Simon Peter – His Life and Its Lessons
HIS FAITH
The close of Matthew 14 presents a scene in the life of our apostle, furnishing a fine illustration of his touching inquiry, “Lord, to whom shall we go?”
Having fed the multitude, and after sending His disciples across the sea, Our Lord retired to a mountain, to be alone in prayer. In this we have a striking foreshadowing of the present time. Jesus has gone on high. We are left on earth, but not forgotten. Days of trouble will come – rough seas and stormy skies will be ours to experience. But the Lord will return. He is coming back to deliver us from all our troubles, He will take us to our desired haven – all will be peace and joy for the children of God forever and forever.
All this is fully unfolded in the Word of God, and is of deep interest to every lover of God and His Word; but for the present we dwell on the inspired record concerning Simon Peter, seeking to learn the lesson that record so forcibly teaches. “And straightway Jesus constrained His disciples to get into a ship, and to go before Him unto the other side, while He sent the multitudes away. And when He had sent the multitudes away, He went up into a mountain apart to pray; and when the evening was come, He was there alone. But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves, for the wind was contrary. And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea. And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea they were troubled, saying, It is a spirit; and they cried out for fear. But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, Be of good cheer; it is I; be not afraid. 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. But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. And immediately Jesus stretched forth His hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?”
This brief passage presents some of the leading features of Simon Peter’s character, his zeal, energy, and devotedness of heart, which no one can call in question. However, as beautiful as these qualities are, they frequently rendered his weak points more conspicuous. A man of less zeal and energy would have remained on board the ship, thus avoiding Peter’s failure and breakdown. Perhaps, too, someone of cooler temperament might condemn Peter’s act in leaving the ship as unwarrantable rashness, or denounce it as forwardness that justly deserved a humiliating rebuff.
One thing is certain – he didn’t hide behind a self-considering spirit in order to avoid the shame and humiliation of a defeat. No; Peter chose to take a bold and decided step for Christ. True, in the interesting scene now before us, he completely broke down. But why? Was it because he left the ship? No; it was because he lost his focus – his trust in Jesus. Here is the root of his failure. Had he kept his eye on the Master, he could have walked on the water though all the roughness. Faith can walk on rough water as easily as on smooth. The natural man cannot walk on either. It is not a question of the state of the water, but the state of the heart. Circumstances have nothing to do with faith, except that difficult and trying circumstances develop its power and brightness. There was no reason why Peter should have failed in his walk on the water. Faith looks not at the things that are seen and temporal, but at the things which are unseen and eternal. It endures because it sees Him Who is invisible. “Faith is the evidence of things not seen.” It lifts the heart above the wind and waves of this rough world, keeping us in perfect peace, to the praise of Him Who is the Giver of faith, of “every good and perfect gift.”
As we so often do, our beloved apostle took his eye off the Lord and looked at the surroundings, and, consequently began to sink. It will always be so. We cannot take our eye off the living God for a single moment. The grand motto for a life of faith is, “Looking off unto Jesus.” It is this alone that enables us to “run the race set before us,” be the way rough or smooth. When Peter came down out of the ship, it was either Christ or drowning. He might well say at such a moment, “Lord, to whom shall I go?” He had no place to turn? When on board the ship, he had its timbers between him and death, but on the water he had nothing but Jesus.
Was Jesus enough? Yes, certainly, if only Peter had trusted Him. This is the point. All things are possible to the true believeth. When faith brings the power of God to bear, the storms of life are hushed into a perfect calm, rough seas become like glass, mountains are leveled – the greater the difficulties, the brighter the triumphs of faith. It is in the furnace of life’s trials and tribulations that the preciousness of faith is displayed. Faith has to do with God, not with men or things. But, if we cease to lean on God, we are faced with nothing but a wild, watery waste – a perfect chaos – where nature’s resources are hopelessly.
