“TAKE HEART IT IS JESUS.  DO NOT BE AFRAID”

Matthew 14:22 ²²Immediately [Jesus] made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds.

            Jesus never meant to stay with us on earth and hold our hands throughout our lives.  However, Jesus did leave us with an out stretched hand to help us out of the pits we put ourselves into.  That’s right we put ourselves in the pits life wants to hand us.  Isn’t that the pits?  Or is it?  Jesus lets us go not to fend for ourselves but to fend for ourselves through faith that He will come when we need Him.  The apostles didn’t need Jesus to row the boat for them they can do this on their own.  Should anything come up that might hinder the apostles’ crossing then faith should take over and see them through.  We should certainly read the instructions God has provided to show us how to row the boat of life, especially when the storms of life pop up.  Faith should see us through all of our storms we face.

            Read Matthew 8:5-13, here a centurion realized that he did not need Jesus to go with him to heal his servant.  Jesus realizing this centurion’s faith stayed in place and healed the servant without going to where the servant was.  Faith is what Jesus asks us to have as we witness all that He does and has done.  We witness what Jesus has done through the Holy Scriptures, and what He is doing through observing the answers to our prayers, and when we realize and see our salvation.  Our sinful nature finds a way to get between us and faith in Jesus Christ.  Our sinful nature creates doubt in us whether or not our Lord will follow through with all of His promises.  Our sinful nature steals the joy from knowing what our Lord has promised us and feeds us with lies.

            Matthew 14:22–33 ²³And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, ²⁴but the boat by this time was a long way from the land, beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them.

            The storms of life beat on us all and most of the time.  Surely we have times of calm but when the storm kicks up we get afraid and life gets a little unsure.  We hear the thunder, and see the lightning strikes and then we tremble wondering why God has abandoned us.

            Our little wired hair Jack Russell, Rusty, is very afraid of storms.  Up until this year Rusty was also afraid to go down to the basement because of the open stairs leading down.  Those open stairs just looked to him like he might fall through them.  Rusty would always jump on Anita’s lap when it stormed or if I’m home then it is my lap he jumps on to protect him from the storm.  Rusty always wants us to take him for a ride during the storms too in hopes that we will drive him away from the storm.  This year Rusty is spending more time alone because Anita is working at Wal-Mart, so Rusty doesn’t have a lap to jump on when it storms. 

            The good news is Rusty has overcome his fear of the basement stairs.  The bad news is that his fear of the storms trumped his fear of the basement stairs and overcoming his fear we find him in the basement during storms.  You would think after nine years of storms Rusty would be used to them by now, but every time I’m with Rusty during a storm, I still have to tell him everything will be all right.  Rusty looks at me with eyes that say, “Yah right, tell me another story!”

            Like Rusty no matter how many times the storms of life hit us we still fear that God’s not going to answer our prayers or that He has left us completely.  Our sinful nature wants us to doubt as did the apostles in the storm.

            Matthew 14:22–33 ²⁵And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea. ²⁶But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” and they cried out in fear. ²⁷But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.”

            Take heart it is Jesus.  Do not be afraid.  Many people say they hope they will make it to heaven; this is because our sinful nature wants to put doubt into our minds and into our hearts.  But Jesus tells us He is with us to the end of the age.  Age, in this context means an era, the end time of creation where the beginning of the new heavens and earth will begin.

            Matthew 14:22–33 ²⁸And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” ²⁹He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. ³⁰But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.” ³¹Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” ³²And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. ³³And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

            Peter actually walked on the water long enough to come to Jesus before his sinful nature took control and he sank into the sea.  We are constantly sinking into the sea of our sinful nature.  And though water by itself cannot baptize us, the Word of God with the water can.  O you of little faith, you are baptized into adoption and protection of our loving Father in heaven.  Fear not, Christ from the cross has reached out His hand to save you.  Peter had lost faith and sunk into the sea, but Christ renewed his faith when He rescued Peter from being drowned by his sinful nature.

            Peter had been with Jesus for three years and had witnessed the many miracles and acts of love that Jesus had done.  Through the works of Jesus Christ Peter had been given enough faith to cry out “Lord, save me,” and Christ reached out and saved Peter.  Notice Jesus said “O you of little faith,” knowing that Peter had received some faith as do we through the word Jesus had given him.  This is the good news; this is what is so great and awesome, Jesus Christ reaches out grabs our hand and saves us.  We are adopted to be brothers and sisters with Christ; though we might have faltering faith through the storms of life Jesus is here to save us.  We are not saved because of the amount of faith or belief we have, but even with a little faith and belief we are saved by the grace and mercy of our loving God, this is the good news; this is what is so great and awesome.  Amen.