“When Jesus had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ‘Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.’ Simon answered, ‘Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.’” (Luke 5:4-5)
Paul the apostle wrote that “we walk by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7). Therefore, we will frequently not understand the rationale nor foresee the outcome of what God asks us to do. Peter admitted this much. “Lord, we just finished washing our nets. The workday is done. The nighttime is when the fish are close to the surface – and we’ve fished all night and caught nothing. But – even though it makes no sense to us – we’ll do as You command.” And as a result of their obedience, Simon and Andrew made the biggest catch of their lives.
No doubt this miracle – that filled two boats with fishes – would remain deeply imprinted on the memories of these two brothers. They would walk away from their nets never forgetting that, “It’s always best to do what Jesus asks you, no matter how ill-advised it may seem at the time.” Whatever God asks us to do, it is for a very good reason and we’ll always be glad we obeyed.
Over the years I’ve preached the Gospel to a lot of people. Unfortunately, I never see my audience. My preaching is almost exclusively through writing and I rarely get feedback from the messages I email or post to websites. Yet, I am convinced that I’m doing exactly what God wants me to do.
But obedience to God is not without cost. All my “preaching” is time-consuming and relentless. And there’s little indication of its effectiveness. But, like Simon Peter, I find myself saying to God, “Lord, I have no idea what effect this is having – if any. But I’ll do as You command.” From time to time, I’ll meet someone who’s read my articles or devotions and they’ll tell me how they’ve been blessed by them. Yet only heaven will reveal the true effect of my obedience and faithfulness. I’ll go through life without any statistical data on the impact of my work. As Paul told us, “We walk by faith, not by sight.” I’ll simply do what the Lord asks me and leave the results with Him.
If you are a believer in Jesus Christ, then expect to hear God’s voice. Romans 8:14 tells us, “those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God.” Yet we’ll often not understand the rationale nor foresee the outcome of obeying God. But we’ll always be glad we did. No one has ever lived to say, “I’m so glad I disobeyed God’s voice.”
REFLECTION
- Have you ever heard the voice of God? Have you ever regretted obeying it?
- Whose vision is better, ours or God’s? If, then, God foresees things that we cannot, shouldn’t we trust His judgment and do the things He tells us?
- God calls us to walk by faith, to obey without understanding the reasons why.
