40 Days with the Risen Christ: Day 18

"Bring some of the fish which you have now caught."
John 21:10

Peter's denial of Jesus was an epic failure of leadership, and it plagued him in the deepest recesses of his soul. A witness to the empty tomb, and the manifest Presence of the Risen Christ, Peter still did not grasp the power of the resurrection. He had returned to the one thing he knew, fishing. He failed again.

Peter left a huge catch, jumped into the water and swam towards the beach when he heard the words, "It is the Lord." When he came into The Presence of The Risen Christ, Jesus didn't rebuke the weary disciple for his failure. He simply said, "Bring some of the fish which you have now caught."

Obedience to the King is the pledge of allegiance in His Kingdom. Immediate obedience breaks a hardened heart and opens it up to the love of Jesus. Peter didn't need more fish in boat. He needed Jesus in his life.

"Two things break the heart of The Savior. Rebellion and repentance."
Don Miller, 1922-2015

I miss Chuck Colson's prophetic voice. He made an astute observation of Vocational Guidance Counselors who once served the public high schools of this nation. The title of their office was rooted in the Latin word, 'vocere," meaning "to call." This referred to the nature of their work, assisting students in the discovery of their personal calling in life. His point? Every person created by God has a calling. Discover yours.

For 40 days The Risen Christ taught His followers about The Kingdom. He initiated His relationship with His disciples, by calling them with two words, "Follow Me." They were not called to follow a creed, a religion, a tradition, a way of life, or a world view. They were called to accompany Jesus and walk with Him, talk with Him, learn from Him, and obey Him.

The power of the resurrection transformed ordinary people in The Roman Empire into extraordinary citizens of The Kingdom of God. Peter remained an ordinary fisherman without the power of the resurrection. The Risen Christ revealed His power is still found in His Presence.

When Jesus warned His disciples. "Apart from Me, you can do nothing," He was not overstating His case or denying their significance in His Kingdom. He was calling The citizens of His Kingdom to abide in His Presence. Good citizens follow His call and abide where He guides.

The King still calls His citizens to follow Him out of one world and into another. Loyalty in His Kingdom is not expressed by repeating a pledge of allegiance, but by carrying out a fresh act of obedience.
Answering the King's call and obeying His commands are the signs of a loyal citizen and these acts of obedience are always expressed in the present tense. In The Wilderness the children of Israel learned they could not live on yesterday's manna. They could not hoard God's provision or dodge His Presence. Neither can you.
Personal revival begins with a fresh act of obedience. Sustaining revival comes from keeping your obedience up to date. The power of the resurrection is fueled by obedience, but it is quenched by disobedience. When you fail to pray you begin to stray into disobedience.
"Revival is a fresh act of obedience." Charles Finney
When Peter took it upon himself to go fishing on the Sea of Galilee, he drifted from the calling Jesus had placed on his life. Meeting The Risen Christ on the beach must have reminded Peter of the first time he heard Jesus say, "I will make you fishers of men." Peter traded his calling for a career. Don't ever do it.
Satan hates what is good for you, but he is even more of an enemy of the best God has for you. He will allow you to spend your life being consumed with doing something good if it will keep you from experiencing God's best for you.
Fishing on the Sea of Galilee was a good idea. it just wasn't God's idea. Any prayerless idea holds the potential of a careless act. Take a lesson from Peter's learning curve. Learn to tell the difference between a good idea and God's idea. Prayer helps.

The Risen Christ welcomed Peter to sunrise breakfast on the beach. He invited him to bring some of the fish he had caught, and add them to what He had already prepared. Jesus wasn't waiting for Peter to provide what was needed. He already had what Peter needed. He offered this weary disciples the privilege of joining Him in what He was doing for them, and to enjoy His company. He still does.

Jesus never calls His followers to race to Him to meet His needs. He invites His disciples into His Presence to meet their needs. Weary disciples still race to the sound of His voice, embrace His Presence, and obey the first things He commands them to do. Immediate obedience is the pledge of allegiance in His Kingdom. Pray and obey.

NOTE TO SELF: You are called to follow Jesus. Get this right. He leads. You follow. He commands. You obey. Accompany Jesus. Don't race ahead of Him. Embrace Him. When you pray, you enter into His Presence. When you obey you stay in His Presence and you experience the power of His resurrection. Don't delay.

TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!

