WEBVTT 00:00:01.419 --> 00:00:04.440 Sharing good news of great joy to all people. 00:00:04.919 --> 00:00:10.419 Elation Church. Hope you had a good week. Hope 00:00:10.419 --> 00:00:11.960 you had a good week, and I hope through this 00:00:11.960 --> 00:00:14.259 series you've learned a lot. How many of you 00:00:14.259 --> 00:00:16.079 have learned something or seen something that 00:00:16.079 --> 00:00:18.239 you've never seen before, right? This has been 00:00:18.239 --> 00:00:21.839 such a great series, especially last week. Like, 00:00:21.839 --> 00:00:25.399 I never viewed that parable that way before, 00:00:25.500 --> 00:00:27.300 and it was just like, wow, that was incredible. 00:00:27.440 --> 00:00:29.120 Dad and I got so excited. We're like, wow, this 00:00:29.120 --> 00:00:32.859 is so good. And I've listened back to the podcast, 00:00:32.979 --> 00:00:35.060 and I hope you listen back to it too, right? 00:00:35.340 --> 00:00:37.840 Sometimes you need something more than once to 00:00:37.840 --> 00:00:40.030 understand it. You have to feed on it. You have 00:00:40.030 --> 00:00:42.369 to meditate on it, right, for it to get into 00:00:42.369 --> 00:00:45.009 your soul and get into your spirit, change your 00:00:45.009 --> 00:00:47.350 life. We're talking about faith. Everybody say 00:00:47.350 --> 00:00:51.030 faith. Everybody say action. Action. We're talking 00:00:51.030 --> 00:00:53.929 about faith and the actions associated with it. 00:00:54.310 --> 00:00:57.950 A living faith, not a dead faith. A living faith, 00:00:58.070 --> 00:01:02.060 what, is an active faith. It's an active faith. 00:01:02.240 --> 00:01:04.680 It's not passive. It doesn't just sit around 00:01:04.680 --> 00:01:07.920 and just wait and say, okay, God, you'll do what 00:01:07.920 --> 00:01:10.219 you're going to do whether I pray about you doing 00:01:10.219 --> 00:01:13.980 it or not. Sometimes we treat God that way anyways. 00:01:14.519 --> 00:01:17.359 But it's a living faith. It's an active faith. 00:01:17.939 --> 00:01:21.629 And the people in the Bible, what we read. Over 00:01:21.629 --> 00:01:23.989 and over and all these stories, right? It's not 00:01:23.989 --> 00:01:26.069 people that didn't do anything for God. No, it's 00:01:26.069 --> 00:01:28.510 the people that did. It's the people that accomplished 00:01:28.510 --> 00:01:31.049 what God told them that they would do. It's the 00:01:31.049 --> 00:01:33.230 people that acted. It's the people that stood, 00:01:33.450 --> 00:01:37.709 spoke, went, and did, gave, and reached out in 00:01:37.709 --> 00:01:41.590 faith. Everybody say in faith. By faith. Through 00:01:41.590 --> 00:01:46.689 faith. They saw the goodness and glory and power 00:01:46.689 --> 00:01:51.519 of God on display. Amen? And our faith actions 00:01:51.519 --> 00:01:57.260 demonstrate our faithfulness to God. Have you 00:01:57.260 --> 00:02:00.079 ever thought about that? Our faith actions, the 00:02:00.079 --> 00:02:02.079 things that we do, if we follow through what 00:02:02.079 --> 00:02:05.159 he's asked us to do, it's really a demonstration 00:02:05.159 --> 00:02:08.840 of our faithfulness to him. Are we faithful to 00:02:08.840 --> 00:02:13.699 God, right? Most people, I heard this this week, 00:02:13.860 --> 00:02:16.699 most people will live and die and never do the 00:02:16.699 --> 00:02:21.159 first thing God called them to do. Most people 00:02:21.159 --> 00:02:24.379 will live and die and never do the first thing 00:02:24.379 --> 00:02:27.740 God called them to do. How sad, right? But it 00:02:27.740 --> 00:02:29.919 does say wide is the road that leads to destruction. 00:02:30.180 --> 00:02:32.439 Narrow is the road that leads to life, right? 00:02:32.860 --> 00:02:35.960 I believe God, his will, right, is for that all 00:02:35.960 --> 00:02:38.979 to come to repentance, right? But is that the 00:02:38.979 --> 00:02:41.699 case? Are all going to repent? Are all going 00:02:41.699 --> 00:02:44.460 to turn to God? No. So he's wooing, the Holy 00:02:44.460 --> 00:02:48.530 Spirit is wooing his children. calling them to 00:02:48.530 --> 00:02:52.009 repentance, but a lot of them will never do what 00:02:52.009 --> 00:02:55.129 God originally said. He'll never do, and not 00:02:55.129 --> 00:02:57.930 even willing to do. But then it kind of goes 00:02:57.930 --> 00:03:01.849 beyond that too, right? Even as Christians, we've 00:03:01.849 --> 00:03:04.629 believed in God. We've taken a hold of that. 00:03:05.270 --> 00:03:09.449 But if God calls us to do something, what do 00:03:09.449 --> 00:03:12.530 we do? We reason it out the way. We say, I'll 00:03:12.530 --> 00:03:16.349 do it later. Right? I'll do that when it's convenient 00:03:16.349 --> 00:03:19.930 for me or when I feel comfortable about it. I 00:03:19.930 --> 00:03:22.110 like that one. Sometimes because God calls you 00:03:22.110 --> 00:03:23.669 to do some things that are a little uncomfortable, 00:03:23.969 --> 00:03:28.270 right? He calls you to go and pushes you in a 00:03:28.270 --> 00:03:30.509 place where you go, well, that's not really my 00:03:30.509 --> 00:03:33.229 character and that's not really who I want to 00:03:33.229 --> 00:03:35.930 be or that would be embarrassing to me, God. 00:03:36.229 --> 00:03:42.330 Don't put me, don't ask me to do that. And we'll 00:03:42.330 --> 00:03:46.069 forget. A lot of times we just forget what God 00:03:46.069 --> 00:03:49.169 originally called on our hearts to do. I've known 00:03:49.169 --> 00:03:51.129 missionaries like that. God's called them to 00:03:51.129 --> 00:03:53.590 be a missionary. They waited all that time and 00:03:53.590 --> 00:03:55.569 they said, I'll do it when I'm older, when the 00:03:55.569 --> 00:03:58.430 kids are out or when, you know, life is better. 00:03:59.330 --> 00:04:01.490 But God placed that vision on their heart and 00:04:01.490 --> 00:04:02.750 told them that's where they need to go. And then 00:04:02.750 --> 00:04:07.099 they waited. Now, eventually. Eventually, he 00:04:07.099 --> 00:04:09.520 turned around and went where God told him to 00:04:09.520 --> 00:04:12.979 go. And did God use him? Yes, God used him. But 00:04:12.979 --> 00:04:16.500 think about all that time lost, right? So it's 00:04:16.500 --> 00:04:18.680 important not to only act, but to act quickly. 