Walk on Water!

[Chad]

Ever wonder why things do not always go your way, no matter how obedient you work, no matter how hard you try, no matter how hard you even pray? Are you being sincerely faithful? God cannot move where there is no faith found in man, so break barriers and show your faith to GOD, in Him!

Matthew 14:22-30

Jesus Walks on the Water

22 Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. 23 And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, 24 but the boat by this time was a long way from the land, 25 And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea. 26 But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, "It is a ghost!" and they cried out in fear. 27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them. "Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid."

28 And Peter answered him, "Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water." 29 He said, "Come." So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. 30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, "Lord, save me." 31 Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, "O you of little faith, why did you doubt?" 32 And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. 33And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, "Truly you are the Son of God."

As you can see above, the moment apostle Peter let his mind take over and allowed doubt to enter in, he began to sink. In life, if we trust in the Lord Jesus completely, we will be able to "walk on water" metaphorically speaking. We will be able to taste the kingdom of God, to succeed, to move mountains!

Matthew 17:19-20
19 Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not cast it out?" 20 He said to them, "Because of your little faith. For truly, I say to you, if you have faith like a grain of mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move, and nothing will be impossible for you."

Just speak faithfully, work faithfully [faith with works], and think faithfully! Live a faithful life and watch GOD move in all that you do, not causing you to stumble but to bless you

Jeremiah 29:11
For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for wholeness and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.

This requires both faith and obedience.

Hebrews 11:6
And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.

Put faith in Christ and you will prosper! Have faith, be blessed!

 

[tgs4584]

For the scripture reference in Matthew 17:19-20, I have just recently studied on this. I believe Jesus was also talking to the father of the devil-possessed child. When he (Jesus) first said "Oh faithless and perverse generation...", I believe he was talking to the father. If you'll remember the woman with the issue of blood and how Jesus commended her for her faith. He said her faith made her whole. If that child's dad only had a faith then it would have made the child whole.
That's just one viewpoint. I also recognize Jesus was talking to the disciples, but I love to find other views to the scriptures. I hope we can give views to these Bible Studies. Sorry, Im new. Please share thoughts!
God Bless,
Tiffany

 

[Chad]

Good point sister Tiffany. GOD has given us a gift called faith to enable us to trust in Him, believe in His power in every aspect of our lives. Faith is critical, as Scripture makes it clear throughout the OT and NT.

 

[DanV]

Through some research, I have compiled the following explanation of Matthew 17:19-20:

What is this passage implying?

We will have to look further into Matthew 17:21 which reads, "However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting."

It's parallel can be found in Mark 9:29, which reads, "So He said to them, "This kind can come out by nothing but prayer and fasting."

Where does the disciples' disobedience and disloyalty come in?

It is in lack of prayer, and a false perception that the gift of healing was something inherent in themselves rather than being conveyed through them by God.

(Note that the healing is preceded by the scribes questioning the disciples [Mark 9:14-16] -- most likely challenging them to perform a exorcism).

We find a parallel lesson in Luke 10:17-20:

"Then the seventy returned with joy, saying, Lord, even the demons are subject to us in Your name. And He said to them, I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Behold, I give you the authority to trample on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing shall by any means hurt you. Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you; but rather rejoice, because your names are written in heaven."

This is a firm caution against pride and focus on self, and a loss of concentration on the real power behind the ability to heal.

Hope this helps.

God Bless