Seeing God

SEEING GOD!

When the child of God,

Loves the word of God,

And sees the son of God,

He is changed by the spirit of God,

Into the image of God,

For the glory of God,

Because he has found the truth of God.

Then that child of God,

Lives holy and tells others about God,

Others he has told learn to love the word of God,

They all see the Son of God,

They are all changed by the spirit of God,

Into the image of God,

Because they have found the truth of God,

Eternal life is found in the love of God,

For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son so that we all can see God.

.Robert N. Graves, Sr.
Fisherman for Christ
Sept 30, 2006

Who are You?

Good afternoon world. I pray God’s blessings in your life.

This past weekend was a good one. My wife and I along with our grandson went to see our son Bernie. He is in Greenwood S.C. at a Christian rehabilitation Home. It is called the “Faith Home.” They operate from faith. It is a really cool place. They have about 50 men at this one home and they are all being fed the Word of God. In other words it is a Christian based Home.

It was a blessing to see all the men, all ages, trying to get restored or to become the person that God created them to be. One thing I have learned in my life is this, “You cannot become who God wants you to be until you drop who you used to be.”

I know that is a mouth full but it is so true. Often we get sidetracked in life and we fall into the world and we become something or someone else other than the person God intended us to be. Some one would say, “If God is in control how can a person become someone other than whom God intended?” I don’t know all the answers to the problems in life but I do know that God has given us freedom of choice. Often the choices we make lead us away from God and thus away from whom He created us to be.

So my question to you is this, “Who are you?” Are you becoming the person God created you to be or are you becoming the person who is walking away from God and becoming a person of the world?

The worst thing that could ever happen to us is for God to turn us over to ourselves. "

He does this only when we disregard Him and His commands for our lives. This is what I saw this past weekend. Men and women who have been turned over to their sinful nature because of the choices they have made in life. But now they have new hope because, somewhere, something has happened to them and they came to realize that they needed help. They are now at a home of Faith. A home where they are being transformed into the person they were created to be.

Romans 12: 1-2 gives us some great insight. 1) “Therefore, I urge you, brothers in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God—this is your spiritual act of worship. 2) Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—His good, pleasing and perfect will.”

There is a bunch of good stuff in these two verses and I feel that we should look into them so we can see God’s direction for each of us.

First Paul urges us to look at God’s mercy. Mercy is not receiving what we deserve. To me this means that if we don’t take God’s mercy into consideration and ask forgiveness from our sins, we will get what we deserve. Now what you and I deserve is hell but because of God’s mercy, if we trust and follow Him we will be excused from the damnation of the devil’s big cookout!

Next step would be, after taking the mercy of God into view, we should offer our bodies as a living sacrifice holy and pleasing to God. This may seem a little hard to understand but just look at the words in there face value. If we offer our body to God for His good purpose then we will be doing more times than not, just what He would have us to do.

To read these words is one thing but to do what they say is hard. I would tell whom ever, that even though it is not easy to do, if you try, it does get easier to do as time goes by. The plan works, but you have to work the plan and it does take a conscious effort.

Next, the scripture says, “This is your spiritual act of worship.” We each need to know what this means. It tells me that this type of worship does not necessarily have to be done in a church building. This spiritual act of worship comes from the conscious effort that we make when we consider God’s mercy and offer ourselves as living sacrifices. This can be done at home, at work, in the shower, walking or driving down the road or whatever the case may be.

In the first part of the second verse of this text is where I begin seeing the people from my weekend at the Faith Home. This part says, “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world.” Now who is in charge of this part of the world Paul is talking about here?

The answer is Satan. He is the prince of this world. He is the great deceiver.

The Deceiver:

This is what he does and he is very good at it; after all he has more time than we do. We have to work and we have things we are trying to take care of, but all he does is spend his time sitting on the street corner figuring out ways to deceive all who looks his way.

The Dictionary defines the word 'deceit' as:

1) "The act of practice of deceiving; concealment or perversion of the truth for the purpose of misleading; fraud; cheating."

2) "An act or device intended to deceive; or trick."

The word 'deceive' means: "To mislead by a false appearance or statement; trick".

Satan is the great deceiver because he is the greatest concealer, the mightiest perverter of truth, the ultimate misleader, and the most convincing fraud and liar. Satan's goal is two pronged. He wishes to convince us that God is neither all-powerful nor all loving, and that he, Satan, seems to be something he really is not.

Satan deceives because he seems to appear where he really cannot be and he tries to tempt all people (even the saved), into venturing where they should not go.

So this is what has happened to the men and women that are in a state of recovery at the Faith Home. They have been deceived and mislead into believing Satan’s lies. He masquerades himself as and angel of light. What this means is that he can deceive us into believing that something bad or sinful is ok. He often masquerades himself and a sexy lady or man. He can come in the form of drugs or alcohol. He can convince us to lie and steal and many more things. Sadly the world is full, I mean full, of people that are living a life of deceit.

When we are deceived into believing Satan’s lies, then slowly we are conformed to the sinful nature of that part of the world he is in control of. This is why Paul in the first part of verse two tells us to “not conform” to the “pattern of this world.”

Now these people I am talking about, they have already been deceived and are living in the pattern or life style of the deceiver’s world.

What can be done?

Now it seems to me that Paul is talking to people who have already been deceived because he tells them, “but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” This is what needs to happen to the people who have been deceived. They need to be transformed by the renewing of their minds.

Like a computer that has been programmed with infected formatting, the minds of these individuals need to be cleared up. (This could get real deep.)

The way that has transformed me in my life of recovery is the Living, active Word of God, which is Jesus Christ Himself. (Logos)

When I surrendered my all to Him and offered myself as a living sacrifice, then He took charge and has lead me to the right people, to the right place and from there into the right plan, His plan and not my own or Satan’s.

Jesus has weapons for us to use to fight off evil and one is the “Sword of the Spirit,” which is the Word of God. (Eph. 6: 10-)

God’s will:
Many people say they want to be in God’s will but they are not even trying to do the things that are needed to walk on the right road. If we read the last part if verse two it gives this conclusion:

If want to live a life that is pleasing to God, then we must consider God’s mercy and then offer our lives as a living sacrifice which will please God. I sure want to do my best to please Him!

Then, if we are doing these things we will not only be walking in the will of the Lord but we will be able to “test and approve what God’s will is—His good, pleasing and perfect will.”

As usual, I could go on for ever but I must get up and go to work. So listen, God has good, pleasing, and perfect plans for His children. He wants us to be transformed people with renewed minds, living to honor Him. Because He wants only what is best for us, and because He gave His Son to make our new lives possible, we should joyfully give ourselves as living sacrifices for His service.

