“How to Respond When Jesus Calls”
3/25/2007
Jesus was walking along the shore of the lake. I’m told it was much like Walker Lake, near Hawthorne, Nevada, where I once pastured. Kind of a treeless lake in the desert. But I imagine it could have been something like the north shore of Lake Siskiyou, where I often walk on my lunch break. The air is clean and fresh. The sky is clear and blue. People are fishing or picnicking or playing near the lake. You can hear their happy laughter faintly in the background. The wind is gently whispering in the trees, the waves lapping at the shore. And in this peaceful place comes Jesus. I see him with a smile on His face and interested in each person He meets. But then He sees the ones He has come for. And this is what happens:
“Jesus called out to them, "Come, be my disciples, and I will show you how to fish for people! " And they left their nets at once and went with him. A little farther up the shore Jesus saw Zebedee’s sons, James and John, in a boat mending their nets. He called them, too, and immediately they left their father, Zebedee, in the boat with the hired men and went with him.” Mark 1:17-20 (NLT)
Have you ever had an encounter with Jesus? Has Jesus ever sought you out? Have you ever received a personal invitation from Jesus? I wish we had the time for each one of you to share your experience, but many of you have had a fantastic, maybe even a miraculous experience of God calling you. All of us, every single one of us have received a call from God to join Him; to follow Him; to become one of His family. Some may not realize it yet. Some may be hesitating to respond. But the invitation is there. The call is there. The desire for you to come is there. God has plans for your life. He said,
“For I know the plans I have for you," says the LORD. "They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.” Jer 29:11 (NLT)
As long as we resist – we are missing out on the best in life. As long as we ignore the call – we are missing our purpose in life. As long as we ignore the voice of God – we are cheating ourselves out of blessings. But when we respond correctly – it opens the door to God’s power. It opens the door to His blessing. It opens the door to an adventure that makes life exciting and abundant and full.
So how are we to respond when God comes walking into our life and invites us to join Him? Let me suggest a few things.
First of all, the disciples responded immediately. When God calls you – don’t postpone the decision to respond. They dropped their tools; they stopped what they were doing and turned to Jesus and began to follow. Paul wrote:
“... God is ready to help you right now. Today is the day of salvation.” 2 Cor 6:2 (NLT)
I believe God is obligated by His holiness and His righteousness to give every person ever born an invitation to salvation. His nature demands it. But the unfortunate truth is that most people hear that call; that invitation; but never respond. Some say they will take care of it later. Some think they will live life their way while they are young and then repent and change their life when they get old. The problem is that salvation is not on our terms. We may receive that invitation to follow only once in our lives, so when we do- we better drop what we are doing and immediately respond.
I remember when I clearly heard God’s invitation to follow Him and I am so grateful that I fell to my knees and knelt beside my sofa and responded immediately and positively to that call. Some of you responded when an alter call was given at camp or in a revival or during a regular church service. It doesn’t matter where or how – but it does matter that you heard and responded immediately. Samuel, when only a boy, heard God calling him and responded by saying, “... "Speak, for your servant is listening." (1 Sam 3:10).
Isaiah heard God speak to him. He said,
“Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, "Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?" And I said, "Here am I. Send me!" (Isaiah 6:8)
That needs to be our response when God invites us to come along with Him on this adventure of life. “Here am I! Send me!” or “Here I am! Wait for me! I’m coming! I’m coming!”
2. Another thing I noticed about how the disciples responded to Jesus was that they left everything. I mentioned that they dropped what they were doing. But look, again, at this incident.
“Jesus called out to them, "Come, be my disciples, and I will show you how to fish for people! " And they left their nets at once and went with him. A little farther up the shore Jesus saw Zebedee’s sons, James and John, in a boat mending their nets. He called them, too, and immediately they left their father, Zebedee, in the boat with the hired men and went with him.” Mark 1:17-20 (NLT)
Notice that they left their nets at once. They left their dad and some left their families. They left their jobs and livelihood. The most important thing to them was that they follow Jesus whatever the cost.
Am I saying that we are to quit our jobs and leave our families? No. Although, some have done that very thing. And Jesus said,
“And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.” Matt 19:29
I am not saying you need to sell your house or leave your family. God MAY ask that of you, but if He does he promises to reward you a hundred time more than you give up – in THIS life, and on top of that you will inherit eternal life.
I’m not saying what will be required of you – but you need to know that SOMETHING will be required of you. When you respond to Jesus’ call you will have to leave some things behind. It will be different for each of us. I lost what few friends I had. I went my way and they went their way. But God gave me so many better ones who have stuck with me through thick and thin. I gave up some bad habits. I still got plenty I am working on right now – so don’t think I’m saying I’m perfect. But God immediately asked me to give up some nasty, self-destructive habits – and gave me new constructive ones to replace them.
