Defending the Rock

I was raised on Bible stories, and one of the central New Testament characters outside of Jesus Christ himself was the Apostle Peter. I read the stories of Peter walking on water only to sink, of his denial of three times of Jesus, of his impulsive actions when he cut off a soldier’s ear- just some of the examples of Peter’s “failings” in his walk with Jesus Christ. But I think we’re wrong to view these recorded instances of Peter as failures, indeed, we’ve conditioned ourselves to view his actions as an example of what not to do for so long we’ve lost his example that Jesus so readily embraced. Peter was “The Rock” upon which Jesus was to build his church! Jesus said, in Matthew’s gospel, chapter 16, verse 18, “And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” (NIV) Jesus himself, the most brilliant, intuitive, enlightened man ever to walk this earth saw in Peter a lasting legacy of Kingdom living that we have somehow missed or lost sight of. Noted theologian and scholar Dallas Willard wrote, “Actions do not emerge from nothing. They faithfully reveal what is in the heart, and we can know what is in the heart that they depend upon.” With that in mind let’s look at Peter and his “failings”.

Perhaps the most widely recognized story of the Apostle Peter is found in Matthew’s gospel, the fourteenth chapter. This is what we read:
Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd.
After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, but the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it.
During the fourth watch of the night Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake.
When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. "It's a ghost," they said, and cried out in fear.
But Jesus immediately said to them: "Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid."
"Lord, if it's you," Peter replied, "tell me to come to you on the water."
"Come," he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, 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 him. "You of little faith," he said, "why did you doubt?"
And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down.
Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, "Truly you are the Son of God." (NIV)
When we examine the text directly as recorded, we don’t necessarily find our English translation entirely accurate. The word used by Jesus when he said, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” is the word “autos”, and can just as easily refer to you, as a group, as well as you singular. Consider for a moment, that Jesus, as he reaches down to pull Peter up from the swells, doesn’t address Peter, but looks beyond him at the eleven watching from the boat, and directs his question to them. Perhaps the lesson here isn’t Peter’s failure to keep his eyes on Jesus, the source and author of his faith, thus his experiencing that sinking feeling that so often plagues all of us when life’s storms seem to overwhelm us, but perhaps the lesson we need to take from this is found still in the boat. There were twelve watching Jesus walking out to them on the water, twelve terrified men. Yet, when the offer was issued to come, only Peter got out of the boat and went. That was an act of faith that the other eleven failed to exercise. Eleven men opted for the dubious safety of the boat; Peter elected to step out in faith and answer Jesus’ call. What benefits did Peter reap from his willingness to act?

Before Jesus came out to the boat the apostles found themselves in the midst of a storm. They were tired, and harried, and scared. When Jesus walked across the water to them they still remained in the storm, remained harried, but their fear intensified to terror. Yet when he called they stayed in the boat, in their “known” world, in the setting they were most comfortable in, where they could rely on themselves, on their skills for their safety. There wasn’t any reliance on God. But what about Peter? How was his experience different?
First, Peter acted out his faith. He asked for specific instruction from Jesus, and upon receiving it he acted. Because he stepped out in faith he experienced God sustaining him, and allowing him to perform in a supernatural way, allowing him to also walk on water. Stepping out in faith gave him an opportunity to experience the power of God beyond the life experiences of the other eleven. Yet when circumstances caused him to take his eyes off Jesus, and he began to realize how he was so far beyond his own capabilities to sustain himself, he began to sink, his faith began to “fail”. His response was immediate; “Lord, save me”. At once, in the face of the storm, he redirected his focus back on the author of his faith, Jesus Christ, and Jesus saved him. The interesting thing to note is that, while all twelve were in the storm only Peter obeyed Jesus, and in his most desperate moment we find him closest to Jesus, so close in fact that Jesus reaches out and draws him up to himself. Peter was immediately reassured of his safety and comforted while in the midst of the storm, comfort and assurance the eleven didn’t yet experience. Because of his willingness to act Peter was touched by Jesus, and was again brought into that supernatural power of God, for after Jesus lifted him up they walked again together, and got into the boat. It was then Jesus caused the storm to be still; it was then the others experienced peace and comfort from the storm. It is important to note that the others received their comfort when Jesus came to them and met them where they were. Peter experienced that comfort and assurance by going to where Jesus was. Peter’s willingness to act in faith, to move toward Jesus, gave him a whole new level of experience and appreciation for the power and sustaining grace of God.