Peter said to Him,
Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.
– Matthew 14:28
No Time to Grieve
When Christ Jesus received the news his cousin John had been brutally beheaded to please Herod’s sister-in-law, He gathered his disciples and took a boat across the Sea of Galilee to a secluded place to pray.
He would have no time to grieve, however. Thousands of people were gathered at the shore when He arrived, and He spent the rest of the day healing their sick and feeding them. When He realized a mob was planning to make him king by force, He sent the crowds away and told the disciples to take the boat back to the other side. Jesus stayed behind alone.
It was nearly dawn and the disciples were about 600 feet from land when a strong wind stirred up the waves and battered the boat. It was no small storm. Matthew’s account of the event literally states that the boat was “tormented.” The men rowed furiously against the wind. They were trapped in the sea, far beyond safe shores and the hope of rescue.
They may have expected to die. They certainly didn’t expect what happened next. Deliverance walked to them right through the waves – unhindered by the wind, unfettered by the laws of nature. Not calming the storm, but conquering it.
They were terrified, thinking Jesus was a ghost. He said, “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.”
Peter, unconvinced, said, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.”
Jesus replied, “Come!”
You’re being tormented by a similar storm today.
The waves are threatening to sink you at any moment. Your own efforts have gotten you nowhere, and there is no way to escape impending disaster.
But wait. Who is that you see in the midst of the raging tempest? It looks like the One who healed the sick and fed a crowd with the disciples’ lunch. Who is this man?
He is the Christ, the One who conquers storms. He is not bound in the least by the laws of nature. This man walks on water. He calls you out of the besieged vessel of your circumstances. He invites you to join Him in a stroll on the waves.
Don’t be afraid. Take courage. You’re going to get to shore just fine.
He says to you, Come.