This narrative contains not one, but four miracles: (1) Walking on water, (2) causing Peter to walk on water, (3) calming of the storm, and (4) immediately arriving at land. It complements the story of the feeding of the 5,000 by highlighting the sovereignty of Jesus. Not only is he like God the Creator (Gen 1:1), he is like God the Spirit, hovering over the chaotic waters (Gen 1:2). Furthermore, this story continues the theme that has run through this section—misunderstanding who Jesus is. He is, of course, misunderstood by the crowds. Earlier, even John the Baptist questioned who Jesus was. And even now his own disciples don’t really know Jesus, even after the feeding of the 5,000 (Mk 6:52).

Mk 6:47–49 with Mt 14:24, Jn 6:19, 17 When evening came, the boat was in the middle of the lake {a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the wavesMT}, and he was alone on land. 48 He saw the disciples straining at the oars, because the wind was against them. {When they had rowed three or three and a half miles, they saw Jesus approaching.JN} About the fourth watch of the night {by now it was dark, and Jesus had not yet joined themJN} he went out to them, walking on the lake. He was about to pass by them, 49 but when they saw him walking on the lake,

Mt 14:26–27 they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear.27 But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.”

Surely this party of 5,000 lasts until early evening, perhaps 9 p.m. It would not be the kind of thing one was eager to end. It will take Jesus a good little while to calm the excited crowd and dismiss both his Twelve and then the 5,000. He prays from late evening until about 3 a.m. when he joins the apostolic band.
From his mountain vantage point, Jesus can see a good distance across the lake in the light of the full moon that accompanies Passover. He can see they have been driven off course. Instead of heading toward Bethsaida on the north shore, they are approaching Genneseret on the southwest shore. They are about three or three-and-a-half miles away, pretty close to the middle of the lake. Obviously, they have been struggling for the better part of the night against the strong headwind.

This must have been a difficult incident for the Apostles. Surely they shared the crowd’s sentiments of making Jesus king. After all, they had much to gain from such a move; and such was their expectation of a political Messiah. Jesus sent them away, much to their disappointment. What’s worse, they were sent into a storm. Being in the middle of the lake in the middle of this storm perhaps caused them to question the Lordship of Jesus even after such an event as the feeding of the 5,000. They needed the added lesson of Jesus walking on water.

John makes masterful use of the verbs in this section which give a real eyewitness flavor to his account.

He employs the imperfects “were proceeding” and “was getting rough” or “was rising” to picture the condition, respectively of the men in the boat and on the sea. But between these imperfects he makes use of the pluperfects (darkness) “had come (to be)” and (Jesus) “had not yet come,” to indicate what had (or had not yet) happened before the disciples had reached the opposite shore. (Hendriksen, p. 224)

Thus, we picture two scenes. One is of Jesus, praying in the calm serenity of the night. The other is of the Apostles some three miles away, laboring at the oars in the middle of a storm. The Apostles are neither out of sight nor out of mind of the Master.

Jesus sets out right across the middle of the lake! He is coming to the aid of his disciples. So why does Mark say, “He was about to pass them by?” Is he just kidding around? Is he going to beat them to the other side by taking a shortcut? One solution is that they are close enough to land that Jesus is simply going to meet them when they come ashore in just a little bit. McInerny offers a more sophisticated explanation. He notices that the words “pass by” are used in the OT for theophanies of Yahweh. Perhaps Mark is alluding to the fact that Jesus’ walking on water is tantamount to an appearance of God. A third solution is that they simply don’t notice Jesus until he is parallel to the boat. Then they think he is a ghost going by. Thus, “pass them by” is the disciples’ impression, not Jesus’ intention.

No wonder the Apostles are frightened. Their eyes are fixed on this eerie apparition—a human-like figure emerging through the waves in the middle of a storm-tossed lake. It is natural to assume that it is a ghost (a disembodied spirit). Who today would come up with a different conclusion? Their sadness of heart and physical fatigue certainly cannot be helping their disposition.

