WALK ON WATER 2
I bring you greetings in the name that is above every other name, Jesus Christ the Son of the living God and our soon coming King. Praise be to God for His lovingkindness and tender mercies towards us His children. Today, I’ll be continuing the teaching on “Walk On Water”, from where I stopped last week. Recall that we established the fact that Peter a mere man walked on water (the very thing that caused turbulence in the ship), because He stepped out on the commandment of Jesus.
“And Peter answered him and said, Lord if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water. And he said, Come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus.” Matthew 14:28-29 (KJV)
How come Peter was the only disciple that asked Jesus to call him out to walk on water? The other disciples had the same opportunity to do same. So what was it about Peter that gave him the boldness to make this request? I believe that Peter was able to make this request because of the type of intimacy he had with Jesus. Peter was the first disciple called by Jesus and he had an encounter with Jesus that changed His life forever.
In Luke 5, Jesus was teaching and asked to use Peter’s boat, to which he obliged. After Jesus was done using Peter’s boat, He then asked him to launch out into the deep, for a great catch. Peter told Jesus how they had all toiled all night and caught nothing, but that even though this was not the appropriate time to go out for fishing, he will obey Jesus’ instruction. The bible records that Peter caught so much fish that his net broke and they had to summon for help from other partners in the sea. At that very instant, Peter recognized that Jesus was different, and in comparison to himself, he (Peter) was unworthy, reason why he fell to his knees, completely in awe of Jesus. Jesus told Peter there was nothing to fear, and proceeded to receive him into a fold that would change the course of his destiny forever. Peter changed from being a regular, ordinary “fisher-man” to a “fisher of men”, and he dropped everything to follow Jesus. This was the beginning of Peter’s intimate relationship with Jesus.
Throughout Peter’s journey with Jesus, He continued to develop this relationship. Even when he made mistakes, he kept on pursuing Him, and Jesus continued to manifest His love towards him. It was Peter who said in Matthew 16:16 (KJV), “…Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.”- a revelation that could have only been received from the place of intimacy. Peter was one of those that saw Jesus transfigured, with His face shining like the sun. He saw when Moses and Elijah came to have a conversation with Jesus. He was there when the loud voice spoke from heaven declaring “…This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.” (Matthew 17:1-10). Indeed Peter shared an intimate relationship with Jesus, and this gave him boldness like none other.
Child of God, in today’s world, boldness is not an option, but a requirement if you are going to walk on water and attain the height God has ordained for you. This boldness is developed through intimacy with God. Beloved, this is the time for you to truly develop intimacy with God. Spend time in His presence, in prayers, in the word, in worship, in fellowship with Him, so you can also develop a boldness and a holy audacity that will cause the world to answer to you.
I see you doing the impossible and making a formidable impact in your world for the kingdom. I will hear your testimony.
Maranatha!
In His Royal Service,
Dr. Mike Okonkwo
The Presiding Bishop