Christians are called to, “Not conform any longer to the pattern of this world,” with its behavior and customs that are usually selfish and often corrupting. Many Christians wisely decide that much worldly behavior is off limits for them. Our refusal to conform to this world’s values however must go even deeper than the level of behavior or customs—it must be firmly planted in our minds—“Be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”

It is possible to avoid most worldly customs and still be proud, covetous, selfish, stubborn, and arrogant. Only when the Holy Spirit renews, reeducated, and redirects our minds are we truly transformed.

Who are you?

Are you of the world and being led by the deceiver, or are you living to please God?

Romans 8:5 says this, “Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires, but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.”

Who are you and what do you desire?

Disruption of a Witness!

Good afternoon world. I pray that your life is being blessed by the One who wishes to bless all.

Did you know that if you are a Christian, you’re a witness? It is not that you will become a witness but you are a witness! In other words, what you say and do is being seen or listened to. What ever you say or what ever you do or even what you don’t say, someone has their eye on you. How do you look to other Christians or the unsaved world?

In Acts 1:4-5, Jesus tells His disciples, “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard Me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”

Right now I want to make this point about a witness. So often we are in such a big hurry, and so much in a hurry to do some worldly thing, until we can’t sit still long enough for the Holy Spirit to christen us.

On Sunday, if the preacher starts to go a little over twelve, some of those “in a hurry people” start to give him the eye, and if they don’t give the eye, there is most often some sly comment made afterwards by some pious soul. If you look at other churches, you will, more often than not, notice that the ones that are striving are the ones that are not in a hurry to leave.

In Acts 1:8, Jesus said, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you will be my witness in Jerusalem, and in Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” This verse just reinforces what I said earlier about being a witness.

What Disrupts a Witness?

A lot of Christians stay somewhat silent about their faith when in a group of those who don’t know Christ. There are probably lots of reasons for this, but the one I hear most often is the feeling of not being good enough. They might say, “Who am I to tell someone about Jesus, when my own life is in such a mess?”

There is an out of place idea, that goes along with this wrong kind of thinking, that in order to witness for Christ you have to have a close to spotless life. There’s a certain standard one has to live up to prior to being in a position to tell someone about Jesus. If not, people will point the finger at you and spot your own faults. Show me someone who has no faults and I will bow to Him in worship!

The lack of common sense in this kind of thinking is the fact that no one, not even Christians, will ever have it all together in this life. Instead of being an excuse not to witness, the fact that we aren’t good enough should be the whole point. We tell people about Jesus because we know, better than anyone, how much we need him. When people throw our own shortcomings up in our faces that is just another opportunity to tell our own story of how Christ has forgiven us on the cross and how much we need his salvation every day. So instead of being a threat to our witness, our faults and shortcomings are the very things which our witness hangs. If we were perfect, we wouldn’t need Jesus.

When I think of the truth of our statement as Christians to those who don’t know Christ, I always think of the blind man that Jesus healed by covering his eyes with mud and telling him to go wash in the pool of Siloam. (John 9:1-34)
When the Jewish religious leaders heard what had taken place, they started to question the man at length wanting to know who healed him, how it happened, where the man who healed him was now, and even asking his parents to confirm whether their son was really born blind.

When they came back to the man and opened fire on him with questions a second time, accusing Jesus of being a sinner for doing work on the Sabbath, the man replied, "I don’t know whether he is a sinner but I know this: I was blind, and now I can see!" (John 9:25)

Here is the message for the witness:

I was blind, and now I can see; I was lost, and now I am found; I was guilty, and now I’m forgiven; I was alone, and now I have a friend.

It doesn’t take a perfect life to spread that message just a saved one.

So what’s keeping you from telling your story?

Notice that the religious leader questioned the former blind man at length? It means they were not in a hurry. They took their time in asking the man about Jesus. Now knowing that they took their time should be all the more reason that we should take even more time in being a witness for Jesus.

To God be the glory.

If you are a real witness, just tell your story and Christ will do the rest!

Want you please tell someone about Jesus because He is coming sooner than you think!

Someone somewhere needs to hear just what you have to say!

Robert N. Graves. Sr.
Fisherman for Christ

The Appointment

Good morning world.

This morning my wife had to get up and get ready for a Drs. Appointment. She broke her foot weeks ago. She tripped over the dog and broke several bones in her foot. She is a tough lady. Even though she has had to wear this big ole black boot for eight or ten weeks, she still has not stopped giving out orders and doing all she could do at home and at work. The whole family is blessed to have her.

She got up this morning, fixed the coffee pot and asked me if I would take our grandson to school so she could get ready for her appointment and of course being the good husband that I am, I said sure. I took Ryan to school and came back home to read some from God’s Word. This reading was my breakfast. I was feeding on the Word of God!

An Inevitable Appointment:

I got to thinking as I read the Bible this morning, that we all have an Appointment. It is an appointment with death. What is your destiny?

In Hebrews 9: 27, it says, “It is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment.”

This is an appointment that we won’t have to get up and get ready for the morning that it will happen. The date, time of day, where, when, how and by what has already been set in stone. Your name is written in God’s appointment book. God knows all. He knows when you get up. He knows when you go to bed. He knows what we are doing and thinking even right now.

We all have an appointment with God and there is no way around it. One day we will stand before Him and have to give an account for our lives. Are you ready or are you getting ready?

We spend so much time getting ready for so many things. Most of these things do not really matter. What really matters: are you ready or are you getting your family ready for the day of Divine appointment? It is on the way!

The Party:
I recently went to a birthday party. It was for my two grandsons. Mason and Will. They are both such special little men. They each have many questions. Each one is the same but yet they are different. Mason is special in that he has many real questions going through his little mind. He wants answers and he wants them now. Will is different but just as special. He takes after his daddy. He wants what he wants when he wants it but he doesn’t ask many questions. He has questions, but he is preoccupied with other things right now. But none the less, he is just as special in his own way. These little boys are just two of many millions who have questions and wants but also they all have that same appointment with destiny.

The party was great. The parents had spent much time and effort getting things prepared. They had a big water slide that even grown ups took a ride down several times. They had sent out special invitations to many people to come and celebrate at the party. They had refreshments. In short, in was a well planned party.

As I looked around that day I saw many children and grown ups as well. I wondered if the parents were ready or getting ready to see Jesus in person, because one day no matter what we think, we have our name in the appointment book.

I wondered how many of the parents at he party had even considered getting themselves prepared for that moment in time. I pray that they are not only getting themselves ready but also working with God to get their children prepared. That day will also be a new birthday. A birthday to start spending forever with Jesus! Or Satan!

When I say Jesus or Satan, I only speak the truth. The invitation has already been sent out to us all. No matter where you are or who you are, the invitation to the party has been sent. God sent His Son Jesus, not only a gift but also the One who receives us into the banquet hall. Jesus paid the total price for the party. He paid for the party with His life’s blood. He paid the price that we could not pay and He still invites us, one and all, to come to the grand party. He has been preparing the place for the party for over two thousand years. He said, “If I go to prepare a place for you, I will return again and receive you unto Myself that where I am there ye may be also.” If you want to go to this party, you must receive Jesus as Lord and Savior.

