Sermon: Redefining Possible

Delivered at Bethel United Methodist Church on August 7, 2011.
I share these thoughts, hoping they are of help to someone else.

Redefining Possible

Scripture:

Immediately He made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead to the other side, while He dismissed the crowds. And after He had dismissed the crowds, He went up the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, He was there alone, but by this time the boat, battered by the waves, was far from the land, for the wind was against them. And early in the morning He came walking toward them on the sea. But when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified, saying, "It is a ghost!" And they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them and said, "Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid."

Peter answered Him, "Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water." He said, "Come." So Peter got out of the boat, started walking on the water, and came toward Jesus. But when he noticed the strong wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, He cried out, "Lord, save me!" Jesus immediately reached out His hand and caught him, saying to him, "You of little faith, why did you doubt?" When they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshiped Him, saying, "Truly You are the Son of God."

Matthew 14:22-33 (NRSV)

It doesn't matter what you've heard
Impossible is not a word
It's just a reason for someone not to try
Everybody's scared to death
When they decide to take that step
Out on the water, but it'll be alright

Life is so much more than what your eyes are seeing
You will find your way if you keep believing

I've seen dreams that move the mountains
Hope that doesn't ever end
Even when the sky is falling
And I've seen miracles just happen
Silent prayers get answered
Broken hearts become brand new
That's what faith can do

From "What Faith Can Do" by Kutless

A few years ago, I went with some of my friends from Furman University to a short retreat at Asbury Hills, a nearby Methodist camp. During this brief getaway, we tackled a low ropes course. One of the challenges on this course consisted of a series of tightrope wires attached to trees. Our objective was to help each other to walk the ropes from the starting point to the end. Whoever fell off the ropes or put a foot on the ground had to start back at the beginning. While attempting to walk a rope from one tree to another, I made an important observation: if you try to walk a tightrope and begin doubting yourself, you will fall.

Nearly two thousand years ago, a man named Simon Peter learned a very similar lesson.

Jesus has just fed thousands of people with only five loaves of bread and two fish while somehow managing to leave twelve baskets of leftovers. Earlier that day, Jesus heard about the death of His cousin John and had wanted some time alone when He was met by a large crowd, an occurrence that happened to Him quite often.¹ After ministering to the crowd, He still wants some time to Himself, so He tells His disciples to go on ahead of Him back across the Sea of Galilee while He dismisses the crowd. He dismisses the crowd and withdraws to a private place in the mountains to pray.

Early the next morning, the disciples are still in the boat, struggling against some very turbulent waters. Suddenly, in the distance, they see what appears to be a man walking on the water. The disciples know that it is impossible for human beings to walk on water, so they come to the only logical conclusion: it's a ghost. What they don't realize is that this "ghost" is actually their Rabbi. Jesus, seeing His disciples scared to death, calls out, "Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid."

By now, nothing should surprise the disciples. They had just seen Jesus make a sumptuous banquet for thousands of people out of a sack lunch. Before this, they had seen Jesus heal many who were sick and ailing, including a leper, a paralytic, a bedridden woman with a fever, another paralytic, a woman with a chronic gynecological problem, two blind men, a mute person, and a man with a shriveled hand. They had also seen Him calm a storm with His words, exorcise demons from many including two possessed gentiles, and bring a dead girl back to life. Afterward, they will go on to see Jesus heal countless others including an epileptic and two more blind men. They will also see Him exorcise a demon from the daughter of a gentile, feed thousands more with only a small amount of food, and curse a fig tree so that it instantly withers. And these are only the miracles described in the Gospel of St. Matthew.

There are many stories of Jesus performing miracles throughout the Gospels. What makes this particular miracle, walking on water, somewhat unique is that Jesus invites one of His disciples to participate in the miraculous with Him. Once Jesus identifies Himself as the one walking on water, Peter calls out to Him, "Lord, if it is You, command me to come to you on the water." To this request, Jesus replies, "Come."

Perhaps, to us, Peter's request seems somewhat strange, so it might be helpful to put it into its cultural context. Rob Bell, in his book Velvet Elvis, discusses in great detail the relationship between a rabbi and his disciples. In Jesus' time, a rabbi would choose disciples from among the best and brightest students of the Scriptures. A rabbi was only interested in training those whom he believed could do what he did. Those called to be disciples would then devote their lives to shadowing their rabbi, learning from him, seeking to be just like him. There was even one instruction to disciples, "Cover yourself with the dust of [your rabbi's] feet." This instruction invokes an image of a disciple following his rabbi so closely that he is covered by the dirt his rabbi kicks up as he walks.² This is exactly the kind of relationship Jesus has with His disciples.

Peter is a very zealous disciple. Throughout the Gospels, when Jesus makes a statement or poses a question, Peter is often the first to speak up. We know that his enthusiasm sometimes gets the best of him, but we have to admire his dedication as a disciple of his Rabbi. Peter wants to be covered in the dust of his Rabbi's feet. He wants to do what his Rabbi does. He wants to follow in his Rabbi's footsteps, even if those footsteps are on liquid water.³ So, at Jesus' invitation, Peter steps out of the boat and begins walking on the water toward Jesus.

