Day 49: The Preemption of Physics

John 6:16-21 : When evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, and they entered into the boat, and were going over the sea to Capernaum. It was now dark, and Jesus had not come to them. The sea was tossed by a great wind blowing. When therefore they had rowed about twenty-five or thirty stadia, they saw Jesus walking on the sea, and drawing near to the boat; and they were afraid. But he said to them, “It is I. Don’t be afraid.” They were willing therefore to receive him into the boat. Immediately the boat was at the land where they were going.

Do you find it hard to believe that Jesus walked on water? The reason that I don’t is because nature tells me that it was likely. The natural law of cause and effect tells me that for every effect there must be an even greater cause. The Bible records that Jesus claimed to be God. It also records that God made nature. Nature’s law of cause and effect that we witness today would require that a cause greater than nature itself be required to create nature; something super-to-nature such as what we call the supernatural. On this basis, the Bible’s record of the supernatural makes sense.

The maker of nature simply overruled physics. The problem that people have with Jesus today is the same problem people had then. They want to treat Him as a normal man when He isn’t. This record of Jesus walking on the water is just one evidence of that.

This image is a picture of the modern Lake Kinneret which is what was called at that time: “The Sea of Galilee.” This picture is looking out over it from the Capernaum side which was their destination. It was night and evidently pretty windy. It is a great lake of sorts and it can get stormy on it at times.

Looking at my Holman Christian Standard Bible, I see that twenty or thirty “stadia” are about two or three miles. They had rowed at night two or three miles out on a stormy lake and saw a guy walking toward them on the water. I’d be pretty scared too.

Many people talk about Jesus walking on water, but here it also talks about high-speed travel. As soon as Jesus got into the boat they instantly arrived at their destination which was somewhere near Capernaum where this picture was taken.

To believe in Jesus is to believe in nature’s God. Jesus made it clear who was greater. To not accept this is to put Jesus down. Jesus was great and He was greater than physics. He was God and it was His right and power to do what He wanted with it. It is also His right to do what He wants with us as well.