Collierville First Baptist Church

[01:00:00;18 - 01:00:05;25]
They say that when a quarterback goes from college to pro,

[01:00:06;26 - 01:00:11;16]
that that quarterback has to get used to the speed of the game.

[01:00:12;59 - 01:00:13;59]
It's a different game.

[01:00:17;27 - 01:00:22;21]
And as he goes through practice, as he goes through all the reps,

[01:00:23;28 - 01:00:28;46]
as he plays a few games, the really good quarterbacks will say this,

[01:00:30;14 - 01:00:31;53]
"The game slowed down for me."

[01:00:34;08 - 01:00:48;11]
It slowed down for me. I could see the confusion and the fog was lifted. And I had clarity about where I needed to throw the ball, when not to throw the ball.

[01:00:50;38 - 01:00:55;03]
And you know, there are a lot of people in our culture today who are living in a fog.

[01:00:57;23 - 01:00:59;36]
They're going through difficult times.

[01:01:02;16 - 01:01:09;27]
They're trying to slow things down and know what to do and how to live.

[01:01:11;18 - 01:01:29;05]
Would you bow your head just a moment? I want to praise for some folks who are going through a difficult time in their lives, members of our churches, our church. What I lived before you, Ms. Bobby Turner and Weber Walker, who are in the hospital.

[01:01:31;01 - 01:01:34;02]
I pray that you would heal them.

[01:01:35;25 - 01:01:44;34]
I pray that you'd meet every need that the family has, according to your riches and glory in Christ Jesus. I thank you that you are a faithful God.

[01:01:46;14 - 01:01:51;21]
And everything we need you provide for us.

[01:01:52;56 - 01:02:03;26]
Lord, I pray for both children. I pray that you bring healing to bow and encouragement to Paul and Jamie as they take care of their son.

[01:02:05;33 - 01:02:15;14]
Lord, meet every need they have, according to your riches and glory in Christ Jesus. I pray for Jim Smith and John Fox who have cancer.

[01:02:17;03 - 01:02:19;25]
Lord, heal their bodies, encourage them.

[01:02:20;26 - 01:02:31;35]
Lord, I pray for Caroline Shields and Patsy Lenderman who's going to have surgery. I pray you watch all the surgeons. I pray that every move they make would be the right move.

[01:02:34;00 - 01:02:38;12]
And Lord, I pray for their healing. I pray for Carolyn Scrocki and her family.

[01:02:40;01 - 01:02:47;23]
As Frank Scrocki stepped into eternity this week, Lord, please be with them, encourage them and bless them.

[01:02:48;24 - 01:02:53;57]
And Lord, I just submit myself to you. I offer myself to you as a living and holy sacrifice,

[01:02:55;14 - 01:02:59;51]
acceptable to you, which is my spiritual service of worship.

[01:03:01;49 - 01:03:09;35]
Holy Spirit, use me to preach this message you've laid on my heart. In Christ's name, amen.

[01:03:10;45 - 01:03:15;48]
So today we're in a series entitled "First Words of the Resurrected Christ."

[01:03:17;56 - 01:03:22;20]
And today the word is this, it's a word of clarity.

[01:03:24;07 - 01:03:40;24]
General Lou Wallace and Colonel Ingersoll were traveling together and they were discussing in depth the life of Jesus of Nazareth. Both of them were unbelievers. In fact, they were skeptical unbelievers.

[01:03:41;25 - 01:03:51;05]
And Wallace said this, he said, "Myths and superstitions aside, I think that his life would make a great novel."

[01:03:52;52 - 01:03:58;20]
Ingersoll replied, "I should say so. You're just the man to write it.

[01:03:59;29 - 01:04:07;26]
Once and for all, throughout all the hocus pocus and showing to be the plain common man, he undoubtedly was a good man.

[01:04:08;27 - 01:04:22;49]
But no more than that." With that challenge, Wallace devoted himself to a deep research and study of the life of Jesus of Nazareth.

[01:04:24;25 - 01:04:32;10]
The more he read and reflected on his life, the more convinced he became that Jesus was more than an ordinary person.

[01:04:33;26 - 01:04:40;39]
In fact, he finally acknowledged that Jesus Christ was the son of the living God.

[01:04:42;50 - 01:04:54;23]
A challenge that began in skepticism and doubt ended in worship at the feet of Wallace's Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

[01:04:55;25 - 01:05:04;29]
He wrote a book, a novel. It's a Christian classic. It's called "Ben Hur."

[01:05:06;47 - 01:05:36;25]
Now clarity is crucial as we journey through the complexities of life. Clarity clears up confusion. It promotes direction. It builds confidence. It enhances motivation. It inspires faith and it fuels action. Clarity led to success for General Lou Wallace.

