• "What are you thinking?"
• "Do you love me?"
• "Do I look fat?"
• "Do you think she is prettier than me?"
• "What would you do if I died?"
Each of these questions, when answered incorrectly, lead to an argument or divorce. Men must think before answering them.
Sometimes we are asked DIFFICULT QUESTIONS when being interviewed for job.
Illus: A very bright young man was being interviewed for a job. The interviewer said,
• "I shall either ask you ten easy questions or one really difficult question. Think well before you make up your mind!"
• A boy thought for a while and said, "My choice is ONE really difficult question."
• "Well, good luck to you, you have made your own choice! Now tell me this. ‘What comes first, Day or Night?’"
• The boy was jolted into reality as his admission depends on the correctness of his answer, but he thought for a while and said, "It’s the DAY sir!"
• The interviewer asked, "Why is it the DAY?"
• "Sorry sir, you promised me that you would only ask me ONE QUESTION!
• He was selected for the job!
Sometimes people will ask preachers questions, such as:
• “Preacher, do you like to play golf?”
• “Preacher, do you like sports?”
• “Preacher, do you get involved in politics.”
• Probably the one most often asked is, “Preacher, do you ever go fishing?”
The fact is, many preachers like to do one or more of these things, especially fishing. And like all fishermen, they love to brag.
Illus: I am reminded of the story of the two preachers who were bragging about who caught the biggest fish.
• One of the preachers said, “Without a doubt I would have to say I have caught the biggest fish. I caught one the other day that was six inches.”
• The other preacher said, “I caught the biggest fish, I caught a bass that was twelve inches long.”
• The first preacher said, “Well, that is good, but that is not as big as the fish I caught.”
• The other preacher said, “How can you say you caught the biggest fish when mine was almost 12 inches and yours was only about six inches?”
• The preacher said, “Oh, let me explain. I caught the biggest fish because you measure the length of the fish, I was measuring six inches between the eyes on my fish!”
In this sermon, I would like to look at a fishing story that sounds exaggerated, BUT IS TRUE!
When these disciples told what had happened, they were not lying. What happened on this fishing trip was so miraculous that if it wasn’t recorded in the Bible, we would surely not believe it. Let me show you several things about Peter’s fishing trip. First, notice...
I. THE DECISION
Peter said, “I go a-fishing.” You have to watch these fishermen, if they get a chance to go fishing…THEY WILL GO!
Illus: A young boy came to School late. His teacher knew that he was usually very prompt and asked him if anything was wrong.
• The boy replied that he was going fishing but his dad told him that he needed to go to school.
• The teacher was very impressed and asked the boy if his dad had explained to him why it was more important to go to school than to go fishing.
• The boy replied, "Yes he did. Dad said he didn't have enough bait for both of us."
WHEN DID PETER DECIDE TO GO FISHING? As most of you know, TIMING IS IMPORTANT WHEN IT COMES TO FISHING! While some folks say there is NEVER IS A BAD TIME TO FISH, most of the experienced fisherman will tell you that successful fishing depends on GOOD TIMING!
We are told by the experts that the best time to fish is during the times of Sunrise or Sunset during a Full or New Moon.
Peter was an experienced fisherman, but he chose to go fishing AT THE WRONG TIME. He went while he was discouraged.
Peter, and the other disciples had willingly left behind successful careers, families, and even their religion to follow Jesus.
• They had total CONFIDENCE that Jesus was Who He said He was - the only begotten Son of God.
• THEY FOLLOWED HIM, and they FOLLOWED HIM PROUDLY.
• They even discussed which of them would sit on the right and on the left of His throne when He would set up His kingdom.
• They became instant celebrities as they went from city to city and the multitudes came out to catch a glance of Jesus and His twelve disciples.
Then one day, a band of soldiers, led by Judas Iscariot, came into the garden while Jesus was praying.
• They came with such a show of force that the disciples were afraid and fled.
• The Lord Jesus went through a rigged trial, was condemned to die, and was nailed to a cross which was then set upright, lifted, and dropped into a hole in the ground.
• Then the cross was braced with supports so Jesus hung between heaven and earth to die.
