You Gotta Get Outta the Boat!

Rev. Debbie Cato    Matthew 14:22-33                                   Peace Presbyterian Church     August 10, 2014

You Gotta Get Outta the Boat!

Did you know that the Sea of Galilee is actually a freshwater lake? It's about 13 miles across and seven miles long. In Jesus day, there was a continuous ribbon of settlements and villages around the lake, thriving fishing businesses, and plenty of trade and ferrying by boat around the lake. Much of Jesus’ ministry occurred around the Sea Galilee and in the beautiful surrounding countryside. He recruited four of his disciples from the shores of the sea. It is thought that Jesus’ preached the Sermon on the Mount from a hill overlooking the Sea of Galilee. It was along these beautiful shores that Jesus did much of his teaching and performed many of his miracles.

It was here along these shores, that Jesus asked his disciples to provide food for the large crowd that had followed him when he attempted to go off and be alone after he heard the devastating news that his cousin John had been brutally murdered. With just five loaves and two fishes, a crowd of more than five thousand, were fed with twelve baskets left over. Right after this; right after everyone had eaten; Jesus told his disciples to get into a boat and go ahead to the other side of the Sea while he dismissed the crowds. I imagine he had some final words for them – maybe a final blessing, a few hugs and handshakes. I like to imagine what Jesus may have said and done in those final moments with the crowd. It's nice to imagine.

And then finally, after an incredibly long day, Jesus went to find some quiet time for himself. He went up the mountain alone to pray. Jesus time alone, his time to grieve and get his thoughts together was delayed, but the busy day did not prevent Jesus from spending time with God. He wasn’t too tired to pray. Finally, Jesus achieves his goal. He is in a deserted place by himself – praying and talking with His Father as he so often does during his ministry.

And that brings us to today’s passage. Jesus sends the disciples on without him – He tells them to get in the boat and cross to the other side. So, the disciples go down to the sea and they get into a boat. This same story is told in the Gospel of John where we are given more details. John tells us that darkness surrounds them as they begin rowing the boat the seven miles across the sea the long way. Suddenly, a storm blows up. Storms would do that on the Sea of Galilea. The sea becomes very rough and a strong wind buffets the boat back and forth, up and down. The winds increase and the sea becomes turbulent; the wild waves knock the boat around and with it the disciples. Water crashes over the top of the boat and soaks their clothes. The fierce wind billows around them. They row and row and row but no matter how hard they push against the oars, the waves push them back. They can’t go more than 3 or 4 miles no matter how hard they work. They are stuck in the middle of the sea, tossing and turning in the chaos of the water, unable to see anything in the darkness, and they become fearful. I love that – “they become fearful.” I would guess they were scared to death! The rushing sound of the wind and the waves is deafening. The disciples think they are going to die –lost at sea. And just when the terror is about to get the best of them; just when they think it’s over for them; Jesus comes to them in the midst of the chaos of the storm; in the midst of their terror.

Three miles from shore; rocking about in the boat in the middle of the sea, tossed about and swallowed by waves, they look out and see a shape. A ghost-like figure walking on the water towards them – walking on the water in the midst of the vicious winds and the wild waves. The wind is blowing water in their eyes and the boat is thrashing around in the waves. Imagine the deafening noise, the exhaustion from fighting the tenacious storm, rowing and rowing for hours. Things couldn't get worse but now - well now they think they see a ghost coming toward them – walking on the stormy water! Imagine their helplessness! Imagine the sheer terror they are feeling!

     And then they hear it. His voice. “Take heart. It is I. Do not be afraid.”

          Take heart. It is I. Do not be afraid. It is I.

Thus far, the disciples have remained nameless. It's been “the disciples” in the boat. But once Jesus identifies himself, it's Peter who answers him. Simon Peter , the risk taker. He was the first with an answer when Jesus asked, “Who do people say that I am.” Peter responded, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God! Peter paid the price of being a risk taker when he presumed to correct Jesus' announcement of the rejection and death that awaited him. “Get thee behind me Satan!” Jesus said. No coincidence that these are two of the most quoted lines in all the New Testament: “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God!” and “Get thee behind me Satan!” both attributed to Peter, the risk taker.

Peter says a number of strange things to Jesus but do you find his words to Jesus strange in this passage? He has been in a boat, tossed about in a turbulent storm for hours, unsure if he is going to live. Thinking that a ghost was approaching the boat walking on the waves, he hears Jesus' voice say, “Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.” And Peter says, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” Do you find that strange? Even for Peter? “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.”

