Latest / Bible in a Year with Jack Graham / Walking on Water - The Gospels
Transcript
- 0:00Speaker 1: Let us pray. And he said, Come. And when Peter
- 0:05Speaker 1: was come down out of the ship, he walked on
- 0:08Speaker 1: the water to go to Jesus. Matthew 14, 29 Multiply
- 0:16Speaker 1: whatever touches my hand, Lord. As I give to serve
- 0:21Speaker 1: the lives of others, like the little boy in Matthew
- 0:23Speaker 1: 14 and John 6, 1-10, I thank you, Jesus, because
- 0:29Speaker 1: you can take little in my hand and make it grand.
- 0:35Speaker 1: As I continually step out in faith, meet me at
- 0:39Speaker 1: the place of my obedience and take whatever gifting and
- 0:42Speaker 1: ability I have and reproduce it and replicate it in
- 0:47Speaker 1: such a way that thousands and millions of your children
- 0:51Speaker 1: can be blessed. But don't stop with that miracle. As
- 0:56Speaker 1: I continue to listen to your word, Allow me to
- 1:00Speaker 1: walk on and over situations in my life that should
- 1:04Speaker 1: cause me to sink. I declare that my focus will
- 1:10Speaker 1: remain steadfast on you, Jesus. I declare that I will
- 1:15Speaker 1: not lose sight of who it is that has called
- 1:18Speaker 1: me out into the deep waters of purpose. I decree
- 1:24Speaker 1: that I am a water walker. filled with the anointing
- 1:27Speaker 1: to multiply everything that touches my life. And I am
- 1:32Speaker 1: not afraid to speak this truth over my life. In Jesus' name.
- 1:40Speaker 2: Amen.
- 1:43Speaker 1: Thanks for making prayer a priority in your life. To
- 1:46Speaker 1: hear the Bible come to life, stay tuned for the
- 1:49Speaker 1: Bible in a Year. Brought to you by BibleInAYear.com.
- 2:03Speaker 3: Walking on Water In our last story, we learned about
- 2:07Speaker 3: the brutal beheading of John the Baptist. The man who
- 2:10Speaker 3: spent his entire life paving a way for the Son
- 2:13Speaker 3: of God was executed. However, his death would not be
- 2:16Speaker 3: the end for him. He would be embraced by God
- 2:19Speaker 3: the Father into the gates of heaven. Now we learn
- 2:23Speaker 3: about the providing power of Jesus through the feeding of
- 2:26Speaker 3: 5,000 people. Then we learn about Jesus' power over nature itself.
- 2:32Speaker 3: As one of the disciples attempts to join Jesus in faith,
- 2:35Speaker 3: he finds himself failing. As inspired by the Gospels.
- 2:42Speaker 4: Hello and welcome to today's podcast, The Bible in a Year.
- 2:46Speaker 4: This is Jack Graham. In our previous episode, we heard
- 2:50Speaker 4: how King Herod's wife, Herodias, conspired to have John the
- 2:53Speaker 4: Baptist beheaded simply for her enjoyment and to silence the
- 2:58Speaker 4: man who had preached repentance and announced the coming of
- 3:01Speaker 4: Jesus the Messiah. As his ministry came to an end,
- 3:05Speaker 4: the earthly ministry of Jesus continued to grow with more
- 3:08Speaker 4: and more people following, not only to hear him teach,
- 3:11Speaker 4: but also to experience hope and healing. Today, we'll learn
- 3:16Speaker 4: how Jesus miraculously feeds a crowd of people using what
- 3:20Speaker 4: little is available to provide abundantly more than anyone could
- 3:24Speaker 4: have imagined. Then, we'll hear how Jesus amazed and astounded
- 3:29Speaker 4: his disciples and by displaying miraculous control over the very
- 3:33Speaker 4: laws of the natural world. Let's listen now to the
- 3:36Speaker 4: reading of God's Word.
- 3:39Speaker 3: Jesus trekked across the shores of the Sea of Galilee.