40 Days with the Risen Christ: Day 17

"So when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put his outer garment on (for he was stripped for work), and threw himself into the sea. But the other disciples came in the little boat, for they were not far from the land, but about one hundred yards away, dragging the net full of fish. So when they got out on the land, they saw a charcoal fire already laid and fish placed on it, and bread. Jesus said, 'Bring some of the fish which you have now caught.' Simon Peter went up and drew the net to land, full of large fish, a hundred and fifty-three; and there were so many, the net was not torn."
John 21:7-11

When Peter heard John say, "It is the Lord," only 100 yards separated him from Jesus. The distance made no difference. Leaving the catch, Peter rushed to His Presence. The catch that had consumed him the night before, no longer interested him in the morning.

The Risen Christ embodied the power of the resurrection. Jesus rose from the grave, not only to defeat death, hell and the grave. He promised to provide abundant life.

"I came that they might have life, and have it more abundantly."
John 10:10

An abundant life doesn't include being devoured by the work of the Lord. It is a matter of being saturated with The Presence of the Lord of the work. Covered in the sweat of his own effort, Peter plunged into the water and made His way to Jesus. Sweat equity on behalf of the Lord is no substitute for sweet fellowship with the Lord.

"Anything that cools your love for Jesus is sin."
Don Miller, 1922-2015

NOTE TO SELF: Jesus doesn't need what you do for Him in the flesh to accomplish His mission on earth. He invites you into His Presence to share in what He is already doing for you. Jesus is never in your debt. He provides for you. You never provide for Him. He invites you to bring the catch He has given to you, not to brag about it, but to enjoy His Presence. Don't let your perspiration in the work of the Lord lead to your separation from the Lord of the work. Prayer tightens your grip on Jesus, and loosens your grip on the catch. Peter made his way to The Risen Christ. You should too.

TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!

40 Days with the Risen Christ: Day 16

" 'Cast the net on the right-hand side of the boat, and you will find a catch.' So they cast, and then they were not able to haul it in because of the great number of fish. Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, 'It is the Lord.' "
John 21:6-7a

John's account of The Risen Christ reveals a confrontation between Jesus and His wayward and weary disciples. Standing on the banks of the Sea of Galilee, Jesus could see into their empty boat. It revealed to Him the results of His disciples' futile, all night effort at fishing. Jesus can still see into your boat.

It was not unusual for fishermen to have spotters on the shore watching for any sign of fish moving on the lake. From a higher point on the land, friends and family would be able to see a school of fish swirling near the surface of the lake. They would often shout to fishermen to row in the right direction.

Jesus was not chiding His disciples for their failure to accomplish what they set out to do. He was offering His help to finish what they set out to do. Without hesitation, they wisely followed His advice. Wise disciples still do.

"Delayed obedience is still disobedience."
Henry Blackaby

Peter left Jerusalem, after Jesus met with him and the rest of the disciples in the Upper Room. Jesus had breathed on them and exhorted them to 'Receive the Holy Spirit." When Peter returned home to the Sea of Galilee, he set out to do the one thing he knew how to do. Focusing on fishing without the filling of the Holy Spirit always results in an empty boat.

These disciples would not be the last followers of Jesus to experience the death of a vision. Their personal plans and dreams had been crushed by the death of Jesus. The Risen Christ had revealed to them the power of the resurrection, but unsure about their future, they sought comfort in resurrecting their past. Jesus revealed Himself to them in the present tense, to bury their past and to give them a future and a hope. The power of the resurrection still does.

"Simon Peter said to them, 'I am going fishing.' They said to him, 'We will also come with you.' They went out and got into the boat and that night they caught nothing. But when the day was breaking, Jesus stood on the beach; yet the disciples did not know it was Jesus."
John 21:3-4

When Jesus arrived on the scene, He asked His disciples if they had any fish. Ttey had to admit to Him they had failed at the one thing they knew how to do. Peter was focused on his past, filling a boat with fish. The Risen Christ intended to fill focus Peter the one thing he needed the most, being filled with the Spirit.

When Peter and the disciples cast their nets on the right side of the boat, they discovered the elusive catch. As the morning sun rose over the mountains, it dawned on John that their catch was not a matter of good luck or hard work. He could see the hand-prints of Jesus all over it. In truth, it was not their catch. It was His catch. John gave Jesus all the credit for it. Wise disciples still do.

