Matthew 14:22-33
To heighten the sense of drama in this scripture, I would assign sounds to people in the group, so that every time they heard the word “wind” they would “whoosh” and for waves they would “shhhh.” For “ghost” one might say, “booo!” You get the idea. Ways to immerse ourselves into one of the most dramatic moments in the gospels.
After feeding the 5,000, Jesus sent the disciples away on a boat while he dismissed the crowds so that he could go to a mountain and pray. As he prayed, the boat was being buffeted by severe wind and waves – whoosh, shhhhh!
They battled the wind and waves for hours, only making it about three-quarters of the way across – about 3 and ½ miles. We know this because Matthew tell us that it was during the 4th watch of the night when Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake. The 4th watch. The wee hours of the morning before daybreak.
It has been a long night for the disciples. At 1st and 2nd watches, as from sunset to about midnight, they are rowing hard, up to the task. But by 4 am, well, they are tired, beaten down, discouraged. The storm is getting the better of them. They are losing confidence.
The 4th watch represents that most difficult and uncomfortable time, a dangerous time of life’s wind and waves – Woosh! Shh! A time when we are most vulnerable and mistakes come more easily; the time when the devil is watchful, waiting for us to stumble.
Early church teachers saw this time as a test of endurance and a call to courage; to trust Jesus even in the darkest hours of life’s winds and waves – Woosh! Shhhh!
This scripture is much more than a miracle story. For these Hebrews, a stormy sea would call to mind the waters of chaos at creation, the Spirit hovering over them ready to act. And it was on the 4th watch, the last watch of the night, that the Lord threw the Egyptian army into confusion, allowing God’s people to escape through the sea to safety. Joseph’s dreams were likely in the 4th watch, the wee hours before light, when vivid dreams come. Joseph took Mary and the child in the night, after a dream, to Egypt to escape Herod; likewise, after a dream, they left to fulfill scripture that God called his Son out of Egypt.
With the 4th watch, Matthew connects the dots between Moses and exodus from Egypt, with Jesus. In baptism, we pray how God led the children of Israel through the waters to free them from bondage into a land of promise; and Jesus, declared the Son of God at his baptism, leads us from the bondage of sin to the promise of a new life, a new creation in the Spirit.
When Jesus crosses the sea in the 4th watch, he tells them to take courage. “It is I” he announces. Literally, I AM. God’s “name” given to Moses. A dot connected. Trampling victoriously over the waters, he assures them that their eyes are not deceiving them. He is no ghost. God rules over waves and wind – Shhh! Woosh! – and will lead them to safety.
Even so, in the 4th watch of the night, it can be hard to believe. Peter speaks for us: “Lord, IF it is you…” And when we are fearful and doubt, we cry, “Lord, save me!” Then the wind ceases and we worship Him as the Son of God.
Why does Jesus wait till the 4th watch? Early teachers saw the church living in the 4th watch, the time nearest the dawn of a new day. They saw Jesus coming to a church besieged by the winds and waves – Woosh! Shh! – of the spirit of antichrist, and disturbances in the world. And even at his coming, many will be terrified, as if seeing a ghost. Boo! But he will speak, I AM, and we will not be afraid: As the hymn says, He guides our future as He has the past, Thy hope, thy confidence let nothing shake, because we know he will take us by the hand. And we know the waves and winds – Shh! Woosh! – still know who rules them. And we sing and pray, Be Still, My Soul.
We baptize Harper, affirming Jesus, Son of God, Lord of the 4th Watch, taking her hand in love and guiding her future. This is our faith!