As His disciples watched Him hang, in the back of their minds they were thinking, “We have seen Him heal the blind, the lame, the leprous, the dumb, and cast out devils and raise the dead.” As they watched from a distance they expected Him to bounce down from that cross at any moment and call fire down from heaven to consume those who tried and condemned Him.
But, instead, He just hung there. He hung and suffered as His life’s blood flowed from his body. Finally He cried out saying, with His last breath, “Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit.”(Luke 23:46b)
• His enemies, who had Him crucified, laughed with joy
• The demons in hell cried out, HE IS DEAD
Yes, Jesus had actually died. His body was placed in a tomb where it stayed until HE WAS RESURRECTED. It was after the Lord was crucified, and Peter’s faith was crushed, that he got so discouraged and said, “I go a-fishing.”
A. THE WORST TIME TO MAKE LIFE-CHANGING DECISIONS IS WHEN YOU ARE DISCOURAGED
We all have bad days when DISCOURAGEMENT is staring us in the face.
Illus: Someone said, “You know it's going to be a bad day when:
• As the moving van starts to unload next door, the first four items down the ramp are dirt bikes.
• Your 14-year-old daughter insists Jesus never preached against pierced noses.
• Your ailing station wagon fails to qualify for the demolition derby.
• Your pacemaker is recalled by the manufacturer.
We all have to deal with these days of DISCOURAGEMENT! No one should make life-changing decisions when discouraged. For example:
• People have made some awful decisions about business when they were discouraged.
• Christians have walked out of their marriages when they were discouraged and then looked back later with much regret!
• Christians have left churches and destroyed testimonies in a moment of discouragement and been out of the will of God ever since then.
• Christians have made bad career changes at times of discouragement only to find later they were better off than they thought at the time.
It was when Peter was at the lowest point of His Christian life that he said, “I go a-fishing.” He was really discouraged after the Lord was crucified!
B. THE WORST TIME TO MAKE A LIFE-CHANGING DECISION IS WHEN YOU HAVE TO DO IT IN HASTE
That was exactly when Peter and the disciples decided to fish. Look at John 21:3b, “...They went forth, and entered into a ship IMMEDIATELY...” All kinds of mistakes have been made when people did things in haste.
Notice that word, “IMMEDIATELY.” This decision was made in haste. Listen, you better pray before you make hasty life-changing decisions! If you don’t pray and wait on God’s direction, you will surely find yourself in a mess that you will regret! For example:
• You better take time and pray before you buy that new house.
• You better take time and pray before you buy that new car.
• You better take time and pray before you decide to get married.
• You better take time and pray about which college to attend, or even whether or not to go.
• You better pray before you quit that job, or take that job.
• You better pray before you put those tattoos all over your body. 10 years from now you may be willing to give anything not to have them on you.
We looked at THE DECISION. Now look at -
II. THE INFLUENCE
There is something else involved in making bad decisions. They do not just affect you, they affect others. The Bible said the disciples decided to go with him and they went IMMEDIATELY!
Peter got off the highway God had placed him on. He took a detour and others followed him. Listen, all of you have influence on someone.
Illus: Even Jesse James had a gang that followed him.
Peter, on impulse, said, “I go a-fishing.” The disciples said, “We also go with thee.”
Illus: A dad got angry with his wife and left their home. He went outside in the snowy weather to visit the local saloon down the street. As he walked in the deep snow he became aware that someone was behind him. He looked back and saw his son walking in his footsteps to the saloon. It dawned on him that he was leading his son down the same path he had been going. He came to his senses and stopped and turned around.
Listen, as a pastor, I have seen people in the church use their good INFLUENCE to lead people into the church. But I have also seen people in the church use their bad INFLUENCE to lead people out of the church.
Illus: The cartoon “Peanuts” was in the paper. It showed Peppermint Patty talking to Charlie Brown. She said, "Guess what, Chuck. The first day of school, and I got sent to the principal's office. It was your fault, Chuck." He said, "My fault? How could it be my fault? Why do you say everything is my fault?" She said, "You're my friend, aren't you, Chuck? You should have been a better influence on me."
Some people are a bad influence. As folks associate with these people, they get further and further from the Lord. Peter said, “I GO A FISHING” and he influenced the others!
Wrong decisions AFFECT Us and they AFFECT OTHERS.
