Andrew Wommack - How to Become a Water Walker - Part 1
Welcome to our Monday’s broadcast of the gospel truth. Today I’m going to start a brand new series teaching on the subject that I’ve entitled, How to Become a Water Walker. It may sound a little strange, but a friend of mine, Dick Braswell from Mobile, Alabama, I heard him preach a series on this, I don’t know, 20 or 30 years ago, and I always liked that title, how to become a water walker, how to be able to walk in the miraculous and overcome the problems that are coming your way, and I think that this is going to be a real blessing to you.
Let’s go over to Matthew, chapter 14 and this is recorded in Matthew, chapter 14, Mark, chapter 6, and also, John, chapter 6, and you have to compare all of these different accounts of it to get the full impact because only Matthew records Peter walking on the water to Jesus, and only Mark records that Jesus would have just passed by his disciples and wouldn’t have done anything if they hadn’t have called out, and only John records that when Jesus entered into the ship, then the ship and the disciples and everything was just translated to the other side of the ocean and that they were just immediately at the land.
So, you have to put all of these together in order to get the full story. But I want to look here in Matthew where Jesus walked on the water and where he allowed Peter to walk on the water and Peter got out of the boat and actually began to walk on top of the water. That’s miraculous, and you know what? I believe that this is just a perfect picture of how we believe God for things and how we respond to the Lord and I think if you can receive it, this is really going to help you. So, in Matthew, chapter 14, and beginning in verse 22, it says, and straightway Jesus constrained his disciples to get into a ship to go before unto the other side, while he sent the multitudes away. You know, I’m not going to make this point right now, but let me just mention this and pay attention to it, it says, he had to constrain his disciples or compel them to get into this ship.
Now, that’s important and that figures in to everything else that happened. In verse 23 it says, and when he had sent the multitudes away, he went up into a mountain apart to pray: and when even was come, he was there alone. But the ship was now in the midst of the sea, tossed with waves: for the wind was contrary. And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea. And when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were troubled, saying, it is a spirit: and they cried out for fear. But straightway Jesus spake unto them, saying, be of good cheer: it is I: be not afraid. And Peter answered him and said, Lord, if it be thou, bid me come unto thee on the water. And he said, come. And when Peter was come down out of the ship, he walked on the water, to go to Jesus. But when he saw the wind boisterous, he was afraid: and beginning to sink, he cried, saying, Lord, save me. And immediately Jesus stretched forth his hand, and caught him, and said unto him, o thou of little faith, wherefore didst thou doubt? And when they were come into the ship, the wind ceased.
And as I said, over in John, chapter 6, the account of this, they automatically, just immediately were translated to the other side of the lake. So, this is a powerful passage of scripture. You know, this is the only time in scripture that anybody walked on water outside of Jesus. Well, this is the only time in scripture that Jesus walked on the water, but Jesus walked on the water and then he also told Peter to come and Peter walked on the water, and you know, the scripture says that we can do these miraculous things that Jesus did.
Now I personally, I’ve heard some stories about over in Indonesia during a time that people were trying to go out and preach to people in these villages that there were swollen rivers and you know, people have actually walked on water to get across and preach the gospel and do things. I think that that can happen, but personally I don’t think that there’s a real need for most of us to walk on water. I’m going to use this in a symbolic sense about how that we can do these miraculous things, how we can overcome things in the same way that Peter walked on the water. The same things that were involved right here are involved in us being able to overcome all of the storms of life and the things that come against us, and this is just a classic example and in here are elements that affect every single one of us in overcoming the obstacles, the storms, the problems that come into our life.
First of all, let me go back to this verse 22, it says, straightway Jesus constrained his disciples to get into the ship. Now, the reason that this is important is because the word «Constrain» means to compel. I think the NIV and some of the other translations use that word «Compel». For him to compel them to get into the ship and go to the other side means that there was a resistance on their part, and the scripture doesn’t explain what it was, but these disciples, most of them had been fishermen on this very Sea of Galilee and the Sea of Galilee was, on the north and on the east side of the sea there were these tall mountains and storms would come over these mountains and then rush down those mountains and hit this sea and so, storms would arise very quickly, but there were evidences that it was coming.