Jesus also said, “If you acknowledge Me before men, I will acknowledge you before My Father in Heaven. But if you reject Me, I will reject you before My Father in Heaven.”

To reject Jesus is getting prepared to go to Satan’s party. It will be a grand ole cook out and the one’s who reject Christ are what’s cooking.

At Satan’s party there will be no happy people sliding down water slides and having refreshments. Also, if we end up going to the devils party, the ice cream will melt. I do not want to go to this party. You better take this serious because it is of most importance!

A Mess:
The world is in such a mess! Just turn on you TV or read the news paper for a second. We are moving faster and faster each day toward the final appointment day.

As I watched the news last night I saw thousands of people signing their names down on a list to be suicide bombers. They hate Jews & Christians so much until they are willing to give up their lives and the lives of their own children to kill and destroy. They are willing to strap on a body bomb and walk into a crowd of people, pull the plug or pull the switch, and make a big boom and kill who ever may be in the general area!

These people have been brain washed. I guess that is what it is. Somewhere they were taught to think like they do about the things they think about! They have very little if any compassion for Jew’s, Christians or Americans. All American are not Christians!

I want you to stop and think about this for a moment. What would it take for you to strap on a body bomb and walk into a crowd of people and blow yourself up?

What can we do about it? Has society ever had the answer to any of these problems that go on in the world? NO! Never have and never will.

The problem started with disobedience in the Garden. And where was the Garden of Eden? It was in the same area that all the conflict is going on in today. Iraq is where the Garden of Eden was. In modern day Iraq is where Jonah was sent to preach judgment on Nineveh. This is the area that has always been in conflict and it always will until Jesus sets His feet on the soil outside of Israel. This day is also in God’s appointment book.

The Fool’s Game:
We spend so much of our time enjoying the pleasures of this life here on earth. I am not saying that is wrong. What I am saying is this: Only foolish people avoid, deny, ignore and delay decisions that are inevitable. One such decision involves eternity and your own appointment. You will die.

You may not believe there is judgment after death, but you certainly must believe that you will face death. You only need to look around to realize that you have never met a two hundred year old person.

The fool’s game believes that, “I can live my life my way and win.” Such a life is marked by rebellion, disobedience, and pride. Pride will send more people to hell than anything I know.

God simply will not bless or reward such a life. You can tell me about your degrees, credentials, accomplishments, notoriety, fame, fortune an award, but if you are rejecting God in your life, you are still playing the fools game. The most important thing we can do in our life is to accept Jesus Christ as our personal Savior.

I have people tell me all the time about how good they are doing. They say, “Look at my nice new home, it cost me half a million dollars. Look at my new boat, truck or whatever”. All these things are ok, but I want to ask you, how about you final appointment with God. Are you ready for that? How about your children? Can they take that nice boat or home with them on their appointment day? All these things will pass away but the Word of God will remain forever. The nature of possession are Temporary !

Having things does not necessarily mean you are blessed. Let me ask you this, “Where are your treasures?” Are they laid up in Heaven or are they laid up in saving and Loan. Jesus said, “where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.”

Matt. 6:19-21, Jesus also said, “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in an steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

It does not matter what you have or what you look like. You must be ready for your own special appointment day. Someone can tell you about it just like I am doing here, but ultimately, you must prepare for it with your own choices. “Choose this day whom you will serve!”

You can get your hair all fixed up, buy and wear new cloths, wear find jewelry, look real good but unless and until you get yourself right with Christ, you are just wasting your time! It does no good just to look good, but it is real good to know Christ and the power of His resurrection.

My point:
You and I may not ever have to face a suicide bomber, but we will all have someone to face. His name is Jesus, because the Bible says, that “one day every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.”

My point in all of this is that we cannot stop the flow of what is going on in the world. The world’s destiny is set in place by God. But one thing we can do is to get ready for the appointment day that is coming and it is coming fast.

As we get ourselves ready we can get our children and grandchildren ready. We can get our husbands and wives ready.

I realize that there are some that will not listen. There is just no way to pull that man from watching the game on Saturday or Sunday. There is no way to pull that woman from watching a soap opera.

But listen, something is coming that will pull all of us away from whatever it is that we are doing. It is that divine Appointment with the last breath we will ever breathe here on the earth.

Are you ready?

We can make a difference in someone’s life. If we start doing the things we are supposed to be doing, someone will see us and then maybe, just maybe it will cause that person to follow you as you follow Jesus to that special Appointment.

It is appointed unto men once to die, then judgment.

Are you getting ready for your appointment?

Thanks.
Robert N. Graves, Sr.
Fisherman for Christ.

From Darkness to Light

BIBLICAL SETTING: JOHN 3:1-36
LESSON PASSAGE: JOHN 3: 1-17
KEY BIBLE VERSE: JOHN 3:3 (3) In reply Jesus declared, “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again."

Boy, I thought about Nicodemus and Jesus all week long. I had tried several times to get something going on this weeks lesson but because I was so busy running around taking care of business, I just couldn’t seem to get it together. But now, finally here we go. I would ask God right now in the name of Jesus Christ, to let the Holy Spirit speak through the writing of these words on this paper. I pray we will see the sign again today that, we are supposed to see, in Jesus name, amen.

I wonder? Have any of ya’ll ever been lost in a place of total darkness? A place where no matter what you did or which way you turned, you were still lost? Maybe it was when you were a child or maybe while you were out on the ocean or in the river somewhere? Maybe even while out on a hunting trip you became lost and darkness of night came upon you and you really didn’t know which way to go? Maybe you became lost somewhere in darkness while you were depending on someone else to lead the way. You trusted them but somehow after a while, you were really lost? I wonder if possibly you have ever been in a place like your house or maybe at work and the lights went out and for a while, when you tried to move around you were disoriented in the darkness, therefore, even though you knew where you were, for a little while you were out of place?

Darkness can be very frightening. But when we come out of darkness into the light we can see so much better and really truly feel so much brighter. The light seems to be a place of safety and security. Like when the lights come back on after a power failure. Boy it feels so much better to be in the light. Would you agree that light is better for the most part, than the darkness? (Remember this: no matter what kind of darkness you are lost in, Jesus Christ is the Light of the world, Jesus is the Light House on the shore of life for all to see and by seeking His light with the most enter part of your spirit, He will show you how to come out of the darkness and into the Light of Eternal life.)

NECESSITY OF NEW BIRTH (JOHN 3: 1-3)

Nicodemus or lets say Nick at Night, well he came to see Jesus at night because he was lost in spiritual darkness, and I believe he didn’t want any of his fellow Pharisees to see that he was conferring with Jesus. He is or was no different than many people today. He was smart and thought that he knew all the answers to the religious questions of his day. He was a leader of the Pharisees. The designation Pharisees literally means, “Separated ones.” They separated themselves to the study of God’s law. They also separated themselves from pagan practices and from other people. While some Pharisees were legalistic hypocrites who observed the letter of the law while violating its spirit and intent, some genuinely sought after God, Nicodemus apparently was an earnest seeker.

