CALLED UNTO GREATNESS

And so was also James, and John, the sons of
Zebedee, which were partners with Simon. And
Jesus said unto Simon, Fear not; from henceforth
thou shalt catch men. Luke 5:10
Read : Luke 5:1-10
5:1 And it came to pass, that, as the people
pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he
stood by the lake of Gennesaret,
5:2 And saw two ships standing by the lake: but
the fishermen were gone out of them, and were
washing their nets.
5:3 And he entered into one of the ships, which
was Simon's, and prayed him that he would thrust
out a little from the land. And he sat down, and
taught the people out of the ship.
5:4 Now when he had left speaking, he said unto
Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down
your nets for a draught.5:5 And Simon answering
said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night,
and have taken nothing: nevertheless at thy word I
will let down the net.
5:6 And when they had this done, they inclosed a
great multitude of fishes: and their net brake.
5:7 And they beckoned unto their partners, which
were in the other ship, that they should come and
help them. And they came, and filled both the
ships, so that they began to sink.
5:8 When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at
Jesus' knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a
sinful man, O Lord.
5:9 For he was astonished, and all that were with
him, at the draught of the fishes which they had
taken:
5:10 And so was also James, and John, the sons
of Zebedee, which were partners with Simon. And
Jesus said unto Simon, Fear not; from henceforth
thou shalt catch men.
Message
There is something special about the call of God
from generation to generation and from
dispensation to dispensation. For example, in
Genesis, when God made a call among the Trinity
about the creation of man, something great came
out of that call and that is the uniqueness of man
as a special creation. It should be remembered
that there was no call at all when other creatures
were created. After the fall, there were many
generations up to the time of Abram and when God
called Abram and changed his name to Abraham,
his life never remained the same.
In our Bible reading for today, we read about the
call of Peter into the office of apostleship. When at
the lake of Gennesaret, Peter had no idea of the
awesomeness of the call when Jesus said to him:
"Fear not, from henceforth thou shalt catch
men." (Luke 5:10). Peter, an ordinary fisherman,
became great as a result of this 'simple' call.
Many Cathedrals have been built and named after
Peter, the frustrated fisherman before his encounter
with Jesus.
One can see that a single encounter with Jesus
can make a great difference in one's life. Jesus is
calling someone today as you read this devotional
and He is saying:
"Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy
laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon
you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in
heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls."
Matthew 11:28-29
To have a profitable encounter with Jesus, certain
things must be done. You must answer His call.
He is calling you to follow Him, but you must not
just follow Him, you must learn of Him, and all the
ideals He brought from His Father must be imbibed
by you. Jesus said:
"My doctrine is not mine, but his that sent me. If
any man will do his will, he shall know of the
doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak
of myself."
John 7:16-17
Learning of Jesus entails living according to how
He lived here on earth. His life of obedience to the
will of His Father must be emulated. The Bible
enjoins us to have the same mind like Christ
(Philippians 2:5-11), and we shall experience great
elevation like Jesus did. God is calling us to be
like Him; He wants to make us great. May we not
refuse His call today; firstly for salvation and
secondly for service.
Action Point:
What area do you think God is calling you into?
Answer Him now and be blessed.
BIBLE IN ONE YEAR:
Galatians 1-3 and Psalms 17
AUTHOR: PASTOR E. A. ADEBOYE
HYMN 14: ONWARD CHRISTIAN SOLDIERS
Onward, Christian soldiers,
Marching as to war,
With the cross of Jesus going on before.
Christ the royal Master,
Leads against the foe;
Forward into battle,
See His banners go!
Chorus:
Onward, Christian soldiers!
Marching as to war,
Looking unto Jesus,
Who is gone before.
At the sign of triumph
Satan's host doth flee;
On then, Christian soldiers,
On to victory!
Hell's foundations quiver
At the shout of praise;
Brothers, lift your voices,
Loud your anthems raise.
Chorus:
Like a mighty army
Moves the church of God;
Brothers, we are treading
Where the saints have trod.
We are not divided,
All one body we,
One in hope and doctrine,
One in charity.
Chorus:
Crowns and thrones may perish,
Kingdoms rise and wane,
But the church of Jesus
Constant will remain.
Gates of hell can never
Gainst that church prevail;
We have Christ's own promise,
And that cannot fail.
Chorus:
Onward then, ye people,
Join our happy throng,
Blend with ours your voices
In the triumph song.
Glory, laud, and honor
Unto Christ the King,