Proper 14 (A) When We Have That Sinking Feeling
Proper 14 (A) When We Have That Sinking Feeling
You begin as a beginner in some subject or field of study—weather prediction, writing, arithmetic—and, as we master the basic fundamentals, we advance to more challenging exercises and complicated problems. Normally, we can track our advance by comparing grades or grade levels with other students working in the same field. When a dedicated student produces superior work over a prescribed period of time, they may earn the right to be called Doctor, as a recognition of their ability to apply their understanding in creative ways and so advance their field of knowledge toward new frontiers.
Our growth in faith is not nearly so orderly or systematic. When Nicodemus, whom we might call Dr. Nicodemus, came to Jesus to discover more about Our Lord’s powerful faith, Jesus told Nicodemus that he would have to rely on an entirely new and different approach. So new and different that it would be like being born again…starting fresh. And this new approach would not necessarily be orderly and systematic, but…wild. The wind blows where it wills…wild. We can almost hear Nicodemus thinking, “But how about all those hours of study, the books, the papers, my degree! Magna Cum Laude!” To which Jesus replies, “I’m surprised. Here you are, a teacher in all Israel, and you don’t know the first thing about the power to grow in God’s will through faith.”
Our Lord still may be surprised by the church’s approach to faith today. We expose our children to skillfully drawn curricula. We offer an exciting choice of courses for adults. In a few more weeks, our town of Walla Walla will have two Christian bookstores!
We may be among the most knowledgeable religious people in the state but still know little or nothing about the power of God that comes through faith.
Let’s let Our Lord and Peter, through today’s Gospel, teach us how to live by the power of faith.
You recall that while the Apostles were straining their backs and fighting to keep their boat on course on a stormy lake, they saw Jesus walking toward them on the water. At first, they thought it was a ghost, and they got that awful “What is it, and what does it want with us?” feeling. Jesus calls out to them and tells them not to be afraid. Then Peter blurts out, “Lord, if it really is you, tell me to come to you across the water!” Jesus immediately says, “Come.” And Peter leaves the boat and heads out over the water to Jesus.
The first step in faith was Peter seeing in Jesus something that he wished for himself with all of his heart. Now and then, we do see, in fleeting glimpses, what a believer should be like and what the Lord expects of us. We might say to ourselves, “Oh, how I wish I could teach like Jesus, love like Jesus, heal like Jesus, help like Jesus.” What we don’t realize is the fact that we are moving into the realm of the improbable. That is, we are asking for things beyond our human capacities.
When our natural, limited selves long for something that has supernatural qualities—qualities that would be impossible to document as belonging to us—only then has our faith really begun. For many of us, turning the other cheek, walking the extra mile, and loving your neighbor as yourself look as impossible as walking on water.
Many have dismissed the Sermon on the Mount as the impossible dream. Think of being a peacemaker in a world that always seems to be looking for a fight. Yet, there is Our Lord saying, “Come on, be a peacemaker. Step out on the stormy water and head for me.”
Christ is always challenging us to move beyond the present mold of our faith. Just when we get settled in the boat and say, “There, at last, I have faith enough to tithe,” there is Jesus out there on the water calling me to be a peacemaker. Like the billowing waves, the risk is fearful.
The risk that Peter took was very real, and we are not surprised by what happened next. “When he perceived how strong the wind was, becoming frightened, he began to sink.” Seeing himself in a superhuman situation, he was naturally frightened.
My wrestlers—I used to be a wrestling coach at Breck School—would say, “He clutched!” thereby rendering himself incapable of seeing his action through to the end. He shrank…then sank.
We see Christ summoning us to the next area of our faith growth and development. We step out in faith, then realize our natural limitations. We take our eyes off Jesus to notice the power of the storm. We shrink…then sink.
We can all identify with Peter’s fear. We look around us and see others whose path in life seems so sure, and we are frightened by our own insecurity. We shrink in our fear of others and what they might say or think about us. We keep seeing the riptide of some heavy past that weighs upon us, or of an uncertain future that lies in wait for us ahead.
True faith is learning to face our fears with total confidence in the Lord. Peter faltered because he paid too little attention to the Lord and too much attention to the wind and waves.
As God calls us beyond ourselves, it is imperative to keep in close communion with God’s Spirit. And when we feel ourselves going down, repeat after Peter: “Lord, save me!”
Progress in faith is not a straight-line process. It is the result of being summoned by the urge to surpass ourselves. But if the Spirit is willing, the flesh is weak. Our natural selves panic when we perceive the consequences that will flow from the Spirit’s choice.
If we don’t step out in faith when we see Our Lord calling us, we will never know what it means to grow in faith, and the Beatitudes will remain the impossible dream.
We can all test the waters this week. When we feel called beyond ourselves, step out in faith and keep your eyes on Jesus.
Resources for further study:
| Track 1 | or | Track 2 |
| Genesis 37:1-4, 12-28 Psalm 105:1-6, 16-22, 45b Romans 10:5-15 Matthew 14:22-33 | 1 Kings 19:9-18 Psalm 85:8-13 Romans 10:5-15 Matthew 14:22-33 |
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