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Good morning my “Walking with Jesus” friends,
During these days of soul-shaking news from around the world, and isolation living, here’s a powerful word from a man who spent many years in the isolation of prison, with his only crime being his communication of God’s truth. From prison in Rome, the Apostle Paul wrote a great letter of hope to his friends in the town of Philippi. You may recall on his first visit to Philippi, Paul was beaten and imprisoned there, with Silas (Act 16:22-24), yet deep in that dark dungeon they sang songs and God’s response was to shake that town with an earthquake, which broke open the prison, remember?
I find these words in Philippians 4:4-7, which I hope are very helpful to all of us today, as we begin another week battling Coronavirus, Economic chaos, travel restrictions, and for many, isolation in various forms of ‘lock down’. “Rejoice in the Lord always. I say it again, Rejoice! Let your gentleness be evident to all. The Lord is near. Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace that passes all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”
How do you respond to that my friends? Do you see at least five specific action steps Paul urges us to take in turbulent times like we are living through right now? Let’s identify them and then choose to DO them!
1. “Rejoice in the Lord always.” Praise is powerful and it defeats fear and discouragement!
2. “Let your gentleness be evident to all.” A gentle attitude in these times of fear, confusion, critical media, and weary workers, can be very helpful and encouraging.
3. “Do not be anxious…” Of course that is easier said than done, but anxiety can quickly breed worry, and worry can lead to very unwise choices and words you’ll later regret. Anxiety is contagious, be careful!
4. “…by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.” There it is, God’s invitation to you and me to bring whatever concerns us to HIM, the Almighty God who understands it all and sees the future as clearly as this moment. But notice as we pray and petition God, we are to do so with thanksgiving! It means, as we pray we thank God that He is Sovereign over all. We thank Him that He understands COVID-19 and the cure scientists are seeking. We thank Him that He holds our lives in His hands. We thank Him that He is PRESENT with us in this, and that He loves us. We thank Him for heaven which awaits us!
And then #5 do you see God’s promises, my friends, that if we DO this. . . do you see how HE will respond? “And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.” WOW! Now that’s great news for this Monday, do you agree? But it requires us to hold on to it! To receive that peace from God and hold on to it! So let’s do it friends. . .
Now let’s rejoin Jesus and His disciples on the road to Easter 2020. Matthew 14 and John 6 give us the story of a remarkable, unforgettable day for Jesus and His friends. It begins with terrible, shocking news which we find in Matthew 14:1-12. John the Baptizer is beheaded by king Herod, in a grotesque scene of public immorality and leadership failure. Herod is publicly flaunting his affair with his brothers wife at a large party, during which she requests John’s head be brought in on a platter!
When news reaches Jesus of this debase act of cruelty, Matthew writes “…He withdrew by boat privately to a solitary place.” This moment helps us see that Jesus experienced the same emotions of heartbreak and grief that you and I experience. But look what happened next: “Hearing of this the crowds followed Him on foot from the towns. When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, He had compassion on them and healed their sick.” (Matt. 14:14)
Jesus felt sorry for the people. They lived both under the iron fist of Rome, but also under the regional authority of an evil, selfish, immoral, violent man, King Herod. There was little pity for the poor, the ill, the handicapped, the widows or orphans. So in His own personal pain and grief, Jesus’ compassion moved Him to comfort and heal others.
Evidently Jesus sat down on the hillside and taught this large crowd of people for a long time that day, and as evening approached they were all hungry, and when He asked the disciples what they thought should happen, their advice was: “This is a remote place and it’s getting late. Send the crowds away, so they can go to the villages and buy themselves some food.” (Matt. 14:15) What do you think of that advice, my friends?
That seemed logical. But what the disciples didn’t know is that Jesus was planning something they’d never forget, and would be part of their training for the future. “Jesus replied, ‘They do not need to go away. You give them something to eat.” John tells us that Philip answered “Eight months wages would not buy enough bread for each person to have one bite.” Does that gives us a sense of the size of the crowd and the magnitude of the difference between how Jesus saw this moment and how His disciples saw it?
Andrew was always looking to bring someone or some resources to Jesus. John writes: “Andrew spoke up,’here’s a boy with five small barley loaves and two small fish, but how far will that go among so many people?” (John 6:7-9)
What follows, my friends, is one of the greatest miracles of all time, as you read in both Matthew 14 & John 6. Jesus evidently asked the boy if he’d be willing to share his lunch with Jesus, and he was! Then Jesus lifted it up and prayed over it and started breaking the bread and fish into pieces… and I think He probably asked the boy to help Him, and the disciples and soon baskets were full to overflowing, and they started distributing bread and fish to the crowd. Can you imagine it? Put yourself there, take a small loaf and start breaking bread…as fast as you can, there’s a huge crowd to feed. Do you feel the miracle? That little loaf in your hand just keeps multiplying, and the baskets keep filling…fast, and people are eating and laughing and celebrating a feast that just keep coming. Perhaps this was the original “all you can eat buffet”?
