The “I AM” Walking on the Sea of Galilee (Matthew 14:27 & Mark 6:50)

by Ptr. Art Calaguas

Shalom. 

Before we continue with the “I AM” declarations found in the Gospels of Matthew and Mark (as we have finished with Luke 24:39), I would like to let you know of some highlights of our recent trip to Bacolod, Iloilo and Roxas City last week. I am happy to report that these cities are thriving, bustling with commerce and other activities; the people are going out, doing business and meeting other people (albeit with face masks on). One could say that the people are all yearning to break out and live their lives as normally as possible. In the Capiz Evangelical Church (CEC) in Roxas City, where our CRL Choir has sung many times in the past, the 3 services are full of people who want to worship the Lord together! As part of the Growing With Jesus Ministry (GWJM) Week celebration last Sunday, May 1, Miriam played the prelude on piano; her elder sister, Jing Koa briefly spoke about the genesis of the GWJM and I delivered the message at their 9am service. Everybody was hopeful that the worst is behind us as far as the coronavirus pandemic outbreak was concerned. Our collective prayer was for breakthrough.

One breakthrough did call my attention that Sunday as I went into CEC before the service. There was a man who I had met some years ago in my previous visits. As I approached him near the rear pews I was surprised at his appearance. When I first met him and prayed for him, he had braces on his legs and a pair of crutches. I had prayed for this man every time I saw him at CEC. Now, he did not have his leg braces and there were no crutches beside him. He said something to me in Ilonggo and the only word I was able to catch was “Ginoo” as he pointed his finger heavenward. Both of us praised the Lord for the healing breakthrough that was given to him!

In my past writings, we had actually touched on the “I AM” declarations found in the Gospels of Matthew (14:27) and Mark (6:50) which are parallel to John 6:20 (the nighttime walk of our Lord Jesus on the stormy Sea of Galilee).

I wrote that the immediate context is the Lord’s night time walk in the Sea (Lake) of Galilee/Tiberias/Kinneret/Gennesaret which is narrated in John 6:16-21 (with parallels in Matthew 14:22-33 and Mark 6:45-52). The bigger picture is of course what had just occurred earlier. From its parallels and John’s Gospel, the disciples had been sent out on their on-the-job evangelism tour proclaiming the Kingdom of God and John the Baptist had been beheaded by Herod Antipas. Then the Lord had just performed an outstanding miracle of feeding around 5,000 men plus women and children with just 5 barley loaves and 2 fish. At the end, the disciples were even able to gather 12 basketfuls of left-overs. It is the only miracle recorded in all the 4 Gospels (Matthew 14:13-21; Mark 6:30-44; Luke 9:10-17; and John 6:1-15).

After this Feeding of the 5,000, the Lord Jesus had asked his disciples to go by boat ahead of him to Bethsaida (see Matthew 14:22 and Mark 6:45). The Gospel of John gives us further information that the crowd, after being fed and recognizing the miracle wanted to make him king, so the Lord withdrew to the mountain to get away from the crowd.

  In all 3 accounts the disciples’ boat was apparently far from the shore line and was in trouble. Then they saw the Lord Jesus walking on the water towards their boat at about the 4^th watch of the night (3:00-6:00 A.M. as per Roman military reckoning)! They were probably very worried and tired. Understandably, they were frightened; thought they had seen a φάντασμα, “phantasma,” Greek for an apparition, ghost or phantom (used only in the parallel verses of Matthew and Mark) and cried out in terror.” The Lord then comes by the boat’s side and speaks to his disciples to calm them.

Below is the Greek verse of John 6:20 and my literal translation:

ὁ δὲ λέγει αὐτοῖς· Ἐγώ εἰμι, μὴ φοβεῖσθε.

But he says to them; “I AM, fear not.”

Below is the parallel in Matthew 14:27 and my literal translation:

εὐθὺς δὲ ἐλάλησεν αὐτοῖς ὁ Ἰησοῦς λέγων· Θαρσεῖτε, ἐγώ εἰμι· μὴ φοβεῖσθε.

But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying; “Take courage, I AM; fear not.” 

Below is the parallel in Mark 6:50 and my literal translation:

ὁ δὲ εὐθὺς ἐλάλησεν μετ’ αὐτῶν, καὶ λέγει αὐτοῖς· Θαρσεῖτε, ἐγώ εἰμι, μὴ φοβεῖσθε.

But immediately he spoke with them, and says to them; “Take courage, I AM, fear not.”

Most translations render the ἐγώ εἰμι as “It is I.” It is better English but somewhat diminishes the power of the Lord’s words and their significance.

Matthew and Mark have an extra word Θαρσεῖτε (“Tharseite” from θαρσέω, “tharseo” meaning “take courage” or “be of good courage” or “have courage”) before the ἐγώ εἰμι (“I AM”). But after this imperative the expression in the Greek for the 3 Gospel writers Matthew, Mark and John is the same: “I AM, fear not.” Another difference to note is that Matthew continues the narrative with Simon Peter getting out of the boat and shortly walks on the water himself. Then fear grips him; he cries out for help, so the Lord catches him and they both get into the boat. The disciples worship the Lord and call him the “Son of God” in the end of the pericope.

Both parallel Gospel accounts of Matthew and Mark end with the calming of the windstorm when the Lord Jesus gets into the boat. In John’s Gospel account, the boat arrives immediately to their destination.

From our previous study of the Apostle John’s ἐγώ εἰμι (“I AM”) declarations, we are able to appreciate more the power of the Lord’s words and not miss their nuanced significance and the memories these words evoked in the consciousness of his disciples.

In review then, as I wrote before, when the Lord Jesus supernaturally walked over the stormy waters of the Sea (Lake) of Galilee and said Ἐγώ εἰμι, μὴ φοβεῖσθε, it is quite possible that his disciples remembered later that Genesis 1:2 taught that the Spirit of God was brought to bear upon the unformed/formless and unfilled or void/empty world represented by the primordial waters to bring about an ordered creation. The Spirit/wind of God was superior over the force of the waters. Clearly, when our Lord Jesus walked over the violent water he displayed his superiority over the forces of nature.

I mentioned also Genesis 6-8; the narrative about Noah, the Ark and the Flood which may have reminded the disciples that it is God who saves not only Noah and his family but the other living creatures inside the Ark from the (flood) waters. 

In Exodus 3:14-15 God gave his “I AM” covenant name to the people he chose; a name to be remembered forever; a name which evoke the LORD God’s transcendent and timeless nature as an eternally existing being. For the Lord Jesus to use these very words is a clear and distinct claim to deity.

The Exodus 14:21-22 narrative of the crossing of “Yam Suph” (the Red Sea) must have reminded his disciples as this miraculous event laid the cornerstone of defining the Hebrew people as a people and as a people unto the LORD God. Like the chosen passengers of Noah’s Ark, only the Hebrews; those who were under the LORD’s protection, survived the Red Sea crossing.

The Lord Jesus, by using the words ἐγώ εἰμι (“I AM”) at the Sea of Galilee unequivocally identified himself as Lord over the storms and waves; “the One who exists,” “the One who is;” the God of Genesis and Exodus. He controls creation and the elements of nature. And he is the One who saves.

As our nation decides tomorrow, May 9 who its leaders will be for the next couple of years, may the Holy Spirit grant us discernment and wisdom to make the right choices. 

We will continue next week with one more “I AM” declaration in the Gospel of Mark.

God bless us all.