Illus: Dr. Odell Belger was witnessing to a woman that loved her daughter dearly. He tried to persuade her to come to Christ, but she would not. He finally told her that if she chose to reject Christ, then according to the scriptures she would spend eternity in Hell. If she made that decision, she could also be making that decision for the daughter in her arms. She was the most influential person in her daughter’s life. By rejecting Christ, she might be sending herself and her daughter into Hell.
We looked at THE DECISION and THE INFLUENCE. Also we see -
III. THE DISAPPOINTMENT
The Bible tells us they fished all night and caught nothing!
Look at verse 3 again. We read, “Simon Peter saith unto them, I go a fishing. They say unto him, We also go with thee. They went forth, and entered into a ship immediately; AND THAT NIGHT THEY CAUGHT NOTHING.” There is nothing worse than being out of the will of God. It seems like everything we do backfires!
The disciples fished all night and did not catch a thing. This did not happen because they...
• Did not know HOW to fish
• Did not have the RIGHT EQUIPMENT
• Did not have the RIGHT BAIT
It happened because they WERE OUT OF THE WILL OF GOD!
God could not bless them because, as the children of God, if they had caught a boat-load of fish on their own that night, they probably never would have gotten back into the ministry.
When money and prosperity comes into the life of some, God goes out of their life. At no time will God bless one of His children when they are out His will.
WHY DOES GOD ALLOW THE UNGODLY TO PROSPER? One of the reasons is that He loves them. God knows this life they are living here on earth is the only heaven they will ever have. Do you realize how long they will be in Hell? Eternity is forever!
Do not envy the sinner! When you are in Heaven ten million years, they still will be burning in Hell. The sinner better get all the happiness that he can get in this life because in Hell he will suffer FOREVER! They prosper in this life out of the will of God because it is the only heaven they will have.
But God is not going to allow Christians to get out of His will and prosper. If He did it would be sending the wrong signal.
They were discouraged before they went fishing, but after they had fished all night without catching anything, they really were discouraged. It seemed that everything they did in life went sour.
We have seen THE DECISION, THE INFLUENCE and THE DISAPPOINTMENT. Also we see -
IV. THE INSTRUCTIONS
Look at verses 4-5. We read, “But when the morning was now come, Jesus stood on the shore: but the disciples knew not that it was Jesus. Then Jesus saith unto them, Children, have ye any meat? They answered him, No.”
They heard a man on shore calling, “Hey men, have you caught anything?” They answered the man on shore with one word, “NO!
The Lord Jesus knew what the trouble was. Look at verse 6. We read, “And he said unto them, Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and YE SHALL FIND.”
Perhaps it seemed strange, but the Lord told them they could solve their problem by doing something different - casting their nets on the other side of the boat. We might think it strange that the disciples did not protest and say that they had tried that and it did not work. Evidently they had been fishing from the one side of the boat all that night. Sometimes Christians are very METHODICAL.
• Many park their car in the same spaces in the church lot Sunday after Sunday.
• They sit in the same pew, in the same spot on the pew every Sunday.
• They greet the same Christians week after week.
• They sing, basically, the same songs over and over.
WHAT ARE YOU SAYING PREACHER? I am saying that we can get into such a mode that we come to church and do things out of habit rather than out of love and desire to serve the Lord. Then, we wonder why we are not winning lost souls to Christ. From the shore, the Lord gave these instructions; “Cast the net on the right side of the ship, and YE SHALL FIND.” They obeyed, even though it really did not make any sense to them, and the Bible says, “...now they were not able to draw it (the net) for the multitude of fishes.”
If churches were willing to start making SOME CHANGES they could see SOME CHANGES!.
Illus: A definition of ignorance is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.
If we have formed a habit of “fishing from the wrong side of the boat” and God wants us to do something different, He will bless us for our obedience. When the disciples obeyed, their net was so full of blessings they were not able to even draw them into the boat.
Conclusion:
Some who are here today have been fishing from the wrong side of the boat. For years you have lived your life your way! If you are willing to listen to the Lord and come to the Lord’s side, He will bless you. The disciples had nothing to lose. They tried their way and got no results. When they did it His way they had wonderful results!
I. THE DECISION
II. THE INFLUENCE
III. THE DISAPPOINTMENT
IV. THE INSTRUCTIONS
