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Matthew 14:22-33
22 Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. 23 And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, 24 but the boat by this time was a long way1 from the land,2 beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them. 25 And in the fourth watch of the night3 he came to them, walking on the sea. 26 But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” and they cried out in fear. 27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.”
28 And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” 29 He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. 30 But when he saw the wind,4 he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.” 31 Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” 32 And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. 33 And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”
[1] 14:24
[2] 14:24
[3] 14:25
[4] 14:30
(ESV)
Redeemer exists to celebrate and declare the gospel of God as we grow in knowing and following Jesus Christ.
If you have a Bible with you, you can start making your way to Matthew, chapter 14. Matthew, chapter 14. Next week, we will be starting up in our study, our next study that we're gonna be getting into, through Ephesians. That's gonna take us, really through the rest of the fall. But tonight, we are gonna be in Matthew's gospel.
Jeffrey Heine:Matthew chapter 14, beginning with verse 22, and we're gonna read all the way through to verse 33. And let us listen carefully, for this is God's word. Immediately, Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side while he dismissed the crowds. And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone.
Jeffrey Heine:But the boat, by this time, was a long way from the land, beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them. And in the 4th watch of the night, he came to them walking on the sea. But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified and said, It is a ghost. And they cried out in fear. But immediately, Jesus spoke to them, saying, take heart.
Jeffrey Heine:It is I. Do not be afraid. And Peter answered him, Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water. And he said, come. So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus.
Jeffrey Heine:But when he saw the wind, he was afraid. And beginning to sink, he cried out, Lord, save me. Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, oh, you of little faith, why did you doubt? And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased, and those in the boat worshiped him, saying, truly, you are the Son of God. The word of the Lord.
Jeffrey Heine:Thanks be to God. Let's pray. Father, we thank you for your grace tonight. And we come to you. We gather now in your grace to hear from you.
Jeffrey Heine:And we need life, Spirit. So will you now glorify Christ that we might trust him and obey him from our hearts today? So speak, Lord. Your servants are listening. Amen.
Jeffrey Heine:A few weeks ago, I was supposed to fly from Nashville, Tennessee to New York City. It was supposed to be a quick 2 hour direct flight. And 20 minutes before the plane was supposed to board, a message went out on the speaker system that we would be delayed about 15 minutes. So I took my bag and decided to go for a little spin around the terminal. But when I came back, there was just chaos.
Jeffrey Heine:Four flights to New York, all canceled at the same time. Now, I'm I'm going to give you the abridged version of this story, which means cut to me at an empty train platform in Baltimore, Maryland at 4 in the morning. Now, 4 AM is a terrible time to be awake anywhere. But an abandoned outdoor train platform in Baltimore is not ideal. But to my surprise, a train actually did show up.
Jeffrey Heine:I got on the train, and on my train ride from Maryland through Delaware and Pennsylvania and New Jersey and into New York City, I tried to calm down, tried to take in the madness of my unexpected journey, and I put on my headphones, sat back, and I listened to Simon and Garfunkel. And I knew that as the train was rolling through New Jersey, that the most suitable Simon and Garfunkel song I could listen to on repeat was America. Now, America is a song about a man and a woman hitchhiking their way across America, hitchhiking, riding a greyhound. They make their way through the night in New Jersey, and Paul Simon sings, Kathy, I'm lost, I said, though I knew she was sleeping. I'm empty and aching, and I don't know why.
Jeffrey Heine:And as the sun began to rise in New Jersey, I sat there in my seat, and throughout the train car, people were still sleeping. And every time the song would repeat and I would hear those words, I'm lost, I'm empty, I'm aching, and I don't know why. They kept hitting me harder and harder. Music theory professor James, Benagoff wrote that Paul Simon, quote, captured the longing and the angst of the 19 sixties in these simple words, unquote. And I would go further to say that it extends well past the 19 sixties.
