There are numerous interesting people mentioned in the New Testament and of course none are even remotely as great as our Lord - There are of course,none fit to compare to even the shadow of His greatness. But among the other remarkable characters, I've always been drawn to be interested in the Apostle Peter. Having taken him from his humble beginnings as a raw, hard working fisherman, Jesus discipled him to become a fisher of men and gave to him the keys of the kingdom of heaven. But his transformation didn't really begin until he got his feet wet. It wasn't until he spent a little "time on the water" that the calloused fisherman himself was really hooked ...
Before he came to know Christ, Peter was just a common man. He was singularly unimportant and without any reason to believe that his future would be much different than his past. He wasn't a scholar or a dignitary on any level. One might get the impression that he was coarse, passionate, outspoken and unrefined. But as we come to know Peter through scripture as he walked with Christ, scripture begins to reveal raw material in him that Jesus would use in tremendous ways - Peter was sincere and spoke with that sincerity from his heart. But before it could be put to use in Christs' Church a transformation from raw material to something useful would have to occur. Before Christ called him, he lived by the sweat of his brow and according to a perspective that was dictated by the senses of his flesh and that perspective was reality as he knew it. From the moment he met Christ, Peter was drawn to Him. But his transformation wouldn't really begin until an event occurred that would not only reveal who Christ was, but that would also give him a perspective from which to speak true reality.
*** Matthew 14:25-28 (NLT), 25 About three o'clock in the morning Jesus came to them, walking on the water. 26 When the disciples saw him, they screamed in terror, thinking he was a ghost. 27 But Jesus spoke to them at once. "It's all right," he said. "I am here! Don't be afraid."28 Then Peter called to him, "Lord, if it's really you, tell me to come to you by walking on water." ***
At this moment, Peter was about to have a revelation. One that would come at Christs' invitation and one that would come about by spending just a few moments on the water. It would begin the true transformation of Peter. He would begin his journey to become changed forever from follower to believer and from a man limited by his worldly reality to a man who realized the unlimited perspective and power of God. Through this experience Peter gained something -a solid example of the truth that he could hang onto and he would be forever changed. As Peter was obedient to step out on the water, he allowed God to show him something that he would never forget. He would still wrestle with his flesh as we all do - his transformation had only just begun. But among other things, through this experience, Peter began to truly know who this teacher was to him. He did something the worlds reality would say is impossible - he walked on the water. He got a taste of the power of Gods' Spirit and his appetite would grow over time to become insatiable. He began to gain a perspective that was not limited by the experience of his flesh and he saw that the truth was something beyond what his flesh knew. But there was a price that had to be paid in order for Peter and the others with him to gain the value of this experience. He did something that many today have been unwilling to do in their own lives ... Peter got out of the boat and stepped out in faith. He did this despite the fact that as scripture tells us, "the disciples were in trouble far away from land (Matthew 14:24)". Peter had to deny his mortal intellect and his senses to live out his faith in Christ if he was to have this opportunity to walk on ... the "water".
If you suspect by my punctuation that I'm hinting to something else, you're right. There might be even more to be learned here than is immediately apparent. We know that life cannot be sustained without water - without it we die. This is a true and important physical fact, ... but a spiritual one as well. Throughout many books of the Bible, references to water in it's various forms are used descriptively as a form of conveyance to bring life or to sustain it. Fountains, rivers, streams and rain are some of the forms of water that are used. They're used to describe how life or the sustaining ability of water is delivered. But many of those references used are spiritual and the the intent is to describe the conveyance of spiritual "Life" rather than H2O. The first reference that I've found where our God used water as a reference to describe Himself is in Jeremiah 2:13. The context of this portion of scripture: our God is lamenting Israels' adulterous behavior toward Him. He points out Israels' blatant disobedience and betrayal in spite the of the high position He had given them among men and all that He had done for them. He set them apart, claimed them as His own people and delivered them from slavery among many other examples of His favor. But now, He no doubt felt the burning sting of a lover betrayed. Theirs was betrayal against the very God who created them and wasn't unlike the betrayal He suffers still by some hearts today. But on with the subject ...
Jeremiah 2:12-13, 12 "The heavens are shocked at such a thing and shrink back in horror and dismay, says the LORD. 13 For my people have done two evil things: They have forsaken me -- the fountain of living water. And they have dug for themselves cracked cisterns that can hold no water at all!"
There are other references to be found describing our Lord as the source of Living Water. But for the sake of brevity, I'll share just a little more because of the depth of the relevance to my subject:
John 7:37-39, 37 "On the last day, the climax of the festival, Jesus stood and shouted to the crowds, "If you are thirsty, come to me! 38 If you believe in me, come and drink! For the Scriptures declare that rivers of living water will flow out from within." 39 (When he said "living water," he was speaking of the Spirit, who would be given to everyone believing in him. But the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not yet entered into his glory.)"