[01:05:37;26 - 01:06:02;27]
And if you're here today and you're in a fog and you're confused about Christianity and Jesus and the Bible and how to live the way God wants you to live, I want you to know that God will provide clarity to you today so you can get out of that fog and confusion and be successful in your life as Lou Wallace was.

[01:06:03;28 - 01:06:41;39]
Peter, James, and John and the rest of the Lord's disciples had been through a lot of ups and downs within a short span of time, a little over a week. Think about it. They had been with Jesus at the triumphal entry when everybody was crying out to him and worshipping him and waving palm breaths. They were on the branches before him and declaring that he was the Messiah and those disciples were on a high.

[01:06:43;36 - 01:07:13;27]
But then the religious leaders and subsequently the people themselves rejected Jesus and called for his crucifixion. But then Jesus brought his disciples into the upper room and he taught them how to live their lives after he died and after he was resurrected.

[01:07:14;28 - 01:07:25;26]
He taught them that there was going to be a change in their relationship, that they would go from a physical face to face relationship to a spiritual relationship.

[01:07:26;27 - 01:07:35;14]
And Jesus knelt down and washed their feet. It was a high for these men of God.

[01:07:36;35 - 01:08:04;50]
But then they went to the Garden of Gethsemane and Jesus swept great drops of blood and he was arrested and they tried him in a kind of kangaroo court type situation. And he was convicted and he was sentenced to die by being executed on the cross of Calvary.

[01:08:07;14 - 01:08:49;25]
As far as I know, only one disciple remained at the cross. It would jog the apostle. The rest of them scattered. It was tough for those disciples. But then on the first Sunday after Good Friday, they saw the Lord Jesus, he was alive. Again, they were on a high. I'm telling you, there were so many ups and downs in these disciples' lives and after Passover, the Passover celebration was over, they went to Galilee.

[01:08:50;26 - 01:09:15;58]
And you say, when did they go to Galilee? Number one, that's where most of them lived. Number two, Jesus told them that he would meet them in Galilee. So they went in obedience to the Lord Jesus command to them. They desperately, they desperately needed some clarity in their lives.

[01:09:17;57 - 01:09:40;55]
So let's pick up the story in chapter 21 of John's Gospel, verse one. John's Gospel, chapter 21, beginning with verse one. John writes, after these things, and you go after these things refers to what had just happened in chapter 20.

[01:09:42;19 - 01:09:52;26]
Look at the end of chapter 20. Therefore, many of the signs, Jesus also performed in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book.

[01:09:53;27 - 01:10:03;48]
But these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name.

[01:10:04;50 - 01:10:13;24]
After these things, Jesus manifested himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberius.

[01:10:14;25 - 01:10:24;30]
And he manifested himself in this way. He revealed himself in this way. You understand this, that when the Lord Jesus was raised from the dead,

[01:10:26;02 - 01:10:39;02]
he appeared to his disciples both with them and in and out for 40 days, 40 days. Those 40 days were precious to those disciples.

[01:10:41;38 - 01:10:50;10]
And the Bible says right here that Jesus appeared to them at the Sea of Tiberius or the Sea of Galilee. Same thing.

[01:10:51;21 - 01:11:01;10]
And he manifested himself in this way, revealed himself in this way. There were seven disciples there who were involved in a little fishing expedition.

[01:11:02;27 - 01:11:20;24]
Simon Peter and Thomas called Didymus. Interestingly, the first two disciples that were named was a disciple who denied Jesus and the disciple who doubted Jesus. Isn't that interesting?

[01:11:21;25 - 01:11:55;28]
Simon Peter and Thomas called Didymus. Nathaniel of Canaan Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, that's John and James, and two other of his disciples were together. So seven disciples all together there at the Sea of Galilee. I'm sure the others were there somewhere, maybe in someone's home, enjoying a meal or something together. But seven of them decided that they were going fishing. Look at verse three. Simon Peter said to them, "I am going fishing."

[01:11:56;35 - 01:12:07;04]
Now you say, "Why did they go fishing?" Well, evidently they loved to fish. Number one. Number two, they had to eat, right? He said, "I'm going fishing."

[01:12:08;27 - 01:12:16;32]
They said to him, "We will also come with you." They went out and got into the boat, and that night they caught nothing.

[01:12:18;57 - 01:12:26;11]
Now, if I understand right, these guys, most of these guys were professional fishermen.

[01:12:27;25 - 01:12:41;23]
Now, the best time to fish on the Sea of Galilee was at night. And they went out, they spent all night casting their nets, and they caught nothing.

