Walk on Water – Matthew 14:22-33

I’m a little nuts about the movie Tombstone and the character of Doc Holliday, played by Val Kilmer. After Wyatt Earp has just braved charging the enemy and defeating them in a hail of bullets, one of his compatriots says as they rest by a river bank, “I ain’t never even heard of anything like.” Someone asks, “Where is he” and Doc answers, “Down by the creek, walkin’ on water.”

It has become common parlance in our culture to describe someone doing something near miraculous as “walking on water,” an allusion, of course, to Jesus doing that very thing. Why did he do it? Can we do it?

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.” (Matthew 14:22-33 ESV)

Would you have walked out of the boat toward Jesus?  Jesus had decided to stay and pray while the disciples sailed to the other side of the Sea of Galilee for Jesus’ next destination, a place mostly inhabited by Gentiles.  The opposition he had been experiencing and this new destination provoked such all night prayer.  The disciples had been sailing about nine hours (evening was measured in four 3-hour watches and the incident happened in the fourth watch, nine hours into the night, three hours before dawn).  What prompted Jesus to walk out to them?

1) The Father told him to in prayer, we may suppose, making him aware that they were caught in the storm.

2) They were in trouble and needed saving.

3) It was an opportunity to test their faith after having just witnessed the feeding of the 5,000.

Peter has more faith than the other disciples, perhaps emboldened by the feeding of the 5,000 and Jesus’ words “It is I,” which actually are, “I am,” a reminder of Yahweh’s words of identification to Moses in Exodus 3:14.  That he starts to sink when he takes his eyes off Jesus and looks at the storm moves Jesus to save him but also rebuke him.  It seems harsh to do so, but Jesus is ready for his disciples to be more mature in their faith and they need a rebuke to let them know how serious it is that they grow in this area.

Jesus is the Son of God and it is good that the disciples recognize this.  But it is not being the Son of God that enabled him to walk on water.  After all, Peter did it.  It is dependence on the Spirit that enabled Jesus to do this.  He did not exercise his deity purposely at this coming because he needed us to learn from his example how to live the kingdom life.  Walking on the water was preceded by praying all night.