00:04:18.860 --> 00:04:21.740 It's important to act and do what he tells us 00:04:21.740 --> 00:04:25.339 to do. And we need to be quick doing it. A lot 00:04:25.339 --> 00:04:28.519 of times we know the will of God, but are hopelessly 00:04:28.519 --> 00:04:31.879 unfaithful to it. We're just unfaithful to him. 00:04:32.459 --> 00:04:34.740 Someone who's always been there for us. Someone 00:04:34.740 --> 00:04:37.180 who's always faithful to us. It's important. 00:04:37.839 --> 00:04:39.699 A lot of times these phrases, you know, I know 00:04:39.699 --> 00:04:43.720 I'm supposed to do blank, but I'm too busy. We 00:04:43.720 --> 00:04:47.120 know we should forgive, right? It's a word. It's 00:04:47.120 --> 00:04:49.560 a direct word from God. We know we should forgive, 00:04:49.779 --> 00:04:54.319 but then should I? Should I do it though? But 00:04:54.319 --> 00:04:57.860 you know, God, what they did. You know how that 00:04:57.860 --> 00:05:02.509 made me feel. But should I forgive? Yeah, you 00:05:02.509 --> 00:05:05.670 said that, but I just don't know. I don't know 00:05:05.670 --> 00:05:08.069 if I can. I'm sorry. I'm going to get off now. 00:05:08.290 --> 00:05:11.209 Moving forward. You told me to, but I don't feel 00:05:11.209 --> 00:05:14.230 comfortable doing it. We need to be men, women, 00:05:14.290 --> 00:05:17.449 boys, and girls faithful to God. We need to be 00:05:17.449 --> 00:05:21.629 men and women faithful to him. And we need to 00:05:21.629 --> 00:05:24.209 stand in our faith and act in our faith with 00:05:24.209 --> 00:05:27.629 knowledge of what he says and his word comes 00:05:27.629 --> 00:05:33.629 the responsibility to act on it. With that knowledge 00:05:33.629 --> 00:05:38.009 comes the responsibility. What we know to do. 00:05:39.470 --> 00:05:43.730 When we know what to do and don't do it, what 00:05:43.730 --> 00:05:50.259 happens? What is that? The verse is clear. It's 00:05:50.259 --> 00:05:53.899 here. It's in black and white. James 4, 17. Remember, 00:05:53.980 --> 00:05:59.040 it is sin to know what you ought to do and then 00:05:59.040 --> 00:06:04.019 not do it. This is serious business. It's not 00:06:04.019 --> 00:06:07.139 just simply, oh, well, I didn't do it this time, 00:06:07.160 --> 00:06:09.860 but I'll do it next time, right? No, we need 00:06:09.860 --> 00:06:13.259 to be very careful when God tells us something. 00:06:13.279 --> 00:06:15.439 We need to be quick to act on it. Because when 00:06:15.439 --> 00:06:19.930 we don't act, when we just let it pass by, Sin. 00:06:21.850 --> 00:06:25.269 What sin is to you is inseparable from what you 00:06:25.269 --> 00:06:28.829 know. That's why it's important not to judge 00:06:28.829 --> 00:06:30.490 the people around you because you don't know 00:06:30.490 --> 00:06:33.069 what they know. You don't know the direct word 00:06:33.069 --> 00:06:38.329 that's been spoken to them. Okay? And sin is 00:06:38.329 --> 00:06:40.970 a violation of the knowledge of what you know. 00:06:44.139 --> 00:06:46.819 God knows what you know. Being honest about what 00:06:46.819 --> 00:06:50.000 you see and know is a part of being humble. It's 00:06:50.000 --> 00:06:54.980 part of being a humble person. And then that 00:06:54.980 --> 00:06:56.980 kind of brings me to pride, right? We talked 00:06:56.980 --> 00:06:59.779 about pride the other week. What is pride ultimately 00:06:59.779 --> 00:07:02.920 is that I know better. God, I know better. When 00:07:02.920 --> 00:07:06.319 I choose not to do, it's like, okay, God, you 00:07:06.319 --> 00:07:10.120 say this, but I'm going to do it my way. Maybe 00:07:10.120 --> 00:07:11.600 I'll accomplish it through my own self. It's 00:07:11.600 --> 00:07:14.019 a falseness. It's a deception. It's a phoniness 00:07:14.019 --> 00:07:20.500 of who you really are. Proverbs 18, 9, get this. 00:07:20.620 --> 00:07:24.139 A lazy person is as bad as someone who destroys 00:07:24.139 --> 00:07:28.500 things. Who destroys things. That's why it's 00:07:28.500 --> 00:07:32.319 important to act and just not be passive. It 00:07:32.319 --> 00:07:35.939 literally destroys things. If we're not active 00:07:35.939 --> 00:07:39.430 in love, we will... lose the love of others, 00:07:39.709 --> 00:07:44.250 right? If I don't actively love my wife and I'm 00:07:44.250 --> 00:07:46.870 not actively doing those things, what happens, 00:07:47.009 --> 00:07:52.569 right? That can be taken away. If I'm lazy in 00:07:52.569 --> 00:07:56.529 my action even, it actually is more destructive 00:07:56.529 --> 00:08:02.370 to me and to everyone around me. So purposely 00:08:02.370 --> 00:08:05.149 not acting on a word from God, for one, is sin. 00:08:05.209 --> 00:08:08.420 It grieves the spirit. hinders our relationship, 00:08:08.740 --> 00:08:11.500 limits our usefulness in the kingdom of God, 00:08:11.579 --> 00:08:15.259 and then ultimately destroys us and the things 00:08:15.259 --> 00:08:18.600 around us. Everybody say amen. This means yes, 00:08:18.819 --> 00:08:20.579 you're agreeing, you're agreeing with what's 00:08:20.579 --> 00:08:22.920 saying, you're contemplating it, you're not falling 00:08:22.920 --> 00:08:26.579 asleep. Okay, good. So if we want to see the 00:08:26.579 --> 00:08:29.160 promises and power of God in our lives, we must 00:08:29.160 --> 00:08:31.540 act in faith, and we're going to run over real 00:08:31.540 --> 00:08:36.809 quickly some just really good nuggets. Of scripture 00:08:36.809 --> 00:08:39.809 that talk about faith. Ephesians 2 .8. Hold on. 00:08:39.830 --> 00:08:41.690 Everybody sit up on the edge of your seat. We've 00:08:41.690 --> 00:08:44.129 got to get going here. For by grace you have 00:08:44.129 --> 00:08:47.309 been saved through faith. So it's by grace. It's 00:08:47.309 --> 00:08:51.029 not my actions. But it's what God has done. Grace 00:08:51.029 --> 00:08:54.129 is God's part. Grace is God's acts of kindness 00:08:54.129 --> 00:08:57.470 and favor towards you and me. And the faith is 00:08:57.470 --> 00:09:01.149 my part. He's calling me to put my part in. To 00:09:01.149 --> 00:09:04.389 receive his promise. that he's given me. Just 00:09:04.389 --> 00:09:06.590 because he's promised it to everyone in the room 00:09:06.590 --> 00:09:07.950 doesn't mean that we're all going to receive 00:09:07.950 --> 00:09:10.730 it, all right? So it's by faith that we receive 00:09:10.730 --> 00:09:15.370 God's grace in salvation. Galatians 3 .11, that 00:09:15.370 --> 00:09:17.769 no one is justified by the law in the sight of 00:09:17.769 --> 00:09:21.470 God is evident, for the just shall live by faith. 