THE EYES HAVE IT
MATTHEW 14:23-32
MATTHEW 14:23-32 NKJ
23 And when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray. Now when evening came, He was alone there. 24 But the boat was now in the middle of the sea, tossed by the waves, for the wind was contrary.
25 Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea. 26 And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out for fear.
27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid.”
28 And Peter answered Him and said, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.”
29 So He said, “Come.” And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus. 30 But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!”
31 And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” 32 And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased.
This is one of the best-known stories of the New Testament. Peter walking on the water to go to Jesus.
There are many things we can take from this account. How Peter had become bold enough to ask Jesus if he also could walk on the water. Remember, he was the guy who doubted Jesus knew what He was doing when they first met. And of course, Jesus filled his boat until it almost sank. Being around Jesus had changed Peter.
We can also see that Peter was willing to step out of the boat based on one simple word from Jesus. His faith in Jesus and what Jesus spoke was strong. But the thing I want to focus on today is where it went wrong for Peter.
He was doing great until. Until he began to look at what the wind was doing. The scriptures say the wind was boisterous. That’s a big word for really blowing. When Peter put his focus on the surrounding circumstances, he took his focus off the Lord.
The result was that fear came in. Not all at once, not a full-blown panic attack. But enough fear that Peter began to sink. Peter's heart followed his eyes. When his focus changed, so did his faith. With his eyes off Jesus, he began to sink with fear and doubt.
The story ends well. Jesus saved Peter, and they lived happily ever after. Well, not exactly, but Peter did live to fight another day.
APPLICATION
Where we put our attention, our focus, our eyes is the direction our heart will begin to go.
Eyes on Jesus and His word, our faith stays stronger. Eyes on everything going on around us, especially negative things, and we throw the door open to fear and doubt.
We have to be intentional about our focus. This underscores the importance of spending time in God's word, in fellowship with Him in our private time. And in connection with other believers in public worship in church. All of these things help us keep our focus in the right place. The eyes really do have it.
PRAYER
Dear Father, help me focus or regain my focus on You. When my eyes are right, my walk with You is stronger.