Sylvania Wesleyan Church 1
Sunday Morning 8/9
      • Hebrews 11:1NIV2011

  • Last week we talked about one of the better known miracles of Jesus.
    Can you imagine the aftermath of that Miracle?
    Oh man I am inviting Jesus over for dinner next week and I am only going to have a small steak and one potato available.
    It is amazing to think that Jesus before the feeding of the 5000 was trying to get away from the crowd and they followed him. Some how he got away from the crowd now after that amazing miracle.
    Maybe that is the real miracle
    Matthew 14:22–23 NIV
    22 Immediately Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead of him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowd. 23 After he had dismissed them, he went up on a mountainside by himself to pray. Later that night, he was there alone,

    Jesus Isolated

    Jesus sought alone time with God
    Why is this so important?
    We want to talk all the time about the great things that Jesus did
    We look for the big moments to guide us but I wonder sometimes if it is the simple moments like this that are the real impact.
    When we look past these moments we miss some of the most powerful things that Jesus has to teach us.
    yes we have the miracles and there are moments where we have to trust in God’s provision and his ability to guide us and do amazing things
    Yet, when the dust settles the depth the restoration the deepening of our faith comes in the easy to miss moments like this.
    Jesus spent this time alone and then it was time to catch up and this is the moment when Jesus does a miracle that only a few were witness to but for many of us it is greater than the one he had just done the day before.
    Matthew 14:24–29 NIV
    24 and the boat was already a considerable distance from land, buffeted by the waves because the wind was against it. 25 Shortly before dawn Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. 26 When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. “It’s a ghost,” they said, and cried out in fear. 27 But Jesus immediately said to them: “Take courage! It is I. Don’t be afraid.” 28 “Lord, if it’s you,” Peter replied, “tell me to come to you on the water.” 29 “Come,” he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus.

    Watch This!

    Jesus Walks on Water
    Now I am proud to say that I have been able to do this as well
    Oobleck and kids church
    Now many people would point to Peter getting out of the boat and walking even more amazing than Jesus doing it
    Jesus did have an advantage after all
    The Disciples just saw Jesus multiply bread and fish to feed over 5,000 people
    They are now seeing him walk on water
    Peter’s Response was a moment that he trusted in God’s Math

    God’s Math

    We talked about this last week but I wanted to come back to this again this week
    Remember God’s Math is there to allow us to dream bigger than we can imagine
    Peter was doing the math in his head.
    He knew what Jesus could do, he was witnessing it right there.
    In many ways he caught a glimpse of the equation. He saw the solution to the problem.
    He trusted, he had Faith
    Faith = Confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see
    Peter was confident in what could happen and he was sure that Jesus would enable him to do
    It was with this attitude that Peter stepped out of the boat.
    Yet, this isn’t how the story ends
    Matthew 14:30–33 NIV
    30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, “Lord, save me!” 31 Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. “You of little faith,” he said, “why did you doubt?” 32 And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. 33 Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

    Lord Save Me!

    Peter took his eyes off of Jesus and he starts to sink
    How often do we do the same
    We see the challenges in front of us and we can’t help but start to rethink
    Waves are crashing around us
    The Wind is howling
    It’s hard
    I can’t do it so I start to loose my vision
    I sink
    Lord Save ME!

    Why did you Doubt?

    This line hits hard
    Why do we doubt in who God is?
    Let’s try something right now. Take a moment. Think about a time that there is no other explanation than God working in your life that explains how you got out of something, or things were taken care of.
    This brings us back to the beginning.
    Why do we miss what Jesus did? He got time with God. He strengthened his resolve. He built his relationship with the Father.
      • Matthew 14:22–23NIV2011

      • Matthew 14:24–29NIV2011

      • Hebrews 11:1NIV2011

      • Matthew 14:30–33NIV2011