Loud thunders. Powerful lightning. A dark cloud. The loud sound of a trumpet. The House of Israel heard and saw these things and trembled with fear. It was on the Feast of Weeks after their journey out of Egypt when Jesus Christ gave the 10 Commandments (Exodus 19:16).
However, there is no mention of rain. Water often symbolizes the Holy Spirit, and God did not give them the Holy Spirit. Without the Holy Spirit, they did not have the heart to keep God’s commandments (Deuteronomy 5:29).
They sinned greatly by building a golden calf and an altar before it. They attempted to use it to declare a Feast to God. Moses ordered the execution of those who had committed such sin, and about 3,000 people died at the hands of the Levites (Exodus 32:5, 26-28).
On the Feast of Weeks called Pentecost in the New Testament when God gave the Holy Spirit to the Church of God, the apostles heard a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind as described in Acts 2:2.
They would receive the Holy Spirit, which is the comforter that Jesus Christ had promised. The Holy Spirit would also give them the power to keep God’s commandments in their spiritual intent and to do the work that God had given them.
The apostle Peter would preach a sermon about repentance and about 3,000 people were added to the church (Acts 2:41). In the days that followed, many more people repented and were added to the church, including a large number of priests (Acts 6:7). The priests were Cohanim. They were of the lineage of Aaron, who was a Levite.
The apostle Peter gave a sermon about repentance on the Day of Pentecost when God gave the church the Holy Spirit. However, the Day of Pentecost was not the first time Peter and the other apostles had experienced the sound of a mighty wind or received comfort from Christ.
The purpose of this article is to describe the lessons we can learn from Peter’s walk on the water.
Peter Walks on the Water
The disciples were in a boat during a bad storm as recorded in Matthew 14:22-31:
“22And straightway Jesus constrained his disciples to get into a ship, and to go before him unto the other side, while he sent the multitudes away. 23And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone. 24But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary. 25And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea. 26And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear. 27But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid. 28And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water. 29And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus. 30But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. 31And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?” (KJV)
Jesus Christ came to them in the fourth watch of the night, which would be about 3:00 a.m. The disciples were afraid and thought that they might have seen a demon. Yet, Jesus Christ was near to them, and they did not even recognize him.
Notice that Jesus Christ was not physically present in the boat with the disciples because he was praying to his Father. The ship is symbolic of the Church of God. The Church of God is relatively small in the midst of many waters, which represent the nations of the world (Revelation 17:15). Likewise, Jesus Christ is not physically present with us today, but he makes intercession for us as our high priest before the Father (Hebrews 4:14-16). And Jesus Christ dwells within Christians today through the Holy Spirit.
Jesus Christ placed the disciples in the boat together, but he sent the multitudes away. Likewise, the Holy Spirit has placed Christians in the Church of God, and we are to be separate from the multitudes in the world. The world is under the influence of Satan (II Corinthians 4:4). Pure religion includes keeping ourselves unspotted from the world (James 1:27). We are to be led by the Holy Spirit.
The wind was strong, which caused the boat to be tossed by the waves even as trials often toss us about in life’s stormy seas. However, Jesus Christ came to the disciples to comfort them even as God has given the Holy Spirit to comfort us. God comforts us in our trials through the Holy Spirit so that we can know better how to comfort others in their trials (II Corinthians 1:3-4).
The disciples reacted with fear. However, Jesus Christ instructed the disciples not to be afraid. We may react with fear to our sore trials, but God comforts us and pours out his love on us through the Holy Spirit. Perfect love casts out fear because it is a sacrificial love. We are called to be a living sacrifice (Romans 12:1)
Peter had some doubt if the one whom he saw walking on the water were really Jesus Christ. We may often doubt if God is really with us and if the Holy Spirit is guiding us. He wanted to come to Jesus Christ, but he asked permission first.
Jesus Christ told Peter to come to him on the water. We often have to show our faith by taking bold steps with the aid of the Holy Spirit, which is often symbolized by water.
Peter was bold enough to do so when Jesus Christ bid him to come. We are often bold enough to take the initial steps of faith.
