Deep Water Faith
Notes
Transcript
Today we’re in week two of our series Cast the Nets. And if you’re visiting or missed last week, Cast the Nets is the vision of where God is leading our church. Expanded multisite ministry. Multiplied mission impact. Transformation to our spaces. And in many ways, this campus is the perfect example of each of those things happening. I think of those of you who were members here at Concordia Lutheran Church and took that step of faith into multisite ministry with WLC and the fruit that has come from that. You look around and you see the power of refreshed spaces - the new Connection Center, the updated courtyard. Today is my first day seeing it all and it looks incredible. And mission impact - gosh you guys need to see Pastor Joel’s face when he talks about serving at Kaposia down the road. You know Joel, he doesn’t always show his excitement, but you can see it when he talks about that. God has done incredible things through each of our three campuses of Woodbury Lutheran, amen? And now we have a vision of God doing what he has done here all throughout the Twin Cities. To press out from the shores, and in an act of faith, head into deep waters.
In many ways, we like the shores, don’t we. Shores are safe. My feet can touch the ground on the shore. I can relax. This is actually where my wife, Kali, and I are very different. Her idea of swimming is jumping off diving boards in the deep end of a pool, swimming far underneath the water searching for rings, dunking other people. She goes crazy when she is in the water. Raise your hand if that is you when it comes to swimming? And then there is me. Swimming to me is laying back in a floaty riding down a lazy river. Anyone else? I love a good lazy river. I can relax. The current just guides my floaty along. Even if I fall off, I am in no real danger in a lazy river because my feet can touch the ground. But in a lazy river, a floaty is merely a convenience. It is not necessary. I am not depending on this floaty to survive. But if suddenly, I found myself, not in a lazy river, but stranded in the middle of the ocean. Feet no longer touching the ground. Storms around me. Waves crashing. Suddenly, this floaty is no longer just a convenience. But I am clinging to it as tightly as I can, because I know it is the only thing keeping me afloat.
Faith can sometimes feel like a floaty on the lazy river of life. Things are smooth. You feel in control. Faith is a nice add-on — something for Sundays, great music from Nate and the band, good community — a comfort that makes life’s ride a little easier. But what happens when life stops feeling like a lazy river and starts feeling like a storm in the middle of the ocean? When your feet can’t find the bottom and the waves tower over you? What happens when the water you find yourself in is so deep and so dark that you can’t imagine how you’ll make it through?
[Radecki Testimony]
The deepest of waters. There is nothing in life that can prepare you for that. In an instant, you go from enjoying life safely on the shore to finding yourself in the middle of a storm. I think of David’s cry to God in Psalm 69,
Save me, O God, for the floodwaters are up to my neck. Deeper and deeper I sink into the mire; I can’t find a foothold. I am in deep water, and the floods overwhelm me. I am exhausted from crying for help; my throat is parched. My eyes are swollen with weeping, waiting for my God to help me.
Something you notice quickly when you read Scripture is that God’s people are no strangers to deep waters. Noah, Moses, Jonah, Peter — again and again, we find God’s people in situations that seem impossible to get through. And yet it is not coincidence. While we do not always know the why of the deep waters we find ourselves in, we do know God can do some of his greatest work in the deepest of waters. And I think that’s because deep waters do three things specifically that we are going to explore today.
Deep waters expose our lack of control
Deep waters expose our lack of control
And the first is that Deep waters expose our lack of control. Jesus just got done feeding the five thousand, and our reading picks up:
Immediately after this, Jesus insisted that his disciples get back into the boat and cross to the other side of the lake, while he sent the people home.
Isn’t that interesting? Jesus insists that his disciples get back into the boat. Keep that in mind. Jesus then goes up on a hill to be by himself and pray. And it goes on and says,
Meanwhile, the disciples were in trouble far away from land, for a strong wind had risen, and they were fighting heavy waves.
Now the Sea of Galilee, where they were, sits like a bowl surrounded by steep hills. When strong winds sweep down, violent downdrafts can form waves six to ten feet high. No floaty is going to save you in that. And the worst part? These storms can appear in minutes—clear skies one moment, complete chaos the next.
Now these were fishermen—experts on the water. Being out on a boat didn’t scare them; they were confident, they were in control. And yet suddenly, they were caught in a storm far bigger than anything they could handle. Completely beyond their control.
And that’s what scares us too. It’s not just the hard things themselves — it’s losing control. We live in a world that says, “Work harder, plan better, do enough, and life will go your way.”
