I am very thankful that Jesus can take a very ordinary situation and turn it into a moment where He reveals a little more of His glory. Peter did not pick up on the clues that Jesus was not with them as they returned to their fishing business as He had at other times, or that the first night fishing resulted in empty nets. Was there a reason behind this?
As these tired and discouraged men returned early in the morning, who should be on the shore waiting for them but Jesus. Then Jesus asked them an embarrassing question which He knew the answer to; “Children, do you have any fish?” (John 21:5). The question was not to gain information, but to help them think about the condition of their hearts. Have you ever been in a situation where everything you do seems to end in failure or a dead end and someone comes along and says, ‘have you prayed about this?’ Most often the answer is “NO”! To make the situation worse, Jesus says to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some”(21:6). After the huge haul, He asked Peter to bring some of the fish they had caught, and Jesus fed them with bread and fish. So often God takes ordinary circumstances in our lives to redirect our attention back to Him. The main issue is not the job, our finances and marriage, our broken car. The main problem that God is pointing to is that we have left Jesus out from the start. You can change your outcome TODAY! STOP WHAT YOU ARE DOING AND HUMBLE YOURSELF BEFORE HIM!
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We have been looking at the critical importance of following Jesus and realized that often circumstances distract us from that commitment. I understand that the disciples had been traumatized by the crucifixion and three days in the grave. But Jesus appeared to the disciples after the resurrection on several occasions, including behind closed doors so they could see and touch the nail holes in His hands and feet.
Was that not enough to cement their continuing faithfulness in “following” Him? “After this Jesus revealed Himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias, and He revealed Himself in this way. Simon Peter, Thomas (called the Twin), Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples were together. Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We will go with you.” They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing” (John 21:1–3). This seems like a very independent decision on Peter’s part. Worse than that, he is leading six other disciples to follow him and no invitation to Jesus to join them or suggestion that they follow Jesus. Was there anything wrong with the fishing business? No! Their independence resulted in nothing. Jesus turns this sad turn of events into a huge lesson that we must all learn. Following Jesus means that we cannot leave Him out of anything or take our focus off where He is. Working without His presence will yield nothing! “As they were going along the road, someone said to Him [Jesus], “I will follow You wherever You go.” And Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head”” (Luke 9:57–58).
You know as well as I do that promises seem easy to say as they slip over our lips. Are we prepared for all the consequences of such a commitment. Had these persons in verses 57 to 62 heard Jesus’ words earlier in this chapter? “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised”” (9:22). Or, “Let these words sink into your ears: The Son of Man is about to be delivered into the hands of men” (9:44). If they or we make a statement that “I will follow You wherever You go,” we must realize this includes ALLthe conditions that are part of that commitment. Is the Savior who paid for my sins worth my 100% loyalty no matter what happens? Following Jesus should never be based on the quality of life that I am given, but on the worth of His person I serve! There is a subtle attitude that creeps into our minds and hearts when we tell ourselves that we are “following” the Lord, but we put a distance between ourselves and Him. Why?
“Simon Peter followed Jesus, and so did another disciple. Since that disciple was known to the high priest, he entered with Jesus into the courtyard of the high priest, but Peter stood outside at the door.” Remember the times that Peter vowed that he would even die with Jesus if that was necessary! “So, the other disciple [John], who was known to the high priest, went out and spoke to the servant girl who kept watch at the door, and brought Peter in. The servant girl at the door said to Peter, “You also are not one of this man’s disciples, are you?” He said, “I am not.”” (John 18:15–17). Later Peter stands outside by a fire warming himself. Distance? We may quickly criticize Peter for his cowardly attitude when his Lord was on trial and would be crucified in just a few hours. WAIT! Do we behave in the same way, just in different circumstances? Is our walk with the Lord not a close walk because we are afraid of being identified as a “disciple” of His? When the pressure comes from those who know us in public circles, are we quick to water down our words of commitment and somehow compromise? Only you can answer this question. Yesterday I pointed to Jesus’ last words to Peter, “Follow Me” John 21:19. There is a hymn that you may be familiar with by Earnest William Blandly:
I can hear my Savior calling, I can hear my Savior calling, I can hear my Savior calling, "Take thy cross and follow, follow Me." Refrain: Where He leads me I will follow, Where He leads me I will follow, Where He leads me I will follow, I'll go with Him, with Him all the way. The challenge we have in singing or reading songs like this is that the words pass over our lips with little thought of what they involve. Do we consider:
The list could be much longer, but I want us to become more serious and thoughtful about what we say, not that we shouldn’t commit ourselves to following Jesus, but that we are willing and prepared for whatever that requires. It was my privilege to sit with a young man in my office today and discuss ministry that is under his responsibility. Some of his qualities are the ability to organize multiple events and make sure they run well. He wants to honor the Lord in his marriage and family, yet serve the Lord faithfully.