These people had grown up in this area, they had seen this happen, and I personally believe that the reason he had to compel them to get into this ship and to go to the other side is because they could tell that everything was setting up for a storm come rushing over those mountains and it was against their better judgment to get out in a boat on the Sea of Galilee in weather conditions like that, and yet, to their credit, the Lord told them to get into the boat, he compelled them, or constrained them to get into the boat and go to the other side and they obeyed him, and it says right here in this passage of scripture in verse 25 it says, «And in the fourth watch of the night Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea».
The fourth watch of the night it is between 3 am and 6 am, so they had been constrained to get into this ship around sunset. We don’t know exactly, but it was somewhere around 6 pm and here they are at least 3 am or later in the morning and they had only gone half way across the Sea of Galilee. You know, I’ve been to the Sea of Galilee. We got into one of these boats that you had to row and it’s only a maximum of two hours across the Sea of Galilee. I think it’s about two miles average across the Sea of Galilee, and so it couldn’t take more than two hours normally. For them to be nearly twelve hours, anywhere from nine to twelve hours later and only half way across this sea says a lot of things.
It says that there was tremendous wind that was blowing against them and if these disciples, if they had only been concerned about their life, all they would have had to do is turn that boat around and head back for the shore that they came from and with this wind blowing at their back, they could have been back to shore in just a matter of minutes, and so, see, sometimes when you read this, you don’t think about these things, but here they are at least nine hours later, maybe twelve hours later, and they had only gotten half way across, but to their credit, even though it was against their better judgment, they were still doing what the Lord told them to do.
So, here’s one of the things that I want to say, that if you want to be a water walker, if you want to see the miraculous in your life and overcome obstacles and see God come through for you, you have to position yourself for a miracle. See, these disciples, they could have said, no, we’re going to lean unto our own understanding. We are not getting in this boat: we are not going to go to the other side. It’s crazy to be out here. They could have never got into the boat and never headed in that direction. Or they could have abandoned what God told them to do after it got tough and nine hours later here they were only half way across and they could have just turned around and headed for shore.
I’m telling you, the reason a lot of people miss the miraculous power of God in their life is because they are just primarily concerned about themself, they’re leaning unto their own understanding and they are not following what God told them to do, but if you want to see a miracle in your life, if you want to see the miraculous power of God manifest, you need to start doing what God told you to do and when you run into a storm and when things look bad, you just need to keep doing what God told you to do, come hell or high water you keep serving God.
You know, in my own life, the Lord called me into the ministry and I didn’t do everything correctly. I made a lot of mistakes along the way, I made it harder on me and Jamie than what it had to be, but to our credit, we did keep doing what God told us to do and we didn’t back up, and I mean, there’s times that everybody was saying that, you know, you’ve got to quit. Just give it up. It hasn’t worked, and one of the reasons that we’ve seen the miraculous power of God come through for us and that God has done these awesome miraculous things is because I just kept doing what God told me to do. If I had have been smarter, I believe I could have done it with less effort, it could have happened quicker, but you know what? There is something to say for just tenacity, just doing something. Like a dog with a bone, you just clamp down on it and you will not let go.
If you’re going to see the miraculous power of God, you’re going to have to get this attitude to where you know what God told you to do and even though it may be against your better judgment, some of your own natural way of thinking, you are going to head in that direction and you aren’t going to quit, you aren’t going to turn around, you’re just going to keep doing what God told you to do. You know, that is really simple, but that’s profound and I think that there’s a lot of people that would love to have a testimony like this.
You would love to have a testimony like I have about how God has come through for me financially and physically and emotionally and you would love to have some of these testimonies, but you do everything you can to avoid being in any situation that might demand a miracle. You won’t take a risk, you won’t step out, you won’t obey God, and yet you would love to have one of these great testimonies, but you aren’t going to do anything that will put you in position for a miracle. Boy, this is important. So, these disciples, there’s a reason why Jesus came walking to them on the water. There’s a reason why Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water, because you know what? They had been obeying God. They didn’t do things perfectly, but you know what? They just were doing what God told them to do and even when it got tough, even when it looked like they could die, they were still pointing towards the other shore: they were still going in the direction that God told them.
