What Are You Waiting For??

Matthew 14:22-33  Jesus Walks on Water

"...But Jesus immediately said to them: "Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid."

 ²⁸"Lord, if it's you," Peter replied, "tell me to come to you on the water."

 ²⁹"Come," he said.

   Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. ³⁰But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, "Lord, save me!"

 ³¹Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. "You of little faith," he said, "why did you doubt?" 

Tonight during our Parakaleo (Greek for walk together) one of my housemates focused on this passage. She shared a Nooma video from Rob Bell which offered a new perspective on this very familiar passage of scripture.

In the time of the disciples only very few were chosen to be disciples and scholars of the distinguished rabbi's. A chosen disciple's hearts desire was to become everything that his teacher was. "May you be covered in the dust of your rabbi". When a rabbi chooses a disciple he says to that one, "come, follow me".

Bells perspective here challenges us to see that yes the disciples were afraid. Peter, being a very diligent disciple, called out Lord, if you are my teacher and I am to follow you and do as you do then tell me to come and I will. We see that Peter becomes just as his teacher and starts to walk on the water undisturbed.

I will skip over the conversation about what the winds represent. But Peter soon begins to sink. Jesus's response to Peter is why did you doubt? One sank and the other walked. Bell points out here that Jesus is not the one who sank. Peter sank. So who did Peter really doubt? Jesus did not change nor waiver in his actions but Peter did. Peter began to doubt himself and his ability to be like his rabbi.

How often do we find ourselves believing that God can and will do a certain thing yet struggling to have faith that God will do it through us? We sell ourselves short of being ambassadors of Christ and doers of His word.

I'll end with Bell's final prayer to his audience:
...may you believe in God, may you believe in Jesus, and may you also come to believe in yourself...and may you be covered by the dust of your Rabbi, Jesus.

The best is yet to come,
~Adwoa