Nicodemus was searching, and he believed Jesus had some answers. A learned teacher himself, he came to Jesus to be taught. No matter how intelligent and well educated you are you must come to Jesus with an open mind and heart so he can teach you the truth of God. Nicodemus came to Jesus personally, although he could have sent one of his assistants. He wanted to examine Jesus for himself, to separate fact from rumor. Perhaps Nick was afraid of what his peers would say about his visit, so he came after dark.

Later, when he understood that Jesus was truly the Messiah, he spoke up boldly in His defense. Like Nick, we must examine Jesus for ourselves—others cannot do it for us. Then, if we believe He is whom He says, we will want to speak up for Him.

What did Nicodemus know about the kingdom? From the Bible he knew it would be ruled by God, it would be restored on earth, and it would incorporate God’s people. Jesus revealed to the devout Pharisee that the kingdom would come to the whole world not just for the Jews, and Nick wouldn’t be a part of it unless he was personally born again. This was a revolutionary concept: the kingdom is personal, not national or ethnic, and its entrance requirements are repentance and spiritual rebirth. Jesus later taught that God’s kingdom has already begun in the hearts of believers. It will be fully realized when Jesus returns again to judge the world and abolish evil forever. (Revelation 21: 22.)

POSSIBILITY OF NEW BIRTH: (JOHN 3: 4-8)

Jesus words apparently puzzled His nighttime visitor. “How can a man be born when he is old?” This question may suggest that Nicodemus was an older man. He continued, “Surly he cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb to be born!” If these latter words were voiced as a question, the question was worded in such a way that it expected a negative answer. This learned Pharisee lacked spiritual insight.

When Jesus suffered and died on that old rugged cross, He suffered it all for each and every one of us. By faith, when we look up to the cross of Christ we look up to God for His Loving Grace, Because it is only by The Grace of God that we can become born again. By faith, we can come to the place of the cross. By faith, we can turn away from the things we don’t understand, by faith, we can come to the place where the blood of our Savior was spilled out onto the ground, and where did man come from? The Ground, God formed Adam from the same dirt that the blood of Christ returned to. Seems sort of mysterious doesn’t. From the veins of Christ flowed the power of Everlasting life. When we realize and accept that we are truly sinners and then with a humble and contrite heart ask forgiveness from God based on faith in what was done on Calvary, then we are on the road where the shining Light of Jesus Christ leads the way.

In verse 5 and 6, “Of water and the Spirit” could refer to (1) the contrast between physical birth (water) and spiritual birth, (Spirit), or being regenerated by the Spirit and signifying the rebirth by Christian baptism. The water may also represent the cleansing action of God’s Holy Spirit. (Titus 4-7, But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared. He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ, our Savior, so that having been justified by his Grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.)

Here is another promise of God that Nick should have known about, (Ezekiel 36: 25-27, I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.)

Who is the Holy Spirit? God is three persons in one—The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit. God became a man in Jesus Christ so that Jesus could die for our sins. Jesus arose from the dead to offer salvation to all people through spiritual renewal and rebirth. When Jesus ascended into heaven, His physical presence left the earth, but He promised to send the Holy Spirit so that His spiritual presence would still be among mankind. The Holy Spirit first became available to all believers at Pentecost (Acts 2).

Jesus explained that we cannot control the work of the Holy Spirit; He works in ways we cannot predict or understand. Just as you did not control your physical birth, so you cannot control your spiritual birth. It is a gift from God through the Holy Spirit. (Remember this: When you seek God with all your heart, mind, and soul, He will seek you also. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.)

BASIS OF NEW BIRTH: (JOHN 9-17)

This Jewish teacher of the Bible knew the Old Testament thoroughly, but he didn’t understand what it said about the Messiah. Knowledge is not salvation. You should know the Bible but even more important, you should understand the God whom the Bible reveals and the salvation that God offers.

NUMBERS 21: 4-9:( When the Israelites were wandering in the desert). (4) They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea, to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; (5) they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the desert? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!” (6) Then the Lord set venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. (7) The people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned when we spoke against the Lord and against you. Pray that the Lord will take the snakes away from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. (8) The Lord said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” (9) So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked up at the bronze snake, he lived.

God used venomous snakes to punish the people for unbelief and complaining. The Desert of Sinai has a variety of snakes. Some hide in the darkness or the sand and attack without warning. Both the Israelites and the Egyptians had a great fear of snakes. A bite by a poisonous snake often meant a slow death with intense suffering.

When the bronze snake was hung on the pole, the Israelites didn’t know the fuller meaning Jesus Christ would bring to the event. Jesus explained that just as the Israelites were healed of their sickness by looking at the snake on the pole, all believers today can be saved from the sickness on sin by looking to Jesus’ death on the cross. It was not the bronze snake that healed the people, but their belief that God could heal them. This belief was demonstrated by their obedience to God’s instructions. In the same way, we should continue to look to Christ.

John 3:16, The whole gospel comes to a focus in this verse. God’s love is not static or self-centered; it reaches out and draws others in. Here God sets the pattern of true love, the basis for all love relationships—when you love someone dearly, you are willing to give freely to the point of self—sacrifice. God paid dearly with the life of His Son, the highest price He could pay. Jesus accepted our punishment, paid the price for our sins, and then offered us the new life that He had bought for us. When we share the gospel with others, our love must be like Jesus—willing to give up our own comfort and security so that others might join us in receiving God’s love.

Some people are repulsed by the idea of eternal life because their lives are miserable. But eternal life is not an extension of a person’s miserable, mortal life; eternal life is God’s life embodied in Christ given to all believers now as a guarantee that they will live forever. In eternal life there is no death, sickness, enemy, evil or sin. When we don’t know Christ, we make choices as though this life is all we have. In reality, this is just the introduction to eternity.

To “believe” is more than intellectual agreement that Jesus is God. It means to put our trust and confidence in Him that He alone can save us. It is to put Christ in charge of our present plans and eternal destiny. Believing is both trusting His words as reliable, and relying on Him for the power to change. If you have never trusted Christ, let this promise of everlasting life be yours—and by faith, believe.

God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world. Rather, His purpose was one of salvation. The only escape from our lost condition is through faith in Jesus Christ, who by His substitutionary death on the cross, made provision for our redemption from sin.

John did not indicate how Nicodemus responded to Jesus on the occasion recorded in John 3. We do know, however, that Nick came to the tomb where Jesus was buried with costly myrrh and aloes to embalm His body. Nicodemus also apparently defended Christ before his peers (John 7: 50-51). Old Nicodemus who came in the darkness of night grew slowly to Christ and it seems that he finally came to the place where the Light of the World was shining into and from his new heart.