- 3:43Speaker 3: For miles he traveled beside the shores, listening to the
- 3:47Speaker 3: bustling crowd behind him. His popularity had grown, and now
- 3:51Speaker 3: it was nearly impossible for him to take a stroll
- 3:54Speaker 3: without thousands of people at his back. Jesus peered at
- 3:57Speaker 3: a small hill beside the shore, and began to walk
- 4:00Speaker 3: up it. As he reached the top, he turned around
- 4:03Speaker 3: to see five thousand faces peering up at him. Their
- 4:07Speaker 3: eyes beamed with joyful expectation. His disciples sat down beside
- 4:11Speaker 3: him and watched the crowd get comfortable. Jesus taught them
- 4:15Speaker 3: about the kingdom of heaven. He spoke about the will
- 4:18Speaker 3: of God as one who had complete authority. The crowd
- 4:22Speaker 3: was captivated by his words. However, the sun was high
- 4:26Speaker 3: in the sky and they had walked many miles. Jesus
- 4:29Speaker 3: had sensed that the crowd was growing hungry for more
- 4:32Speaker 3: than just the word of God. Jesus turned to Philip
- 4:36Speaker 3: and asked,' Is there anywhere nearby to buy bread for
- 4:39Speaker 3: these people?' Jesus asked this question with a purpose. He
- 4:43Speaker 3: knew the answer, but wanted Philip to behold what was
- 4:45Speaker 3: about to take place.' Two hundred denarii would not even
- 4:49Speaker 3: be able to feed these people, Jesus,' Philip responded.' Even
- 4:53Speaker 3: if we had enough money, no baker would have this
- 4:56Speaker 3: much bread all at once.' Andrew chimed in and said,
- 5:00Speaker 3: I know there is a boy who brought his own food,
- 5:03Speaker 3: but he only has five loaves and two fish. It
- 5:07Speaker 3: really isn't enough to feed anybody. Jesus stood to his
- 5:10Speaker 3: feet and put his arms around his disciples. He laughed
- 5:13Speaker 3: and said, Well, we will see if it is enough.
- 5:17Speaker 3: Go and have all the people sit down. So all
- 5:20Speaker 3: the people sat down on the grassy hill beside the shore.
- 5:23Speaker 3: The boy with the five loaves and two fishes brought
- 5:26Speaker 3: his food to Jesus. He gave them up, not sure
- 5:29Speaker 3: if it would even feed two grown men, let alone
- 5:32Speaker 3: 5,000 people. Nevertheless, the boy wanted to be a part
- 5:36Speaker 3: of what Jesus was doing, so he sacrificed what little
- 5:39Speaker 3: he had. As it turns out, it would be enough.
- 5:43Speaker 3: Jesus split the loaves and fishes into 12 baskets and
- 5:46Speaker 3: rose them in the air. He blessed them and thanked
- 5:50Speaker 3: the Lord for his abundant provision. Then he gave the
- 5:53Speaker 3: baskets to his disciples and had them walk around the
- 5:56Speaker 3: crowd dispersing the food. To their amazement, the baskets were
- 5:59Speaker 3: filled to the brim with loaves and fishes. They did
- 6:02Speaker 3: not see the baskets filled. They did not see anybody
- 6:05Speaker 3: put more food in. It was a simple yet powerful miracle.
- 6:10Speaker 3: So the entire crowd was full with a wonderful meal,
- 6:14Speaker 3: and there was still plenty left over for the disciples
- 6:16Speaker 3: to eat. After the crowd had eaten, mumbles of Jesus'
- 6:20Speaker 3: power became a mighty roar. People erupted in praise at
- 6:24Speaker 3: his humble might. So they called for him to be
- 6:27Speaker 3: made king over Israel. If they could make him king,
- 6:30Speaker 3: perhaps all hunger would be eradicated. Perhaps all suffering and
- 6:34Speaker 3: sickness would be gone. They wanted Jesus to rule over them,
- 6:38Speaker 3: and they were willing to take him by force to
- 6:40Speaker 3: make it happen. The crowd stirred, and some of the
- 6:43Speaker 3: men shouted for them to take Jesus to force him
- 6:46Speaker 3: on the throne. Jesus, perceiving the threat before it became violent,
- 6:51Speaker 3: took his disciples and loaded them into a boat. He
- 6:54Speaker 3: sent them away to go to the other side of
- 6:56Speaker 3: the sea and assured them he would meet them there.
