Pastor Ernest has started posting on YouTube a Bible study in response to questions submitted to him. Each week he will do his best to answer those questions with an in-depth discussion of different topics. Please click on the button below to go to this week's study.

​Pastor’s Message

​August 5, 2020

Are you a boat person? Are you the kind of person who has a boat and enjoys boating activities such as skiing, fishing, or just feeling the cool breeze on your face? Perhaps you don't own a boat, but there have even been times when you got to enjoy someone else’s. When you were growing up, maybe a friend or family member had a little fishing boat and put a small outboard motor on it, and you would zip across the lake looking for fishing spots. 

But maybe not. Maybe you’re just a dry ground kind of person. Perhaps it is your overactive imagination that keeps you from getting a boat. It is easy to think of everything that could go wrong when you are out on the water. Just ask Peter.

OK, no doubt you’ve heard this week's passage before (Matthew 14:22-33; Jesus walks on water). Most of the time you hear sermons on this text with the tagline to keep your eyes upon Jesus. This is a familiar theme in the New Testament. Paul tells us to keep our eyes on the prize that is the upward call of Christ Jesus our Lord. The writer of Hebrews tells us to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. Keeping your eyes on Jesus is a smart thing to do.

In our story for today, it is when Peter looks at the wind and the waves that he begins to sink. It is when he takes hold of Jesus’ hand that he rises above his struggles and finds his way back to safety. It doesn’t take a lot of study to conclude that keeping focused on Jesus is a better way to walk—whether on dry land or on water. Certainly, we should keep our eyes upon Jesus.
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But before I go on preaching autopilot, and you blissfully tune me out perhaps, we should consider a few questions. First, did Jesus want Peter to get out of the boat? Second, was the reprimand about Peter’s lack of faith really because he couldn’t walk on water? Join us this Sunday as we probe further into our text.

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Your Brother in Christ, Rev. Ernest
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