Refuge & Strength by Morgan Weistling
It’s been over a decade since I saw this print of Jesus rescuing Peter from the water in a store in Branson, MO. But it has obviously made a lasting impression on me. When I saw it, I believe it had the caption in the mat, “Ye of Little Faith.” I really wish I would have bought that painting because there has never been a more fitting description of my own spiritual journey than that painting.
The story of Peter walking on water is only recorded in one of the Gospels: Matthew in chapter 14. It bothers me that none of the other gospel writers included such a significant event. Especially when all the gospel writers refer to Jesus walking on the water, but not Peter. Be that as it may, the message is one of faith and doubt, and that is what I would like to discuss with you.
People of faith have doubt.When we read about the great heroes of the Bible, we tend to think of their great faith and what God accomplished through them. We often completely overlook the initial skepticism each had. Even though Peter is criticized for his lack of faith in this story by Jesus himself (Mt. 14:31), I think Peter demonstrates incredible faith. Let us not forget that Peter had enough faith in Jesus to leave his family and career to follow Jesus in the first place. Peter is known for his impetuous nature, but this quality is brought out as a result of a strong faith. After all, it is Peter that calls out to Jesus when he sees him walking on the water so he may join him. It would take faith beyond any reasonable thought to step out on the water in the first place.If we forget this, we miss the real point of the story.
I think the point here isn’t Peter’s lack of faith as much as it is showing doubt in the midst of faith which is something that everone struggles with. I think Christians today are afraid to admit doubt even though we all have some. Faith is not certainty, nor is doubt the opposite of faith. Faith has to do with trusting God in the midst of our doubts.
Those who think doubt is the opposite of faith wonder if they are truly saved if they doubt. Therefore, they keep silent as if they can hide thier thoughts from God. But doubt is normal and even healthy. You would be hard pressed to come up with a biblical figure who didn’t have doubt even though faith remained in tact. God doesn’t always tell us what he’s doing or where he’s going with the events in our life.
Peter stepped out of the boat without a moment of thought or hesitation. Unlike most of us, Peter had seen what Jesus was capable of. He knew Jesus could heal the sick, calm storms, even raise the dead. He had seen it. Therefore, his faith approached certainty more that our own. But even Peter’s strong faith was not immune to the doubt as he noticed the storm all around him. He got side-tracked. As a fisherman, Peter would have been well acquainted with storms on the sea. When he looked at the storm, he freaked out just like anyone of us would have. But even as he was freaking out, he knew on whom to call.
Even people who are held up as pillars of faith (see Heb. 11 for some biblical examples), have times of confusion and doubt. Each has triumphs and each has defeats. It’s even quite common that some severe defeats come after great victories. Who hasn’t had such moments in life? Sometimes we are so confident in God’s existence, grace, and promises that we can not conceive of that confidence changing. Then something happens. We see the unexpected storm, somebody dies, we experience persecution or suffering, even worse we discover we were wrong. These things are not unusual, they are all part of the journey.
Doubt is part of growth.Perhaps faith is a lot like a muscle; it must be stressed in order to grow. This wasn’t just the case with Peter, but everyone I read about in the Bible and everyone I know. Faith is a growing process and that growing process comes with questions, mistakes, defeats, and doubts. It is when faith is stressed that it is determined. It’s easy for people to talk about faith in God when things are going well. It’s also easy to look down on others who suffer when you are not. Faith is more of an ongoing relationship with continual peaks and valleys instead of an arrival at the summit. Like exercise, it must continue to be stressed to grow. Some will feel like their faith is strong because they go to church, surround themselves with motivational Biblical quotes, often taken out of context, and speak about God’s love in ever event of their lives. It’s easy to criticize when our own faith is not stressed. For example, it is easy to criticize Peter for doubting as he stepped out in faith, but sank in the storm. We criticize him for denying Jesus after claiming he was ready to die with him. We criticize the disciples for running away and hiding when Jesus was being crucified. But who are any of us to say how we would have reacted. Faith is determined by adversity. We may not know it or feel it at the time, but we are being made stronger through the process.
Do we remain silent?The book of Psalms is a book of worship, yet a great of those psalms express laments, criticism of God, doubts, questions, etc., but Israel considered these Psalms worship. God knows our fears and doubts and there is nothing wrong with communicating them to him and with each other. It’s all a part of being honest with each other and ourselves.
I relate very well to Peter. Much like him, I feel like I have stepped out in faith, but I have become lost in the storm. Much of the time I feel like I am sinking into the sea. I have trouble reconciling certain things I have believed to be true with other things I have learned. I know I’m not alone. There are so many out there who are struggling. Most really want to believe and cry out to Jesus for help even if it doesn’t come as quickly as we would like. Other’s have given up.
I would love to hear from others on this subject. I crave interaction but receive very little. Each of us has our ways of dealing with the doubts and struggles that come our way and I would love to hear from some of you.
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