Explore the mysteries
of the
miraculous event
of
Jesus walking on water.
This page
gives new insights
while it
celebrates
the miraculous hope of God!
Here's What Happened!
On the day of this miracle,
Jesus instructed the disciples
to board a boat and go to the other side of the sea.
Then Jesus proceeded
to walk to a mountain to pray.
The disciples boarded a boat
and the boat
left the shore headed for the other side.
Several hours later,
the disciples found themselves
a long way from land and facing a huge storm.
It is not totally clear in the story
but the way I understand the story,
the disciples were having difficulty
dealing with this storm
and
they were somewhat afraid of this strong storm.
They were afraid
even though several of them were expert fishermen.
Mark 6:48 –50 NKJV
telling the story of Jesus walking on water:
“Now when evening came,
the boat was in the middle of the sea
and
Jesus was alone on the land.
Then Jesus saw them straining at rowing,
for the wind was against them.
Now about the fourth watch of the night
Jesus came to them,
walking on the sea,
and would have passed them by.
And when they saw Him walking on the sea,
they supposed it was a ghost,
and cried out:
for they all saw Him and were troubled.
But immediately Jesus talked with them and said to them,
“Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.”
Mark does not record the next thing to happen,
but we find out what happened
from the Gospel of Matthew.
Matthew chapter 14:28-29 NKJV
tells us that Peter yelled out,
'"Lord, if it is
you, ask me to come out on the water.'
Then Jesus said, 'Come.'"
Wow!
Then the story continues,
BUT
I’m going to stop there,
because if we just look at the story this far,
there is a lot to think about.
Please ponder with me.
Think about Jesus
walking to the edge of the shore
and then
stepping out onto the water and walking.
Amazing!
I wonder……
why
did Jesus
walk
on the water to get to the disciples?
-
Jesus didn't have to....
When I analyze the story,
I realize that
Jesus could have used a boat
to get to the disciples – even though he didn’t have a boat.
Remember the story of Palm Sunday?
Remember Jesus riding on a young donkey
on Palm Sunday?
Where did Jesus get the donkey?
Jesus didn’t have a donkey.
So how did he get that donkey?
Luke 19
tells us that as Jesus and the disciples
were walking to Jerusalem,
they came close to a couple of nearby villages.
Jesus sent two of the disciples to one of the nearby villages.
Jesus gave them these instructions,
“Go into the village opposite you, where as you enter
you will find a colt tied,
on which no one has ever sat.
Loose it and bring it here.
And if anyone asks you,
‘Why are you loosing it?’
thus you shall say to him,
‘Because the Lord has need of it.’”
So those who were sent went their way
and
found it just as He had said to them.
But as they were loosing the colt,
the owners of it said to them,
‘Why are you loosing the colt?’
And they said, ‘The Lord has need of him.’
Then they brought him to Jesus
and they threw their own clothes
on the colt,
and they set Jesus on him.”
That was the way Jesus got a colt to ride on Palm Sunday.
So, going back to Jesus walking on water -
the God of the Universe
could have had a boat ready for Jesus to use.
Jesus could have taken a vacant boat
out to the disciples
or
asked a boat owner to use or borrow his boat.
Why
did Jesus
WALK
on the water?
I believe God is using this story
to enlarge our view of our options
during difficult situations.
The disciples would have never dreamed
that the answer to their difficult stormy dilemma
would involve Jesus walking on water to help them.
I believe that God
wants us to realize
that there are not only natural options
but supernatural options
that God can use
to get us out of our
troubles and tight spots.
When we try to figure out how to get out of problems,
we see limited options.
But God is not limited.
God can bring help to us in many and varied ways.
Without the biblical story to read,
no one
standing with Moses
on that day
could have imagined
the outcome of their situation.
Think about Moses and the Red Sea.
That story has intrigued me for many years.
Through studying the story of the Red Sea rescue, God has shown me that many times his chosen rescue method is something that I would never think of - not in a million years.
Go back with me to the story of Moses and the Red Sea.
I have often pictured myself in that story.
There I am with Moses and thousands of people out in the wilderness. All of us can easily see Pharaoh's army in the distance. They are ready to capture us - or worse.
I would have been terrified. I would have been panicking, because - in my mind - I would see no rescue options.
I would have concluded that there was no escape. After all, the Red Sea - which was in front of us - would have appeared to have pinned us down to this location. We would see nowhere to run.