[01:12:42;25 - 01:13:09;57]
They didn't catch them in them. They caught nothing. It was an absolute zero count of fish for these professional fishermen. They had egg on their face, you might say. And the Bible goes on to say, "They went out that night, got in the boat, and that night they caught nothing."

[01:13:12;58 - 01:13:25;21]
Now, the Lord had instructed them to meet him at the Sea of Galilee. In Matthew 26, 32, he said, "But after I've been raised, I will go ahead of you to Galilee."

[01:13:27;25 - 01:13:53;23]
It's amazing to me how some of these so-called scholars try to twist the scripture and say that the disciples were acting in disobedience here. They weren't acting in disobedience. They did exactly what Jesus told them to do. The Passover celebration was over. The Feast of Unleavened Bread was over. They were going back to their home. And Jesus said, "I'll meet you in Galilee."

[01:13:54;24 - 01:13:58;38]
So they went to Galilee, and they were waiting on Jesus to come.

[01:14:03;48 - 01:14:12;26]
Now, keep in mind that the metaphor of fishing was a very important metaphor for the Lord Jesus.

[01:14:13;27 - 01:14:27;42]
In fact, when he called his disciples in Matthew 4, verse 19, he said, "Follow me, and I will make you," what? "Fishers of men." So you know that metaphor.

[01:14:30;16 - 01:14:36;25]
Now, that metaphor sort of hangs over this story, and it's one that's a very important one.

[01:14:37;26 - 01:14:46;51]
Look at verses 4 to 6. "And when the day was now breaking, it was dawn, Jesus stood on the beach.

[01:14:48;30 - 01:14:51;08]
Yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus."

[01:14:53;02 - 01:14:58;23]
And what's interesting is Mary Magdalene, when she saw Jesus, did recognize him as Jesus.

[01:14:59;24 - 01:15:06;15]
The two disciples heading to Emmaus, when they saw Jesus, they didn't recognize him as Jesus.

[01:15:07;51 - 01:15:15;23]
And here are some of his closest followers, and they do not recognize him on the beach.

[01:15:16;39 - 01:15:38;00]
Now, maybe it was due to the fact that the light was not quite what it should have been. It had just dawned, and they were 100 yards out in the Sea of Galilee. I don't know about you, but I don't see too well at 100 yard distance, okay?

[01:15:39;14 - 01:15:49;43]
Especially with poor lighting. And so they didn't recognize Jesus. I wonder how many times Jesus is actively involved in our lives and we don't recognize him.

[01:15:51;11 - 01:15:57;03]
I mean, he's doing some things in our lives, and we're oblivious to it.

[01:15:58;06 - 01:16:00;39]
That's exactly what was happening to these disciples.

[01:16:02;44 - 01:16:11;27]
Verse 5, "So Jesus said to them, children or lads, you do not have any fish, do you?"

[01:16:13;12 - 01:16:18;48]
I don't know if Jesus was just being a little sarcastic there.

[01:16:20;48 - 01:16:27;56]
I don't know if he said it like, "Children, you don't have any fish, do you?"

[01:16:28;59 - 01:16:36;25]
Or did he say it like this, "Children, you don't have any fish, do you?"

[01:16:37;26 - 01:16:39;14]
As if he was wanting to buy some fish.

[01:16:41;12 - 01:16:43;15]
This stranger that they didn't recognize.

[01:16:46;24 - 01:16:50;02]
And they answered him a very short curt, "No."

[01:16:52;01 - 01:17:03;03]
We haven't caught a thing. Look at verse 6, "And he said to them, Cast the net on the right hand side of the boat and you will find a catch." I don't know if you understand that.

[01:17:04;40 - 01:17:09;00]
But professional fishermen, guys who really take fishing seriously,

[01:17:10;22 - 01:17:16;46]
they don't take kindly to people giving them advice about how to fish, who themselves are not professional fishermen.

[01:17:19;18 - 01:17:22;55]
Cast the net on the right hand side of the boat and you'll get a catch.

[01:17:23;58 - 01:17:38;22]
This stranger that we know is Jesus said to these fishermen. So they cast, and look at this, must have blown their mind.

[01:17:39;44 - 01:17:45;11]
Then they were not able to haul it in because of the great number of fish. Listen, they fished all night.

[01:17:46;16 - 01:17:58;15]
They fished on the left hand side of the boat, they fished on the right hand side of the boat, they fished fish from the front of the boat, from the back of the boat. They threw a net every way you could throw a net and they caught absolutely nothing.

