Follow Me

Today on Summit life with Judy Greer all compels obedience to God is big you will never have the strength to obey.

Some of you, I would say that your problem. You don't obey God. You don't seek God's because you're not self discipline up because God is distant is small is almost unreal. Right after Greer, I am your host Molly benefits that we've all heard sermons about Jesus calling his disciples to follow me right today. Pastor Jenny invites us to view Jesus the way his original disciples dad overwhelming.

His radical live because when we see this unique love. Jesus progressed, we will respond radical surrender to our lives and the world will never be the same. So grab your Bible independent. Let's join Pastor JD down five Bible before we jump in the passage for this week yet.

I want to throw out a picture for you if you give us a few minutes leading into the passage a picture of who our church is and where we are going because I think Luke chapter 5 explains beautifully why we do this and why this church strives to be what it strives to be our mission statement at the summit church is following the Holy Spirit. We want to create a movement of disciple making disciples in Raleigh-Durham and Artie knew admin around the world, a movement of disciple making disciples, we believe that that is more important than simply growing a big audience. Sometimes I think we think of the book of acts as the good old days of the church. We think you know small groups regularly prayed to the night Peter and Paul preached with breathtaking boldness before seating Caesar's and cantankerous crowds. Martyrs cheerfully sacrifice their lives in the Coliseum beaters hankies healed the sick, and imposters got struck the enemy offering with a command that would've been awesome to be alive during that time the church must've felt like this unstoppable powerful movement only problem church historians say is that had she been alive during this time, it would not have felt so you like an unstoppable movement. Here's what I mean. The best estimates the best estimates that historians can come up with to the total number of believers.

Followers of Jesus that were alive in 99 A.D. that were the end of the first century.

Total number was 7530, which I know is oddly specific but that's what they say about 7530 total. Would you let that sink in and fragment that the early church father origin was born late in the second century describe the Christian movement in his day, which would've been a couple hundred years, you know, after after after Jesus lived describe it as still just a few scattered communities geographically broad but numerically insignificant and yet and yet by 312 A.D. Christians have become so numerous in the Roman empire that the Emperor Constantine felt like he needed to convert to Christianity for political reasons. Over half of the Roman Empire had converted to Christianity in key favor with the people. Constantine had to follow suit. Here's the question, how do you go for less than 10,100 A.D. to over half the Roman Empire by three 1280.

Think about of the early church had very very little compared to what we have today.

They have big budgets. They didn't have grand auditoriums like the one that I'm standing in bed and have publishing presses or TV station. No representation in the Senate.

But what they did have church historians say what they one thing they did have that we don't is an integrating sense of the great commission belongs to everybody. They believe that every single Christian in every single church every follower of Jesus was called to multiply. They believe what I'm going to show you today from Luke chapter 5 and that may Christianity take off your member that annoying math riddle from middle school I member this I hopefully where you were given a choice between receiving one penny and doubling it every single day or hitting $10,000 a day, but I this is not $10,000.

I can only get our CFO to give me $1000 soak my trustworthiness is like a much real combat with all of it but furious. Okay so this is a thousand us… But to this $10,000 on kids like you get a choice between you get $10,000 today and then $10,000 every single day for 30 days. That's option one or you get one penny today and then we double it tomorrow and then double the third day in the key doublet of 30 days which of those three would you choose well. Like most middle school students.

I chose the $10,000 a day and then my math teacher explains to me that that was a foolish choice because it's true. After 30 days.

I have $300,000 and I was like I could buy so many pairs of Air Jordan's with $3000. Every videogame available on the Atari 2600, and even get one of those Deslauriers by Michael J Fox River back to the future so hissing like a no-brainer, but my math teacher explained that how I started with the penny sure after the first week I would've only had a couple box by the end of the month. I would have $10,737,418.23.

I asked her CFO to bring that amount appeared. He deftly said no but that's a whole fleet of DeLorean's right.

That's the power of multiplication. That's the power, multiplication, and that was what was going on in Luke five. Did you know today. Today there are more Baptist Church.

If there are more Southern Baptist churches in America. Then there are the number of Starbucks subways and McDonald's combined. The question is, what if every single one of these churches saw that it was their responsibility to multiply.

What if every believer in these churches saw the great commission as their responsibility was just a handful of people in each of the church is the might not our great grandchildren look back on this time. And see these as the good old days as global. What this means for us.