"The disciple that Jesus loved said to Peter, 'It is the Lord.' "

NOTE TO SELF: There is a huge difference between casting your net on the right side of the boat, and continuing your futile effort to cast it on the wrong side of the boat. The key to the catch is your immediate obedience to the voice of Jesus. He longs to give you the Father's direction, protection and correction. When Jesus prayed He yielded to the Father's will for His life. You should too. When you remain prayerless, you keep taking your own advice, and you keep missing the catch He has for you. Remember. Here's the catch. When Jesus gives it to you, receive it from Him, and give Him all the credit for it.

TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!

40 Days with the Risen Christ: Day 12

"Cast your net on the right side of the boat."
Jesus

Translations differ on the exact wording of the advice Jesus gave to the weary fishermen. Facing the dawn of a new day, they had to admit to Jesus what He knew to be true about them. Their all night efforts had left them with nothing but an empty boat.

On the Sea of Galilee, fishermen did not make a living, by going through the motions. They proved who they were, not by what they did, but by what the caught.

Jesus told the men to cast their nets on the right side of the boat or as some say, the right hand side of the boat. Whatever they heard Him say, they got His message and did what He said. They stopped what they were doing, and started doing what Jesus told them to do. Wise men still do.

NOTE TO SELF: When the horse is dead, dismount & turn the reins over to Jesus. He specializes in breathing new life into what you have ridden into the ground, by your own effort. Prayer loosens your grip on your will, and opens your hands to receive God's will.

TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!

40 Days with the Risen Christ: Day 11

"So, Jesus said, 'Children, you do not have any fish, do you?'"
John 21:5

Standing on the beach, overlooking the Sea of Galilee, Jesus could see the weary fishermen had rowed their boat and cast their nets throughout the dark of night and they had come up empty. Jesus wasn't asking them a question to seek an answer. He was seeking their admission of failure to supply their need.

Jesus addressed these hardy, leather skinned fishermen with great tenderness, calling them "Children." His disciples had wandered from His Presence and failed at their task. Wandering and working disciples always do. Jesus claimed them as His own, and called out to them. He still does.
Childish people want their voice to be heard. Child-like people desire to hear the voice of Jesus.

The Prayerless are childish. The Prayerful are childlike.

NOTE TO SELF: Are you listening to the voice of Jesus? Praying improves your hearing. Can you hear Him calling you back to His Presence? Stop making so much noise trying to impress Jesus with what you can do for Him on your own. He knows how empty you really are. The Risen Christ can still see into your boat.

TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!

40 Days with the Risen Christ: Day 10

"After these things, Jesus manifested Himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias, in this way." John 21:1

Luke's account seems to place The Ascension of The Risen Christ, immediately after He revealed Himself to His disciples in the Upper Room. As an eyewitness, John was able to round out the fascinating events that reveal the rest of the story.

Fresh from his encounter with The Risen Christ in the Upper Room, Peter left the city of Jerusalem,and led Thomas, Nathaniel, James and John, along with two other disciples back home to Cana of Galilee.

The Sea of Galilee remains one of the most beautiful and unspoiled regions of the world. These fishermen were way out of their comfort zone. Bone weary of savage city life, Peter longed for the comfort of home. The others followed him, and The Risen Christ met them there. Peter had gone back to his fishing business, but Jesus had some unfinished business with Peter.

NOTE TO SELF: You can run but you can't hide. When Jesus puts you in an uncomfortable place don't look for your comfort zone. Prayerless people race from His Presence. Prayerful people embrace Him.

TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!

40 Days with the Risen Christ: Day 9

“Thomas answered and said to Him, ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are they who did not see, and yet believed.’”
John 20:28-29

A personal encounter with The Risen Christ transformed “Doubting Thomas” into “Believing Thomas.” A personal Spiritual Awakening begins with a fresh encounter with Jesus. He resurrects deadly unbelief into living, breathing belief. This only happens, EVERY TIME.

“My Lord and my God!”

The words of Thomas reflect a change in his perception of Jesus, not his belief system. Thomas had perceived Jesus was absent because he could no longer see Him. Nothing could have been further from The Truth. When Jesus stepped out of his past and into his present, Thomas was transformed.

Throughout John’s Gospel, Jesus refers to Himself as “I AM.” He offers His Presence to Thomas and to all who believe. Jesus lives n the present tense, not the past or the future. He is not, “I WAS” or “I WILL.” He is “I AM.”

