Why Are You Afraid? | When Jesus Asks the Question, Part 3
Key Truth | The storms we face often reveal where we've placed our security, inviting us to move beyond fear and discover a deeper trust in Jesus.
Key Scripture | “But He said to them, ‘Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?’” — Matthew 8:26 NKJV
Peter gets criticized for sinking, but sometimes I think we forget something important: he got out of the boat.
When Peter saw Jesus walking on the water, he said, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” Jesus simply responded, “Come.” So Peter stepped out. That’s faith.
But somewhere between stepping out of the boat and walking toward Jesus, Peter noticed the wind. The same man who had enough faith to step onto the water suddenly became afraid of the conditions around him. Jesus rescued him and then asked, “Why did you doubt?”
I find it interesting that Jesus didn’t ask why Peter didn’t have faith. Peter clearly had faith. Faith got him out of the boat. The question was about what happened after he started walking.
I’ve experienced that more than once in my own life. Sometimes trusting God at the beginning isn’t the hardest part. The harder part is continuing to trust Him when the conditions don’t look like I thought they would.
And maybe we need to be honest about something we don’t talk about very often: sometimes we become disappointed with Jesus.
I know that sounds strange to say, but I think we’ve all experienced it. I wonder if Peter expected the wind to be that strong when he stepped out of the boat. Did he expect the waves to still be crashing around him? Jesus had told him to come, and maybe Peter assumed that if Jesus called him onto the water, the conditions would become easier.
But Jesus said “Come.” He never said the wind would stop.
There is often a space between what Jesus actually said and what we wanted His words to mean. That’s where disappointment can creep in. We thought obedience would produce a certain outcome. We thought the prayer would be answered differently. We thought following Jesus into something meant He would make the journey easier.
Then the wind blows harder than we expected.
If we’re not careful, disappointment can cause us to question what God said simply because He didn’t do what we assumed He would do.
Maybe some of our doubt isn’t really about whether Jesus is faithful. Maybe we’re struggling because His faithfulness doesn’t look the way we expected it to look.
That’s why the question is so important: “Why did you doubt?”
What changed? Jesus hadn’t moved. His word hadn’t changed. But Peter’s attention had. The conditions around him became louder than the voice that had called him out of the boat.
Yet even when Peter began sinking, Jesus didn’t stand at a distance and lecture him. Scripture says He “immediately” reached out and caught him.
Peter’s doubt didn’t cancel Jesus’ faithfulness.
Maybe maturity is learning to trust Jesus not only when He does what we hoped He would do, but when following Him looks completely different than we imagined.
Reflection
Prayer | Jesus, show me where disappointment has quietly become doubt. Forgive me for the times I’ve confused my expectations with Your promises. Help me trust what You actually said, even when the wind is stronger and the journey harder than I expected. Keep my eyes on You. Amen.
Go Deeper
Matthew 14:22–33
Mark 9:23–24
Proverbs 3:5–6
Hebrews 10:35–36
Hebrews 12:1–2
The Echo | Jesus doesn’t ask questions because He needs answers. He asks questions because we do.
Key Scripture | “But He said to them, ‘Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?’” — Matthew 8:26 NKJV
Peter gets criticized for sinking, but sometimes I think we forget something important: he got out of the boat.
When Peter saw Jesus walking on the water, he said, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” Jesus simply responded, “Come.” So Peter stepped out. That’s faith.
But somewhere between stepping out of the boat and walking toward Jesus, Peter noticed the wind. The same man who had enough faith to step onto the water suddenly became afraid of the conditions around him. Jesus rescued him and then asked, “Why did you doubt?”
I find it interesting that Jesus didn’t ask why Peter didn’t have faith. Peter clearly had faith. Faith got him out of the boat. The question was about what happened after he started walking.
I’ve experienced that more than once in my own life. Sometimes trusting God at the beginning isn’t the hardest part. The harder part is continuing to trust Him when the conditions don’t look like I thought they would.
And maybe we need to be honest about something we don’t talk about very often: sometimes we become disappointed with Jesus.
I know that sounds strange to say, but I think we’ve all experienced it. I wonder if Peter expected the wind to be that strong when he stepped out of the boat. Did he expect the waves to still be crashing around him? Jesus had told him to come, and maybe Peter assumed that if Jesus called him onto the water, the conditions would become easier.
But Jesus said “Come.” He never said the wind would stop.
There is often a space between what Jesus actually said and what we wanted His words to mean. That’s where disappointment can creep in. We thought obedience would produce a certain outcome. We thought the prayer would be answered differently. We thought following Jesus into something meant He would make the journey easier.
Then the wind blows harder than we expected.
If we’re not careful, disappointment can cause us to question what God said simply because He didn’t do what we assumed He would do.
Maybe some of our doubt isn’t really about whether Jesus is faithful. Maybe we’re struggling because His faithfulness doesn’t look the way we expected it to look.
That’s why the question is so important: “Why did you doubt?”
What changed? Jesus hadn’t moved. His word hadn’t changed. But Peter’s attention had. The conditions around him became louder than the voice that had called him out of the boat.
Yet even when Peter began sinking, Jesus didn’t stand at a distance and lecture him. Scripture says He “immediately” reached out and caught him.
Peter’s doubt didn’t cancel Jesus’ faithfulness.
Maybe maturity is learning to trust Jesus not only when He does what we hoped He would do, but when following Him looks completely different than we imagined.
Reflection
- Have I become disappointed with Jesus because something didn’t happen the way I thought it would?
- Am I holding Jesus accountable to something He actually said, or to something I assumed He meant?
Prayer | Jesus, show me where disappointment has quietly become doubt. Forgive me for the times I’ve confused my expectations with Your promises. Help me trust what You actually said, even when the wind is stronger and the journey harder than I expected. Keep my eyes on You. Amen.
Go Deeper
Matthew 14:22–33
Mark 9:23–24
Proverbs 3:5–6
Hebrews 10:35–36
Hebrews 12:1–2
The Echo | Jesus doesn’t ask questions because He needs answers. He asks questions because we do.
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