4. THE STORMY SEA — Matt. 14:22-36
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Now the scene changes and we are permitted to see the Lord in an entirely new position, setting forth fresh truths. In the former scene He was in "a desert place apart" (Matthew 14:13); here He is in "a mountain apart" (Matthew 14:23). There we learn in a picture that Christ is entirely outside the course of this world, here we learn that He has entered upon a new world. The mountain position speaks to us of the place He has taken on high. Moreover we learn that though He is on high His heart of love is still occupied with His people who are passing through this world, for we read, "He went up . . . to pray." In the place of glory He intercedes for His people.
And what of His people for whom He intercedes? They are in a scene of ever increasing darkness, for we read, "the evening was come" (Matthew 14:23); they are surrounded by a world that is opposed, for they are "in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves," and the power of Satan is against them — "the wind was contrary" (Matthew 14:24).
They are not left, however, to struggle alone with their difficulties as if sufficient for these things. The Lord comes to His people, as we read, "in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them." In the desert it was the needy people who came to Him, for as we have seen "they followed Him." Today His direct dealings with this world are over, and He is concerned with His people alone. Here He not only comes to His people, but He comes in a way that was new and strange to the disciples. He came "walking on the sea." They had known Him as the One who had been with them in the boat and slept upon the sea. And beautiful indeed it was to see Him, as the dependent Man amongst men, in such perfect confidence in the Father's love that He can sleep in the storm on the sea; but this occasioned no fear. Now, however, they see a Man walking on the sea in the storm, and they are troubled and cried out with fear.
They had known Him as the One who was with them in the storm, now they see Him as beyond all weariness and above all storms. Such is His position to-day. Not only is He apart from the world, He is above the world, and beyond the reach of its storms. The storm of Calvary has spent itself. Death hath no more dominion over Him. He walks upon the waves. If, however, they have to learn Christ in a new way, they will also find that It is the same Jesus. The Jesus who as the lowly One had slept on the sea, is the same Jesus who, as the mighty One, can walk upon the sea. Thus He can say to His disciples, "It is I; be not afraid."
Thus the Lord comes to His own — His Jewish disciples — who had journeyed with Him in His pathway here. Moreover, if He comes, it is to attract them to Himself outside of the Jewish system. They were in the ship, and a ship is a human device to keep people afloat on an element otherwise impossible to them. Such was the Jewish system with which the disciples of the Lord were connected; and such is every human system that man devises after the pattern of the Jewish system — devices to maintain people religiously without intimate contact with Christ.
The Lord thus presents Himself as the One who is interceding for His people — occupied wholly with them; who is above all storms — superior to every power, and as the One who is outside every device to sustain man in this world. Moreover if He presents Himself to His people it is to attract them to Himself in the outside place. If, however we are to be drawn outside the systems of men it can only be as having Christ Himself before our souls as our one Object, and as having Christ's word as our sole authority. This is very blessedly set forth in Peter. He seems to say, "If I am to leave the ship, if I am to walk on the water, it must be Thyself as my Object, and Thy word as my authority" — "Lord if it be Thou, bid me come unto Thee on the water." He has found an Object that attracts his heart, and he receives a word that gives him authority, for the Lord says "Come."
This beautiful picture thus sets forth the truth of the Church, unfolded to believers after the Lord had taken His place on high, by which Christ's Assembly is separated from a worldly religious system to gather to Christ as the new centre. This truth is summed up for us in the Epistle to the Hebrews where we are exhorted "to go forth unto Him without the Camp." How slow we are to realize that Christianity presents a company of believers gathered together with Christ as their centre, their bond, their all. The natural man can understand a company of people bound together by articles of religion, and organized by some central and visible authority, but nature cannot conceive of a company of people held together in unity without any humanly devised articles of religion, without any visible human authority, — held together, guided, and sustained in the face of all opposition by an unseen Head. To the natural man this is as impossible as walking on the water.
The moment Peter stepped upon the water he was in a position in which he no longer had the aid of the ship to sustain him, and in which nature was of no avail. Not all the concentrated energies of man, nor all the wisdom of the ages would enable a man to walk upon the water. The one who takes such a position is wholly and altogether dependent upon Christ. We can float upon the water in a boat, but we cannot walk upon the water without Christ.
Further we see the motive that led Peter to leave the ship and walk upon the sea. It was, as we read, "to go to Jesus." His object was not simply to get away from the ship, still less to walk on the water, but definitely and only "to go to Jesus." He did not leave the ship because it was "tossed with waves," or because of any troubles in the ship. The Lord was outside the ship, and love would fain be in His company, and faith realized, that if the Lord gave the word to come to Him, the Lord would be able to sustain the one who answered to His word.
How blessedly the principles that mark the path of separation are summed up for us in verse 29. In obedience to Christ's word, "Come," Peter came down out of the ship. In faith "he walked on the water." In affection "he walked on the water to go to Jesus." If in our day we take a place of separation outside the religious systems formed by sincere men after the pattern of Judaism, we shall find that it is a path that demands unswerving obedience to the Word; that calls for faith in Christ, and affection for Christ.
Moreover there are other lessons for Peter, and for ourselves through Peter, in what follows. Lessons that can only be learnt in the outside place. Peter has faith to leave the ship "to go to Jesus," but is Peter's faith sufficient to face a storm? And if Peter fails and begins to sink is the Lord who was able to sustain Peter when walking on the sea, willing to save Peter when sinking in the sea?
Peter has to learn, and we with him, that in the outside place everything depends upon the Lord, and directly the eye is off the Lord we begin to sink in the presence of the storm. Thus it comes to pass Peter is put to the test in order to learn his own weakness and the Lord's sufficiency. To learn these wholesome lessons, Peter has to face the storm. The wind grows "boisterous," the waves run high, and when Peter "saw the wind boisterous" he began to sink. Looking upon Jesus he walked upon the water; looking upon the storm he sinks in the water. Peter has to learn that if Jesus is the One who walks on the water and says "Come," He is the only One who can sustain us when we do come. It was as impossible for Peter to walk on the water in a calm as in a storm. It was as easy for the Lord to sustain Peter in the storm as in the calm.
Thus we learn our weakness: but in doing so we learn Christ's sufficiency. In sinking Peter cried to the Lord to save him, and immediately the hand of the Lord is stretched out to save. If the love of the Lord attracts to Himself in the outside place. the hand of the Lord can sustain in spite of every storm. Nevertheless if His gracious hand is ready to save us from sinking, He may have to rebuke our unbelief.
Those in the ship might have thought it enthusiastic madness on the part of Peter to leave the ship and attempt to do what no man had ever done before. They might condemn him for doing something contrary to nature and reason, and congratulate themselves for not sinking like Peter or being rebuked like Peter. Yet be it remembered that if they did not sink in the water like Peter, neither did they walk on the water like Peter; and if they did not suffer the rebuke of the Lord's words, neither did they get the support of the Lord's hand.
The closing verses of the chapter, in which the Lord returns to the ship with Peter, present a picture of the day that is yet to come when the Lord will return to earth with His saints, and renew His links with Israel. Then indeed the storms of earth will be over and peace at last will come to the world. Jesus, who was once rejected, will be owned as the Son of God and millennial blessing will be introduced.
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