O you of little faith, why did you doubt?

 Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He sent the multitudes away.  And when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray.  Now when evening came, He was alone there.  But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary.  Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea.  And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, "It is a ghost!"  And they cried out for fear.  But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, "Be of good cheer!  It is I; do not be afraid." 

And Peter answered Him and said, "Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water."  So He said, "Come."  And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus.  But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, "Lord, save me!"  And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, "O you of little faith, why did you doubt?"  And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.  Then those who were in the boat came and worshiped Him, saying, "Truly You are the Son of God." 

When they had crossed over, they came to the land of Gennesaret.  And when the men of that place recognized Him, they sent out into all that surrounding region, brought to Him all who were sick, and begged Him that they might only touch the hem of His garment.  And as many as touched it were made perfectly well.

- Matthew 14:22-36

Yesterday we read that when Jesus heard of Herod's fear of Him, He departed from there by boat to a deserted place by Himself.  But when the multitudes heard it, they followed Him on foot from the cities.  And when Jesus went out He saw a great multitude; and He was moved with compassion for them, and healed their sick.  When it was evening, His disciples came to Him, saying, "This is a deserted place, and the hour is already late.  Send the multitudes away, that they may go into the villages and buy themselves food."  But Jesus said to them, "They do not need to go away.  You give them something to eat."  And they said to Him, "We have here only five loaves and two fish."  He said, "Bring them here to Me."  Then He commanded the multitudes to sit down on the grass.  And He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, He blessed and broke and gave the loaves to the disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitudes.  So they all ate and were filled, and they took up twelve baskets full of the fragments that remained.  Now those who had eaten were about five thousand men, besides women and children.

Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He sent the multitudes away.  And when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray.  Now when evening came, He was alone there.  But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary.  Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea.  And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, "It is a ghost!"  And they cried out for fear.  But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, "Be of good cheer!  It is I; do not be afraid."  My study bible emphasizes here first of all the evidence of Christ's divinity, His dominion over nature.  This is the second time that Christ has permitted the disciples to be caught in a storm (see this reading for the first).  The difference here is that in the first instance, He was with them; in today's reading He has left them alone.  My study bible says that in this way, Christ strengthens their faith that He will always be with them in the midst of the storms of life.  It is I is literally translated "I Am" -- the divine name of God (Exodus 3:14-15, John 8:58).   The fourth watch of the night is approximately 3:00 in the morning.  

And Peter answered Him and said, "Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water."  So He said, "Come."  And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus.  But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, "Lord, save me!"  My study bible points out that Peter doesn't ask to walk on water per se, but rather his desire is to come to Christ.  He doesn't want to perform miracles but to be with Jesus.  Peter can participate in the divine miracle so long as his focus is on Christ; it is when he is distracted that he begins to sink. 

And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, "O you of little faith, why did you doubt?"  The Greek verb translated doubt here really means "wavering" or "hesitation."  It is to vacillate between one side and another.  The cause of Peter's sinking, my study bible says, was not the storm but rather his doubt.  Christ doesn't rebuke the wind; He rebukes Peter. 

And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.  Then those who were in the boat came and worshiped Him, saying, "Truly You are the Son of God."  This is the first time in Matthew's Gospel that the disciples confess that Jesus is the Son of God.  Only God can be worshiped; they confess Christ's divinity by worshiping Him, my study bible tells us.  The boat with Christ and the disciples is symbolic of the Church. 

When they had crossed over, they came to the land of Gennesaret.  And when the men of that place recognized Him, they sent out into all that surrounding region, brought to Him all who were sick, and begged Him that they might only touch the hem of His garment.  And as many as touched it were made perfectly well.  My study bible says here that Christ permits miracles through touch in order to show that His very body is life, and that contact with His flesh is life-creating. 

There are times when we pray and feel that we have  no response; we are in a place where Christ seems absent.  According to my study bible, we are permitted storms in life -- as are the disciples in today's reading -- in order to strengthen our faith.   There are times when prayer seems to happen in a kind of vacuum; we are praying into the wind, like the disciples rowing against the storm.  God comes to us, however, in ways unexpected.  The important thing seems to be how we conduct ourselves when we feel we have no response.  So what is the substance of faith?  What does it mean to pray in times when we feel God's absence rather than presence?  Often it seems that at such times our focus is narrowed away from God.  Fear diminishes our capacity to see the bigger and broader picture of life.   It distracts us from the place where our peace is found, from the center that teaches us who we are, gives us sustenance or identity in Christ.  It is in times of this kind of uncertainty that we are offered a kind of opportunity:  we can walk through it with prayer in a type of discipline that builds something up within ourselves, whether or not we are aware of it at the time.  It's like exercise:  we build strength without being aware of it until the outcome is evident only with time.  To be a disciple is to grow in time and through practice.  We don't see the fruits of spiritual labor immediately and so must be prepared to stick with it and move forward in all circumstances.  The image of the disciples with Christ in the boat is one that has been used traditionally for the Church, and so we find ourselves.  Christ's ministry, also, changes with the responses of the world.  As noted in yesterday's reading, when Herod becomes a threat, He withdraws -- but His miraculous power becomes all the more evident to the disciples and in the events of the Gospels.  So it is with God's surprising sudden showing, as we continue the good fight, the struggle for faith, and seek to focus midst the distractions of the present.