Forsake
All and Follow HIM
I like you to take
your Bibles tonight and turn to the gospel of Luke. The gospel of Luke, the 5th
chapter. Of all of God’s works,
the greatest of His works is His Word.
And every time here at the Way Biblical Research Center when we turn to
God’s Word, it is our people, God’s people, who come out of different
backgrounds, different denominational backgrounds, different environments,
who’s hearts get blessed because of the abundance of God’s Word. This ministry has only one purpose for its
existence. One reason for it’s work that it does and
that’s the accuracy with which we endeavor to study to show ourselves approved
unto God by rightly dividing the Word of truth.
And tonight I have chosen for this wonderful joyous occasion, a section
of the Word of God that I believe again will thrill all of our hearts. It always thrills my heart and I remember the
first time I ever saw some of these truths in this particular chapter of the
gospel of Luke. My own heart just got
set on fire because again I saw how far below par I had been living when God
had expected me to live with that life which is more than abundant. And that I was to be more than a conqueror
through him who loved me and gave himself for me.
A number of years
ago, my wife and myself and my 3 oldest children stood
in the area of the place where this particular section of the Word of God took
place. I cannot tell you how it thrilled
my heart and of course tonight, I see this vision of this thing in my mind’s
eye with all the trouble that’s going on in the near East tonight. I can see this territory,
I can see some of the things that are happening. But what a thrill it was at that time when we
were able to move freely about in the Bible lands. To stand at the place where Jesus stood at
one time and where the crowd pressed upon him to the degree and to the extent
that he had to get a little boat, a little fisherman’s boat, get in that boat
and move out so that he can teach the multitudes. This section of the Word of God from the
gospel of Luke is taken right from that area.
And in this 5th chapter of the gospel of Luke, we read the
following in verse one.
1. And it came to pass, that, as the people pressed upon him to
hear the word of God, he stood by the
When people begin to
press for the Word of God, they’re going to get answers. But as long as people are
pressing for their opinion, or for their ideas, or for their baptism, or for
their sprinkling, or for their dry-cleaning, no idea, no greatness of God’s
power. God’s power becomes a
reality to men and women who hunger and thirst after one thing, what? Righteousness. They that hunger and thirst shall be
filled. No ifs, ands, or buts about
it. No question about it. And they pressed upon Jesus to hear the Word
of God. It reminds me of the early
church after the Day of Pentecost. They
went everywhere preaching what? The Word. And still,
appointed Samaritan, he preached Christ unto them.
Nothing has ever
changed a man’s life or a woman’s life or a community’s life, or a state’s
life, or the light of the nation, except the Word of God. And when that Word of God has preeminence,
things begin to happen, things began to change.
They pressed upon Jesus to hear the Word of God. In verse 2 it says:
2. And saw two ships
standing by the lake: but the fishermen were gone out of them, and were washing their nets.
The fishermen were
gone out of them and the fishermen were washing their nets getting ready for
the next day fishing expedition.
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.
And he, Jesus,
entered into one of the ships, which was Simon’s. And prayed him and said to Simon, that he
would thrust out a little from the land and he sat down and taught the people
out of the ship. Now, verse 4:
4. Now when he had
left speaking, [when Jesus had finished his presentation of the Word of
God] he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep,
and let down your nets for a draught.
I don’t want men and
women who would just wade. I want men
and women who will launch out. Most of
us, when it comes to the Word of God have just been wading. We’ve just been trying out the water a little
bit to see if to see if we want to going for a bath or not. I don’t know how you are, but I know how I
am. When it comes to getting my feet wet
in the water, it’s always cold to begin with.
There’s only one way to get in, and that is to plunge in. I understand this. When he said to Simon, launch out into the
deep, launch out into the deep. He had
been teaching them the Word of God more or less sitting in that boat out in the
shallows, but when it came to fishing, getting fish, Jesus said to Simon launch
out into the deep. Get out there where
the fish are and let down your nets for a draught. In other words, put your nets all out.
In verse 2, it says
and they were washing their nets. They
had more than one net, they had nets, plural.
Right?
Jesus said, quit hanging around the shore, the periphery, launch out in
the deep. Get down to something that’s
real deep. Work out there. Get out there and let down your nets for a
draught.
The Word of God is
the Will of God, right? Jesus Christ
gave the Word of God, right? What was
the Will of God for those fishermen? To launch out into the deep and to let down their nets, for a what? That was the Will of God. The Will of God can only be known after you
know the Word of God. No man can know
the Will of God until he first knows the Word.
