YAHWEH'S MOUTHPIECE

A while ago, I read Luke’s account of Peter’s encounter with Jesus which marked a new turn in the course of his life and destiny. It was the day he let Jesus use his boat. We know the story quite well, but can I draw your attention to a few things?

Firstly, God’s goal is to capture the entirety of your heart and life but first, he requires that you “thrust a little from the land”. Yes, He wants you to trust a little and give him a little access to your life. Jesus entered into Peter’s ship, who then was called Simon, “and prayed him that he will thrust a little from the land.” When God begins to make little demands from you, it is an indication that He intends to make so much out of your life.

Jesus, after preaching to the multitude, instructs Peter to cast his net into the sea for a draught. Meanwhile, Peter and his companions were washing their nets after a futile all-night farming exercise. Peter is quick to let Jesus know that they had engaged their expertise and the appropriate time and season without a yield. “Nevertheless”, Peter said, “at thy word, I will let down the net.” This for me brought a new perspective. There’s a difference between doing things and doing things and doing things at God’s word. Many times, it is not about what you do, it is about doing things at His word.

There’s an air of probability and uncertainty when we move according to our wisdom. But there is certainty – a realm of possibilities – if we move according to His word.

You struggle many times while doing things the way you think is right. Can you step back for a moment and allow the Master to give the directive by His word? You embark on projects and they fail because the Word hasn’t given the directive. Do you have a word from God behind what you’re doing?

Peter saw Jesus walk on water. He didn’t just jump into the sea, He enquired of Jesus, bid me come. And at the word “Come”, there was an activation of a Divine ability setting him above earthly limitations. But it takes faith to plug in and plunge in.

At His word, natural and spiritual forces align for the performance of the word which has been spoken. Isaiah 55:11 “So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.”

The best time to move is at His word. David never lost a battle. The secret of His constant victories is that He went into every war “at His word.” You’ll see him ask, “Shall I pursue?” and God gives His word, “Pursue: for thou shalt surely overtake them, and without fail recover all.” This word activates strength in men who had become weak from weeping and they pursue till they fully recover. At other times, His word gave him directions and strategies for warfare turning the wisdom of the adversaries into foolishness. 2 Samuel 5:23-24 “And when David enquired of the LORD, he said, Thou shalt not go up; but fetch a compass behind them, and come upon them over against the mulberry trees. And let it be, when thou hearest the sound of a going in the tops of the mulberry trees, that then thou shalt bestir thyself: for then shall the LORD go out before thee, to smite the host of the Philistines.”

Our greatest advantage as believers is His word. We must not fail to wait for His word. We are entangled and defeated when we lack the word of God. The Bible records a time that the word of God was rarely heard and received. The result was the defeat and devastation of the nation. Where there is no vision (word from God), the people perish.

Peter was reluctant to obey because he has tried at the best time and failed. Many times, our reason gets in the way of the breakthrough God intends to grant us. The most important time or Kairos is not the time according to the sequence of seasons, but the moment the Lord shows up on the scene and issues His word. Therefore, when the Lord speaks, we carefully and attentively heed to the word. The man by the pool of Bethesda complained of having no man to help him at the time the angel stirs the water. Jesus came and spoke the word, He didn’t need the help of any man nor the stirring of the sea. Heaven had lighted upon him in mercy. Invite God into that situation that appears bleak and ask Him to utter a word. You’ll see the darkness being dispelled and a new dawn of light and life springing forth.

In recent times, I’ve seen the beauty of acting according to God’s word that I wished I had trusted more and better utilised those opportunities. The results are way beyond our imagination. Launch out into deep, even as God as commanded.

The Lord bestows upon you grace to receive, believe and live according to His word in Jesus’ name.