- 6:59Speaker 3: The disciples launched off and raised their sail. As they
- 7:03Speaker 3: were sailing away, they could see Jesus on the shore,
- 7:06Speaker 3: walking up a small mountain to be alone with God.
- 7:09Speaker 3: The sun was setting, and Jesus sat alone with God.
- 7:13Speaker 3: He spoke tenderly to his Father and was refreshed in
- 7:16Speaker 3: his presence. Miles away, the wind was picking up in
- 7:20Speaker 3: the middle of the sea. Waves began to crash against
- 7:24Speaker 3: the side of the disciples' boat. The setting sun shed
- 7:27Speaker 3: light on the chopping waves as the disciples desperately held
- 7:31Speaker 3: on to the sides. As the disciples were being tossed
- 7:34Speaker 3: by the wind, one of them could see a figure
- 7:37Speaker 3: in the distance. It stood above the waves as if
- 7:40Speaker 3: it was shifting ground.' What is that?' they shouted. All
- 7:44Speaker 3: of them shifted to the side of the boat.' Is
- 7:46Speaker 3: it a ghost?
- 7:47Speaker 1: they asked.
- 7:48Speaker 3: THE FIGURE WALKED CLOSER TO THEM, AND THEIR HEARTS BEAT
- 7:51Speaker 3: FAST WITH FEAR. AS DUSK BROKE INTO NIGHT, THE FIGURE
- 7:55Speaker 3: WAS CLOSE ENOUGH TO SEE. IT WAS JESUS, WALKING ABOVE
- 7:59Speaker 3: THE BREAKERS AND THE WAVES. TAKE HEART, JESUS SHOUTED. IT
- 8:04Speaker 3: IS I, DO NOT BE AFRAID. THE MEN COULD BARELY
- 8:07Speaker 3: BELIEVE THEIR OWN EYES. THEY HAD SEEN JESUS CALM THE
- 8:10Speaker 3: STORMS BEFORE, BUT NOW HE WALKED UPON IT LIKE STEADY EARTH.
- 8:15Speaker 3: Peter's eyes began to well up with tears, and his
- 8:18Speaker 3: heart fluttered in his chest. Lord, he said, if it
- 8:22Speaker 3: is truly you, command me to come out to you
- 8:24Speaker 3: and walk on the water. Jesus extended his hand and smiled.
- 8:29Speaker 3: Come then, he said. So Peter approached the side of
- 8:33Speaker 3: the boat. It was still rocking from the waves below.
- 8:37Speaker 3: He stuck out one leg towards the water and felt
- 8:39Speaker 3: it steady underneath him. So he brought his other leg overboard.