In a million years, I would never have imagined the escape plan that the Lord had for us.
Fear
Can you imagine the fear of the people on that day?
I have noticed that oftentimes before a great miracle of God, there is a time of fear.
Have you ever noticed
that whenever you analyze a situation
and see
no hope,
your emotions naturally take a nose dive?
I have noticed that in my life.
God tells us to FEAR NOT. But that is the opposite of the natural thing to do.
During those times
when fear rises up in me,
I need to remember that the
love
of God
produces great and mighty wonders.
~ ~ ~
Have you ever wondered
why
God chose to part the Red Sea
as the rescue method for Moses and the people?
Why part the Red Sea?
Why not choose some other
less miraculous
method of rescue?
I believe it was to
enlarge our trust that God
has more rescue options than we could ever imagine.
One of my favorite scriptures talks
about that
Red Sea experience.
It is Psalm 77:19 in the Living Bible.
~
In that verse, the psalmist is talking to God.
The psalmist says,
"Your road led by a pathway
through the sea -
a pathway no one knew was there!"
Thinking about that verse
when I am in the midst of trouble,
increases my calmness.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Psalm 77:13 - 20 TLB
reminds us of
how powerful God is
and
that God
is still
a God of miracles.
“O God, your ways are holy.
Where is there any other as mighty as you?
You are the God of miracles and wonders!
You still demonstrate your awesome power.
You have redeemed us who are the sons of Jacob and of Joseph by your might.
When the Red Sea saw you,
how it feared!
It trembled to its depths! The clouds poured down their rain, the thunder
rolled and crackled in the sky. Your lightning flashed.
There was thunder in
the whirlwind; the lightning lighted up the world! The earth trembled and
shook.
Your road led by a pathway through the sea-
a pathway no one knew was
there!
You led your people along that road like a flock of sheep, with Moses and Aaron as their shepherds.”
The Red Sea was hiding their pathway to safety.
No one could see the pathway through the Red Sea.
They couldn’t see the pathway or any other way out.
When we analyze a fearful situation
and see no hope,
our emotions
will naturally plummet,
but
we can learn how to lift our emotions
supernaturally.
God is never caught off guard.
Nothing ever sneaks up on God.
If we can remember
that God has already prepared
our help
before
we encounter our predicaments and problems -
then we can begin to calm ourselves.
AND
our faith will increase
if we will remind ourselves
that just because
we cannot think of a way out of our problems
doesn’t mean that
God can’t think of a way out.
~
God knows the future.
God always knows
what is coming into our life.
For me personally, knowing that God has
unlimited power,
unlimited creativity,
and
unlimited ability
to take care of me
helps me to keep my emotions in check during difficult times.
When I face difficulties:
God frequently
reminds me
of the story of the Red Sea
and the story of Jesus walking on water -
to help me trust him more deeply
in my difficult times.
God reminds me that
many times
he does things in ways
that I could never have dreamed he would.
No matter how long
we analyze a situation,
we cannot "out - think" God.
Sometimes
- in life -
we
end up at a dead end.
When that happens, we need to remember that God is able to miraculously open up a new pathway for us.
God can open up a pathway no one knew was there! A pathway no one could have imagined – was there.
So as I ponder Jesus walking on water and the miraculous parting of the Red Sea, I can come to rest more deeply in God’s mighty power and in his love.
Peter Walked on Water
AND let’s not forget that it wasn’t just Jesus who walked on the water.
The next part of the story tells us that through the power of God, Peter walked on water, too!
AND think of this - Peter had no reason to walk on the water. There was no special need. Peter didn’t need to get out of the boat and go somewhere.
So why did Peter walk on the water?
Could it be
that God wanted
that part of the story
to show us that he can even use us
to do mighty things
that we could never dream of?
Could it also be
that God is saying that
sometimes he does miracles in our life
just because....
just because - it would make us
thrill
to being alive
or just because it would make us happy?
~ ~ ~
Maybe God is showing us that
every miracle isn’t sent by God
to
rescue us from disaster.
Sometimes a miracle is sent just because he loves us.
Jesus loves you more than you could imagine. If you haven’t received Jesus as your Lord and Savior, I invite you to pray a prayer for salvation - right now.
If you are not saved, Jesus is standing at the door of your heart.
Revelation 3:20 NKJV
"Behold I stand at the door and knock.
If anyone hears my voice and opens the door,
I will come in to him and dine with him and he with me."
Consider visiting our Father's Love Page.
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