What are you giving up for Jesus? What are those things you may really enjoy, and truth be told, do not want to give up – but you are – you are working on it - because you know God wants you to. The Bible says,
“Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is true worship. Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind...” Romans 12:1-2
True worship is to offer you body as a living sacrifice. That means you surrender your will to God’s. You do not eat what you want or drink what you want or smoke what you want or dress the way you want. You do what God wants. God’s Word says,
“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. The mind controlled by the sinful nature is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace. The sinful mind is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.” Romans 9:5-8 (NIV)
If you want to please God, you need to have your mind set on doing what He wants you to do. What does He want you to do? What are some good habits He wants you to develop? He gave us some instructions. I won’t elaborate too much. I will let you do the research. But let me suggest four things God wants you to do immediately.
1. Read your Bible every day. Have a quiet time with Jesus every morning. You not only learn what His will is- you also receive strength for that day.
2. Go to church every Sunday. The second greatest command is to love others. We need to be committed to going to church to learn about God, and to get spiritual strength and all the rest – but it is also a place where we learn to love people. Sin separates us. But love brings us together. We need to learn how to love people as God loves them.
3. Church is also a place to serve God. We need to immediately begin to use our gifts and talents and time for Him. Church is a great place for that.
4. It is also a great place to give 10% of your income to God. God doesn’t need your money. But because it is so important to you – He asks that you give Him the first 10%. It is a way we prove our love. It’s walking the talk. I have found that He will supply all my needs if I give Him the first 10%.
One last thought about responding to God’s call. Following Him leads to Heaven. Picture again with me that scene of Jesus walking along the shore of the lake. I picture it as being warm, and quiet and peaceful. Maybe seagulls fussing in the background. And in this quiet, peaceful place comes Jesus. Kind, gentle, strong, loving. He invites and the disciples jump up and respond. They don’t know where they are going. They don’t know where Jesus is leading – but they are following. And they follow to the end of their days. When we begin this adventure, we know where it will end. The Bible says,
“No eye has seen, no ear has heard, no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him." (1 Cor. 2:9)
Our destiny is assured when we follow Jesus. It will be so wonderful we can’t begin to imagine what it will be like. We need to keep that in mind because in this life He will lead us through the valley sometimes. Sometimes, as we follow Him, the way may be painful. He said,
"Then you will be arrested, persecuted, and killed. You will be hated all over the world because of your allegiance to me.” Matt 24:9 (NLT)
“Do you remember what I told you? ’A servant is not greater than the master.’ Since they persecuted me, naturally they will persecute you. And if they had listened to me, they would listen to you! The people of the world will hate you because you belong to me, for they don’t know God who sent me.”
John 15:20-21 (NLT)
Paul wrote to the young Timothy, “... all who want to live godly lives in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” 2 Tim 3:12 (NET)
I need to be honest with you. If you respond to Jesus – it won’t always be pleasant. There will be (not MAY be) there WILL be trials and even persecutions. But Jesus promised:
“No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it.”
(1 Co 10:13)
When you are going through your trial or temptation remember: 1) Just about everyone else has gone through this or will go through what you are experiencing. 2) God is faithful. He will never allow you to be tempted more than you can bear. Sometimes I have thought, when I am going through a particularly painful trial, that God must have a great opinion of me to allow this much pain in my life. But his promise is to never give us more than we can bear – so we can bear this, too. 3) God will always make a way of escape. I have found that I usually have to search for that way of escape. Sometimes it’s through prayer. Other times through reading the Bible. Sometimes by going to a Christian friend and getting strength and support from them. But always – God has a way of escape for us. Look for it in every trial, persecution, and trouble.
There will be the valleys and rainy days in our lives. But I want to remind you of our destination. It’s heaven. Jesus said,
"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. My Father’s house has plenty of room; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am.” John 14:1-3
Do you ever try to imagine what heaven is like? I do. The bible says we can’t even imagine it, tho. I suppose it is like a blind man trying to imagine what color is like in his world of darkness. It is so far beyond our experience or intellectually ability to even get an idea of it. But the Bible gives us a few clues. No pain. No crying. Never any separation from loved ones. Filled with love and joy and peace. This Creator who made the rainbow and the sunset and the starry heavens has been working on a place suited just for us for quite a while now – before the world began. I think it’s going to be a pretty fantastic place.
Do you want to come along? Jesus is calling you. He’s inviting you. And all you have to do to begin the journey is to pray a simple prayer like this:
Jesus,
I hear you calling me. Forgive me for stubbornly going my own way. I’m sorry I sinned against you. I’m sorry I let you down. Please forgive me. From this day forward I will follow you wherever you lead. If I fall, please pick me back up. All the stuff I need to leave behind – help me to leave it. Help me to become that new person you want me to become. I give myself to you. Create in me a new heart and make me a new person.
In Jesus name,