If it is you, command me to risk my life, to tempt death, to walk out across 6,000 fathoms of dark, swirling, threatening sea.

Don't you find it strange that if Peter was uncertain that the voice from the storm was really the voice of Jesus – his lord, unless that voice commanded him - “Come out and join me, Peter. The water's great!”

But think about it. That really is how you will know Jesus. Jesus is the one who extravagantly and recklessly commands you to leave the safety of your boat, to step into the sea, to test the waters, and show what your faith is made of. That is Jesus. To serve Jesus, you gotta get outta the boat!

Do you know the hymn “Softly and Tenderly?” “Softly and tenderly Jesus is calling. Calling for you and for me.” It's an old gospel song. Well, in today's scripture passage, Jesus is softly and tenderly calling you to risk your life, to throw caution to the wind, to step out of the boat and defy death!

I think Peter was a little bit crazy! He wanted to trust and believe Jesus so much. When he heard that voice in the middle of that horrible storm that night; when he was at the end of everything that he and the others could humanly do to save themselves, he saw the outline of that figure walking toward him and he heard a voice say, “Take heart. It is I. Do not be afraid.” The only thing that came out of Peter's mouth was “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” And without hesitation, Jesus said exactly what Peter wanted him to say. “Come.” “Come to me, Peter. Come to me.”

Without even thinking, Peter somehow gained his balance in that rocking boat, he stood

up and stepped over the edge onto the rolling waves and he began to walk toward Jesus. It was indeed Jesus, come to rescue him and the others. With confidence and assurance, looking straight ahead at his Lord, Peter took one step after another and walked toward Jesus in the midst of that stormy sea.

But then, Peter did what we all do. He took his eyes off Jesus. And when he did, he noticed how windy it was. He remembered the storm raging around him. He realized what he was doing – he realized he was walking on water and he began to sink. I'm going to drown, he thought. “Lord, save me!” he cried. Immediately, Jesus reached out his hand. He caught Peter and rescued him from the storm. “You of little Faith,” Jesus said. “Why did you doubt?” When Peter and Jesus got into the boat with the others, the wind and the storm immediately stopped. It was over as quickly as it had begun. And the disciples worshiped Jesus saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

You know, many of the disciples were fishermen. Jesus recruited them to follow him and become fishers of people right from those shores. It would make sense that in their fishing careers they had experienced many storms on that lake. It would seem that they knew how to ride those storms out. We learned through John that early in the evening they rowed and rowed trying to get to the other side but the stormy waves kept pushing them back. It is likely that they even went in circles. These were likely big, strong men – putting everything they had into the oars, trying to will themselves forward and yet getting nowhere. But no matter how hard they rowed, they couldn't get anywhere. Not until Jesus got on board. As soon as Jesus was with them, the storm stopped and they reached their destination.

The church can be like that you know. We get so focused on doing what we've always done, the way we've always done it, that we don't even notice that we aren't getting anywhere. We are rowing in place. We are trying to get somewhere under our own strength with our own wherewithal and we haven't bothered to ask Jesus to if it's him. “If it's you Lord, command us to get out of the boat and come to you.” Just like Peter, we have to take risks. We have to be willing to get out of the safety of our boat – the things we are comfortable with, the things we have always done, and go where Jesus is calling us – trusting that he is there. Trusting that he will catch us.

Yes! We will make mistakes. We will do things that just won't work. We will fail. The great basketball player Michael Jordan said, “I've missed more than 9000 shots in my career. I've lost almost 300 games. 26 times, I've been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I've failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.”

In June, I preached a sermon about the Great commission; Jesus sending his disciples out to “make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Before Jesus ascends into heaven after his resurrection, he gives his disciples their mission. He tells them their ongoing work is to go out – go out and spread the Word; go out and share the good news; go out and make other followers. I gave you a copy of the mission statement for Peace and asked you to spend the summer praying about what God might be calling us to do – to be. I hope you’ve been doing that.

Thursday night, rather than a regular session meeting, the session will engage in a planning retreat – focusing on goals for the next year. Where is God calling us? Where do we need to stop rowing around in circles? Where do we need to get out of the boat and trust Jesus? I hope you’ll pray for the session – your spiritual leaders this week.

But this text isn’t just about the leadership of the church. It’s about all of us. Each of us is called to be the hands and feet of Jesus. At some point in our faith journey, sometimes more than once - We have to get out of the boat. We have to take risks. We have to do things differently. It’s you that Jesus is standing in front of and gently saying “Come.” The question is, will you listen? Will you get out of the boat?

Amen.