If that's true, is that we can have a change of emphasis in the mission of the church means that were not as can be focused on church expansion and be focused on church multiplication when I can be focused primarily on growing a massive audience really focused on creating a movement of disciple making disciples.

The church I've heard it said often functions and practice like it I can a few people blogging and ACC football games you got 22 guys in desperate need of rest surrounded by 22,000 cutouts of people in desperate need of exercise medicine 2020 22,000 people in desperate need of exercise door I've described like this to you before, I'm so you were watching Super Bowl.

The most recent Super Bowl Tom Brady my you know by the liquid stop for a minute and just acknowledge that's a 43-year-old man that has won his seventh Super Bowl kid. I guess a lot of us mid 40 guys a lot of night. So here you go Tom Brady you watching the Super Bowl you watch and get you know is team out there and it was good to be next year will you get somebody out there, and he calls this plate and you will you don't know the players would you watch all the that the player stand out and be like wow that was an amazing play. We have never heard play caller like Tom Brady is he not the greatest of all time, break off and they clap and they go back and visit on the bench and after a couple minutes they run back out the field to get back in the huddle, the obstacles of play in this, like, will that was amazing. Literally this is the greatest play caller of all-time children, place, and they call their friends and make podcast, the player may pass around all their friends are you Elizabeth got called away and they keep doing this over and over and over again at some point you're going to look at this team is going to say guys run the place.

The point is not how well Tom Brady calls the play. The point is running play what I think we got in a lot of churches like ours is you got a lot of people who are like man I love hearing the pastor Coldplay boys, not me calling playboys you running play in the play is not what takes place during the week in the play is what you do and be a disciple making disciple in the world.

So it's time for us to run the plate but I think our dreams what our church look like were summarized by getting Francis Chan made a statement about was Ben's asked wasn't long gone are the days when we should be content with a bunch of people who sing out loud. Don't divorce and get the missions I want to know that I can drop off any member of my church in a new city and that person could grow in Jesus make disciples and help start a church that's the vision. All this leads to Luke five something I want to call you to hear a couple weeks in a couple week someone asked you you've heard about this to renew your commitment to be the disciple making disciple buy into making disciples. One of the things we talked about as we emerge here from lockdown is that we ought to look at the season like a church relaunch when we come back and asked what new ministry should we be starting back which ministry should we stop a part of this relaunch is I want you to recommit to be more than just a spectator here. I want you to commit to being part of the mission. I want you to commit to not just hearing the play, but running the plate and not just gathering together weekly in a huddle for Jesus.

There was no such thing as a follower who are not actively engaged in the mission.

Let me show you.

Luke chapter 5. As the crowd was pressing in on Jesus to hear God's word.

He was standing by Lake Nasser rat, which was another name for the sea of Galilee, which name you might ever he saw two boats at the edge of the lake. The fishermen had left those boats and were washing their nets. After a day of work first three he got into one of the boats which belongs to Simon which was another name for Peter and he asked Simon Peter to put out a little from the land. They sat down and was teaching the crowds from the boat that serve two purposes. First, gave Jesus a little distance from the crowd, those who are wanting to touch Amber get his autograph or take a selfie with them or whatever. Secondly, water. Of course, serves as a natural amplifier never stood on a boat on a quiet lake and yelled at somebody across the water.

The amplifications amazing and so pushing back a little bit gave Jesus both benefits a little distance in natural ramification verse four when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon Peter, but out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.

Now here's what the New Testament fish fishing that actually look like on this is not an actual unit of ancient Jewish oneness will come from Dick's sporting goods. But a little you picture right you get she's weights all around it and what the fishermen would do as he would just cast it out goes out into the thing he pulls up the string pulls up the fish and there was quite a bit bigger and that's what they would do this over and over again cast them full castable castable. Peter is been out the entire night casting this net drawing and fish and he is caught nothing. Jesus tells him go out a little deeper and try again.

Here's the problem. That's what Peter has been doing all night casting picking out casting and picking up Peter is a professional and he knows when the fish are biting and Jesus telling him to give it just one more toss frankly is a little insulting. Plus we know that Jesus was not a fisherman. Professionally, he was a carpenter and Peter was probably like listen man if you if I got a wobbly chair. I'll call you but don't give me any advice up about fishing verse five master Simon Peter replied, respectfully, but I'm sure with a little irritation. We worked hard all night long and caught nothing but if you say so I'll let down the natural sometimes like to think about how much Peter's life changed in that pause. I call this the pause of eternal significance. Your heart is filled out, but you decide to obey anyway how much the Peter's life changed because of that pause. Can you look back on your life and see places where your heart was filled with doubts, but you decided to obey. Anyway, that pause of faith can make an eternal difference in your life or six when they did this they caught a great number of fish and their nets begin the day or so they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them.

