Jesus' Voice

 

The wind was blowing a gale, the waves were rough and it was dark, as night had come.  The disciples toiled and struggled to get their boat to Capernaum.  They'd gotten part way across after many hours of buffet and struggle against the wind, when they saw someone or something coming towards them.  These grown men grew terrified.

It was no bird or plane!  They thought it was a ghost.  Until 'the voice' sounded - 

"Take courage" 

and 

"It is I...Don't be afraid".  

Imagine their relief.  It was Jesus' voice.  It was Jesus coming towards them.  

"But wait...what?  He's walking on the water."  

"Say what?"  

"You heard correctly - He's walking on the water!"

The voice of the Lord calmed the turbulent emotions that coursed through them from the supposed ghost sighting more than the mirrored fright of the rough sea.  Does His voice calm you?   It can as we read His word, as we listen for His voice through the Holy Spirit's guidance - even in the midst of the wildest storms of life we toil through.

How gracious of Jesus, but this is what He does.  This is one of His many specialties.

There were some serious miracles going on here too!  One, Jesus was walking on the water.

No wonder the disciples were startled out of their wits.  In all their life and times as fishermen, not in their foggiest of imaginations had they ever thought of or seen such a happening.

Today's illustionists try to recreate walking on water but they need to go through elaborate shenanigans to do so.  Jesus' true miracle was all, shall we say, "organic."  It was just Jesus and the water; no illusions, only truth.

This helps to partly explain why Peter began to sink.  There were no optical tricks involved.  Peter knew what to do though.  He cried out, Jesus reached out to grab him and then into the boat they climbed.  The crux of the near drowning was that Peter had taken his eyes off Jesus, and despite being a seasoned fisherman out in all kinds of weather,  becoming afraid of the boisterious waves and going for a dunk-drenching drowning scare.  I think I'd have felt the same.

Jesus asked, 

"Why did you doubt?"

Ahh.  Peter had doubted Jesus' ability to maintain the water walk on sea level.  This was NOT seabed walking with needed scuba equipment.  This was authentic 'walking on water'!  This was a miracle.

The second astonishing miracle happened when Jesus got into the boat.  Did you catch what happened?  Look at John 6:21 NIV.  

"Then they were willing to take him into the boat..."

Here it comes, take further note...

"...and immediately the boat reached the shore where they were heading" (John 6:21).

Isn't that marvelous!!

In this instance, the sea was not calmed by Jesus.  The disciples would still have had to strive more hours to plough through those rough waves to Capernaum but Jesus fast-tracked them to shore.

Wouldn't you be stunned?  

This account can be read both in Matthew (14:22-33) and John (6:16-21).  In Matthew we find that,

"Then those who were in the boat worshiped Him" (v. 33).

This man Jesus was no ordinary man, could be the only explanation!  This was Jesus their Messiah, the Son of God!  He was the true God and must be worshiped - the compellings of their hearts brought out worship.  

So the disciples worshiped Him.  They knew this fully Man who could do miracles and recognized His fully God divinity.  Do you feel like worshiping Him?  Are you willing to take Him into your boat of life, stopping a few minutes to give Him your praise and adoration?  Sing, Amazing Grace.  That's the song I'm listening to at the moment while typing.  We will sing His praise so much in time to come but we can start now.

They did not broadcast to their town criers to gain attention.  No, they worshiped Jesus, then and there.  May our hearts be warmed by this, may we fall on our knees and give Jesus the glory and honor due to Him.

Contrast this with the crowds who, yes, were clamouring to find Jesus but their hearts were not in a right place.  They did not seek Him in order to worship Him.  Jesus remarked that they sought Him because of the miracle of the loaves of bread and few fish with which He'd fed them earlier.  They were looking for the benefits but not the Benefit-er.  They were not seeing WHO He was.

Brothers and sisters-in-Christ, listen for Jesus' voice.  Let's examine our hearts to see just what exactly we come to Jesus for and what He is saying to us.  Do we ignore His voice?  Is it only for the benefits or to give sincere praise and adoration - the worship due to His name and being.

He deserves it!

                                                  ~ERC  March 2023~

Based on Matthew 14:22-33 and John 6:16-21.

Sing, All the Praise Belongs to You, along with Maranatha Music.

Photo credit:  Lois.  Taken at Bottle Cove, NFLD, Canada.  1970's.