Jeffrey Heine:I think that these words describe our age, our culture now, what Charles Taylor calls the the secular age. And I think it describes not only the culture out there, but also the culture in here and the culture within our own hearts, because I know that there are certainly times that I feel lost, and empty, and aching, and there are certainly times that I don't know why. In the midst of these feelings, feeling lost and empty and aching, we are confronted with the big questions of life, the questions that lead us to those places, places of doubt and faith. And our passage of scripture today, Matthew chapter 14, is one of those definitive Bible stories on faith and doubt. And it's so broadly known that it permeates well beyond the Christian culture.
Jeffrey Heine:Even if you've never read the Bible before, there's a good chance you still recognize that picture of Jesus walking on water. Because the story of Jesus walking on water has kind of become this caricature of Jesus in pop culture. And if you've ever read the gospels before, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, then you're aware that Jesus performed a lot of miracles. He gave sight to the blind. He raised the dead.
Jeffrey Heine:In short, he did a lot of miracles that helped people. But this one, this miracle of walking on water, it's a little bit different. You know, it appears to be primarily practical in nature. The disciples have gone on before Him, and He wants to catch up. And to the son of God, the most efficient way to do that, walk on the water.
Jeffrey Heine:And so it reads as though if the disciples hadn't seen him, thinking that he was a ghost, and start freaking out, that he might have just strolled on past them. I think we have a lot to learn from this story, in particular, the interaction between Jesus and Peter. And not just to gain insight into a classic Bible story, but I believe that if we take our time, if we strive to understand what is going on in these two little paragraphs in Matthew's gospel, that there's so much that applies to our own doubts and our own feelings of being lost, and empty, and aching, especially if we don't know why. So the first thing, let's enter into this story. Let's enter into these verses to join the disciples in their boat on the stormy seas and ask the first question, what's going on here?
Jeffrey Heine:And then together, take some time to ask a second question, and that is, well, what does this have to do with me today? So look with me at verse 22. We're going to be back and forth in the text a whole lot, so keep it handy. Verse 22. Immediately, Jesus made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side while he dismissed the crowds.
Jeffrey Heine:And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. And when evening came, he was there alone. This is a common occurrence that we see in the recorded ministry of Jesus. Jesus goes off alone to pray. It's particularly after there have been times with large crowds where there's been teaching, healing, miracles going on.
Jeffrey Heine:Jesus would withdraw. He would draw from the crowds and also his own disciples to pray, to spend time with God the Father. Luke the evangelist records in chapter 5 of his gospel these words. The news about Jesus spread all the more, and great crowds came to hear him and to be healed of their sicknesses. Yet, he frequently withdrew to the wilderness to pray.
Jeffrey Heine:Too often, I skip over those details in the gospel stories, but take a second to think about this fact. Jesus prayed. He frequently withdrew from very present pressing needs to pray. Do you ever feel like you're not finishing work, you just kind of have to put a pin in it and walk away, or everything is just so busy, and you never really feel like you're completing anything. You just have to stop working on those things.
Jeffrey Heine:Well, everywhere that Jesus went, there were folks that needed his attention, wanted his time, needed teaching, needed healing, and yet he would withdraw, not simply to relax, but to spend time in prayer. Communion with the Father was so important for Jesus that he would walk away from real legitimate needs to ensure that he prayed. And if your prayer life is waiting for a season with less demands, it will never happen. None of us here is getting less busy. And those of us who wear busyness kind of as a social status, a badge of honor, then we are in serious danger of never praying.
Jeffrey Heine:Earlier this day, Jesus had fed 5,000 people, and there were many who wanted time with him. Jesus sent the disciples on their way. He dismissed the crowds, and then he withdrew to pray, and then night came. Look at the end of verse 23. When evening came, he was there alone.
Jeffrey Heine:But the boat by this time was a long way from the land, beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them. The disciples followed Jesus' direction. In verse 22, it says that He made them get in the boat. They might have done this begrudgingly. The disciples didn't really like leaving Jesus with a big crowd.
Jeffrey Heine:I mean, think about how defensive they are with Jesus. They even tell kids to go away. Right? So they're defensive of Jesus. They don't want everyone pressing in on Him like that, but He tells them to get in the boat.
Jeffrey Heine:He's gonna talk with the crowds for a bit longer and then dismiss them. And so they listen. They leave off in the boat and they start to cross the Sea of Galilee. And in the apostle John's account of this night, he records that they rode out about 3.5 miles into the Sea of Galilee. They were about halfway into the body of water.
