Bolder: A Look at the Audacious Faith of Imperfect PeopleSample

Day 1: Peter

Most people who have read the Bible or watched anything produced about it have heard the story of Peter walking on the water and have been challenged to “step out of the boat” in boldness of faith. Jesus walking on the water is recorded in three of the four accounts of Jesus’ life (in Matthew, Mark, and John), but the only one that mentions Peter’s participation is Matthew. Notice in Matthew’s account Jesus’ direct instruction to the disciples. Matthew actually describes Jesus telling them to get into the boat. All three accounts quote Jesus saying, “It is I; do not be afraid.” Jesus is simply asking his disciples to not be afraid. Being afraid is unnecessary because he is Jesus and he is present. But then whose idea is it for Peter to get out of the boat? It’s Peter’s idea. Jesus agrees to it, but Jesus didn’t initially ask of him. The thing he did ask of him—not being afraid—Peter actually fails at (v. 30). But let’s look at the end of the story. The disciples’ response is amazement and worship. They have been convinced that Jesus “truly is the Son of God.”

This kind of over-the-top and often reckless behavior is fairly typical of Peter as we see him in the gospel accounts. We see him make big claims he cannot follow through with (for example, he denies knowing Jesus right after he says he’d die for him), we see him cut off a man’s ear, we see him speak without thinking multiple times, and we see him rebuke Jesus himself. But we also see him lead the early church in an incredible way. In Acts 2 we see Peter—filled with the Holy Spirit—be involved in healing a lame man, standing up under persecution, and giving a powerful sermon after which three thousand people believe in Jesus. Is this the same guy?

Jesus corrects Peter often (and thankfully heals the man who had his ear cut off by Peter!), but Jesus takes Peter, even though he acts before he thinks, and picks him to begin to build his Church. Why? Peter was clearly weak in a lot of ways, and he failed often. But Jesus saw something in Peter that he could use. Peter needed to grow, but the ingredients were there. Peter was willing to offer them up, to be corrected and redirected by Jesus when necessary, and to keep his eyes on Jesus.

Reflection/Discussion Questions:

1. What do you learn by reading three different men’s inspired accounts of the same event?

2. Why might only one of the three accounts of this event mention Peter’s participation?

3. Some scholars believe the gospel of Mark is actually Peter’s account of Jesus’ life, and Mark just wrote it down for him. If this is true, why might you not want to tell everyone about the time you walked on water?

4. What is a strength and a weakness you have that you could let Jesus use?