Walk on Water

Christian Standard Bible Chapter 6

16 When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, 17 got into a boat, and started across the sea to Capernaum. Darkness had already set in, but Jesus had not yet come to them. 18 A high wind arose, and the sea began to churn. 19 After they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea. He was coming near the boat, and they were afraid. 20 But he said to them, “It is I., Don’t be afraid.” 21 Then they were willing to take him on board, and at once the boat was at the shore where they were heading

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The Bible Exposition Commentary (Chapter Six: Jesus Loses His Crowd (John 6))

Did Jesus know that a storm was coming? Of course. Then why did He deliberately send His friends into danger? Quite the opposite is true: He was rescuing them from greater danger, the danger of being swept along by a fanatical crowd. But there was another reason for that storm: the Lord has to balance our lives; otherwise we will become proud and then fall. The disciples had experienced great joy in being part of a thrilling miracle. Now they had to face a storm and learn to trust the Lord more. The feeding of the 5,000 was the lesson, but the storm was the examination after the lesson.

300 Sermon Illustrations from Charles Spurgeon Really Trusting the Pilot (Genesis 45:28; Luke 6:46; John 15:14; 2 Timothy 1:12)

Really Trusting the Pilot

Genesis 45:28; Luke 6:46; John 15:14; 2 Timothy 1:12

Preaching Themes: Commitment, Faith, Obedience and Disobedience, Salvation

It is not sufficient merely to say that you trust Christ for salvation, and then to imagine there is nothing further to be done. I have often tried to expose that delusion by representing a pilot as being brought on board a vessel, and the captain and sailors saying that they all had confidence in him that he would take the ship safely into the haven. They said they trusted him, but having declared their faith in him, they all went below and lay down to sleep.

Now, of course, the pilot wanted to have the sails attended to, and the ship put in good trim, and he needed the helmsman to manage the rudder, so he called out, “What are you all doing down there? Why have you all run away from me?”

And one of them answered, “Because we trust in you. You are the pilot, and you said you would bring us safely into port. We trust in you. So the captain has gone to his cabin, and all the sailors have gone to the forecastle. You see, it is a wet night, a strong northwester is blowing, it is very cold, and we would rather be comfortable and snug in our berths than up there on deck. You said that you would bring us to the haven, and we trust in you to do it.”

The pilot would of course reply, “You do not really trust in me, for if you did, you would do as I tell you. You are mocking me; you are insulting me. You have brought me on board your ship to make a fool of me. If you really trusted me, every man would take his proper place and do his duty, and then, as I gave the word of command, it would be obeyed, and so you would be brought safely into port.”

It is just so with Christ and ourselves. We trust him entirely to save us, but we have no right to say that we are saved if we do not practically obey him.

wat you to notice that again, these men were men of the sea. They are not novice about the situation they’re in . Do you remember how it feels to know your skillset so well, then run into a road block so much so that you are beyond frustrated, and after all your effort is done nothing still seems to fix it. This is what these guys are running into. All their expertise on handling life and the weather is null against this new situation.

“18 A high wind arose, and the sea began to churn”

how’s your week been? how’s your navigating this week? has there been stormy weather?

Have you felt alone in that journey

“But what if feeling God’s absence could be a faith builder instead of a faith breaker? What if noticing how far God feels proves his nearness? What if seeing the space between God and us led to longing instead of despair?”

“Absence isn’t the same thing as nonexistence. Something that does not exist cannot be absent, since it was never present to begin with. And here’s a key to the relationship between absence and presence: the more profound the presence, the more painful the absence. The heavier foot leaves a deeper track. The weight of God’s presence leaves footprints on the soft soil of hearts that belong to him.

“After all, the desires we have are placed in our hearts for a reason. We hunger because there is food. We thirst because there is water. We feel God’s absence because he truly exists and we are designed to be near him. Only God can satisfy our longings for God.”

Therefore, if God is feeling absent in your life, let this be an encouragement to you that he very much exists and can very much be found”

"...these may be times when God is withdrawing himself and forcing me to experience his absence in preparation for knowing his presence in a new and better way.

This is a good absence, something worth waiting through as disturbing as the emptyness may be, becaue of what it follows"

Phill Needham -When God Becomes Small