When the disciples saw him walking on the sea they were terrified.
“It is a ghost,” they said, and they cried out in fear.
The presence of Jesus during storms in inherently harder to recognize than it is during times of tranquility and peace. We might assume that when Jesus makes us get in a boat to go somewhere we will have good weather and smooth sailing all the way to the other side. However, we can see from today's Gospel that Jesus doesn't always lead us around storms. Nor does he always encourage us to stay at home and wait them out. Rather he trains us to be obedient to his calling, but on the watch for his presence and grace when storms do arise.
At once Jesus spoke to them, “Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.”
At first the presence of Jesus only adds to the disciples' fear. Coming across the water as he does makes him seem like another danger in addition to the storm, as though nature and the spiritual powers were all set against them. Jesus certainly must have inspired awe when he appeared. But it became clear that he had no alliance with the storm, and that the power of his peacefulness was superior to that of the terror of the storm. The wind and the waves could not affect a heart so completely anchored in the heart of the Father.
Peter said to him in reply,
“Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.”
He said, “Come.”
Peter needed more than visual spectacle in order to fully trust his senses. He knew Jesus best when Jesus called him to do what was beyond his natural capacity but made him able to it by grace, just as when Jesus summoned him to become a fisher of men in spite the fact that he was a sinner. And so Peter's desire to step out from the boat was not necessarily only a foolish desire to show off or experience the supernatural. It was motivated more by a desire to be near to Jesus in a way that was familiar, even if it was also wildly different from what had come before.
It may be that we all need help to grow in our ability to recognize Jesus during times of storm. Perhaps, like Peter, we learn to recognize him by learning to rely on him and take him at his word. We too may need to use this formula of "if it is you, command me", and then put his promise to the test by obeying.
But when he saw how strong the wind was he became frightened;
The difficulty for us will often be the same as it was for Peter. We will make some new and bold effort to serve the Lord and draw near to him only to discover anew just how bad the weather of our circumstances truly is. There will not be fewer temptations to take our eyes off of Jesus when we step out of the boat, but more. It becomes more essential than ever to keep our eyes fixed on him, on his presence, on his word, and on his promise. If we fail to do so we won't have the solid safety of the boat on which to fall back, because we have taken steps into new and uncharted waters that are unique to us and to our calling.
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?”
It is almost inevitable that we will sometimes take our eyes off of Jesus and sink a little. The important thing is to turn back to him and ask for help before we go under entirely. Jesus himself knows that there is a learning process when it comes to walking by faith, just as we did not learn the physical skill of walking perfectly the first time we tried. Parents know that their children may fall as they learn to walk. But even so they do their best to spare them any significant injury, avoiding sharp corners and bruised knees to the best of their ability. Like any parent would have done, Jesus reached out immediately to catch Peter, restoring the stability that his presence alone could provide.
Those who were in the boat did him homage, saying,
“Truly, you are the Son of God.”
Because they had seen the presence of the power of Jesus in the midst of the storm they discovered that it was Jesus and not the storm that was the greater force at work in their lives. They discovered this in an existential way that went beyond the merely theoretical. It is one thing to know Jesus as Lord. But it is another to know him as the Lord of our lives and over our own unique circumstances. This is why it is not enough to know that Jesus is the Son of God. We must grow in understanding what that means for us. One thing it does mean is that he is the source of a healing power that knows no limits, as the crowds realized.
People brought to him all those who were sick
and begged him that they might touch only the tassel on his cloak,
and as many as touched it were healed.
Graham Kendrick and Reuben Morgan - Keep My Eyes On You
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