Matthew 14: 25
And in the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea.
Do you believe Jesus walked on the water?
Recently, I had a conversation with someone about a well-known preacher who tells good stories. This person did not believe the stories were true. He, like so many others, believes the stories are made up to make a point. The problem with this is that we make the same shift to Bible stories. So, I ask you, is a story a retelling of something that is true and really happened or is it a fabrication?
Allow me to ask another question, please. Were I to witness something marvelous such as Jesus walking on water, how would I convey the experience to others so they know it was an actual experience rather than a made up story? Do words mean what they purport to mean or are they just colors we use to paint a picture? How does one communicate something literal?
So, if you were Matthew and you witnessed this event, how do you tell people about it? I am a believer. I am not a cynic, so I tend to believe the words I read in the Bible. However, you know that many of us translate these events into something imaginative. How then can God ever communicate a literal miracle to us in words we will accept.
When I tell you that I saw the Holy Spirit, are you intrigued and want to hear more or do you think it is a metaphor for something I wish to convey?
My position is this, I don’t think the Bible is a collection of made-up stories compiled so that we can find God. I think it is an instruction manual. I’ve found God. In fact, He wasn’t missing. I was, but He brings in the lost and then gives us the book so that we can grow in faith and in the knowledge of Him. He reveals Himself in the pages and stories of the Bible. However, we will never receive the revelation as long as we think they are only cute, metaphorical stories. Once we embrace the Bible as the living Word of God, accepting is as truth, not fiction, then we can find faith giving strength among its pages.
I challenge you in this. When you read your Bible, see yourself in the writer’s shoes. See the event unfolding before you and imagine what it is to write it down. These folks walked with Jesus. They didn’t need to make up a bunch of stories. They were more concerned with capturing the events for themselves and future generations. Don’t you think you would walk around with a journal if you walked with Jesus. I think we all would.
Embrace the Word. Take it into your heart. Don’t let your brain talk you out of believing. We were called to be believers and it starts here.
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