Calming Stormy Waters

Transcription

1 Calming Stormy Waters By Rev. Blake Brinegar Scripture: Matthew 14: Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. 23 After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone, 24 and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it. 25 Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. 26 When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. It s a ghost, they said, and cried out in fear. 27 But Jesus immediately said to them: Take courage! It is I. Don t be afraid. 28 Lord, if it s you, Peter replied, tell me to come to you on the water. 29 Come, he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. 30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, Lord, save me! 31 Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. You of little faith, he said, why did you doubt? 32 And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. 33 Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, Truly you are the Son of God. Sermon We all know the power, the mystery, and the grandeur of water. We have seen with recent floods what raging water can do to homes, cars, landscapes, and roadways. We know that it doesn t take a lot of water to cause a car to float, so we have sayings like, turn around don t drown, to try to convince people not to drive through standing water. There are stories about giant fish which inhabit streams and rivers and as legend has it, have killed humans and livestock. When we think of the ocean or other large bodies of water, we hear of rip currents, sharks not only being way out in the deep, but being in very shallow waters. There are stories of giant squid which have taken down a boat or ship. People spend many hours pursuing these fish and squid trying to prove they do exist. In some circles we even believe mythical creatures exist in the water; you remember Nessie the Loch Ness monster, don t you? Growing up in Oregon, I learned at a young age the power of the ocean, as I would see huge logs which had been brought ashore by one of the winter storms. I saw some pretty big waves, and have seen remnants of ships which fell victim to the power of water.

2 We seem to have a love hate relationship with water. We love it, we need it to exist so it is vital, but we also sometimes have a fear of the water because of what we have seen water do. In Hebraic thought there is something mysterious about the threat which water poses to people. Karl Barth has stated, Water is representative of all the evil powers which oppress and resist the salvation intended for the people of Israel. 1 I am not trying to instill a fear of the water, but to set the stage for the text we have before us this morning. The disciples are sent out into the Sea of Galilee, while Jesus dismisses the crowds from the feeding of the 5000, and enjoys a little quiet time for prayer and contemplation. A storm comes up on the Sea, something which seems to occur regularly on the Sea of Galilee. The boat the disciples are in begins to get battered, the disciples are scared, and then they see someone, possibly a ghost, coming across the water, as though the individual is walking on the chaotic water. Seeing this, the disciples cry out in fear. Then they hear comforting words, It is I, or I Am. Don t be afraid it is, I AM. Immediately two things come to mind, I AM and don t be afraid God is present, and the idea of an encounter with God. This is an epiphany of God, an epiphany being an encounter of the divine. Peter asks that if this person who is walking on the water is Jesus, that he would bid Peter to come. And in usual fashion you have to be careful what you ask for; Jesus bids Peter, Come. Peter walks on the chaotic sea, realizes what he is doing, sees the wind, and begins to succumb to the elements around him. He has to cry out to Jesus to rescue him, and is questioned about his faith and his doubt. When they climb into the boat the winds cease, and Jesus is acclaimed to truly be the Son of God. Other than Jesus and Peter walking on the water, this story is pretty familiar to our experience. I would imagine many of us, if in a boat which is being battered by waves, would be scared. I have thought that I have been in some bad conditions in boats, but I have never been in a boat which was being battered by waves. I have been in very foggy conditions and some pretty rough waters, but nothing like what was being described here. I used to watch the TV show, Deadliest Catch, a show about crab fisherman in the Bering Sea. If any of you have seen the show, you know a person could make a lot of money doing this. At times, the scenery is beautiful being in the middle of the calm Bering Sea. But that is not the norm. There are gale force winds, there are massive waves crashing over the sides of the ships, the ships rock, they get inundated with water, and the crab pots and deckhands get thrown around the deck of the ships and it is not unusual for there to be injuries of the severe kind. Then there is the ice which forms on the ships which must be removed and ice in the sea. I imagine in some ways this is more what the disciples felt like, peril was imminent. What does the storm on the Sea of Galilee and the walking on the water have to do with us today? What are we supposed to be learning from this story? 1 Feasting on the Word, Year A, Volume 3 Proper 14

