Dr. Rick Mandl - October 20, 2020
Give God Your Boat
Devotional Manuscript: Give God Your Boat
Message By Dr. Rick Mandl, October 20, 2020.
Recorded in Los Angeles, CA.
Hey church family, in Luke chapter 5, we read the story of an interaction between Jesus and his disciple Simon Peter. Beginning in Luke chapter 5 and verse 1 we read . . . “One day as Jesus was preaching on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, great crowds pressed in on him to listen to the word of God. He noticed two empty boats at the water’s edge, for the fishermen had left them and were washing their nets. Stepping into one of the boats, Jesus asked Simon, its owner, to push it out into the water. So he sat in the boat and taught the crowds from there.” “When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ‘Now go out where it is deeper, and let down your nets to catch some fish.’ ‘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.’ And this time their nets were so full of fish they began to tear! 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." “When Simon Peter realized what had happened, he fell to his knees before Jesus and said, ‘Oh, Lord, please leave me—I’m such a sinful man.’ For he was awestruck by the number of fish they had caught, as were the others with him.” “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!’ And as soon as they landed, they left everything and followed Jesus."
As I was thinking about that incident, I realized that there must have been many things about Jesus that fascinated Peter. Jesus taught with authority. Jesus performed miracles. Was it possible that Jesus was in fact the long-awaited Messiah for whom all of Israel had been longing? But then on this day, Jesus did something he hadn’t done before. Jesus stepped into one of Peter’s. These boats were the tools of his trade. They were the way in which Peter provided for his family.
And then to make matters worse, not only did Jesus commandeer Peter’s boat, but He had the audacity to give Peter fishing advice: He told him “Go on out where it is deeper, and let down your nets to catch some fish. Peter might have been tempted to respond to Jesus in the same way that we would have have. He might have felt like saying. . . “Jesus, I know you’re good at what you do, and I’m quite willing to follow you in all things religion-related, but when it comes to fishing I’m the expert – not you. Thankfully that’s not what Peter said. What he did say, was, in effect, “Even if I don’t understand what you’re asking I’m willing to obey.” And you saw what the result was - a catch that was larger than anything Peter and his fisherman brothers had ever seen. All Jesus needed to be able to provide this for Peter, was a boat.
This story raises the question - - What are to afraid to give God? Your career? Your children? Your finances? Your relationships? Give those things over to Him and watch what He can do. Amen.
Recorded in Los Angeles, CA.
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