[01:18:01;28 - 01:18:03;56]
But this stranger on the beach,

[01:18:05;52 - 01:18:11;56]
said to them, "Cast the net on the right hand side of the boat and you'll find a catch."

[01:18:14;18 - 01:18:22;22]
And they did exactly what he said in their net with jam-packed full of large fish.

[01:18:23;29 - 01:18:33;06]
I'm talking about large fish. In fact, we learned later in the story, there was 153 fish. Now, just like fishermen, they counted their fish.

[01:18:35;32 - 01:18:39;15]
And they label them as large fish.

[01:18:41;40 - 01:18:45;58]
Now, I want you to see what Jesus did here in this encounter.

[01:18:48;03 - 01:18:49;09]
First he asked a question.

[01:18:50;26 - 01:18:56;15]
"Lads, you don't have any fish, do you?"

[01:18:58;25 - 01:18:59;42]
Now, why did he ask that question?

[01:19:01;45 - 01:19:03;47]
Because he wanted them to admit their failure.

[01:19:06;36 - 01:19:13;28]
He wanted them to see the power of the resurrected Christ.

[01:19:14;29 - 01:19:27;14]
When we attempt to live the Christian life in our own power, when we attempt to serve Jesus in our flesh, we come up with a big fat zero.

[01:19:33;30 - 01:19:38;26]
It's almost like Jesus is asking us today, have you been successful?

[01:19:39;28 - 01:19:46;30]
Are you satisfied with your Christian life, your Christian service?

[01:19:48;36 - 01:19:50;35]
Is it what you thought it would be?

[01:19:53;31 - 01:19:54;37]
So he asked a question.

[01:19:56;19 - 01:19:57;44]
Then he gave them a command.

[01:20:00;36 - 01:20:03;25]
"Cast your net on the right hand side of the boat and you'll find a catch."

[01:20:04;26 - 01:20:09;39]
Well, here's the point for us.

[01:20:11;42 - 01:20:13;47]
It's a question we've got to ask ourselves.

[01:20:15;04 - 01:20:17;07]
If that were you, would you obey Jesus?

[01:20:18;54 - 01:20:27;40]
If he gave you a clear command today, would you obey him? Would you submit to his lordship?

[01:20:28;57 - 01:20:36;00]
Would you say, "Lord, I'm not going to live the way I want to live. I want to live the way you want me to live and I'll do whatever you tell me to do.

[01:20:38;24 - 01:20:38;59]
Lord, I'm yours."

[01:20:43;12 - 01:20:47;40]
So you've got to ask yourself, is Jesus speaking to you at this juncture of the story?

[01:20:49;54 - 01:21:05;58]
Perhaps he's saying to you, "I have something I want you to do. I have a work for you to do, a ministry that I want you to fulfill. I want you to stop doing what you want to do and listen to what I want you to do and do exactly what I tell you to do."

[01:21:09;28 - 01:21:11;48]
Now here's a $64,000 question.

[01:21:14;05 - 01:21:14;39]
Will you?

[01:21:17;24 - 01:21:19;28]
Will you do what these disciples did?

[01:21:21;26 - 01:21:23;48]
Even though it made absolutely no sense to them.

[01:21:25;37 - 01:21:26;50]
They obeyed him.

[01:21:28;01 - 01:21:30;25]
And they didn't even know it was Jesus at this point.

[01:21:33;25 - 01:21:41;49]
Now, there's a third thing that happens in this story. The Lord sent a blessing. Oh wow, did he ever send a blessing.

[01:21:44;24 - 01:21:46;34]
You say, "How did it happen, pastor?"

[01:21:49;38 - 01:21:56;11]
Listen, Jesus can command every fish in the Sea of Galilee to stay away from those men

[01:21:57;23 - 01:22:05;34]
who tried to do it on their own and he can command every fish, 153 of them, to come to the net the moment he gives the command.

[01:22:07;59 - 01:22:10;41]
Never doubt the power of the resurrected Christ.

[01:22:12;50 - 01:22:15;02]
There's nothing he cannot do.

[01:22:18;59 - 01:22:31;43]
Now, what's interesting is that in an earlier story, in fact, take your Bible, look back at Luke chapter five just a minute. It's pretty interesting.

[01:22:33;22 - 01:22:35;02]
Luke chapter five.

[01:22:40;54 - 01:22:44;14]
Look at verse one.

[01:22:48;58 - 01:23:13;36]
"And it happened that while the crowd was pressing around him and listening to the Word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret or the Sea of Galilee, or the Sea of Tiberius, it's all called the same thing. He saw two boats. So he's preaching and he sees these two boats and one of those boats belonged to Peter and the other one belonged to John.

