Meanwhile the boat, already a few miles offshore,
was being tossed about by the waves, for the wind was against it.
To be tossed by the waves in not an unusual state for the Church, the Barque of Peter in the world. If we are not careful the waves can have a negative effect on us. The storm can predispose us fear, making it more likely that we will expect the worst. In the midst of storms we are sometimes more likely to expect a ghost the coming of the Lord Jesus himself.
When the disciples saw him walking on the sea they were terrified.
“It is a ghost,” they said, and they cried out in fear.
Fear in the middle of a storm only paralyzes us and renders us unable to act. It makes it more likely that the ship will sink and not less so. But what are we to do in the deep of night far from shore when the wind is against us as if it has some malicious will of its own? We may not immediately by able to distinguish Jesus by the shape of his presence but if we listen for his voice we will be able to identify him even amidst the noise of the wind and the waves.
Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.
The presence of Jesus reveals the one who is the master of the wind and the waves. Somehow, by coming to us during the storm Jesus does more to demonstrate his divinity than is possible when we are all safely ashore. He speaks like God from the burning bush, telling his disciples that, "I am". When we hear this as the revelation that it truly is, his name and identity are able to cast out our fear and bring us unshakable peace. The voice of Jesus first calms the storms in our hearts, making us courageous, able to be bold in spite of the storms that still persist around us. In a sense it is as though faith makes us perceive that the storm has already been calmed.
Peter said to him in reply, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.”
When we experience that Jesus himself is the one who "alone stretches out the heavens and treads upon the back of the sea" (see Job 9:8) we become empowered to take steps of faith, faith that his authority, and not those of our circumstances is that which is primary and absolute. There are waves, yes, but he rules the waves. It is actually safer to be out of the boat and near to Jesus than it is to remain within the apparent safety of the boat. This does necessarily mean leaving the Church behind for distant foreign missions. But it does mean that we can learn to leave other forms of safety when we perceive that taking a risk of staking our lives on faith might bring us closer to Jesus.
But when he saw how strong the wind was he became frightened;
and, beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me!”
Immediately Jesus stretched out his hand and caught him,
and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”
The impulse of Peter, his desire to be near to Jesus, was not a bad impulse, else why would Jesus himself have called him to come? But it was not something that could immediately and all at once be sustained. Learning to walk smoothly and confidently above the waves of circumstance by the power of the assurance of our faith is not typically something we achieve perfectly the first time we try. But we need not. It is an important part of the learning process that we have to cry out for the hand of Jesus not only once, but again and again. By this process we learn to walk on water in a way that does not make us prideful or arrogant, but keeps us dependent on Jesus, as we learn to fix the gaze of our faith more and more on him alone.
He reached down from on high and seized me;
drew me out of the deep waters (see Psalm 18:17).
Storms are not things for which we are typically grateful. But if we learn to look for the presence of Jesus coming to us even in the middle of the storms of life we can receive storms as blessings that are greater than any we could have received otherwise. We can learn to confess, with the disciples, saying "Truly, you are the Son of God", with such conviction that it seems like we are saying it and meaning it for the first time.
When I summon him, he shall approach me;
how else should one take the deadly risk
of approaching me? says the LORD.
We ought not recklessly jump from the boat into the waters. Assuredly we will sink like stones. We must wait for the voice of Jesus himself to call us and hone in on the sound of his voice, fixing our gaze on him, not the boat, not ourselves, not the water, but Jesus alone.
The Lord will build up Zion again, and appear in all his glory.
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