I was reading my Bible this morning and came to a passage at the end of the Gospel of John (21:7). It tells of Simon Peter jumping into the water from his fishing boat, and swimming ashore, because he sees Jesus there. John says that this is the third time Jesus had appeared to his disciples after He was raised from the dead. What struck me about this passage, is that Peter recognized Jesus,and he wanted to be with Him, so he jumped in and swam. Earlier, while on another boat ride, Peter recognized Jesus and wanted to be with Him. But that time, Jesus wasn't on shore; He was walking on the water. Peter recognized Jesus, wanted to be with Him, and wanted to walk on the water. I could, of course, speculate on why he wanted to walk on the water... earlier that day, he witnessed the miraculous feeding of thousands and now Jesus is actually walking across a 'stormy sea'... it would've been easy to get caught up in the rush, and to want to do these cool things, too! Maybe Peter was feeling full of himself, maybe having a bit of spiritual pride, or maybe aspiring to great things. So what happened between those two boat rides, and how was Peter's behavior a reflection of that?
It seems to me that Peter had a chance to do some soul-searching. He'd lost his dear friend and teacher; his hopes were dashed; he feared for his own life; he betrayed his Lord; he was humbled. But, he also found forgiveness; he knew he was loved unconditionally; he was being given a second chance to be who Jesus said he could be... the Rock. Peter had been made new. But the new, and improved Rock, didn't sink. He swam.
John Ortberg wrote a great book, If You Want to Walk on Water, You've Got to Get Out of the Boat, which I've read, and loved. I agree that some situations call for water-walking. I know it's imperative sometimes to take a step of faith, and to aspire to do the things Jesus did (because He told us we would). And I know that I'm simplifying a lot here, and there's more to the story. But somehow, I think I personally identify more with the latter Peter, rather than the former. When I recognize Jesus, I want to be with Him, I want to be who He says I can be, and with everything I've got, I want to swim like crazy!
It seems to me that Peter had a chance to do some soul-searching. He'd lost his dear friend and teacher; his hopes were dashed; he feared for his own life; he betrayed his Lord; he was humbled. But, he also found forgiveness; he knew he was loved unconditionally; he was being given a second chance to be who Jesus said he could be... the Rock. Peter had been made new. But the new, and improved Rock, didn't sink. He swam.
John Ortberg wrote a great book, If You Want to Walk on Water, You've Got to Get Out of the Boat, which I've read, and loved. I agree that some situations call for water-walking. I know it's imperative sometimes to take a step of faith, and to aspire to do the things Jesus did (because He told us we would). And I know that I'm simplifying a lot here, and there's more to the story. But somehow, I think I personally identify more with the latter Peter, rather than the former. When I recognize Jesus, I want to be with Him, I want to be who He says I can be, and with everything I've got, I want to swim like crazy!
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