Trusting the One Who Commands Land, Sea and Sky Matthew 14:22-33; Job 38:4-18; Romans 10:5-17

 

Grace, mercy and peace to you, from God, our Father, and our Lord, Jesus Christ, Who Commands Land, Sea and Sky.

 

In today’s Gospel, the demands of the ministry of the Messiah were wearing on Jesus. He needed some time alone, to rest His body and mind, and to minister to His spirit, in prayer and reflection.

 

We have the same needs in our busy lives… or even if our lives aren’t so busy, there are still different kinds of stress we all have to deal with.

 

So all we need time to talk to and be in communion with Jesus’ Father and our Father, the Heavenly Father we share, to talk to Him about what we’re going through… 

 

… about what may trouble or concern us… about what may lay ahead of us that might scare us… 

 

… or about the joys we’re experiencing, or about anything… our Heavenly Father enjoys small talk, too.  

 

To have some alone time with His thoughts and prayers, our text says, Jesus had… the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side (of the lake), while he dismissed the crowds... 

 

Partly to have some time away from the disciples, but also because He planned to meet them later that night in an unforgettable way. 

 

After he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray… some badly needed time for solitude and prayer.

 

When evening came he was there alone, but the boat by this time was a long way from the land, beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them…

As was so often the case on the Sea of Galilee, they had to fight the wind and the waves. 

 

In life we sometimes have to fight the wind and the waves… things that happen that make life difficult, we have to navigate our way through them… but as we’ll see, we have someone to help us, the One who commands the wind and the waves. 

 

In the fourth watch of the night, about 3 or 4 am… I’m sure they were tired and exhausted by then… he came to them, walking on the sea. 

 

What a thing to see at 3 am, in the deep and dark of the night, someone coming to you suddenly out of nowhere, in the middle of the lake, walking on the water.

 

When the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It’s a ghost!” and they cried out in fear. 

 

Sometimes we’re surprised and taken aback by things that happen to us, things we don’t expect, things that can be terrifying -- a diagnosis of cancer or an illness that’s going to change our lives, or maybe even take our lives…

 

… or a sudden accident, or an unexpected loss of a job or a relationship, or the sudden loss of a loved one…

 

… just like that, these things can happen, and we don’t know how we’re going to make it through… we wonder if we’ll ever be happy again, will life be worth living after this…

 

But God is at work, helping us in through these difficult times, blessing us in ways we don’t expect.

 

Immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.”

 

In our Old Testament, Job had a series of unexpected tragedies, the loss of his family, of his property and wealth, and his health… 

 

For Job, when it rained, it poured!

 

Yet for all the pain and struggle and heartache, God was with him through it all. 

 

And God had a plan to heal Job’s body, mind, and soul… and to bless him in amazing ways, with more abundance than Job ever could have imagined.

 

After his life was so broken, destroyed, it must have seemed, God brought Job back to a place where his heart and soul prospered again… and more than ever.

 

In that perfect, horrible storm of Job’s life, God was in the midst of it, to bless and help him.

 

When your life turns into that perfect, horrible storm, God is with you, to comfort and strengthen you. 

 

In the fourth watch of the night, in the darkest of the night and the worst of the storm, Jesus comes walking to you… 

 

His presence gives you hope, His words are your strength, and your light in the darkness, and His love your warmth and comfort in the rain.   

 

You need not doubt that He is here for you, even in the worst moments of your life… God is here, and He has a plan to bless you again, greatly.

 

Peter wasn’t sure that it was Jesus on the water, so he answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” 

 

Still not sure, Peter put Jesus to the test. But it was really Peter who would be tested.

Jesus said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus… and there it is, the power of faith in Christ.

 

As Paul says in our Epistle, “Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” 

 

Believing Jesus, Peter was safe and sound on the water. But doubting Him, doubting the miracle, and seeing only the storm and the dark, Peter’s trust  was slipping away… his faith was sinking.

 

But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out,  “Lord, save me.” 

 

The storms of life can cloud our vision, and weakness of heart can cause fear over faith… and we start to sink… 

 

The waves of trouble and temptation grow higher and stronger, and threaten to sweep over us and overcome us altogether, drowning us in a sea of desperation. 

 

Although the storms of life and our struggles with sin can threaten our faith and confidence in Christ, He doesn’t easily give up on us.

 

Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of Peter.

 

He reaches out us, with His mighty Word to save us, as our Epistle says, “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart... and all who call on the name of the Lord will be saved”.  

 

Jesus reaches out to us with His Word and His Fellowship, to pull us back to Him. 

 

So let us reach out, and help to bring our brothers and sisters back into God’s Fellowship, and ours.

Let us never refuse the hand of our Lord to help and rescue us, to draw us closer to Him.

 

Let us never refuse the helping hand of our brothers and sisters in Christ.

 

Then Jesus said to Peter, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”

 

In the midst of the storm, even in our failures, God is teaching us not to doubt Him, but trust Him… to know and believe all He can do for us, and for us to hold onto Him, and boldly walk with Him, into the night and through the storm. 

 

And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God”…the One and only, who commands the land and sea and sky.

 

In our Old Testament, God challenges Job, who is complaining against God, “Where were you when I laid the foundation of the earth… when I created the heavens and the earth… 

 

… the land and mountains and waters and plains and the sky and the stars above… He alone made and commands them all… 

 

Truly He is the Son of God, very God of very God, as we say by faith… He commands all that He has made, and He made it all, for us.

 

May we honor His majesty, embrace His grace, share His salvation, and rest secure in His mighty arms, no matter how threatening the storm may be… Our God is greater!

 

And always in the storm, His peace, which passes understanding, will guard our hearts and minds, in Christ Jesus, who reaches out to us, lifts us up, and draws us close. Amen.