Jesus is God!

Matthew 14:22-33

Greatest Discovery of mankind- Jesus is God!

Matthew 14:22-33, Immediately Jesus made His disciples get into the boat and go before Him to the other side, while He sent the multitudes away. 23 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. 24 But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary. 25 Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea. 26 And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out for fear. 27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.” 28 And Peter answered Him and said, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” 29 So He said, “Come.” And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus. 30 But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!” 31 And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” 32 And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. 33 Then those

who were in the boat came and worshiped Him, saying, “Truly You are the Son of God.” Chapter 13, Kingdom Parables were spoken. Chapter 13, Jesus says how the world is going to react to them. What it’s going to be like out there as they labour and minister in the harvest.

Matthew gives us from Matthew 13:53 till Matthew 16:12, eight incidents in the life of our Lord which illustrate the kind of response that there will be to the King. They are masterfully presented. The first response: Matthew 13:53-58- Unbelief!

The second response: Matthew 14:1-12 Fear that Forfeit’s Christ! Third response: Matthew 14:12-21 Faith for only materials! V 33, Then those who were in the boat came and worshiped Him, saying, “Truly You are the Son of God.”

“The Son of God” – is an affirmation of the deity of Jesus Christ. It is used 45 times in the New Testament. This is not speaking about Him submitting as a Son, but about Him being of the same essence as the Father.

It is very much like that common New Testament phrase “the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,” which again is an emphasis of the fact that Jesus Christ is of the same essence as God. Father and Son are alike. They bear the same life principle.

The disciples are saying that “You are deity. You are God’s Son.” V33, “You are God’s Son. You are one with God.” Very claim Jesus made repeatedly. Very claim for which He was crucified. But they understood Him to be equal with God.

Equal with God. God’s Son.

How did they come to that conclusion? How could they possibly say, in the words of Peter, “We are sure?

1. Divine Authority

2. Divine knowledge.

3. Divine Protection. They knew God to be a God of sovereignty and authority. When they saw that in Christ, they made the obvious connection. They knew God to be a God of knowledge, omniscience. They saw that in Christ and made the same connection.

They knew God to be a God of protective care. They saw Christ meeting their needs and caring for them, it was convincing that He was one with God.

Psalm 5:11, But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You; Let them ever shout for joy, because You defend them; Let those also who love Your name Be joyful in You.

They would have sung that Psalm, no doubt, that God was a defender of His own.

Psalm 9:9, The Lord also will be a refuge for the oppressed, A refuge in times of trouble.

Psalm 18:2, The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.

Psalm 23:4, Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

Psalm 62:2, He only is my rock and my salvation; He is my defence; I shall not be greatly moved.

Psalm 89:1, I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever; With my mouth will I make known Your faithfulness to all generations. Those are only samples of what they knew to be true about God.

God was a God basically defined by loyal love, by faithful protective care, by compassion. They knew that and when they saw that in Jesus Christ, it was an element of convincing them that this was one who was equal to God, who cared for His own.

They had experienced the fact that He had healed them. Peter himself had known healing in his own family, his mother- in-law. They had experienced the fact that He had fed them, and now they see that He meets them during their disaster and becomes their refuge.

If I were to sum up this marvellous account in one simple statement, I would think the great lesson here is that with Christ we need not fear any storm. With Christ we need not fear any storm because He is God who protects His own. The Protector of His beloved.

Jesus had said to the disciples in verses 22 and 23, “Go to the other side.” Mark and John kind of tell us that He sent them toward Capernaum and Bethsaida; they were adjacent cities. When they started that way, the wind came up, and it was contrary. It would have been so easy for them to turn around and go with the wind back to where they came from. But instead of that, they continued to pursue the direction the Lord had told them to go.

We find them during the storm, but we also find them in the midst of obedience. When a believer is in the place of obedience, no matter how severe the storm, He is as safe as if He were at home in His own bed. Because the place of security is not the place of proper circumstances, or of desirable circumstances, the place of security and safety for the believer is the place of obedience to the Lord.

They were safe in the midst of a storm in obedience.