Jesus immediately tries to calm them by identifying himself. “ ‘It is I’ reads, more literally, I am. This is not bad grammar but a conscious echo of the divine name of Yahweh, as in Exod 3:14. Though still somewhat veiled, this is perhaps Jesus’ clearest self-revelation of his divinity to date” (Blomberg, p. 235).

Granted, this is a difficult narrative to believe … as was the feeding of the 5,000. Many have attempted to explain these two miracles away by naturalistic means. This simply won’t do. The texts clearly say what they intend. Either they are literary inventions with theological purposes, deliberate lies, or God breaking into natural law. We must accept them or reject them. But to explain them away is not intellectually honest.

Mt 14:28–33 “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.”
29 “Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. 30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”

Mk 6:51–52 Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” 32 And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. 33 Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.” 51 They were completely amazed, 52 for they had not understood about the loaves; their hearts were hardened.

Jn 6:21 21 Then they were willing to take him into the boat, and immediately the boat reached the shore where they were heading.

Peter walking on the water is found only in Matthew. It tells of both the faith and failing of Peter. He is impetuous, sometimes arrogant, and quick to speak before he thinks. But the bottom line is that aside from Jesus, he holds the water-walking record.

“If it is you” (v. 28) might be translated better “Since it is you” [first-class condition]. Jesus bids him to come … and he does. Unfortunately, he is quickly distracted and begins to sink.

What a stark contrast between Matthew 14:33 and Mark 6:51–52! We observe first of all that true worship is often a by-product of fear which comes from understanding who Jesus really is. Second, we see that even those who spent the most time with Jesus still did not fully know who he was. Third, we understand that being excited about Jesus’ deeds (i.e., miracles) does not necessarily mean that we correctly interpret them.
Suddenly they are at the shore. This may simply mean that they are pretty close to the shore when Jesus gets into the boat. Or it may be a divine “transport” that we don’t understand any better than we do water-walking. But how foolish it would be to reject the narrative because it does not submit to what we can figure out. We might find ourselves in the same categories as Jesus’ unbelieving disciples (frighteningly similar to Jesus’ enemies)—“their hearts were hardened.”

75 Healings at Gennesaret (Mt 14:34–36; Mk 6:53–56) [MK 6:]53 When they had crossed over, they landed at Gennesaret and anchored there. 54 As soon as they got out of the boat, people recognized Jesus. 55 They ran throughout that whole region and carried the sick on mats to wherever they heard he was. 56 And wherever he went—into villages, towns or countryside—they placed the sick in the marketplaces. They begged him to let them touch even the edge of his cloak, and all who touched him were healed.

Gennesaret is a fertile plain on the west side of the lake. Josephus says, “One may call this place the ambition of nature, where it forces those plants that are naturally enemies to one another to agree together” (JW 3.518). The boat was blown off course in the storm. Originally they were heading toward Capernaum (Jn 6:17), more specifically, its suburb, Bethsaida (Mk 6:45). The seasick disciples decide to walk from Gennesaret back to Capernaum. There are probably a couple of disciples assigned to sail the boat back to its home port after breakfast.

Jesus is well known, and when the people of the area hear that he is passing through, they line the streets with cots and wheelchairs, waiting for him to pass by. This event epitomizes and summarizes Jesus’ healing ministry (cf. Mt 8:1–17; 9:18–34; Mk 1:32–34; 3:7–12). Matthew’s extra strong word for healing [diasozō], indicates that the crowds were restored to complete health.

Jesus doesn’t take the time to stop for a “healing service.” Rather, he allows the crowds to touch him on his way through. He is in typical Palestinian garb, complete with prayer tassels at the edge of his robe (cf. Num 15:37–39; Deut 22:12). The popular belief was that power flowed from the individual into his garments, especially the prayer tassels. We witnessed the same superstition with the woman with a flow of blood (§ 67, Mt 9:20–21; Mk 5:24–34). If they can touch his tassels they believe they will be healed. By the time Jesus arrives at Capernaum there must have been a massive parade left in the wake of his healings. The Capernaum synagogue is about to break their record attendance.

