Speaker 1: Hey, this is Stephen Ferdick. I'm the pastor of Elevation Church,
Speaker 1: and this is our podcast. Be sure to subscribe so
Speaker 1: we can get you these new sermons every week. I
Speaker 1: hope you're blessed today. You might want to open your
Speaker 1: Bible to John chapter twenty one. If you didn't bring
Speaker 1: a bible, that's okay. I brought the biggest Bible that
Speaker 1: I have ever owned. I found this at a flea
Speaker 1: market the other day. It said large print Bible, and
Speaker 1: I did just turn forty three. Look how cool that is?
Speaker 1: In that cool I like it. The words just feel
Speaker 1: more powerful that big. It's like, this is the Word
Speaker 1: of God. We need a thirty seven font on the
Speaker 1: Word of God. I like to joke I preach from
Speaker 1: a big Bible because you're fighting a big battle, and
Speaker 1: I want to encourage and equip you today to the
Speaker 1: best of my ability and beyond my ability through the
Speaker 1: supernatural power of the Holy Spirit. John chapter twenty one.
Speaker 1: And the Word of the Lord says this okay, John
Speaker 1: chapter twenty one, let me give you verse one and two.
Speaker 1: Verse three is where my message really starts, but says afterward,
Speaker 1: Jesus appeared again to his disciples by the sea of Galilee.
Speaker 1: A lot of good things happened in that location over
Speaker 1: the last three years. It happened this way. Simon Peter Thomas,
Speaker 1: also known as Dinamus Nathaniel, from cana and Galilee, the
Speaker 1: sons of Zebedee and two other disciples were together. I'm
Speaker 1: going out to fish, Simon Peter told them, and they said,
Speaker 1: we'll go with you. So they went out got into
Speaker 1: the boat. But that night they caught nothing. Early in
Speaker 1: the morning, Jesus stood on the shore, but the disciples
Speaker 1: did not realize that it was Jesus. He called out
Speaker 1: to them, friends, haven't you any fish? No, they answered,
Speaker 1: and he said, throw your net on the right side
Speaker 1: of the boat and you will find some. That's good
Speaker 1: news when you're out there hungry. So let's try it.
Speaker 1: The Bible says. When they did, they were unable to
Speaker 1: haul the net in because of the large number of fish.
Speaker 1: And then verse seven says, then the disciple whom Jesus loved,
Speaker 1: said to Peter, it is the Lord. As soon as
Speaker 1: Simon Peter heard him say it is the Lord, he
Speaker 1: wrapped his outer garment around him, for he had taken
Speaker 1: it off, and jumped into the water. He's not thinking
Speaker 1: straight putting on clothes to jump in the water. But
Speaker 1: that's Peter. I want to go back to verse six
Speaker 1: for a moment and share with you a resurrection reflection
Speaker 1: from John chapter twenty one, verse six, where he said,
Speaker 1: throw your net on the right side of the boat
Speaker 1: and you will find some And when they did, they
Speaker 1: were unable to haul the net in because of the
Speaker 1: large number of fish. I want to appreciate you today
Speaker 1: about found fishing. Found fishing. Father. I thank you that
Speaker 1: you always find what you're looking for. May you find
Speaker 1: faith in our hearts today. May your word meet our faith,
Speaker 1: and miracles be the result, and the fruit of it
Speaker 1: will be great. And I declare it and I believe it,
Speaker 1: and I thank you for it in Jesus' name. Hey, man,
Speaker 1: on your way to your seat, touch your neighbors, say
Speaker 1: be found fishing. It's a strange time for the boys
Speaker 1: in the boat. On one hand, they're happy because he
Speaker 1: got up. On the other hand, they are a little
Speaker 1: bit confused about what to do next. Let me get
Speaker 1: my notes because I wrote something down last minute. I
Speaker 1: want to make sure I say it right, because it
Speaker 1: was really good. How God said it, and I want
Speaker 1: to get it just like you said it. Yeah, he
Speaker 1: said that the disciples are here in between what God
Speaker 1: did and what they are going to do next, and
Speaker 1: that is a strange place to be. It's a strange
Speaker 1: place to be when you realize what he did, but
Speaker 1: you're left with the question, what do I do. I
Speaker 1: want to be honest with you, These in between places
Speaker 1: are the places where Jesus reveals, sometimes to us, the
Speaker 1: greatest thing about himself and really about ourselves in the
Speaker 1: in between places. I've heard preachers use this passage to
Speaker 1: pick on Peter so many times. I think that's why
Speaker 1: I like to preach it almost every Easter, because part
Speaker 1: of me wants to defend the disciple named Peter. Why.
