[The following is a manuscript of my message delivered at Pilgrim Reformed Church on Sunday morning, the 2nd of November, 2025. This service is the second of our hybrid series - part traditional and part modern. If all went well, a recording of the service may be available on our YouTube streaming channel:
https://www.youtube.com/@pilgrimreformedchurch1992/streams for the older services or https://www.youtube.com/@pilgrimreformedchurch3115/streams for later services.]
In our responsive reading a few minutes ago, I said, “There is no limit to what the Lord is able to do when we leave the results to Him.” Our bible is full of miraculous feats Jesus performed. The four Gospel writers recorded many, but certainly not all of them. The Apostle John admits to this, when he ends his account by saying, “there are also many other things that Jesus did, which if they were written one by one, I suppose that even the world itself could not contain the books that would be written”. But the key is, we have to leave the results to Jesus. Of course, leaving the results to Him implies that we must set things in motion first.
Let’s look at a few of those miracles. When Jesus heard that His kinsman John, the Baptizer, had been beheaded, He went off by Himself to a deserted place. But the multitudes soon found Him, and He was moved with compassion for them. Note that the people set things in motion by seeking out Jesus, even if He was trying to get away for some grieving time. He was moved with compassion and healed their sick. And then as evening fell, he fed them all from just five loaves of bread and two small fish.
That should sound familiar. We call it the feeding of the five thousand, along with probably an equal number of women and children. And then... Well, let the Apostle Matthew pick up the story from there, as recorded in the 14th chapter of his Gospel account, verses 22 through 33, and as read from the New King James Version of our Holy Bible...
22 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.”
--Matthew 14:22-33 (NKJV)
Let us pray… Heavenly Father, You are so very good to us and we thank You for all Your many blessings, and especially for our bible and everything in it that tells us about Your Son Jesus and all the marvelous things He did while He walked this earth. Father, too often our faith falters and we feel ourselves sinking. So we plead for Your continued blessings, knowing we cannot get through another day without You. Please help us ignore and avoid all the ways of the world that try to pull us under. Help us return hatred with love, violence with prayer and forgiveness. Help us be more like Your Son Jesus as we walk through this life.
Speak to us now, Father, that we might hear Your voice through Your Spirit within us. Tell each of us what we need to hear. This we pray in the precious name of Your Son, Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.
By the time of the feeding of the five thousand, the disciples had seen Jesus perform around two dozen or more acts and signs that no normal human could ever do, including raising Jairus’ daughter from the dead. So why were they so shocked that He could walk on water?
Let’s set the stage. It was dark now, and a storm was kicking up the sea. The boat was being tossed by the waves and there was probably lightening flashing in the sky. I mean, there had to have been some light source, either the moon or lightening, or they wouldn’t have seen Jesus walking on the sea. So in the dim, possibly flickering light, they spot this impossible thing on top of the water coming right at them. “It’s a ghost!”, they cried out. But Jesus assured them that it was just Him, coming to join them – no need to fear.
Now maybe Peter wasn’t completely sure it truly was Jesus, so he challenged the figure by calling out, “Lord, if it’s really You, command me to come to You on the water.” So Jesus did, and Peter did. He climbed right out of that boat and began walking to Jesus, walking on the surface of the sea. But all too soon the wind and the waves caught his attention, pulling his focus from Jesus, and he began to sink beneath the waves. Fortunately for Peter, Jesus was there to save him. Oh, and Jesus calmed the storm, too.
So what went wrong? Peter set things in motion by climbing out of the rocking boat and onto the stormy sea. But he took his eyes off of Jesus. He let himself get distracted and did not leave the results to the Lord.
Who among us here today would even be willing to try? How far do we trust Jesus? Just as He called Peter to come to Him over the sea, He calls us to go out and make disciples for Him. What distracts us from doing that? What causes us to sink? Are we even willing to climb out of the boat?
Toward the end of their last supper together on this earth, Jesus is trying to prepare His disciples for their life, and their role, without Him. Listen to how the Apostle John recorded our Lord’s words in verses 10 through 15 of the 14th chapter of his Gospel account…
10b “The words that I speak to you I do not speak on My own authority; but the Father who dwells in Me does the works. 11 Believe Me that I am in the Father and the Father in Me, or else believe Me for the sake of the works themselves.12 “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to My Father. 13 And whatever you ask in My name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14 If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments.”
--John 14:10b-15 (NKJV)
“If you love Me, do what I have called you to do, and if you need My help, ask in My name and I will help you.” Do we love Jesus? Do we trust in His promise to help us?
Family, we can’t do a thing if we don’t try, and certainly not great things like Jesus said we could. We’ll never know if we can walk on water or not if we aren’t willing to get out of the boat. We’ve got to take that leap of faith and climb out of our comfort zone, ask Jesus for help and support, and get out there sharing His love and the Gospel message.
But if we do finally step onto the raging sea, we must remember to keep our eyes, our focus, on Jesus. Don’t look down. Always look up - look up to Jesus.
In the blessed name of our Lord Jesus. Amen.
Let us pray… Almighty God, Your love is shown in the faith You have given us, the faith to believe in and follow Your Son Jesus. Non-believers jeer and scoff at our faith, and seem to hate us for it. Christians the world over face persecution, even here in the United States to an increasing degree, just because of our faith. So Father, sometimes we are hesitant to share our faith in public. Please forgive us, Father. We thank You for this faith. Please embolden us to put all our trust in You. Please help us get out of the boat and be more open with our faith, more trusting that our service in Your name will work to our good. Boost our trust and call us to walk on water.
Please hear us now, Father, as we pause for a moment so that each of us can speak to You through Your Spirit within us, promising to be more obedient to Your commands, and seeking Your help to do so…
Lord Jesus, thank You for calling us to Your service. And thank You for promising to always be with us, to help us when we begin to sink. We trust in Your promise, Lord, still we worry about our safety and the safety of our loved ones if we let our faith be seen in public, for the world has become a dangerous place for believers. But we can take heart from those who are now being more open in showing their faith, daring Satan and his minions to stifle their voices. Please help us, Lord Jesus, to become one of them. And forgive us when we struggle to love others like You want us to. We know it disappoints You when we let our fear keep us from approaching others and showing Your love as we walk through each day. Please help us reach out to the non-believing world, sharing the Gospel message, sharing Your love as we go.
Holy Spirit, please shield our minds and our hearts from Satan’s lies and the world’s empty promises. Guide us around all the devil’s traps and snares. Help us see though his temptations. Help us keep our focus on the things of heaven and the needs of others rather than on anything this world might offer. All this we pray in the blessed name of Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.
