Living Like Jesus Or What Would Jesus Do?
Luke 5:1-11
1-3 On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, and he saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets.
Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, he asked him to put out a little from the land. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat.
4-5 And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch." And Simon answered, "Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets."
6-7 And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink.
8-11 But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord." For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken, and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men." And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.
I. Crowds are Crowded
II. Invest in Individuals
III. Have Confidence in the Future
I. Crowds are Crowded, Notice what Jesus did in verses 1-3 when the crowds pushed in He pulled away. He did abandon the crowd, but He didn’t become a part of the crowd. Do you blend in? If so, why?
Romans 12:2 tell us, Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
God does not want us to blend in, He wants us to be in Him.
You cannot hang out with the crowd and be in Him. 1Corinthians 15:33 says, Do not be misled: "Bad company corrupts good character."
This takes us back to the old saying, We are in this world, but not of this world.
What behaviors distinguish you from the world? In times past Christians dressed differently. The Puritans wore the outfit you see on the Quaker Oats box, I don’t know why they didn’t use a Quaker for Quaker Oats, but they used a Puritan. Some Mennonites wear hats, Amish men have beards and the list is long. In recent decades the church has proposed that their people dress down in an effort to make new attendees more comfortable. The denomination known as Calvary Chapel even advised this as a policy for their adherents. The Bible says in 1Peter 3:4, "let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God’s sight is very precious."
Author Jennifer McBride wrote,
"Ladies and gentlemen, I exhort you to dress in such a way that does not capture anyone’s gaze, but actually gives others something else, besides your attire, to think about. Discretion is a godly trait. At times, it is better to exercise self-control, by setting aside our personal preferences for the glory of God. May our godly words and godly behavior be unimpeded by the things we wear as we seek to assist others to see Christ in us."
Crowds are crowded and it’s not just in the fashion world; we find it in politics, opinions on diets and health care, electric cars, versions of the Bible, denominations and on and on. But when we pull away from the crowds, we need to always keep in mind that we have a message for the crowds. A message of love and hope, a message of the value of faith in God and trust in Christ. People won’t listen to you if they think you are a weirdo, but they also won’t listen if your life is a wreck. So find that middle ground.
Crowds are crowded, but living alienated is lonely and crippling. So chose your friends and chose them wisely.
All week long, we come and go with the busyness of life, then on Sunday we show up here at church. Here the faithful Christian is normal, here we can relax, here we are uncontested believers. Here we are reminded that God loves us and others receive it when we remind them. Here we are reminded that God has made sense out of the senseless things of life; that He has made a hope that lives in the midst of adversity and that even in death He creates life.
Crowds are crowded so stand back, assess their need, extend the gospel, remind them that God loves them, Christ died for them and that He is coming back for them. Before you allow yourself to be influenced by the crowd, remember it was a crowd that chanted, "Crucify Him."
II. Invest in Individuals
In Luke 5:4 we read, And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon.... What He said to Simon is important, but for this application it is valuable to see simply that Jesus’ attention diverted from the crowd to a single person.
This is toxic for a political candidate, remember "Joe the plumber" or any host of individuals who have drawn the candidate’s focus from the crowd to the individual? Yet it is what Jesus did time and again.
We find this in Luke 9 where Jesus and the disciples are in a discussion,
Luke 9:18-20 Now it happened that as he was praying alone, the disciples were with him. And he asked them, “Who do the crowds say that I am?" And they answered, "John the Baptist. But others say, Elijah, and others, that one of the prophets of old has risen." Then he said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"
Jesus is not in a popularity contest, He is in a divinity contest and He knows that crowds are fickle and follow trends, but individuals can be faithful and reshape the world.
Our relationship with God is not a community thing, it is a personal thing that we share in order to direct others toward God.
If you want Jesus to be more real in your life, be more like Jesus, let your message be to the crowds, but focus in on individual people.
III. Have Confidence in the Future
Luke 5:10 reads, And Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men."
This is of course in response to Simon falling before Christ in fear after they caught 20,000 fish over the limit (lol). We know that Simon was the Apostle Peter, who won many souls for Christ and through his example in scripture, is still winning souls today, even as I am using him right now.
But what I find intriguing is that, Peter is going to lead a difficult life and if tradition is true, he will be crucified on an inverted cross, he is going to struggle, struggle, struggle and Jesus tells him, "Do not fear."
Do you have confidence in your future? As Christians we are usually quick to say, "oh yeah, when I die, I’m going to heaven." Well that’s great, but what about before you die? What are you afraid of? Afraid your children will mess up? That your retirement won’t be big enough to last as long as you need it? That your house might be repossessed? How about, are you afraid your husband or wife will never change, or that they will change? That your parents will never "get" you? That you will never fulfill your dreams? There is a lot to be fearful of, Jesus said, "Do not be afraid."
What is the point of having a living God whom we pray to and expect answers from, if we cannot cast our cares upon Him?
Look at someone near you and tell them, "You have nothing to fear." Sounds good doesn’t it? Now look at them again and tell them, "We have nothing to fear." Some of you are feeling blessed and refreshed, some of you just feel like you lied. All you have to do is put your life aside, put Christ first and follow Him.
One of the hymns we sing in church is titled, God Will Take Care of You. It’s not one of my favorites, because when I hear the tune I want to break into a waltz. But the tune of the song does not diminish the truths of the lyrics:
Be not dismayed whate'er betide,
God will take care of you;
beneath his wings of love abide,
God will take care of you.
God will take care of you,
through every day, o'er all the way;
he will take care of you,
God will take care of you.
Through days of toil when heart doth fail,
God will take care of you;
when dangers fierce your path assail,
God will take care of you.
All you may need he will provide,
God will take care of you;
nothing you ask will be denied,
God will take care of you.
No matter what may be the test,
God will take care of you;
lean, weary one, upon his breast,
God will take care of you.
Psalm 34:4-10
4-6 I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to him are radiant, and their faces shall never be ashamed. This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles.
7-10The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them. Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him! Oh, fear the Lord, you his saints, for those who fear him have no lack! The young lions suffer want and hunger; but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing.
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I. Crowds are Crowded
II. Invest in Individuals
III. Have Confidence in the Future