Speaker 1: I've even heard preachers say here that Peter went back
Speaker 1: to the boat because he still didn't have faith that
Speaker 1: Jesus was risen from the dead. Well, that's kind of dumb,
Speaker 1: because he already saw him twice. I think he was
Speaker 1: pretty sure that Jesus had risen from the dead. He
Speaker 1: went and saw the tomb himself. He was a hot eyewitness.
Speaker 1: But that doesn't stop preachers from taking Peter apart. I've
Speaker 1: heard preachers say everything about Peter, you know, because when
Speaker 1: he said in verse three, put that back up there
Speaker 1: one more time. When he said I'm going out to
Speaker 1: fish and they said we'll go with you, it almost
Speaker 1: sounds like he's going back to his old life, what
Speaker 1: he did before he met Jesus. So I hear a
Speaker 1: lot of preachers when they preach on this passage, take
Speaker 1: it there where Peter is basically going back to the
Speaker 1: going back to the boat, like he's going back to
Speaker 1: the bottle or something like there's something wrong with fishing,
Speaker 1: like the eleventh commandment is now shout not fish. And
Speaker 1: I'm sure he had a license, so I'm sure it
Speaker 1: was completely legal. And Peter wasn't doing anything wrong fishing
Speaker 1: that I can tell, but we like to make it
Speaker 1: sound like he was going back to some horrible life.
Speaker 1: I even heard one preacher this takes the cake. He
Speaker 1: said when Peter said, I'm gonna do it in the
Speaker 1: country preacher accent, because those you ought to go to church,
Speaker 1: or you know, I love country preacher because I have
Speaker 1: country preacher in my heart. But he said I'm going
Speaker 1: out to fish, and they said we'll go with you.
Speaker 1: And they said, when you go back. You always drag
Speaker 1: other people back with you and made it like a
Speaker 1: bad thing, y'all. I saw a skit one time that
Speaker 1: a youth group did. We're in the skit, this girl
Speaker 1: died in a car wreck, and then she was in
Speaker 1: hell and she was screaming from hell at her friends
Speaker 1: who were in heaven. Why didn't you tell me about Jesus?
Speaker 1: I heard a preacher one time after that skit talk
Speaker 1: about Peter going fishing, that he was such a bad
Speaker 1: example that he led all these other fellows to hell
Speaker 1: with him. He didn't lead him to hell. He was
Speaker 1: trying to feed him something to eat. They had to eat.
Speaker 1: Why do people get so stupid when it comes to
Speaker 1: the scripture that they forget that we have practical matters
Speaker 1: that we have to attend to. No, I just need
Speaker 1: the word of go. And you need indoor plumbing, and
Speaker 1: you need transportation to work, and you need good medicine
Speaker 1: when you get sick, and you need a good job.
Speaker 1: So one day you can move out of mom's house
Speaker 1: and get married and provide for somebody and you don't
Speaker 1: have to go live in her dad's basement after three years.
Speaker 1: You need a lot of things touch somebody say you
Speaker 1: need a lot of things. You need a lot of things,
Speaker 1: You need a lot of things. Some of y'all said
Speaker 1: that with too much emphasis. I think you offended your neighbor.
Speaker 1: Here's the tension in the text that I see. It's
Speaker 1: not that Peter is going backfishing because he wants to
Speaker 1: go back to a life of sin. It's just that
Speaker 1: he's going back fishing because he doesn't know what God
Speaker 1: has next for him. It's not like he's going back
Speaker 1: to the meth lab. It's not like he's going back
Speaker 1: to gang activity. It's not like he's going to a
Speaker 1: life of crime. He's going fishing. Why, because we have
Speaker 1: to eat tonight and there's no man of falling from
Speaker 1: heaven that I'm aware of. What else is he gonna do?
Speaker 1: But fish? What else is he gonna do? Wait around
Speaker 1: for Jesus to walk through locked doors again? I mean,
Speaker 1: that doesn't happen every day. In fact, I think it's
Speaker 1: kind of cool that he went fishing, because I think
Speaker 1: maybe there's something deeper happening here than Peter just keeping
Speaker 1: himself busy while he waits for what's next. I think
Speaker 1: there's something that he's trying to remember and recall that
Speaker 1: will help him as he waits for his next season
Speaker 1: to be revealed. God sent me to speak to somebody
Speaker 1: this Easter that you're waiting for God to reveal to
Speaker 1: you what he has next for you. You don't really
Speaker 1: know what that is. And you know that he's risen,
Speaker 1: and you know that he's real, and you believe in God,
Speaker 1: and you trust in God, and you have a relationship
Speaker 1: with God, and you believe that he's capable, and you
Speaker 1: believe that he's great. And the stone is rolled away
Speaker 1: and that's fine. But the stone can be rolled away
Speaker 1: and you still be stuck. Why do y'all do this
Speaker 1: to me every Easter? Y'all are Pentecostal every other fifty
Speaker 1: one Sundays out of the year, and then you turn
Speaker 1: bapt Episcopalia Catholic on me on an Easter. Now, listen
Speaker 1: to me. This word is not for the people who
Speaker 1: know exactly what God has planned for you to do.