[01:23:14;54 - 01:23:24;34]
And Jesus got into Peter's boat and asked him to put out a little from the shore so he wouldn't be crushed by the crowd that was listening to him preach.

[01:23:26;49 - 01:23:28;20]
And he preached the Word of God.

[01:23:30;51 - 01:23:34;43]
And then he told Peter after he got through preaching,

[01:23:36;01 - 01:23:38;42]
he said, "Go out into the deep.

[01:23:40;22 - 01:23:45;24]
Go out into the deep and let your nets down for a catch."

[01:23:46;25 - 01:24:18;26]
Well, you know what Peter did? He said, "Lord, we fished all night last night. We didn't catch a thing, Lord, but at your word, I'll do exactly what you said." And he went out in the deep, let his nets down, and he caught so many fish that he had to call John in the other boat and ask him to bring his boat because his boat was sinking and he wanted to make sure that they got all the fish. Now, here's the interesting thing about the story.

[01:24:19;29 - 01:24:23;15]
In Luke chapter five, which was at the beginning of Jesus' ministry,

[01:24:25;19 - 01:24:28;55]
the net broke. Fish got away.

[01:24:30;49 - 01:24:36;25]
But here at the end of his ministry, in his resurrection life,

[01:24:37;26 - 01:24:44;10]
these disciples caught 153 large fish and the net did not break.

[01:24:45;17 - 01:24:47;01]
You say, "What's the significance of that?"

[01:24:48;58 - 01:24:51;44]
Here's what I think the significance, remember the metaphor.

[01:24:53;24 - 01:24:55;27]
We're to fish for men, not fish.

[01:24:56;44 - 01:25:09;42]
If you're a believer, you're a disciple of Christ. You've been called to be a fisher of men. You've been called to share the good news of Jesus with people who are lost in need of a savior.

[01:25:12;28 - 01:25:19;10]
And here's the thing, when somebody believes in Jesus, they can never be lost.

[01:25:20;27 - 01:25:28;25]
That's why all 153 of those fish made it to shore. I'll tell you, friend, if you put your faith in Jesus, you're going to make it to heaven.

[01:25:29;27 - 01:25:38;31]
You can never be lost because God the Father has given you as a gift to his Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

[01:25:43;49 - 01:25:50;24]
Now, notice the difference between success and failure was about seven and a half feet.

[01:25:51;25 - 01:25:57;48]
This fishing boat in the first century was about seven and a half feet wide.

[01:26:00;13 - 01:26:08;29]
And failure would have been to stay on the left side of the boat, but success would move seven and a half feet to the right side of the boat and throughout the net.

[01:26:09;54 - 01:26:20;38]
Sometimes I really believe that we are so close to spiritual success in our lives, but we don't recognize it.

[01:26:22;49 - 01:26:29;10]
And success hangs on obedience and clarity.

[01:26:32;09 - 01:26:33;29]
Look at verses seven and eight.

[01:26:35;30 - 01:26:39;10]
Therefore, that disciple whom Jesus loves said to Peter, it's the Lord.

[01:26:40;43 - 01:26:41;36]
It's the Lord.

[01:26:43;32 - 01:26:51;09]
Now, how did he know it was Lord? Not because his eyes finally focused on it. He knew it was Lord because of what happened in Luke chapter five.

[01:26:53;38 - 01:26:54;48]
It was so similar.

[01:26:56;21 - 01:26:58;44]
They had seen Jesus do this before.

[01:27:02;01 - 01:27:29;48]
And when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put his outer garment on, for he was stripped for wear. It doesn't mean he was naked. He had his loincloth on, okay? And he threw his outer garment on, tucked it up 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 100 yards away, dragging the net full of fish. Listen, the fish were so heavy, the guys, the six guys could not lift it up and put it into the boat.

[01:27:31;06 - 01:27:34;39]
So they just drug the fish as they made their way to shore.

[01:27:40;28 - 01:27:44;06]
It's the Lord. Have you ever had one of those moments?

[01:27:45;57 - 01:27:46;35]
It's the Lord.

[01:27:48;49 - 01:27:54;08]
I've had some of those moments that cannot be explained.

[01:27:56;29 - 01:28:06;52]
And Jesus does something in our lives and we could, we need to recognize those, it's the Lord moments.

[01:28:08;29 - 01:28:16;49]
Let me tell you, when Jesus healed the man who'd been blind for birth, it was a, it is the Lord moment.

[01:28:18;49 - 01:28:23;37]
When Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, it was an, it is the Lord moment.

[01:28:25;47 - 01:28:36;30]
When Jesus took a few fish and a few loaves and fed 5,000 men, not counting women and children, women and children, it was a, it is the Lord moment.