Verse-by-Verse study

The pinnacle of this passage is the disciples’ worship of Jesus as they confessed, “You are certainly God’s Son” (v. 33). Though the Father had said this of Jesus at His baptism (3:17) and even the demons at Gadara addressed Him as the Son of God (8:29), but this was the first time the twelve unequivocally declared their Master to be God’s Son.

Within the events of Matthew 14:22-33 are five demonstrations, or proofs, of Jesus’ deity that led to the disciples’ confession. Within the period of but a few hours they received unmistakable verifications of Jesus’ divine authority, divine knowledge, divine protection, divine love, and divine power.

Proof of His Divine Authority

And immediately He made the disciples get into the boat, and go ahead of Him to the other side, while He sent the multitudes away. And after He had sent the multitudes away, He went up to the mountain by Himself to pray; and when it was evening, He was there alone. (14:22-23)

The first affirmation of Jesus’ deity on this occasion was His demonstration of divine authority. The fact that Jesus made the disciples get into the boat strongly suggests they were reluctant to leave Him and perhaps had argued with Him about it. As soon as the five thousand men, along with the women and children, had been fed and the twelve baskets of leftovers picked up, the multitude said, “This is of a truth the Prophet who is to come into the world” and “they were intending to come and take Him by force, to make Him king” (John 6:14-15a). To prevent that from happening, Jesus “withdrew again to the mountain by Himself alone” (v. 15b). He was indeed the predicted King, but He would not establish an earthly kingdom. In any case, it was not the crowd’s prerogative to crown Him.

The disciples no doubt thought the recognition of the crowd was long overdue and rejoiced that Jesus was at last being acknowledged as the Messiah, the coming King who would overthrow the Herods and Rome and establish Israel in her rightful place of world leadership (though they were wrong in this assumption!). Jesus Himself had taught them to pray for the kingdom to come (Matt. 6:10), and this seemed an opportune time for Him to begin making the answer to that prayer a reality.

The disciples were also probably thinking of the high positions they would have as Jesus’ chief administrators in the kingdom and of the prestige and power those offices would bring. They had suffered indifference and indignities with the Lord for some two years, while living from hand to mouth. Now that the crowd was at fever pitch in support of Jesus, what better time could there be to make His first public move toward the throne? It seems certain that the worldly, self-centered, and ambitious Judas, in particular, would have strongly fostered such thinking among his fellow disciples.

Knowing their thoughts and the growing influence of the crowd on them, Jesus removed them from the evil solicitation by commanding them to get into the boat, and go ahead of Him to the other side. At least in part because of their susceptibility to the political plans of the people, He made the disciples leave.

John identifies the specific destination on the other side as Capernaum (6:24) and Mark as Gennesaret (6:53), a small, fertile plain on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee between Capernaum and Magdala. It was a short trip across the northern tip of the sea, one that most of the disciples had made many times. But they resisted leaving now not only because of the enthusiasm of the crowd to make Jesus king but also because they did not want to be separated from Jesus. Although they were weak in faith and easily influenced, they nevertheless were deeply devoted to the Lord and felt incomplete and vulnerable when He was not with them. They may also have not wanted to leave then because they could feel the wind starting to blow and were cautious about making even that short trip after dark in bad weather.

But regardless of the reasons for their reluctance, the disciples got into the boat and departed. They were under the Lord’s authority, but He did not have to use supernatural force to make them leave. His firm word was enough, and it is to their credit that they obeyed. When He told them to cross over ahead of Him to the other side, that is what they did.

