Children’s Sermon

Matthew 14.22-33

Walking on Water

Kyle had been so excited because his dad had promised to teach him to swim. That day in the shallow water at the edge of the lake, Kyle’s dad showed him how to use his arms and legs to swim forward in the water. Then they went out into deeper water. Kyle’s dad said, “Swim to me and keep your eyes on me.” Kyle began to swim toward his dad, but when a boat came roaring by, Kyle turned his head to look at it. Waves splashed over him and he began to sink under the wildly churning water. But, suddenly there was dad lifting him up and telling him he was safe.

Our Bible story today is about Jesus walking on water. Have you ever seen a person walking on water? (Let the children respond.) No. I haven’t either. Remember, though, that Jesus could do many things that you and I can’t do. Here’s what happened:

Jesus sent his disciples off in a boat. He did this because he wanted to have time alone to pray to his Heavenly Father, God. When he finished praying it was early in the morning and the disciples were far out on the lake. Wind blew; waves swished this way and that.

When they saw someone walking on the water toward their boat, the disciples got scared. One of the men called out, “It’s a ghost!” Jesus said, “Don’t be afraid, it is I.” There was Jesus, walking on top of the water!

Peter called back, “If it is really you, let me come to you on the water.” Jesus agreed and Peter climbed out of the boat and started toward Jesus. The wind blew and the water splashed around and Peter looked away from Jesus at the waves. When he did, Peter began to sink!

As he sunk, Peter called out to Jesus, “Help me!” Jesus reached down and caught Peter’s hand. Together, the two walked to the boat.

Now, all that time the other disciples were watching. Like Peter, they had always seen Jesus as their friend, their teacher, even their leader, but at that moment they all realized that Jesus was more than that. When Peter and Jesus climbed into the boat, Jesus disciples said, “You are truly the Son of God.” (vs. 33)

Like Kyle, who forgot to keep his eyes on his dad as he learned to swim, Peter was distracted by the wind and waves and took his eyes off Jesus. And he sank! That can happen to us, too unless we keep our eyes on the Lord.

PRAYER

God, we are so grateful that we have these lessons from the Holy Bible that show us that we can trust Jesus. Help us to think about Jesus often and know that even when we are in scary situations, he is with us. Amen.

Scripture quotations from the World English Bible