Walking On Water

When we are in Christ, in faith, and observing Christ’s “Golden Rule”, it is as if Christ has us “walking on water.”

Like Peter before us, we can stand on top of the waves as long as our eyes are fixed on Christ and we don’t lose faith by worrying about whatever may be coming against us at any given moment. It is part art and part science like any other acquired skill. The only difference is that we have a personal coach who delights in instructing us in this grace. It is not as if Our Lord is unconcerned with our other practical needs; he is just especially delighted to teach this skill to us, his children.

You might ask, “Won’t we become proud if God allows us to live consistently above our circumstances and free from ‘the sin that so easily entangles us’?”

 You might think so until you have experienced the sinking effect of taking your eyes off of Christ and onto the waves a few times.  Make no mistake; it is no fluke when Our Father prospers us when we walk in faith and love, and it is not without justification that he allows us to sink when we start depending on our own strength or virtue.  He desperately needs his children to demonstrate to a watching world that there is strength, power, and grace to meet every need when we are living for Jesus.

He needs the world to have visible proof of Christ’s kingdom and power. This is because heaven is not just a state of mind or a generic utopia; it is eternal life in the kingdom of God which the Father has bequeathed to his Son as an inheritance.

You don’t gain entry into this kingdom by any kind of personal merit; you gain access to God’s presence by crying out to Jesus for forgiveness of all sin and unbelief and then surrendering your life to his will—asking him to come into your heart and take control of your life. It is not “rocket science,” but it is the most important, gut wrenching, and soul cleansing thing that we will ever do. God never changes, and neither do the rules of life!

— Brad Heilhecker