Jeffrey Heine:They'd been rowing for about 8 or 9 hours, and it was now 4 in the morning, which, as I said, is a terrible time to be awake anywhere, but especially in the middle of the Sea of Galilee in the midst of a storm, where they are going 0.38 miles per hour against the wind. A goldfish can swim twice as fast as they are moving in this boat. Fun part of my week was calculating that. Matthew says that they are being beaten by the waves, 9 hours of struggle, and they move just 3 and a half miles. They're in the center of this body of water, and it is chaos all around them.
Jeffrey Heine:Look at verse 25. And in the 4th watch of the night, he came to them, walking on the sea. But when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified and said, It is a ghost. And they cried out in fear. The churning waves and storms out at sea is usually symbolic in the scriptures of evil, chaos.
Jeffrey Heine:And the disciples have been beaten by these waves, going slower than a goldfish across the sea, and and they are in this storm when they look out, and they see the figure of a man walking across the water, and their best understanding of what they are seeing is that it must be a ghost. And needless to say, they are completely terrified, and rightfully so. They cry out in fear. They were already so exhausted from that long day of ministry. Jesus multiplied the food, but they had to serve it.
Jeffrey Heine:They had been going all over carrying these baskets. They had been doing all of this ministry all day long, and then they spend 8, 9 hours rowing against the storm. They are soaked, and they are cold, and they are tired. They have been worn down. And then they look out, and they think they see a ghost, the sign of chaos in the sea.
Jeffrey Heine:And now death was coming for them. And they cried out in fear, and Jesus heard their cries. He knew of their fear. He knew of their confusion, and he calls out to them. Verse 27.
Jeffrey Heine:But immediately, Jesus spoke to them saying, take heart. It is I. Do not be afraid. Hear those words of comfort. It can be broken down into 3 sections.
Jeffrey Heine:It begins, take heart. The Greek there, is speaking about being strengthened from within, to be warmed from the inside, to be courageous, to take heart. It ends with, do not be afraid. Jesus speaks their emotions again, and this phrase is used a lot in Matthew's gospel. It's usually Jesus talking to those disciples and telling them, do not fear.
Jeffrey Heine:Do not be afraid. And in between these two addresses, where Jesus is addressing their emotional confusion, take heart, do not be afraid, he makes a declaration. He he declares an intellectual fact. He speaks to their intellectual confusion, and he says, it is I. Your Bible probably translates it like that.
Jeffrey Heine:That's the most common English translation. It is I. It's comes from the Greek, ego emi, and the phrase that is used here, ego emi, it's packed with meaning. The first one is the one that is kind of the easy one to wrap our heads around, and that is, he's identifying himself. He's saying, it's me.
Jeffrey Heine:Don't worry, it's me. You know? It's kind of like, do you remember before caller ID, when you would just answer the phone and you had no idea who it was, but you still answered it? We don't answer it now that we know who it's calling us. But there was a time where you just blindly just picked it up.
Jeffrey Heine:Who knows what's going to happen next? And then you had those friends or those family members, or maybe it was a parent, that when you would call, they would just say, it's me. And you would know in that second. You'd recognize their voice. You'd know who it was.
Jeffrey Heine:And so He calls out, it's me. That's a great comfort to them. There's another another thing that's going on here, and it's it's an illusion to something in the Old Testament. The Septuagint, which is the the Greek translation of the Old Testament, uses this phrase, ego, emi, in Exodus chapter 3, when a scared Moses is encountering God in this burning bush, and he doesn't know who or what he is beholding here, just like those scared disciples are looking out into the sea and they don't know what they're looking at. And in Exodus chapter 3, verse 14, it says, God said to Moses, I am who I am.
Jeffrey Heine:This is what you are to say to the Israelites. I am has sent me to you. In Exodus chapter 3, the Greek rendering of I am who I am is the same as what we see in Matthew, for the record of Jesus's words, calling out to his frightened disciples in the storm. Jesus addressed the emotional confusion that his disciples are experiencing, telling them to take heart and do not fear, and he speaks to their intellectual confusion when he calls out to them, it is I. It is the great I am, walking on the waters I created, on the earth that I hold together with the word of my power.