Speaker 1: You're like, right, because then I'd be dead, I'd be
Speaker 1: in heaven exactly. This is an in between Bible story
Speaker 1: where Jesus has risen, but what he has for me
Speaker 1: has not yet been revealed. This is such an amazing
Speaker 1: story for us to think about, because in the light
Speaker 1: of the empty tomb, Peter still hasn't personally been restored
Speaker 1: yet to the savior that he denied died just a
Speaker 1: few nights ago. It's only been a few nights, remember,
Speaker 1: since Peter warmed himself by the fire and said, I
Speaker 1: don't even know Jesus. It's only been a few nights
Speaker 1: since he cursed and said, I don't know what you're
Speaker 1: talking about, Jesus who It's only been a short time
Speaker 1: since he denied the very one that he pledged his
Speaker 1: allegiance to, his undying discipleship to. It hasn't been that long.
Speaker 1: So not only is he uncertain about the future, but
Speaker 1: he's still dealing with that thing within himself that kind
Speaker 1: of feels like I let him down. And even though
Speaker 1: Peter has seen Jesus risen, he hasn't yet received personal
Speaker 1: restoration for it. Yet. He knows what Jesus did, he
Speaker 1: died for my sins. He knows what Jesus did he
Speaker 1: rose from the grave. But the question isn't what he did,
Speaker 1: it's what do I do? And I believe God sent
Speaker 1: me for a message for a person who's saying I
Speaker 1: know what he did, and I believe in what he did.
Speaker 1: But I came this Sunday morning wanting to know what
Speaker 1: do I do? As a matter of fact, it's more
Speaker 1: specific than that. It's a message for somebody who's wondering,
Speaker 1: can he still use me? Does he still want me?
Speaker 1: Is there still time left for this to be turned around? Or?
Speaker 1: Have I wasted my chance? Did I miss my opportunity?
Speaker 1: Did I blow it so bad that I can't recover?
Speaker 1: Is the addiction too strong now? Is to hurt too deep? Now?
Speaker 1: Did I watch it walk away and I should have
Speaker 1: stopped it but I couldn't. Did I miss it? Is
Speaker 1: it over for me? I know he got up and
Speaker 1: the grave is empty, but I kind of feel empty too,
Speaker 1: because I'm not sure what's next for me. It's an
Speaker 1: in between message for in between people. Raise your hand
Speaker 1: if you're in between right now. Everybody not raising their
Speaker 1: hand needs a class on self awareness honesty. You know
Speaker 1: what they need? They need a good flat tire after church,
Speaker 1: I pray a nail under your front right tire on
Speaker 1: the way home from church, lying to the Lord like
Speaker 1: that on his Holy Resurrection Birthday Sunday, want to I
Speaker 1: want to take up for Peter for a moment, just
Speaker 1: for a moment, and take up for every person under
Speaker 1: the sound of my voice that believes that what he
Speaker 1: did is awesome. But there are some things that you've
Speaker 1: done that make you wonder. No no, no, no, no, no, no,
Speaker 1: no no, I'm not talking about just big things, new buddy.
Speaker 1: Neither did Peter, and I think the challenge of getting
Speaker 1: through to you with a message like this. We kind
Speaker 1: of want an abstract message about resurrection without having to
Speaker 1: do the real deep work of saying, Okay, how do
Speaker 1: I make this idea that Jesus got up from the
Speaker 1: dead more than just a special occasion where I take
Speaker 1: Mom to church once a year and then I got
Speaker 1: to come back on Mother's Day too. Sheesh, this is
Speaker 1: all kind of stacking up. Those are kind of close together.
Speaker 1: How do I take this thing of a relationship with
Speaker 1: God and a resurrected Savior and get it beyond the
Speaker 1: point of being a special occasion and make it the
Speaker 1: operating system of my life? How do I get it
Speaker 1: down deep in me? That's what Peter needs in this moment.
Speaker 1: He needs a deep encounter with a risen Savior and
Speaker 1: he's about to have one, and so are you. The
Speaker 1: Lord spoke to me he's going to do for somebody
Speaker 1: today what he did for Peter back then. He's going
Speaker 1: to restore you. He is going today. He gave me
Speaker 1: a very specific word. He said, for some of you,
Speaker 1: this is going to be a reset Sunday. Y'all never
Speaker 1: played the original Nintendo Entertainment system. But if you're playing
Speaker 1: punch Out and you're getting beat bad enough, the only
Speaker 1: thing left to do is hit that button that says reset.