00:09:22.139 --> 00:09:25.980 2 Corinthians 5, 7, for we walk by faith, not 00:09:25.980 --> 00:09:28.860 by sight, walking by faith. It's the sphere of 00:09:28.860 --> 00:09:31.879 our existence, the thing that we travel in, that 00:09:31.879 --> 00:09:34.940 we see in our world, and then everything around 00:09:34.940 --> 00:09:38.279 us, we walk by faith, or at least we should. 00:09:39.000 --> 00:09:42.519 Walk by faith, not based upon what we see or 00:09:42.519 --> 00:09:46.399 the world around us. We walk by faith. 1 John 00:09:46.399 --> 00:09:49.779 5, 4, for every child of God defeats this evil 00:09:49.779 --> 00:09:53.399 world. And we achieve this victory. Listen, we 00:09:53.399 --> 00:09:56.019 achieve this victory through what? Our faith. 00:09:56.559 --> 00:10:00.519 We achieve victory through our faith. Amen. Hebrews 00:10:00.519 --> 00:10:04.179 11, 6. It is impossible to please God without 00:10:04.179 --> 00:10:08.080 faith. Impossible to please God without faith. 00:10:08.299 --> 00:10:11.179 So if we are saved through faith, we're called 00:10:11.179 --> 00:10:13.860 to live by faith. If we can only experience victory 00:10:13.860 --> 00:10:17.299 through faith, please God by our faith, it's 00:10:17.299 --> 00:10:20.720 important. We need to be actively living by faith, 00:10:20.879 --> 00:10:24.820 actively standing in faith each and every day, 00:10:24.940 --> 00:10:29.620 standing in faith, actively increasing in our 00:10:29.620 --> 00:10:33.399 faith, doing things that increase our faith. 00:10:34.889 --> 00:10:36.750 We can't just sit around and say like, oh, I'm 00:10:36.750 --> 00:10:39.129 going to be a person of faith and then, you know, 00:10:39.149 --> 00:10:41.529 not do anything about it. No, we have this knowledge. 00:10:41.669 --> 00:10:43.509 This is what we need to do. We need to increase 00:10:43.509 --> 00:10:45.850 in our faith and be focused on it. And that's 00:10:45.850 --> 00:10:47.950 why we talk about it a lot at Elation Church. 00:10:49.789 --> 00:10:52.129 So let's look real quick. What is faith? Where 00:10:52.129 --> 00:10:54.950 does it come from? How do we have it? How do 00:10:54.950 --> 00:10:59.049 we live it? Romans 10, 17. So then faith comes 00:10:59.049 --> 00:11:03.179 by hearing and hearing by the word of God. The 00:11:03.179 --> 00:11:06.379 word of God here is divine utterance. It's divine 00:11:06.379 --> 00:11:10.220 utterance. It's meaning spoken and written. Because 00:11:10.220 --> 00:11:14.440 God has wrote this word in his book for us to 00:11:14.440 --> 00:11:19.779 study, to be students of his word. We don't just 00:11:19.779 --> 00:11:22.340 like do the things of God and not listen, really 00:11:22.340 --> 00:11:25.220 study. You can't read the Bible just while you're 00:11:25.220 --> 00:11:26.740 at church. You got to read it when you're at 00:11:26.740 --> 00:11:28.919 home because it's a lot. There's a lot to hold 00:11:28.919 --> 00:11:30.600 in there, okay? So you need to be doing this, 00:11:30.659 --> 00:11:36.080 feeding on this. But we hear by the word and 00:11:36.080 --> 00:11:39.659 also as we believe in God, the Holy Spirit moves 00:11:39.659 --> 00:11:45.419 on the inside of us to speak to us. He wants 00:11:45.419 --> 00:11:50.539 to speak to you in a real way. A lot of people, 00:11:50.559 --> 00:11:52.500 we look at movies, we think of God speaking, 00:11:52.639 --> 00:11:57.580 we're just like, hello, this is God. And we desire 00:11:57.580 --> 00:12:00.759 that. We want to see these big things, but we've 00:12:00.759 --> 00:12:03.480 got to know how to hear him. We've got to understand 00:12:03.480 --> 00:12:06.740 what that means for a Christian. I've been asked 00:12:06.740 --> 00:12:09.779 so many times, well, you say you hear from God. 00:12:09.860 --> 00:12:12.740 Well, what does that look like? And a lot of 00:12:12.740 --> 00:12:14.460 times it kind of scares me a little bit because 00:12:14.460 --> 00:12:16.879 we believe that we hear from God at salvation, 00:12:17.159 --> 00:12:21.500 calling us to repentance, but then yet we get 00:12:21.500 --> 00:12:23.340 really distracted when we go, well, I've got 00:12:23.340 --> 00:12:26.259 to hear from God about something else. That seems 00:12:26.259 --> 00:12:30.220 foreign. But has not God called us into salvation? 00:12:30.279 --> 00:12:33.000 Did you not feel the woo of his spirit and that 00:12:33.000 --> 00:12:35.840 urge and that still small voice, the Bible says, 00:12:36.120 --> 00:12:41.899 at salvation? Did you not get that? And we responded 00:12:41.899 --> 00:12:44.480 to it. So in our lives, it's the same thing. 00:12:44.539 --> 00:12:46.759 God does not change. He's the same yesterday, 00:12:46.860 --> 00:12:49.120 today, and forever. And when we want to hear 00:12:49.120 --> 00:12:51.759 who he is and what he wants us to do in our day 00:12:51.759 --> 00:12:54.039 -to -day lives, we're going to have to be sensitive. 00:12:55.179 --> 00:12:57.840 In a place, in an environment, because you know 00:12:57.840 --> 00:13:00.840 that usually happens where? At a church. It don't 00:13:00.840 --> 00:13:02.980 have to happen at church, but that happens in 00:13:02.980 --> 00:13:06.679 the environment of other believers gathered around 00:13:06.679 --> 00:13:09.919 and under the same purpose in a room that is 00:13:09.919 --> 00:13:15.480 what? Still and quiet. So why does it happen 00:13:15.480 --> 00:13:17.679 there more than any other place? Because we're 00:13:17.679 --> 00:13:20.460 in that place where we have focused our attention 00:13:20.460 --> 00:13:25.200 on who he is. We're seeking his will. Our mind 00:13:25.200 --> 00:13:28.440 is focused. Just our whole world at that moment 00:13:28.440 --> 00:13:30.539 shut down, and we're just focused on hearing 00:13:30.539 --> 00:13:35.480 the voice of the Lord. Proverbs 3, 5. I saw this 00:13:35.480 --> 00:13:38.620 verse this week, and I saw it through this lens 00:13:38.620 --> 00:13:42.080 of what we've been talking about, and it just 00:13:42.080 --> 00:13:47.320 hit me. Listen to this. Trust in the Lord with 00:13:47.320 --> 00:13:49.519 all your heart. Do not depend on your own understanding. 