All this was proved when Simon Peter came down out of the ship to walk on the water; and every child of God, every servant of Christ, must prove it in his own measure. If we want to walk above the circumstances of the scene through which we are now passing; if we are to rise above its influences; if we are going to be able to give a clear, distinct, and decided answer to skepticism, rationalism and infidelity of today, then, without a doubt, we must keep the eye of faith firmly fixed on “the Author and Perfecter of faith.” It is not by logical skill or intellectual power that the arguments of the infidel are met, but by an abiding sense of the all-sufficiency of Christ. In order to meet our every need, our every exigency, we must have a living and soul-satisfying apprehension of the work and Word of Jesus Christ.
Someone might say, “There was no need for Peter to leave the ship – to take such a step.” In other words, why not stay with his brethren on board the vessel? Wasn’t it possible to be as devoted to Christ in the ship as on the water? Did not the sequel prove that it would have been better, safer, and wiser for Peter to remain where he was, than to venture forth on a course that he was unable to pursue?
Evidently, our apostle was governed by an earnest desire to be near his Lord. He saw Jesus walking on the water, and he longed to be with Him. Also, he had direct authority from Jesus to leave the ship. Without this it would have been a fatal mistake to leave his position; but the moment that word “Come” fell on his ear he had a Divine warrant for stepping out on the water – to have remained would have meant missing out on a great blessing.
This is true in every case. We must first have authority. Without this, the greater our zeal, energy, and apparent devotedness, the more fatal will be our mistake, and the more harm we will do to ourselves, to others, and to the cause of Christ. It is of the utmost importance in every case, but especially where there is a measure of zeal, earnestness, and energy, that there should first be sober subjection to the authority of the Word of God. If this is lacking, then there is no way to calculate the amount of harm that can be done. If our devotedness does not flow in the channel of simple obedience, if it rushes over the embankments formed by the Word of God, you can be sure – the consequences will be disastrous.
But, next to the importance of Divine authority, i.e., God’s Word, is the abiding realization of Divine presence. These two things must never be separated if we desire to walk on water. We may be clear and settled in our own minds, having distinct authority in the Holy Word of God for a particular action; but if we do not have an equal distinctness of the sense of the Lord’s presence with us; if our eyes are not continually on the living God; we will most assuredly break down.
This is very serious, demanding our gravest consideration. It was precisely here that Peter failed. He did not fail in obedience, but in realized dependence. In leaving the ship, Peter acted on the Word of Jesus, but, in walking on the water, he failed to lean on the arm of Jesus; hence his terror and confusion. In other words, authority is not enough; we also need the power. To act without authority is always wrong. To act without power is always impossible. The authority for starting is the Word of God. The power to proceed is Divine presence. The combination of the two will always yield a successful career. It matters not what the difficulties are, if our course has the stable authority of Holy Scripture, and the support of God’s presence in pursuing it. When God speaks, we must obey; but in order to do so, we must lean on His arm. “Have not I commanded you?” – His authority. “Lo, I am with you” – His presence.
These two things are absolutely essential to every child of God – to every servant of Christ. Without them, we can do nothing; with them, we can do all things. If we do not have a “Thus saith the Lord” or an “It is written” we should not enter on a path of devotedness, and if we do not realize His presence, we should not pursue it. We need to always remember, it is possible to be right in setting out, and yet fail in going on.
It was so in the case of Simon Peter, and it has been so in the case of thousands since. It is one thing to make a good start, and another thing to make good progress. It is one thing to leave the ship, and another thing to walk on the water. Peter did the former but he failed in the latter. This beloved servant of Christ broke down in his course; but where did he find himself? – In the arms of a loving Savior. “Lord, save me!” How touching. How deeply affecting. He casts himself on a well-known love – a love that was yet to meet him in even more humiliating circumstances. Peter was not disappointed. Praise be to God. When we experience failure, and so we shall, we will never be disappointed in Jesus Christ – our appeal to His love will never be in vain. “And immediately Jesus stretched forth His hand, and caught him, and said unto him, O thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt?” Exquisite grace. Yes, Peter failed to reach his Lord, but his Lord did not fail to reach him. Yes, Peter failed in faith, nut Jesus could not fail in grace. The grace of our Lord Jesus is exceedingly abundant. In our failures He displays His rich and precious love. What a tender, patient, loving Lord. No wonder we trust Him, praise Him, love Him and serve Him?