Speaker 1: And I brought my Bible today, so maybe we could
Speaker 1: find a reset button in the Word of God, and
Speaker 1: find a reset button in your situation, and find a
Speaker 1: reset button on this Easter Sunday. Somebody shout I'm ready,
Speaker 1: say I'm ready for a reset. I don't want to
Speaker 1: stay just where I was. I don't want to stay
Speaker 1: in what I did. I don't want to just carry shame.
Speaker 1: If he's not in the grave, why is this shame
Speaker 1: on me? If he's not in the grave, Why won't
Speaker 1: this depression let me go? If he's not in the grave,
Speaker 1: why am I looking for the living among the dead?
Speaker 1: I'm ready, Oh, y'all don't want this because when the
Speaker 1: reset comes, it means there's gonna be a brand new
Speaker 1: you for you to look at in the mirror on
Speaker 1: Monday morning. I want a Sunday resurrection to get in
Speaker 1: a Monday morning mirror, so that when you look in
Speaker 1: the mirror tomorrow morning, you'll say, Hello, let's go. God
Speaker 1: has something in sole for me. This is Reset Sunday,
Speaker 1: Reset Sunday. And so Peter said I'm going fishing. Somebody
Speaker 1: shout out out loud, say I'm going fishing. They said
Speaker 1: Peter should have Peter shouldn't even have still had his boat.
Speaker 1: Why did he keep his boat? See, Peter didn't have
Speaker 1: real faith, That's why he kept his boat. He followed
Speaker 1: Jesus and he left his nets, but he kept his
Speaker 1: boat because he wanted a backup plan in case it
Speaker 1: didn't work out. And then when it didn't work out
Speaker 1: and Jesus went to the cross, he went back to
Speaker 1: his boat. And if you really want to follow God,
Speaker 1: you got to get rid of your boat and burn
Speaker 1: your bridges and go forward and to let anything stop you.
Speaker 1: He kept his boat so he could drive Jesus around,
Speaker 1: so he could preak probat. I don't think he was
Speaker 1: running from Jesus. I think he was looking for him
Speaker 1: in the last place he felt confident in his calling.
Speaker 1: I think Peter was tired of sitting around on wishing
Speaker 1: that he didn't do what he did. You know, you
Speaker 1: spent the rest of your life wishing, and call it repentance.
Speaker 1: Wishing you didn't do it isn't repenting and feeling guilty
Speaker 1: about it doesn't make God feel better about it. He
Speaker 1: died for all that stuff. So when Peter said I'm
Speaker 1: going fishing, I don't hear it like he's saying I quit.
Speaker 1: This is stupid. He didn't even tell us what to
Speaker 1: do next. He dies on us and rises from the
Speaker 1: dead and makes us look bad because we all ran
Speaker 1: except you, John, the one he loves. I love how
Speaker 1: John gets that in there, he said. The one he
Speaker 1: loved turned to Peter and said, talking about himself, I
Speaker 1: love it. Now watch this, watch this in your mind.
Speaker 1: You got to smell the fish. You got to smell
Speaker 1: the fish that Jesus is already cooking on the shore.
Speaker 1: That's first. I didn't read that to you because I'm
Speaker 1: on o'clock today and I can't get the verse nine today.
Speaker 1: But maybe I will put it on my YouTube channel. Y'all.
Speaker 1: I've been putting these extra sermons on my YouTube channel.
Speaker 1: You got to go subscribe. It's these little teachings. I'm
Speaker 1: gonna put more of them out just to help you
Speaker 1: really get the word of God, to break it down.
Speaker 1: It's called the Basin. You got to look for it soon.
Speaker 1: I might put a part two on the Basin, but
Speaker 1: for today, I just want to talk about what was
Speaker 1: Peter looking for when he went fishing. He said, I'm
Speaker 1: going fishing, and they said, all right, got nothing better
Speaker 1: to do. The spirit hasn't come yet. Jesus hasn't ascended yet.
Speaker 1: It's that in between period. We don't know the next thing.
Speaker 1: He hasn't told us our next assignment. So what do
Speaker 1: you do when you know what he did, but you
Speaker 1: can't get over what you did and you don't know
Speaker 1: what he's calling you to do? Go fishing. I know
Speaker 1: it's a controversial Eastern message. Used to hear everybody preach
Speaker 1: about Peter going fishing like you made the wrong move.