In the sphere of obedience, and therein is God’s love poured out on His own.

• It doesn’t matter what the storm.
• It doesn’t matter what the opposition.
• It doesn’t matter what the anxiety of the heart.

What the Lord said is that you are as safe as you can possibly be, and the Lord shows that to them. Jesus demonstrates His not only desire to protect them, but His ability to protect them. When the disciples left the shore, they took the only boat.

• They were in the middle.
• They knew that the Lord was not there.
• They knew that the Lord couldn’t get there because there was no other boat available.
• They were at the end of their extremity.

What a profound lesson about God’s protecting love, when without human resource, when there is no way, He makes the storm His path to save His own. V 26, And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out for fear.

They screamed out for fear. Mark adds that they all saw Him. This isn’t one person who thought he saw a UFO go by! They all saw Him. All of them stared at Him. They didn’t know what it was, but they knew they saw Him.

John 6:19, So when they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near the boat; and they were afraid.

They are terror stricken. It was dark.

• They were panicking.
• They were weary.
• They disillusioned.
• They were discouraged.
• They were hopeless!

Suddenly someone comes walking on the water, and they just really can’t handle it. You just can’t handle it. John said they were three and four miles out in the middle. He was walking on the water.

V 26, “They were troubled.” They were in a state of panic. They were horrified having seen this phantasm, this apparition or whatever.

Mark 6:48, Then He saw them straining at rowing, for the wind was against them. Now about the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea, and would have passed them by. Mark says that Jesus would have appeared to have passed by their boat. Just walking along like it was a normal deal on the water and then to just go by the boat like you are just going down the road waving at people.

It appeared as though he would have passed by, and you have to ask yourself, “Why would he do that? Why would he appear to be just passing by?

Luke 24:28, Then they drew near to the village where they were going, and He indicated that He would have gone farther.

When the disciples said to Jesus, “No, Come with us.” Then He revealed Himself to them. The Lord will always be there but wants to elicit from the heart of the one in need the cry. He responds to the cry.

He always stops for the ones who call. They were in a state of panic. They were crying out all right. Jesus stopped. Mark says Jesus talked with them. V 27, But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.”

Be of good cheer! Take courage, take heart, don’t be afraid, stop fearing. God is the protector of His people. The storm never gets so extreme that he doesn’t know where we are, that he can’t walk on the water. He’ll protect his own.

Never comes too late. And you see this is the lesson for the 12 and this is the lesson for us. There’s no reason for fear in your life as a Christian, or mine either, none at all. There’s no reason for anxiety and upset, no matter how severe the storm, how hopeless it looks. He just comes along and says, “Cheer up, I Am here.”

• He doesn’t give them some great speech.
• He doesn’t give them some great theological description.

• He doesn’t explain to him how he could walk on water.

This is not to teach the disciples they can talk on water. After this incident, nobody ever walked on water that I read in the Bible. People today who claim to be able to do miracles don’t do well at this one. This is not to teach people how to walk on water.

This is to teach people who can’t walk on water that God can. It is to teach that in the extremity you don’t need to fear, because He is there, and He will respond to your need. Acts 27, Paul was on a ship in the sea and the ship was being tossed by the storm. The crew had jettisoned the cargo and they were just throwing out everything.

• They didn’t really need to keep the ship afloat.
• They threw the tackle out.
• They controlled the sails with.
• They just junked everything to keep that ship afloat.
• They are all fearing for their lives.
• They are going to be grounded into the rocks and destroyed.

An angel comes to Paul in the middle of the night. Paul is perfectly at peace; he just keeps reminding them they shouldn’t have left the last port.

This angel comes to Paul, I have a word from God. Everybody on the ship will be fine. Would you please make that announcement? So, the next morning Paul says, “I have an announcement. We will all be safe, for an angel of God whose I am and who I serve came to me in the night and said, ‘God is going preserve all of us.’

We will lose the ship, but we will all be saved. Therefore, be of good cheer. Very hard to do because Paul was human, but easier to do when you see Jesus walking on the water saying, “Don’t worry about this storm. I am here.”

