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Topic: Fishing (06/07/04)
TITLE: Come Follow Me By Marcell Billinghurst 06/10/04 |
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At once they left their nets and followed him. Going on from there, he saw two other brothers, James son of Zebedee and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee, preparing their nets. Jesus called them, and immediately they left the boat and their father and followed him.
Matthew 4:18-22
As we look at these verses, we see Jesus calling the first of His disciples. Who were they?
They were fishermen, going about their daily tasks. No special qualifications that we can see for ministry, but their willingness to be obey. They were willing to drop what they were doing immediately, and follow Jesus.
Would we be so willing to respond immediately to the Lord’s call to follow Him? Or would we think,“I have too much to do.” “ Who will provide for my family if I go?” We often become stuck in our comfort zones. We like our daily routines and we don’t always want to change.
We may feel God is calling us, but so often we are afraid to step out in faith, to follow Jesus. When our hearts are full of fear, we can’t see His purpose and direction in our lives.
We may think, “What could I do?” “I don’t have the right qualifications.” “What will people think?” “Someone else could do it better than me.” The list goes on. Jesus does not ask for excuses. He simply says, “Come follow me and I will make you fishers of men.”
During the fourth watch of the night Jesus went out to them, walking on the lake.
When the disciples saw him walking on the lake, they were terrified. "It's a ghost," they said, and cried out in fear. But Jesus immediately said to them: "Take courage! It is I. Don't be afraid." "Lord, if it's you," Peter replied, "tell me to come to you on the water." "Come," he said. Then Peter got down out of the boat, walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But when he saw the wind, he was afraid and, beginning to sink, cried out, "Lord, save me!" Immediately Jesus reached out his hand and caught him. "You of little faith," he said, "why did you doubt?" And when they climbed into the boat, the wind died down. Then those who were in the boat worshiped him, saying, "Truly you are the Son of God."
Matthew 14:25-33
Once Jesus gets our attention, and we start to obey, our faith begins to grow as we follow Him. God provides opportunities for us to be of service to the Lord. As we step out in faith, God really blesses us as we obey. But sometimes like Peter we take our eyes off the Lord and begin to do things in our own strength. It is then that the strong winds of turmoil, doubt and fear rise up before us, and we begin to sink. We cry out, “Help me Lord.” “Save me, I can’t make it” and Jesus reaches His hand out to draw us up out of our trials. And a quiet voice says, “ You of little faith, why did you doubt?”
Can we like Peter, say? "Truly you are the Son of God."
Jesus does not ask us for special qualifications, He simply says, “"Come, follow me, and I will make you fishers of men."
Bible verses used: Matthew 4:18-22 and Matthew 14:25-33 were taken from the NIV Bible
Used with permission,