Speaker 1: I think that's the exact right thing to do, because
Speaker 1: see three years earlier Peter went fishing. Three years earlier,
Speaker 1: he cast his nets all night long and caught nothing.
Speaker 1: Three years earlier, he pulled his boat on the shore
Speaker 1: and he was cleaning his nets, and this wonder working
Speaker 1: rebel priest named Jesus Christ of Nazareth pulled up on
Speaker 1: him and said, can I use your boat to fish?
Speaker 1: But I'm not fishing for what you're fishing for. I
Speaker 1: need to catch some people. Peter's like, is that legal?
Speaker 1: You got a license for that. He's like, yeah, I
Speaker 1: got the license. I'm the Lord of heaven and Earth.
Speaker 1: I am the word that existed before time began. I
Speaker 1: am the word made flesh dwelling along. I got a
Speaker 1: license to fish. Push out a little, and they pushed
Speaker 1: out a little, and Jesus preached a little, and then
Speaker 1: he said, now push out a little more. And they
Speaker 1: pushed out, and Jesus said, now that I've got what
Speaker 1: I'm looking for, I'm gonna show you what you're looking for.
Speaker 1: Throw down your nets. And when they dragged him up,
Speaker 1: Peter wasn't happy. He was scared. He said, oh no,
Speaker 1: this is bad. If you knew those fish were in
Speaker 1: that water, you know the sin that's in me. And
Speaker 1: he fell down at Jesus's feet and he said, go
Speaker 1: away from me. Lord, I'm a sinful man. And Jesus said,
Speaker 1: I'm not going anywhere but inside of you to show
Speaker 1: you what I put in you. I'm gonna make you
Speaker 1: a fisher of men. He knows what's in you, the
Speaker 1: good and the bad. He knows what's in you, the
Speaker 1: gifts and the weakness. He knows what's in you, the
Speaker 1: trauma and the testimony. He knows what's in you and
Speaker 1: chooses you and calls you. That was three years ago,
Speaker 1: three years before that moment that Peter would deny him,
Speaker 1: three years before that point that Peter would disappoint him,
Speaker 1: three years before he would let him down. Three years
Speaker 1: have gone by, and Jesus has done amazing things, included,
Speaker 1: but not limited to the healing and opening of blinded eyes,
Speaker 1: including but not limited to the loosing of tongues, including
Speaker 1: but not limited to the raising of dead people after
Speaker 1: their body was already stinking and covered in maggots and
Speaker 1: wrapped in grave clothes, and everybody else gave up, started crying,
Speaker 1: went home to comfort the sisters. He did all of that,
Speaker 1: and Peter denied him. And Peter said, I'm going fishing,
Speaker 1: and it makes you wonder was he fishing? Because he
Speaker 1: lost his faith, or was he fishing so he could
Speaker 1: find it again, because I remembered three years ago when
Speaker 1: I let him use my boat. I remember three years
Speaker 1: ago when I put out a little and he started teaching.
Speaker 1: And I never heard anybody teach like he. He taught
Speaker 1: with authority, but he was gentle, but he was commanding.
Speaker 1: Maybe Peter wasn't saying I'm giving up. Maybe he was saying,
Speaker 1: I'm going back before we judge him, before we penalize him,
Speaker 1: before we tell him how he should have sold his boat.
Speaker 1: And we don't even come to church when it's rainy outside.
Speaker 1: Look straight ahead. They won't know I'm talking about you.
Speaker 1: Watch the screen. Watch the screen. Peter said, I'm going fishing,
Speaker 1: because I was fishing when he called me. If you
Speaker 1: don't know what to do, do what you know to do,
Speaker 1: but don't run from what God has put right in
Speaker 1: front of you. There is some stuff you can't run
Speaker 1: from forever. So go fishing. Go fishing. I know you
Speaker 1: thought you came to church today, but you really came fishing,
Speaker 1: all right. And those of y'all that sat in the
Speaker 1: front row, if you get splashed, it's not my fault.
Speaker 1: This is the splash zone. I might spit on you
Speaker 1: if I get fired up, but it's holy spit because
Speaker 1: I'm fishing. I'm fishing for somebody today that God wants
Speaker 1: to reach and heach and appreciate. Who are you? God
Speaker 1: has had you in a season where you haven't known
Speaker 1: what's next. God has had you in a season where
Speaker 1: perhaps you even thought it was over, maybe even other
Speaker 1: people said it was over. Maybe you think there's no
Speaker 1: way forward after what you did. And here comes Peter
Speaker 1: to tell you, no, no, If you will go back
Speaker 1: to the place where you saw him do a miracle,
Speaker 1: if you will go back to a place of childlike faith,
Speaker 1: give me that camera. If you will go back to
Speaker 1: the word that you know to do. You know enough.
