Matthew 14:25-31 NIV
Now in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went to them, walking on the sea. And when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, “It is a ghost!” And they cried out for fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Be of good cheer! It is I; do not be afraid. And Peter answered Him and said, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.” So He said, “Come.” And when Peter had come down out of the boat, he walked on the water to go to Jesus. But when he saw that the wind was boisterous, he was afraid; and beginning to sink he cried out, saying, “Lord, save me!” And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and caught him, and said to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”
As I contemplated many things while grieving over the souls of humanity and observing how Satan has blinded many, Jesus reminded me of His warning in Matthew 7:13–15: “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.”
As the United States and the world seem to be engulfed in chaos, do not be alarmed and allow Satan and his demonic spirits to lead you down the wide road. I recall one day when I was meditating, the Spirit of the Lord said, “Annaika, I need you to learn that whenever you see most humankind going in a certain direction, go the opposite way, for Satan may be scheming.” Let me share an example: I am against abortion and the death penalty because, as a Christian, I believe that any form of deliberate killing is not for us to enact but for God to decide. In fact, we all deserve death, but instead, God sent Jesus to take our place (John 3:16). Now, as I reflect on my convictions in the eyes of Jesus, I see how Satan can use my beliefs to go against God’s will by making me judgmental or condescending toward those who choose a different path. Recently, the Holy Spirit revealed a profound point to me while I was praying about a decision. The scripture said, “God is good, and there is no evil in Him” (Psalm 92:15, 1 John 3:2–6). So, when God placed the tree of knowledge of good and evil in the Garden, does that mean He approved evil? “No!” I exclaimed, because our sins and iniquities separate us from Him, which is why He even forsook Jesus on the cross when He took our sins (Isaiah 59:1–3; Matthew 27:46).
Several scriptures tell us that God gives us free will to choose the course of our lives—righteousness or wickedness—but that does not mean He approves or supports sin (Deuteronomy 30:15-20, Genesis 1:26-31, Joshua 24:15, 1 Peter2:16, Philippians 2:13, Galatians 5:1, John 7:17, etc.). If we examine the scriptures from Genesis 6:1–8 through the book of Revelation, we see God pleading with us to choose Him because it hurts His heart to see us choose sin. My warning to myself and to those who desire to see Jesus upon His return is that storms will come in various forms. As they come, fix your eyes on Jesus and do not let the distractions of the waves and winds that Satan throws your way lead you to drown in hell with him (Revelation 20). Peter walked on water toward Jesus, but he did not reach Him because he allowed the distractions from the storm to take his eyes off Jesus and focused on the dangers around him. Consequently, he began to sink because he lost faith in Christ, who told him to come out of the boat. Like Apostle Paul said to the Galatian church, do not let anything hinder you from obeying the word of God, and he urged them to not forget it was by grace that they had been saved, not by the law (Galatians 5:7, 4–12).
Jesus says in Matthew 11:28–30, “Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” Why do you think Jesus chose these exact words for us to read today on our journey?
I believe one reason for His choice is that He lived in this world and witnessed the burdens and yokes that Satan and his demons have placed on human souls, which can lead us to lose faith in the promises and sovereignty of God. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus! Let us not follow the crowd but instead seek God’s direction toward the narrow road that He says only a few will find. A big crowd does not mean they are heading toward Jesus. Yes, just because the crowd claims Jesus as their Lord and Savior, does not necessarily mean they are walking in His guidance through the Holy Spirit (Matthew7).