Then Peter wanted to test and make sure.

Just using this as an illustration

Life is stormy, we know that it is painful. There are hurts and wounds. Some of us suffer more than others. All of us suffer to some degree. The great confidence of this passage is that you are never away from the authority, the knowledge, the protective care of the Saviour. Never.

4. Divine Love.

V 28-29, And Peter answered Him and said, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” 29 So He said, “Come.” And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus. This is a picture of God’s love.

God is not only characterized by sovereign authority, knowledge, protecting, delivering care and power, but by love. We know enough about the Scriptures to know that God is a God of love.

1 John 4:7, Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.

God is love. Jesus loves His own.

• He loves them with an uninfluenced love.
• He loves them with an unending love.
• He loves them with an unchanging love.
• He loves them with an infinite, perfect, eternal, holy, gracious love.

The way you demonstrate love biblically is to meet a person at his need.

God so loved that He gave His only begotten Son.

Why? Because if He loved, He would meet man at the great need of his sin. In John, it says that if you say you love someone, but you close up your compassion to that person, how dwells the love of God in you? Because love is not some kind of sentimentality.

Love is not some kind of whimsy. Love is not some kind of feeling, some kind of passion. Love is a principle of meeting needs, taking people from weakness to strength. “If it’s you, Lord, then bid me to come on the water.”

Some think this is presumption. The bold sort of loud-mouthed Peter his foot in this case. Peter was overstepping, overconfident and very presumptuous. Peter has spent his entire life around and on the Sea of Galilee. Never has he walked on it.

He may have even had difficulty floating in it, but for sure he never walked on it.

Peter is not stupid. In the midst of a storm, his presumption would not be the dominating motive. Others suggest to us that Peter was showing off. Silly. Those who are show-offs know the limitations. You don’t show off by walking on water basically.

However, there is a very good explanation of why Peter did what he did. Peter wanted to be where Jesus was. He wanted to be where Jesus was so much, that he was willing to climb out of the boat and go to be where He was.

Unless you believed that He had the power to hold you up as He was being held up. Peter fell asleep in the prayer meeting. We have all fell asleep in prayer meeting. Those of us who go to prayer meeting. Peter loves the Lord Jesus Christ.

The thing that consumed Peter’s heart was that he loved Jesus Christ, and he sensed in His presence tremendous safety. He believed that if the Lord could walk on that water, he could get to where He was and be safe in the midst of an

environment that he could not control and he was in great fear of. Peter knew he had no resources. He could think about doing was running to where Jesus was, even though you couldn’t do that. He was consumed with the fact that he wanted to get to Jesus.

Peter was always there with Jesus on his road trip. He longed to be where Jesus was. He tried to get as close to Him as he could, even in the time of the trial. They wouldn’t let him in, and that’s why he was outside. But he hung around as long as he could.

All the while, the Lord is trying to build into that man the character that it’s going to take to lead and to be the key and the catalyst of the first years of the history of the Church. Because he was there as leader for the first 13 chapters of Acts.

All the time, the Lord is trying to build that into him. When he finally gets his monumental lesson that he gets in the last chapter of John’s Gospel, and the Lord finally nails down his commitment to ministry. The way the Lord hits him and hits him dead between the eyes is to question whether Peter loves Him.

That was the crushing blow. There was something in Peter that said, “If all of this has gone by, and it is not yet clear that I love Him, it’ll be clear from here on out.” It was, for the day came when he had to offer his life, tradition tells us, and he requested that he not be crucified but upside down. Because he had not the right to be crucified as his Lord.

So, he learned his lesson. He loved the Lord Jesus Christ. In Matthew 17, when they were up on the hill where the transfiguration occurred, he was so blessed to be with Jesus. Peter said, “Lord, I have got a great plan. This is the end of everything else. We are going to build permanent houses here and stay.

Peter had reached heaven. That was the pinnacle. That was it. Jesus, just us. Peter loved Jesus. He loved to be where he was. John 13 the Lord went around the table He was washing the feet of the disciples who were arguing about who was going to be the greatest in the kingdom.