The previous day, just before Jesus fed the crowd, the disciples said to Him, "This is a deserted place, and the hour is now late; send the crowds away so that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves." To this Jesus replied, "They need not go away; you give them something to eat."⁴ Jesus said this to His disciples as if feeding thousands of people was no big deal. Now Jesus is inviting one of His disciples to walk on water with Him, as if walking on liquid water is no big deal. Later on, Jesus will become frustrated with His disciples when they are unable to heal a boy with epilepsy, as if healing an epileptic is no big deal.⁵ Prior to all of this, Jesus told His disciples that their mission, aside from proclaiming the Good News of the Kingdom of God, was to "cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, and cast out demons."⁶ Jesus speaks as if such things are not amazing, miraculous feats but simply business as usual.

It seems as though Jesus is trying to push His disciples beyond their perceived limitations. When the disciples are unable to heal the boy with epilepsy, Jesus says to them, "If you have faith the size of 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."⁷ In the Gospel of St. John, Jesus says to the disciples, "Very truly, I tell you, the one who believes in Me will also do the works that I do and, in fact, will do greater works than these..."⁸ Jesus is trying to push His disciples to do what He does. Jesus is calling His disciples to perform miracles, to do the impossible.

Jesus' promise that His disciples will be able to perform miracles and to move mountains did not apply only to the original twelve: this promise applies to us as well. Before Jesus ascends to heaven, He instructs His disciples to "make disciples of all nations."⁹ A disciple of Jesus not only does what Jesus does, but calls others to do the same. As Christians living in the twenty-first century, we are the among the last in a long line of disciples of Jesus called by disciples of Jesus. Like the original twelve, we too are called to perform miracles. We too are called to do the impossible.

Writer Peter Rollins suggests that perhaps the true power of a miracle is not a mysterious change in the physical world, but a resulting change within a person's heart.¹⁰ Perhaps the true significance of Jesus and Peter's walking on water is not the fact that two men are walking on liquid water, a feat that is not physically possible for humans. Perhaps the true significance of this miracle is that the Disciples are beginning to see a reality beyond the limitations they had previously placed on themselves. By walking on water and by calling Peter to do the same, Jesus is redefining what is possible. Maybe this is still the significance of this miracle for us disciples living two thousand years later.

I believe that miracles still happen today, but maybe moving mountains with our words and walking on water are not the specific types of works we are called to perform. Even so, we are called to follow in Jesus' footsteps by healing the sick, feeding the hungry, and bringing peace to the troubled. Whatever our specific places in the Kingdom of God, I believe that God wants us to dream big and to dare to do the things that we wouldn't generally consider to be within our capability. In the 2003 movie Bruce Almighty, God, portrayed by actor Morgan Freeman, says:
A single mom who's working two jobs, and still finds time to take her kid to soccer practice, that's a miracle. A teenager who says no to drugs and yes to an education, that's a miracle. People want Me to do everything for them, but what they don't realize is, they have the power. You want to see a miracle, son? Be the miracle.¹¹

What kind of mountains do you dream of moving? Is your mountain perhaps a deadly or debilitating disease that you want to eradicate? Is your mountain perhaps an embattled foreign nation where you want to help to bring peace? To you, does moving a mountain mean bringing clean drinking water to impoverished villages around the world. To you, does moving a mountain mean getting through to stubborn loved ones who just won't seem to see the light and change their ways? Is your mountain perhaps an addiction you've been battling for years? To you, does moving a mountain mean fostering new growth in a small-membership church? Though we may say to ourselves, "I could never do that," Jesus says to us, "Come, follow Me." Though cynicism may tell us that such things will never happen, the story of Jesus and Peter walking on water reminds us that such things are indeed possible. Though people tell us to be realistic, Jesus calls us to stand in defiance of realism.

Imagine No Malaria is an initiative of the United Methodist Church. Malaria has existed for over three thousand years, and this disease claims the life of a child in Africa every forty-five seconds. The goal of the Imagine No Malaria initiative is to eliminate the disease in Africa by distributing of mosquito nets, building clinics, and educating the people about how to avoid contracting the disease. The ultimate goal of Imagine No Malaria is to eliminate suffering and death caused by malaria in Africa by the year 2015.¹² Another ambitious undertaking is the Mentoring Project. Founded by author Donald Miller, the Mentoring Project partners with faith communities to train people to become mentors for young people growing up without fathers. By equipping people to mentor these at-risk youths, Miller and the Mentoring Project seek to "shut down prisons, end school dropouts, curb youth suicide, and reduce homelessness."¹³ Are such ambitious goals even within our reach? The Gospel reminds us that such miracles are indeed possible.

As Peter walks on the water toward Jesus, he starts to notice the strong wind blowing against him and the rough waves all around him, and he becomes scared. Doubt creeps into his heart, and he begins to sink into the water. Peter cries out, "Lord, save me!" and Jesus reaches out and grabs him, saying, "You of little faith, why did you doubt?" The two walk back to the boat, and the disciples worship Jesus, proclaiming Him the Son of God.