- 8:44Speaker 3: and saw that the waters did not consume him. The
- 8:47Speaker 3: disciples gasped, and tears fell down Peter's eyes as he
- 8:50Speaker 3: looked at Jesus. Like an infant taking his first steps,
- 8:54Speaker 3: Peter walked towards Jesus on the choppy waters. He could
- 8:58Speaker 3: see his Lord smiling as he took each step. Peter's
- 9:01Speaker 3: heart could not be more filled with joy. He looked
- 9:05Speaker 3: at Jesus as a son to his father. However, when
- 9:08Speaker 3: the wind brushed up against his hair, it forced him
- 9:11Speaker 3: to look around. He could see the crashing waves and
- 9:14Speaker 3: strong winds around him. He looked down at the dark,
- 9:18Speaker 3: consuming water below him. As Peter took his eyes off Jesus,
- 9:22Speaker 3: he felt himself beginning to sink. Peter felt the support
- 9:26Speaker 3: of his feet give way as he dropped into the
- 9:28Speaker 3: black abyss. He gasped for air, but was then buried
- 9:32Speaker 3: underneath a wave. Peter was terrified. He went from complete
- 9:36Speaker 3: awe to utter panic. As the waves crashed over his head,
- 9:40Speaker 3: Peter cried out to Jesus, In his hysteria, he was
- 9:44Speaker 3: able to speak one of the most powerful prayers ever spoken,
- 9:47Speaker 3: a prayer that would echo in eternity, a prayer so simple,
- 9:51Speaker 3: yet so filled with meaning that if anyone spoke it,
- 9:54Speaker 3: they would be forever embraced by the loving arms of
- 9:56Speaker 3: the Father. As Peter was surrounded by a and gasping
- 10:00Speaker 3: for air, he looked up and shouted, Jesus, save me!
- 10:05Speaker 3: Peter was hit by another wave and felt himself sinking
- 10:09Speaker 3: deeper into the dark belly of the sea. His mind
- 10:12Speaker 3: began to fog and his strength failed. Then two arms
- 10:17Speaker 3: reached down and grabbed Peter from the depths. He emerged
- 10:21Speaker 3: out of the water in the arms of Jesus. The
- 10:24Speaker 3: Lord walked Peter back into the boat, and the waves subsided.
- 10:28Speaker 3: Peter lay on his back, catching his breath. All the
- 10:31Speaker 3: disciples looked at Jesus. The winds calmed, and the sea
- 10:35Speaker 3: was as still as glass. The stars shone brightly above them,
- 10:39Speaker 3: illuminating Jesus' face. They looked up to him and said, Truly,
- 10:45Speaker 3: you are the Son of God.
- 10:54Speaker 4: In today's scripture, Jesus and his disciples are on a hillside,
- 10:59Speaker 4: but they are not alone. A multitude of people have
- 11:02Speaker 4: followed them across the countryside to this remote spot where
- 11:06Speaker 4: Jesus had retreated after he'd heard of the death of
- 11:09Speaker 4: John the Baptist. For hours, Jesus taught them, pouring out wisdom,
- 11:15Speaker 4: God's word, truth straight from the heart of God. Just
- 11:19Speaker 4: imagine how captivating it must have been to listen to
- 11:22Speaker 4: Jesus speak. each word so full of meaning and depth.
- 11:27Speaker 4: He spoke like no one before him, and the Bible
- 11:30Speaker 4: says the common people heard him gladly. The people hung
- 11:34Speaker 4: on to his every word, even if they couldn't fully
- 11:37Speaker 4: understand all that it meant at times. As the day
- 11:41Speaker 4: drew on, the time came when people would have been
- 11:44Speaker 4: retiring to their homes for a supper, a bite to eat,
- 11:48Speaker 4: but they were all far away from home, and it
- 11:50Speaker 4: seems that there had been no mention of a potluck dinner.
- 11:53Speaker 4: So nobody brought food. Well, almost nobody. The disciples went
- 11:58Speaker 4: to Jesus to ask him to send the crowd away
- 12:00Speaker 4: so they could eat, but Jesus assured them they didn't
- 12:04Speaker 4: need to be sent away hungry. He then asked Philip
- 12:07Speaker 4: a question that was meant to test the disciples. He asked,
- 12:11Speaker 4: where can we find bread to give to all these people?
- 12:14Speaker 4: How can we feed this crowd? Ever the pragmatic, Philip said,
- 12:20Speaker 4: There's not enough food here to feed the whole multitude,
- 12:24Speaker 4: even if they all just had a single bite. We
- 12:28Speaker 4: don't have enough money. We don't have enough resources to
- 12:31Speaker 4: feed this crowd. Once again, we see people operating with
- 12:35Speaker 4: a mindset of scarcity. But Jesus was about to show
- 12:39Speaker 4: them that the operative word for God is abundance, that
- 12:43Speaker 4: God can do exceedingly abundantly more than we ask or think. Andrew,
- 12:48Speaker 4: Peter's brother, then brought a glimmer of hope and faith.