00:13:49.779 --> 00:13:51.440 We're talking about that in children's church, 00:13:51.500 --> 00:13:54.559 by the way. And then in verse six, it says, seek 00:13:54.559 --> 00:14:02.539 his will in all you do. So simple. But what are 00:14:02.539 --> 00:14:05.600 we supposed to do? We're supposed to trust, but 00:14:05.600 --> 00:14:08.639 we're supposed to seek his will. A lot of people 00:14:08.639 --> 00:14:11.620 just want to find it or to just be like laid 00:14:11.620 --> 00:14:14.049 in their lap. Right. And just be like, oh, OK, 00:14:14.230 --> 00:14:16.389 it's, you know, this big sign. Like if I could 00:14:16.389 --> 00:14:18.269 just put up a big sign on God, what do you want 00:14:18.269 --> 00:14:20.210 me to do today? And this is like, boom, here's 00:14:20.210 --> 00:14:23.309 your sign. But no, he's saying for us to seek 00:14:23.309 --> 00:14:26.389 his will in all you do. Does it say some of the 00:14:26.389 --> 00:14:29.169 things that you do? Does it say just at certain 00:14:29.169 --> 00:14:31.830 times when you give him? No, you have to seek 00:14:31.830 --> 00:14:35.769 his will in everything, in all ways. That's why 00:14:35.769 --> 00:14:39.529 it's important to pray always. That's when he 00:14:39.529 --> 00:14:44.759 will show you. Which path to take. There's a 00:14:44.759 --> 00:14:49.320 part in this that's our part. It's our part. 00:14:50.639 --> 00:14:53.080 He's wanting to show us, but he's saying for 00:14:53.080 --> 00:14:57.019 us to seek him. Seek his will. Get in that environment. 00:14:58.779 --> 00:15:02.120 To see his life and to feel his presence urging 00:15:02.120 --> 00:15:05.399 us and wooing us. That's why that verse says, 00:15:05.500 --> 00:15:08.919 be still and know that I am God. Being still 00:15:08.919 --> 00:15:11.340 is the environment for which the knowledge of 00:15:11.340 --> 00:15:18.000 God comes. Most people will never take the time 00:15:18.000 --> 00:15:21.279 to hear what God actually wants them to do in 00:15:21.279 --> 00:15:25.820 the first place. Never take the time. You know, 00:15:25.840 --> 00:15:30.360 you can't find time. It's a finite thing. Unless 00:15:30.360 --> 00:15:33.649 you don't make time. Take time for it. It ain't 00:15:33.649 --> 00:15:36.070 going to happen. If I have to clean out my car, 00:15:36.289 --> 00:15:39.789 I can find a hundred billion other things that 00:15:39.789 --> 00:15:43.870 I can do instead of cleaning out my car. But 00:15:43.870 --> 00:15:46.009 if I want to clean my car, I'm going to wake 00:15:46.009 --> 00:15:47.789 up, I'm going to be determined, and I'm going 00:15:47.789 --> 00:15:51.190 to say, okay, today's the day. I'm going to do 00:15:51.190 --> 00:15:53.009 it. I don't care what's going on. It's happening 00:15:53.009 --> 00:15:58.649 today. And sometimes we have to be a little dogmatic 00:15:58.649 --> 00:16:02.230 and a little bold and be like, today. I'm going 00:16:02.230 --> 00:16:06.210 to choose to what? Follow God. I'm going to choose 00:16:06.210 --> 00:16:09.870 to seek him, see what he wants me to do. I'm 00:16:09.870 --> 00:16:12.509 going to choose, instead of watching whatever 00:16:12.509 --> 00:16:14.850 and just feeling my heart, you know, whatever, 00:16:14.970 --> 00:16:18.289 I'm going to choose to fill my mind, fill my 00:16:18.289 --> 00:16:23.250 ears, fill my eyes with the will and the way 00:16:23.250 --> 00:16:27.830 of God. And in that moment, I'm expecting God 00:16:27.830 --> 00:16:34.370 to show me something. Most want to find his will, 00:16:34.450 --> 00:16:37.149 not seek it. They think it's just going to fall 00:16:37.149 --> 00:16:39.950 into their lap. And in order to hear in all you 00:16:39.950 --> 00:16:43.870 do, you must make the time to listen. So the 00:16:43.870 --> 00:16:47.190 first step of faith, I know that was a big intro 00:16:47.190 --> 00:16:50.250 there, but to hear the divine utterance from 00:16:50.250 --> 00:16:54.600 God. And Hebrews 11, 1. It tells us our next 00:16:54.600 --> 00:16:57.019 step. Faith is the confidence that what we hope 00:16:57.019 --> 00:16:59.840 for will actually happen. It gives us assurance 00:16:59.840 --> 00:17:03.139 about things we cannot see. Hope, again, is not 00:17:03.139 --> 00:17:06.119 hope, so hope. It's a confident expectation that 00:17:06.119 --> 00:17:09.240 we will see the goodness and promises of God 00:17:09.240 --> 00:17:12.740 fulfilled in our life. Amen? So the second step 00:17:12.740 --> 00:17:16.000 of faith is wholeheartedly believing and having 00:17:16.000 --> 00:17:19.519 confidence that what God said he's willing and 00:17:19.519 --> 00:17:22.579 faithful to accomplish and will do in my life. 00:17:23.960 --> 00:17:28.740 James 2, 26, faith without works is dead. So 00:17:28.740 --> 00:17:31.039 the third step of faith is acting in obedience. 00:17:31.240 --> 00:17:33.700 And if we want to see the power of God on display, 00:17:33.980 --> 00:17:37.839 we must connect to the source. Jesus said, he 00:17:37.839 --> 00:17:41.160 is the vine, I am the branch. If the branch is 00:17:41.160 --> 00:17:44.119 not connected to the vine, what happens? It shrivels 00:17:44.119 --> 00:17:47.660 up, it dies, it has no power, has no life, will 00:17:47.660 --> 00:17:50.500 bear no fruit. It will not bear a flower, right? 00:17:51.150 --> 00:17:52.869 So that's what it's saying here. If we're not 00:17:52.869 --> 00:17:56.190 connected to him, we will not see those things 00:17:56.190 --> 00:18:00.849 flourish in our life. A faith that does nothing 00:18:00.849 --> 00:18:05.410 is worth nothing. So faith is gained by hearing, 00:18:05.549 --> 00:18:08.349 it's held by believing, and lived by acting. 00:18:08.450 --> 00:18:12.009 That's why this series is entitled Faith Act. 00:18:12.630 --> 00:18:18.710 Mark 11, 26, Then Jesus said to his disciples, 00:18:20.039 --> 00:18:23.420 To his disciples, listen, why was it important 00:18:23.420 --> 00:18:25.619 for him to say it to his disciples? Have faith 00:18:25.619 --> 00:18:28.779 in God. Have faith in God. Don't have faith in 00:18:28.779 --> 00:18:31.059 everything around. Don't have faith in what you 00:18:31.059 --> 00:18:36.779 see. Have faith in God. Have faith in God. So 00:18:36.779 --> 00:18:43.319 what is a disciple? What is a disciple? The Greek 00:18:43.319 --> 00:18:47.740 word here is one who follows another's teaching. 