GraceCreates

By Jon Walker

Simon Peter answered, “Lord, who will we go to? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and know that You are the Holy One of God!” John 6:68–69 (HCSB)

Jesus fed the 5,000, and then Jesus walked on water. He showed the disciples that, with a mustard-seed faith, they too could step onto, and not into, the water, like Peter taking baby steps toward Jesus.

But then Jesus said he was the Bread of Life – that his ministry wasn’t about giving the faithful a free lunch, all the food and miracles anyone could ever want. “Don’t come to me for what you can get,” Jesus explained. “Come to me because I am the One.”

“From that moment many of his disciples turned back and no longer accompanied him. Therefore Jesus said to the Twelve, “You don’t want to go away too, do you?” (John 6:66–67, HCSB)

Peter, forever stating exactly what he’s thinking, says there’s no where else to go. “We have come to believe and know that You are the Holy One of God!” (John 6:69, HCSB)

And God wants to bring us to this same place, where we understand there is no other way, or truth, or life, but Jesus (John 14:6); where we stop wandering in the wilderness, holding on to a hopeless hope that there is someone else, something else that can do for us what only Jesus, the One, the Son, can do.

We believe there is somewhere else to go when we step out independent from God, following the wrong gods home. We may chase after little gods, such as drugs, sex, or theft; but the danger is that we also follow the more subtle false gods of anger, gossip, or lying.

But like the prodigal, we keep coming back to Jesus, until we finally understand deep within that only he has the words of eternal life; only he is the Holy One of God. (John 6:68–69, HCSB)

In my own walk, I have come back in confusion; I have come back in heartbreak; I have come back in defeat. I have come back with my anger and my shame, crying out, “I am leaving; I am leaving; I will leave.”

Yet, I remain because my Savior never leaves.

What does this mean?

• God is pushing you toward the narrow gate – He knows that there is no one else to go to and so he is drawing you toward the narrow gate: “How narrow is the gate and difficult the road that leads to life, and few find it.” (Matthew 7:14, HCSB) God’s insistence that there is only one Way, one Truth, one Life is not a selfish demand; he knows, painfully so, that there is no other way to him except through Jesus Christ.
• Really, there is no one else – For many years, I chased after the wrong things, and I’m still tempted to do so today. Sometimes, when I hear voices from the far country, I turn my gaze toward the horizon. But I’ve learned through costly trial and painful error that I’ll eventually just end up right back at the feet of Jesus. So, I sit back down at the Master’s feet, and turn my gaze upon Jesus. Ask God to help you – and to help me – act as we believe: “We have come to believe and know that You are the Holy One of God!” (John 6:69, HCSB)
• Look to where God is pushing you – God is pushing you closer and closer to the One who has the words of eternal life. By coming to the place where you can say to Jesus, “You are the only and Holy One of God,” you have also come to the place where you are seeking him, and him alone.

Jon Walker is the teaching pastor for “The Purpose Driven Life Daily Devotionals,” and resident writer at www.GraceCreates.com. This devotional is copyrighted 2008 by Jon Walker. Used by permission.

By Jon Walker

And climbing out of the boat, Peter started walking on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the strength of the wind, he was afraid. And beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me!” Immediately Jesus reached out His hand, caught hold of him, and said to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?” Matthew 14:29–31 (HCSB)

The disciples are over a mile from shore as a violent storm moves across the Sea of Galilee. All eyes are on a ghostly figure walking toward their boat. And then Jesus, walking on the water, says, “It is I.”

Bold and brash, Peter says, “Lord, if it is you, then command me to come to you on the water!”

Jesus tells Peter to come, and so the disciple steps out of the boat. He’s actually walking on the water toward Jesus! But then he remembers the storm, and he looks around at waves that seem to be taller than his own height; he hears the wind howling like a freight train coming down the track.

He begins to sink into the stormed-battered sea, over a mile from shore, several feet from the boat, but within arm’s length of Jesus, who catches hold of Peter, keeping him from sinking.

Jesus says, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?”

How do you read the words of Jesus? Do you hear them as an angry rebuke, or do you hear as if they were said by a loving father, who’s just seen his small child walk for the first time?

What does this mean?

• Jesus is for you, not against you – Can you imagine a father, watching his child walk for the very first time, becoming angry because the young one stumbles and falls after just two steps? The father is for the child, encouraging each new step, ready to catch hold of the baby if she/he starts to fall. Jesus wants you to succeed when you step out in faith. He is pleased when you take steps of faith, no matter how small.
• In faith, believe Jesus is for you – Your next step of faith may be to believe, in faith, that Jesus is for you as you step out of the boat of self-reliance. If you struggle to believe Jesus is for you, and not against you, ask God to show you why? What are the roots to this perception of God-against-you? I believe, Lord; help my unbelief.
• Jesus is there to catch hold of you – If your faith falters, Jesus will reach out his hand to steady you. (Matthew 14:29–31, HCSB)

Jon Walker is the teaching pastor for “The Purpose Driven Life Daily Devotionals,” and resident writer at www.GraceCreates.com. This devotional is copyrighted 2008 by Jon Walker. Used by permission.