Meaning?
-Historicity aside, the story of Jesus walking on the water suggests a very high
Christology. Two options: (1) Hellenist: Jesus, in the tradition of the
Greek demigods and heroes, has the power to walk on water which confirms their divine
origin; (2) Jewish: this is a theophany of Jesus as the revelation of God or as
God. Other passages speak of God walking on the sea (cf. Job 9:8; Hab. 3:15; Ps. 77:19),
so with Jesus, God once again walks on the seas. [1]
Function? - Was this story to demonstrate Jesus’ divinity? Or might this
story reveal how the Messiah is charged and empowered by God to shepherd and care for
God’s people? That is, is Jesus show-casing his divinity through this action of
walking on water, or was he coming to the aid of his disciples? They were far from land
and their boat was being “tortured” by the waves.
Peter’s Holy Experience - Peter is caught midway between faith and doubt; a
sort of “I believe!” (“But help my unbelief!”) . He stands for those
who boldly believe and take their first steps in confidence, but who lose confidence when
adverse circumstances threaten. Still, Peter is a fine representative of those who embrace
a risk-taking faith. [2]
Of all your adventures in life,
which was the most daring?
- If a movie gets scary, what do you usually do?
- How much of a risk-taker are you? How would you rate Peter?
- How good are you . . . your denomination . . . your congregation at “stepping out
of the boat” and taking risks? [3]
For a homily based on this text,
please see “Faith and Fear,” by Fred Craddock; he suggests that this
passage is in fact, a sermon. So he walks through Matthew’s “sermon” and
has as his “ahhh!” and “Eureka!,” Jesus response to the disciples: not
“it is I, be not afraid,” but as the Greek text has it, “I Am! Be not
afraid.” The final block of Craddock’s sermon on a sermon places all of us in
the boat and how we also must look to the I Am so we need not be afraid. [4]
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[1] Douglas Hare, Interpretation: Matthew (Atlanta: John Knox Press, 1993),
page 168.
[2] Ibid, page 170.
[3] Questions adapted from Serendipity Bible (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publ., 1998), page
1348-1349.
[4] Fred Craddock, The Cherry Log Sermons (Louisville: John Knox Press, 2001), page 31.