Jeffrey Heine:Verse 28. And Peter answered him, Lord, if it's you, command me to come to you on the water. And Jesus said, come. So Peter got out of the boat, and he walked on the water and came to Jesus. So now we come to the second crazy part of the story.
Jeffrey Heine:First crazy part, Jesus walks on water. And the second crazy part is that Peter, not content to just be like, oh, it's not a ghost. Good. He says, no, I wanna go out there. If it's you, Jesus, you command me and I'll obey you, and I will walk out there.
Jeffrey Heine:And Jesus, inexplicably, just obliges, and he calls Peter out there to join him on the water. And out of the boat, Peter goes into the stormy seas. Remember, still storming, the wind and the waves. And I can only imagine that it was a surprise to everyone on that boat and Peter himself that he starts walking on the water out to Jesus. Now 2 men in the dark of night, standing on the stormy seas.
Jeffrey Heine:But this doesn't last long. Verse 30. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink, he cried out, Lord, save me. Peter was doing great strolling along the stormy seas out to Jesus, but then something happens. Remember, Peter was very familiar with the open waters and being on a boat as a fisherman.
Jeffrey Heine:And I'm sure that he had spent many evenings in some terrible conditions. The dangers of being out at sea like that were well known to Peter. And the gospel writer Matthew puts it in this remarkable phrase, but when Peter saw the wind, he was afraid. And if you think about that, it's kind of a mean way to put it, and and let me tell you why. When was the last time you saw the wind?
Jeffrey Heine:Never. You can't see the wind. You can see debris in the wind, you can see the rain in the wind, you can see the effects of the wind, but the wind itself, you can't see. And here he is walking with the great I Am on the sea, and he sees the thing that you can't see, and he gets scared. And that's enough for him to begin to sink, and as he begins to sink, he is filled with this fear.
Jeffrey Heine:And keep this in mind. Peter's right. His logic, his reason, his experiential evidence all around him is correct. You do not want to be out of the boat standing on the water in the middle of a sea storm because humans cannot walk on water. He's right.
Jeffrey Heine:He has reason to be afraid. And in his reasonable, rational fear, he begins to sink, and he cries out for Jesus to help him. He cries out, Lord, save me. And Jesus does. Verse 31.
Jeffrey Heine:Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, oh you of little faith, why did you doubt? And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased, and those in the boat worshiped Jesus, saying, truly, you are the Son of God. Jesus reaches out and grabs hold of Peter. He saves him, and they make their way back to the boat. The storm ceases, and everyone in the boat turns to Jesus, and they worship him, declaring who he is.
Jeffrey Heine:Truly, you are the Son of God. It's a remarkable story. And there's so much that's going on here, And we could spend a lot of time exploring all the different aspects. We could stay until late in the night. You don't have work tomorrow.
Jeffrey Heine:So we could stay. We could talk about all the different facets of this story. There's so much that's here. But that answer is kind of that first question, what's going on here? We've entered into the story.
Jeffrey Heine:We've looked around. We've walked line by line. Now we move to that second question, which is, well, then what does that mean for us today? I'm sure that many of us can identify with some aspect of Peter in this story. Maybe you identify with his exhaustion.
Jeffrey Heine:Peter was in the boat struggling for 9 hours to go across the sea, and everything was pushing against him. You were being beaten by the waves. Perhaps you feel like that today, and the things that you are facing, and you feel exhausted. Maybe you identify with this fear. You look at your own life and the challenges that you are facing today, and you understand what it's like to cry out in fear.
Jeffrey Heine:Maybe you're afraid of what's gonna happen next, later today, tomorrow, the phone call that's supposed to be coming, or the call that you need to make yourself. Maybe you're afraid of something that lies ahead this this coming week. Maybe you identify with His fear. Maybe you identify with His boldness. Maybe you would be the disciple who calls out to Jesus, asking Him to command you to step out of the boat and to hop on out and see what happens.