Jesus also demonstrated His divine authority over the multitudes, who, despite their great numbers (probably twenty-five thousand or more), could not make Jesus do anything contrary to His Father’s plan and will. After He sent the disciples on their way to Capernaum, He sent the multitudes away as well. They were determined to make Him king in their own way and for their own purposes, but they could not. Without argument or fanfare, He simply dispersed the multitudes, and they bedded down for the night wherever they could near Bethsaida Julias, a few miles inland from the northeast shore of the lake.

Jesus has authority over the destinies of all men, including their final judgment (John 5:22). He has authority over all the supernatural world, including the evil world of Satan and his demonic fallen angels (Mark 1:27). He has authority over the holy angels, whom He could at any time have summoned to His aid (Matt. 26:53). The crowds who heard Him deliver the Sermon on the Mount recognized that “He was teaching them as one having authority” (Matt. 7:29). When He sent the twelve out on their first mission, He delegated to them part of His own “authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every kind of disease and every kind of sickness” (Matt. 10:1). And in His Great Commission He declared to the eleven who remained, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth” Matt. 28:18.

Jesus has sovereign control over everything in heaven and on earth. He commands and controls men; He commands and controls angels, fallen and holy; and He commands and controls nature.

And after He had sent the multitudes away, He went up to the mountain by Himself to pray; and when it was evening He was there alone. Jesus had little time to rest or to spend unhurried hours with the disciples. He only had time to pray, after which He would miraculously encounter the disciples in the middle of the furious wind at sea.

Jesus’ temptations neither began nor ended with the three in the wilderness immediately after His baptism. At the end of that session, the devil only “departed from Him until an opportune time” (Luke 4:13). The enthusiasm of the crowds and the disciples to make Him king was very much like the third temptation in the wilderness, in which Satan offered Jesus “all the kingdoms of the world, and their glory.” (Matt. 4:8-9) “What better time to establish your kingdom than the Passover season, and in what better way than by marching triumphantly into Jerusalem at the head of thousands of faithful, enthusiastic supporters?” the devil may have asked. Jesus would surely gather many more thousands on the way to the Holy City, and His supernatural power would guarantee victory against any opposition. He could easily conquer the Herods, and even mighty Rome would be no match for the Son of God. He could bypass the cross and avoid the agony of having to take the sin of the world upon Himself.

Whatever thoughts Satan may have tried to put into His mind, Jesus turned His back on that evil just as He did on all other. He then came before His heavenly Father to pray. In a sense He did celebrate a victory, but it was over temptation, not Rome; and He turned His attention to His heavenly Father, whom He joined in intimate, refreshing communion. As in the Garden, He doubtlessly longed to be restored to the glorious fellowship He had had with His Father before the world even came into existence (John 17:5). But He had other things yet to do.

 

At he close of His earthly ministry, Jesus told Peter, “Behold, Satan has demanded permission to sift you like wheat; but I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail” (Luke 22:32). Many times before He did it in His high priestly prayer (John 17:6-26), Jesus prayed for His disciples, and it is likely that He prayed for them on this occasion.

By this time it was the second evening of the day, which lasted from six to nine o’clock. The multitudes had been fed during the earlier evening (Matt. 14:15), which was from three to six. And as it became dark, Jesus was there alone in the mountain.

Proof of His Divine Knowledge

But the boat was already many stadia away from the land, battered by the waves; for the wind was contrary. And in the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea. (14:24-25)

The second proof of Jesus’ deity was His demonstration of divine knowledge. In obedience to His command the disciples had entered the boat and headed for the other side of the Sea of Galilee. Soon after they left, however, a violent wind erupted, and they were caught many stadia away from the land. A stadia was about an eighth of a mile, and John informs us that the many stadia amounted to twenty-five or thirty (in the Greek text), or “about three or four miles” John 6:19.

Because in a normal trip across the northern end of the Sea of Galilee the boat would not have traveled more than a mile or two from shore at any point, the storm had obviously carried it several miles south, out into the middle of the lake. The disciples and their little craft were being battered by the waves, and the wind was contrary, pushing them farther and farther away from their destination and closer and closer to disaster. Whether or not the boat had a sail, it would have been useless in the high winds and tossing waves. The only means of movement was rowing, and they were desperately “straining at the oars” (Mark 6:48) for their very lives.

