There's an evangelistic side to leaving your living. When Levi left his living and started following Jesus, later on he was able to introduce the people he used to work with—his colleagues, the people he rubbed shoulders with—to Jesus. He had a banquet in his house where the Bible says Jesus was the guest of honor. So the whole purpose of him bringing all of his, what the Pharisees call, scumbag friends to this party was so they could meet the one who had changed his life. That's evangelistic. These people got exposed to Jesus in a way that they would not have been exposed to Jesus had Levi never left his living.
[00:05:05]
God's going to save some people and reach some people who work with you because you left your living. Because what's going to happen is, one of the things is, they're going to be so intrigued to know who is this person who made you leave your living. But then in addition to that, you're going to have an exponentially increased witness to them because now that you're doing what God has called you to do, when you invite them into context where Jesus is, it could even be virtual, it could be a service or something like this, but you're going to be used by God to see people come to the Lord just because you left your living.
[00:05:57]
You're leaving your living is going to be a witness to people. It's going to be a witness to people. And people who otherwise, who you work with and walk past their cubicle every day, who you're in Zoom meetings with every day, will never experience the witness that you're going to—they're going to experience when you follow Jesus out of your career into your call. That's good right there. It's going to take you to a whole different level. Your witness is going to a whole different level.
[00:06:33]
When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, now go out where it is deeper and let down your nets to catch some fish. Go out. This is what I want you to do. So verse 5, he goes out. He was reluctant, but when he went out and did what Jesus says, they caught more fish than they had ever caught before. Now what I want you to understand here is that these men were successful at what they did. They had to be good at what they did because they did it for a living.
[00:11:16]
God's provision for you now is a glimpse of how he will provide for you later. His provision for you now is a glimpse for how he'll provide for you later. So watch this. This is what happened. So God is trying—he's about to tell Peter, Simon, same person, I want you to leave everything and follow me. Now watch this. Now before he makes that call on Peter's life, on Simon's life, he shows him his ability to provide for him in an amazing way.
[00:12:09]
What Jesus was trying to show him in Luke 5 was what he was going to do for him later. What he's trying to show him is this ain't about fish. This is about you trusting me as your provider. And what I want to show you in Luke 5, I'm going to reveal to you later in Acts chapter 2, that whatever I call you to do, I'm the same God. It's just a glimpse. It's just a glimpse. Whoever I'm talking to, God is just trying to give you a glimpse.
You're wondering if he's going to trust you, if you can trust him later. I'm saying look at what he's doing now. Look at what he's already doing. He's already taking care of you. He's already providing for you. And the same God that provided for you in your living is going to provide for you in your calling. The same—he knows where the fish are. He knows where the money is. He knows where the contracts are. He knows where the clients are.
[00:14:19]
The same God that can fill your boat with fish can fill your church with people, can fill your daycare with children, can fill your client base. He can fill your hair salon with clients. The same God who fills your boat can fill your business. He's giving you a glimpse. And my question is to you, has God ever not provided for you? I mean, has he not done enough for you already? Has he not done enough for you in the past? Has he not done enough for you right now?
[00:14:44]
What God is doing for you right now is giving you a glimpse. Somebody say God thank you for the glimpse. Thank you for the glimpse. Thank you for the glimpse. Because I might be leaving my industry, but I'm not leaving my provider. I'm not leaving my provider. I'm not going from Blue Cross to Blue Shield to Kaiser to Cigna to United Health. I'm leaving my coworkers, but I'm not leaving my provider. I'm leaving my colleagues, but I'm not leaving my provider.
[00:15:15]
If he did it before, he'll do it again. Same God before back then, same God will do it right now. He's the same God who did it before. He'll do it again. He's got you. I got the same provider. It's just a glimpse. So you're worrying about what he will do. I'm saying look at what he is doing. Look at what he has done. I'm talking to Simons right now. I'm talking to Simon. Simon, connect the dot.
[00:15:51]
All those fish they caught, and the Bible says when they got to shore, they left all of it, followed Jesus. And they followed Jesus. In the one account in John chapter 6, where they could have used them fish, in John chapter 6 there are five thousand men listening to Jesus preach that, including the women and children. Most people think it's about twenty thousand people out there, and they were hungry. And you would think when somebody says, Jesus, these people hungry, and you know, send them home so they can get some food, Jesus, you think Jesus said, nah, don't send them home.