As long as Peter kept his eyes on Jesus Christ, he was able to walk on the water and go toward him. As long as we keep our eyes on Jesus Christ, we can make spiritual progress regardless of the trials and difficult circumstances that surround us. We know that all things work together for good to those whom God has called and who love God and keep his commandments (Romans 8:26).
However, when Peter took his eyes off Jesus Christ and began to see the effects of the boisterous wind, he began to sink. Although Peter’s name means “rock,” he did not sink as the proverbial rock. Jesus Christ allowed Peter to begin to sink. The soles of his feet began to go below the surface of the water. If we take our eyes off Jesus Christ and begin to focus on negative conditions surrounding our lives, we begin to sink spiritually.
Peter was an experienced fisherman and probably could swim. Yet, he was in danger because of the severity of the storm. He needed the strength of Jesus Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit to survive this storm. Likewise, we cannot rely on our own strength alone to survive the storms and trials of life. We need God’s help through the power of the Holy Spirit.
As soon as he began to sink, Peter called out to Jesus Christ to save him. Likewise, as soon as we begin to sink in our walk of faith, we should cry out to God to deliver us from our trials with the power of the Holy Spirit. We should not wait until we have sunk to the depths of despair to cry out to God. Just as Jesus Christ saved Peter from sinking in the sea, God rescues us with the Holy Spirit when we begin to sink in the storms of life.
Duty to Help Others
Jesus Christ told Peter that when he was converted to strengthen his brethren as recorded in Luke 22:31-32:
“31And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat: 32But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.” (KJV)
We see in the book of Job how Satan goes to God and asks for permission to try God’s servants (Job 1:9-12). The fact that Satan wanted to sift Peter as wheat is interesting because the Feast of Weeks, which is also known as Pentecost, celebrates the firstfruits of the wheat harvest (Exodus 34:22).
Jesus Christ had already been praying for Peter because he knew how badly that Satan wanted to cause him to sin. According to Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance, the word sift can figuratively mean “to try one’s faith to the verge of overthrow.”
Yes, Jesus Christ knew of Peter’s weaknesses. He knew that Peter would likely yield to Satan’s temptation. Yet, Jesus Christ also had confidence in Peter that he would repent. Peter would stumble, but his faith would not fail.
Avoid Sinking Spiritually
Peter knew fear and doubt as he began to sink while walking on the water. He would again display such fear and doubt when he denied Jesus Christ three times (Matthew 26:69-75). Yet, he learned to cry out to God and repent. He tells us what we must do to avoid falling spiritually in II Peter 1:1-10:
“1Simon Peter, a servant and an apostle of Jesus Christ, to them that have obtained like precious faith with us through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ: 2Grace and peace be multiplied unto you through the knowledge of God, and of Jesus our Lord,” 3According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness, through the knowledge of him that hath called us to glory and virtue: 4Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.” (KJV)
We are partakers of the divine nature through the Holy Spirit.
“5And beside this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue; and to virtue knowledge; 6And to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness;
7And to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. 8For if these things be in you, and abound, they make you that ye shall neither be barren nor unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 9But he that lacketh these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and hath forgotten that he was purged from his old sins.” (KJV)
We must see the big picture. Remembering how we have been cleansed from our old sins helps to keep us humble even as we gain more knowledge about the Bible and the plan of God. We must grow in character as we are led by the Holy Spirit.
“10Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:” (KJV)
Yes, if we do these things, we will never fall in our Christian walk as Peter began to sink while he walked on the water.
Conclusion
We can learn important lessons from Peter’s walk on the water. We must use the power of the Holy Spirit in our walk in this life with all of its storms and trials. We must have a vision for the Kingdom of God. If we take our eyes off Jesus Christ and begin to sink during a trial, we should cry out to God immediately. God will comfort us through the Holy Spirit and lift us up before we sink spiritually.
As we grow in the character traits that Peter listed, our vision becomes more focused. We must keep our eyes on Jesus Christ during our walk through the stormy trials of this life. Our vision must be clear and focused as we walk toward our goal of meeting Jesus Christ at his coming and entering the Kingdom of God.
Alan D. Campbell lives in Brandon, Florida. For more good news, please see his blog The Good News of the Kingdom of God at http://goodnewsofthekingdomofgod.blogspot.com