[01:28:38;43 - 01:28:53;46]
Let me tell you when Jesus was resurrected from the dead, it was an, it is the Lord moment. When he met them on the sea of Galilee, it was an, it is the Lord moment. When they brought in this huge haul of fish, it was an, it is the Lord moment.

[01:28:56;08 - 01:29:05;03]
Can you recognize those, it is the Lord moments? We all have them.

[01:29:07;00 - 01:29:17;46]
So Peter dove into the water and swam 100 yards to get to Jesus because he wanted to get there as quick as he can.

[01:29:20;26 - 01:29:28;27]
Look at verse 9 to 11. So when they got out on the land, they saw charcoal fire already laid and fish placed on it.

[01:29:29;28 - 01:29:35;19]
And bread. And Jesus said to them, bring some of the fish which you have not caught.

[01:29:37;54 - 01:29:44;03]
So you see, Jesus wants to involve us in his work. He's not going to do everything for us.

[01:29:45;08 - 01:29:55;25]
He's going to involve us in his work, but he does do some supernatural thing. He worked, we worked, and it turns out for the glory of the kingdom.

[01:29:56;27 - 01:30:06;31]
So Simon Peter went up, now look at it, I love verse 11. Simon Peter was a man's man. Don't ever let anybody tell you Simon Peter was a sissy.

[01:30:08;17 - 01:30:50;10]
Look at verse 11. Simon Peter went up and drew the net to land full of large fish, 153, and although there were so many, the net was not torn. Listen, Simon Peter drug those fish up to the, up to the shore by himself. This was a, this was a moment for Peter. The only other time a charcoal fire was mentioned in the New Testament was outside the home of the high priest.

[01:30:51;23 - 01:31:06;50]
When the servants were warming themselves and Peter was joined them and Jesus was being tried on the inside, and Peter denied the Lord three times before a charcoal fire.

[01:31:08;36 - 01:31:10;25]
You don't think Peter didn't remember that.

[01:31:11;26 - 01:31:29;07]
You see, he couldn't be restored to active service in the kingdom until he dealt with his failure and moved past it. Some of you have had a failure in your life. You have disappointed the Lord. You have, you have done some things that have just left you hamstrung spiritually.

[01:31:32;24 - 01:31:34;24]
And I'm telling you, failure is never final.

[01:31:35;25 - 01:31:50;17]
God will forgive you. He will use you again. Now he may not use you the way he did before. He may have something brand new for you to do, but he will use you again.

[01:31:53;45 - 01:31:57;56]
Look at verse 12 to 14. Jesus said to them, come and have breakfast.

[01:32:00;21 - 01:32:01;26]
Don't you imagine these men were hungry.

[01:32:02;27 - 01:32:06;28]
They've been working all night.

[01:32:08;28 - 01:32:09;39]
Come and have breakfast.

[01:32:11;19 - 01:32:36;19]
None of the disciples ventured to ask him, who are you? Knowing that it was the Lord. Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them and the feast light. So here's the son of God, the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords serving his disciples. Just like he did with the two disciples at Emmaus. He came and took the bread and gave it to them and the fish likewise.

[01:32:37;37 - 01:32:46;11]
This is now the third time that Jesus was manifested to the group of disciples after he was raised from the dead.

[01:32:48;06 - 01:33:00;38]
There are three invitations in John's gospel. Come and see in the early part of the gospel, John 1 39 and 40 and 41.

[01:33:02;11 - 01:33:10;41]
And then come and drink John 7 37. And then come and eat our text, John 21 12.

[01:33:11;56 - 01:33:15;25]
This is an invitation to have fellowship with the resurrected Christ.

[01:33:16;27 - 01:33:26;28]
Even in his resurrection glory, Jesus was actively providing for his disciples everything they needed.

[01:33:30;25 - 01:33:39;29]
You can have confidence today that the risen and glorified Lord Jesus Christ longs to be an active part of your life.

[01:33:42;03 - 01:33:43;24]
He wants you to believe in him.

[01:33:44;25 - 01:33:49;45]
He will bring crystal clear clarity to your life.

[01:33:51;28 - 01:33:53;53]
And he will provide for your deepest needs.

[01:33:57;08 - 01:33:59;12]
Listen to this thought is true.

[01:34:00;40 - 01:34:03;57]
Clarity leads to success.

[01:34:05;14 - 01:34:09;26]
When these disciples got to the Sea of Galilee, they were confused. They were in a fog.

[01:34:10;27 - 01:34:18;53]
But I'll tell you when they had this encounter with the living Christ, he gave them clarity.