00:18:48.019 --> 00:18:54.230 It's a pupil. It's a pupil. Simon Peter, today 00:18:54.230 --> 00:18:56.529 we're looking at Simon Peter and the miraculous 00:18:56.529 --> 00:19:00.930 catch a fish, okay? It's when Jesus' first disciples, 00:19:00.950 --> 00:19:02.630 that's the story we're going to look at. And 00:19:02.630 --> 00:19:04.349 I want to encourage you. I know this is something 00:19:04.349 --> 00:19:07.690 that we hear a lot about at church. I'm sure 00:19:07.690 --> 00:19:10.230 you've heard a lot of fabulous sermons on this 00:19:10.230 --> 00:19:13.690 message. Today, we're looking at it through this 00:19:13.690 --> 00:19:19.609 lens of why God chose Simon. Did he just walk 00:19:19.609 --> 00:19:21.589 down the beach one day and slap him on the back 00:19:21.589 --> 00:19:24.569 of the head and say, hey, follow me? I choose 00:19:24.569 --> 00:19:27.730 you. Come follow me. That'd be kind of weird, 00:19:27.849 --> 00:19:30.130 right? Most people, he'd hit you and he'd be 00:19:30.130 --> 00:19:35.349 like, what? Who are you? Why? No, so why did 00:19:35.349 --> 00:19:41.730 Jesus choose Simon Peter? How did Simon become 00:19:41.730 --> 00:19:44.630 a disciple? Let's read. If you have your Bibles, 00:19:44.630 --> 00:19:47.359 you can turn. I also have it on the screen. Luke 00:19:47.359 --> 00:19:51.880 5, 1 through 11 is where it is found. Let's listen. 00:19:52.359 --> 00:19:55.460 One day as Jesus was preaching on the shore of 00:19:55.460 --> 00:19:59.259 the Sea of Galilee, great crowds pressed in on 00:19:59.259 --> 00:20:03.640 him to listen to the word of God. Great crowds 00:20:03.640 --> 00:20:06.200 came. Great crowds followed Jesus wherever he 00:20:06.200 --> 00:20:07.920 went. It got to the point where it even became 00:20:07.920 --> 00:20:10.299 a problem too. Like things were happening, they 00:20:10.299 --> 00:20:12.539 couldn't fit him everywhere. Jesus is preaching 00:20:12.539 --> 00:20:14.779 on the shore that day and he's gradually getting 00:20:14.779 --> 00:20:17.720 backed up to the sea. and they just keep coming 00:20:17.720 --> 00:20:19.799 over the mountainside or wherever, and they're 00:20:19.799 --> 00:20:22.559 just moving in on him, and now he's backed up. 00:20:23.440 --> 00:20:27.259 There's a lot of people, what, listening to the 00:20:27.259 --> 00:20:32.160 word of God. A lot of people listen. We're real 00:20:32.160 --> 00:20:34.400 good at, as Christians, we're real good at listening. 00:20:34.839 --> 00:20:39.430 A lot of people listen. He noticed two empty 00:20:39.430 --> 00:20:42.549 boats. Jesus noticed two empty boats at the water's 00:20:42.549 --> 00:20:45.269 edge, for the fishermen had left them and were 00:20:45.269 --> 00:20:50.390 washing their nets. See what happens. Verse 3, 00:20:50.450 --> 00:20:54.829 stepping into one of the boats. So Jesus just 00:20:54.829 --> 00:20:58.369 sees the boats. He steps into the boats. And 00:20:58.369 --> 00:21:03.170 then Jesus does what? He asks Simon, its owner, 00:21:03.349 --> 00:21:06.819 by the way. It wasn't just like some random boat. 00:21:06.859 --> 00:21:09.799 No, he owned the boat. And he asked him to do 00:21:09.799 --> 00:21:13.160 something, to push it out into the water. I always 00:21:13.160 --> 00:21:15.099 think that's funny that Jesus stepped into the 00:21:15.099 --> 00:21:19.440 boat and then asked. It's funny that that's written 00:21:19.440 --> 00:21:22.000 like that. Anyways, we're not going to rabbit 00:21:22.000 --> 00:21:24.200 trail on that too much. But anyways, it's funny 00:21:24.200 --> 00:21:28.460 that Jesus asked the owner of the boat, the owner 00:21:28.460 --> 00:21:31.019 of, and we're going to see that this is his business, 00:21:31.160 --> 00:21:34.859 right? He's asking him. to do something here. 00:21:34.900 --> 00:21:37.259 He's asking the owner of this boat to push it 00:21:37.259 --> 00:21:40.640 out into the water. So he sat in the boat and 00:21:40.640 --> 00:21:43.000 taught the crowds. Jesus sat in the boat and 00:21:43.000 --> 00:21:47.140 taught the crowds from there. Now, in order for 00:21:47.140 --> 00:21:51.599 Jesus, you know, to ask Simon, was Simon back 00:21:51.599 --> 00:21:55.220 with the others washing the nets? No, he was 00:21:55.220 --> 00:21:57.579 right there listening to Jesus. He was close 00:21:57.579 --> 00:22:01.779 enough to be asked. And then Simon is now in 00:22:01.779 --> 00:22:05.960 the boat, in his own boat. Out there, Jesus is 00:22:05.960 --> 00:22:09.180 preaching from the boat. Thankfully, he's sitting, 00:22:09.240 --> 00:22:11.400 or that would have been a different story. But 00:22:11.400 --> 00:22:14.319 he's sitting in the boat. He's teaching the crowds. 00:22:14.640 --> 00:22:17.359 That requires some effort. I don't know if you've 00:22:17.359 --> 00:22:19.559 ever been in a boat with a paddle or something 00:22:19.559 --> 00:22:21.619 like that. It's hard to keep it going forward 00:22:21.619 --> 00:22:24.799 and facing, especially if someone's facing a 00:22:24.799 --> 00:22:26.839 crowd. Because I don't know about Jesus, but 00:22:26.839 --> 00:22:28.779 he's probably not just sitting, and it's just 00:22:28.779 --> 00:22:31.650 spinning. But Simon probably had to put in a 00:22:31.650 --> 00:22:35.190 little effort. It was definitely like taking 00:22:35.190 --> 00:22:39.170 his time and his resources. And here Jesus is 00:22:39.170 --> 00:22:42.589 asking him to give this. He had worked all night. 00:22:42.750 --> 00:22:45.170 He was tired. Probably didn't want to do it. 00:22:45.569 --> 00:22:47.970 But the first instruction here is give. Everybody 00:22:47.970 --> 00:22:53.289 say give. Jesus asked him to give. Give of his 00:22:53.289 --> 00:22:59.619 time. Give of what he had. Generosity. is a marker 00:22:59.619 --> 00:23:02.900 of a disciple. What did Simon do? He did it. 00:23:03.660 --> 00:23:05.660 He didn't ask questions. He didn't say, how long 00:23:05.660 --> 00:23:07.519 is this going to be? That's what I would have 00:23:07.519 --> 00:23:11.799 said. So how long, Jesus, are we going to be 00:23:11.799 --> 00:23:14.160 out here? You know, give it like 30, 40 minutes. 