Transformed to Serve

God has changed me and I can't go back to the way it used to be.

John 21:3-6 Simon Peter said, "I'm going fishing." "We'll come, too," they all said. So they went out in the boat, but they caught nothing all night. 4 At dawn Jesus was standing on the beach, but the disciples couldn't see who He was.

5 He called out, "Fellows, have you caught any fish?" "No," they replied. 6 Then He said, "Throw out your net on the right-hand side of the boat, and you'll get some!" So they did, and they couldn't haul in the net because there were so many fish in it.

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What do you do when you are so excited and you are anxious to share the good news? Probably you don't go fishing. It must have been an unusual time from the resurrection of Jesus until the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit empowered the disciples to go and make disciples.

They were so excited to learn that Jesus was alive again, one day they are defeated and discouraged, the next day they are probably ready to tell everybody, but it wasn't time for them to start their ministry.

Luke 24:49 And now I will send the Holy Spirit, just as My Father promised. But stay here in the city until the Holy Spirit comes and fills you with power from heaven.

Throughout the Bible you will find God telling people to wait. It seems like any major event on God's timetable is preceded by a period of waiting. I remember Abraham, Joseph, King Saul, Job and Simeon all having to wait on God, some of them being good examples and others showing us the hazards of not waiting. (Lamentations 3:25-26)

Peter didn't do a good job of waiting, he was going back to fishing for fish instead of waiting for men, and he also influenced his fishing buddies to go with him. Maybe Peter was tempted to go back to the way it used to be.

Seven professional fisherman spent the night catching nothing, maybe God is teaching them a lesson about waiting, fishing all night without catching anything is certainly a long and miserable night. It is just about an impossible occurrence for a fisherman that uses a net, catching nothing at all would take an act of God, it makes me wonder if Peter thought about the previous time when this happened. (Luke 5:1-9)

Peter had a surprise appointment with Jesus this morning, an appointment that is just as surprising as the first one that he had after an unsuccessful night of fishing, this meeting would change everything even more that the first one did.

Jesus came to the seashore that morning to restore broken relationships and to teach these men about their responsibilities as witnesses of the good news.

Even though the conversation recorded in scripture is between Jesus and Peter, all of the disciples had failed Jesus, the truth of the lessons that Jesus taught were for all of them and they apply to all of us as believers today.

My Responsibility As A Believer:

Obey Jesus 

Cast your net when and where Jesus tells you. (John 21:1-8)

These guys spent the night working very hard, doing work they were not supposed to be doing, and they probably complained about the results. Catching men is their new job that Jesus has been training them to do for the past three years. After the Holy Spirit comes they won't have time to bother with fishing for fish anymore.

Allowing Jesus to be in control is the best way to avoid wasting your life. This reminder for them is for us as well. I will accomplish what really matters when I am depending on Jesus and submitting to his timing and authority. (John 15:5)

Love Jesus 

Check your love for Jesus and his family often. (John 21:9-18)

Fixing relationships is what Jesus is all about, he asked Peter to confess his love, something he had already boasted about but failed to live out during Jesus' trial. Jesus made the connection between truly loving him and showing it in obedience and service to him.

Do you love Jesus? If you do it should show in the way that you live. We should be fishers of men and we should also help tend the flock. If you love Jesus then you will want to be near the flock and you will be concerned about the health, protection and guidance of the other believers in the flock. (Philippians 2:3-6)

Follow Jesus 

Consider the cost that may be required of a believer. (John 21:19-25)

A repaired relationship with Jesus must have been an amazing blessing for Peter, in Peter's mind that would have been a great place to end this conversation, but Jesus continues to share important information that isn't so easy to hear.

Jesus takes the conversation from Peter's life and ministry to his death as a martyr, Jesus never dodged the issues so that he would have more followers, he was always upfront about the trouble and hardship that his disciples would face in this evil world.

Following without turning away and staying focused on Jesus despite the circumstances are some of the greatest daily challenges for a follower of Jesus. It is a struggle which must be dealt with constantly if we are going to die to self and become a living sacrifice. (Romans 12:1-2)

Following without meddling in what Jesus is doing in another believers life is another challenge. It is easy to look at what God is doing with somebody else and allow that to change our focus and our direction. (John 21:21)

The lives of the disciples were radically changed from the moment that Jesus called them to follow him but the transformation was just getting started. They still needed the helper that Jesus promised to send after he is gone.

The Holy Spirit's power in their lives would change these ordinary men, men that failed so often, men that didn't understand Jesus teaching, men that walked away when the going got tough. They would be powerful and they would speak with wisdom that is unheard of from a group of unschooled fishermen. (Acts 4:13)

2 Corinthians 5:15 He died for everyone so that those who receive His new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them.

Jesus Christ is transforming lives today, he is changing us from our old carnal state into a people that will represent him well and serve his purpose on earth. The easy life is not my goal, pleasure and riches are no longer the main desire to be fulfilled.

God has changed me and I can't go back to the way it used to be! I will live for Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit. I will set aside the evil desires and the pride that drives men to live for self. I will live to honor my Lord and fulfill his desire and plan for my life.

Where You Are

There's no one I love more than You!

I lived

Heart on a wire

Hand in the fire for so long

But You've shown me better

A new kind of love

It's ever the one I want

I'm lifting you higher, higher

There's nothing that I'd rather do

A sweet elevation of praises

There's no one I love more than You

I never knew a love like this before

The kind of life that I cannot find on my own

I've seen the world but I have never been so sure

That I want Your heart

God, I just want to be where You are

Where You are

I just want to be where You are

Your love, like nothing I've seen

My wildest of dreams don't come close

Life never no better than living like this

I cannot resist You Lord

And after all this time with You by my side

I can't imagine what it'd be like on my own

I've made up my heart, this love is all I've got

And You're the only one I know worth living for

A sweet elevation of praises

There's no one I love more than You

Draw Near To God

Hebrews 4:16 - Let us draw near with confidence to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and may find grace to help in time of need. Hebrews 7:25 - He is able to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them. Hebrews 11:6 - Without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who draws near to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.