[00:16:40]
I'm going to make a lot out of a little. In fact, I'm going to take this little boy's lunch and feed all these people to their full. And then since you left—oh God—since you left your living, I'm going to give you all doggy bags on the way out on something little. Cause I don't need to do the same thing the same way. I can do something different and show you I'm still your provider. God don't even have to provide the same way. Long as he does it, God will provide for you in a way that you cannot help but say, that was God right there.
[00:17:37]
Developing a habit of obedience prepares us for our assignment. It's a progressive obedience. Yeah, you got to learn how to obey the little stuff. Can you push out? Sure. Can we go deeper? If you say so. You know what makes this series so troubling to people? This ain't your first call. What is good right here? See, see, he's been—he's been nudging you all your life to this moment. But the other ones made sense. They made S-E-N-S-E and C-E-N-T-S. The problem with this one is, you're worried about the C-E-N-T-S.
[00:22:40]
Whenever God asks you to do something deep, there's pushback. But when he asks you to do something deep and it works, there's trust. When he did the deep thing, it built his trust. When he did the deep thing and it was something that didn't look like it was going to work, when it worked, he says, get away from me, I'm sinful. But obedience is a progressive thing. I think one of the things that people—that we struggle with when God is trying to call us is that we haven't been obedient in the small things.
[00:23:48]
How you view Jesus has a lot to do with how much control he has in your life. Master and Lord. How you view Jesus has a lot to do with how much control he has in your life. Master and Lord. It's not like—it's not like one of his colleagues said, let's go out in the deep and drop the fish. He would ignore that. He would laugh at that. It's not like somebody else. But the master said it. So even if it doesn't make sense, because of who he is, I respond differently.
[00:25:35]
Your view can determine whether or not you will ever even hear a call from God. Some of you have sat through this whole experience and you haven't even asked God, is it me? You ain't even asking God. You're saying, oh look at that, look at the lights and the colors and oh wasn't that a beautiful song or oh that's some good—I'm going to try to act with my business. I'm going to try to—you're just playing games because he's not your master. And who am I talking to? He's not your master and your Lord. And that should trouble you.
[00:27:18]
God calls us in a progressive way too. The first call is, will you push out a little? The second call is, will you go deeper? The third call is, will you leave everything to follow me? God calls us in progressions. And the challenge with the call of God is, is that the deeper the calls get, the less sense they make. Because he calls you to walk by faith and not by sight. And I am very sensory. If I can't feel it and I can't sense it, I can't smell it, I can't touch it, I can't see it, I can't feel it, then it doesn't make sense.
[00:28:14]
Will we say, Master, if you say so? That's all I'm trying to get to. Will we say, Master, if you say so? If you say so, I'll do it. Even if I look dumb. Even if I come to the family meeting and everybody think I lost my mind because I didn't go to school for this. You know how many people went to school for something that they doing that they never—they ain't even like it in school. But you done got so many degrees in it. You done went to grad school for something you ain't like.
[00:29:30]
If you have given up that much of your life pursuing something that you're not even passionate about, that you love and that you're not called to, when you gonna turn? The clock is ticking. We're running out of time. We're running out of time while we're trying to look, trying to keep up with everybody. If I do that, what would I drive? Where would I live? Look at what I've accomplished. It sounds like Matthew chapter 6: What shall we eat? What shall we drink? Where shall we be clothed? And God says, the heavenly father knows you have need of those things.
[00:30:11]
Feelings of unworthiness and fear will often accompany the call. Welcome to Simon's world. If you're going to leave your living, you say, but pastor, I feel scared. I feel unworthy. Welcome. That's part for the course. I'd be more concerned if you didn't feel that way. In fact, for all of you who are here in this series and you feel like, you know what, let me go ahead and help them out. God should be happy to have me on his team. I'm telling you, check your call ID. It probably wasn't God calling you.