He’ll guess. His guessing could
be right and it could be wrong. And when you’re dealing with the eternal verities of your soul, of
your life. If you’re dealing with
something that’s going to live forever and ever, you better be surer than
guesswork. We have to come to the place
that we can again read God’s Word and that we understand it as a God meant it,
as God said it, that it means what it says and says what it means. And when God, by way of Jesus Christ said to
Simon, launch out into the deep, what did he mean? Get away from the shore, quit waiting on the
periphery, and launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a draught. He had the Word of God.
Ladies and gentlemen,
if we ever want to do God’s Will, we must first get
God’s Word. And that’s what this
ministry is designed to help people to do.
Our whole purpose, our whole desire is to get men and women back to God’s Word. Not what somebody says or somebody thinks, not
what some theologian may argue about.
But what does the Word say? For
thus saith the Lord.
Once we know God’s Word, we can say what the prophets of old, those
wonderful words, “Thus Saith the Lord”. Right.
Now Peter had the
Word of God. So did the rest of these
fishermen, right? They had the Word of
God. Jesus had given them the Word. Now once you have the Word of God, you’re going
to react. Any time you hear the Word of
God, there’s going to be a reaction. I
think it was in the area opposite Mars Hill, if I remember correctly, in the
book of Acts. It said they heard Word of
God, some believed, some said we do not believe, and a third group said we’re
going to think about it. They didn’t
believe either. There’s always a
reaction to the Word of God. Peter Simon
reacted to the Word of God and that reaction is given in verse 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.
We fished this place time and time again and we were out all last
night. We know where the fish are,
Master. This is our profession, you
stick to yours. And you teach us the
Word, that’s great. But don’t come
around here and sort of try to tell us where to fish because fishing is our
business.
Do you know what Jesus said? He
did the most wonderful thing a minister does. Oh, won’t you please come to
church? Won’t you please sit on the
front row? And won’t you please put in
your measly dollar? Boy, this is something
I had to learn from the Word and it stands every time. Once the Word of God is given, God never
gives the Word the second time until men act on it the first time.
He said to the man. Stretch
forth thine what?
And then he said, won’t you please stretch it forth? No. He
said to a fellow who was a leper, remember?
Naaman. Come all the way
down and the little old profit never even had a tea party for him. Never even rolled out the red rug, and simply
said send a little servant to this back door or someplace and said go tell Naaman to dip in the Jordan seven times. Naaman had started
home, the prophet ran after him and said Oh Naaman,
won’t you please come back, won’t you please do God’s Word? No.
The other fellow did the running, not the prophet. The prophet as I
teach in my advanced class just sat down, brewed himself another pot of tea and
had himself a cookie. Because, people,
once the Word of God’s been given, it’s never given a second time until the act. But there’s always a reaction to the
Word. Simon said, Master, we’ve toiled
all night, we fished this place, we fished here all night, and we caught
absolutely what? Nothing. Now you tell us to launch back out into the
deep, in the same place, the fish aren’t there, Master. And then he got to the this
thing, well maybe, I’ll just try it out a little bit. After everything else has
failed, maybe God. Ever heard
this? We try everything else, but when
everything else has failed, maybe God.
So God becomes the last resort.
Well, I know that isn’t right, but I want to tell you something
tonight. I’m real grateful that God’s
still there even as the last resort.
Boy, I thought of that this week and my wife brought it up one
night. Somebody called we haven't heard
hide nor hair of for 4 years. They never
wrote us a letter, never thanked us for anything we taught them in God’s
Word. Never supported
the ministry one penny. But here
they were, boy, they had a tremendous physical need. Everything else had failed,
nobody was able to help them. But they
called on the phone and said, would you lift us in
prayer? And I thought to myself I am
grateful they called. That the ministry
is still standing. That men and women are
still here at the headquarters that will love God and will pray for people and have no
resentment, no bitterness, hold no enmity or anything else for anybody. But
that they’re still here, that when people have a real need they know where to
call. Why not? Oh, sure.
The malefactor, he would have never made it if God had not been there
the last minute. But
how many of us, likewise? I thank
my God that He’s even there, when everything else has failed and we’ve tried
everything else. That God is still a
reality.