The disciples were already confused, frustrated, disillusioned, and disappointed that Jesus had sent them away. Though they must have wondered why He sent them to certain death, the twelve are to be admired for their obedience and perseverance. Although the night was dark, the sea stormy, and the situation apparently hopeless, they were doing their best to do what the Lord commanded. The worst part was that Jesus was not with them. During a similar storm, they had awakened Him and He “rebuked the winds and the sea; and it became perfectly calm” (Matt. 8:26). But now He was miles away. He probably heard the storm and was aware of their plight; but there seemed no way He could get to them. If all the disciples together could not row against the wind and waves, one man could never do it.

Jesus knew of their situation long before it happened, and He did not have to rush away from prayer in order to be on time to help. The storm and the disciples were equally in His hands, and He knew in advance exactly what He would do with both.

The night was divided into four watches, or shifts. The first was from six to nine, the second from nine to twelve, the third from twelve to three, and the fourth from three to six. The fourth watch of the night therefore included the time just before dawn, indicating the disciples had been at sea for at least nine hours, most of the time battling the wind storm.

Jesus waited a long time before He came to them, just as He waited until Lazarus had been dead for several days before He came to Bethany. In both instances, He could have come much sooner than He did and in both in-stances He could have performed the ensuing miracle without being present—just as He had done in healing the centurion’s servant (Matt. 8:13). He could, of course, have prevented the death of Lazarus and the rising of the wind in the first place. But in His infinite wisdom Jesus purposely allowed Mary and Martha and the disciples to reach the extremity of need before He intervened. He knew everything about all of them, and had known it since before they were born. And He knew infinitely better than they did what was best for their welfare and for God’s glory.

The disciples should have been rejoicing with David that, “If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, Thou art there. If I take the wings of the dawn, if I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, even there Thy hand will lead Me, and Thy right hand will lay hold of me” (Ps. 139:8-10). The twelve should have remembered that “the Lord also will be a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble” (Ps. 9:9), that the Lord was their fortress and deliverer and their rock of refuge (Ps. 18:2), and that He would keep them safe even as they walked “through the valley of the shadow of death” (Ps. 23:4). They should have remembered God’s word to Moses out of the burning bush: “I have surely seen the affliction of My people who are in Egypt, and have given heed to their cry because of their taskmasters, for I am aware of their sufferings” (Ex. 3:7). They should have remembered that, just before Abraham would have plunged the knife into Isaac’s heart, the Lord provided a ram to take Isaac’s place (Gen. 22:13).

But in the exigencies of the night, the twelve had forgotten those psalms and the Lord’s power in which they exult. They had little confidence that the Lord, who had known all about the suffering of His people in Egypt and did not forsake them, was relevant in that storm. They saw no relation between their plight and the fact that God had provided a substitute for Isaac when he faced death.

The disciples had even forgotten Jesus’ own assurance that their heavenly Father knew all their needs before they asked Him (Matt. 6:32) and that not even a single sparrow “will fall to the ground apart from your Father” and that “the very hairs of your head are all numbered” (10:29-30). All they could think of was their danger and all they could feel was fear.

But Jesus had not forgotten the disciples, and He came to them through the very danger that threatened to destroy them, walking on the sea. He used the trial as His footpath. He could not physically see them from the mountain or through the stormy darkness, but He knew exactly where they were. God’s vision is not like ours, because “The eyes of the Lord are in every place, watching the evil and the good.” (Prov. 15:3) “There is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are open and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do” Heb. 4:13.