He had come, “FROM DARKNESS TO LIGHT”.

CONCLUSION: Just as you are! After all, isn’t that the Gospel—Isn’t that the message that Jesus Christ preached? Come as you are I’m sure that’s what He wanted. The only problem is that so many people don’t understand the message…they don’t understand what it means to “Come as you are…” And because they don’t understand the message, many will miss the message. It’s not so much about head knowledge although knowledge is a good thing to have, but it’s also heart knowledge we need.

There are millions of religious people sitting in churches this morning who are lost as Nicodemus was because they have head knowledge, but no heart knowledge. I believe the Holy Spirit can work in the heart of a person even if that person does not have all the head knowledge that others may have. But I also believe that a person can stand up better with two legs instead of one. Many people get involved with church, but not with Christ. People need to understand that church can’t save you—only a relationship with Christ can save you. There is no doubt religion (the church) will clean you up…it’ll make you look real good—but that’s only weak head knowledge and poor heart knowledge. If a person is to be saved, his heart has to be changed—and that comes only from a personal relationship with Christ. That’s the message Jesus was preaching to Nicodemus. Nicodemus, the seeker, came seeking answers about religion and Jesus told him, “It’s not about religion—it’s all about a relationship”. Being born again is a God thing—it’s all about the Grace of God, not the grace of man. God’s Grace goes beyond our comprehension. By our human nature, we want to merit God’s favor. We want to be the ones that get us into heaven. But hear this, no amount of good works will get you a ticket to heaven. You cannot earn your way or any body else’s way. Only by a trusting faith, when we look to the cross of Christ, just like the Israelites looked up to the bronze snake, can we have a chance to come into the Grace of God.

Being born again is an intervention from God. God brings us back to life as new people in the Spirit. He changes us. This supernatural act of God takes the Holy Spirit and implants the Spirit into our hearts. He gives us a heart transplant. It causes us to be a changed creature.

2nd Corinthians 5: 17 says, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature; old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”

This verse of scripture is very, very true. Just come as you are, don’t try to fix all the problems you have before you come to Christ, because that’s what going on in this lesson today, just come, Jesus will fix you to be a new creature, He will help you pass away from the old bad things in your life. All things will become new, but if you wait and try to fix every thing up before you come, well, be careful because no man knoweth when the watchman cometh, it could be even now. Trust Him today. It’s so simple, it’s a God thing, and it’s a free gift.

I read a story about an instant cake mix that was a big flop…the instructions said all you had to do was just add water and bake…The company couldn’t understand why it didn’t sell—until there research discovered that the public felt uneasy about a cake mix that required only water…apparently people thought it was to easy…so the company altered the formula and changed the directions to add an egg in addition to the water…the idea worked and sells increased.

This story reminds me of how people react to the plan of salvation…to them, it sounds too easy and simple to be true, even though the Bible says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, this is not your own doing, it is a gift from God—not of works least any man should boast.

Unlike the cake manufacture, God has not changed His, “formula” to make salvation more marketable…The Gospel we proclaim has nothing to do with being good enough…

The message that Jesus had for Nicodemus…That’s the plan that God has for us…For Jesus told Nicodemus the words that have become know as the, “Gospel in a nut shell,” “For God so loved the world that he gave His only Son, so that whosoever believes in Him, shall not perish, but have eternal life.

Robert N Graves, Sr. fisherman for Christ

IT

Good morning world:

I have been really busy and have not been able to post anything as of late. I have a good friend who is one of the most gifter writers I have ever known. He lives in Wagner S.C. and his name is Mr. Billy Colvin. He has given me permission to post some of his material on this site for the world to see. He is a Christian and knows Christ Jesus as his Lord and Savior. His wifes name is Margie and she is a great lady and also a servant of the Most High God. So check out this first inspired poem called, "IT."

"IT"

Somewhere beyond the edge of the mind it lies assigned by dreams only found in the heart.

It lies hidden in the forest of deepest fear, behind the clouds of doubt, just over The mountain of indecision, and forever to the plains of the Mundane and ordinary.

Every man seeks it, tries to capture It, give it a name, a texture, a color or an assignment into a corner into which it can never fit.

Glimpses of it allow us The vision to know we seek something that to capture would be to lose.

It is enigmatic, a mystery that won’t be solved, or A feeling racing up and down the psyche that some have likened to the clarion call of the siren, keening to destruction.

It is the beauty of each day, of the singing of the lark , the smell of the fresh cut pine, or new lightning. It is bigger than life. It is stronger than death.

It is to be found beyond the grave, to life everlasting.
PERECT PEACE .

Beyond the words that fill the lines, the tools of the poet, it must always be the quest. A freely given gift-not to have , But to freely give, Amen.

Billy Colvin
August 2003

Invitation From the Throne

After this I looked and, behold, a door was opened in heaven; and the first voice that I heard was, as it were, of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up here, and I will show thee things which must be hereafter. And immediately I was in the Spirit and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. (Revelation 4:1-2)

I want to talk about the predicament of man and a heavenly invitation. Man today is in an awful predicament. First of all, you are standing and beneath you is a fiery hell and so, consider the first problem.

Because we are born in sin, and because we are the offspring of Adam, because we ourselves have sinned and come short of the glory of God, we are all, without salvation, potential residents of hell. There are those who have not yet died who say that there is not hell. But there is one who did die and He went to hell and preached (1st Peter 3: 19). But He returned to earth and testified about it, and I’m willing to take His word for it, in finding out whether or not there is a hell.

Hell and heaven are not menu, like in a cafeteria, in which you can take a look at and decide whether you want this or that. Heaven and hell are true and real. You must be saved to escape hell and enter heaven. Hell is a place, a real place. It is logical that God who is a God of fairness would prepare a place for those who don’t wish to be with Him in heaven. Therefore He has made it so that anyone who willfully and knowingly, eternally wishes not to live with God will get to live apart from Him in hell. God, in His infinite fairness, has prepared this alternative.

AIN’T NO AIR CONDITIONING IN HELL!
I have had many people tell me that you can go to hell. But I wish I had the strength and power sufficient to convince every man and woman to consider the alternative as it is, not as the worshipers of hell and the devil glamorized. So don’t get carried away with all those barbershop and beauty shop discussions. Don’t get so loose with the Scriptures that you begin to say, “Well. I don’t know, and I don’t care.”

There are those of you who would not dare to live in a rooming house; you would think it awful if you only had money enough to rent a single room. There are those of you who have a master bedroom, and two or three more bedrooms for spares and nobody living in the house but you and you spouse. Many of you have a family room and den and all the other conveniences. If it would take all of that for you to be happy on this earth, you’d better not go the hell.