Thomas had a well-documented history with Jesus in the past tense, but he wandered down a road of unbelief. Believing Jesus was dead and gone left Thomas feeling that he was on his own. Hearing about His resurrection only intensified his sense of separation.. The good news others had received, Thomas had rejected, through willful unbelief. Encountering Jesus restored his fellowship with Jesus and healed his unbelief. Jesus asked,

“Because you have seen Me, have you believed?”

For forty days The Risen Christ would gather His disciples, and teach them about the Kingdom of God. His disciples were living in a world where, “Seeing is believing.” Jesus was granting the privilege of citizenship to those in His Kingdom who embraced “Believing is seeing.” See the difference?

One of the greatest gifts God ever gave to the 20th Century church was a man of faith, Southern Baptist revivalist, Manley Beasley. Faith was the over-riding theme of his preaching and the mission of his life. He said,

"Faith is reason at rest with God." Manley Beasley

Thomas would not be at rest until He had seen The Risen Christ. Jesus questioned the validity of his faith because it rested on what Thomas could see, not what he believed. Rest is found in releasing nagging unbelief into the nail-scarred hands of Jesus.

Prayer provides R.E.S.T. by Releasing Every Single Thing that feeds doubt and fuels fear. Prayer opens unbelieving eyes to see Jesus in the present tense. Blind faith is not sightless, but prayerless faith will never see Jesus. Believing prayer empowers true believers to see Jesus in the present tense.

The study of Church History and Spiritual Awakenings reveals the tendency of the Church to wander from intimate fellowship with The Risen Christ. When the Church focuses their eyes on the works of Jesus in the past tense, they no longer see Him in the present tense. When belief in a system far outweighs belief in The Savior, the Church is marked by unbelief and blinded to His Spirit’s Presence. Spiritual Awakening begins with a fresh encounter with Jesus in the present tense.

“Revival is the Church falling in love with Jesus all over again.” Vance Havner

Jesus honors belief, by blessing those whose lives express, “Believing is seeing.” “Blessed” describes the life of a person who has embraced the reality of, “Believing is seeing.” The life of faith in the Kingdom of God describes a person who has taken an adventurous walk with The Risen Christ.

“Blessed are they who did not see, yet believed.” – Jesus

NOTE TO SELF: You will discover, when you practice His Presence, He is present, and you are well off, fortunate, and supremely happy. Don’t claim to have citizenship in His Kingdom, and then choose to live as an abandoned pauper, or lost orphan traveling down a dead end road. When you feel lost and alone in the dark, R.E.S.T. and ask directions. You will see Jesus is always present, leading the way.

TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!

40 Days with the Risen Christ: Day 8

“Do not be unbelieving, but believing.”
John 20:27

Eight days after His resurrection, Jesus returned to the Upper Room. Once again He revealed Himself to His disciples. This time He confronted Thomas with his lingering unbelief. Doubts about the resurrection of Jesus Christ forever tagged him with the unflattering title of, “Doubting Thomas.”

“After eight days His disciples were again inside, and Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors having been shut, and stood in their midst and said, ‘Peace be with you.’ Then He said to Thomas, ‘Reach here with your finger, and see My hands; and reach here your hand and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing.’ “ v. 26-27

The Risen Christ didn’t comfort unbelief in His disciples. He confronted it. The kingdom of God is established by the power of the resurrection. This power transforms doubt into belief through a personal encounter with the Person of Jesus Christ. The citizens of this kingdom are unified by a simple pledge of allegiance. “I believe in the Lord, Jesus Christ.”

The English language fails to clarify the difference between “believing and unbelieving.” The original language used to express these words, in John’s Gospel, provides more insight.

“Believing” is directly related to the same word used for “faith.” Believing is faith in action. Believing is an expression of a living, breathing, vital faith. Belief is not a matter of trusting in a system of beliefs. It is revealed by trusting in and relying upon the Person of the Lord, Jesus Christ.

When “believing and unbelieving” were read or heard by John’s First Century audience, they understood the difference. Make sure you do too.

An unbelieving person was faithless and untrustworthy.

A believing person was faithful in the transaction of business, the execution of commands, and the discharge of official duties.

Based upon the evidence Jesus provided to him, Thomas was confronted with the choice between an unbelieving life and a believing life. True believers still are.

