You can trust Jesus even when he asks you to do what doesn’t make sense.

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“At dawn Jesus was standing on the beach, but the disciples couldn’t see who he was.
He called out, “Fellows, have you caught any fish?”
“No,” they replied.
Then he said,
“Throw out your net on the right-hand side of the boat, and you’ll get some!”
So they did, and they couldn’t haul in the net because there were so many fish in it.”
John 21:4-6 New Living Translation

Fishermen don’t like taking advice from other people, especially if those people don’t fish. It doesn’t seem right to hear someone say, “Why don’t you try worms,” or, “I think your line is old,” or “maybe you should try the other side of the lake,” when they don’t even know how to tie a hook. 

A carpenter raised Jesus, not a fisherman. There is nothing in the Bible that says he didn’t fish while growing up, but it’s highly unlikely. As a child, he might have become familiar with the Galilean fishing industry through family trips they made to Capernaum. But these disciples were hardened fishermen. They wouldn’t take advice from anyone except another proven fisherman even if they hadn’t caught anything all night.

“Throw out your net on the right-hand side of the boat, and you’ll get some!”

Lutheran Valley Retreat, Colorado

The man giving the command had recently been nailed to a criminals cross. He was buried in a tomb and now was alive, but they didn’t know that it was Jesus. It wasn’t until after the fish nearly wrecked their net that John leans over to Peter and says, “It’s the Lord.”

This shore hugging man commanded authority so that even seasoned fishermen do what he says. There is nothing in this story that hints at reluctance. No one blurts out, “You want me to do what?” They simply cast their net.

You can trust Jesus even when he asks you to do something that doesn’t make sense. You can trust Jesus when he asks you to love your enemies and pray for the people who make your life miserable. You can trust Jesus when he says to turn the other cheek to the person who strikes out at you. You can trust Jesus when he says that you are to pick up our cross and follow him.

No matter what you’re facing today, you can trust Jesus.

Copyright Douglas P Brauner