Faith For Today (2)
Sermon • Submitted • Presented
0 ratings
· 10 viewsNotes
Transcript
You got to get out of the boat!
You got to get out of the boat!
Matthew 14:22–23 (ESV)
Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone,
And he saw that they were making headway painfully, for the wind was against them. And about the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea. He meant to pass by them,
***VIDEO BY CASTING CROWNS***
We have to remember that the disciples, all Jews for that matter, knew the Old Testament and would easily recognize the reference Christ is making with His actions. The phrase “would have passed by them” finds its roots in Old Testament passages such as Exodus 33:19, 22 and 1 Kings 19:11. In those two sections of scripture God revealed Himself as God to Moses and Elijah by “passing by.” That’s what Christ is doing here.
And he said, “I will make all my goodness pass before you and will proclaim before you my name ‘The Lord.’ And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will show mercy on whom I will show mercy.
and while my glory passes by I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with my hand until I have passed by.
And he said, “Go out and stand on the mount before the Lord.” And behold, the Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind tore the mountains and broke in pieces the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake.
But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.”
But He does offer this encouragement:
“It is I, do not be afraid”
Confirming this self-revelation are the words the Lord spoke as He passed by “Be of good cheer; it is I; do not be afraid.”
Admittedly , the words “Be of good cheer” might not do much for you if they have been spoken by a ghost, but “it is I” is another matter. “It is I” is another way of saying “I am.”
They didn’t recognize Jesus when He came to them.
It is not like they haven’t seen Him in a while. They had just spent time with him and a full day has not passed. He comes walking toward them and they are frightened.
But isn’t that just like us. We don’t see Jesus in our storms?
Why?
We are so caught up with what we are going through that we don’t recognize when God shows up.
The disciples couldn’t see Jesus due to the fact that their attention was on the storm that was around them. What storm is raging in your life, right now, to take your attention and focus off Christ?
Jesus comes toward the ship walking on water and says the same words that He wants you to hear:
“It is I, be not afraid”
Matthew 14:28
And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.”
***Peter sought the will of Christ, “command me to come.”
“God if it’s really you, just tell me what to do.”
“God if it’s really you, just tell me where to go.”
***Peter sought the presence of Christ, “command me to come to you...”
“God, I don’t want to go anywhere you are not working.”
This should be our attitude as Christ followers, Nothing but God!
Notice the next thing that Peter did. He wasn’t going out there alone. He said “Jesus, command me to come to you.” He wanted to make sure Jesus was going to be right there with him. You know, risks are always easier to make when you have someone with you. It somehow helps us to know that we are not alone. This is equally true when we think about church. God created us as communal beings, meaning that we do so much better together than on our own. Together we can lift others up and we can be lifted up also.
If Jesus called your name, would you recognize His voice?
Do you know the sound of His voice? Or have you convinced yourself that you hear from God all the time.
I want to leave you with this thought. If you are a Christ follower,
You are not alone.
YOU ARE NEVER ALONE!
