Walking on the Storm
Part 3 of The Lord Is in the Whirlwind and the Storm
And seeing them distressed in rowing, for the wind was contrary unto them, about the fourth watch of the night He cometh unto them, walking on the sea; and He would have passed by them. But they, when they saw Him walking on the sea, supposed that it was a ghost, and cried out... And He went up with them into the boat; and the wind ceased.
Mark 6:48–51There are two storms on the Sea of Galilee. I give both of them because they are so interesting — and because they teach something very different from one another.
In the first story, you have a boat, you have the disciples, you have Jesus, and you have a storm. In the second story, you have a boat and disciples — and Jesus not in the boat this time — and a storm.
The First Storm: Jesus in the Boat
In that first instance, Jesus got into the boat and went fast asleep. We are often told this reveals His humanity — that He was weary. I do not believe it. I have no doubt about the humanity of the Lord Jesus, no doubt that He was subject to weariness. But I cannot accept that He did not wake up in a storm. I believe He sat there with His eyes closed.
And the dear disciples said, "Oh, He's so tired." When the storm hit the boat, they bailed and bailed. I don't know who it was who finally got tired of the whole thing. "Look — maybe He can do something. We're going to go down." So they went and shook Him and said, "Don't You care? We're about to go down."
And the Lord got up, went to the prow of the boat, and said — "Be still." And instantly the storm stopped. Of course the disciples were thrilled. "Who is He that He can speak just a word — not a long thing, but just a word — and the whole thing is over?"
It's so wonderful in our lives when the Lord steps in and stops a storm. Because the Lord is so sensitive and so thoughtful to His children that when we start to panic, He knows there's no way we're going to learn anything. And so He says, "Shh" — and it's gone.
You've learned something. You've learned how great the Lord is, how authoritative the Lord is, how He can stop a storm in an instant. You've learned something. But you haven't learned enough.
The First Storm: When the Lord stops a storm in your life, you learn something real — His authority, His greatness, His power. But this experience, wonderful as it is, does not change you. There is a deeper lesson that only the second storm can teach.
The Second Storm: Jesus Not in the Boat
The second time, Jesus said — and I have suspected this for many years — "He didn't learn the last time. This time I'm not getting in the boat. They're not going to get Me again like this."
And so He stayed behind. He said, "I'll meet you on the other side." They got into the boat without the Lord. And then a huge storm blew up. They were rowing with everything they had against the wind. And suddenly through the spray and the great waves they saw a figure moving towards them — and they thought it was a ghost.
But one of the other gospels tells us that Peter called out through the roar of the storm: "Jesus, is it You?" And back through the storm came the voice of Jesus: "Yes, it's Me."
Then Peter said, "If it's You, tell me to come to You." And Jesus said, "Come." And Peter got over the side of the ship, put his feet down on the water — and started walking. He never once thought to himself, "What am I doing?" He'd never been to Bible school to learn how to walk on water. It's incredible. He began to do the impossible.
"He began to do the impossible."
Of course, somewhere as he walked on the water, a wave came up and he couldn't see the Lord. And in that moment, he thought, "What am I doing? I'm walking on water. Am I dreaming? Is this real?" And in that moment, he began to sink. And Jesus said to him, "Why did you doubt?"
The Lesson That Changes You
Now listen. What is the lesson? The lesson is this: To have the Lord stop a storm in your life is wonderful. It leaves you with an understanding of His authority, of His greatness, of His power. But it doesn't do anything to you.
When you walk on a storm-tossed sea and learn how to walk on a storm-tossed sea, this is another thing altogether. You will never again be afraid of a storm.
"You will never again be afraid of a storm."
You have learned how, with the Lord Jesus, through living faith — faith that comes by seeing Him, hearing Him, and obeying Him — you can walk through a storm-tossed sea. It cannot destroy you.
That is a great lesson. And out of that will come so much for every one of us if we learn this thing. You will have a knowledge of the Lord you could not get in a Bible school or a Bible study. You have an experience of the Lord now, a knowledge of the Lord that is absolutely real, absolutely direct. It doesn't mean that you will not sometimes fear. But you know that somewhere in this storm there is the Lord. And the Lord is saying to you: "Come, follow Me — even in the storm."
The Two Storms: Having the Lord stop a storm teaches you His authority — but it doesn't change you. Learning to walk on a storm-tossed sea by seeing, hearing, and obeying the Lord gives you a knowledge of Him that no Bible school can provide. You will never again be afraid of a storm.
This is an excerpt from Part 3 of The Lord Is in the Whirlwind and the Storm, delivered in Richmond, VA in 2002. The full message also covers the proving of faith more precious than gold, Paul's affliction in Asia, and Peter's denial and restoration.
Read the full message: Part 3 — As Seen in Believers →What is the difference between the two storms on the Sea of Galilee?
In the first storm, Jesus was in the boat and rebuked the wind and it ceased. In the second, Jesus was not in the boat — He walked on the water to them and called Peter to come. Lance Lambert teaches that the first storm showed the disciples the Lord's authority and greatness, but the second — where Peter walked on the water — taught something the first never could: how to walk through a storm with the Lord by living faith. You will never again be afraid of a storm once you have learned this.
Why did Peter begin to sink when walking on the water?
Peter walked successfully as long as his eyes were on Jesus. But a wave rose between them and he could no longer see the Lord clearly. In that moment he thought, "What am I doing?" — and shifted his gaze from Jesus to the storm around him. He began to sink. Jesus asked, "Why did you doubt?" The lesson is that walking on a storm-tossed sea is only possible by seeing the Lord, hearing the Lord, and obeying the Lord — living faith directed wholly at Him.
Is having the Lord stop a storm a lesser experience?
Not lesser — but incomplete. When the Lord stops a storm you learn something real and wonderful: His authority, His greatness, His power. But Lance Lambert notes that this experience does not change you. When you learn to walk through a storm-tossed sea with the Lord — by living faith, seeing Him, hearing Him, obeying Him — you gain a knowledge of the Lord that no Bible school can provide, and you will never again be afraid of a storm.
What does it mean to walk by living faith in a storm?
Living faith is faith that comes by seeing the Lord, hearing His voice, and obeying Him — even when the circumstances seem impossible. Peter had never been to Bible school to learn how to walk on water. He simply heard the Lord say "Come," kept his eyes on Jesus, and did the impossible. The moment he shifted his attention to the storm itself, he began to sink. Living faith is not faith in an outcome — it is faith directed at the Lord Himself, sustained by continuing to look at Him.
About the Author
Lance Lambert was one of the most distinguished Bible scholars and speakers in Israel in our day. He had an itinerant teaching ministry worldwide.
Born in 1931, Lance grew up in Richmond, Surrey and came to know the Lord at twelve years of age. In the early 1950s he served in the Royal Air Force in Egypt and later fellowshipped at Halford House Christian Fellowship in Richmond, England.
Later in life, Lance discovered his Jewish ancestry — his father and many members of his family had died in the Holocaust. This led him to become an Israeli citizen in 1980, making his home next to the Old City of Jerusalem.
Lance became noted for his eschatological views, in the tradition of Watchman Nee and T. Austin-Sparks. From his base in Israel he produced the widely appreciated quarterly Middle East Update and wrote numerous books.