Boy that is important. You know, I believe that right now God is speaking through me to somebody, who you started serving the Lord and trying to fulfill what he called you to do and you just ran into some problems and you just quit and you backed off and you said it didn’t work and you’ve been confused, wonder why God didn’t come through. It’s because you turned around and headed back to shore, it’s because you quit, and God’s not saying these things to condemn anybody, to make you feel bad, but it’s to answer your questions. You were wondering, why didn’t you come through? Well, these disciples could have done that exact same thing and had headed back to shore and been wondering about, why did he compel us to do this when he knew that we couldn’t make it? It was because he had a miraculous provision right in the midst of this sea, that he was going to come to them and it was going to be miraculous.
God had a miraculous provision for you and you just bailed before he came through. You know, according to our timetables sometimes God is late, but God is never late. He may not show up early the way you want him to, but God always comes through and you just have to position yourself for a miracle. So, if you’re one of those that quit, you know what, you just need to recognize the Bible says in Romans 11:29, the gifts and the callings of God are without repentance. If God has called you to do something, there’s still a way to plot a course from where you are back to where God wants you to be. Just like one of these GPS things, if you make a wrong turn, it doesn’t just say, well, you blew it.
You can’t get there from here. But instead it will say, recalculating, and it doesn’t matter which direction you turn or what you do, it can re-plot a course to get you back on course the way you’re supposed to go. God is certainly as good as one of those GPS navigation systems, and so if you’ve missed it, just repent and say, God forgive me. It wasn’t you that didn’t come through, it was me. How do I get back to where you told me to go? And then when the Lord tells you and starts pointing you in a direction, this time stay the course. Don’t fall out along the way. Just stay doing what God told you to do and I can guarantee you the miraculous power of God will be coming through.
There may be some of you watching this that you are in a position where you’ve started in the direction that God has called you to go, but things are going poorly and it’s not the way that you wanted it to be. You could relate to these disciples, you’re in the midst of a storm and you’re thinking of quitting and turning around. I’m telling you, if you want to see the miraculous power of God, you need to keep doing what God told you to do. Just do it and don’t quit. I tell you, this is simple, but one of the greatest keys to success is to do what God told you to do and don’t ever quit. There’s many people that just fall out along the way that quit and that’s the reason that they don’t see things happen. I tell you, I could have quit a million times, and yet I just stuck with it and God has pulled me through. God will pull you through if you can stand the pull.
So man, that is really, really important these things that I’ve talked about. So, in verse 25 it says, and in the fourth watch of the night, that’s between 3 and 6 am, Jesus went unto them, walking on the sea. Now, this also is really, really important. Let me turn over to Mark’s account in chapter 6. This is the same story but it’s just recorded by Mark instead of Matthew, and in Mark, chapter 6, it says in verse 48, «And he saw them toiling in rowing: for the wind was contrary unto them: and about the fourth watch of the night he cometh unto them, walking upon the sea, and would have passed by them».
Now that is really significant. What the Lord has spoken to me through this is that, you know, it’s obvious that it says in this verse and also over in Matthew that he saw them toiling and he came unto them, walking on the sea. He wasn’t just out walking on the water to have a stroll in the midst of this storm. He came out there to help them. He saw them, he came to them to help them, and yet, he made as though he would have passed by them. In other words, if it was me, if I could imagine myself being Jesus and if my disciples were out in the midst of the sea at my command, they didn’t want to do it and I compelled them to do it, I would feel responsible to do something and if I could walk on the water, I guarantee you, I would be out there waving my hands.
You know, it’s like the cavalry, you blow the trumpet, you know, the cavalry’s coming. I would be saying, hold on guys, here I come. I would have done something like that. Jesus didn’t do that. Jesus just walked up to where they could see him and he made as though he would have walked right past them and have let them go like he’s just out walking on the water. You know, this is a great truth that the thing that was about to kill them, they were about to drown and they were afraid of the water and the wind and the waves and all this, Jesus was just cool. He was walking on top of the very thing that was about to kill them, and you know, it’s the same thing with you and me.
