John 21:1-3 After
these things Jesus showed Himself again to the disciples at the Sea of
Tiberias, and in this way He showed Himself: 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 are going with you also.”
They went out and immediately got into the boat, and that night they
caught nothing.
Last Sunday, Pastor Kyle
posted a YouTube video sermon, as the church campus is temporarily closed due
to the pandemic plaguing the world. In finishing our sermon series in the book
of John, it is now after Easter and a lot has happened since Jesus was
crucified, died, was buried and rose from the grave. The Apostle Peter thought
that his ministry days were done. He failed miserably and, in his mind, the
prospect of God ever using him again was finished.
Pastor Kyle asked the
audience, I wonder how many of you have ever been there in your life? You did
something stupid and you though that your usefulness for God was over, so you
go back to what you used to know. You stop serving in the church, you start
avoiding church, then stop going altogether. You barely read your Bible, you
sense yourself becoming more critical about other people, and before you know
it, you just feel numb.
Anyone and everyone who has
ever been there, deep down you really want back in. What’s really going on is
that you are hurt. You’re ashamed and afraid. In the bottom of your soul, you
want to get back into relationship with God and the kingdom work of God. You
still love Jesus and know that He love you. You’re just not sure He wants to
use you anymore. You’re hung up on something from the past that can’t be changed.
The past is history. So, if that is you, then Pastor Kyle has great news for
you today. (1) You are not alone, and (2) you are in great company with just
about anyone and everyone who has served the Lord.
These disciples of Christ were
professional fishermen and knew how and where to fish on the Sea of Galilee.
They had built a successful fishing business there before meeting Jesus and
their skills where top-notch. Have you been there in your life? I bet that a
lot of us feel like we are there right now. We have desires to be useful,
skills to actually make an impact and time to do it, but here we are, waiting
around for something that is beyond our control to change. The disciples could
write a book n fishing, yet somehow, all their knowledge wasn’t producing a
single fish for them. It seems that it may have changed from a life-changing
truth to a trite, powerless piece of information.
In Christ, Brian
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