Matthew 14:28-32, Stay Focused..

Psalm 16:8 “I have set the Lord always before me; Because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved.”

Introduction...

The phrase, Keep your eyes on the prize, actually comes from the popular song during the civil rights movement in the 50’s and 60’s..

but it has some serious meaning...

means to stay focused on achieving a specific goal or objective despite obstacles or distractions. It suggests maintaining determination and not losing sight of the ultimate goal.

and with so many distractions in this world today, it is so easy to lose your focus and take your eyes off the prize...

just had turkeyfest this last weekend and even western day this weekend and if you played any of those games and if you lost focus for any reason, you just made a donation to the carnival...

losing focus can cause you to stumble and fall…lose whatever you doing…could cause serious injury..

if you driving a car

in class and the teacher is going over the review

at home you fall sleep and you was cooking..

in the church house

in your relationship and walk with Jesus...

TALK, PREACH....

it is a must that we stay focused and everything we do in our lives...

i tell my daughters, you live or die by the choices you make..

if choose not to stay focus on what needs to be focused on and get sidetracked, the outcome is no ones fault but your own...

no one told you to be on your phone while you were driving..

no one told you to focus on what you were gonna do after church and not the word of God..

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Christ must always be our focal point…it all leads to Christ..

because if we stay focused on Christ, in our everyday life, He will help our everyday life as well as our spiritual walk with Him..

Jesus is the umbrella and everything else falls under Him..

because through Him we have, peace, joy, comfort, prosperity, love, salvation...

the reason you don’t have any of these things, maybe your focus is on all of this worldly stuff..

Matthew 6:19–20 ““Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.”

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i am not saying that you will not still have storms in your life but if Jesus is your focal point.

you can walk right thru that storm with a smile on your face, with love in heart, knowing that if you stay focus Christ is there the whole...

but ever since i know this flesh is weak and Peter is about to give us a good example, when you do lose focus, yes i said when,

ain’t it good to know that Jesus has never left us of forsaken us and when you start to sink or stumble, Jesus will reach all the way down and pull you up and set you on solid rock...

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Let’s look at the text...

History

The book of Matthew, the apostle Matthew, formerly known as Levi the tax collector.

The heart of Matthew is that Jesus Christ is King.

Yes it was originally written for the Jews at that time but this gospel breathes a message for all. A message proclaim Christ the king as the hope of the world as our Great Deliver.

there goes another name for Him, TALK, PREACH.....

Matthew is a teaching gospel

it is an Ecclesiastical gospel, it is extremely useful for the church, as an apologetic tool to defend the faith, a handbook of instructions for new believers, and as a book of worship.

all which can be used and should be used on a daily basis

TALK, PREACH…...

here in this 14th chapter we see a few events unfolding before we get to our lesson

first, we see the recounting of John the baptist be beheaded by Herod..

next, Jesus feeds 5000 with 2 fish and 5 loaves of bread and had 12 baskets of leftovers...

now starting in v22, Jesus starts to send the crowd away and he tells the disciples to go to the other side

Jesus trying to get some rest and he goes to pray...

as the boat is in the middle of the sea, the bible says at about the 4th watch...This was somewhere between 3 a.m. and 6 a.m.

Jesus is coming to disciples and I can hear someone say, I see something on the water...

waking everyone up..

(WORK THE REST OF THE TEXT, TELL THE STORY…V27-28)

in this text there is so much meat for us to feed on...

we could look at how Christ presence is assured by personal preparation: prayer, v22-23

or how his presence conquers fear, v24-27

how he stirs hope of being saved, v28-31

even how his presence can calm the storms in your life, or nature, v32

and how when you truly know him, how he stirs confessions and worship..v33

so much meat right there...

but for today, God through the Holy Spirit, has given me direction to remind us today to STAY FOCUSED...

without true focus, we sin

we stumble, even fall down...

our relationship with christ could stall out..

all the things that effect our spiritual walk and even this physical walk...

but this text today will show us that when...

