Christian Art | Jesus Walks On Water | Signs And Miracles
Matthew 14: 22-36 – Week 18 Ordinary Time, Tuesday (King James Audio Bible KJV, Spoken Word)
22 ¶ And straightway Jesus constrained his disciples to get into a ship, and to go before him unto the other side, while he sent the multitudes away.
23 And when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when the evening was come, he was there alone.
24 But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary.
25 And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea.
26 And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear.
27 But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid.
28 And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water.
29 And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.
30 But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me.
31 And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?
32 And when they were come into the ship, the wind ceased.
33 Then they that were in the ship came and worshipped him, saying, Of a truth thou art the Son of God.
34 ¶ And when they were gone over, they came into the land of Gennesaret.
35 And when the men of that place had knowledge of him, they sent out into all that country round about, and brought unto him all that were diseased;
36 And besought him that they might only touch the hem of his garment: and as many as touched were made perfectly whole.
Jesus has fed the multitude, the multiplication of loaves and fish prefiguring the Eucharist, through which all share, in community, the body and blood of Christ, becoming one. Now Jesus sends his disciples ahead of him, to cross the Sea of Galilee to the pagan regions on the other side, where the evangelizing mission will continue. There is symbolism here, as the early Christians are called upon by Matthew’s Gospel to make transition from the old observances to the new Law of Jesus’ love. Jesus meanwhile takes time alone to pray.
As Jesus prays alone we are made aware of Jesus’ intimate communion with the Father. Prayer is central to Jesus’ life, as Jesus places himself in loving service of the Father, aligning his assumed humanity with the divine plan. As we read of Jesus’ praying, we ourselves are directed toward prayer. Jesus teaches us how to pray, to the Father whom we may now call our Father. It is fitting that Jesus goes up into a mountain to pray, as prayer in this manner, communion with the Father, recalls Moses on Mount Sinai in communion with God, as Moses received the Law. Jesus comes to us as the new Moses, and as the Son of God.
Alone, the disciples of Jesus are in trouble and struggle to cope. There is a high wind, which on the Sea of Galilee would raise huge waves and be dangerous to fishing boats. We find figured here the future Church, both in the decades and first centuries immediately following Jesus’ lifetime, when Christians faced persecutions, and in all time to come, as Christian teaching, our living in accordance with God’s will, has sat at odds with the spirit of the times, and as Christians continue to face opposition and conflict, and in areas persecutions which are still now life threatening.
In times of difficulty, however, Jesus comes to us, just as he comes now to the disciples on the storm-tossed sea. At first, the disciples do not recognize Jesus. They are afraid. The difficulties of their situation may be a factor leading toward misrecognition. It may be that, as Jesus come to us in times of trouble, our recognition of Jesus may be slow. Jesus reassures his disciples: It is I. We may think of God offering His name to Moses, as a gift, enabling the people of Israel to relate and commune with Him: I AM WHO I AM. It is I.
Peter is inspired by the presence of Jesus to ask that he may walk on the water also. His faith enables him to do this at first, but then there is more fear and Peter’s faith falters. Peter knows, though, to call upon Jesus to save him. So it is with us all. When we are afraid, perhaps when our faith seems very fragile, we call upon Jesus and he takes us by the hand and raises us. It is then that we are empowered and the storm is calmed, as we too acknowledge Jesus as the Son of God. Lord, save me.
Miracles Of Jesus | Concluding Prayer | King James Audio Bible KJV
True Light of the world, Lord Jesus Christ,
as you enlighten all men for their salvation,
give us grace, we pray,
to herald your coming
by preparing the ways of justice and of peace.
Who live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
In Matthew’s Gospel, the truth of Christ’s victory over death is told in an apocalyptic language, laden with symbolic meaning. There is a great earthquake, the angel descends from heaven to roll back the stone of Christ’s tomb, his appearance like lightning, his clothing white as snow. The guards are terrified, becoming like dead men, and the angel announces to Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, mother of James, that Christ is risen, that they must go and share the good news with Jesus’ disciples [ … ]
Psalm 134 is a fitting conclusion to the Songs of Ascents, a collection of psalms often associated with pilgrimage and the ascent to Jerusalem for worship. The psalm encapsulates themes of continual service, heartfelt worship, and the reception of divine blessings. Short in length but deep in meaning, this psalm underscores the relationship between human devotion and divine response, between the act of blessing God and the reception of blessings from God [ … ]
As Jesus’ popularity grows, so too do those opposing voices ranged against him. Jesus has worked saving miracles, and now the scribes come from Jerusalem declare that this has not been holy work but rather diabolical. This sounds to modern day listeners to be absurd, although we might wonder at Jesus’ manner as he exorcised demons, and bear in mind that his friends and family thought he had lost his wits and was beside himself. Certainly, the intention of the scribes is to find fault and seize on anything they can to try to vilify Jesus. They are looking to reject the good news and are happy to pervert the truth if they feel by doing so they may harm Jesus [ … ]