Jeffrey Heine:Maybe you identify with his boldness. But I think perhaps the most relatable aspect of Peter in this whole story is his doubt. And I think that there are 3 truly surprising aspects of this story of doubt, and I'm sure that you noticed them as we made our way through twice now walking through the story. These are 3 things that I think are worth highlighting, worth calling out and seeing them. And so the first one is this, the first truly surprising aspect of the story.
Jeffrey Heine:Jesus didn't hesitate to help Peter. I think this is worth noting first, because if nothing else, we need to be able to walk out of this room today knowing that Jesus stood ready to save Peter, and he didn't hesitate. The word Matthew uses is immediately. Jesus reaches out his hand immediately and rescues Peter from drowning. And for those of us who are Christians, we need to recapture an understanding of Jesus as our refuge and our strength, our very present help in times of trouble.
Jeffrey Heine:If we are in a moment or perhaps a season of doubt, whether we're experiencing doubts rooted in our emotions or doubts rooted in our intellect, the promise of Jesus is that he is with us. He will neither leave us nor forsake us. And I know because I talk with you and the other pastors of Redeemer talk with you that some of you will say, but my doubts feel insurmountable. You'll say, you don't know how deeply I doubt, and I would say, you're right, and you don't know how deeply I doubt. But what what I would like to say to you is what the 19th century preacher Charles Spurgeon once said to a man who told Spurgeon that he was too far great a sinner.
Jeffrey Heine:He was too far gone, too far lost to be saved by the grace of Jesus. And these are Spurgeon's words. Said the man, you don't know what I am. No, replied Spurgeon, and I don't want to know what you are. But if you are so far gone that there seems to be not even a ghost of a shade of a shadow of hope anywhere in you, and yet you believe in Jesus, you shall live.
Jeffrey Heine:Trust the Lord Jesus Christ, for he is worthy to be trusted. Throw yourself upon him, and he will carry you. Cast your whole weight upon His atonement. It can bear the strain. Hang on Him.
Jeffrey Heine:Seek no other support. Depend upon Christ with all your might, end quote. Jesus is your present help in time of need. Like Peter, call out to him and find him ever present and ever powerful. Jesus knew exactly how deep Peter's doubts went.
Jeffrey Heine:And Jesus did not wait for Peter to stop doubting to save him. No. He saved him so Peter could stop doubting and believe. The first unexpected aspect of the story, Jesus doesn't hesitate to help Peter. And the second surprising facet of the story, Jesus doesn't chastise Peter for his fear.
Jeffrey Heine:Peter's logic, which led to his fear, was reasonable. And Jesus doesn't come at him and say, why did you think that the wind was dangerous? He doesn't say, why were you scared of the waves and the storm? He doesn't say cool it with the questions. There are some things you just won't know until heaven.
Jeffrey Heine:No. Instead, Jesus asks Peter why he doubted. And so it's an important question for us, the reader, what did Peter doubt? He didn't doubt that he was in danger. He didn't doubt the science that was all around him, that water, weight, breathing were all still real?
Jeffrey Heine:He didn't doubt himself. That was one that I was taught in college. Peter was simply doubting in himself and his potential to be like Jesus. But no, Peter knew Peter can't walk on water. Peter didn't doubt himself because he never believed in himself.
Jeffrey Heine:We have to go with what's in the text. We have to go with what's on the page. What do we see here? We have to look at what was stated to see what was doubted. Peter doubted what Jesus had called out to the disciples, not the emotional directives.
Jeffrey Heine:No. Those were commands. What Peter doubted was the fact that Jesus had stated. Peter doubted when Jesus said, I am. He doubted that in the midst of the storm, Jesus was all present and all powerful.
Jeffrey Heine:The call to follow Jesus is not a call to abandon our logic, our reason, our questions, our concerns, our critical thinking. No. The call to follow Jesus is a call to trust Him. In Spurgeon's words, it's to cast our whole weight upon Him, to hang on Jesus. Belief is a battle.