Proof of His Divine Protection

And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were frightened,  saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out for fear. But immediately Jesus  spoke to them, saying, “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.” (14:26-27)

The third proof of Jesus’ deity was manifested in His protection of the disciples. As He first approached them, they thought they were getting anything but help, because, when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were frightened, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out for fear.    (from which saw is derived) means to look intently, indicating that the disciples’ gaze was transfixed on the apparition before them. At first Jesus did not walk directly toward the boat but appeared to be passing by (Mark 6:48); but that made little difference to the disciples. For a ghost to be anywhere near them was enough to make them frightened almost out of their senses. The term ghost is the Greek , which refers to an apparition, a creature of the imagination, and is the word from which come the English phantom and phantasm.

Many liberal interpreters insist that the disciples only thought they saw Jesus walking across the water as their tired and frightened minds played tricks on them. But it would have been quite impossible for all twelve of them to simultaneously experience the same imagined apparition. And such an explanation hardly accounts for the fact that Jesus somehow got into the boat with them, and that as soon as He did the storm instantly ceased. The writers make a point of the fact that the boat was a great distance from the shore. Neither, as some suggest, could the disciples have seen Jesus walking along the beach while appearing to be walking on the water—even in broad daylight. Either they lied in reporting the event or it occurred as they say it did.

Because of the darkness, the mist from the wind and waves, the fatigue from rowing, and the fear that already gripped them because of the storm, they did not recognize Jesus when He appeared to them. Mark reports that “they all saw Him” (Mark 6:50), but none of them suspected it was Jesus. And their fear instantly turned into abject terror as they beheld the form they thought was a ghost come to add to their torment. In the dark before the dawn, hopelessness turned to utter horror and despair. In their panic they could not help but cry out for fear.

Although Jesus was testing the disciples’ faith, He understood their frailty. He calmed their fear by saying simply, Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid. In spite of the raging winds, the waves battering against the boat, and their fear-stricken minds, they immediately recognized their Master’s voice. It was not the time for an explanation of why He was there, of what He planned to do next, or of why He had not come sooner. It was time to give courage, to still the storm that raged within the disciples, even before stilling the one that raged without.

Jesus did not walk on the water to teach the disciples how to do it. Peter tried and failed; and there is no record of any of the others ever doing it at all. The Lord’s purpose was to demonstrate His loving willingness to do whatever is necessary to rescue His children. He did not have to walk on the water to save them, but His doing so gave them an unforgettable reminder of the power and extent of His divine protection. It was not to teach them to walk on water but to teach them that God can and will act on behalf of His own.

We will never find ourselves in a place where Christ cannot find us; and no storm is too severe for Him to save us from it. He protects His own, whom He will never fail or forsake (Josh. 1:5; Heb. 13:5). The lesson for the disciples is the lesson for us: There is no reason for God’s people to fear. There is no reason for anxiety, no matter how hopeless and threatening our problems seem to be. Life is often stormy and painful, often threatening and frightening. Some believers suffer more than others, but all suffer at some time and in some way. In spite of that, the storm is never so severe, the night never so black, and the boat never so frail that we risk danger beyond our Father’s care.

When Paul was on the ship taking him to Rome to appear before Caesar, it encountered an exceptionally violent storm in the Mediterranean Sea near the island of Crete. After the crew had thrown all the cargo, tackle, supplies, and food overboard, the ship was still in danger of foundering on the rocks. Paul had warned they should remain in the safety of the port at Fair Havens through the winter, but his advice was not heeded by the centurion or the pilot of the ship. When everyone else on board had despaired of reaching land alive, an angel appeared to Paul assuring him that, although the ship would be lost, no lives would be. Yet even before the angel’s message, Paul, unlike the fearful disciples, was at perfect peace and offered encouragement to those on the ship with him, saying, “Keep up your courage, men, for I believe God, that it will turn out exactly as I have been told” Acts 27:25.

So the disciples who were reluctant to leave Jesus and go to Capernaum obeyed by rowing out into the storm they knew was coming, and Jesus honored their faithfulness. When believers are in the place of obedience they are in the place of safety, no matter what the circumstances. The place of security is not the place of favorable circum-stance but the place of obedience to God’s will.