So, nobody’s going to wash feet when they were trying to show how great they are. Lord came to Peter, and Peter just couldn’t handle it.

Peter just could not handle the Lord washing his feet, and he says, “Lord, You will never wash my feet. It is beneath You.”

John 13:6-9, Then He came to Simon Peter. And Peter said to Him, “Lord, are You washing my feet?” 7 Jesus answered and said to him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but you will know after this.” 8 Peter said to Him, “You shall never wash my feet!” Jesus answered him, “If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.” 9 Simon Peter said to Him, “Lord, not my feet only, but also my hands and my head!” That was the heart of Peter. He wanted to be with Christ. That is why he was the leader that he was. He could lead the other apostles. He was the closest to Jesus Christ because he wanted to be there, and he longed to be there. There was security there. Peter got out of the boat because he wanted to be with Jesus. Peter had seen enough of the power of Jesus Christ demonstrated and now seeing Him standing on the water that he believed that the Lord could help him walk, too. V 29, So He said, “Come.” And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus.

Our Lord never invites anybody to do anything sinful. The Lord never invites anybody to do anything proud or presumptuous. When Jesus said, “Come,” it had all the tender compassion that a loving father would have when his little child.

The child who is longed to see the security and safety of his daddy’s arms, calls for his father to embrace him. Jesus said, “Come.” Jesus knew Peter’s faith was weak. Jesus knew it couldn’t withstand the storm any better than the little boat could.

But the Lord never rejects frail faith, and He takes it and builds it. He never rejects a weak love, and He takes it and builds it. Essence of divine love is to take a man or a woman where they are and to bring them through a trial. Through that increases their capacity to believe God and to love God. Therefore, increases their capacity to enjoy life and all that God provides.

V 29, when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus.

Peter was not walking on the water somewhere but walking to go to Jesus. That is all he had in mind was to go to Jesus. That may be the most significant part of the whole scene to go to Jesus. Peter wanted to get to Jesus. But this was a hard test. Peter had seen the Lord handle a storm.

Matthew 8, the Lord was asleep in the back of the boat, got up and said, “Peace be still,” and the whole storm stopped. Peter knew the Lord could handle that. So, his faith carried him that far. Peter figured the Lord was in control of the whole thing.

But when he got out there, the test was a little tougher than he thought. V 30, But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!” Peter wanted to be where Jesus was.

His faith got him out of the boat, but he got into a situation unlike any other in his entire life. He had been in the boat in the storm, but he had never been out of the boat in the storm.

We don’t need to be taught what we already know. We need to be taught what we don’t know yet. How do you build a man but by putting him in an extremity he’s never experienced? Showing yourself faithful and powerful in that extremity so that now he can trust you that much further.

James 1:3-4, My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. 4 But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.

The Lord runs us out as far as our faith will go, and then our faith ends, and we start to sink, He lets us begin to sink. “Lord, save me.” When Lord does that extends that faith just that much further. That’s what the Christian life is all about.

It is all about learning more and more to trust God. Believing God more and more so that we can step out on faith and attempt those things which we believe ourselves to be inadequate to accomplish. Peter was afraid. He began to sink.

There was no way to swim, He just cried, “Lord, save me.” V 31, And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” What the Lord is saying, Didn’t you think I would catch you?

Didn’t you think you could trust me in that extremity? Didn’t you think I would sustain you in that thing you have never been in in your life before? I was here all the time. The Lord caught him. Picked him up. Little faith.

Before you condemn Peter for little faith, that little faith is better than no faith?

Matthew 17:20, So Jesus said to them, “Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘Move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you. If little faith will get you out of the boat onto the water, it’s pretty substantial stuff.

All of us could be characterized as having little faith sort of mixed with doubt. That is why the Lord brings into our lives the difficulties, trials, struggles, and the pains so that going through those things we see that He sustains us.

Little faith grows and grows. It could be said of us someday, as Jesus said of one of us, “I have not seen such great faith in all Israel.” Peter learned that Jesus could take care of him when he couldn’t take care of himself in the ultimate extremity.