Verse 39 was no doubt an authors' note included for clarity by one who was present. Johns' comment was a defining reference of Jesus' words in verses 37 and 38. By this verse, we know that Gods' Spirit is the living water - the source of true spiritual "Life". By references like these and others, we can see that water has parallel importance both physically and spiritually. We know the physical importance quite well - without it ... we die. But its importance spiritually is no less critical - without it ... we die ... or perhaps we never even "Live" in the first place. John noted that the "water" Jesus spoke of was Gods' Spirit. Given Johns' clarification and seeing the other references God has made with regard to Himself, His Spirit and water, I can perhaps see a little deeper spiritual relevance to Peters' brief "walk on the water"...
Matthew 14:29-33, 29 "All right, come," Jesus said. So Peter went over the side of the boat and walked on the water toward Jesus. 30 But when he looked around at the high waves, he was terrified and began to sink. "Save me, Lord!" he shouted. 31 Instantly Jesus reached out his hand and grabbed him. "You don't have much faith," Jesus said. "Why did you doubt me?" 32 And when they climbed back into the boat, the wind stopped. 33 Then the disciples worshiped him. "You really are the Son of God!" they exclaimed.""
To the physical and worldly part of our selves, risking defiance of what we "know" in order to trust Gods' word might not make sense. But the truth is that deception is one of Satans' most practiced arts over the centuries of the world and our flesh - the intellectual and physical parts of our being are susceptible to it. Yet the truth - the awesome and secure comforting fact is that our God, His power and His ways are not subject to our limited understanding. He is all powerful and is always faithful to His word. As long as we follow what He tells us - all of it, we will never fail because He never fails. So when He tells us that we can walk on water, we have no reason or excuse to doubt Him. But I find a spiritual parallel in this recounting of history. Peter stepped out on the surface of the sea. But at the same time he was getting out of the boat, he waded into the "living water" and real "Life" began.
The disciples who were with him might have thought Peter was crazy as he moved to step out of the boat. But in that moment, Peter didn't let fear of what his peers might think keep him from following Christs' invitation and because of Peters' willingness to take that step out of the boat, they all profited. The moment that Peter stepped out of the boat and took however many steps he did on the surface of the water (scripture doesn't tell us this) he was walking in Gods' Spirit which is not limited by worldly reason or rules. He began to believe in a God that is far beyond capable of doing things that are beyond worldly reason or explanation. Things that the world might refer to as magic. And if the world were to call it magic, that's fine, but it doesn't change the fact that it's the reality of an awesome, unlimited and all powerful God. It's the same "magic" that created the world and gave life to you and I and I for one will stand to say that I believe in the unlimited "magic" of our God. Not only do I believe in the power of our God to intervene in the circumstances of my daily life, but I believe that He does. Like Peter, I have tasted the "water" and am convinced beyond the logical reality of the world, of the rule and power of our God to change things.
I believe that there are multiple reasons that we might not see His hand actively in our lives. One reason might be that we're not truly looking for it with resolved expectation, or another being that we might be giving the credit for His work to something or someone else. I believe that yet another can sometimes be that it's only when we are faithful and obedient to begin to recognize and implement the whole (not just the parts we like) of God's word in our lives, that we begin to free God to begin to work His promises in our lives as He so desperately desires.
The disciples gained an undeniable experience that was profoundly revealing and life changing- one that gave the opportunity to have "Life". But it only happened because Peter was willing to leave his comfort zone to be buoyed by Gods' Spirit to a new spiritual height. It was only when Peter let his intellect overshadow his faith that he began to sink. Instead of continuing to focus on Christ, he let the deceptive illusion of the worlds' limited and defective reality begin to creep back in. But none the less, for a moment ... he walked on the water. This was the beginning of his "Life" in God's Spirit and his transformation to have faith in God's ability to do "magic". Because Peter recognized during his moment on the "water", the power of God's spirit to do the "impossible", he had the unshakable faith later in his life to allow God to do miracles of healing through him and to speak of God with true authority. It was the beginning of a transformation that would allow God to bring Peter into His reality - the truth of what really exists. It began the transformation of a common lowly fisherman into a Godly fisher of men.
We don't have the pleasure of the presence of Christ's physical body among us today. But we do have the awesome privilege of the presence of His powerful Spirit and He speaks to us constantly if we will hear Him. Let me say that it's absolutely imperative that we take care to learn to discern His voice from the multitude of other possibilities. But He's speaking to us today just as He spoke to any who would listen when He walked the earth in a mortal body and He's calling us into the "Water" - into "Life". If you haven't already, when you hear Him call, will you be willing like Peter to risk being called a fool by those who know you? Will you be willing to risk everything you know in this life to take the chance to walk on the "water"? Will you be willing to begin the transformation from surface follower to deeply convicted disciple? It's a physical fact that mortal life begins in water in the womb. It's also a fact that true spiritual "Life" begins in the "Water". If you haven't yet had the courage to leave the "safety" of worldly reality but long for the truth of God's reality and all that He's promised ... Get out of the boat!!!
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