[01:34:21;07 - 01:34:23;46]
And they would be successful for the rest of their lives.

[01:34:27;04 - 01:34:31;25]
General Lou Wallace experiences clarity in the correspondence of says, so can you.

[01:34:32;26 - 01:34:39;59]
In fact, I've drawn three conclusions based upon our story today.

[01:34:41;42 - 01:34:47;11]
Your success in this life depends on your adoption of three things.

[01:34:48;27 - 01:34:52;31]
Number one, your adoption of doctrinal clarity.

[01:34:53;55 - 01:34:59;35]
I can't tell you how important this was for Peter, James, John, the rest of the disciples here.

[01:35:01;29 - 01:35:07;14]
You see, Jesus was entrusting them with the message of the gospel to the whole world.

[01:35:09;43 - 01:35:12;25]
They had to get their doctrine straight.

[01:35:14;06 - 01:35:16;00]
They had to know what to believe.

[01:35:17;05 - 01:35:35;50]
And they had to know how to communicate it to a lost and dying world. Here are some doctrinal non-negotiables that everybody within the sound of my voice, who names the name of Jesus as your Savior and your Lord, must embrace.

[01:35:36;51 - 01:35:40;15]
Here they are. Jesus is the eternal Son of God.

[01:35:43;55 - 01:36:09;16]
Jesus was incarnated as a human being. The first doctrinal distinctive talks about his deity. The second one here, his incarnation talks about his humanity. By the way, it's almost like these disciples focused more on his humanity before he was crucified and resurrected and more on his deity after he was resurrected.

[01:36:11;25 - 01:36:15;35]
But he's 100% God and 100% human being.

[01:36:18;07 - 01:36:23;45]
And then here's the third doctrinal distinctive. You've got to embrace. Jesus lived a life of sinless perfection.

[01:36:25;14 - 01:36:40;36]
I can't tell you how irritated I get when I hear people say that Jesus sinned. Listen, if Jesus sinned even one time, everybody in this room and everybody in the world is going to hell.

[01:36:42;37 - 01:36:43;25]
Jesus didn't sin.

[01:36:44;26 - 01:36:50;08]
He was able to offer on the cross the perfect sacrifice for our sins.

[01:36:53;00 - 01:36:57;43]
And then here's another doctrine that you've got to hold to. Jesus died for our sins on the cross.

[01:36:59;33 - 01:37:04;25]
He didn't die for his sins because he didn't have any sins. He died for your sins and my sins.

[01:37:05;30 - 01:37:13;33]
And he was resurrected from the dead. That's another doctrine of the distinctive. And Jesus is the one and only Savior. There is no other Savior.

[01:37:16;03 - 01:37:18;28]
And here's the final one. Jesus is coming again.

[01:37:20;03 - 01:37:20;26]
He's coming.

[01:37:23;32 - 01:37:25;38]
Have you embraced these doctrinal truths?

[01:37:27;30 - 01:37:34;56]
I encourage you to stand on these doctrinal truths. I don't care what kind of backlash you get from the evil, corrupt world system.

[01:37:36;35 - 01:37:37;57]
You stand on these truths.

[01:37:39;27 - 01:37:51;18]
If you're a college student headed to college, if you're a high school student, if you're a child, if you're a middle-aged adult, a young adult, a senior adult, you stand on these doctrinal distinctive.

[01:37:52;26 - 01:37:57;05]
Doctrinal clarity is a key to your success.

[01:37:58;33 - 01:38:00;12]
And then spiritual clarity.

[01:38:01;30 - 01:38:12;12]
This story is pregnant with spiritual realities that we must embrace if we really want to have success in our spiritual lives.

[01:38:13;53 - 01:38:16;43]
These include, "Love the Lord."

[01:38:18;07 - 01:38:23;27]
Why do you think Peter, who had denied the Lord three times,

[01:38:24;28 - 01:38:30;43]
why did he jump in the Sea of Galilee and swim when he could have just ridden in the boat?

[01:38:32;10 - 01:38:36;44]
I tell you, he loved Jesus. He loved Jesus.

[01:38:39;55 - 01:38:45;12]
I tell you, we all love the Lord also. In fact, we all love the Lord more than we love our own lives.

[01:38:46;42 - 01:38:52;30]
We should love Him, as He said, with all of our heart, with all of our soul, with all of our mind, and all of our strength.

[01:38:53;40 - 01:38:55;59]
And then we should obey the Lord.

[01:38:58;26 - 01:39:03;33]
Obedience is a must for... Now, understand this.

[01:39:04;56 - 01:39:06;34]
Partial obedience is disobedience.