Missing Christmas: Indifference

The Religious Leaders didn't care that the Messiah had arrived.

Matthew 2:3-6  King Herod was deeply disturbed when he heard this, as was everyone in Jerusalem.

4  He called a meeting of the leading priests and teachers of religious law and asked, "Where is the Messiah supposed to be born?"   

5  "In Bethlehem in Judea," they said, "for this is what the prophet wrote:   

6  'And you, O Bethlehem in the land of Judah, are not least among the ruling cities of Judah, for a ruler will come from you who will be the shepherd for My people Israel.'"

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A whole group of people missed the first Christmas, a group of people that should have never been guilty of missing something so obvious, these people were the religious leaders.

The religious leaders were experts in the Old Testament so when Herod went to them and asked them about the new king that the Magi were asking about they should have taken notice. They were the theologians of the day, they knew that the answer to Herod's question could be found in Micah 5:2. They knew that the Messiah was going to be born a few miles south of Jerusalem in Bethlehem.

You can see how much the arrival of the Messiah meant to the people when John the Baptist started his ministry (Matthew 3:1-5) but despite all of the anticipation for the arrival of the Messiah none of them bothered to go to Bethlehem and see if he was there. With all of the oppression that the nation was experiencing under the Romans you would think that they would be excited about the possibility of a Messiah whose kingdom and reign would restore the nation you would think that they would take a short walk and see if the thing that the nation of Israel had been waiting for had finally happened.

The religious leaders missed Christmas because of their indifference. They knew all of the facts about the Messiah but they didn't care. Having the Messiah was no big deal to them. They didn't need a Messiah because they were already self-righteous. They felt that their works were good enough, in their minds God couldn't want them to be anything more that they were, these guys were proud.

Indifference is one of the most common reactions to Jesus, many times it is the "good" people that are the hardest ones to convert, they do not see themselves the way that God sees them. Their good works have become their God.

Luke 5:32  I have come to call not those who think they are righteous, but those who know they are sinners and need to repent."

If you don't know you need a Savior then you wont see any value in Jesus, they don't oppose Jesus, they aren't evil people, they just don't see their need for him. What a dangerous place to be, to imagine that you are good enough, and then to find out that you were wrong.

How shall we escape if we ignore so great a salvation? (Hebrews 2:3)

How Much Is Jesus Worth To You?

I need to have an extravagant love for Jesus.

Matthew 26:6-16 Meanwhile, Jesus was in Bethany at the home of Simon, a man who had previously had leprosy.

7 While he was eating, a woman came in with a beautiful alabaster jar of expensive perfume and poured it over his head.

8 The disciples were indignant when they saw this. “What a waste of money,” they said. 9 “It could have been sold for a high price and the money given to the poor.”

10 But Jesus, aware of this, replied, “Why criticize this woman for doing such a good thing to me? 11 You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me. 12 She has poured this perfume on me to prepare my body for burial. 13 I tell you the truth, wherever the Good News is preached throughout the world, this woman’s deed will be remembered and discussed.”

14 Then Judas Iscariot, one of the twelve disciples, went to the leading priests 15 and asked, “How much will you pay me to betray Jesus to you?” And they gave him thirty pieces of silver. 16 From that time on, Judas began looking for an opportunity to betray Jesus.

Matthew 26:33-35 Peter declared, “Even if everyone else deserts you, I will never desert you.” 34 Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, Peter—this very night, before the rooster crows, you will deny three times that you even know me.”

35 “No!” Peter insisted. “Even if I have to die with you, I will never deny you!” And all the other disciples vowed the same.

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Throughout Jesus ministry there were always great contrast in emotions toward him, as we approach the end of Jesus life, the passionate feelings about him have not subsided. Love him or hate him, we see a great contrast in the way that people feel about Jesus, how much he is loved and how well he is treated.

In this chapter of Matthews gospel the first character that shows us how much they value Jesus is the woman that pours expensive ointment on him. The woman walks into a dinner party with a bottle of expensive ointment.

Everybody at the table got mad and they said that it was a huge waste of money. What a noble cause, looks like the disciples are interested in helping the poor, who could argue with such a good idea?

The next demonstration of how much Jesus is worth in this chapter is from Judas. A man that has been with Jesus for three years, a man that Jesus called a friend, a man that was dipping his hand into the money bag.

Things were not working out as Judas had hoped they would, Judas was in it for what he could get, he was ready for Jesus to announce his earthly kingdom but Jesus was talking about dying. Judas values power and wealth more than he values Jesus.

The last person to indicate how valuable Jesus is to him is Peter. Swearing his allegiance to Jesus, Peter says that he will never leave no matter how bad things get, great intentions but as we will see later he didn't have a lot of commitment.

Soon Jesus is arrested and everybody abandons him, you will find Peter following Jesus from the shadows, for a while anyway, but later on the cost gets to be too high and Peter values his life more than he loves Jesus.

How much do you love Jesus? Are you using him for your own purposes? Will you run and pretend you don't know him when the cost is too high? Does your everyday life prove that you love him?

The extravagant love that was shown to us while we are enemies of God is too difficult to understand, no matter how much we give, it is such an incredibly small thing compared to the love that he has for us. Nobody should feel that the expense of loving and worshiping our Savior is too high like the disciples did when the woman anointed him.

Thank you Lord for the awesome display of your love at Calvary. I need to love you extravagantly everyday and let it show by my good works, my worship and my obedience to your commands.