Jesus wants to know
Notes
Transcript
Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone, and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.
Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear.
But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”
“Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”
“Come,” he said.
Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”
Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”
And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”
Introduction
Do you ever struggle with doubts in your life? You try really hard but sometimes the doubts seem to overtake your thinking and you sort of fall into a pit of doubt and negative thoughts. You probably don’t doubt the great teachings of the Bible or anything like that. Our doubts usually show up when we try to apply the teachings of God in our daily lives
Even the Disciples struggled with doubt at times. But Jesus did not reject them when the expressed doubt. He instead used those situations to teach them about faith.
Jesus asked the question “Why did you doubt?”
He wanted them to think about why they doubted so that they could move past it.
WHY DO WE DOUBT?
WHY DO WE DOUBT?
Doubt can come when we allow our circumstances to control us
Doubt can come when we allow our circumstances to control us
In , Jesus had spent all day doing ministry. He fed more than 5000 people and then spent more than half the night by himself in prayer. But He knew the Disciples needed Him.
He walked on the raging Sea of Galilee out to where they were floundering.
When Peter say Jesus coming he asked if he could walk on the water to Jesus and Jesus said yes…and he did…UNTIL...
Peter allowed the circumstances of the wind and the wave to take control…that’s when doubt set in
Circumstances can control you when they temporarily overshadow Christ
When Christ is overshadowed His commands are overshadowed
And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people.
When Christ is overshadowed His care is overshadowed
Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”
Matthew 14:
Circumstances can control you when by challenging your personal well-being
Mt. 14:
Many people today feel like their personal well-being is at risk — and it causes great fear and anxiety
It is a horrible thing to feel like your life is being threatened by something that you have no control over. When Peter took his eyes off of Jesus, that kind of feeling took over…and doubt flooded his heart.
Circumstances can control you by causing your future to seem uncertain
Peter and the other Disciples had given up everything to follow Christ - so when this storm threatened to kill them…it must have been horrible to feel like it was about to end in their death.
Doubt can take over when fear takes the place of faith in our hearts
Doubt can take over when fear takes the place of faith in our hearts
What is biblical faith? “An active trust and confidence in God and His will for you.”
It is a great source of joy and peace - but how often, like Peter, do we allow fear to drive out our faith instead of the other way around?
When fear replaces faith, your courage is weakened
When fear replaces faith, your courage is weakened
When fear replaces faith, your obedience is hindered
When fear replaces faith, your effectiveness is limited
When fear replaces faith, you confidence is destroyed
Peter sunk like a rock when fear replaced faith — His courage vanished in a flash
Jesus told the Disciples “If you love me, you will obey my commandments”
But if we allow fear to dictate how we think, speak, and live, we will find ourselves drifting quickly away from a life of obedience. Our love for Jesus will begin to be choked out by the distractions of fear and doubt.
Peter’s effectiveness walking on the water only lasted as long as his trust was in Jesus. The moment fear took over, the water-walking stopped.
Jesus is asking - “Why do you doubt?”
Jesus is asking - “Why do you doubt?”
Remember:
Doubt can come when we allow our circumstances to control us
Doubt can come when we allow our circumstances to control us
Doubt can take over when fear takes the place of faith in our hearts
Doubt can take over when fear takes the place of faith in our hearts
You are not stuck with your doubt
When you understand why you have doubt, you can face it head on, in faith, and defeat it.
God’s desire is to help us defeat our doubts and walk through our challenges in faith, instead of doubt