Walk on Water (Matthew 14.22-33)

"So there we were, 12 men in our prime straining at the oars, putting all our backs into it, trying to make progress. The wind was howl. The waves were relentless.

We had set out from shore early that evening. We were rowing flat out for eight hours and only got three and a half miles. How do you think we were feeling? Well, I’ll tell you. We were exhausted, demoralised, and beginning to wonder how long all this was going to last.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, we see this… figure walking on the sea not far from the boat. I’m telling you now, I have never been so petrified in all my life. I felt this shiver run down my back. I don’t know if I believe in the paranormal, but this was spooky. Some of my mates were so freaked out they started to scream.

But when all the commotion calmed down, we heard a familiar voice. It was Jesus. It looked like he was walking on the water. He was walking on the water!  He looked over to us, and said, “Man up guys; it’s me. There’s no need to panic.”

If you’ve never seen anyone walk on water before – and I suppose you haven’t – you can’t imagine what it’s like. I can’t describe it. You’d have to be there.

Anyway, Peter sitting next to me, all of a sudden says, “Lord, if it is you, tell me to come to you on the water.”

As soon as he said that I turned round and said to him, “I don’t think you’ve thought this through have you pal?”

I saw the look on his face. It was a look that said, “Me and my big mouth!” But the thing about men is this; if you say you’re going to do something in front of your mates – you’ve got to do it, haven’t you?

Peter was always talking like that. Impulsive, that’s the word. It’s as if his brain only ever started working several seconds after his mouth moved.

So when Jesus shouted back, “Come on then” I’m sure I heard Peter swear under his breath. At that moment in time he looked like he would rather have a dozen ferrets down his trousers than have to leave that boat.

Anyway, the boat was heaving up and down with the waves and the wind. We were all watching, wondering what was going to happen. Some of us were poking each other in the ribs and laughing out loud. It was like the blokes on Top Gear when one of them breaks down in the middle of nowhere! “Bye bye, Peter! Ha ha ha!”

He had to do it now. And I tell you what; he put one foot over the side of the boat and then another. He was sitting right on the edge of the deck. Slowly but surely, he slid his backside towards the water – and let go of the side of the boat! And he actually started to walk towards Jesus on the water.

None of us were laughing now. But after a moment, Peter looked round at the howling wind and the rolling waves. He lost his nerve, and started to sink. “Lord, save me.” He sounded genuinely scared. No one thought this was funny now.

But Jesus immediately reached out and he took hold of him. “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” he said.

To be honest, in the moment, it was terrifying. But looking back there was nothing to be afraid of."

When I was about 12, I went swimming with my little brother and I told him I could jump off the top diving platform. In fact, I lied to him and boasted that I’d done it before and it was easy. He thought I was an absolute hero. “Wow,” he said. “Show me!” When I got to the top of the stairs, at the highest diving board, the pool below looked about the size of a postage stamp. It seemed to take me about half an hour of looking over the edge, holding on to the rail, before I summoned up the courage to jump in.

Of course it is one thing to say you will do something, it is quite another to actually do it.

It’s one thing to stand up today and say “Yes, I am going to make a stand for Christ” but I’d be the first to admit that it’s much harder to do it than say it.

But there comes a time in life when, like Peter who got out of the boat and took a step of faith, you have to stand up and be counted. As John Ortberg says, if you want to walk on water you've got to get out of the boat.

The story about walking on the water shows us that Jesus helps us to achieve the impossible in life.

Think about the hardest thing you face in your life this morning... With Christ, you can do it. Nothing is impossible with God. Peter said, “If this is really you, Jesus, then tell me to come to you, help me to do something that is impossible for me to do by myself, to walk on water.”

Bringing up a child is not actually impossible – but it is hard. Having four children myself I’ll tell you what I’ve found; the days go slowly – but the years go quickly. Today your little ones think you know everything. But before you know it they will be 16. Then they’ll think they know everything and you know nothing.

How are you going to shape Christian values in their lives in the meantime? You’ve got to make sure you keep walking and don’t sink.

When Peter began to sink, what was the problem? Did he start to doubt that Jesus was really standing on the water? No. There was Jesus, right there, standing and waiting for him. Peter’s problem was that he focused on the wind and the waves. When he took his eyes off Jesus, he began to doubt that he could do it.

You’ve got to keep your eyes fixed on Jesus too. We all have.

And when we fail, as we inevitably will at some point, Jesus is there to pick us up.

When we tell this story, we think about Peter’s failure – he started to sink and drown and he suffered the humiliation of having to be bailed out. But don’t forget that Peter had the guts to get out of his comfort zone in the first place while the others just sat around like lemons.

He had a go. And he actually started to walk on water. How many steps did he take? Two or three? Nine or ten?

Like Peter, there will be days when you and I have that sinking feeling, when everything seems to be going wrong. But when we call out to him, Jesus loves to grab us by the hand. That's why we call him our Saviour.

Setting out to do the impossible with Jesus is the best journey you can ever make.

So, like Peter, take a step of faith in Jesus today. Never mind what other people say, never mind how scary it seems.

It’s better than staying in the boat all your life and always wishing you’d had a go - but played safe and missed out on life’s greatest adventure.

Sermon preached at Saint Mary's Long Newton, 24th June 2012.