And now I want to remind you that you ought to consider going to hell as a bad alternative. There is no air-conditioning in hell. After the temperature has soared above 400 degrees for one thousand years there’ll still be no letup in sight. So if heat bothers you, you’d better not go the hell. Because the Bible says it’s a place of unthinkable heat. The heat there will never diminish.

I once took a trip to Jamaica; it was one hundred and three in the shade. At night it was still up around ninety. Heat bothers me, I can’t stand to get to hot. In Jamaica I was able to go into an air-conditioned lobby, to an air-conditioned room, to an air-conditioned car and an air-conditioned restaurant to eat. Therefore I was able to tolerate the heat outside. But in Hell, there are no air-conditioned facilities. It is a place of heat and unbearable misery.

Even if I thought I could tolerate the heat, I’d have to deal with this fact: Would I dare the risk of going to a place where God is not? I don’t wish to wake up any time or place without the presence of God. It is a place where there is no love of God. The love of God does not dwell in Hell.

God’s love is the explanation for my existence. God’s love is the explanation for my welfare. It’s the love of God that sustains me. So to be shut off not for one hour, not for one day, not for one year, but for eternity in a place where there is no grace of God would be intolerable. The thought that in hell there is no love of God, there is no such thing as God having mercy on me, is beyond understanding. Just the thought of it is more than I can bear. I don’t want to go there!

REAL SOULS IN A REAL PLACE:
Let me assure you that there are souls in Hell. There is a counterfeit doctrine going around that the grave is hell, and death itself brings to an end of all life, and when you die your dead. I would also say if you believe this you may as well get up and go your own way right now. But if you believe what the Bible says, then you should listen.

The scripture tells us when the rich man in Luke 16 died, in hell he lifted up his eyes. Now he could see the flames. He could remember when he was on earth. He saw Lazarus on Abraham’s bosom. He was so alive that he was praying in hell. But prayers prayed in hell are prayers prayed to late.

You may be where you are right now in comfort and convenience. Your job may be secure. Your payments may be under control. But I ask you right now, if death should strike you down, would you lift your eyes in hell? You might say, “I’m pretty good”; goodness is not what keeps one from hell. All of man’s goodness put together can’t keep anyone from hell. There’s only one thing that condemns a person to hell, and that is his or her failure to accept Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.

The Bible reveals that an unbeliever may pray using any other name, but God does not hear or answer that prayer. “In Jesus name,” that’s the prayer of faith. If the Muslim asks God to save him and use’s Jesus name, God will save him. If a Shinto priest uses that name, God will save him. If a Jew wants to reach God, then Jesus name is the passport to God hearing his prayer.

But in a world of enlightenment, a world that’s got the Bible, if a man prays but denies Jesus is the Christ, even if he falls down on his knees and tries to get to the Father denying that Jesus is the Christ, God will not hear him. You who are slaying time around waiting for something special to happen, better get your act together, because, “There is no other name, under heaven, given among men whereby we must be saved—that name is Jesus. He is the only way to get to heaven and keep out of hell.

Somebody would say, you mean all these other folks are lost? “I mean the Bible says that all these other folks are already lost.” “He that believeth not shall be condemned,” (Mark 16:16).

Somebody might ask, “what if they are sincere?” The prophets of Baal sincerely called upon their god. These prophets were devout prophets of Baal. They called on Baal all day long. But the fire didn’t fall.

When you pray it’s not ceremony, it’s not just mouthing pious words. When you pray you want something to fall. You want fire to fall. You want the goalpost to move. You wants the nets to get full. You want that blessed assurance that God has heard your prayer. That’s why you need to pray God’s appointed way. (In Jesus name).

Has He not declared that those who keep the commandment shall not go to hell? He hasn’t declared that those who are kind to strangers shall not go to hell. There’s only one condition, and that’s when you accept the name of Jesus as your key to entrance.

THE COMPANY IN HELL! ~~Man faces some very bad prospects.
It is impossible to stay where we are, because we’re surrounded by an unfriendly world.

This world that is running out of everything. They’re predicting that we will run out of gas, we’ll run out of oil, we’ll run out of pure-water, and we’ll run out of pure-air. There’re saying our great grandchildren will have to wear mask every day.

If muggers don’t get you, and robbers don’t get you, then sickness and sorrow will. This is an unfriendly world. If you don’t invite trouble, trouble will knock on you door. If all these other things don’t get you, then time itself will get you. Time will pluck out your teeth, time will dim you eyes, time will put a hump in your back, and time will put rheumatism in your legs. It’ll finally put you in you grave.

Our path needs to be turned around. Down is the wrong direction. To go down is to end in misery. When you go to hell, you are in the home of fallen angels. When you go to hell, your neighbors are demons. When you go to hell, sinners are you companions. When you go to hell there no such thing as excellence, but rather malice an envy and strife. Violence and misery is what you’ll experience. There’s no such thing as decency and righteousness in hell. Because God’s Son of righteousness does not dwell in hell.

THERE’S A BETTER DISTINATION!!
“Lord, remind me how brief my time on earth will be. Remind me that my days are numbered, and that my life is fleeing away." (Psalm 39:4) I am here on earth for just a little while. (Psalm 119:9)

Listen close and hear these words, there’s a better destination than hell. It’s a place called heaven. There’s a gospel song called, “This World is Not My Home,” I’m choosing to make heaven my home. I’m going to a place that has no death, no sickness, and no sorrow. Heaven is my destination. Heaven is my aim. I aim to see my Savior face to face.

Every sinner on earth will face God in angry judgment. Every backslider will have to face God by himself. For it’s in God’s accounting book: Every sin, every dirty deed, every transgression, and everything you should have done but didn’t, it’s all in the book.
If you stand before Him by yourself, God will throw the book at you. He’ll say, “Depart from me, ye cursed, I know you not’ (Matt: 25: 41)


John said…”I looked and, behold, a door was opened in heaven; and the first voice that I heard was, as it were, of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up here, and I will show thee things which must be here after;” (Revelation 4:1)

So there it is, true followers, there it is –an open door and I hear Jesus saying, “Come unto Me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” I hear Jesus say, “Take My yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart; and ye shall find rest unto your souls.:

Through that open door I hear my Savior say, “Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out."

From His open door He promises that His Father will hear prayers prayed in His name.
From that open door I shall receive mercy, I shall receive grace, I shall receive forgiveness, and finally I shall receive eternal life all courtesy of my beautiful Savior, Jesus Christ.”


Thank you Father. Thank you for Your Holy Spirit who is my teacher and I praise the name of Jesus Christ, who is Lord of Lord and King of Kings, amen.

Gone Fishin

If you are to busy to read this, then you are too busy. If you don't have time to read this I would suggest that you slow down and smell the roses!

The word busy spells Being Under Satans Yoke

I had a long hard week but no matter what the problem was I did my very best to be kind and compassionate to whom ever I talked with. I also talked with God several times a day. The weather was pretty bad while out fishing this week but no matter what happened, I kept the faith, knowing that my Real Captain would see me through it all. I was right. We were blessed with a bountiful catch. God blessed us with His kindness. He tells us to seek ye first the kingdom of God and all His righteous and all these things will be added unto you.