But then the storm hits. The waves rise higher than you can manage. You can’t row harder. You can’t fix it. And you realize — you’re not in control. Deep waters expose our lack of control.
Deep waters reveal the one who is in control
Deep waters reveal the one who is in control
Which leads to the second thing deep waters do and that is reveal the one who is in control. The disciples are stranded. Deep in fear. But then,
About three o’clock in the morning Jesus came toward them, walking on the water. When the disciples saw him walking on the water, they were terrified. In their fear, they cried out, “It’s a ghost!” But Jesus spoke to them at once. “Don’t be afraid,” he said. “Take courage. I am here!”
Isn’t it interesting? Not, “Don’t be afraid because this storm is not a big deal.” Not, “Don’t be afraid because you can handle this yourself.” No, don’t be afraid because I am here. The presence of Jesus is the source for their peace amidst the storm. Why? Because He is in control. Look at Jesus. Not running, but walking to them. Not shouting, “Row harder!” but speaking calmly: “You don’t have to be afraid” The one who can walk on water, the one who can silence the waves, the one is in control when everything feels out of control — He is here.”
Deep waters reveal the presence and power of Jesus in ways the shore never can. Imagine if the disciples were still docking the boat and Jesus said, “Don’t be afraid. Take courage. I am here.” They’d probably respond, “Thanks, Jesus. Good to see you.” But it’s only when the storm hits — when the waves rise and fear takes hold — that they truly see who He is.
We often think peace comes from avoiding deep waters — that if life just stays calm, we’ll be at peace. But that’s a false peace, one that vanishes the moment the storm begins. What we need is a peace not dependent on the storm, but greater than it — a peace that commands the wind and waves. A peace that comes from trusting Jesus.
Deep waters produce deep faith in God’s control
Deep waters produce deep faith in God’s control
And that’s the last thing deep waters do. Deep waters produce deep faith in God’s control. Peter, seeing Jesus walking on the water, calls to him
Then Peter called to him, “Lord, if it’s really you, tell me to come to you, walking on the water.” “Yes, come,” Jesus said. So Peter went over the side of the boat and walked on the water toward Jesus.
Now Peter gets a lot of slack for what happens next, but don’t miss the transformation! Peter goes from being terrified and filled with fear, to stepping out of the boat and walking towards him. There is no situation in the world where Peter, in the middle of a storm, would think to get out and walk on the water. But he suddenly there was a deep faith produced in him that would lead him to follow Jesus into the deepest of waters. But then his faith was shaken.
But when he saw the strong wind and the waves, he was terrified and began to sink. “Save me, Lord!” he shouted.
Isn’t that how it works? You are following Jesus. Your eyes are fixated on him. You are trusting in him. And then a wave so big, so deep, so wide comes that it takes your eyes off of him and you begin to sink. Your faith which seemed so strong before now suddenly feels so weak, and you are left helpless crying out, “Save me, Lord. This is too much. I am overwhelmed with fear.” And it’s in that place that we see our Lord Jesus is not just in control. Not just sovereign. But he is our savior.
Jesus immediately reached out and grabbed him. “You have so little faith,” Jesus said. “Why did you doubt me?”
He grabs Peter. He doesn’t let him drown. And then Jesus says, “You have so little faith.” Not to shame Peter, but to say, “Peter, your trust in me can go so much deeper than you realize.”
And the same is true with you. The degree to which you can trust God is so much greater than you realized. Isaiah 43:2 says,
When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown.
You hear that promise? God will be with you. You will not drown. Whatever deep waters you find yourself in, God is going to bring you through. Whether it is like Noah where God used an ark to deliver him through the waters of the flood or Jonah where God used the belly of a fish to deliver him through the waters of the sea. And God has connected you to Jesus Christ. Romans 6:3-5 says,
Or have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in baptism, we joined him in his death? For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives. Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was.
May 11, 2008. That was the day Libby was baptized—the day she was joined to Jesus and His saving work for her. From that day on, Jesus was with her, producing a beautiful faith that we got to witness here at WLC and saw flourish at Camp Daniel. Jesus was with her. He was in control. And even as Libby’s car slid out of control that Valentine’s Day night, and she tragically passed away, she was not alone. Jesus was with her, carrying her through the deepest waters of death into everlasting life.
As an individual, you cannot escape the storms of life. As a church, we can’t know what the future holds. But we are not alone. We are called to deeper waters, and when those storms arise, we are not left with a mere floaty or called to row harder. We have Jesus. The one who is in control. And the one who leads our church with words of, “Do not fear. Take courage. I am here.” Let us pray.
