13 August 2023 Pentecost 11

Genesis 37:1-4, 12-29; Psalm 105:1-6, 16-22; Romans 10:4-15; Matthew 14:22-36

How often have you started doing something, without giving it much thought and then you suddenly realise you are acting way out of your ‘wheelhouse’ and you are doing things you didn’t even know you could do.  And then it all ‘turns to custard’ because you start doubting yourself and doubting you can even do what it is you have been doing.  That is where we find Peter today.  When Jesus tells the disciples that it is him walking across the lake toward them, Peter asks Jesus to ‘call him out’, he asks to be able to join Jesus out there on the lake.  And he doesn’t appear to have thought about the fact that it means he has to ‘walk on water’.  And walk on water he does, until he notices the wind and waves around him and realises what it is doing, and he starts to sink.  Basically, while his eyes and mind were on Jesus and going toward him, everything is fine, then the minute he notices the chaos around him, he loses confidence in what he is doing and fails to maintain it.  And when he calls out for Jesus to ‘save me’, Jesus immediately reaches out and pulls him to safety.  We often get caught up in Jesus’ comment about Peter’s ‘little faith’, but we overlook the fact that it was because of his faith that he dared to get out of the boat in the first place.  Faith is not something we need to ‘build’, or ‘practice’ so as to get more.  Faith is God’s gift to us in showing us what is possible, and even if we stumble and start to be overwhelmed by the chaos around us, Jesus is ready to immediately reach out and save us.

This morning’s gospel picks up where we left it last week.  Jesus has just fed the multitude with little more than crumbs, and then he sends the disciples off to the other side of the lake while he sends the crowds away and then goes up the mountain to be alone, in solitude, with his Father.  While he is praying, the wind picks up and starts to blow the boat around.  This is not uncommon in the area around Tiberius and Lake Galilee, and the disciples would be well accustomed to the vagaries of the wind and weather.  I’m not sure the disciples were necessarily frightened by the wind and waves, but by the time Jesus sets out to come to them they were definitely tired from constantly fighting the wind in order to keep the boat afloat.  Jesus has spent a lot of time in prayer, we are told it is ‘early in the morning’, other translations tell us it was ‘the fourth watch’, in other words, it was between 3am and 6am.  And the fog and mist on the water make it hard for the disciples to see who, or what, is coming toward them and they make the obvious assumption – it is a ghost.  After all, it is coming across the water without being in the water.  And when Jesus declares it is him – ‘I am’ - and tells them not to fear, Peter sees what is possible and asks to join Jesus, and he gets out of the boat.  He leaves the safety of the boat and willingly, knowingly, gets out into the maelstrom of the wind and water and, for a time, successfully walks toward Jesus, but then he loses his nerve and begins to sink.  Jesus showed Peter, and the disciples, what was possible; and Peter decided to take up the challenge.  But when the chaos of the wind and waves overwhelmed him, and he began to sink, he cried out for rescue.  And it is in the action of rescue that the rest of the disciples see Jesus as if for the first time.  “Truly you are the Son of God”.   Now think about it.  Jesus has just finished feeding a veritable throng of people with little more than scraps, revealing both divine power and divine compassion.  Yet, it is in this moment of extremity, that the disciples perceive most clearly who Jesus is.

How often does this reflect our reality too.  How often do I miss or overlook God’s presence in the peaceful and calm situations of my life, but when things start to get a bit tough, I am quickly calling out for help.  I am not entirely sure why this is, but it may be because we spend so much of our time and energy attempting to make our lives, and the lives of those we love, safe, secure and stable.  Now there is nothing wrong with that, after all God desires us to flourish, and stability promotes growth.  But often, when things are going well, and things are calm and flowing along nicely, we may be tempted to think we have no need for God, or at least we forget that God is a very integral part of our lives and God desires to always be a part of them.  And it is only when tragedy strikes that we remember how much we depend on God.  But this story tells us about God as well as ourselves.  It tells us that no matter what it is that reminds us of our need for God, God will respond.  Just as Jesus reaches out to grab Peter, so too God responds to us with compassion and support.  And this story also tells us that not only does God respond to our needs, but God actually desires that we seek to live lives of abundance and courage.  Jesus sent the disciples out in the boat by themselves, trusting them to navigate the sea and any storm which may arise.  And when the disciples are fearful of the ‘spectre’ approaching them in the fog, Jesus greets them with a three-fold response.  He urges them to “take heart”.  He then reveals himself, ‘it is I’ or in the Greek translation ‘I Am’.  And neither the disciples nor Matthew’s audience would mistake this pronouncement of the divine name.  And thirdly, having revealed his presence and identity, Jesus encourages the disciples to ‘fear not’, he encourages them to live ‘whole-hearted lives’.

And I think this is still God’s desire for you and for me today.  God desires that we trust that God is with us, that God is always with us and for us, and God desires us to live with courage and hope, taking risks, dipping our toes into relationship, looking out for individuals and the community around us; always remembering that even when we overlook God’s presence, God is always there.  Sometimes God is there to encourage us to overcome fears, sometimes God sends us out ahead, and sometimes God reaches out to grab hold of us in forgiveness, mercy, comfort, and grace.

So, we can be comforted today that while God is eager to respond to whatever need we have, God also invites us to live more adventurous lives of faith.  God wants more than just safety and stability for us, God calls us to stretch, grow and live into the abundant life God has promised us, trusting that God is always with us.