00:23:14.359 --> 00:23:16.500 Were you about wrapped up? Were you like going? 00:23:16.599 --> 00:23:19.599 No, you know, tell me a time so I can get time. 00:23:19.779 --> 00:23:21.619 You know, my guys are over here doing some things 00:23:21.619 --> 00:23:25.220 and I got things to do. I got to get to bed. 00:23:25.380 --> 00:23:27.380 I hadn't slept all night. I hadn't eaten, you 00:23:27.380 --> 00:23:29.990 know, whatever. We know that they didn't catch 00:23:29.990 --> 00:23:31.589 any fish, so it's not like they were having a 00:23:31.589 --> 00:23:35.349 fish fry. So he was probably hungry, ready to 00:23:35.349 --> 00:23:39.009 be done. But no, he says yes. Jesus asks, he 00:23:39.009 --> 00:23:41.990 says yes, and he gives of his time and his resources. 00:23:42.069 --> 00:23:44.390 And that's a disciple of a marker. There's three 00:23:44.390 --> 00:23:47.670 types of giving. Everybody say three types. Three 00:23:47.670 --> 00:23:50.910 types. There's a generous type of giving. And 00:23:50.910 --> 00:23:54.049 generosity is how God wants his children to be. 00:23:54.109 --> 00:23:57.819 People who live generously and are... or just 00:23:57.819 --> 00:24:01.740 give generously out of what God has done, recognizing, 00:24:02.019 --> 00:24:04.759 saying, hey, God has done this for me. I'm going 00:24:04.759 --> 00:24:07.359 to be a blessing to the world around me, right? 00:24:07.880 --> 00:24:10.799 But then there's also obligation, giving out 00:24:10.799 --> 00:24:13.140 of obligation, right? Out of social, religious 00:24:13.140 --> 00:24:15.700 pressures. How many of you have experienced something 00:24:15.700 --> 00:24:18.160 like that before? Yeah, yeah, we've all been 00:24:18.160 --> 00:24:21.039 there, right? So there's that thing where it's 00:24:21.039 --> 00:24:23.539 like, well, maybe they give something, and so 00:24:23.539 --> 00:24:25.740 I feel like I've got to give something. I really 00:24:25.740 --> 00:24:28.240 don't want to, though. It's not really my want 00:24:28.240 --> 00:24:32.700 to, but I just got to, I guess. And then the 00:24:32.700 --> 00:24:36.960 third type is directed. It's directed. So God 00:24:36.960 --> 00:24:40.700 wants us to be generous, generous in everything. 00:24:40.880 --> 00:24:42.740 I'm not just talking about money here, by the 00:24:42.740 --> 00:24:46.220 way. Okay? There's a lot more to this than money. 00:24:46.279 --> 00:24:47.700 So if you're looking at me thinking about I'm 00:24:47.700 --> 00:24:50.680 talking about money, I am. Maybe that's something 00:24:50.680 --> 00:24:52.480 God's doing with you about, but I'm not talking 00:24:52.480 --> 00:24:55.660 about money today. I hadn't said money. So if 00:24:55.660 --> 00:24:57.119 that's something that's on your heart, that's 00:24:57.119 --> 00:25:02.200 between you and him, not me. Okay? Clear. Directed. 00:25:02.299 --> 00:25:05.180 God asked me. to do something. In a particular 00:25:05.180 --> 00:25:08.859 instance, right? God asked me to give this or 00:25:08.859 --> 00:25:13.519 do this for someone. It's a directed thing. So 00:25:13.519 --> 00:25:16.059 directed giving is different from all the others, 00:25:16.160 --> 00:25:19.720 but directed giving allows God to do something 00:25:19.720 --> 00:25:23.119 that you wouldn't normally do, right? It's giving 00:25:23.119 --> 00:25:25.200 direction to something and he's saying, hey, 00:25:25.299 --> 00:25:28.200 I will do this. I want to do something through 00:25:28.200 --> 00:25:32.259 you. I want to use you, right? But then it goes 00:25:32.259 --> 00:25:35.319 beyond that. Usually when God tells you to give 00:25:35.319 --> 00:25:40.259 something, he's really opening up a door to do 00:25:40.259 --> 00:25:43.079 something for you. Now, we don't give to get. 00:25:43.279 --> 00:25:45.279 That's not what I'm saying here. Because usually 00:25:45.279 --> 00:25:48.279 what God asks you to do is not something that 00:25:48.279 --> 00:25:51.019 is directly related to what you see in the here 00:25:51.019 --> 00:25:55.380 and now, as we've seen in other stories if you've 00:25:55.380 --> 00:25:57.660 been here through the series. It's not always 00:25:57.660 --> 00:26:01.400 directly related to that. But God is doing something 00:26:01.400 --> 00:26:05.069 in your future. He's asking you to do something 00:26:05.069 --> 00:26:08.849 in your present that's going to impact your future. 00:26:10.230 --> 00:26:18.690 Okay? Acts 20, 35, Jesus said this, it is more 00:26:18.690 --> 00:26:27.029 blessed to give than to receive. Back to our 00:26:27.029 --> 00:26:32.430 story. Verse 4. When he, Jesus, had finished 00:26:32.430 --> 00:26:38.410 speaking, he says to Simon, now go out to where 00:26:38.410 --> 00:26:42.789 it is deeper and let down your nets to catch 00:26:42.789 --> 00:26:47.650 some fish. There's a lot to that when you look 00:26:47.650 --> 00:26:50.109 at this, the way we've been looking at stories. 00:26:51.049 --> 00:26:54.670 Now go out to where it is deeper, let down your 00:26:54.670 --> 00:26:59.750 nets, catch some fish. The second instruction 00:26:59.750 --> 00:27:03.930 here is go. Everybody say go. Now go out to where 00:27:03.930 --> 00:27:06.549 it is deeper. God, he likes to call us to where 00:27:06.549 --> 00:27:08.829 it is deeper. That's not really what this is 00:27:08.829 --> 00:27:11.190 here. But just side note, he likes to call us 00:27:11.190 --> 00:27:13.009 to places, like I said, that's a little uncomfortable. 00:27:13.390 --> 00:27:15.650 This was not uncomfortable to Simon, for sure. 00:27:16.470 --> 00:27:20.210 But he's just telling him to go. What does that 00:27:20.210 --> 00:27:23.950 mean? Go somewhere. Do something. Just not be 00:27:23.950 --> 00:27:27.950 here. We're going out. Third instruction here 00:27:27.950 --> 00:27:31.329 is do. because he's asking him to let down your 00:27:31.329 --> 00:27:36.549 nets to catch some fish. So he's saying go, and 00:27:36.549 --> 00:27:38.730 he's saying do. He's already asked him to give. 00:27:38.829 --> 00:27:46.670 Are we on track? And catch. I thought this was 00:27:46.670 --> 00:27:51.210 interesting. The word catch here is agra. It 00:27:51.210 --> 00:27:53.930 means a catching a fish or even a haul a fish. 00:27:54.369 --> 00:27:58.200 It's not just some fish. It's catching. It's 00:27:58.200 --> 00:28:00.500 like a bunch of fish. That's the way I would 00:28:00.500 --> 00:28:03.640 say it in my southernese. I would say a bunch 00:28:03.640 --> 00:28:09.099 of fish. So go out, throw your nets down, and 00:28:09.099 --> 00:28:15.119 catch a bunch of fish. And this is where everything 00:28:15.119 --> 00:28:18.900 happens. Luke 5, 1 through 11. Master, Simon 00:28:18.900 --> 00:28:21.960 replied, we've worked hard all night, all last 00:28:21.960 --> 00:28:26.180 night, and didn't catch a thing. Didn't catch 00:28:26.180 --> 00:28:29.359 a thing. Simon here, he's the fisherman, right? 