Believing leads to transformation. Erratic identification with The Body of Christ or an excellent education about the claims of Christ are not signs of belief. Believing reveals much more than mere mental assent to a person’s point of view or an intellectual awareness of a particular philosophy of life.

Public Service Announcement: The Sunday after Easter, the contemporary church will conduct church services again. Don’t set up extra chairs.

Many who flooded the church on Easter Sunday are already living in the desert of unbelief. Their identification with a system of belief one day a year did not transform them into believers every day of the year. This story is sad, but true.

Believers never get over The Resurrection. Eight days after Jesus rose from the grave, Thomas was still trapped in his own personal tomb of unbelief. Jesus revealed Himself to Thomas to set him free from his doubt. Jesus still does.

NOTE TO SELF: When you find yourself trapped by doubt, pray your way out of the tomb. Look to Jesus. Prayer releases the power of His resurrection to fuel your belief in Jesus, not a system. Never let the system overshadow The Savior. Focusing on the system magnifies the flaws of men in your eyes. Don’t put your trust in men determined to leave their handprints on the system. Prayer keeps your eyes pointed towards the nail-prints on the hands of Jesus. Prayer places your doubts in the system in the hands of Jesus, and builds your faith in Him. Believe more. Doubt less.

TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!

40 Days with the Risen Christ: Day 7

“And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, their sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained.’ “
John 20:22-23

For forty days The Risen Christ rounded up His scattered followers and taught them about the kingdom of God. On this first evening, Jesus breathed upon them. Introducing His Presence, Jesus prepared them to receive His power for His mission.

Nothing reveals the power of the resurrection like forgiveness. The first breath from the lips of The Risen Christ was His challenge to His disciples to receive His Spirit. Without the Presence of His Spirit, they would never have His power to forgive.

There are many signs of the fullness of The Spirit, but the one convincing and undeniable proof of His Presence is the power to forgive. Jesus called His disciples to receive His Spirit with open hearts and open hands. To embrace His forgiving Spirit into their hearts, they would have to release a white-knuckled grip on their unforgiving spirit.

Forgiveness is the breath of Heaven. Jesus breathed into His disciples what He intended to release through them on earth, the power to forgive.

The kingdom of God is filled with the air of forgiveness. Those who breathe the same air as their Savior will let go of anything in their lives that chokes out their capacity to forgive. Getting a grip on forgiveness requires letting go of a grudge and embracing The Spirit.

NOTE TO SELF: The power of the resurrection is found in maintaining an intimate fellowship with the Presence of Jesus. The purpose of your life is found in carrying out His mission. Balance your life. Receive the Presence of Christ’s Spirit, and receive Christ’s power for His mission. The power of the resurrection is released in you when you die to self. When you live to forgive, you live for Him. When you live to get even, you live for yourself. When you are breathless to get even, take a breath, and forgive.

Nothing expands God’s kingdom on earth like a fresh breath of forgiveness. Prayer is the breath of Heaven. Prayer breathes out the surrender of your will, and breathes in His Father’s will. Prayer crucifies your unforgiving spirit, and resurrects the forgiveness of His Spirit. The power of the resurrection is a breath away. Let your next prayer release His breath of forgiveness in you, and pass it on to others.

TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!

40 Days with the Risen Christ: Day 6

“Receive the Holy Spirit.”
John 20:22

On the evening of His Resurrection, The Risen Christ quietly stepped into the Upper Room, and pointed His disciples to His purpose for their lives. “ ‘Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.’ “

Accomplishing The Risen Christ’s purpose for their lives would require receiving His Spirit in their lives. On the first day of His resurrection The Risen Christ informed His disciples of His purpose. Fifty days later, on the Day of Pentecost, He would fill them with the power of the resurrection to carry out His purpose.

There is no power of the resurrection to carry out the purpose of Christ’s mission without the Person of the Holy Spirit. Purpose driven people never stiff-arm the Holy Spirit. They embrace Him, not as power, but as The Person of Christ.

“And when He had said this, He breathed on them and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit.’ ” John 20:21-22

NOTE TO SELF: Falling in love with the work of the Lord is a poor substitute for being in love with the Lord of the work. Wrapping yourself up in the work of the Lord without embracing the Lord of the work reveals how little power you have to carry out His purpose for you life. Prayer fuels your passion for Jesus. His Spirit empowers you for His mission. Don’t be deceived. Receive The Spirit.

TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!