Christ is present in your life, just waiting on you

that Christ is always inviting you to come to him.

that you have to faith to leave your boat and go to Him

that when you do lose focus, He will be there to pick you up and through Him, salvation is available

Christ will call you out...

and i don’t know about you but when i realize what He has done for me, i can’t help but worship him...

Let’s go deeper into the text...

Points...

Matthew 14:28 “And Peter answered Him and said, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.””

First, we see the need of assurance

even though Jesus had told them in the previous verse, Matthew 14:27 “But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.””

Peter still needed that assurance it was Jesus to help him focus..

It is an instance of Peter's caution and due observance of the will of Christ, that he would not come without a warrant. Not, "If it be thou, I will come;" but If it be thou, bid me come.

Peter knew that Jesus is sovereign over our lives and our trials.

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This is the beginning of a relationship with Christ, is that you Christ...

next part of the relationship is the invitation and the walk of faith and the beginning of focus..

Matthew 14:29 “So He said, “Come.” And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus.”

Matthew C. The King Tests His Disciples’ Faith (14:22–33)

Peter is to be commended for his belief that Jesus could make him walk on water, but his confidence was that of a baby just learning to walk. Twice in Matthew, the hypocrites would ask for a sign to back up Jesus’ claims (12:38–45; 16:1–4). Both times Jesus denied them, because he knew they would not believe him even if he provided the sign. He had not come to put on impressive shows in an attempt to create faith where none existed. However, faith did exist in Peter, although it was small. Jesus, like a patient parent teaching a baby to walk, allowed Peter this demonstration of his power to nurture Peter’s faith to the next level of maturity. He commanded Peter, Come. Both Peter and the water obeyed the Messiah-King, and Peter walked toward Jesus on the water.

Christ right now is inviting someone to come to him.

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while we are on this walk with Jesus, we need to be sure and stay focused on Him and only Him...

Matthew 14:30 “But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!””

This is a wonderful picture of walking in faith, showing that Peter was able to do the miraculous as long as he looked to Jesus. When he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was troubled by fear and began to sink.

what Peter could see with his physical eyes (the violent, stormy sea) became larger in his mind than the one he was walking to..

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and because He lost focus, he begin to sink..

Wiersbe’s Expository Outlines on the New Testament Chapter 14

Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God” (Rom. 10:17, NKJV). But when he forgot the source and stopped looking unto Jesus (Heb. 12:1–2), he began to sink. The secret of overcoming the storm and doing the impossible is simply to believe the Word of God and keep looking to the Son of God.

when we focus on Jesus, not only will He give you strength but He will be your strength..

Exalting Jesus in Matthew Faith in the Face of Fear (14:22–32)

Jesus is strength in you

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even in our weakness and losing focus the good news it that Jesus is still there for us…SAVING US FROM OURSELVES...

Matthew 14:31 “And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?””

in spite of ourselves, Jesus is there to save us...

David Platt said in his commentary what matters most is not the measure of your faith but that what matters most is always the object of your faith. (faith the size of a mustard seed)

if we make Jesus the only object we focus on, even the trip and fall HE will be there to pick us up..

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Lastly we look at Jesus calling Peter out because of his little faith...

Once Jesus rescued Peter, He spoke to Peter about his little faith. This little faith led to the doubt and distraction that made Peter sink under the wind and the waves.

Jesus only asked this question once Peter was rescued. Yet at that point it was an entirely reasonable question to ask. Why did Peter doubt?

if Christ commands it shall be done

if Christ made a promise, it shall be fullfilled...

so why doubt and lose focus...

Conclusion...

The Bible Exposition Commentary Chapter Eleven: The King’s Withdrawal (Matthew 14)

What caused Peter to sink? His faith began to waver because he took his eyes off the Lord and began to look at the circumstances around him.

when He took his eyes of of the Lord...

church, losing focus for any length of time can cause great damage to our lives now and later..

staying focus on Christ will help us get through our storms..

it will help us enjoy those sunny days

why?

because we know who He is and what He has done for us and what He can do for us...

that old 100 means something to me now days...

And because He lives I can face tomorrow Because He lives All fear is gone Because I know He holds the future And life is worth the living Just because He lives

TALK, PREACH, CLOSE......