Two ways

One as an intercessory high priest, praying on our behalf. Two, as the very source of strength who comes to us in the midst of the storm. Do you realize, as a Christian, that you have that double promise that Jesus Christ prays for you that your faith will not fail?

When you get strung out in some difficulty and you begin to question God? When you don’t know how you are going to handle the extremity?

When you have lost perspective in life?

That very point that you have the confidence that Jesus Christ intercedes on your behalf and always prays according to the will of the Father, and not only that, but that He comes to your rescue. If your boat is pointed to Capernaum, and you are following the course of obedience, He is there to rescue you.

Did Peter learn his lesson? Of course, he did! When he wrote 1 Peter and 2 Peter we could see so many ways that he reflects this lesson.

1 Peter 1:6-9, In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honour, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, 8 whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, 9 receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls. Trails are making you into what you can be to give God glory.

The greater your faith, the greater you trust Him. The more you trust Him, the more you honour His blessed trustworthy name.

Peter can look back and say, “All those trials you are going through, I have been there. I learned, and you will learn that that’s more precious than gold because it increases your capacity to glorify God.” Lazarus died.

Mary and Martha didn’t understand why. They were all intimate with Jesus, and they had sent word that he was sick. Jesus was up beyond the Jordan. They said, “Come because he is sick.” He didn’t come. Then the word came that he was dead, and not only was he died, but he was dead, and four days went by.

The Jews didn’t embalm bodies. After four days, his body was decayed. Finally, on that fourth day, He came. And they said, “Oh, you are too late. You didn’t come.” But Jesus had run them out to their extremity. He had run them to the limit of their faith.

They were sinking. Jesus went over to the grave, and He said, “Lazarus, come out.” He did. The faith of Mary and Martha jumped from questions about whether the Lord could heal to know questions about whether He could raise the dead.

Increasing faith!

Great lesson. No wonder he said to them, “Just stay calm and you will see the glory of God.” They would then have had greater capacity even to give Him glory.

How He loves His own? Demonstrating that divine love, reaching out to a frail, weak disciple; taking him where he was. Not condemning him for his weakness but building on it to strength. Divine love. 5. Divine Power. V 32, And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.

He got in the boat, and the storm stopped just like that.

John 6:21, Then they willingly received Him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land where they were going.

The boat was instantly at the shore. They were in the middle of the sea, the storm stopped in a blink, they are at the shore.

Mark 6:51, Then He went up into the boat to them, and the wind ceased. And they were greatly amazed in themselves beyond measure, and marvelled.

What they achieved with their effort only halfway but then with the presence of Jesus instantly they reached their destination. They knew that power belongs only to God.

Psalm 62:11, God has spoken once, Twice I have heard this: That power belongs to God.

Psalm 89:6, For who in the heavens can be compared to the Lord? Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened to the Lord?

Job 26:14, Indeed these are the mere edges of His ways, And how small a whisper we hear of Him! But the thunder of His power who can understand?”

They knew that God was almighty El-Shaddai. When they saw Christ demonstrate that, there was little question but that He was one with God, and they worshipped Him.

What is our message to you? Worship Him.

How can you not worship Him? He demonstrated.

• the sovereignty of God,

• the omniscience of God,
• the protective care of God,
• the divine love of God,
• the power of God.

Conclusion.

Jesus is nothing but God in human flesh? You are called as they were by the clear sight of what He did, to bow the knee. The word “worship” proskuneō, to bow, to kiss toward. They did it. V 33, “They that were in the boat overwhelmed with the affirmation that this was the Son of God.”

One with God.

Philippians 2:9-11, Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, 11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

God calls you to bow the knee to Jesus Christ.

They did it. They were good soil, and they bore much fruit. They knew they were in the presence of Him.

Psalm 77:19, Your way was in the sea, Your path in the great waters, And Your footsteps were not known.

They knew they were in the presence of Him.

Habakkuk 3:15, You walked through the sea with Your horses, Through the heap of great waters.

Job 9:8, He alone spreads out the heavens, And treads on the waves of the sea;