And do you see John writes “When they had all had enough to eat, Jesus said to His disciples, ‘Gather the pieces that are left over. Let nothing be wasted.So they gathered them and filled twelve baskets…” (John 6:13). Matthew adds, “The number of those who ate was about 5000 men, besides the women and children.” (Matt. 14:21) How do you explain this miracle my friends, and what do you think it was supposed to mean to everyone present, especially to the disciples who had urged Jesus to send the people away? Do you suppose the little boy had stayed right by Jesus’ side during this whole experience, and maybe now, with 12 big baskets of left overs, Jesus might have said to the boy “Well my young friend, now look at what God has done with your little lunch! I’m sure glad you were willing to share, aren’t you? Help yourself!”
Both John and Matthew tell us now Jesus dismissed the people, with their full stomachs, to go home, and He urged His disciples to get in their boats and head on across the lake, He’d rejoin them later on. Meanwhile He was going up further on the hillside to pray and meet with His Father. Jesus was teaching them again how important it is to meet with the Father often, especially after great experiences. Do you know why? God will not share His glory with anyone, my friends. Through the prophet Isaiah, God had said “I am the LORD, that is My name! I will not give My glory to another or My praise to idols.” (Is. 41:8)
This huge crowd of people was so overwhelmed with Jesus’ teachings and especially His miracles, they wanted to make Him king! That was not Jesus’ mission. He must keep pointing the people to His Father, Almighty God, and help the people understand their greater need is for a Savior who can save them from their sin, not simply a leader who can multiply food for them. Jesus needed time to talk with His Father about this, and make sure His heart was fully aligned with the heart of God.
John 6 and Matthew 14 both tell us that while Jesus prayed on the hillside, a storm rose up quickly, as often happened on Lake Galilee, and Jesus could see the disciples in their little boat nearly swamped by the waves. Go ahead my friends, let’s put ourselves in the boat. Grab an oar and try to row against these waves. Watch out, you’ll get soaked by the rain and waves…but you’re about to experience something you’ll never forget.
Matthew was an eyewitness and describes what he saw: “During the fourth watch of the night (that would be the last two or three hours before dawn) Jesus went out to them walking on the waves! When the disciples saw Him walking on the water, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost’ they cried out in fear!” Can you imagine this moment? Are you petrified and soaked and afraid the boat is going to capsize?
“But Jesus said to them, ‘Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.’
“Lord, if it’s you,’ Peter shouted, ‘tell me to come to you on the water.” It was another defining moment for them all. Was Peter out of his mind? Can you hear them all shouting at Peter as he grabs the side of the boat as the waves are lashing it, and splashing all of us?
“COME” Jesus said!!
What? Did you hear what I just heard? And every man looked right at Peter! Peter looked around at each man, wiped the water from his face, steadied himself as another big wave splash against the boat, looked at Jesus actually standing on the waves… and then did something no human being has ever done! He swung his legs over the side, and Matthew says: “Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came toward Jesus.
But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and beginning to sink, cried out ‘Lord save me.’ Immediately Jesus reached out His hand and caught Peter. ‘You of little faith, why did you doubt?’ And when they climbed into the boat, the wind calmed down. (Matt. 14:29-32)
Once again time stood still. No one said anything, they hardly breathed. What just happened? How can you possibly explain it? “Then those who were in the boat worshiped Jesus and said ‘Truly You are the Son of God.”
Let’s not rush from this scene my friends? Just sit in the boat with the disciples and Jesus, all of us soaking wet. It wasn’t a dream it was real. What do we learn about Jesus and His power, and the power He can give to a normal person who has great faith and acts in obedience to God’s invitation?
As you and I continue to row our boats through this Coronavirus storm, and the financial melt-down storm, and the lock-downs and travel restrictions of entire countries. . .what does this long day in the life of Jesus and His friends teach us about Him and His power in the storms of life?
Do you trust Jesus to meet your needs, even if it’s the need of food? Do you trust Him to calm the storm? And what if Jesus invites you to walk on the water in your storm, whatever that might mean for you. . .do you trust Him enough, is your faith in Him strong enough? When these storms are over, how different will you and I be, my friends, and how much will your relationship with God have grown?
Oh Lord Jesus as we step out into this week, the storms are raging all around us. We need to see YOU in the storms Jesus. Holy Spirit please strengthen our faith, our confidence in Jesus, so when the storm is over we will have learned really important life lessons. And be people ‘walking with Jesus’ with much stronger faith and Christ like character, after these storms subside.
Click to read today’s chapter: Matthew 14; John 6. (At the top you can choose a different translation.)
Have a comment or question about today’s chapter? I’m ready to hear from you, contact me here.
Pastor Doug Anderson 262.441.8785
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
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