conversations. My kids have looked at me and asked, 'Dad, who are you talking to?'

I have an answer ready: 'I'm praying.'

Sometimes I am. Other times, I'm mostly worrying.

Worry has a way of carrying the storm around with us even after the waves have calmed down. We keep replaying what happened or preparing for disasters that haven't happened yet.

Peter was doing something amazing while he looked toward Jesus. When his attention became consumed by the wind, he was overwhelmed.

I don't think the answer is to pretend we have no fears. The answer is to know where to turn with them.

So when the wind picks up, where is your attention going? Are you looking only at the circumstances, or are you listening for the one who says, 'Come'?

And when you get distracted and start sinking-as all of us do sometimes-remember this:

Jesus still reaches out his hand.