[01:39:08;06 - 01:39:10;22]
You say, "I obey the Lord sometime."

[01:39:14;54 - 01:39:16;55]
Let me tell you, obey the Lord.

[01:39:18;14 - 01:39:21;00]
Do what He tells you to do, and then trust the Lord.

[01:39:22;29 - 01:39:22;55]
Trust Him.

[01:39:24;41 - 01:39:26;49]
Here's what Jesus said. It's a very important verse.

[01:39:27;56 - 01:39:36;31]
He said this in the upper room when He was talking with the disciples before He was crucified. He said, "I am divine. You are the branches.

[01:39:37;57 - 01:39:44;36]
He who abides in me, and I am Him, He bears much fruit, far apart from me you can do." What, church? Nothing.

[01:39:45;39 - 01:39:48;34]
You won't even catch a minute if I'm not involved.

[01:39:54;02 - 01:39:56;30]
Trust the Lord to work in you and through you.

[01:39:57;40 - 01:40:04;48]
And then finally, not only doctrinal clarity and spiritual clarity, but personal clarity.

[01:40:07;04 - 01:40:10;56]
These mighty men of God encountered the resurrected Lord for 40 days.

[01:40:12;22 - 01:40:16;24]
Now, if they weren't with Him nonstop for 40 days, Jesus would pop in and pop out.

[01:40:17;25 - 01:40:24;00]
I wish we knew how much time He actually spent with them.

[01:40:26;23 - 01:40:34;18]
Now, let me tell you this. You know what Jesus taught them during those 40 days? He taught them about the kingdom, the kingdom of God.

[01:40:36;28 - 01:40:41;23]
Jesus is a living, loving Lord who is actively involved in our lives as He was in their lives.

[01:40:42;24 - 01:40:54;09]
He gives us hope in the midst of despair, truth in the midst of deception, faith in the midst of a crisis,

[01:40:55;17 - 01:41:01;12]
peace in the midst of turmoil, and clarity in the midst of confusion.

[01:41:02;47 - 01:41:05;25]
He is with us every moment of every single day.

[01:41:06;26 - 01:41:18;54]
For this personal clarity to be a reality in your life, you got to do some things. Number one, you got to believe in Jesus. Today, I want to invite you to believe in Jesus.

[01:41:20;58 - 01:41:24;12]
In fact, I want to ask our worship team and our staff to come.

[01:41:25;34 - 01:41:29;24]
I want to invite you. Jesus was in the invitation business.

[01:41:30;25 - 01:41:42;09]
We see there's three invitations right here in the Gospel of John, but there are other invitations in other Gospels that Jesus gave to people. "Come unto me, all ye that labor in a heavy laden, I'll give you rest."

[01:41:44;54 - 01:41:49;39]
It's an invitation from the resurrected Lord, and it's to you.

[01:41:51;17 - 01:42:01;00]
I invite you today, come to a staff member and say, "I want to believe in Jesus today. I want to trust Him as my Savior and Lord."

[01:42:03;06 - 01:42:24;25]
Now, if you've already done that, I want to challenge you. You really want clarity and freedom in your life, and you want to be a success in the spiritual realm. I want to encourage you to submit to the Lordship of Jesus Christ in every area of your life, your financial life, your family life,

[01:42:25;26 - 01:42:29;59]
your church life, your work life.

[01:42:31;14 - 01:42:36;56]
Every area of your life, submit to the Lordship of Christ and develop a kingdom perspective.

[01:42:38;55 - 01:42:43;23]
Don't live for this world. This world is passing away.

[01:42:44;45 - 01:42:52;23]
Live for the kingdom of Jesus and live by faith and remember, share His Gospel boldly.

[01:42:53;24 - 01:42:56;47]
That's what it means to have personal clarity.

[01:42:58;44 - 01:43:07;40]
Clarity leads to success, I hope and pray that you'll experience that success today.

[01:43:08;46 - 01:43:11;15]
Would you bow your heads with me, Father, in the name of Jesus?

[01:43:12;36 - 01:43:16;25]
I pray, Lord, that You would pour out Your Spirit upon us today.

[01:43:17;27 - 01:43:21;20]
I pray, Lord, that You would be honored and glorified.

[01:43:22;51 - 01:43:53;23]
Just as those disciples moved seven and a half feet from one side of the boat to the other side of the boat, Lord, I pray that we would obey You today. That we would believe in Jesus. That we would submit to your Lordship. That we would develop a kingdom perspective. That we would live by faith. And that we would be a fisher of men sharing the Gospel boldly with others. In Christ's name. Amen. Let's stand and worship and you come, God, I lead you.