They came and filled both boats so full they began to sink. When Simon Peter saw this, he fell Jesus's knees and said get away from me because I'm a simple man, Lord. Verse 10 don't be afraid you stole Simon from now on you can be catching people. This met Peter. This net you should just bring in fish that will only work a few pennies from now on to get a cast that out is gonna come back not with what what what with fish. This just work enough money to get you to the day it's going to be worth it can be filled. The souls of people.

If you have eternal significance that your life is going to become something likable and meaningful. That last even longer than your life. So they brought the boats to land they left everything their nets and all. I followed him because he uses passes EB three qualities that are necessary for you to be a disciple right number one persons. The longest one.

All chapter 5, verse eight, a sense of all. In Luke chapter 5 Peter got overwhelmed by plan glimpse of Jesus power so overwhelmed.

Verse eight that he fell Jesus's knees and said get away from me because I'm a simple man, Lord. And I might seem like an odd reaction to you and so you really think about it.

You see, when you're in the presence of true greatness. Never notice that your heart is mixed is filled with a weird mixture of attraction and repulsion at the same time you're not sure if you want to draw close or run away you've ever been in the presence of true greatness. You had those conflicting feelings I have told you before I when I was in middle school I got to meet Michael Jordan. I don't know if you could actually call a meeting Michael Jordan, but that's how I see it. It was a Kindle golf tournament and this is by the way, when I was in middle school. He was in the height of his fame did everything we just didn't go with him and so he was the hottest thing around and so then I was getting this golf tournament under this golf tournament. My best friend and I looked all day long for Michael Jordan. We could not find the whatever his security detail was had successfully hit him from people like me. So the whole day thought a waste. I'm waiting on my mom and dad to come pick me up the end of the day and I'm standing there along the that the road and I see coming down the road.

This purple Porsche Carrera that I knew was I got Michael Jordan's car so I and as I turned and yelled in my best friend was getting something from the computer. The concessions that house like it's Michael Jordan so good people hurt me, they'll come running up a Michael Jordan comes right source code gets really slow. He lowers the window down that dark tinted window.

He's obviously looking for somebody not me and implores a window down to about 5 miles an hour so I'm a walking saw the car. My best friend takes me from behind, shoves me into the car to melt like waste your leaving through the passenger window. I was this close to that man's face. I could have licked him in one of my lifelong regret is that I did not and I had all these things, I just wanted to say to Michael Jordan, and in that moment I couldn't say any of that. I just like the sky like an even under EE series is ravenous his car. He looks over me and the he says get out of my car and I said yes or Mr. Jordan. I pushed back have car turn around McReynolds like seeds alternate we had a conversation right right attraction I just overwhelmed that his greatness but but there's also something about their greatness.

That just makes you feel really really small right in the presence of true greatness. You're both attracted and you also want to run away. That's what happens to Peter when Jesus calls people to follow him.

He often begins with this overwhelming vision of terror may think about a think about stories in the Bible that you might remember God called the Old Testament prophet Isaiah to be his messenger always the first thing he gave him.

Isaiah 6.

A glimpse of his glory. So much so that Isaiah cries out woe is me, which means let me be cursed.

Let me be damned because I'm a man of unspeakable filth and I've got a dirty mouth. When Jesus called the apostle John, Revelation 1 to prepare his church for what was ahead, he gave to John a glimpse of his glory inserted John, who had been a friend of his friend Jesus is in his earthly life, so overwhelmed at what he saw that he fell on his face just positive that he was going to die. I'll tell you that when God called me, he did it by first giving to me a glimpse of his awesome glory just as awesome power. How how how long eternity was how terrible it would be to go into eternity as his enemy, and as a teenager that kept me up late. Many a night scared to death of dying in a meeting God and in being under his judgment question is why does Jesus do this what he sees it. Why does he sometimes terrified you before he calls you. There is a reason this work is only all compels obedience until God is big to you.

You never have the strength to obey.