Proof of His Divine Love

And Peter answered Him and said, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” And He said, “Come!” And Peter got out of the boat, and walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But seeing the wind, he became afraid, and beginning to sink, he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!” And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” (14:28-31)

The fourth proof of Jesus’ deity was His demonstration of divine love. Although Mark and John report Jesus’ walking on the water, only Matthew tells of this incident concerning Peter.

Peter’s if did not reflect doubt that it was actually his Lord, because going out onto the water to join an unidentified ghost was the last thing Peter would have done. He was naturally impetuous and brash, and more than once his overconfidence got him into trouble—including trouble with the Lord. But it would have taken more than brashness for this life-long fisherman to have ventured out on the water without benefit of a boat, because no one on board better knew the dangers of Galilee storms than Peter. He had probably been thrown into the water at times by high winds or waves and had seen others experience the same trauma. He was no fool, and it is highly unlikely that impetuosity would have so easily overridden his reason and instinctive caution.

It seems much more probable that Peter was overjoyed to see Jesus and that his supreme concern was to be safely with Him. Mere impetuosity might have caused him to jump out of the boat, expecting Jesus somehow to come to his rescue. But he knew better, and he therefore asked the Lord, Command me to come to You on the water. He knew Jesus had the power to enable him to walk on the water, but he did not presume to attempt the feat without His express instruction. Peter’s request was an act of affection built on confident faith. He did not ask to walk on water for the sake of doing something spectacular, but because it was the way to get to Jesus.

Peter did many things for which he can be faulted. But he is sometimes faulted for things that reflect love, courage, and faith as much as brashness or cowardice. For instance, although he denied the Lord while in the courtyard during Jesus’ trial, he was nevertheless there, as close to Him as he could get. The rest of the disciples were nowhere to be found. On the Mount of Transfiguration, Peter’s suggestion was unwise but it was prompted by sincere devotion: “Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, I will make three tabernacles here, one for You, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah” (Matt. 17:4). He genuinely loved Jesus and sincerely wanted to serve and please Him. Peter did not resist Jesus’ washing his feet because of pride, but because, in his deep humility, he could not conceive of His Lord washing the feet of anyone so unworthy. And when Jesus explained the significance of what He was doing, Peter said, “Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head” John 13:9.

Peter was continually in the Lord’s shadow and footsteps. By reading between the lines of the gospel accounts it is not difficult to imagine that Peter sometimes followed so closely behind Jesus that he bumped into Him when He stopped. Peter sensed in Jesus’ presence a wonderful safety and comfort, and that is where Peter now wanted to be. It was safer to be with Jesus on the water than to be without Him in the boat.

Peter’s love for Jesus was imperfect and weak, but it was real. Three times Jesus asked Peter if he loved Him, and each time Peter responded affirmatively. Jesus did not contradict Peter’s answer but reminded him of his obligation to care for his Master’s sheep and warned him of the great cost his love would demand (John 21:15-18). Tradition has it that when Peter was about to be crucified, he requested being put on the cross upside down, not feeling worthy to die in the same way as his Lord.

Jesus’ telling Peter to come confirms the disciple’s right motive. Jesus never invites, much less commands, a person to do anything sinful. Nor is He ever a party to pride or presumption. With the greatest of compassion, Jesus told Peter to come, highly pleased that he wanted to be with his Lord.

As much as anything else, it was Peter’s great love for Christ that made him the leader of the disciples. He appears to have been the closest to Christ, and is always named first in lists of the twelve. Just as the Lord never rejects weak faith, but accepts it and builds on it, He also never rejects weak and imperfect love. With great patience and care He takes the love of His children and, through trials and hardships as well as successes and victories, builds that love into greater conformity to His own love.

Jesus’ telling Peter, “Come!” was an act of love. John declared, “We have come to know and have believed the love which God has for us.” In fact, he goes on to say, “God is love” (1 John 4:16; cf. v. 8). It is God’s nature to be loving, just as it is water’s nature to be wet and the sun’s to be bright and hot. He loves his own with an infinite, uninfluenced, unqualified, unchanging, unending, and perfect love.

