So Jesus Asked Simon Peter to do something hed done a thousand times before, but in a way never done before: to put down the nets again into the water and fish where youre not supposed too. Peter faces a dilemma: do I trust Jesus or not? Do I take Jesus at his word, or not? Lets find out. I call this next phase 3. Take Jesus Fishing phase. What’s really at stake with Peter? What’s the real issue—will Peter trust Jesus enough to drop his clean nets in the lake in broad daylight? 5 “Master,” Simon replied, “we worked hard all last night and didn’t catch a thing. But if you say so, I’ll let the nets down again.” Peter addressed Jesus as Master—a term of respect. There was enough of what Peter had heard from Jesus and enough respect to take another baby step with Him. Risky? Yes. Inconvenient? Yes. Ridiculous. Probably. “But if you say so…” Here’s what Peter is implying: “Jesus, I’m not doing this because I will catch some fish; or because it’s a good use of my time; or because it will make for a good story someday. I’m doing this because I’ve been listening to you; I let you sit in my boat; and now I have just enough respect for you to do what you say.” So Peter tosses out the net. Peter had no clue what hung in the balance when he decided to take Jesus fishing. He decided to trust Jesus with this one opportunity to do something he’d done thousands of times but in a different way. He acted on his belief. Little did Peter know that this single decision to follow Jesus—this single step to obey Jesus would change him and impact the world forever. 6 And this time their nets were so full of fish they began to tear! 7 A shout for help brought their partners in the other boat, and soon both boats were filled with fish and on the verge of sinking. 8 When Simon Peter realized what had happened, he fell to his knees before Jesus and said, “Oh, LORD, please leave me—I’m too much of a sinner to be around you.” In that moment, for Peter, it was no longer about fishing. Notice it was no longer “master” but “Lord”. In that moment, Peter recognizes who Jesus is and who he is—a sinner. This is when Peter’s relationship with Jesus really began. Peter had spent a few hours with Jesus listening, but it wasn’t until he took that baby step of trust and tossed out the net that his eyes and heart were opened to the fact he was in the presence of God himself. 9 For he was awestruck by the number of fish they had caught, as were the others with him. 10 His partners, James and John, the sons of Zebedee, were also amazed. Jesus replied to Simon, “Don’t be afraid! From now on you’ll be fishing for people!” “Peter, don’t be afraid. I have a future for you but I couldn’t reveal it to you until you took that baby step of faith with me—a step you’d taken thousands of times before this. And now you know who I am. Trust me. I have plans for you.” You know. Peter had no clue what hung in the balance of a single decision to trust Jesus and toss out the net. What if he hadn’t? 11 And as soon as they landed, they left everything and followed Jesus. This is the 4th phase of following: Leave Your Nets. Simon didn’t leave everything behind because Jesus asked him to but because he had listened, been inconvenienced and taken a single step to obey Him. Peter later became the leader of the early church and a household name. Where are you at? Are you sitting and listening? Are you loaning Jesus the boat phase? Are you taking Jesus Fishing Phase? Whats really at stake with you? Whats the real issue for you? Do you trust Jesus or not? Are you at the leaving your net phase, taking that simple step and beginning to obey Him? Are you ready?
Posted on: Thu, 16 Jan 2014 20:53:11 +0000
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