Do you listen and do what He says to do? Do you follow His leadership? Is he the Captain of your life? If you do not have Him number one in your drivers seat, then make some adjustments and let The Power of the Holy Spirit be your counselor and teacher. We are supposed to be disciples, and do you remember what a disciple is? He is one who helps spread his Master’s teaching. That is not to say that we have to do all this work all by ourselves, but we are to join together as God’s chosen vessels and all pull together with all the other Children of God and spread our Master’s teaching.

You might ask why should we have to go out and tell people about Jesus. When you come to know even a little about the Mission of a Christian it will become very clear. We are supposed to be Christians on a mission. Jesus tells us to “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and Son and The Holy Spirit, and go to the exiles, to the sons of your people, and speak to them whether they listen or not.”

If we just sit around waiting on someone else to do it, the job will still get done because Jesus is already the victor and has crushed the head of the serpent when He gave up His blood on the cross. Therefore, He wants to see in us some participation; it is our duty as Christians to join the battle against the evil of the world. All of us can help make a difference. Who knows he might just want to use something you have in your life. It could be a list of many things that you have that He wants to use. It could be your voice, it could be your prayers, maybe even be your tears, your truck or for that matter Jesus might even want to use your boat.

How would you like to go fishin with Jesus? Lets go.

In the life of the kingdom, we come to moments when the torch or Gods word is passed from one person to another, from one generation to the next. A man or woman of God senses in his or her heart that God is assigning a new task—and giving the necessary power of HIS LIFE to accomplish that task.

I am touched by the Holy Spirit to offer you a possibility: This may be your moment. Now may be the time when you should stir the gift He has deposited within you and prepare yourself for the moment when the torch will be passed to you. This torch that may be passed to you will help someone else see the way to go, and that way is to the cross of Jesus.

In one of Paul’s final conversations with Timothy, we see such a moment played out for this young man. Paul says to the one he has mentored and cared for, “Listen, stop being afraid. I was there. I laid hands on you. I know what was put into you. You’ve got something from your grandmother. You’ve got something from your mother. You’ve got something from me. You’ve got something from Almighty God. Now stir up the gift and use it!”

The passing of the torch, for those of you chosen and ordained by God for the work of His kingdom, a similar moment will come. How will we understand and anticipate such a personal miracle?

PUSH OUT INTO THE DEEP WITH JESUS

Let’s look at a scene from the life of Christ for insight on how to “Stir up the gift and use it” in our own personal lives. In Luke 5, we read that as Jesus was teaching by the Sea of Galilee, the crowd “listening to The Word of God” was so great that it literally pressed against Him—possibly threatening to push Him into the lake.

At the water’s edge were two fishing boats, one of which belonged to Simon Peter. Jesus’ solution was to borrow the boat, and He asked Peter to push out a little ways into the water. Then Jesus sat down in the boat and spoke to the crowds from there. He preached with love and kindness. He had compassion for all people.

While Jesus taught, I imagine Peter at the back of the boat preoccupied with washing of nets or tending to other chores left over from a night’s work—a night that had been all work and no fish. When Jesus finished teaching, He turned to Peter and issued a remarkable invitation. “Let’s go out to the deep water. I want to let down your nets for a catch.” (He wants to use your nets for a catch also.)

Now Peter’s nets might have been ready, his bags may have been cleaned and tied, but his attitude wasn’t. “Master we have toiled all night, and we haven’t caught anything.”(Can you see the blank look on Peter’s face?) Then he surrendered: “But if you want, we will do it. AT YOUR WORD, I’ll let down the nets.” And that exactly what Jesus had in mind. So Peter, followed by the second boat, rowed out into the deep of the lake to fish. At His Word or Command we are to do what He tells us to do, He wants to use your Spirit to hold His torch. When we do what He asks us to do we will be rewarded.

In my mind I can see Peter putting out the nets and who knows maybe Jesus was helping. Take a second and go there and feel the power of His Word. Luke records that when Peter pulled the nets back in, he had caught so many fish the nets began to rip into. Excited Peter yelled to the others within range to come and help haul in the nets. But that wasn’t the end of Peter’s surprise—unbelievably, so many fish now filled the boat that they began to sink.

Peter was stunned by the size of the catch. He had fished all his life—and he knew this couldn’t be happening. But it was. Something had happened that he couldn’t explain. Or maybe he could. “This ain’t fishing,” you can hear him gasping. “This is a miracle!”(When we allow God to use us, not us but He can accomplish miracles.)

Peter dropped to his knees right in the middle of all those fish and cried out to Jesus, "Get away from me, Lord. I’m a sinful man!” This may seem like a strange reaction, but Jesus’ response was immediate. “Don’t be afraid,” he said to the anxious fisherman. "From now on you are going to catch people. Not fish. People.” (He wants you and I to fish for the souls of people all sizes all ages.) We are not to be afraid be cause His Word says that He will never leave your side, He is always there ready to give a helping hand.

Now lets stop the action for a minute and work back through the story to see what the Lord will show us as we consider our assignment and destiny and the calling to “stir up the gift within us.”

FISHIN CLOSER WITH JESUS

Notice the Scriptures say that the people pressed about Jesus to hear the “Word of God.” Why was there such tremendous interest? Because people knew that when they came to Jesus they would hear what God had to say. You see, God wants you to hear the word of the Lord, not simply read and learn Bible text. He wants you to hear directly from Jesus. He wants you to hear His Word for your life—and the hunger for hearing God is what still brings crowds today. To stir up your gift and prepare for your assignment, you must fish close to Jesus to hear what God will say to you personally. Only then will you have something of power and meaning to say to others.

Scripture says, He sat down and taught the multitudes from the boat. I find great beauty in this phrase. If you’re going to be ready to take the torch and run, you must be ready to run from where ever you are. Be ready to do the job He set forth for us to do. We are to be fishers of men. We should be ready to fish from any boat we come across or maybe even a tractor or truck, any place where the Lord has placed you. In this picture of Jesus teaching from the boat we see the simplicity of His kindness and love. How amazing to think the God of the universe taught while “sitting in a boat”!

You are free to express the message that God has deposited within you in a way that fits your circumstances and is uniquely you. As you become confident about whom you are, you’ll find that how you express the life of Jesus will manifest itself differently in you than in any other Christian Brother or sister. Personal expression flows naturally when you know what God wants to say. But if you are not hearing from the Lord or speaking His message, no amount of personal style or polish will help you touch the life of another with the life of Jesus.

Because Jesus is invisible, it is HIS WORD that makes His presence known. When you take the time to hear from God personally, people near you will experience the influence of God on your life. They will know that it is a miracle of the Spirit, and that something of His life is flowing out of you. The disciples on the road to Emmaus described the experience this way: WHEN WE HEARD HIM, OUR HEARTS BURNED.