So even though Peter said Lord, we know the fishing business, we know
it in and out, but Lord you made a statement, even though we know all about
this now Lord, I’ll tell you what we will do.
Nevertheless, at thy Word, I will let down all of the nets we got in the
boat. No, I’ll let down net,
singular. Was that the Word of God? No, I sound like a modern theologian. No.
The Word of God was let down the nets.
And Peter said, Lord, according to your word. It wasn’t the Lords word at all. The Lord’s word was launch out into the deep
and let out the nets, nets. Everything
you’ve got, put her out, Peter. Peter said Lord, we fished all night, we’ve
toiled, and if you don’t mind, according to your word, we’ll try it out a
little bit. We’ll just let out a net,
singular. Boy, hasn’t this been indicative of all of our lives? We’ve heard the Word of God and we said Lord,
I’ll try it out just a little bit. I get
people, you know, in the foundational classes, lead them into the manifestation
of speaking in tongues and so forth and immediately they say, but Lord I wonder
if I can know
the interpretation.
Lord said, let out the net.
Peter said Lord we will put out a net, singular, nevertheless, at thy
word. Every time you read those things
like this in the Word, I stand just in tremendous awe because of the places
where men have said according to thy Word.
I think old Abraham was 90 years old until he finally got there. Ladies and gentlemen, up until this time,
what did Abraham do? He had the Word of
God. God said I will give you a son. But
all those years he never had a son. So
he decided well Ishmael is pretty good.
He said Lord, why not Ishmael?
Lord said, I’m going to give you one. And boy, when he got to be 99 years old, he
finally arrived and he said, be it unto me according
to thy Word. And there was light. If you
ever want to read this according to thy Word, you read sections like Hebrews
11. Some of those
sections. But the greatest one I
knew is the one of Mary the mother of the Lord Jesus Christ. Remember that story? When the angel came and brought the Word of
God, so wonderfully and so beautifully and Mary said be it unto me according to
thy Word. And she brought forth the Lord
Jesus Christ. When men and women really
say and really mean be it according to thy Word and literally take that Word
all the way - not just a net, but nets.
If the Lord said nets, go all the way.
Be it according to thy Word all the way, we’ll get the results of all
the way the Lord has given. A tremendous truth.
Verse 6 says:
And when they had this done, [even though they let out one net] they
enclosed a great multitude of fishes:
and their net break. – Luke 5: 6
Suppose they let out all the nets.
Why, you wouldn’t have to go fishing for a year. They would’ve caught so many,
they would get new deep places to keep them.
But even letting out a net. People, when we just walk a little bit on
God’s Word, look at the greatness of the reality that’s coming to people’s
lives when they just walk a little. Just
imagine. The abundance
that keeps coming to God’s people when we go all the way with God’s Word. That we just come to the place and we say Thus Saith the Lord. Be it unto me according to thy Word. He came that we might have life and have it more abundant.
We are more than conquerors through Him who loved us and gave himself
for us. If God be for
us who can be what? Against us. Isn’t
that tremendous? All
of these. The
Word. The Word. And we just launch out upon that whole Word.
They caught a multitude of fish and then something remarkable
happened. They beckoned unto their
partners which were in the other ship that they should
come and help them. And they came and
filled both ships so they began to sink and they had bailed water out of the
ships. This is recorded in Luke 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 ships, so that they began to sink. -- Luke 5: 7
When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, Depart from me;
for I am a sinful man, O Lord. -- Luke 5: 8
And when Simon saw, he fell down at Jesus’ feet saying depart from me,
for I am a sinful man, oh Lord. And
ladies and gentlemen, I believe you are listening to the greatest research and
teaching ministry in the world today. I
believe perhaps there is as much light among God’s
people in this ministry around the nations of the world as there has been light
at anytime, anywhere since the ministry of the apostle Paul in the first
century. And yet I’m confident that most
of us would have to say what Peter said.
Depart from me, for I am a sinful man O Lord because how many places
have we not undersold the Word of God, so to speak. How many places have we not lived below par? How many times have we not failed in our walk
of abundance? God’s Word said one thing,
we knew it as plain as day, but we walked in something a lot less. And we’d have to say with Peter, Lord we are
just a sinful people. The reason Peter
said this was because he was astonished.