Sometimes we get to thinking that our problem is so bad that even God couldn’t handle this. I’ve had people come to me before and say, man, you need to fast and pray before I bring this person to you for prayer, and I say, oh, I can pray, but, oh no, this is really bad. You’ve got to fast and pray. Like, even God is going to have a hard time with this one, but you know, that’s never true. This situation that was about to kill them, Jesus was on top of it. No problem. It was like he was just out for a walk walking across the water, and he came up and showed himself to them, but he walked, in a sense, past them. He was walking by them, and they cried out to him for fear, and this is a great truth, that a lot of people don’t have the miraculous power of God simply because they aren’t crying out and believing God for an intervention.
Over in James, chapter 4, it says, you have not, because you ask not, and you know what? God knows what our needs are but he doesn’t just automatically supply our needs. I’m not sure that I understand all of the reasons for this, but I’m sure that one of them is, God just wants relationship with us and rather than him just take care of everything automatically without any correspondence or communion from us to him, he wants us to ask. He wants us to be in relationship with him. Yes, the Lord has healed you, and by his stripes you were healed, but you have to believe and open up your heart and receive to get that healing to manifest.
God has already blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places, Ephesians, chapter 1, verse 3, but you have to ask and receive these things. «Give us this day our daily bread». Why did he tell us to do that? I believe it’s because he just wants relationship. You know, it’s like our children. You know what they need, but sometimes you just want them to ask you. You want them to come to you and acknowledge you as their source, you want a relationship with them, you just don’t do everything for them automatically, but it’s all about relationship, and Jesus showed himself.
There was no doubt that he came out here to help these disciples that were in the midst of this storm, but he made as though he would have passed by them if they hadn’t have cried out, and so if you want to see a miraculous intervention of God in your life, if you want to become a water walker, one of the things you’re going to have to do is to cry out to God for this. If you don’t pursue the things of God, you won’t get them. They don’t happen automatically. You have to pursue it. If you pursue, you will receive. If you seek, you find. If you knock, it’s opened unto you. If you ask, it’s given unto you, but if you don’t ask, it won’t be given unto you. If you don’t knock, the door won’t be opened. If you don’t seek, you won’t find.
There takes some effort on our part. God wants you to seek him and petition him and believe him for things, and there are so many people that when they get into a crisis situation, they will turn to the doctors, they’ll turn to the lawyers, they’ll turn to the bankers, they’ll turn to even a spiritual person and substitute them, but they don’t ever believe God. They just don’t ever get into a position where they are going to trust God. I’m telling you, if you want to become a water walker, if you want to see the miraculous power of God in your life, you need to recognize that God will reveal himself to you.
He’s there to bring deliverance, but you have to place a demand upon God. You have to call out to God. You know, you could turn over to Exodus, chapter 3 and see this exact same thing with Moses and the burning bush, and Moses for 40 years had been believing that God would somehow or another give him a second chance to go back and bring the Israelites out of bondage and he saw this tree that it was on fire, but it wasn’t consumed. This was in a desert where things, you know, just kind of exploded and they were gone nearly instantly, but this tree was burning but it wasn’t consumed, and he said, I will turn aside, and see this great sight, why this tree isn’t consumed, and it says in Exodus, chapter 3 that when the Lord saw that he turned aside then he called unto him in an audible voice.
If he just wanted to get Moses' attention, why didn’t he just talk to him in an audible voice? What was the purpose of the burning bush and why did it say it was after he saw that Moses had turned aside that he called unto him in an audible voice?
See again, God revealed himself, but it was in a subtle way where if a person isn’t looking for God, if you aren’t believing, you can miss this. If these disciples had just been so consumed with themself that they hadn’t even looked out there and hadn’t seen Jesus walk by and hadn’t have called out to him, he could have passed them right on by and their deliverance could have passed by. I’m telling you that the Lord is speaking to some of you today through this program, but you need to respond and say, «Alright God, I’m going to trust you for a miracle. I’m going to believe for a supernatural way out of this instead of just some natural deliverance». You have to position yourself for a miracle. I tell you, all of these things are important in becoming a water walker.