Just Get In the Boat
by Pastor Penny Oh
28 June 2026
Key Texts: Matthew 14:22-36; John 9:1-3
Theme: When Jesus commands believers to step out in obedience -- without explanation and often into a storm -- the call is not to understand first but to trust and get in the boat, because what waits on the other side is always worth the journey.
Jesus Knew What Was on the Other Side
Matthew 14 is a long and exhausting chapter. Jesus had received the news of John the Baptist's beheading, attempted to withdraw to pray, been followed by multitudes, and then fed over five thousand people. It was evening. Yet immediately after that, verse 22 records that Jesus made -- or in other translations, insisted, directed, commanded, and even compelled -- His disciples to get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side. The strength of that language is striking. He was not gentle or open to negotiation; He was intentional. The reason only becomes clear in verses 34 to 36: when the boat landed at Gennesaret, crowds recognised Jesus and brought all their sick to Him, and all who touched even the fringe of His robe were healed. There was a ministry waiting on the other side. What felt like an inconvenient night journey to the disciples was, in Jesus' eyes, a mission already planned. He saw the shore when they could only see the water.
Application:
Ask God to show you whether there is a step He has been asking you to take that you have delayed -- and consider that He may already see what is waiting on the other side.
Obedience Before Understanding
The disciples did not get into the boat because they understood the destination. They got in because they trusted the one who sent them -- and even then, the trust was imperfect. They had no idea a storm was coming, no idea Jesus would walk on water, and Peter certainly did not board expecting to step onto the waves. This is the consistent pattern of faith: the explanation often comes later, and sometimes only in retrospect. The preacher described leaving a difficult workplace without knowing what lay ahead -- yet the words that came in that moment, "I am not giving up, I am moving on," felt like a confirmation that could not have been self-generated. God had already seen the shore. Faith does not wait for the blueprint; it moves on the instruction.
Application:
Identify one area where God has been prompting you to move but you have been waiting for more clarity -- and take the first step in obedience before the full picture is visible.
The Storm Comes Because They Obeyed
A common assumption is that difficulty signals a wrong turn -- that the storm means God's will has been missed. This passage challenges that directly. The rough sea and strong winds did not arise because the disciples disobeyed; they arose because the disciples obeyed. They were precisely where Jesus had sent them. John 9:1-3 reinforces the principle: when the disciples asked whether the man born blind had sinned, Jesus replied that neither he nor his parents had sinned, but that this happened so that the works of God might be displayed in him. Storms are not always evidence of failure. Sometimes they are the condition under which God's glory becomes most visible -- the disciples who feared the waves also witnessed Jesus walking on water, a miracle they would never have seen from the safety of the shore.
Application:
When you face difficulty in a season of obedience, resist the conclusion that you have made a mistake -- and ask God to show you what He intends to display through this storm.
Jesus Goes Into the Boat Too
Peter's moment on the water is the most remembered part of this passage, but a quieter detail carries equal weight. When Peter began to sink and cried out, Jesus did not lecture him or delay -- He reached out immediately and pulled him up. Then He got into the boat with Peter. He did not save Peter and send him back alone; He climbed in and made the rest of the journey with him. This is the commitment of the one who sends: He does not deploy and disappear. The same Jesus who compelled the disciples into a storm-bound night crossing was the same Jesus walking toward them on the water, lifting the one who sank, and sitting in the hull for the remainder of the crossing. Obedience into difficulty is never obedience into abandonment.
Application:
In whatever storm you are currently navigating, remind yourself that the one who called you into this is present with you in it -- and speak that truth out loud today.
The Shore, Not the Storm, Is the Destination
The message closes with one of its sharpest contrasts: the disciples saw the storm; Jesus saw the shore. The disciples saw the waves; Jesus saw people waiting. The disciples saw difficulty; Jesus saw an opportunity to touch lives. The storm was real -- but it was never the destination. The preacher shared a personal illustration that made the point concrete: for years, the Holy Spirit had been prompting her to reconcile with her mother, a conversation she had avoided because it would mean reopening old wounds. She eventually made the date, had the conversation, and experienced forgiveness and release. Her mother passed away a few months later. Had she not gotten into that boat, she would have lived with regret. Every believer has a difficult shore that Jesus is calling them toward. The storm along the way is not the point. The shore is.
Application:
Name the shore God is calling you toward -- the conversation, the commitment, or the step of faith you have been avoiding -- and decide today that you will get in the boat.
Life Group Reflection Questions
1. Jesus did not explain to the disciples why He was sending them across the lake that night -- yet He was deeply intentional about it. Think of a time when God asked you to do something without giving you the full picture. Looking back, what was waiting on the other side that you could not see at the time? How does that memory shape your willingness to obey the next unclear instruction?
2. The storm in Matthew 14 arose not because the disciples disobeyed, but because they obeyed. Have you ever been in a season where obedience led directly into difficulty and you wondered whether you had made a mistake? What helped you -- or what do you wish had helped you -- hold on during that storm?
3. Peter's cry when he began to sink was immediate and unpolished: "Lord, save me." And Jesus reached out immediately, without a lecture. Is there an area of your life right now where you have been sinking quietly rather than crying out? What is stopping you from calling out to Jesus in that place?
4. The preacher described postponing a difficult reconciliation with her mother for years -- and how close she came to missing the chance entirely. Is there a relationship or conversation that the Holy Spirit has been prompting you toward that you have been putting off? What is the first step toward getting into that boat?
5. The message draws a contrast between what the disciples saw (storm, waves, danger) and what Jesus saw (shore, people waiting, healing). When you look at a challenge or act of obedience in front of you right now, what does the storm look like from where you stand? And what might Jesus already see on the other side that you cannot yet?
Closing Summary
This message carries a single urgent call drawn from Matthew 14: when Jesus says get in the boat, just get in the boat. The disciples were sent without explanation into a crossing that brought storm, miracle, sinking, rescue, and finally a shoreline full of people waiting to be healed -- none of it visible when He gave the command. Storms do not mean God's will has been missed; often they arise precisely because it has been found. And He who sends never sends alone -- Jesus got into the boat with Peter and crossed with him to the other side. Whatever boat He is calling you into today, the same Jesus who calls is committed to getting you there.