Speaker 1: You just gotta get back to Galilee at go fishing.
Speaker 1: You've just got to praise him. You've just got to
Speaker 1: rejoice in him. You've just got to thank him. You've
Speaker 1: just got to wait for him. He's looking for you.
Speaker 1: He's not waiting for Christ to come find him on
Speaker 1: the couch. He said, I'm going fishing. I'm gonna do
Speaker 1: some stuff. You know, you can cite yourself out sometimes
Speaker 1: be like I don't know what to do you do
Speaker 1: if you don't know what to do about that, you
Speaker 1: know what to do that'll help you know what to
Speaker 1: do about that. Give you an example, a great example,
Speaker 1: a great example. If I say so myself, I think
Speaker 1: that getting in a place of gratitude is one of
Speaker 1: the most important skills you develop as a grown up
Speaker 1: person in life or as a growing Christian. Now, how
Speaker 1: many of you know I'm right about that? Don't make
Speaker 1: me work too hard. You might not even believe in
Speaker 1: the Crucifixion and the resurrection. But just speaking from a
Speaker 1: human practical wisdom standpoint, the best way for me to
Speaker 1: make a decision about what I don't have or what
Speaker 1: I don't know is to be thankful for what I
Speaker 1: do have and what I do Now, all right, so
Speaker 1: how come we know that but we don't do that?
Speaker 1: Why do we get up in the morning? Sometimes I'm
Speaker 1: just asking the question because it is Easter Sunday morning,
Speaker 1: and Jesus did appear in the morning, and so why
Speaker 1: is my morning routine sometimes looking at stuff that's gonna
Speaker 1: stress me out. I'm gonna come to this side and
Speaker 1: see if there are anybody any like one person in
Speaker 1: this church? Why do you get on Facebook first thing
Speaker 1: in the morning and fish for something to be offended about.
Speaker 1: We only got one side of the room left. This
Speaker 1: is the process of elimination, because I'm telling you, yeah,
Speaker 1: I'm fishing a little bit. Now, I'm fishing a little bit.
Speaker 1: If you know that, going on your phone first thing
Speaker 1: in the morning, scrolling past the app that says Holy
Speaker 1: Bible and scroll into that hell hole called Facebook or
Speaker 1: Twitter or I can't even say Instagram, the spirit of
Speaker 1: Saw comes on me. I feel spears flying at my head.
Speaker 1: I'm saying that you will find what you fish for
Speaker 1: in this life. I'm saying if you're looking for a
Speaker 1: reason to be down today, you can find six and
Speaker 1: the devil will line them up and put them on
Speaker 1: a buffet. But if you're looking for a reason to
Speaker 1: praise very, if you're looking for a reason to give
Speaker 1: him glory, do this and let everything that last breath
Speaker 1: pop feel the Holy Ghost, and let everything that's still standing,
Speaker 1: and let everything that's not faged up, and let everything
Speaker 1: that's been forgiven, and let everything brad come on with fishing.
Speaker 1: Let's full out of place. Let get down aloud. He's
Speaker 1: another time he got out. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. God
Speaker 1: is looking for a praiser. God is looking for a worshiper.
Speaker 1: God is looking for a grateful daughter, a grateful son,
Speaker 1: a grateful fisherman. Woo, I can do it anytime I want.
Speaker 1: I learned the secret of being content. If I'll go
Speaker 1: down inside of me where God is. You say, no,
Speaker 1: God's up there. You missed the whole point of Easter.
Speaker 1: He got up so he could send the spirit back down.
Speaker 1: And greater is He that is in me, man, He
Speaker 1: let us in the world. So all I gotta do
Speaker 1: is fit for it. Hot five, parfollow you next to
Speaker 1: you and say we're going fishing. Come on, you're going
Speaker 1: with me. You're not staying down in that pit. I
Speaker 1: see you trying. But they're not alone. This is church.
Speaker 1: This is the body of Christ. God sit a wording
Speaker 1: in his house to raise you up. Come on, you
Speaker 1: beat Paul, I be Silas, and let's get on the
Speaker 1: pride the built see enemy, the built, see enemy, get
Speaker 1: the little press. I'm going fishing. So I says, oh,
Speaker 1: this is great, because when you talk to your friends
Speaker 1: that don't like church, or they think Elevation is a
Speaker 1: weird cult church whatever like that, you have tim me
Speaker 1: come an elevation today for Easter. Just say i'ment fishing
Speaker 1: on Eastern once you new Easter Sunday. You don't even
Speaker 1: have to brag to him and say I heard a
Speaker 1: hermeneutical masterpiece of a sermon out of John twenty one,
Speaker 1: which transposed at the resurrection of Jesus Christ over the
Speaker 1: restoration of Simon Peter his beloved Decipe. But just tell
Speaker 1: him I'm went fishing. And when they say, well did
Speaker 1: you get anything, ask them how long do you have?
