December 7th

Who Do You Love?

Simon Peter, Thomas called Didymus, 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. John 21:2-3

I'm telling you that it just won't work. Go ahead and try to return to your old life; once you've turned to Jesus, your old life has anything but life for you.

Just look at the disciples to prove it. Here in our passage today, the disciples had already seen Jesus die and met Him after His resurrection. Despite all that, they didn't get it. They were still saying, Yeah, I know all that stuff about Jesus, but how does that impact me directly today?

They were clueless, so Peter decides to go fishing. And this is not just some way that he decided to pass time. It was an intentional choice to return to his old way of life, and everyone else went with him.

It's like Peter still wasn't sure he could rely on what Jesus had done for him. He thought, I'm just going to have to go back to relying on my own abilities to get me through. He showed that he trusted himself more than Jesus at that point, so he fell back into his old life.

How did that work out for Peter and his friends? Well, it didn't. They caught nothing. They fished all night long and caught nothing! I think that was probably a very long night for them, and maybe that's how you feel today. You've had a very long marriage, a very long career, a very long life.

But I can tell you why it felt so long and hard for them-it's because they had returned to relying on themselves. And if you haven't realized yet that your net is empty, please get there as fast as you can, because what happens in the morning is so beautiful.

In the morning, Jesus came. And He asked them, Do you have any food?

No.

Try casting your nets on the other side of the boat. You'll catch something there. And boy did they! As soon as they moved back into relationship and dependency on Jesus, they caught so many fish that they couldn't pull their nets back into the boat.

Don't try to do life on your own. Don't return to the old way you used to do things. Instead, let Christ fill every part of Your life, leading it and directing it. For when you do, you'll be blessed.

Prayer Lord Jesus,

I know that I have been trying to do life on my own for far too long now and I'm ready to be done. I want to be with You in every part of my life, listening for Your leading, and living for You in everything I do!

Amen