Yesterday we saw Jesus, pressed by the crowd, tell Peter to take Him out a little bit from the shore. Then the Lord gave them a huge unusual catch of fish. Next,
Luke 5:10-11
10 …. And Jesus said
to Simon, "Do not fear, from now on you will be catching men."
11 When they had
brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed Him.
This brings up an interesting question. Answer this question yourself before you keep reading.
Do we have to
leave everything to follow the Lord?
If you answered simply yes or no, then you are wrong! The real answer is that we must simply be willing. Look at another account of this:
Matthew 4:18-22
18 Now as Jesus was
walking by the
19 And He said to
them, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men."
20 Immediately they
left their nets and followed Him.
21 Going on from
there He saw two other brothers, James the son of Zebedee, and John his
brother, in the boat with Zebedee their father, mending their nets; and He
called them.
22 Immediately
they left the boat and their father, and followed Him.
Peter was willing to follow the Lord before he was called to! Willingness is followed by direction from the Lord, and then direction is followed by action.
It’s all an issue of recognizing the authority that Jesus Christ has over our life. He has already demonstrated His authority over the elements (changed water to wine), over the angelic realm (casting out demons), over sickness (healed Peter’s mother-in-law, and many others, and over the animal kingdom (remember the fish).
The Lord also had authority over Peter’s boat, and even over Peter himself. But this only resulted in action because of the willingness of Peter to follow the Lord’s commands. He has that same authority over us – remember how He purchased us on the Cross?
1 Corinthians 6:20
20 For you have
been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body.
He has this authority over us whether we realize it or not. If we understand that authority, then we have an attitude of willingness to do whatever it is the Lord directs us to do.
Back to the original question. Do we have to leave everything to follow Him?
If you answered YES, then watch out for asceticism. (That means extreme self-denial as a means of attaining spirituality or of pleasing God.) Many people think that they are not supposed to enjoy anything, and that God is somehow impressed with that. Please, don’t get me started.
If you answered no, then maybe you have some things that are more important than your Lord and Savior. Whether you realize it or not, He owns you and everything you have!
The willing soul is always standing ready for the Lord to direct, and when He does, the believer follows! If you are going to walk with the Lord, then you must be willing to go wherever He wants you to go, and do whatever He wants you to do at a moment’s notice.
Think about Peter and his boat. Are you the Lord’s boat or your own boat?