Week 1 - Day 2
THE RELATIONSHIP
Called to Jesus
CALLED TO TRUST JESUS
How did you answer yesterday’s question: If you were going to follow someone’s leadership, what would you need to know about that person?
Here’s one way to answer this question: You would need to know if the person knows where she is going. Because if you’re going to follow her, you would need to trust her sense of direction.
Jesus made a stunning statement about Himself in John 14:6.
John 14:6 (NLT)
Jesus told him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.”
Did Jesus say He could show us the way or that He knew the truth or that He had found life?
What did He say?
Is Jesus being selfish and egotistical?
According to this passage, then, what is it about Jesus that we are to trust?
Why is a personal relationship of trusting Jesus so important?
John 5:39-40 (NLT)
You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life. But the Scriptures point to me! Yet you refuse to come to me to receive this life.
According to this passage, is just knowing The Story of the Bible (Scriptures) enough to receive life? What else is needed?
Why is trust important when coming to Jesus to receive life?
The word “trust” is used to make the point that faith isn’t just an intellectual assent to certain truths, but a personal conviction about those truths, a personal assurance of those truths and a personal dependence on those truths. And since these truths are ultimately about Jesus, faith is a personal trust in Jesus Himself.
Think of it this way. You might believe a rope bridge can hold you, but how do you prove it? You have to walk across it. The point is you don’t really trust something until you entrust yourself to it.
That’s what biblical faith is. It’s both knowing the truths about Jesus AND trusting those truths about Jesus. In other words, you believe and trust that Jesus is The Way, The Truth and The Life. Most importantly, you entrust your whole life to Jesus..
Luke 5:1-11 (NLT)
One day as Jesus was preaching on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, great crowds pressed in on him to listen to the word of God. He noticed two empty boats at the water’s edge, for the fishermen had left them and were washing their nets. Stepping into one of the boats, Jesus asked Simon, its owner, to push it out into the water. So he sat in the boat and taught the crowds from there.
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.”
“Master,” Simon replied, “we worked hard all last night and didn’t catch a thing. But if you say so, I’ll let the nets down again.” And this time their nets were so full of fish they began to tear! A shout for help brought their partners in the other boat, and soon both boats were filled with fish and on the verge of sinking.
When Simon Peter realized what had happened, he fell to his knees before Jesus and said, “Oh, Lord, please leave me—I’m such a sinful man.” For he was awestruck by the number of fish they had caught, as were the others with him. His partners, James and John, the sons of Zebedee, were also amazed.
Jesus replied to Simon, “Don’t be afraid! From now on you’ll be fishing for people!” And as soon as they landed, they left everything and followed Jesus.
Who were the professional fishermen in this story? Who is not?
It was a well known fact that on the Sea of Galilee you didn’t fish during the day, but only at night. That’s because fish would come into the shallows under the cover of darkness to feed. Then you could easily catch them with your nets. During the day, however, the sunlight would drive the fish into deeper waters and your nets wouldn’t reach them. And once again, everyone knew this. So Jesus’ instructions to fish during the day in the deep water didn’t make sense. But what can you expect? Jesus wasn’t a fisherman, but a carpenter by trade.
What does Peter need in order to follow Jesus’ instructions?
When Peter saw the miraculous catch of fish, instead of asking Jesus to join his fishing business, what does Peter do? Why?
What is Jesus’ response to Peter?
What does Peter need to leave his fishing business and follow Jesus in catching people?
TRUSTWORTHY
When Jesus calls us to trust Him, He isn’t asking us to do anything He Himself doesn’t do. Think of the amazing trust it took for Jesus to follow His Father’s lead. Jesus had to trust His Father’s character and mission. He had to entrust His life and death and then life again to His Father.
Jesus knows He is about to be crucified for the sins of the world and it overwhelms Him. So He reaches out to His Father in prayer.
Matthew 26:36-46 (NLT)
Then Jesus went with them to the olive grove called Gethsemane, and he said, “Sit here while I go over there to pray.” He took Peter and Zebedee’s two sons, James and John, and he became anguished and distressed. He told them, “My soul is crushed with grief to the point of death. Stay here and keep watch with me.”
He went on a little farther and bowed with his face to the ground, praying, “My Father! If it is possible, let this cup of suffering be taken away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.”
Then he returned to the disciples and found them asleep. He said to Peter, “Couldn’t you watch with me even one hour? Keep watch and pray, so that you will not give in to temptation. For the spirit is willing, but the body is weak!”
Then Jesus left them a second time and prayed, “My Father! If this cup cannot be taken away unless I drink it, your will be done.” When he returned to them again, he found them sleeping, for they couldn’t keep their eyes open.
So he went to pray a third time, saying the same things again. Then he came to the disciples and said, “Go ahead and sleep. Have your rest. But look—the time has come. The Son of Man is betrayed into the hands of sinners. Up, let’s be going. Look, my betrayer is here!”
What does this story tell us about Jesus’ trust in His Father’s will?
Where does Jesus’ trust in His Father’s will ultimately lead Him?
How is Jesus’ trust in His Father a model for our own trust in Jesus?
In light of what you have discovered through the Bible readings and your personal reflections, how will you respond? Finish this sentence: I will …