Take Heart, It Is I, Do Not Be Afraid
When the wind is against you, the Lord of the storm walks toward you on the water.
Today's Verse
But immediately Jesus spoke to them and said, 'Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.'
Matthew 14:27
Historical Context
Matthew writes to a mostly Jewish-Christian audience already familiar with the Hebrew Scriptures. That matters here, because this scene is soaked in Old Testament resonance. The Sea of Galilee sits about 700 feet below sea level, ringed by hills that funnel sudden, violent winds down onto the water. Fishermen knew these squalls could kill. But for a Jewish reader, the sea meant more than weather — it was the ancient symbol of chaos, the deep that only God rules. Job says God 'trampled the waves of the sea' (Job 9:8). The psalmist says the Lord's 'path was through the great waters' (Ps. 77:19). No one walks on the sea but God.
The episode follows immediately on the feeding of the five thousand. Jesus 'made' the disciples get into the boat and go on ahead while he dismissed the crowd and went up the mountain to pray alone. John's Gospel tells us the crowd had wanted to make him king by force; Jesus removes his disciples from that fever and withdraws to the Father. Then, in the fourth watch of the night — between three and six in the morning — after they have been fighting the wind for hours, he comes to them.
His words in verse 27 are stronger in Greek than most translations show. 'It is I' is literally 'I am' — the divine name from Exodus 3:14. Matthew's original readers would have caught it. This is not merely a rescue story. It is a disclosure. The man walking toward them across the chaos is the God of Israel in the flesh, and the disciples end the scene doing the only reasonable thing: they worship him and confess, 'Truly you are the Son of God.'
Reflection
The disciples were exactly where Jesus had told them to be. Obedience did not spare them the storm. Remember that the next time you are tempted to read your circumstances as a verdict on your faithfulness. The wind was against them because the Lord had work to do in them out there on the water.
And notice how he comes. Not before the storm. Not at its first gust. In the fourth watch — the darkest, coldest stretch, when hope is thinnest. He is never late, but he is often later than we would prefer, because he is doing more than solving a problem. He is teaching us who he is.
Peter's request is bold and right: 'Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.' And he walks. Actually walks. Then he sees the wind, and he sinks. We are quick to mock Peter, but he is the only one who got out of the boat. His failure is the failure of a man reaching for his Lord, and Jesus does not lecture him mid-drowning. He reaches out his hand and catches him. The rebuke comes after the rescue: 'O you of little faith, why did you doubt?' Grace first, then correction.
What sinks us is almost always the same thing that sank Peter — we look away from Christ and start measuring the wind. The waves are real. The danger is real. But the One walking toward you is the great I AM, the crucified and risen Lord who has already gone through the deepest water on your behalf. He does not ask you to be unafraid because the storm is small. He asks you to take heart because he is here.
For Reflection
Where in your life right now are you 'measuring the wind' instead of fixing your eyes on Christ — and what would it look like to take the next step toward him anyway?
Prayer
Lord Jesus, I confess how quickly I look away from you and start counting the waves. Forgive my small faith. Thank you that when I sink, you reach out your hand before you correct my heart. Teach me to hear your voice above the wind: 'Take heart, it is I; do not be afraid.' Anchor me in the truth that you are the great I AM, sovereign over every storm you have led me into. I worship you as Lord and Son of God. In your name I pray, Amen.
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The Eloquent Preacher Who Still Had More to Learn — August 7, 2026
The Bereans Searched the Scriptures Daily — August 6, 2026
Image: Amedee Varin, File:Christ walking on the Waves.jpg — Public domain via Wikimedia Commons.
Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
I have been in a “worry state,” but I woke up this morning with these words in my heart: “You deserve the glory. You deserve the praise.”
I opened Substack, and your post was the first one I read. What a beautiful and timely read. I’m taking it personally, as though it was written just for me and met me exactly where I am this morning. Thank you for sharing it. ❤️
It was not until I lived it and got older did I understand this story.
God moves Suddenly and he put us in these situations to help us mature so that we can hear clear with purpose so when he gives us the land he has made for us we are able to maintain it instead of repeating these cycles of trauma bonding and suffering through self sabotaging.