Matthew 14.22-33

Pentecost Eleven (Revised Common Lectionary) | 08.13.23 | Matthew 14.22-33 | Carl A. Voges |

The Passage

Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds.  And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray.  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.  And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea.  But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” and they cried out in fear.  But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I.  Do not be afraid.”

And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.”  He said, “Come.”  So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus.  But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink, he cried out, “Lord, save me.”  Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”  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.”                                                                                                [English Standard Version]

  In the Name of Christ + Jesus Our Lord

These are jarring times in which we find ourselves: In the aftermath of this country’s credit rating, are there responsible people in Washington, DC, who are willing to confront our spending habits?; If one is a fan of college football, what are we to make of all the changes in conference memberships?; What is going to emerge from the polarization in this country’s politics?; Are individuals going to pick up on the slickness and attractiveness of the world’s gods?; Will the military abilities of Ukraine be able to match those of Russia?; How will the students in our public schools overcome the learning deficits that were thrust upon them?; Are people paying attention to the number of denominations drifting from their biblical and sacramental foundations?

During such jarring times, the Lord’s baptized people are being plunged into the realities of the Life he gives to his people throughout this Pentecost season.  Such plunging today involves the storms that swirl around and through our lives.  Being South Carolinians, we’re highly familiar with storms – rain, thunder and lightning, hurricane, nor’easter, tornado, ice and snow.

As we move into this familiar passage today, we discover it has much to teach us about the Life brought to this world by the Son.  There are four actions in this passage: Jesus going to be with the Father; Jesus emerging in the middle of a storm; Jesus rescuing his disciples; and Jesus calming the storm.

The first action shows Jesus going to be with the Father.  After dismissing the thousands of people he has just fed, Jesus goes up a mountain by himself to pray (remember, first, that a mountain, biblically, signals the Father’s presence; remember, second, that prayer signals a conversation between the Father and the Son).  This action also shows the disciples in the middle of a storm on the lake.  Before Jesus had dismissed the crowd, he had ordered the disciples to get into a boat and go on ahead to the other side of the lake.

The second action shows Jesus emerging in the middle of a storm.  He is walking on the water toward the disciples between the hours of 3-6 am.  When the disciples see this, they are terrified, blurting out that he is a ghost and crying out in fear!  Throughout the Scriptures, the presence of the LORD God stirs this reaction among people (it makes one wonder if this is why people avoid the Lord’s presence today, particularly in the four holy places of his Scriptures and Sacraments).  Immediately, however, Jesus tells them to take heart; it is he and they are not to be afraid!

These calming words lead us to the third action that shows Jesus rescuing his disciples.  Peter responds with these well-known words – Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water (Greek meaning of “command” carries the sense of “draw me to you”). Jesus gives the command; Peter gets out of the boat, starts walking on the water and moves toward Jesus.  But then he notices the strong wind, becomes frightened and begins to sink, causing him to cry out his equally well-known words – Lord, save me!  Jesus immediately reaches out his hand and catches Peter while saying to him – You of

little faith, why did you doubt?  Don’t forget that Jesus’ assessment of Peter also applies to us (often, we are of little faith and, to be honest, of much doubt!).

This brings us to the fourth action showing Jesus calming the storm.  When Jesus and Peter get into the boat, the wind ceases!  Those already in the boat worship Jesus, saying – Truly, you are the Son of God!

We’re familiar with the storms that occur in this part of the country: rain, thunder and lightning, hurricane, nor’easter, tornado, ice and snow.  Today’s Gospel demonstrates that our Lord has power over them.  However, before we start telling the Lord what he should do about the storms that crop up (especially with us getting deeper into the hurricane season while experiencing thunderstorms), we should notice there is another demonstration in this passage, one involving our faith and our doubt).

Even though we have been drawn into the Life of the Holy Trinity, we recognize that the life of the world still clings to us, a life that is under the domination of the unholy trio of sin, Satan and death.  The unholy trio’s domination reaches far beyond the natural storms of this planet, stirring up other storms, storms with which we are very familiar.  These other storms are usually reflected in the Sunday prayers: illnesses in bodies, minds or spirits; distorted senses of who we understand ourselves to be; difficult or unsatisfying work; tense or breaking relationships.

How do we react to such storms – do we try to prevent them from occurring or hide from them or run from them?  When these other storms erupt in and around us, our instinctive reactions are to turn to ourselves (that’s what we do when confronted with a tornado warning – we start heading for the safest place in our homes!).  What this passage is teaching us today is to turn from ourselves to the LORD God, the Lord who streams his Life into ours from his Scriptures and Sacraments.

Hearing that familiar phrase, Scriptures and Sacraments, we’re tempted to shut our minds down, claiming we already know about those four holy realities.  But let’s not cave into such temptation; here are some examples why we should not:

When our bodies are fighting off a serious illness and our prescriptions include radiation and medications, do we think that is all there is to it?  No, we don’t!  As the Lord’s baptized people we realize that our exposure to his holy places really drives the health pouring back into our bodies (both in this life as well as in eternity).

When our relationships with others become tense or brittle and we are consulting with people skilled in those areas to help us through the situations they generate, do we think that is all there is to it?  No, we don’t!  As the Lord’s baptized people we realize that our exposure to his holy places really drives the restoration pouring back into such relationships.

These other storms, to which we are subjected by the unholy trio, are extremely threatening and fierce.  But the LORD God will always hear our cries that he save us.

Storms cannot rip the marking given us by the Lord when he baptized us.  Storms cannot prevent us from hearing, reading or studying the holy Writings he has given us in the Church.  Storms cannot block us from his Forgiveness as we confront our sins and confess them.  Storms cannot prohibit us from eating his Body and drinking his Blood.

It is true that these storms create and drive these jarring times: There is increasing emphasis in this world on self-centering attitudes and actions; There are burial services designed to focus only on one who died; There are countries led by rulers who just don’t think like other leaders; There are parents who have difficulties parenting.

Remember that these storms are always trying to get us to take our primary cues from a self-absorbed life, but all that does is to worsen the situations in which we find ourselves.

The unholy trio of sin, Satan and death continually wants us to focus on our own lives.

They want us to become dispirited and exhausted while surrounding us with people

determined to be like God or stirring up tensions between individuals or wrecking things.

And we are to take the primary cues for our lives from that kind of a life?  As baptized people, we don’t think so!

Today’s storm in the Gospel reminds us that the Lord’s people are aware of their cues – all of them good, all of them permanent, all of them effective.  Let this passage remind us that when the storms of the unholy trio begin slamming into our lives, there are the Lord’s four cues that will carry us through them.  Yes, they are familiar to the people of the Lord’s parish communities, but let’s not take them for granted.  For those cues, imbedded in the Scriptures and Sacraments, are the only realities that can secure, protect and sustain us!  All these cues stream from the Son’s crucifixion, resurrection and ascension, a stream that emerges from the waters of Baptism.  With our lives firmly immersed in the Life of the Holy Trinity, the LORD God hears our cries for help and saves us!

Now may the peace of the LORD God, which is beyond all understanding, keep our hearts and minds through Christ + Jesus Our Lord

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Pr. Carl A. Voges, Columbia, SC, STS; carl.voges4@icloud.com