I prophesy right now that before this message is over, somebody is going to hear Jesus say come.
It’s going to be just as real for you as it was for Peter on that stormy night, Jesus has not changed and he is still calling people to walk on the water and somebody listening to this message is going to hear that unmistakable voice and your life is never going to be the same.
Come: It’s really just another way of saying
You can do it, It’s your turn, Start, Jump, Go, (Quit making excuses) (Break free of your fears) Live your faith.
So many of Gods people live beneath their potential, they live what we’ll call the safe life.
But every once in a while you run into someone who heard Jesus say come and they went over the edge of the comfortable and predictable safe zone and they’re following Jesus in the Faith Zone.
So many times we sit back in our comfortable safe places and talk about everything we would do for God (if) he ever called us
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Well my question is: What do you do when Jesus says (Come?)
You and I may never actually physically follow Peter out on the deep blue sea
In other words: You and I may never literally get out of a boat and walk on top of water as Peter did.
We may never during the course of our lifetimes be in the situation or the circumstances that Peter was in when he literally and physically got out of his boat in the middle of a life threatening storm and physically in the presence of eye witnesses walked on top of the water.
Right there I can hear in my spirit a big sigh of relief; because as exciting as it is, and as encouraging as it is to read about Peter walking on top of the water, and Peter putting that which was over his head under his feet.
The truth is: most Christians have no desire to walk on the water when there is a perfectly good boat anywhere nearby.
But while we may never physically leave the safety of a perfectly good boat and leap out onto a raging sea. There will be times in our lives as we follow Christ that we will be challenged to duplicate that same reckless faith and abandon that Peter had when he let go of everything so he could hold onto a word.
There is going to be some point in your faith journey a time when you have to choose the high road or the low road.
If you choose the higher road it means you will have to let go.
The higher road means higher in the realm of faith
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It takes a certain measure of faith just to ride out the storm. It takes a certain measure of faith to keep your sanity when all hell is breaking loose against your family, your finances, your health, and your ministry.
Some people are quick to criticize those other disciples as being fearful and faithless:
But I don’t because I know how it feels to be in a storm, and I know how much faith it took just to stay in the boat.
To keep praising, to keep trusting, to keep tithing, and keep sowing and keep confessing when I couldn’t see any relief in sight, and I couldn’t feel any relief and I couldn’t see anything but storm clouds and rough waters
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No I’m not condemning them; they made it thru the storm, they made it to the other side (praise God they made it) that’s something to shout about right there.
I made it: I didn’t feel like I was going to make it, it didn’t look like I was going to make it, people said I wouldn’t make it, but here I am.
No I will not criticize them: I only have one thing to say about those other disciples (They missed the opportunity to take the high road) you see they were brought to a place where they could choose a greater glory.
They missed the testimony of a water walker:
Their testimony was: We made it, we survived, we rode out the storm.
But when Peter began to testify, his testimony was different
Yes he was in the boat with all the rest, and yes he feared for his life like all the other disciples, But when Peter saw Jesus walking on the water something on the inside of Peter told him (You can do that) If Jesus can do it, you can too.
Something inside of Peter said: If the teacher can do it, so can the students.
(All I need is a Word from the Master)
All you need is a word from the Master
All you need is a word: A can do word.
There may be a thousand voices telling you that you can’t do it, and a thousand reasons why can’t do it.
You’re not educated enough, You’re not old enough, You’re too old, You’re the wrong color, You’re from the wrong side of town, You don’t have enough money, You don’t have any experience.
But if you have a can do word from God
You can do the impossible: You can go where they said you could never go, and you can do what they said you can never do, and you can be what they said you could never be, and you can have what they said you could never have.
Tell your neighbor: I’ve got a can do word
I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me ……… Php 4:13
If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth…….. Mt 9:23
Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world……. 1Jo 4:4
Peter had a word: Come
That’s all he had (but that’s all he needed)
No doubt the disciples argued with him and told him, it was impossible and begged him to stay in the boat, and stay on the same faith level that they were on, (but Peter had heard the Call)
Everyone in the boat had the same opportunity Peter had to walk on the water, the circumstances were the same, Jesus was the same, the word was the same.
They chose to hold on to the boat; Peter chose to step out on the Word.
When Peter stepped out on the word: He stepped into a brand new anointing.