Verse 9 says:
For he was astonished, and all that were with him, at the
draught of the fishes which they had taken: -- Luke 5: 9
When they had expanded only a little bit of believing and had to
receive such an abundance. What a tremendous reality this truth is. Verse 10 says:
And so was also James, and John, the sons of Zebedee,
which were partners with Simon. Fear
not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men. -- Luke 5: 10
And when they had brought their ships to land, they
forsook all, and followed him. -- Luke 5: 11
These men were called upon to be apostles for the Lord. And to have the ministry of an apostle,
prophet, evangelist, teacher, or pastor, it comes to the place that we have to
forsake all to follow him. It comes to
the place where you let nothing in the material world stand ahead of the
greatness of God's Word and the call of God in your life. If you're interested in making $12 an hour,
you come and work on our
But you see people, if this was the thing that some of us men are
looking at, there wouldn't be any Word.
The Word of God has nothing to do with what a man can earn. It has everything to do with the call of God
and the settling of that Word in the soul of a man or woman. And the apostle Paul said, woe is me if I
preach not the Word. If I do not teach
the Word … he’d have been miserable as an
And ladies and gentlemen, you find people today that stand. It’s really something. Because we’re beset on every hand in our environment,
not wrestling with flesh and blood, but spirit powers that are infiltrating
many times even the best of God's people, so to speak. And instead of standing, they give. And once you give one iota on the accuracy of
God's Word, you're not letting out nets, you're going
back to the net. And ladies and gentlemen we end up with things which are below
par. All our lives, our times, our ministry, ladies and gentlemen, calls for
men and women dedicated to the abundance of God’s Word, who will stand and let
out the nets. Just believe God with all
the abundance we can for God’s mighty blessing upon our people, our nation and
the world.
Well, they forsook all and they followed him. Remember Matthew chapter 5. You’ll remember it when I read it with you,
it’s a tremendous truth. You’ll all
remember it. Now not maybe everybody can
teach the Word of God like someone else can teach it and not everybody can be
an apostle and so forth. That’s
right. But there are disciples in the
body and the body is one. Every member
is a member in particular in that body and every member has an important
part. And your job in the body of Christ
is as important in God’s sight in the capacity in which you are serving as my
job is, as my privilege is, as my opportunity is. And the believers who did not stand with us
financially that way could not be ministering on the staff of the
ministry. In other words, I couldn’t
have done it by myself. It took God’s
people with everybody’s hand going out for the abundance that God wanted us
…………. Look at Matthew chapter 5, look at
verse 13:
Ye the salt of the earth:
but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth
good for nothing, but to be cast out, and to be trodden under the foot of men. -- Matthew 5: 13
Who are going up to the temple to worship God. They just threw it out. Everybody walked on it. We are not only salt. Jesus said we are the light of the world and
people where ever there is light, there cannot be darkness. All the darkness in the world cannot
comprehend the light. And as long as you
men and women, as long as I stand for the greatness of God’s Word, all the
darkness of the world, all the darkness of the satanic kingdoms of the world
cannot overcome that light. So you
people are the lights in your community.
You’re the salt of the earth in your community, in your shops, in your
factories, and out in the farms. In the
kitchens, wherever you are, you are the salt, you are the light. Like a city set on a hill, it cannot be hid.
Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an
hill cannot be hid. -- Matthew 5: 14
Neither do men light a lamp and put it under a bushel, but
on a candlestick; and it giveth
light to all that are in the house.
Neither do men light a candle, and put it
under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth life unto all that are in the house. -- Matthew 5: 15
Let your light so shine before men that they may see your good works
and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see
your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. -- Matthew 5: 16
Look at II Corinthians, Acts, Romans, Corinthians chapter 2: 14
Now thanks be unto God, which always causeth
us to triumph in Christ, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by us in every place. – II Corinthians 2: 14
Now thanks be unto God who always causes us to
triumph, when we let out the nets we are always caused to triumph. Thanks be unto God
who always causes us to triumph in Christ, and makes manifest, makes known,
reveals, the sweetness, the sweetness of His knowledge for our walk, in every
place where we walk. You’re the salt of
the earth, we’re the lights. Boy, what a
tremendous thing. Thanks be unto God who always causes us to triumph. And He makes known the sweetness of this
triumph by the knowledge of God that’s within us as we walk upon the greatness
of God’s Word. Ladies and gentlemen, I
want this to be a new day for this ministry.
Every day that we launch out into the deep and let
down our nets for a draught. I
want this to happen in my life, your life.
I want more of the abundance and of the power of God to made manifest
among all of us.
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