Christians most perfectly reflect their heavenly Father when they are loving, especially to each other. “If someone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar,” John continues to explain; “for the one who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen” 1 John 4:20.

Although Peter was sincere, he did not comprehend the reality or the extremity of what he was asking to do. From the relative safety of the boat the feat did not seem so terrifying; but once Peter got out of the boat, and walked on the water and came toward Jesus, the situation appeared radically different. Peter temporarily took His eyes off the Lord and, seeing the wind, he became afraid, and beginning to sink, he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!” His faith was enough to get him out of the boat, but it was not enough to carry him across the water.

Faith is strengthened by its being taken to extremities it has never faced before. Such strengthening is basic to Christian growth and maturity. “Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial,” James says; “for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life, which the Lord has promised to those who love Him” (James 1:12). The Lord takes us as far as our faith will go, and when it ends we begin to sink. It is then that we call out to Him and He again demonstrates His faithfulness and His power, and our faith learns to extend that much further. As we trust God in the faith we have, we discover its limitations; but we also discover what it can yet become.

When Peter was beginning to sink, he was probably fully clothed and would have had great difficulty swimming through the high waves. And in his fright he could think of nothing but drowning. But as soon as he cried out …“Lord, save me,” he was safe, because immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him.

When Jesus rebuked him, saying, O you of little faith, why did you doubt? Peter must have wondered at the question. The reason for his doubt seemed obvious. He was bone weary from rowing most of the night, scared to death by the storm and then by what he thought was a ghost, and now it seemed he was about to drown before he could reach the Lord. He had never been in such a situation before, and it may be that his actually walking a few feet on the water added to his shock.

But Peter’s weak faith was better than no faith; and, as in the courtyard when he denied the Lord, at least he was there and not holding back like the rest. He at least started toward Jesus, and when he faltered, the Lord took him the rest of the way

Jesus had been interceding for Peter and the others while He was on the mountain, and now He came directly to their aid in the midst of the storm. The Lord goes before us and He goes with us. When we get frustrated, anxious, bewildered, and frightened, Satan tempts us to wonder why God allows such things to happen to his children. And if we keep our attention on those things we will begin to sink just as surely as Peter did. But if we cry out to the Lord for help, He will come to our rescue just as surely as He did to Peter’s.

Peter would one day write, “In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ” 1 Pet. 1:6-7.

Proof of His Divine Power – And when they got into the boat, the wind stopped. (14:32)

The most spectacular miracle was accomplished without Jesus saying a word or raising a hand. The moment He and Peter got into the boat with the other disciples, the wind stopped. It was as if the wind was simply waiting for the miracle to be finished; and when it had served its purpose, it stopped.

Just as instantaneously, “the boat was at the land to which they were going” (John 6:21). They had been three or four miles out to sea and the storm was still raging as fiercely as ever; but in an instant it stopped and the boat was at its destination. On the basis of normal human experience it is hardly surprising that the disciples “were greatly astonished” (Mark 6:51). But the disciples had been having astounding displays of Jesus’ miraculous power for two years, and for them these remarkable events should not have been astonishing. We learn from Mark that their amazement resulted from their not having “gained any insight from the incident of the loaves”—or from Jesus’ earlier stilling of the storm or from any other great work He had done—because “their heart was hardened” Mark 6:52.

Yet in that moment those same hearts were softened and those eyes opened as they had never been before; and those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, “You are certainly God’s Son!” They were now more than simply amazed, as the crowds and they themselves had always been. They were taken past amazement to worship, which is what Jesus’ signs and miracles were intended to produce. At last they were beginning to see Jesus as the One whom God highly exalted and on whom He bestowed the name which is above every name, and at whose name “every knee should bow of those who are in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Phil. 2:9-11)