MATTHEW 14:22-33
Immediately after feeding the crowd with the five loaves and the two fish,
Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and 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 Jesus 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.” Jesus 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 worshipped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

Backgrounder

There is something a bit humorous in Jesus’s question to Peter, “Why did you
doubt?”
Think of the way in which this passage revealed Jesus’s divine power: he has
miraculously fed the crowd with five loaves and two fish, he has walked on the
water out to the boat, and he has actually summoned Peter out on the sea.
Peter has literally experienced walking on water.
And then, noticing the strong wind, Peter is frightened and begins to sink. How
is this possible? Why does fear have such a strong hold on his heart? Doubting,
Peter sinks and cries out for help, “Lord save me!” Why, if he doubts Jesus,
does Peter ask for his help?
The storm all around them is a visible reminder of the power of chaos that
lurks in the fallen world around us. God himself brings order out of the watery
chaos when he creates. His word establishes everything in being. Yet sin finds a
way in through human pride, and chaos enters the world.
But most hospitable environment to chaos is the human heart. Peter’s very
common experience of fear and doubt are enough to drive out his faith in
Jesus. He begins to sink, just as we are all sinking never to return.
But even Peter’s failure is an opportunity for God to act. Peter’s cry to Jesus is
our human nature, fallen, but still able to turn to God, even when we have all
feared and doubted.
The drama of a disciple is our wavering between trust and doubt. The one
constant in these events, and in the storms of our lives, is Jesus. He is the still
point at the centre of the storm. Turning to him, we find salvation.