Some of you, I would say that your problem. You don't obey God. You don't seek God.

It's not because you're not self disciplined enough. It's because God is distant to you, you small he's almost unreal. One of my favorite stories.

I love that detail here is when I got invited few years ago by a group of fraternity guys that went to the cemetery from UNC Chapel Hill.

They invite me to come into the fraternity and do a Bible study.

Well I definitely think that opportunity. So I went in and I was doing this Bible study and that the subject had chosen was sexual temptation and I know this is all ironic that I'm in there doing the bowel city of sexual temptation. I made a comment offhandedly that that you could turn off your sexual desire. You turn it on and off like a light switch.

I'll never forget the look in these 19-year-old guys faces when I made that statement. One of them actually shook his head. He said bro that's crazy talk and I was a know it's true. He said I we knew that you, your body changed you got older, but we had no idea that when you were four years old, you would say something that dumb. I want what you and I said no even for you.

19 years old. You turn your sexual desire on all floodlights which it is suggested that crazy ethanol is not your lubricity so you're with your girlfriend in your at her apartment, your buyer set yourselves and like to download one thing lead to another item which called anymore but when I was in college that something to do with the baseball diamond. And so you're working away on the baseball diamond and you get to that point. The point of no return. All nod their heads in my youth alike and at this point there is no pulling back all nod their heads like that's all talk about right. There is an okay there you are in the apartment right your thought behind your passion and use all the sudden, in that moment into the room first. This girls Navy seal father who's just gotten back from Afghanistan. All floodlights which the guy was like yeah it's good point. I know what happened in a moment.

Is it that's you know like he was lost all your sexual desire. No problem in that moment. Or will the solution was nurse sexual desire gone outweigh buyout larger desire desire to stay alive right the people you lose your body attach your body, whatever.

I told them I said the problem with you guys know that your sexual desires are so big the problem is that your God is so small when God becomes big to you when you have a sense of all over God. Daniel had the strength to try tell you if you have an obedience problem this weekend.

It begins as an all problem God's just simply not big enough to you all is the first quality of the design your disciple according to man's original career. There's much more to constantly sure to do anything tomorrow for the message titled follow me if you missed any part of today's teaching or would like to study the full unedited transcript. Visit us anytime@jeanniegreer.com hey Jenny we have a handy new resource this month to help us in the right 50 verses in the Bible this year, but I know what some people are thinking Scripture memory seems like an activity for kids. So why is it important for us as adults to keep this practice till you help Molly. I could list probably a dozen reasons others out of my head that this is an essential thing I do. It's one of the most neglected overlooked disciplines in the Christian life.

Thankfully I was raised in the church and by parents who they just to me, they drilled Scripture memory and debate through you memorize it. Whole chapters and you want to where we dress up a little paramilitary uniforms against candy and metals for memorizing Scripture. I'm so grateful for that because moments of darkness and temptation dowel despair. The Holy Spirit takes Scripture verses.

I learned some of them when I was a kid and he brings up the mind to counteract these lies. What I've learned is is that the spirit of God can do amazing things in your heart, but he cannot use what you have it, which you have put in there, and so Scripture memory is something we want to encourage your Summit life. Jesus memorize Scripture. We know that because of how frequently quoted if Jesus needed it in his life. To be spiritual bottled and then we certainly do as well. What would guns be produced, Scripture memory card sets 50 cards that have some incredible promises has some warnings, some just gospel truth that will counteract Satan's lies in your life. We would love to give these to you as someone 1911 says of stored up your word in my heart that I might not sin against you. This is a great tool to enable you to do that. Make sure you get a set of our new supply Scripture memory cards. There different than the ones last year. Get get the ones for this year that will take you through one verse a week for the entire year of 2022.

Get yours today@jdgreer.com Colossians 316 tells us to the word of Christ dwell in us richly. Deuteronomy 6439 tells us to bind God's law and therefore had teaching to our children. Talk about it whenever we go and make it an integral part of our life, we must know Scripture first before we can teach it is God desire. This is a unique set of cards that we'd like to give you today and it comes with our thanks when you donate to support this program on the radio and online.

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We request your set of cards. Call eight 663-3550 T-20 8665 T-20 for you can donate and request is resource online here.com I Molly I need to join us when saving the continuing like theory qualities to be a disciple of Jesus look like all of us committed to surrendering Wednesday on the Senate line. Jeannie night prayer ministry