You of Little Faith, Why Do You Doubt?

Passage to be read: Matthew 14: 22 - 32

Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. 

“You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”

(Matthew 14:31)

One of the most inspirational moments remembered from the gospels. An incident that defied the basics of physics. A memorable incident in the life of the disciples of Jesus who got the greatest privilege to have witnessed such moments first-hand. Jesus walks on the water! And then one of the most influential incidents that shaped the faith of Peter.

Reading the passage mentioned above (Matthew 14) we understand that the disciples of Jesus had just then witnessed a great miracle; 'Jesus feeding the the five thousand.' That awe and surprise was still drizzling in their minds. They still have not recovered from that trance of watching these thousands being fed with five loaves of bread and two fish. They would have needed more time for the miracle to digest into their limited human possibilities. 

And immediately after that Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side of the lagoon, while he dismissed the crowd. After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone, and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it. The disciples being in this boat, wailed and shouted thinking that they would sink and lose their lives. And that is when two influential incidents happen. These incidents not only changed the lives of those disciples, but have great messages that will change our lives too. 

Knowing that his disciples are struggling in the boat, Jesus comes nearby. Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear. Indeed, they had no clue of what was happening. It was not possible with human beings and not to the best of their knowledge. And, Jesus comes near them, defying all the possibilities of human existence and the laws of nature and tells them “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” 

Isn't that something awesome? And today if your life is like a boat struggling in the midst of the storms, lost all hopes and expectations, and not even ready to believe in anything, then let this miraculous moment speak to you. You are called to trust Jesus, who splashed even the hard and fast rules of gravity, broke those laws of nature and came for the rescue of his own disciples. 

And, today you may be worried that He is not there in the boat with you. But, my dear friend, God cares! And he would come walking to you even if it has to be the deepest oceans in the midst of the storm. Trust in him. For your caring and loving God tells you to take courage and not be afraid! For he is there, to rescue you. You will not drown, you do not need to fear. For he is there for you. 

And this miraculous learning in faith did not stop there. It continued with something else. Unable to accept the entire incident, Peter struggled to take in the entire magnitude of the moment within himself; himself that was bound by the human boundaries of possibilities. 

“Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.” 

“Come,” he said 

Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. 

But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!”

Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. 

“You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”

Wow! Look at that. One of Jesus's favourite disciples, Peter. Someone who left his fishing nets so that he would be with this man called "Jesus." And, Peter, being a disciple of Jesus, would have been having such personal and precious interactions that would have made them known so close to each other. But still, in such a troubled moment, Peter finds it difficult to accept that it is his Lord Jesus standing there near them in the midst of the storm. 

But even at this moment, Jesus asks Peter to come to him walking on the water, responding to Peter's request. And when Peter, on that mighty moment, started walking towards his master, miracles happened under his feet. He was, indeed, walking on the water. And let me remind you my dear friend in Christ that Peter's eyes and thought, at this moment, were totally focussed on Jesus, and he did walk on the water. Peter's entire dependence was on God. 

But the moment his thoughts and eyes saw the wind, his entire dependence on his Lord faded away for a moment. He began to sink!  Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?”

And today, God asks the same question from us. So many times, the problems, difficulties, obstacles and burdens of life do not allow us to focus on Him and Him alone. Our life begins to sink into the waves of impossibilities because our focus is no more on Him but on the waves and storms around. And God invites you to focus on Him, remembering and knowing how great and mighty is He and to progress through even the impossibilities with Him. And He is there to save you and lead you through miraculous ways.

Let us not be people of little faith! Let us not doubt the miraculous God who is near us always.

I pray that each of us would, first of all, trust that our God will save us and take care of us even in the most impossible moments, and also our focus would be always be on Him and our dependence will be Him alone. So that with all these human impossibilities we would live a life of possibilities in Christ our Lord.

May God bless you.

Yours in Christ,