Trusting Jesus More Than . . .

To be Used with Session #3: Trusting God with My Tithe

Scripture: Matthew 14:22-33

Connection with Unit Theme: To complement the Bible study “Trusting God with My Tithe,” this sermon will explore the actions of the disciples and Jesus during a strenuous time.

Introduction: We truly are trusting people. We trust the builder of this church, whom we have not met, that the roof will not collapse today. We trust that the cook at the restaurant did not taint our food prior to serving it. We trust other drivers not to run the red light when our light turns green. Today’s sermon is one in which the disciples had to trust Jesus more than what they knew, felt, and saw. It may not have been easy for them to do this as things were chaotic, but it proved to be worth it in the end.

1. Trusting Jesus more than what we know (v. 24)

We looked at a portion of this passage in a recent sermon. This week, we are going to study the actions of the disciples and not just Jesus’ actions. The context is that Jesus had completed a long day of ministry and had sent the crowds andthe disciples away. He had ascended a mountain in order to pray.  

The disciples were in a boat and found themselves in a storm. The Bible says that the boat was “battered by the waves.” The word battered literally reflects that the boat was being torn apart by the waves. At least four of the disciples were fishermen prior to following Jesus, so they would have had experience with storms and navigating them. Yet, the things they were trusting in (themselves and the boat) were unable to sustain them.

Some of us may be able to relate to the disciples. We have knowledge of money, yet we find ourselves broke. We have experience in relationships, yet we are in a constant state of discord with our loved ones. The boat that we expected to get us through the storm is falling apart. Now we have to ask ourselves if we are going to trust our own knowledge or Jesus.

1. Trusting Jesus more than how we feel (vv. 25-27)

As the story continues, it is now somewhere between 3:00 and 6:00 a.m. The disciples could have been fighting this storm for over six hours. This is when Jesus went on a late-night walk and approached them in the middle of their struggle. The disciples immediate reaction was fear. Their fear was extraordinary in that Matthew describes it as being terrified. This terror led them to cry out in fear.

We typically respond to fear in one of three ways: We will fight. We will flee. Or we will freeze. When we encounter fear, we will not remain neutral. Even if we freeze, we are actively choosing this response. As the disciples cried out, Jesus responded with “Don’t be afraid.” This statement is written as a command. He is telling them to stop an action that is already in process.

Jesus also told them to take courage because He was there. This too is a command to be lived out immediately. Where fear can cause us to freeze, courage can cause us to move forward.  It is important to point out that the storm was still raging. So, their circumstances had not changed. The thing that had changed was that Jesus was now present. Jesus never promised to change our circumstances, but He did promise to never leave us nor forsake us. Learning to trust Him more than the fear we feel at the moment is learning to trust Him even when the storms continue to rage around us.

1. Trusting Jesus more than what we see (vv. 28-31).

We tend to fault Peter a number of times, but we should applaud him at this point. The boat was falling apart, the storm was still raging, and Jesus was on the scene. Peter was ready to leave what he had been trusting and move toward Jesus. Upon being told to come out on the water, Peter got out of the boat and started walking on water. This is courage and trust.

But it did not take long for Peter to start to falter. Instead of keeping his focus on Jesus, the Bible says that saw the strength of the wind and was afraid. While we cannot relate to Peter walking on water, we can relate to seeing the strength of the storms around us and growing afraid yet again. When this happens, we too begin to sink into the circumstances that are around us.

Before we conclude that Peter failed, we quickly discern that he recovered quickly. He did not rely upon his swimming ability, nor did he try to hurry back to the boat. Instead, he cried out, “Lord, save me!” The word cry, as understood in the Greek, shows that everyone around him was fully aware of who Peter was trusting in for his salvation. He saw that the waves were big, so he cried out to Jesus.

We would be remiss if we did not point out Jesus’ response to Peter. The Bible says that He immediately reached out his hand and caught Peter. We can learn at least two truths from this portion of the passage. First, Jesus did not have a delayed response to Peter’s cry. Second, Jesus was close enough to Peter while he was sinking to simply reach out and catch him. Even with the storm still raging, Peter trusted Jesus more than what he saw in the wind and the waves and Jesus proved Himself to be trustworthy.

Conclusion: It has long been said that we are either in a storm, heading into a storm, or almost through a storm. Each of us will experience trials and tribulations throughout our lifetimes. If we acknowledge this to be true, then the question becomes who or what are we going to trust as we experience storms. Today’s sermon outlines that Jesus is more trustworthy than what we know, feel, or see. Some here today know Jesus personally, as Lord and Savior. Yet, we still need to trust Him more than ourselves. Others in here do not know Jesus personally, and your storm is one of trying to be good enough to earn salvation. Let today be the day that you trust Jesus and not self.