Ghost Spotting: How We Turn Jesus into a Phantom
One of the reasons we find the dark so unsettling is because our eyes begin to deceive us. We begin to see things that aren’t really there.
When our eyes fail, our imaginations take over. Before we can reach for a light switch, we’ve already created a realm in which we could be the victim at any moment. It’s no wonder we naturally associate darkness with evil. When the physical world is exposed, it’s more comfortable to our perception than that which appears blurry and unsure, hidden in blackness.
I believe the same occurs spiritually. When life is at ease, it’s not difficult to see God’s kindness. His presence seems present, and His love is abundantly clear to the eyes of our hearts; however, we tend to view any negative event as caused by an evil force out to harm us. We eliminate the possibility that God could be using it to draw us closer to Himself.
We may forget that God can work as equally well in darkness as He can during life’s brightest days. Whether we’re visiting the house of mourning or simply enjoying His many blessings, we need to make room in our minds for God to work in unlikely ways. Sometimes, He may even lovingly terrify us to draw us closer to Himself.
Immediately he made the disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, while he dismissed the crowds. And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray.
When evening came, he was there alone, but the boat by this time was a long way from the land, beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them.
And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea. But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” and they cried out in fear.
But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.” — Matthew 14:22–27
The disciples’ reaction is perfectly orthodox. Who wouldn’t be horrified at the sight of a supposed ghost? Though they had seen Jesus perform miracles, nothing was akin to Him taking a stroll out at sea.
From our perspective, however, a condescending attitude is not far off. It’s not hard to imagine defaulting to statements like, “How could they not know it was Jesus? I certainly wouldn’t have doubted His power to defy the laws of physics. Where is their faith?”
By doing so, we distance ourselves from how we do the same.
The disciples saw what they were looking for. The possibility that Jesus could be the ghostly figure in the distance was not even a thought. But the otherworldly profile they perceived as a symbol of death turned out to be the man who would soon destroy it.
They perceived what should have been unparalleled comfort as a great terror. Even in their ignorance of Him doing so, Jesus was drawing near. The Son of Man was coming to meet them. Before the disciples could misinterpret Him as a spectral presence, Jesus knew exactly where they were and did not abandon them. He even gave them a reminder of His Godhood when He said, “It is I” or, more literally, “I Am.”
When we eliminate the possibility of Jesus being there in any situation, we turn Him into a ghost. We replace His promise to never leave nor forsake us (Deut. 31:6) with our own crooked view of God’s sovereign care. In doing so, we leave ourselves with no one to call out to.
However, not every disciple remained in paralyzed distress.
And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” — Matthew 14:28
Peter’s reaction is probably the most surprising. Not in the sense that he reacted — which is quite common for him — but how he spoke to Jesus. There was no tact to his request. He asked like a child. Peter wasn’t satisfied with the evidence Jesus presented. He wanted more than just words to prove that this man who claimed to be his Teacher wasn’t a wandering specter.
His asking is far beyond what most of us would be comfortable with. It’s as if Peter said to Jesus, God incarnate, “If it actually is you, you should be able to make someone else walk on water as well.” He basically asked for a second miracle.
That’s gutsy.
However, I find Peter’s response rather admirable. He expressed faith in Jesus not by simply diving out of the boat but by calling out to Him in the first place. Peter didn’t withdraw in fear or passively let his uncertainty overwhelm him. He wanted to trust Jesus’ words, even when the situation was foggy. Although imperfect, that’s a better starting point than refusing to express any semblance of trust in Him to begin with.
But the story doesn’t end there. It would be an error to make it a simple life lesson, because it’s not — it’s a foreshadowing of the Gospel.
He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.”
Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?”
And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.” — Matthew 14:29–33
In the face of Peter’s doubt, Christ showed His perfect faithfulness. He looked past Peter’s marred trust in Him, disregarded the ways Peter was failing in the moment, and extended a saving hand. This is a microcosm of Jesus’ abounding grace towards His people. Jesus is not an impersonal savior, casting off our need to another. He takes us by the hands and pulls us above the waters with Him into glory at the Father’s right hand (Eph. 2:6).
God doesn’t exist to remove each iota of discomfort from our lives. His ways won’t always make sense to us, and it’s possible they never will in this lifetime (Is. 55:8–9). As fallen people, we have an inclination to attribute every terrifying situation to an evil force. We don’t always default to singing “Great is Thy Faithfulness” when life disorients us. Fortunately, Christ doesn’t need permission to displace the ghosts we create in the darkness. When our attention is pulled from God’s faithfulness into darkness, Jesus reminds us that He is the light that has overcome the world (Jn. 16:33).