3 Remember I quoted Karl Barth about water representing evil powers which oppress and resist the salvation intended for the people of Israel? I also talked about the Hebraic understanding of water as a threat to humans. The Old Testament has biblical illustrations of God s lordship and God s victory over water. In the creation story we see God separating the chaotic waters, in God s covenant with Noah after the flood we see how God promised not to flood the earth again, in the parting of the Red Sea we see how the Israelites crossed on dry land, and then when the Israelites crossed the swollen Jordan River to enter the Promised Land, we have seen how God overcomes these threats to individuals and the world. In Job (9:8) and Habakkuk (3:15) we hear about God trampling the waves. In Psalm 93:3-4 we hear, The floods have lifted up, O Lord, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their roaring. More majestic than the thunders of mighty waters, more majestic than the waves of the sea, majestic on high is the Lord! Then in Isaiah 43:1-2 we read these words, But now thus says the Lord, he who created you, O Jacob, he who formed you, O Israel: Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you. We see that not even the waters which can be a threat to the world, are a match for God. As Jesus comes toward the boat and tells the disciples to Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid, he is in essence saying, it is I AM (GOD) who is meeting you here in these chaotic waters you are not alone. I am with you in your uncertainty, anxiety, and fear. When I talked about the idea of an Epiphany this is what I was alluding to. In the midst of the chaos the disciples found themselves in, they met God. Once again this morning, we find ourselves in the midst of a story of water which helps us to remember of all the other stories about water, and how God was triumphant, or how God controlled the water in those stories. There is another water motif I have not addressed yet, and that is Baptism. In the Baptism of Jesus, God attested to Jesus being the Son of God. The Holy Spirit was given to Jesus. In our Baptism we die with Christ, and we rise with Christ to a new life a life of being dead to sin. Another part of Baptism is entrance into the covenant community of God, and the receiving of the Holy Spirit. In the act of Baptism the chaotic waters of the world are ordered and utilized to wash us of our uncleanliness and to be made clean in the sight of God. The water we use to baptize people symbolizes the waters of creation, the flood, and the crossing of the Red Sea by the Israelites. This shows forth the ordering of the chaotic destructive forces in the world. Jesus also offered us living water, water which sustains us in our lives. So, Baptism shows us a taking of the destructive nature of something and how God uses it for good. God is able to work for good even in the midst of the chaotic. In our baptisms we were empowered by the outpouring of the Spirit to undertake a life of service, as a member of the Covenant Community, which includes God s ultimate protection.

4 So, in the story of Jesus walking on the water we find water being used again. Yet again God, in Christ, is saying that even when the waters get troubled God is not distant. God comes to us where we are in the messiness of life, and journeys with us. As Peter stepped out of the boat into the chaotic waters, Jesus beckoned for him to come. When Peter lost his focus on the presence of Jesus in his life, he began to falter as doubt entered in at the sight of the wind. Peter no longer trusted that God would keep him safe. Like Peter, we too sometimes find the call of God leading us out of our comfort zones, hopefully not to the same degree though. Maybe it is more accurate to say when we are in the chaotic waters of the world, metaphorically, we will not be abandoned God is with us. Jesus will walk with us. We have nothing to fear if our eyes are set upon Jesus, and we look to him to help show us the way. In Isaiah, Israel was assured of God s help. In Isaiah 41:10, 13 we find these words of comfort and assurance, Do not fear, for I am with you, do not be afraid, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my victorious right hand. For I, the Lord your God, hold your right hand; it is I who say to you, Do not fear, I will help you. Sound familiar? Sound like what we heard this morning? Remember, Matthew is writing to a Jewish audience. These references to the Prophets wouldn t have been lost on them. Being a part of the covenant community, through our baptism, these promises are made with us as well. Jesus is with us in the chaotic waters of life. I like the African American Spiritual, Wade in the Water. Here is the refrain, Wade in the water, Wade in the water, children, Wade in the water, God s gonna trouble the water. If you are not familiar with the history of African American Spirituals, they function on two levels. There is the level which most of us are familiar with, the words to the hymn or spiritual. Yet there is also another level. Spirituals like this one would be sung when a slave owner was pursuing a runaway slave. Others would start singing the spiritual as a message to get in the water to hide. 2 I like this particular spiritual because it takes something like water, something which has been associated as a threat to one s well-being, and turned it into something of a source of salvation. Just like God did for Noah, for the Israelites, for the disciples, and for us, that which was once a threat has been redefined into an opportunity to meet God in the chaos of life. 2 and personal conversation with Chip Andrus.

5 Again today, we are being reminded that nothing, no matter how scary, can separate us from God. So for us, in our daily lives, when we find ourselves overwhelmed and wondering if are going to perish, this text tells us, No! God is with us. When God calls us to service and the service to which we are called is outside of our comfort zone, God is with us. God does not abandon God s people. God has trampled the waters, God has controlled the chaotic waters to create the world and accomplish God s plan. In all of the messiness, in all of the scariness of the world, we find comfort in knowing that God is with us. Even when we may not recognize the presence of God, if we trust and call out to the Lord, we will find the Lord calling to us, come! The difficult part is not getting wrapped in the elements of the world around us; the raging winds threatening to blow us around and threatening peril. Stay focused, know that God is with you, leading the way, showing you a calming presence and path in the midst of the chaos of the world. For the people of Charlottesville, a storm has been brewing. Some may wonder where God is in the storm. A good question, as it seems God was not in the midst of the chaos. But God was! God was with the deceased and the injured (physically and emotionally). God was with the first responders and others who were rendering aid. God was with those who were trying to restore calm. God was with those who were present. In our Gospel lesson, remember the waters were not calmed until Jesus and Peter got back into the boat. It may take a while for the people to recognize the presence of Jesus in their midst, but he is there, walking toward those who would recognize his presence in the midst of the chaos, holding the right hand of those calling out to him. Jesus can and will restore the turbulent waters to a sense of calm and peace. Even in the midst of this Jesus is calling to us, Come! Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid. And our response is, Yes Lord, for truly you are the Son of God. You are the one who can calm the chaotic waters of life. As much as we come to you, we pray, come to us this day.