LETTING JESUS USE YOUR BOAT (HE MUST BE YOUR #1 PARTNER)

I want us to notice the wonderful way that the Lord mentors, how He pulls men and women into partnership with Himself. When it comes time for Jesus to move you into partnership, He often asks to use something that belongs to you. To partner in the miraculous ministry of Jesus will cost you something—usually something you hold dear.

Jesus comes in His lovely way to reveal our destiny. But inevitably our assignment has something to do with possession. It is always tied to something that you have personal control over—your time, your money, your home. It is almost astonishing how accurately He zeros in on that one thing.

These are delightful ways that Jesus invites us into partnership. We’d rather develop tidy little courses and write books about the doctrine of a disciple, the character of a disciple, or the availability of a disciple. But discipleship by Jesus requires a complete exchange. Everything you are has to be invested in order to receive the return of everything He is.

You already may have begun to experience His supernatural provision in many areas of your life. You may learning certain skills, moving with a new sense of power and authority in your spiritual and personal life. You’re excited about the fruitfulness that is beginning to happen. But make no mistake about it somewhere along the line, in order for Him to do all these wonderful things He wants to do through you, He will walk into your life and say to you as He did to Peter, the fisherman, “Excuse me! Could I use your boat?

WHEN YOU FISH WITH HIM, MIRACLES HAPPEN

As we mature in partnering, eventually we will arrive at the wonderful opportunity to go further. Jesus will say to us “OK, launch out into the deep. Let down your nets for a catch.”

Those around you might say that if you’re catching some fish and the boat isn’t sinking, God is with you and you should hold on to what you’ve got. But I challenge you to think differently. When God is an active partner in a venture, you can’t keep up with the returns. You’re always trying to catch up. Think about it: When we have a task all figured out, then that’s all it will ever be—something we can figure out on our own. Peter fished all night long and didn’t catch any fish but when Jesus said with His Word, let down your net, well they came up full, So full that the boat was sinking.

Jesus says, "Launch out into the deep. Get ready for the catch of your life!” Oh how we need to hear Jesus say that in our own personal lives. How we need the miraculous! The miraculous power that causes nets to break and boats to sink. When you begin to partner with Jesus, miracles will take place.

If we look at what this story teaches about miracles, we could say that the miraculous always begins with something you can do. Jesus only asked Peter to “launch out.” He didn’t ask him to produce the catch! But often the miraculous also begins with something you don’t want to do. It requires time, energy, or resources that you’d rather not expend. It’s all about fishing where you’ve already fished—just because He asked you to.

How we need the miraculous! And how we resist it out of fear! We’re so afraid it won’t or can’t happen. Watch for those impressions in your inner being, the fleeting thought that says, “I don’t know what will come of it, but I think we ought to do something here.” At those moments, for heavens sake, stop and do something! Do the impossible. Don’t do something crazy, just the simple, obedient thing. Listen to His voice, and follow.

THE CATCH

Now we come to the most touching moment of this wonderful story of Peter. Prior to this time—probably many days or weeks earlier—Peter had heard the call of Jesus to “Come Follow Me.” The Scriptures say that Peter and those with him left everything to follow Jesus. But now some time has passed, and they have gone back to fishing. Ironically, Jesus just happens to be there on the shore with the crowds the morning that Peter returns from fishing all night. Isn’t it interesting that it would be Peter’s boat that Jesus’ ask for? “Say, Peter, can I use your boat?

Out on the water, in the deep waters of the Sea of Galilee, the net is filled. And then the fish begin to break the net and threaten to sink the boat. Peter is as much horrified and ashamed as he is overwhelmed by what is taking place. And then come his heartfelt cry, “Stand away from me, I am full of sin. Get away from me, because I know this is a miracle, and I don’t deserve this.

So often, we cry out with thoughts of unworthiness or we compare ourselves with others. We cry, “I’ll never be like him, or I’ll never be like her. I’m not worthy if net-breaking, boat sinking miracles.” And in that moment, Jesus responds to Peter and all of us: “Don’t be afraid.” He understands why we would feel frightened, overwhelmed, and unworthy, but He immediately says, Stop it!” He doesn’t want you to be like him or her, He wants to use you just the way you are. He wants to use just what you have and what you don’t have, He provides. We are His Masterpiece and His workmanship.

You may sense that God is preparing you for a significant assignment. A big catch. But you don’t need to be afraid.

Every single one of us could say to Jesus, “Stand away. I’m not worthy!” but hear what Jesus wants to say to you: “Stop being afraid. I’ve got fish for you to catch that you can’t even imagine. I’ve got a destiny that can only happen through miracles! Let Me break your nets!—the limits of your understanding and expectation. If your dream isn’t bigger than your net, then it’s not Me in your boat!"

Jesus desires to bring new skill levels into your life for the express purpose of fulfilling the assignment He has given you. Press close to Jesus to hear what God is saying to you! Just you. Allow his message to be expressed clearly through your life in a way that honors the unique creation He made you to be.

By the way, expect Jesus to ask to use your boat. In His own special way He always will.

LORD, ALL I HAVE IS YOURS

LORD JESUS, BY YOUR GRACE, ACCOMPLISH NEW GIFTINGS AND NEW FRUITFULNESS IN ME. TAKE WHAT YOU NEED FROM MY LIFE, LORD. USE WHAT IS PRECIOUS TO ME. USE MY BOAT!! HELP ME TO BE OPEN TO YOUR WONDERFUL MIRACLES. LORD JESUS, THE TORCH IS PASSING, AND I DESIRE TO PARTNER WITH YOU IN YOUR GREAT PLAN.

Tell The Story

I counted dollars while God counted crosses.

I counted gains while He counted losses.

I counted by worth by the things gained and stored.

But Jesus sized me up by the scars that He bore.

I only coveted honors and sought just to please.

He wept as He counted the hours on my knees.

I never knew until one day standing by the grave.

How vain are the things that we spend life to save.

I did not know until my loved one went on to be above.

That the richest one is he who's rich in God’s love.

I had searched and prodded, looking only for gain.
But truly all I had found was loneliness and pain.

I had gained a great deal of money and stuff I could touch,
But as I looked upon the grave site, I realized it wasn’t much.

The things that are important are the people in your life,
Your sons and your daughters; your friends and your wife;

So I want to tell the story of my Jesus and His love,
Because through Him is prepared a place for us above.

Down here is just short time and places made to roam,
But surely this great Heaven is our final resting home.

All this I hope you consider as you get up and start your day,
As Jesus did in the garden, remember to fall down and pray!

Pray for all the children who do not know He’s there,
Pray for all the others who are troubled every where!

Pray that they find Jesus who is the leader of our world,
Pray that you can reveal this to every boy and every girl.

Because truly only Jesus can please us!


Robert N. Graves, Sr.