[00:36:41]
When you get a call from God, you feel apprehension and uncertainty. God, I don't know. You, me? Me? Freaky Freddy? Crazy Keisha? Guys, you know me. I ain't talking about what I present. You know me. And you know what I like. And you know what I'm scared of. Yeah. Any feelings of unworthiness and fear will accompany your call. But watch what Jesus does. Oh, that's so good. He addresses the fear, but he doesn't address the unworthiness.
[00:37:14]
Simon said, Lord, I'm too sinful of a man to be around you, and he was scared. And Jesus said only one thing. He only responded one of them. He said in verse 10, don't be afraid. But he doesn't say—he doesn't say anything about his unworthiness. He said, yeah, you need to stay like that because you aren't worthy, and we're gonna need that humility to get this assignment done. Yeah, yeah, that's good right there. It's not just what he said, it's what he left unsaid.
[00:38:02]
He didn't say, oh, you are worthy, you are—no, you aren't. You aren't. And don't forget that without me, you can do nothing. But you don't have to be afraid because I've given you glimpses of what I'm going to do and how I'm going to use you. I'm going to get this done with you. I'm going to get this done with you and through you.
[00:38:37]
Lord, I'm a sinful man. I'm too sinful to be around you. I'm a sinful man. And master, if you say so. Lord, I'm a sinful person, not just a man. I'm a sinful person. You know what, that's so important. That is such an important statement because that is how a relationship with God is established. It's established once I know that I am a sinful person. The Bible says all have sinned, not y'all, all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.
[00:39:24]
It is not until I am aware of how full of sin I am that I can even establish a relationship with God. So if you know, you can say, I'm a sinful person. Lord, I'm a sinner. That's where it starts. But just notice that in spite of our sinfulness, he still loves us. He will forgive us, and he still wants to choose us to follow him and serve him. That's awesome.
[00:40:05]
Yes, I am a sinner. I've done things that I shouldn't have done. And Lord, you know I've said things that I shouldn't have said. And I certainly thought things that I shouldn't have thought. And then there are sins the Bible calls sins of omission. There are things that I should have done that I never did, things I should have said that I never said. God, I'm surrounded by my own sin, and that is the beauty of the gospel of Jesus Christ—that he came and he died for all of that because he loved us, not when we got it together, but while we were still sinning, he died for us.
[00:40:43]
All he says is, I want you. I want you. I want you in my family. I want you to follow me. I want you to serve me. I want to use you. I want you just as you are. What a powerful invitation. And all you had to do is say yes. Yes, Lord. Yes. Yes. Oh, I want that. Yes. I want your forgiveness. Yes, I'm sorry for what I've done. Yes, I am sinful, and I accept your invitation to forgive me of my sins.
[00:41:35]
Here's the deal. This is true, y'all. Just one ask of God, one request—Lord, forgive me for my sins and come into my life—can wipe the whole slate clean. Like there's scripture in the Bible that says God will cast our sins into the sea of forgetfulness to remember them no more. Like it's—he never brings it up again. Like he's not holding it against us. And who wouldn't accept an offer like that?
[00:42:15]
He doesn't—Simon, we can learn from Simon. He didn't just say, Lord, I'm a sinful man, but I want to go back to what he said: Master, if you say so. I love that statement. Lord, I'm a sinful man, I'm too sinful a man to be around you is a statement that you need for salvation. That's where you start with salvation. But master, if you say so, is a statement that shows his lordship.
[00:43:27]
The first statement, Lord, I'm a sinful person, is about conversion. The second statement, Master, if you say so, is a lifestyle. See, this series might be over. I don't know. I don't know. It might end here. But I hope that phrase, Master, if you say so, will never end with us. That's a lifestyle. That means the small commands, if you say so, all the way up to the commands that tell me to do something deep, but I don't like this, but if you say so, all the way up to a command to leave my living to pursue my calling.
[00:43:53]
Master, if you say so. I hope you and I will choose to live that way. No matter how many days, months, weeks, years ago you said, Lord, I'm a sinner, save me, I hope from this moment forward that you live under the mantra, and I live under the mantra, Lord, if you say so. I don't want to do that, but if you say so. I don't want to be uncomfortable, but if you say so. If you say so.
[00:44:40]
