We need to believe in the Lord Jesus. If our living is in the wilderness, He will take care of us. If our way is on the sea, He is on the mountain praying for us and treading upon all the waves. The waves are under His feet. Eventually, the little boat with the disciples in it came safely to shore. Both the disciples who remained in the boat and Brother Peter who jumped out of the boat were kept safe.

The little boat signifies your little job. Your teaching job or your profession is a little boat. Whether you stay in the boat or come out of the boat, you must still trust in the Lord's call. I do not encourage you to leave the boat; that may frighten you. However, if you hear the word of the Lord saying, "Come," then you may leap out of the boat. Do not put all of your trust in the boat. Some people believe in the Lord Jesus, but also rely on the boat. Although the Lord is treading over the waves, they still need a little boat to carry them. Peter saw that it was the Lord and he leaped out of the boat and went to Him. However, whether you keep the job or jump out of the job, it eventually will make no difference. The Lord will take care of you.

This portion of Matthew reveals the way to follow the Lord Jesus during the period from His rejection until the full coming of the kingdom. The way to follow Him is the way of faith. Faith is not something of our thinking or reasoning. Faith is simply the realization of what Christ is. No matter how much religion has rejected Him and politics has persecuted Him, He is still the Lord of all! The rejected Jesus, the persecuted Jesus, is able to feed 5,000 men with five loaves and two fishes. In Matthew 15 the Lord fed another great multitude in the wilderness, once again showing that He could provide them a living.

In 1933 the Lord Jesus called me to give up my job. Why do I say that the boat in chapter fourteen of Matthew represents our job? Because this corresponds to my experience. The year that I gave up my job, I felt just like Peter leaving the boat. To my sensation, the job I had was a little boat. In my little boat, I was quite safe. If I should jump out of this boat, giving up my job, what would become of my living? What would I rely upon? But the Lord Jesus called me to forsake that little boat, and I have been walking safely over the sea for many years. On the other hand, many dear ones have kept their jobs and professions. Eventually, there is no difference. The Lord takes care of both.

We must realize that today is still the period between the rejection of the Lord Jesus and the full coming of the kingdom. As we are following Him during this period, our living is in the wilderness, and our way is on the sea. For both of these we need faith. Faith is not vain; faith is a reality. The Lord Jesus, the real One, is the object of our faith. We are in the wilderness, but the Lord Jesus is here. We are on the stormy sea and the winds are contrary to us, but He is here. He is treading upon the waves, and they are all beneath His feet. So we have peace. We have peace by faith in the Lord Jesus, the One whom we realize as the object of our faith. This is the way to follow the Lord Jesus during this period. The period of His rejection began 1900 years ago, and it continues today. We are still under the rejection of religion and the persecution of politics. We are in the wilderness, and we are on the sea following the Lord Jesus by faith. He provides our living, and He takes care of our safety. What we need is living faith to go on with the Lord for the sake of His kingdom until the kingdom comes in full.