00:28:29.480 --> 00:28:31.599 He's the one who does this for a living, has 00:28:31.599 --> 00:28:34.519 guys employed, saying, you know, I'm doing this. 00:28:35.400 --> 00:28:38.339 You know, you always catch fish at night, God. 00:28:38.559 --> 00:28:40.960 We worked hard all last night, didn't catch a 00:28:40.960 --> 00:28:46.339 thing. Not even one thing. So his business here 00:28:46.339 --> 00:28:49.960 was not as good as what he was expecting, right? 00:28:50.059 --> 00:28:54.000 This is a business. It's his business. It's his 00:28:54.000 --> 00:28:58.039 livelihood, most likely. The people in the area 00:28:58.039 --> 00:29:00.140 are not going to eat as much as they probably 00:29:00.140 --> 00:29:02.319 should have, right? Because he didn't catch the 00:29:02.319 --> 00:29:07.119 fish. The fish weren't there. We worked hard 00:29:07.119 --> 00:29:10.700 all last night. And see, God here is wanting 00:29:10.700 --> 00:29:13.460 to bless Simon with a financial miracle. For 00:29:13.460 --> 00:29:15.819 one, he's asking him to give. I want you to see 00:29:15.819 --> 00:29:18.420 this. I'm not going to sit on this. He's asking 00:29:18.420 --> 00:29:21.299 him to give. And God is wanting to bless him 00:29:21.299 --> 00:29:23.539 because we know the end of the story. God has 00:29:23.539 --> 00:29:25.339 something in store. He's going to bless him with 00:29:25.339 --> 00:29:27.799 this huge financial miracle that's about to happen. 00:29:27.980 --> 00:29:31.039 But he's telling him to do. He's already asked 00:29:31.039 --> 00:29:33.420 him to give, right? And then he's saying, what? 00:29:33.940 --> 00:29:40.220 Go catch the fish. Have faith. Go catch. Have 00:29:40.220 --> 00:29:43.339 faith. And they're standing on that word. The 00:29:43.339 --> 00:29:48.829 reality is, though, is we worked hard. All last 00:29:48.829 --> 00:29:52.410 night, didn't catch a thing. So God's wanting 00:29:52.410 --> 00:29:55.049 him to say, I know what happened. I know what 00:29:55.049 --> 00:29:57.670 you see, but I'm about to do something. And it 00:29:57.670 --> 00:29:59.390 even tells him, he's like, you're going to catch 00:29:59.390 --> 00:30:02.490 some fish. So it's not like he was going out 00:30:02.490 --> 00:30:04.289 there and didn't have any direction or didn't 00:30:04.289 --> 00:30:07.250 know what was about to happen. No, he knew. He 00:30:07.250 --> 00:30:09.690 says, we worked hard all last night, didn't catch 00:30:09.690 --> 00:30:11.869 a thing. And then this is where it could have 00:30:11.869 --> 00:30:14.750 all fall apart. Right? This is where the enemy 00:30:14.750 --> 00:30:20.269 wants to steal the promises of God. Listen, if 00:30:20.269 --> 00:30:23.089 the enemy or if your head can make you believe. 00:30:26.109 --> 00:30:28.529 And get in the way and say, oh, well, you know, 00:30:28.690 --> 00:30:30.789 you've done this before. You don't need to do 00:30:30.789 --> 00:30:33.430 this again. If he can stop you right here, he 00:30:33.430 --> 00:30:36.509 can steal the promise of God, the promise, the 00:30:36.509 --> 00:30:38.750 thing that God said that he was going to do for 00:30:38.750 --> 00:30:40.809 you. If you don't see those things happening 00:30:40.809 --> 00:30:43.130 in your life, it's because you haven't had faith. 00:30:44.950 --> 00:30:51.630 And that's it. This is where the enemy wants 00:30:51.630 --> 00:30:54.509 to steal. What can the enemy steal from you other 00:30:54.509 --> 00:30:56.869 than rob you of the blessings of God on your 00:30:56.869 --> 00:31:00.589 life? What power does he have unless he can convince 00:31:00.589 --> 00:31:06.150 you to believe the lie that God, you know, he'll 00:31:06.150 --> 00:31:08.349 do something a different way. That's not really 00:31:08.349 --> 00:31:12.349 what he wants you to do. If the enemy can keep 00:31:12.349 --> 00:31:14.849 you from fulfilling what God wants you to do 00:31:14.849 --> 00:31:17.569 and acting in faith, he can steal every blessing 00:31:17.569 --> 00:31:21.240 and every promise out of your life. If you let 00:31:21.240 --> 00:31:23.579 your head or the enemy keep you focused on your 00:31:23.579 --> 00:31:26.460 situation, Simon could have been like, well, 00:31:26.500 --> 00:31:28.039 you know, we didn't catch anything. And I just, 00:31:28.059 --> 00:31:29.779 I don't know what to do. I don't know what to 00:31:29.779 --> 00:31:31.359 do. I don't know what to do. I don't know what 00:31:31.359 --> 00:31:38.339 to do. More than what God had just said, he would 00:31:38.339 --> 00:31:40.500 have missed it. Everybody say he would have missed 00:31:40.500 --> 00:31:43.980 it. He would have missed it. And I really love 00:31:43.980 --> 00:31:51.750 this. This little phrase. It says, but. What 00:31:51.750 --> 00:31:55.230 a beautiful word. Negates everything that he 00:31:55.230 --> 00:32:05.190 just said. There's a change here. But, in faith, 00:32:05.269 --> 00:32:10.910 if you say so, I'll let the nets down again. 00:32:12.109 --> 00:32:14.829 Simon said, this statement of faith, he's putting 00:32:14.829 --> 00:32:17.390 his words in agreement with God's, just like 00:32:17.390 --> 00:32:20.240 we can do as Christians, amen? He's saying, if 00:32:20.240 --> 00:32:24.259 you say so, I will do what you said I will do. 00:32:25.380 --> 00:32:29.240 If you say so. If you say so. If you said it, 00:32:29.380 --> 00:32:33.420 I can count on it. I can have hope in it. I can 00:32:33.420 --> 00:32:36.420 count on it. If you say so, I can stand on it. 00:32:37.940 --> 00:32:42.579 If you say so, I can depend on it. I can go ahead 00:32:42.579 --> 00:32:44.619 and get happy about things that haven't even 00:32:44.619 --> 00:32:47.500 happened yet. If God said... I can have it. If 00:32:47.500 --> 00:32:51.640 God said that I can do it, guess what? I can 00:32:51.640 --> 00:32:54.160 take it to the bank. I know it's going to happen. 