- 12:52Speaker 4: There was a boy, just a small boy, with five
- 12:55Speaker 4: loaves of barley and two fish. But how would that
- 12:59Speaker 4: feed more than 5,000 people? Then in Matthew 14, 18,
- 13:04Speaker 4: we read Jesus replied. He said, Bring them here to me.
- 13:11Speaker 4: Isn't that what God says to each of us? Take
- 13:14Speaker 4: your little, take your not enough, and give it to Jesus.
- 13:19Speaker 4: then watch what God can do as he performs miracles
- 13:22Speaker 4: in our lives. Jesus took what the boy brought, and
- 13:26Speaker 4: he had the people sit down. He gave thanks. He
- 13:29Speaker 4: blessed it, a reminder that we are always to thank God,
- 13:33Speaker 4: even for the little that we may have, as well
- 13:36Speaker 4: as a lot. And then he began to break the
- 13:38Speaker 4: bread and handed it to the disciples to give the
- 13:41Speaker 4: food to the crowd. Not a person went hungry that day.
- 13:45Speaker 4: In fact, they were all filled. In fact, There were
- 13:48Speaker 4: twelve baskets full of food left over, one for each
- 13:51Speaker 4: of the disciples. When the crowd saw what Jesus had done,
- 13:55Speaker 4: they were amazed, of course. They had just seen the supernatural.
- 14:00Speaker 4: But they failed to get the real message of the miracle,
- 14:02Speaker 4: and Jesus knew this. They wanted to take him by
- 14:05Speaker 4: force and make him king, a political messiah. But this
- 14:09Speaker 4: wasn't God's plan, and it wasn't the kind of kingdom
- 14:13Speaker 4: that he was bringing. They wanted unearthly kingdoms. They wanted
- 14:17Speaker 4: a military Messiah. They wanted comfort. But Jesus was bringing
- 14:23Speaker 4: a promise of the future, a heavenly kingdom, and a
- 14:26Speaker 4: spiritual freedom that comes when we know the grace and
- 14:29Speaker 4: the glory of God. So Jesus moved quickly and dismissed
- 14:34Speaker 4: the crowds, sending them home and ushering his disciples into
- 14:37Speaker 4: the boats while he retreated to pray and seek strength
- 14:41Speaker 4: and comfort from his Father in heaven. So Jesus sent
- 14:45Speaker 4: his disciples into the boats and to the other side.
- 14:48Speaker 4: But as evening fell, the waves on the water grew
- 14:51Speaker 4: and tossed the boat around. The sea was churning, and
- 14:55Speaker 4: Jesus was not with them. There was no one to
- 14:57Speaker 4: speak to the wind and the waves, just them. And
- 15:00Speaker 4: even though they were professional fishermen, some of them, they
- 15:04Speaker 4: could not handle this storm. And the disciples knew they
- 15:07Speaker 4: were going under. As the disciples looked across the waters
- 15:11Speaker 4: to the shore in fear, They saw a figure coming
- 15:14Speaker 4: their way, defying the laws of nature. This one glided
- 15:18Speaker 4: across the water. They were terrified, thinking it was a ghost.
- 15:22Speaker 4: But then Jesus identified himself as the Great I Am
- 15:26Speaker 4: and the One who could calm the storms without and
- 15:29Speaker 4: calm the storms within. He said, Do not be afraid. Peter,
- 15:35Speaker 4: ever the bold one, replied that if it was Jesus,
- 15:38Speaker 4: to call out to him so he could also walk
- 15:40Speaker 4: on the water. Jesus told him to come, and as
- 15:43Speaker 4: Peter stepped out of the boat, a step few of
- 15:46Speaker 4: us would have dared to take, when he took that risk, he,
- 15:50Speaker 4: of course, was amazing himself. His feet did not sink,
- 15:54Speaker 4: but traveled as if it were on firm ground. God
- 15:58Speaker 4: had parted the waters for Moses and Joshua and the Israelites,
- 16:01Speaker 4: but now Jesus was demonstrating that dry land wasn't even needed.