As we were getting near the end of our conversation, I asked him a question that I often ask someone in ministry; ‘If there was one personal thing that you would want me to pray for on a regular basis, what would it be?’ He thought for a long minute and then said, “that I take every ministry opportunity to the Lord firstto know His ‘yes’ or ‘no’ before making any decision.” This is a mature young man that is hard to find. It is more common that those in ministry come up with ideas and then ask the Lord to bless them. As Jesus was closing His final days of ministry and time with His disciples, He had a couple of personal conversations that were intended to leave their mark on the individual and color their ministry. A few blogs ago, I mentioned Thomas. Now I want to bring Peter into focus. At the end of the personal testing Jesus puts Peter through in John 21:15-19, Jesus leaves him with critical instructions; “Follow Me” (John 21:19). If that is all we do, we will be safe and successful. ![]() Today we received the exciting news that 13 pastors and their wives in Ivory Coast completed and graduated from God’s Plan for His Church (GPHC). Emmanuel started the training six months ago and Jacob held the graduation. Keep in mind that GPHC is not a short course like God’s Plan for His Disciples (GPHD -76 pages). GPHC is 217 pages with much more in-depth study on the Church and leadership. These events give us much joy and thanksgiving that God is doing a work like this in unexpected places. Our work is not finished! They need our prayers! Please join us! As I have read through the Old Testament prophets, I have been struck by the number of times the condition of Israel and God’s solutions parallel conditions in the Church and the Lord’s appeal to her. Israel became a rebellious people. It was not just that they violated the laws of God but they rejected their relationship with Him and pursued other gods.
If we peal back the exterior layers of almost any issue today, the root problem is not the issue itself but the fact that the Church has rejected the sovereignty of God and the Lordship of Jesus Christ. If God was really reverenced as the only one true God, His words would carry absolute authority in both doctrine and practice. This is why Jesus asked the question, ““Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you?” (Luke 6:46). Jesus continues in Luke 6 to compare persons who “hear My words and does them” with “the one who hears and does not do them” (47-49). The first has a solid foundation that cannot be swept away while the second comes to sudden ruin. Complacency leads to sudden ruin. It is time we checked to see if we really believe in the authority of Scripture and allow it to govern our lives. We commonly associate the Lord’s patience with Peter, but there were others after spending as much as three and a half years with Jesus still failed to understand His teachings. Let’s take Thomas as an example. Numerous times Jesus had told His disciples that he was going to suffer, be crucified, buried, and rise again. As Mary ran to tell the others that she had seen the Lord, they were still in disbelief – understandable.
“On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When He had said this, He showed them His hands and His side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord” (John 20:19–20). Where was Thomas? We don’t know why, but he “was not with them when Jesus came” (24). Even when the others affirmed they had seen the Lord, there was a strange unbelief with Thomas that remained on his spirit. “Eight days later, His disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then He said to Thomas, “Put your finger here, and see My hands; and put out your hand, and place it in My side. Do not disbelieve but believe”” (26–27). How patient are you with those who have a hard time understanding or believing? The offer Jesus gave in John 6 was so simple – if persons hearing His offer wanted to understand what He was saying, they could ask. What is even harder to understand is that most of these persons claimed to be Jesus’ disciples but would not accept His words.
“So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. Whoever feeds on My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. For My flesh is true food, and My blood is true drink. Whoever feeds on My flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him” (John 6:53–56). Did they ask Jesus to explain His words? John makes this very sad comment: “When many of His disciples heard it, they said, “This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?”” (6:60). “After this many of His disciples turned back and no longer walked with Him” (6:66). At this point, Jesus asked if the twelve wanted to go away as well. What would you say? “Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (6:68). What is the proof of your decision? |
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