Proper 14 year A RCL

August 10, 2008

Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, but by this time the boat, battered by the waves, was far from the land, for the wind was against them. And early in the morning he came walking toward them on the sea. But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, saying, "It is a ghost!" And they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them and said, "Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid."

Peter answered him, "Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water." He said, "Come." So Peter got out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came toward Jesus. But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, "Lord, save me!" Jesus immediately reached out his hand and caught him, saying to him, "You of little faith, why did you doubt?" When they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, "Truly you are the Son of God."

Let me set the stage for this story of Peter walking on water with Jesus. Last week we had the story of Jesus feeding the 5000. One interesting thing about this feeding is that it happened just after Jesus had found out that his good friend John the Baptist had been murdered by Herod. Jesus was on his way to be by himself and grieve when the multitude pressed in on him. He had compassion on them, put aside his own spiritual pain, and healed them before feeding them and sending them on their way.

 Before sending away the multitude, Jesus sends away the disciples. Once alone he climbs a mountain to finally be alone to pray and mourn the death of John. I doubt Jesus slept that night because before it is daylight Jesus decides to catch up with the disciples by taking a stroll across the lake to where they are. Even as I use the word "stroll" (like it was a casual walk in the park), I realize that Jesus was walking through a windstorm full of waves with water flying everywhere. It was more a purposeful march than a leisurely stroll.

 In the meantime, the disciples had not slept all night either. Surely their trip back across the lake had been easy at first. However, some time during the night the wind came up, the sea grew first, and they were no longer able to make headway. Now, if it were me, I would pull my diesel engine down to just above idle, set the autopilot, call my crewman up to the bridge to watch the wheel, and go bunk up in my nice cozy stateroom area. But the disciples were in an open boat with only their own arms and backs for propulsion. If they were to let up and lay-to, the boat would go a beam of the sea, the low gunwales dipping into the sharp wind waves with a super quick, jarring side to side roll. Rowing would be replaced by bailing. And they knew it, so they powered through their fatigue, holding the bow into the wind.

 Then, in the midst of the wind, waves, and darkness, they see the outline of a white figure coming toward them. Exhausted and frightened they drop their oars and cower in a huddled mass, "It must be a ghost," one of them screams, pointing at the aberration. But Peter isn’t scared. He stands between the frightened men and the perceived threat, ready to protect and defend if need be.

 I’ve often heard people talk about Peter using words like, "ready, fire, aim," referring to Peter’s readiness to act. They are quick to join Jesus in the refrain, "Ye of little faith, why did you doubt?" They that mock Peter, had they been there, would have been in the cowering mass. So to them I say, "Stop the Peter bashing, clean your soiled underwear, and recognize Peter for the hero he is!" When I hear Jesus say, "Ye of little faith," I see a sly smile on his face rather than a stern finger wag—not a slap, but a hug, for who had enough faith to jump out of the boat in the first place?

 Now, how does this story relate to us? Is the upshot that this story is for the sole purpose of yet again confirming for us as it did for the disciples that, "Truly you (Jesus) are the Son of God"? What if we put ourselves into the story in the form of symbolism?

 The boat could represent our lives in the form of our homes, our careers, or families, our daily routines. The boat keeps us afloat in the world. Mostly we are not adrift, but we are rowing toward some goal, even if the goal is just happy contentment with our current routine. But then the storms of the world come upon us—broken relationships, ill health, or the death of a loved one. We sleep less and strain harder to keep from being swamped by the storm. And what we often fail to recognize is that Jesus is in the storm. In fact, when we first notice the white figure coming to us out of the storm, we recoil like the disciples did. Yet Peter is willing to abandon the boat even while it is still floating to be with Jesus in the storm. Of course the storm is too much to bear without the aid of Jesus. Beckoning to Jesus, Peter is helped by Jesus back into the boat and the storm starts to ease.

 Jesus is in the storms of life. Whether we jump headlong into the storm to be with him, or whether we simply ask Jesus to join us in the boat as we weather the storm, the storm starts to moderate when we make space for Jesus in the boat. It is important to realize that the storm does not stop suddenly and completely the moment Jesus gets in. The storm eases, dies down. I’ve been in 50-knot winds in the open ocean. When the wind finally drops to 40 it is still blowing really, really hard. But it is much, much better than it was before. Plus the slackening wind holds the promise of yet more slackening. It signals that the worst is over and rather than continuing to get worse, things will be gradually getting better and soon all will be well again.

 The next time that a storm comes into your life look for Jesus in the storm. He will be there if you look. Then, rather than being scared of him, invite him into your boat. Try it and see if the storm doesn’t calm a bit and then eventually die away.

 Thank you, Jesus, for being in the storm…

 ==AMEN==