00:32:55.700 --> 00:33:00.099 And I can act on it. God's not calling you to 00:33:00.099 --> 00:33:02.160 act on something that he hasn't already told 00:33:02.160 --> 00:33:04.759 you. You know what I'm saying? He's giving you 00:33:04.759 --> 00:33:08.059 the thing to do. It's very simple. And like we 00:33:08.059 --> 00:33:09.960 talked about child life faith, sometimes we just 00:33:09.960 --> 00:33:15.480 got to be like, okay, I'll go do it. Don't have 00:33:15.480 --> 00:33:20.980 to understand it. Just got to do it. Luke 5, 00:33:21.119 --> 00:33:28.140 6. What happened? He goes, if you say it, I'll 00:33:28.140 --> 00:33:34.680 do it. And at this time, their nets were so full 00:33:34.680 --> 00:33:40.480 of fish, they begin to tear. Amen. So at this 00:33:40.480 --> 00:33:43.740 time. What time are we talking about? At this 00:33:43.740 --> 00:33:47.019 time, when the nets went in the water. Did it 00:33:47.019 --> 00:33:49.960 happen before the nets went in the water? A lot 00:33:49.960 --> 00:33:52.700 of us want the promise and something happened 00:33:52.700 --> 00:33:56.319 before the nets go in the water. Before we do, 00:33:56.420 --> 00:33:59.819 we want to see, right? Maybe we can see it with 00:33:59.819 --> 00:34:02.519 our head before we see it in our life. That's 00:34:02.519 --> 00:34:06.279 something different here. This is saying like, 00:34:06.420 --> 00:34:10.300 at this time. As soon as they dropped it into 00:34:10.300 --> 00:34:12.760 the water, he had to do the action that God told 00:34:12.760 --> 00:34:15.079 him to do to see the promise of God fulfilled. 00:34:15.659 --> 00:34:19.559 And what happened? The nets were so full of fish, 00:34:19.699 --> 00:34:25.340 they began to tear. That's a lot of fish. I've 00:34:25.340 --> 00:34:27.480 never, I've used nets before, but I've never 00:34:27.480 --> 00:34:30.199 seen a net tear, like tear to the point where 00:34:30.199 --> 00:34:33.260 like fish are coming out. It's crazy. And a shout 00:34:33.260 --> 00:34:35.219 for help brought their partners in the other 00:34:35.219 --> 00:34:43.769 boat. And soon both boats were filled with fish 00:34:43.769 --> 00:34:50.769 to the verge of sinking. We look at this as fish. 00:34:51.150 --> 00:34:54.349 No, this is a huge financial breakthrough. This 00:34:54.349 --> 00:34:57.130 is a huge miracle that's taking place here today. 00:34:57.670 --> 00:35:00.409 And it's so much that it's spilling over on everyone 00:35:00.409 --> 00:35:04.269 around. It's like, come on, when they acted too, 00:35:04.429 --> 00:35:08.139 what happened? Their nets were filled. When they 00:35:08.139 --> 00:35:14.579 did it, everyone got some. God wants to bless 00:35:14.579 --> 00:35:18.440 you. And don't worry, if you don't think that 00:35:18.440 --> 00:35:20.860 he wants to bless you, it's not going to happen. 00:35:22.699 --> 00:35:25.639 But God wants to bless you. But you got to be 00:35:25.639 --> 00:35:31.039 faithful to do. Got to be faithful to do. Both 00:35:31.039 --> 00:35:33.960 boats were full of fish on the verge of sinking. 00:35:34.800 --> 00:35:37.730 It's incredible. It's an incredible miracle. 00:35:38.110 --> 00:35:40.849 And then let's continue on. Verse 8. When Simon 00:35:40.849 --> 00:35:44.510 Peter realized what had happened, he fell to 00:35:44.510 --> 00:35:48.050 his knees before Jesus and said, O Lord, please 00:35:48.050 --> 00:35:53.469 leave me. I'm such a sinful man. He was just 00:35:53.469 --> 00:35:56.250 in awe of what had just happened. He couldn't, 00:35:56.250 --> 00:35:59.150 you know, sound like he'd ever seen before. He 00:35:59.150 --> 00:36:02.369 was awestruck by the number of fish they had 00:36:02.369 --> 00:36:06.949 caught, as were the others with him. His partners, 00:36:07.170 --> 00:36:15.010 James and John, James and John, sons of Zebedee, 00:36:15.010 --> 00:36:20.349 were also amazed. So they're there too. And this 00:36:20.349 --> 00:36:24.190 is later on, this is like God's core group. Peter, 00:36:24.269 --> 00:36:27.650 James, and John. Here they are. Here's the point. 00:36:29.530 --> 00:36:31.789 We look at this as some detached thing. No, but 00:36:31.789 --> 00:36:35.219 here's the point. where they were chosen to be 00:36:35.219 --> 00:36:41.139 God's disciples. Don't be afraid, Jesus replied 00:36:41.139 --> 00:36:43.940 to Simon. From now on, you'll be fishing for 00:36:43.940 --> 00:36:47.460 people. And as soon as they landed, they left 00:36:47.460 --> 00:36:52.000 everything and followed Jesus. Amen. Was this 00:36:52.000 --> 00:36:54.699 all up to God? Let's look at this story. Was 00:36:54.699 --> 00:36:59.380 it all up to God? Or did he have to give? Did 00:36:59.380 --> 00:37:06.030 he have to do, right? Did he have to go out into 00:37:06.030 --> 00:37:09.070 the deep, right? And if Simon Peter never acted 00:37:09.070 --> 00:37:11.329 in faith, would we be reading about him in the 00:37:11.329 --> 00:37:17.349 Bible today? Would he be a disciple? God would 00:37:17.349 --> 00:37:19.510 probably just kept going to someone else and 00:37:19.510 --> 00:37:24.309 said, hey, will you do? Will you be? Will you 00:37:24.309 --> 00:37:27.610 give? A lot of times we don't think about that, 00:37:27.650 --> 00:37:29.989 but there's probably a lot of people that heard 00:37:29.989 --> 00:37:32.449 the word. There was a great crowd that day listening. 00:37:32.510 --> 00:37:34.789 There was a lot of people around Jesus listening 00:37:34.789 --> 00:37:38.650 to the same words, listening to the same promises, 00:37:38.789 --> 00:37:41.250 listening to the revelation of the kingdom of 00:37:41.250 --> 00:37:46.849 God, but only a few got it. Only a few took hold 00:37:46.849 --> 00:37:49.730 of it. And to the point where it didn't just 00:37:49.730 --> 00:37:54.289 change a little bit, right? It didn't just impact 00:37:54.289 --> 00:37:59.269 me. A little bit. No. It impacted them. It changed 00:37:59.269 --> 00:38:03.349 their whole life. They left everything and followed 00:38:03.349 --> 00:38:08.130 God. 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