Rough Seas

Matthew 14:22-33

Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, but by this time the boat, battered by the waves, was far from the land, for the wind was against them. And early in the morning he came walking toward them on the sea. But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them and said, “Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.”

Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came toward Jesus. But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” When they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

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Walk on the ocean
Step on the stones
Flesh becomes water
Wood becomes bone

Toad the Wet Sprocket, "Walk on the Ocean" from "Fear" (1991)

Jesus made the disciples, the twelve apostles along with other believers, go to the other side of the sea, shipping them off in a boat while he saw off the rest of the crowds. For the first time in Matthew’s gospel Jesus sent the disciples off on their own.

For the disciples, it must have been like kids being sent off to camp for the first time. For Jesus, it must have been like being the parent. No wonder Jesus went off to pray.

So later in the evening, early in the morning really, the boat was being buffeted by the waves. Headway was difficult and the sea was dangerous. Jesus didn’t promise them an easy journey, he just told them to get going.

The sea holds a special meaning for the Jewish disciples. To them, the sea was a place of danger. Not only did they know the dangers of the sea fishermen knew first hand; they also knew from the creation story that the waters were the place of chaos. The waters were a place of danger and death. Their worst known and unknown fears were before their very eyes in the pre-dawn darkness.

Without Jesus their lives were in chaos, and they feared dying without him.

In their rain soaked wind battered vessel, suddenly, they see their Lord, Jesus Christ, walking toward them on the water.

“Is it a ghost?” “Nope” Jesus responds, “it’s just little ole me.” That’s the way it reads in English, but the people heard him say “I AM,” not “It’s me.” They heard him invoke the holiest of holy names for himself. That might have been even scarier than a ghost.

Jesus tells the disciples not to be afraid. Jesus tells them He is who he is, as the Lord God told Moses I AM WHO I AM. So Peter, the rock (and with a nickname like that shouldn’t we have seen what’s coming next), he says, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” Jesus says, “Come” and Peter does.

It’s all good for a couple of steps; but when pummeled by the wind and the rain and the waves; the chaos of water and life overwhelm Peter and he begins sink. He cries again, “Lord, save me!” Jesus immediately reaches out to Peter saying to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?”

The traditional reading of these last words of Jesus on the water is taken to tell the world that with a little more faith, Peter would have made it to Jesus. Imagine my surprise to find this is not what the commentaries say. The commentaries say this passage is about the church, the church represented by the ship.

Jesus sends the church onto the chaotic sea of creation. As then, we are called to do the work the Lord has sent us to do. We are to faithfully live our vocation as the people of Christ. This has been the call of the church since the days of Moses, since the days of Jesus, and this is the call we are still called to fulfill today.

But as usual, Peter has his own ideas. He sees the Lord on the sea and says, “If it is you, then command me to come to you,” and the Lord replies “Come.” People see Peter’s subsequent sinking as a sign that his faith isn’t strong enough. With just a little more faith, Peter could have made it to Jesus and they could have walked together in victory to the boat. Well, that’s not it.

First of all, this command to come is not a case of Jesus testing Peter’s faith. This is Peter testing Jesus. “If it is you, then command me to come to you.” Jesus won’t tell a lie. He’s Lord, it is he, and he is who he is. Jesus is answering Peter’s question, “is it you?” the way he asked it be answered, “Command me to come!”

You gotta give it to Jesus; he answers our prayers even when it makes us look foolish.

So Peter leaves the relative safety of the boat and tries to get to Jesus on his own. And when Peter does, the treacherous world drops on his head and he begins to sink. Only to be plucked out of chaos by Jesus, the gracious Lord who takes Peter by the hand and returns him to the boat.

In the allegory, Peter not only leaves the boat, he leaves the church and tries to get to Jesus on his own. When we try to get to God on our own, inevitably chaos overwhelms us and we sink. When we leave the church, the church as the body of Christ, to find God on our own, we ultimately find ourselves sinking in the morass of chaos.

Peter’s little faith is not that he couldn’t get to Jesus. His little faith was that he thought leaving the boat, the church, was the way to get to Jesus.

Walk on the ocean
Step on the stones
Flesh becomes water
Wood becomes bone

It's a lovely song, but God became flesh, water became wine, and we are to stay in the boat and wait for Jesus to come. Thanks be to God, this is the promise he gives us, he will come.

Not Quite Yet...

Mark 11:11 (NRSV)

Then he entered Jerusalem and went into the temple; and when he had looked around at everything, as it was already late, he went out to Bethany with the twelve.

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Sitting In The Stand Of The Sports Arena
Waiting For The Show To Begin

"Venus and Mars" by Paul McCartney from the album of the same title by Paul McCartney and Wings (1975)

The smallest things make all of the difference sometimes. Jesus and the apostles and the disciples enter Jerusalem on the back of a colt upon a way strewn with cloaks and palms. Cloaks on the ground are traditional for the entry of the Kings of Israel. The colt takes the nation of Israel back to Jacob's blessing to his son Judah.

Jesus comes into Jerusalem days before his last supper. He knows there isn't much time left. He knows it is late. Still, he knows that there are times for action and times for patience. Jesus comes and soaks in all that is the Temple before going to Bethany for the night. Plenty is about to happen, but it isn't going to happen right now.

Jesus is the show, but even he is waiting for the show to begin. The opening act, the entry into Jerusalem has come to pass. It is what we call the triumphant entry. Still, Jesus knows that this is the start, not the end.

Now, nearly 1,980 Easters later, we wait for the next triumphant entry. We wait for the show to begin, and patience is a virtue. But let us follow Jesus who got up the next morning and did the work the Father called him to do. Let us as the sons and daughters of the Lord join in the work the Father called his Son to do.

Without Ceasing

1 Thessalonians 5:17 (NRSV)

Pray without ceasing.

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We've got to pray
Just to make it today.

"Pray" by "MC Hammer" from "Please Hammer Please Don't 'Em" (1990)

For better and for worse, much rap music deals with personal success, and bragging about it. This is different. Yes, Hammer boasts about making money and rhymes, but there is more to this 1990 hit. It also deals with the roots of the vine, not just the fruit.

Hammer says "I won't forget my people or may town or my ways, and on my knees every night I'm still gonna pray." Yeah, leaving poverty is great, but leaving poverty and leaving everyone else behind is even worse.

Pray without ceasing, this is Paul's command. This is how Paul wraps up his instructions in this, the oldest known piece of Christian literature. Yes, 1Thessalonians predates every other word in the New Testament, so when communities were considering what it meant to be Christian, this is the first word they received from any apostle of the Lord Jesus.

And Paul tells the world to pray without ceasing.

Let every motion of your life be a living prayer. Dedicate every motion, every iota of being to the Lord. This is how to pray without ceasing. But not only are we called to ask, we are called to listen and respond.

Prayer works both ways, and as the old saying goes, we have one mouth and two ears and two eyes. We need to listen and watch more than we speak. Pay attention, then with two hands we can respond the the call of the Lord.