Download “In the World” for June 27, 2021 here.
FEAR LEADS TO SUPERHUMAN FEAT
In Russia, strongmen compete in bizarre ways to prove they are the strongest in the country. This month, Maxim Gametsky, the “Siberian Bear,” strapped a 737 jet to his back and tried to pull it across the runway. It wouldn’t budge. In practice, he couldn’t get it to move. But when the crowds and reporters came, something shifted in Maxim, and video shows him pulling the 40-ton beast 15 meters down the tarmac, to the wild cries of fans. “I couldn’t move it on the first attempt in any of my training sessions,” he later said. “And to be honest, I was a little scared today would be the same. Maybe it was excitement, maybe it was fear, but I did it anyway.” Fear and excitement enabled him to perform at a level he’d been unable to attain alone.
FAITH LEADS TO SUPERNATURAL STEP
Imagine the shock and fear the disciples felt that night when they saw a ghostly figure walking on the whitecaps of the Sea of Galilee. Sailors are notoriously superstitious anyway, and seeing Jesus there must’ve been not only terrifying but disorienting. Were they about to hit land? What was happening? The supernatural mood only deepened when Jesus called Peter out onto the water with Him. Peter is often ridiculed for his lack of faith here, but he exhibited a faith so strong that it enabled him to do—for a few steps, at least—something that none of the others even dared to try.
- What’s the most impressive feat of human strength you’ve ever witnessed?
- When have you found yourself capable of something you never thought you could do?
- What was your moment of greatest faith in God?
Additional Resources
These videos and materials are for your personal use. If you show videos in class, be sure to have the necessary rights to do so.
- Music Video, Traditional: “Follow On”
- Music Video, Multicultural: “King of Kings” by Chandler Moore
- Music Video, Contemporary: “Great and Marvelous” by Simon Khoralskiy and Brothers
- Guzik’s Commentary on Matthew 14
- Matthew Henry’s Commentary on Matthew 14
- Pulpit Commentary on Matthew 14
Get unlimited access to the “Unpacking This Week’s Lesson” podcast when you sign up for our Church Support Program: https://churchsupport.davidccook.org/
www.www.standardlesson.com/category/in-the-world
Copyright © 2021 by Standard Publishing, part of the David C Cook family.
All rights reserved. Each download is for the use of one church only.