The Divine Stumbling Block

1 Kings 19:9-18
Romans 10:1-15
Matthew 14:22-33


The late comedian Dean Martin was once quoted as having said, “Show me a man who has no fear, and I will show you a man who gets beat up a lot.” It is often said that the greatest motivator OR stumbling block for any person is fear. Fear of risk, for example, marks the difference between entrepreneurs and those who work for them. Take away those fearless dare-devils and stunt actors in movies, and what’s left? Chick flicks.

To be fair, however, it is important to understand that fear and cowardice are not necessarily synonymous. A lot of people are alive today because “informed fear” (aka, healthy respect for danger!) borne of experience advised their decision-making process at one point or another. Many a combat veteran will testify that while fear can paralyze, it can also motivate one to make more reasonable decisions regarding, for instance, when to advance and when to hold or withdraw. For many, the absolute absence of fear is nothing more than evidence of an absolute lack of active brain cells!

We may admire, on a particular level, the courage of someone who will boldly proclaim, “Hold my beer and watch this”, but we will never take them seriously beyond their capacity to entertain us. Besides, I’m not sure this can even fall into a category that might define fear or courage, but it is interesting to see sometimes how differently we can act when we are under certain influences and not necessarily drugs or alcohol, but of other things which can inform us, embolden us, or even trip us up.

It is fear of rejection that can keep many of us from opportunities we cannot define and will never know because we stepped backward instead of forward when opportunities presented themselves. It is perhaps this fear that may at least partly account for the decline in American church membership. In a recent UMNS story about declining membership in UM churches, Rev. Taylor Burton-Edwards who is director of worship resources for the UM Board of Discipleship says that while the UM Church should be working to attract “seekers”, we should also be aware that many spiritually inclined people are wary of religious institutions and may resent the data which causes churches to target them as potential “recruits”.

"Every time we do that, we miss the point," Burton-Edwards said. "Instead of adjusting our message to get those people with us, we should be working to be in mission with people, whoever they are, wherever they are." I would also add: regardless of their inclinations, and without judgment or prejudice.
Burton-Edwards said the study's data is useful but shouldn't be the focus in measuring the church's vitality. It takes more than numbers, he said, to address the core question of whether the church is following Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.

"We've got the paradigm turned around. … It's not about getting people inside of the church; it's about getting Christians out," he said. "It's not how many people are in our organization, but what level of spiritual impression people are experiencing. How are they being imprinted with the likeness of Jesus Christ? And what is the impact crater around them as a result?" UMNS, Marta Aldrich, 29 Feb 2008

Peter may have had the right idea when he stepped out of the boat (Matthew 14:22-33), but his motive seemed highly questionable. It did not seem to be a matter of faith that compelled Peter to step out of the boat and I don’t think Jesus felt any real need to “prove” Himself, but He may well have been trying to make a point. Before the point of losing one’s focus and “sinking”, however, is the point of motive and what we hope to achieve in stepping out of our own boats.

Defining that motive, that sense of purpose, may be an important step in overcoming the common stumbling block – the fear - that, at the very least, can slow us down as we perhaps weigh the outcome against the potential risk. At most, perhaps, this fear can cause us to stop altogether. In the deep recesses of our being, we know that sharing the Good News of the New Covenant is our privilege, but our fear – rational or not – will help us to justify our choice to stay in the boat. Thus an opportunity lost is a blessing never realized.

We can admire and applaud Peter for being willing to step out as he did but can we follow this as an example of faith, or is there something more to this story than meets the eye? Could Peter have fallen into that category of those who say, “Here, hold my beer and watch this?” Peter was not trusting Jesus more than he was testing Him even if he was trying to affirm Jesus’ identity. He may well have been also trying to “show” the others in the boat something. In spite of his failure and ultimate fear, however, notice that he was still lifted up and rescued! Surely this is something we can relate to!

I want to add a minor twist to this Gospel passage in light of Paul’s words to the Romans. Both Martin Luther and John Wesley cited Romans in having been freed from the notion that one must live and work up to a certain standard in order to please the Lord God, which is to say that striving toward perfection in obedience, while an admirable goal and a worthwhile endeavor, may actually be the greatest stumbling block of all in the development of the faith we need to get us through difficult challenges. We rely on our righteous performance in an effort to please the Lord, thus the potential is there that faith will play too minor a role.

The Bible says that “without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” Hebrews 11:6

With this in mind, then, consider what Paul is saying in verse 3 (Romans 10): “…being ignorant of the righteousness that comes from God and seeking to establish their own [righteousness], they have not submitted to God’s righteousness.”

I know that sometimes we can split hairs over the perceived contrast between faith and works in trying to find our niche on Christ’s path in our faith journey, but we must always be mindful that the right – and righteous - path is, indeed, Christ’s path and not our own. I think maybe what Paul is saying is that the focus of our works must necessarily be evaluated so that we can be confident that these works, whatever they may be, are acts of gratitude rather than self-proclaimed acts of righteousness. In other words, if we are seeking to please the Lord God by the works of our hands in some misguided effort to “score points”, we have missed the boat altogether! We have vainly sought to “establish [our] own righteousness”.

Socially and for the sake of the local church, the great tragedy in this is that once we have decided for ourselves how we must behave, we then make demands and judgments and then IMPOSE sometimes unreasonable expectations – stumbling blocks - on others who do not follow OUR footsteps along OUR path even if and when we use the Bible as our reference point. We have made a proclamation of OUR OWN righteousness and our place as “proper” examples and soon will demand that others follow not Christ but us. We may be “technically” correct in our endeavors and our beliefs but, according to Paul, we are spiritually in the wrong.

Perhaps this was the essence of Peter’s failure. It is a fine line between Peter’s lack of faith and his desire to believe what he was seeing. The gift Peter received was that first step upon the water in which he was able to stand, but then he turned to his own devices – his own ability to believe – and lost sight of his faith which was the only thing there could possibly have been to sustain him.

It was the righteousness of Christ Himself that saved Peter, not Peter’s. Would we, like Peter, choose to TEST the Lord in our doubts and fears as we embark on our own efforts, or shall we acknowledge that it is Christ ALONE who keeps us from sinking in the first place and that our own efforts and acts are those of gratitude and not obligation?

In the name of the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit. Amen.