Jeffrey Heine:We wage war when it comes to belief. Faith is a gift from God, and growing in that trust, fanning the flames of that trust is a lifelong part of receiving the gift of faith following Jesus. Russian author and philosopher, Dostoevsky, he wrote in his journal in 18/80 these words. It is not as a child that I believe and confess Jesus Christ. My hosanna is born out of the furnace of doubt.
Jeffrey Heine:Do you know that furnace? Do you know that hard battle to believe? Every time we gather in this room, when we gather together on Sundays to sing and to pray and to hear from God's word, I am reminded that some of you are walking into this room battling great battles, battling to have a heart of worship in the midst of your sorrow and your suffering, battling to believe in your heart the things that you are confessing with your lips, battling just to show up, battling to fight the temptation to sin. If you have been down the block and back in your life, then at some point, I would imagine you've walked into this place battling something or another. You know the hard battle to believe.
Jeffrey Heine:Maybe you're in the midst of one of those battles tonight, which brings me to the 3rd surprising aspect of this story. The first, that Jesus didn't hesitate to help Peter. 2nd, that Jesus didn't chastise Peter for being afraid. And 3rd, and perhaps the most surprising one, Jesus didn't calm the storm until they got back in the boat. The call to follow Jesus, to trust him and obey him, means that the promise of his power and the promise of His presence are for you in the midst of the storm.
Jeffrey Heine:Jesus walked Peter hand in hand back to the boat in the storm. Jesus ceases the storm when they get back to the boat. Don't miss that. Some of us are under the wrong conclusion that if Jesus is truly present, if he really cares and is really powerful, then there won't be a storm. But the promise of Jesus is his presence in the storm.
Jeffrey Heine:Yes. He has the power to cease the storm, but the greatest comfort to Peter was not that Jesus took the storm away. It was that he walked through the storm with him, sustaining him when his faith was little and weak, just like ours. And Peter did what we all must do when we find ourselves in the battle of belief, we cry out, hosanna, Lord, save me, and we find Jesus present and powerful. One last part of the story that we haven't considered yet, those 11 disciples back in the boat watching all of this unfold, first, they see their friend walk out on the water and then start to sink, and then they hear him cry out for help in desperation.
Jeffrey Heine:And then they watch their rabbi, their lord, rescue storm. There's a lot that we can learn from them too, especially as people who want to love and care for the people around us who might be in a season of doubt in the battle for belief. You see, they knew they couldn't calm the storm, and they fought that storm for hours. They knew they couldn't make it stop. And they also weren't jumping in to go rescue their friend, were they?
Jeffrey Heine:No. Why not? They trusted Jesus to be the great I am. For those of you who are the friend of a person battling hard in the war for belief, remember who the only savior is. And to quote Dietrich Bonhoeffer, because how can I not spend more time talking to Jesus about your friend than talking to your friend about Jesus?
Jeffrey Heine:That doesn't mean don't talk to your friend about Jesus. It means that the lion's share of your time is going to your Lord carrying the burden of your friend to your savior, the one who can save. Go to Jesus. Hope in the power of Jesus, not in the mere power of persuasion. Commit to the hard work of persistent, loving friendship, and speak truth to your friend in indisputable love, remembering all the while who the only Savior is.
Jeffrey Heine:Paul Simon makes his confession on the greyhound heading through New Jersey in the dead of night, when he knows that Kathy is sleeping. That's because sometimes we're too afraid to confess our feelings of emptiness, feelings of doubt and fear. But I hope and I pray truly that you would let this place, this church, be your greyhound and that the family of God would be your Cathy and that by the Holy Spirit in us, we would be awake to listen and to love, because our hope, our best hope, is not in a better circumstance, to simply get out of the storm. No. Our hope is the presence and power of Jesus, the Son of God, who meets us in our lost, empty, and aching souls, and gives us grace.
Jeffrey Heine:Let's go to him in prayer. Father, in this time, we ask that you would help us to be honest with ourselves, and honest with one another, and honest with you about how we feel and what we think. Lord, you know us better than we know ourselves, and yet you love us, so search our hearts. Spirit, glorify Christ that we might look to him and cry out that Hosanna, born out of the furnace of doubt. Lord, save me.
Jeffrey Heine:We pray these things in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.