To the Hebrew mind, the image of the sea, foaming with waves, was a type of chaos, darkness and death.
Today marked the 60th anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima. Our age of atomic fears and political turmoil has left us feeling lost in the chaos.
Let us pray for peace and disarmament and pray for the day when Christ will reign in our world as he did walking on the waves.
Jesus has mastery over chaos.
According to the lexicon at studylight.org, littlefaith connotes too little faith. Jesus seems to use it as a term of endearment if you look at a list of times Jesus uses the word as oligopistos* has in this post.
oligopistos*: 01/01/2004 - 01/31/2004:
"In Spanish, there is a word pobrecito, or poor little one, or poor little baby. It is a term of affection, a term of endearment. I have been called it on more than one occasion when I was whining more than I should. There isn't a hint of derision or condescension in it. It is a loving manner in which a parent addresses a fumbling child, or a loved one expresses dramatically exagerrated pity.
This is what I hear in oligopistos. This is how I imagine the Father calls me.
When I see Jesus using this word in this Matthew, I don't see him making a mockery of his disciples. I don't see him hand on his hips, finger-shaking, scolding the bad boys. I don't see him bringing a hammer-stroke of judgment, nor bringing out the dunce caps of humiliation. I see more a gesture of deep affection: 'Oh pobrecitos, you're making a mountain out of a mole hill. It's going to be okay. Let me show you how.'"
Bob Schlenker in his, Keys to Developing a Hearing Ear - Part III Appendix of Idiomatic Usages affirms that jesus is turning a phrase.
Tozer agrees with Dylan as to the nature of faith, with words so beautiful they bear repeating. Rereading them always invites tears to my eyes.
A. W. Tozer:The Pursuit of God.:
"All this may seem too simple. But we have no apology to make. To those who would seek to climb into heaven after help or descend into hell God says, 'The word is nigh thee, even the word of faith.' The word induces us to lift up our eyes unto the Lord and the blessed work of faith begins.
When we lift our inward eyes to gaze upon God we are sure to meet friendly eyes gazing back at us, for it is written that the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout all the earth. The sweet language of experience is 'Thou God seest me.' When the eyes of the soul looking out meet the eyes of God looking in, heaven has begun right here on this earth.
'When all my endeavour is turned toward Thee because all Thy endeavour is turned toward me; when I look unto Thee alone with all my attention, nor ever turn aside the eyes of my mind, because Thou dost enfold me with Thy constant regard; when I direct my love toward Thee alone because Thou, who art Love's self hast turned Thee toward me alone. And what, Lord, is my life, save that embrace wherein Thy delightsome sweetness doth so lovingly enfold me?'1 So wrote Nicholas of Cusa four hundred years ago.
I should like to say more about this old man of God. He is not much known today anywhere among Christian believers, and among current Fundamentalists he is known not at all. I feel that we could gain much from a little acquaintance with men of his spiritual flavor and the school of Christian thought which they represent. Christian literature, to be accepted and approved by the evangelical leaders of our times, must follow very closely the same train of thought, a kind of 'party line' from which it is scarcely safe to depart. A half-century of this in America has made us smug and content. We imitate each other with slavish devotion and our most strenuous efforts are put forth to try to say the same thing that everyone around us is saying -and yet to find an excuse for saying it, some little safe variation on the approved theme or, if no more, at least a new illustration.
Nicholas was a true follower of Christ, a lover of the Lord, radiant and shining in his devotion to the Person of Jesus. His theology was orthodox, but fragrant and sweet as everything about Jesus might properly be expected to be. His conception of eternal life, for instance, is beautiful in itself and, if I mistake not, is nearer in spirit to John 17:3 than that which is current among us today. Life eternal, says Nicholas, is "nought other than that blessed regard wherewith Thou never ceasest to behold me, yea, even the secret places of my soul. With Thee, to behold is to give life; 'tis unceasingly to impart sweetest love of Thee; 'tis to inflame me to love of Thee by love's imparting, and to feed me by inflaming, and by feeding to kindle my yearning, and by kindling to make me drink of the dew of gladness, and by drinking to infuse in me a fountain of life, and by infusing to make it increase and endure."2
Now, if faith is the gaze of the heart at God, and if this gaze is but the raising of the inward eyes to meet the allseeing eyes of God, then it follows that it is one of the easiest things possible to do. It would be like God to make the most vital thing easy and place it within the range of possibility for the weakest and poorest of us."
Dylan's lectionary blog: "That trust, that willingness to risk stepping outside the boat, is how I think of faith. And Peter has that. So why does Jesus address him as 'you of little faith'? Not because of the faith he lacks, but because of the faith he has. Peter has a little faith. Jesus addresses his followers as people of 'little faith' repeatedly in Matthew's gospel (e.g., Matthew 6:30, 8:26, 14:31, 16:8, and 17:20), but following the last of those, he says, 'if you had faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you' (Matthew 17:20)."
This is a nice reading... I wonder if it stands up to further exegesis. I hope so, I like the idea of a Jesus not commending me for my feble attempts at faith. But then I would have read those statements wrong all my life. I'm sure that Dylan has done her homework, I'll just have to see if I can retrace her steps.
Surely his salvation is at hand for those who fear him,
that his glory may dwell in our land.
Steadfast love and faithfulness will meet;
righteousness and peace will kiss each other.
Faithfulness will spring up from the ground,
and righteousness will look down from the sky.
I have always loved the story of Elija as the Glory passed by. How gracious and generous of God! The disciples see the glory of the Son walking along the waves about to pass them by and their fear almost blinds them. Paul declares the Word is near you!
Oh Glory of God come near to be, be kind and gentle with me. Batter my heart and make me stand.
