Forsaking All to Follow

"So when they had brought their boats to land, they forsook all and followed Him."

Luke 5:11

No matter how much study or effort goes into the process of preaching, there are countless ways to improve.  There are things I wish I had said which I neglected, topics or passages I wish I had handled differently, or words after saying them in retrospect I would have left unsaid.  After preaching it is a mixture of feeling blessed to learn from God and share from His Word coupled with the knowledge I didn't quite nail it.  Yesterday I taught on the first part of Luke 5 and afterwards was a bit disappointed I didn't expound this verse just a bit more.  Praise the LORD He is a Redeemer and the One who gives understanding of His Word so even man's poor attempts can be fruitful and practical.

After Jesus caused Simon and his partners to haul in a miraculous catch of fish, upon reaching the shore they "forsook all and followed Him."  This meant they left their boats, the fish they had caught, their nets, their families, and homes to follow Jesus.  Since Jesus was their LORD they were completely at His service.  The point I wished I had emphasised was because Jesus is LORD they could be assured their families would be cared and provided for should Jesus lead them away from home.  Following Jesus meant Peter leaving his wife and mother-in-law (perhaps some children as well) and James and John are described as leaving their father in the boat with the servants.

There would be a heavy personal cost to follow Jesus for Simon Peter, but he was not required to sin in divorcing his wife to follow Christ.  He was not required to spend all his money on "the ministry" to the neglect of his own family.  Jesus would lead Peter to places and to people which were outside his comfort zone, but Jesus would not lead Peter to shirk his responsibilities at home.  Just like the fruitfulness of Peter's fishing efforts were directly related to the guidance of Jesus being the captain of his ship, so Peter could trust Jesus to lead him in a godly and good way--even when it meant time away from home.  Separation from family and friends is a hard thing Jesus sometimes asks us to do and we can trust Him to supply the needs of a marriage, friendship, and family.

It is important for us to examine our motives and ensure we are actually following Jesus in our ministering, not just assuming He is in our boat when we left Him on the shore weeks ago.  There are seasons of life; there are seasons of ministry.  Doing things because we have always done them (or at one time felt led to do them) is not a good enough reason to keep doing them.  God is faithful, and may we also be faithful to forsake all our plans and ambitions so we might follow Him in His way.  Those who are married ought not to seek to be loosed, and those who are unmarried ought not be preoccupied to "settle down" in marriage.  Whether married or unmarried, whether our parents are elderly, our children are young, or the family business is booming, let us choose to follow Jesus.  He will always guide us in the right way and make our efforts in obedience to Him fruitful.