Matthew 14:29-30(NKJV) 29So He said, “Come.” And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus. 30But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!”
Yesterday we looked at James chapter 2. Verse 26 says tells us faith without works, or corresponding action is dead. If we believe a promise of God and pray, at some point in our walk of faith we are going to have to act on what we believe. James uses two illustrations of corresponding action. The fist was Abraham offering up Isaac. The second was Rahab the Harlot helping the Israelite spies in Jericho. In both stories, people put action to their faith because they believed the promise of God.
I want to begin today where I left off yesterday. It is obvious from James’s statement, that corresponding action is very important if we are going to function by faith. What is the purpose of corresponding action? I believe that when we act on what we believe it brings the power of faith to bear. When I act, it puts pressure on the circumstance, on the devil and on me. Action is a commitment to what I believe. I can say I believe, but when I put actions to my words, there is no doubt as to what I believe.
I want to make sure we understand that our action does not put pressure on God. God wants to fulfill his promise in your life. However, God operates according to principles. These principles are in place for our good not to make things more difficult for us. Faith brings the power of God into the natural world. In our study of words, we have established that God created the worlds by words. Those words were full of faith.
We have studied at length concerning how words of faith in our mouths will cause the natural world to respond. In Mark 11:24 Jesus reveals to us that speaking words of faith in prayer to God will cause the power of the spirit to come into this equation. However, faith operates according to the principle of action as well. Acting on the word does not move or put pressure on God. Acting on the word brings the pressure of faith against the natural and against the devil.
Why should we have to act before we see results? We have to act because sometimes there is no other way to apply faith. The devil will resist us. He will do everything he can to delay the answer to our prayers or to discourage us from believing God. When we act, we take the initiative away from him. When we act, our faith is going before us pushing through Satan’s opposition. He must respond to our faith instead of us responding to his attacks.
Let me say again that faith actions are just that. They are actions that we take because we believe. They are not actions we take trying to believe. They are not actions we take to prove we have faith to ourselves. Faith usually requires risk. We cannot take actions that correspond to our faith if we are not yet walking in faith.
Let us look at another example of corresponding action. Today’s scripture is about the story of Peter walking on water. They are in a boat traveling to the other side of the Sea of Galilee. Jesus was not with them in the boat. The seas were rough and the disciples were concerned. In the middle of the night, they see someone walking on the water towards them. They think it is a ghost, but Jesus calls out to them and tells them not to worry because it is just Him.
This is where things change. Peter, for reasons we do not know, calls out to Jesus and says, “Lord if it’s really you tell me to come to you.” It really was Jesus so he calls to Peter and says, “Come.” At this point Peter must make a decision. Jesus has given him a type of promise. He would not have told Peter to come to him if he did not expect Peter to walk on the water. However, Peter will never experience the power of this promise if he does not act. He must get out of the boat. There is no other way.
That is the position we often find ourselves in when it comes to faith. We are in the boat, but the boat is being tossed by the waves. We have a promise of God, but if we are going to release the power of the promise we must act in some way. What we do then can make the difference between success and failure. We know what Peter did. He stepped out of the boat.
Sometimes we get hard on Peter because he did not make it all the way to Jesus. That is true, but the bible says he did walk on water. How far have you gotten walking across the swimming pool? I would guess not very far. Peter’s action did release the power of God and he walked on the water! His faith was not dead because his corresponding action brought forth life.
Part way to Jesus, he began to look at the wind and the waves and his faith wavered. When that happened Jesus was right there to take hold of his hand and get him back in the boat. Faith in action worked. The problem with acting in faith is highlighted with what happened to Peter. If Peter chose not to act, he was as safe as the boat could make him. If he chose to act on the words of Jesus, he had to get out into a place where if the word did not work he would die. In the middle of his action, his faith wavered and if Jesus had not been there, he would have lost his life. However, Jesus was there.
The risk involved in acting on the word is not often as extreme as the one Peter was taking. However, most of the time there will be some kind of risk. One scenario is giving. Luke 6:38 says if you give it will be given to you. When we give, it opens the door for God to bless us back. However, we have to give. That is the action. Our giving creates a draw in the spirit that will cause what we need to come back to us. Sometimes giving in the midst of need is a risk.
How do we know if we really have faith? That is like asking how you know you are in love. You just know. At times we may not be sure in our mind, but somewhere in our heart we know. If you cannot say that, you should not get out of the boat until you do. I believe it is important to be under covering in a local church before you start trying to walk on water. If you believe you need to take an action that involves risk that is in any way high, you should get counsel from someone who knows you and that you trust.
Some things involve very little risk. Should I take that aspirin for my headache or should I just trust God, get up and get into what I need to do? The risk is that I may have to endure the headache. The benefit is you begin to learn what real faith feels like. I do not think you need to get counsel in a case like that. However, if you are facing something that requires an action that is a real risk, do not act without counsel.
In our ministry life, we have faced many times where we needed to take actions to apply our faith. When we bought our church building, we did some things that would not have been considered good business. Nevertheless, I was convinced the Lord had spoken and we acted on what God said. I do not have space for details, but suffice it to say we could have lost everything. Not only did we not lose everything, we have a wonderful facility that is fully paid for. We just finished an addition that is also paid for. I can testify that acting on the Word of God works. Faith will usually require it.
When we do step out onto the waters of faith, we begin a wonderful adventure. Sometimes we will walk with no problems. Sometimes we will get shaky, but Jesus is right there with you. He will get you back to the boat. More important, you will walk in the supernatural. So trust the Lord, get counsel when you need it and get out on the water!
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