- 16:06Speaker 4: At his command, the raging seas could become a well-worn path,
- 16:10Speaker 4: steady and sure. because Jesus is the master of the
- 16:13Speaker 4: waves and sea. All is well as Peter's gaze stayed
- 16:17Speaker 4: on Christ. But then he shifted his eyes, saw the
- 16:20Speaker 4: dangers he perceived, and began to believe they were more powerful,
- 16:24Speaker 4: and he began to sink. Notice that Jesus didn't tell
- 16:28Speaker 4: him to turn back and run to the boat. When
- 16:30Speaker 4: Peter cried for help, Jesus came to the rescue. He
- 16:34Speaker 4: held him and helped him and reassured him, and then
- 16:38Speaker 4: no doubt carried him back to the boat in a
- 16:40Speaker 4: place of safety. When we trust God and step out
- 16:43Speaker 4: in faith and take bold risk at his commands, we
- 16:47Speaker 4: also will see miracles in our lives. And if we fail,
- 16:51Speaker 4: know that Jesus is there to save us and carry
- 16:54Speaker 4: us home. He is our loving Savior, the Christ of
- 16:57Speaker 4: every crisis. Give your life to him. Just as the
- 17:01Speaker 4: boy gave the fish and the bread to Jesus, give
- 17:04Speaker 4: what you have to him. And just as Jesus walked
- 17:07Speaker 4: on the water reminding us that everything over our heads
- 17:11Speaker 4: is under his feet, put your life in his hands
- 17:14Speaker 4: because he will never leave you or forsake you. Dear God,
- 17:19Speaker 4: we know that you are more than able to do
- 17:21Speaker 4: abundantly more than we could ever ask, think, or imagine.
- 17:25Speaker 4: Thank you that you provide for our need and that
- 17:28Speaker 4: you call us then to step out in faith, to
- 17:30Speaker 4: trust you, and to believe in you. May we never
- 17:33Speaker 4: take our eyes off of you. We think of the
- 17:36Speaker 4: old gospel song, Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full
- 17:41Speaker 4: into his wonderful face, and the things of earth will
- 17:44Speaker 4: grow strangely dim in the light of his glory and grace.
- 17:49Speaker 4: Thank you, Lord, for being the Christ of every crisis
- 17:52Speaker 4: in our lives and in the lives of our family,
- 17:54Speaker 4: our friends, and people all around us who need you
- 17:58Speaker 4: and who will call upon you. Thank you for being
- 18:01Speaker 4: our help and our salvation. the one who can deliver
- 18:04Speaker 4: us and save us from every circumstance in life. Thank
- 18:08Speaker 4: you for being our helper, our savior, our deliverer. We
- 18:12Speaker 4: pray in Jesus' name. Amen. Thank you for listening to
- 18:16Speaker 4: today's Bible in a Year podcast. I'm Jack Graham from Dallas, Texas.
- 18:21Speaker 4: You can download the Pray.com app and make prayer a
- 18:24Speaker 4: priority in your life, just like over 20 million people
- 18:28Speaker 4: have done to this date. If you enjoyed this podcast,
- 18:32Speaker 4: share it with someone you know and love, because by
- 18:34Speaker 4: sharing this message of the Word of God, you can
- 18:37Speaker 4: make an eternal difference in someone's life. And I want
- 18:41Speaker 4: to encourage you to go to jackgram.org. That's me at jackgram.org.
- 18:47Speaker 4: We have resources available to you. God bless you, and
- 18:51Speaker 4: we look forward to joining you again the next time.
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