Speaker 1: Because what I got I can't contain in a cute
Speaker 1: little two men a list. I got goodness, I got mercy,
Speaker 1: I got healing, I got joy, I got the oil
Speaker 1: of gladness. I got blessings, good blessure. Breast down, say
Speaker 1: it together. You know the Bible and running over My
Speaker 1: sexs are heavy, my hardest soul. My life is saved.
Speaker 1: Pops didn't read deep by the blood of the Lamb.
Speaker 1: That's what Easter is. I feel like fishing now. I
Speaker 1: feel like fishing now. God, thank you for waking me
Speaker 1: up this morning. God, thank you for giving me another chance.
Speaker 1: Thank you that everybody doesn't know all the dirt they
Speaker 1: couldn't know on me. Thank you, Lord, Thank you for
Speaker 1: clothes on my body. Thank you for food on my table.
Speaker 1: Thank you for those snacks in my pantry. Thank you
Speaker 1: for it. Lord. Somebody say thank you Lord. Thank you
Speaker 1: for songs to sing. Thank you for a melody of midnight.
Speaker 1: Thank you for my wife in her hot pink Easter soup,
Speaker 1: looking good, giving the word of the Lord. She's holy
Speaker 1: and hot. She burn it up hot, hop fet you
Speaker 1: like a fire. WHOA, I got something on the line,
Speaker 1: Now help me pulling in. Thank you for my big
Speaker 1: friend Bible. Thank you for a sad, stiff default work
Speaker 1: from allbody. God. That's why he went fishing. That's why
Speaker 1: he's so da. Jesus had an appointment with Peter. Peter
Speaker 1: wasn't the only one fishing that Sunday. You know how
Speaker 1: I know because what Peter did when he realized it
Speaker 1: was Jesus. Nobody does this stuff if they're in their
Speaker 1: right mind. Nobody does this stuff if they're in control
Speaker 1: of themselves. That's why some of y'all are like, I
Speaker 1: didn't plan on standing up during church today. This is
Speaker 1: not normally how I worship God. When that Holy ghost
Speaker 1: gets a hook in you. You can try to look mad,
Speaker 1: but I see joy coming home. You can try to
Speaker 1: look hateful, but I see hope coming home. You can't
Speaker 1: fight it, can I show you? Verse seven? Watch what
Speaker 1: Peter did? Now Peter went fishing. We know that, but
Speaker 1: watch what else happened. Verse seven The Bible says the
Speaker 1: disciple whom Jesus loved, humble Bragg said to Peter, it's
Speaker 1: the Lord. And as soon as Simon Peter heard him
Speaker 1: say it's the Lord, he wrapped his outer carmen around
Speaker 1: him and jump in the water. Question Easter Sunday Church
Speaker 1: Elevation twenty twenty three, Question Ephaan around the World? Question?
Speaker 1: Did Peter really jump in? Or does something pull him? Question?
Speaker 1: Was Peter the only one fishing? So who else was fishing?
Speaker 1: And when he looked on the shore he saw somebody.
Speaker 1: He should have known who it was the moment he
Speaker 1: heard his voice. He knew that voice. That's the voice
Speaker 1: that said leaves rous and a dead man got off.
Speaker 1: So he should have known that when this voice speaks,
Speaker 1: you can't stay where you are. And all of a
Speaker 1: sudden something happened to Simon and he no longer was
Speaker 1: fishing for what he did wrong, and he no longer
Speaker 1: was fishing for what might go wrong next, And he
Speaker 1: no longer was fishing in the sea of forgetfulness where
Speaker 1: God had cast all of his sins. All of a sudden,
Speaker 1: when he heard is Jesus, some start pulling on him.
Speaker 1: I think Jesus is the real fisherman in John chapter
Speaker 1: twenty one. I think while Simon was doing this with
Speaker 1: his nets, Jesus was doing this because he knows how
Speaker 1: to reel me in. He knows how to reel me in.
Speaker 1: Oh pastor, there's no reel in the passage. You're wrong.
Speaker 1: You're spelling it wrong. You're spelling it with to ease.
Speaker 1: I'm saying, r E A L. God is bringing the
Speaker 1: real me and the new me, the one that not
Speaker 1: only knows that he got up. But I feel the
Speaker 1: spirit of God pulled on someone right now, saying that
Speaker 1: you thought you were going to church, but you're really
Speaker 1: not even the one Fishing's God who drew you here.