Generally, we surmise that Peter started to sink because he doubted Jesus. In Velvet Elvis, Rob Bell argues that Peter isn't doubting Jesus but that Peter is actually doubting himself. After all, why would Peter doubt Jesus when Jesus isn't sinking.¹⁴ Perhaps, as Peter feels the strong wind and sees the waves, he begins to think that he isn't cut out for the task of following Jesus out on the water. Whether you agree with this idea or not, you have to admit that things like self-doubt, low self-esteem, and hesitation are all ingredients for failure. Jesus would not have called Peter to be a disciple if He didn't believe Peter could do what He did. The same is true for us. It is important for us to have faith in Christ, but it is also important for us to realize that Christ has faith in us.¹⁵

If Peter's lack of faith in himself is indeed what caused him to start sinking, I wonder if he was perhaps relying too much on his own strength. Once upon a time, a young boy was trying to move a boulder. No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't get the boulder to budge. The boy's father, who was watching him the whole time, asks him if he is using all of his strength. The boy says that he is, to which his father replies, "No, son, you aren't: you haven't asked me for help."¹⁶

It is impossible for human beings to walk on liquid water, but was Jesus not fully human? In coming to earth and taking on frail human flesh, did Jesus not take on all the same limitations faced by each of us? Again, it is impossible to walk on water. "For mortals it is impossible, but for God all things are possible."¹⁷ Did Jesus perform all of His powerful, miraculous acts by His own power, or did He perhaps receive divine strength from the Father and from the Spirit? St. Paul writes, "I can do all things through Him who strengthens me."¹⁸ This is how God can call mere mortals to do things that are not humanly possible. It has been said, "God does not call the qualified: God qualifies the called." God does not call people who are able to work miracles: God gives the ability to work miracles to the people He calls. We can be disciples of Jesus Christ, doing what He does, because God is our strength.

If we want to follow in Christ's footsteps, if we want to do the great things God calls us to do, if we want to receive the strength from God to do the impossible, then what do we have to do? We have to get out of the boat and to take a step onto the water. We have to leave the safety of our comfort zones and to face the wind and the waves. We must be bold. We cannot be afraid to challenge the status quo. We have to step out in faith, confident that God will give us the strength to do what He calls us to do.

So often, faith is presented to look like some sort of otherworldly fire insurance. People preach that if we admit that we are sinners, pray for forgiveness, and believe all the right things, then we don't have to go to a really bad place when we die. Presented in this way, faith acts as some sort of safety mechanism, but what if faith really isn't safe at all?

I have come to believe that having faith is less like buying fire insurance and more like jumping out of an airplane. When skydivers and paratroopers jump out of an airplane, they put all of their faith in their parachutes to bring them to the ground alive. Faith is so much more than belief. The author of the Letter to the Hebrews writes that faith is "the assurance of things hoped for" and "the conviction of things not seen."¹⁹ Faith is our reason to believe and to act when we have every reason to doubt. Faith is jumping out into our destiny, trusting in God to see us through. When we want to walk on water, faith gives us the confidence that God will keep us steady. When we want to move a mountain, faith gives us a reason to grab a shovel and to start moving dirt.

As disciples of Jesus Christ, we are called to do great things, but we are not called to do these things alone. God is always there for us to guide us and to give us the strength we need to do what He has called us to do. We have God, and we also have each other. As Disciples, we are all one Body of Christ. It is important for us to work together and to be in fellowship with each other so that when we see each other starting to sink, we can reach out and pick each other up.

As you ponder this story of Jesus and Peter walking on water, may you believe that miracles really do happen. May you believe that Christ's promise that His disciples will do the impossible applies to you as well, for you too are called to be one of His disciples. May you overcome any self-doubt you have, and may you rely on God to give you the strength to do what you have been called to do. May you have the boldness to step out of your comfort zone and into the footsteps of your Rabbi. May you find the strength in Christ to "do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all they ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as ever you can."²⁰

Amen.


Notes:
1 - See Matthew 14:13-21 to read the entire story of Feeding the Five Thousand
2 - Rob Bell. Velvet Elvis. 2005, Zondervan. pp. 129-130
3 - Velvet Elvis p. 133
4 - Matthew 14:15-16 (NRSV) Emphasis added
5 - Matthew 17:14-18
6 - Matthew 10:7-8 (NRSV quoted)
7 - Matthew 17:20 (NRSV)
8 - John 14:12 (NRSV)
9 - Matthew 28:19 (NRSV quoted)
10 - Peter Rollings, The Orthodox Heretic and Other Impossible Tales. 2009, Paraclete Press. pp. 170-173
11 - Wikiquote: Bruce Almighty
12 - This information was taken from the Imagine No Malaria website.
13 - This information was taken from the Mentoring Project website.
14 - Velvet Elvis p. 133
15 - Velvet Elvis p. 134
16 - Wesley Study Bible. 2009, Abingdon Press. p. 1123
17 - Matthew 19:26 (NRSV). I know that I am taking this verse out of context, but I believe it still applies in this case.
18 - Philippians 4:13 (NRSV)
19 - Hebrews 11:1 (NRSV)
20 - Aphorism attributed to John Wesley


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