He stepped into a supernatural water walking anointing, He began moving and walking and operating in the same realm and the same anointing that Jesus was functioning in.
Let me make a point here: Jesus didn’t force Peter to get out of the boat, Jesus didn’t threaten Peter. Jesus didn’t condemn the other disciples for not walking on the water.
Jesus simply came to them all in a way that presented an opportunity for them to move to another level in their faith.
He created an avenue for them to step from one realm of anointing to another, he called them to a higher experience, and a higher manifestation of his power in their lives.
But only one took that step: That step separated Peter from the rest of the disciples.
That step drew a line between the doers and the watchers, (between the boat sitters and the water walkers).
Somebody said” I’m afraid, I’m afraid I might get wet.
Well you might get wet, In fact you probably will get wet.
But I made up my mind a long time ago, that I would rather be a wet water walker, than a dry boat sitter.
I’d rather fail trying to do something great for God, than to succeed at doing nothing.
I’d rather experience one day, one hour, one minute walking on the water, than a life time of sitting in the boat.
I prophesy and I declare to you that there is a new stirring in the spirit, and many who have been comfortable and satisfied in the boat of mediocrity and religious expectation and traditions of man are getting uncomfortable.
The Spirit is calling (Come up hither) Come up Higher.
And many of Gods people are realizing that they weren’t created for the confines and the restrictions and the limitations of a barnyard religion.
In other words: we are discovering our destiny, we are discovering our purpose and we are discovering the power that resides in us.
And we are discovering that we are not chickens, we are eagles.
You can choose to live on the lower plane as a chicken, but your eagle spirit will never be satisfied.
Some of you listening to me right now and hearing this message: You can’t figure it out, you’re uncomfortable, you’re uneasy and kind of edgy and irritable; nothing really satisfies you, you’re not satisfied by what you eat or the job you have or the car you drive.
You leave church feeling like something’s missing and you want to blame it on the Pastor, or the praise and worship team, or the teacher or the evangelist.
But the truth is: It’s not their fault, a different job or different food, or a different church, or more money, isn’t going to fix it.
The problem is: your spirit has heard the Eagle cry of the Spirit and your spirit wants to break free but your flesh is trying to hold you in captivity.
It’s the anointing that is calling you; it’s the anointing that is pulling at you.
It’s that same anointing that pulled Peter out of that boat. It’s that same word that called Peter to a life in the supernatural.
You can talk about the peter that started to sink
But I prefer to talk about the Peter that walked on the water, cast out devils, healed the sick and raised the dead and preached the inauguration of the dispensation of the Holy Ghost and 3,000 souls were saved.
I want to talk about the man who let go of everything to take hold of one word from God.
As I said earlier (you and I may never jump out of a boat like Peter did and walk on water, but at some point in your faith journey God is going to give you the opportunity to launch out into the supernatural: You’re going to hear him say (Come)
And it’s going to be just as crazy and just as reckless, and some people will criticize you and call you crazy, some people will make fun of you and forecast your failure and anticipate your demise.
But at some point you have to make a choice: Are you going to live by what man created (the job) (the position) (the reputation) or are you going to live by what created man?
Heb 11:3 Through faith we understand that (the worlds were framed by the word of God), so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear.
Somebody is getting out of the boat, somebody is making a decision today to go higher, to walk by faith and not by sight.
Somebody today is moving into what I call (Crazy Faith) It’s the kind of faith that will let go of everything just to take hold of one word from God.
That one word from Jesus saved Peters life, and probably everyone on that boat: I want you to lift your hands right now and begin to praise God for some crazy people, People who are willing to risk everything on a word.
People who will answer the call into the unknown, People who will say yes to God.
Abraham, Paul the apostle, Joseph, Daniel, the Three Hebrew children, and Jesus himself are in that group.
That’s a pretty good crowd to run with.
Somebody is hearing the voice of Jesus right now (he’s saying Come, let’s do this together)
Let’s go to the mission field,
Let’s start that business,
Let’s build that church,
Let’s write that book.
Let’s go back to school and get your degree
Let’s launch that ministry
When Jesus says Come: He is inviting you to take hold of his power, his wisdom, his ability.
I believe there is a call going out in the spirit right now, for men and women to let go of the safe life and step up to the faith life.
Peter did not sink and neither will you, Jesus would not have called you if he couldn’t hold you up.
When Jesus says Come everything you need to accomplish the work is contained in that word.