Speaker 1: It's God who wants to give you a reset, not
Speaker 1: just so you fish on the right side of the boat,
Speaker 1: so that you live on the right side of the
Speaker 1: empty tomb, so that you live forgiven so that you
Speaker 1: live free, so that you live knowing there's a God
Speaker 1: who knows all that is in you, and he's greater
Speaker 1: than all of it. I see Jesus still on the
Speaker 1: shore today. It's been two thousand years since he pulled
Speaker 1: Peter in, but maybe today is today that he's pulling
Speaker 1: you in to his kingdom too, because he's got an
Speaker 1: assignment for you. He wants to change you and remake you.
Speaker 1: And this is your moment, this is your moment. He's
Speaker 1: reeling you in. He's reeling you in right now. Stand
Speaker 1: to your feet, everyone standing. The spirit of the Lord
Speaker 1: is drawing you. That's why you're still breathing. That's why
Speaker 1: your heart is still beating. That's why although you denied him,
Speaker 1: he cannot deny himself. He is faithful. And you thought
Speaker 1: you were coming to the lake looking for fish. He
Speaker 1: came to the lake and caught fish before you got here.
Speaker 1: Breakfast is already cooked. You don't have to pay for anything.
Speaker 1: It's all you can eat buffet of his mercy. But
Speaker 1: you've got to come. You've got to come. How much
Speaker 1: more will he have to do? He died for you.
Speaker 1: Don't you remember what he did on Calvary, when he
Speaker 1: stretched his arms, when he took every sin you would
Speaker 1: ever commit, all of that stuff and cast it to
Speaker 1: the bottom of the sea, where he posted a no
Speaker 1: fishing sign saying their sins and lawlessness. I will remember
Speaker 1: no more. But this moment is not about him fishing.
Speaker 1: This is a moment about you coming. He's been looking
Speaker 1: for you, he's been calling for you. Your grandmother has
Speaker 1: been praying for you. God brought you here today. I didn't.
Speaker 1: God had you log onto this message. I didn't. He's
Speaker 1: fishing for you, and he will leave the ninety nine
Speaker 1: to find the one. Are you the one? Are you
Speaker 1: the one? Bow your head and close your eyes. I'm
Speaker 1: going to pray a prayer right now for those who
Speaker 1: are at that moment of decision and you want to
Speaker 1: give your life to God today and receive His life
Speaker 1: in you, to be forgiven of your sin and have
Speaker 1: a brand new life. To commit your life to Him.
Speaker 1: Right now, I'm going to pray, and I want you
Speaker 1: to repeat this prayer out loud after me. If you're
Speaker 1: ready to come to God or come back to God,
Speaker 1: I want you to pray this prayer out loud after me.
Speaker 1: Church Family praying for the benefit of those who are
Speaker 1: coming to God in this moment. Repeat after me, Heavenly Father,
Speaker 1: today is my day of salvation. I'm a sinner in
Speaker 1: need of a savior, and I believe that Jesus Christ
Speaker 1: is the Son of God. And today I make Jesus
Speaker 1: the Lord of my life. I believe he died that
Speaker 1: I would be forgiven and rose again to give me life.
Speaker 1: I receive this new beginning. I am a child of God.
Speaker 1: On the count of three of you, rate that shoot
Speaker 1: your hand in the year one, two three, Jump in
Speaker 1: the water right now, right now, right now, right now,
Speaker 1: right now, right now, right now, right now. Shoot it high,
Speaker 1: Shoot it high. Let's celebrate. Let's celebrate. Let's celebrate. Let's
Speaker 1: celebrate the loss of South. The dead are coming alive.
Speaker 1: The chains of sin are broken. Prepare, something is singing,
Speaker 1: worship team, the chains are broken. The grave is empty.
Speaker 1: The blood was enough. Let's take about twenty three seconds
Speaker 1: and celebrate the greatest Easter Day, the greatest decision ever made.
Speaker 1: The God betain sin, that we might be called the
Speaker 1: righteousness of God. Lift downright hand, Lift downy, lift street,
Speaker 1: hearty yet here, lia Hey, I hope you enjoyed the podcast,
Speaker 1: and if you did, make sure to share it and
Speaker 1: subscribe so we can get you all of these new
Speaker 1: messages as soon as they're available. I also want to
Speaker 1: take a moment and thank all of you who are
Speaker 1: a part of Elevation. Whether you support us financially, or
Speaker 1: serve with us, or just share these messages, it's because
Speaker 1: of you that we're able to reach people all around
Speaker 1: the world. And if you want more information on how
Speaker 1: to be a part of Elevation, click the link in
Speaker 1: the description. Thanks again for listening. Make sure to leave
Speaker 1: a review, share the message, and subscribe. God bless you.