Wednesday Bible Study: What Jesus asked, part 14

 

Our next question, and that which surrounds us, is very simple, but answers a lot about how God treats, as they say, "the just and the unjust."

"O you of little faith, why did you doubt?"

Now our tale begins right after Herod was tricked into executing John the Baptist.  Jesus, apparently overcome by the emotion, withdraws to 'a desolate place.'  People who trusted Him, knew Him, might have allowed Him His moment of peace.  But the crowd, eager to see Him perform 'circus tricks', or perhaps, to see if this emotion would lead Him to make the move of kingship over Israel,  followed Him even there.  Compassionate, He taught and healed, and at the end of the day...

Mat 14:15  Now when it was evening, the disciples came to him and said, "This is a desolate place, and the day is now over; send the crowds away to go into the villages and buy food for themselves."
Mat 14:16  But Jesus said, "They need not go away; you give them something to eat."
Mat 14:17  They said to him, "We have only five loaves here and two fish."
Mat 14:18  And he said, "Bring them here to me."

And He took the matter into His own hands, as God the provider for all men...

Mat 14:20  And they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up twelve baskets full of the broken pieces left over.
Mat 14:21  And those who ate were about five thousand men, besides women and children. 

No dividing line between the faithful and the curious; ALL were satisfied.  Now, I'm going to jump ahead of the story, to set the contrast.  Next morning, after an eventful crossing of the sea....

Mat 14:34  And when they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret.
Mat 14:35  And when the men of that place recognized him, they sent around to all that region and brought to him all who were sick
Mat 14:36  and implored him that they might only touch the fringe of his garment. And as many as touched it were made well.

Get the difference between the two crowds?  This crowd had faith- that they could merely touch Him and be well.   You don't do that with a mere 'faith healer'; these people recognized He was something more, and to them, very personal miracles of healing were made available.

But again, these were people having come to Him, not as a ringmaster, but as God.  Now, what happens when the thought of Him being 'just a man' gets in the way?  We return to the fields where the 5,000+ were fed.  He sends the crowds home, and the Disciples, after gathering a basket each of food fragments, across the sea, while He finally goes off to have His alone time with the Father.

When evening came, he was there alone,
Mat 14:24  but the boat by this time was a long way from the land, beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them.
Mat 14:25  And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea.
Mat 14:26  But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, "It is a ghost!" and they cried out in fear.
Mat 14:27  But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, "Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid."
Mat 14:28  And Peter answered him, "Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water."

Point #1- v26:  Because they couldn't get Jesus the Man out of their minds, they couldn't comprehend His abilities as God, and figured they were seeing a ghost.  If the lesson being taught wasn't so important, and the danger from the storm so real, this would be a cartoon-level funny moment.

Point #2- v28: Now, not unlike the pharisees, they demand a sign.  Familiarity and the crisis combine to rob them of the faith needed for a miracle... almost...

Mat 14:29  He said, "Come." So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus.
Mat 14:30  But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, "Lord, save me."
Mat 14:31  Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, "O you of little faith, why did you doubt?"

Point #3-v29: With Faith, Peter was able to do the miraculous!  But...

Point #4- v30: ...he let circumstances evaporate that faith.

Point#5 -v29: He had to go back to the start of faith: "Lord, save me!" His lack of faith shifted him immediately from the miraculous influence of Christ right back to where he was before they met.

My Proverbs reading for the day I typed this out included:

Pro 24:10  If you faint in the day of adversity, your strength is small. 

The evil, who think God's actions to the believer are "their imagination", "coincidence", or "chemicals triggered in the brain", are still provided for in the basics of this world.  Those who have genuine faith trust all and receive reward, whether this life or the next.  But when the waves rock the boat, how strong is our faith?