Pastor Robert Fergusson, A Call to Deep Water

you can all sit down wonderful to see you thank you good to see you for those of you who normally come on a Saturday night you will know that over the last few weeks I've had the privilege and opportunity of speaking to you about life lights I've done a series of at least three and if you weren't in any of those you can get hold of those in the fire at the end but although I haven't finished the series I've got a couple left I feel in the lead-up to Easter that I want to do something else and if all goes according to plan I'm gonna speak tonight too next week as well on Saturday night and I'm going to talk about something a little different now for those of you don't know me I'm a teacher by calling one of my roles in life is to lay foundations in people's lives teacher principles but every now and again I have a prophetic edge and and what I do I sort of model myself a little on John the Baptist I get a bit uncomfortable suddenly appear out of the desert and challenge people do a different kind of lifestyle and I'm just warning you because you are commanded in the scripture to love me and I just want to make sure that you fulfill that commandment right now so I'm going to be a little in-your-face tonight I'm going to challenge you and provoke you and I just thought I'd warn you but I actually really feel that this is a word not just another sermon or another principle on which we can base our lives but this has a real prophetic word not just for you as an individual but for us as a church so I want you to lean in as matt said earlier lean in to this message let me pray for you father God I just want to thank you very much for this religion opportunity of coming here on a Saturday night gathering in community worshiping your name here in your word I pray that we won't just be hearers only but we do us and the precious and the most wonderful name of Jesus and everybody said amen in 1990 I moved from England to Australia to take over what was then the Bible College of Sydney Christian life center I'd already been in full-time Christian ministry for 12 years so I was reasonably experienced but I remember when I came to Australia I felt really inadequate for the task ahead I was filled with self-doubt God was asking me to do something that I knew was beyond my ability and I remember standing at that very door over there in 1919 and someone walked up to me and asked me why do you come to Australia and I distinctly remember my reply because I hadn't thought it through and it took me a little by surprise I said this I came here because I could do the job I was doing in England and I cannot do the job I'm about to do in Australia over the nearly 40 years of Christian ministry what I've discovered is that these seasons of inadequacy and self-doubt occur occasionally and they usually occur just before God is about to do something in my life God is about to do something grand and he calls me to something and I feel I can't do this and what I've also discovered is that the depth of that inadequacy and the lengths of that season of self-doubt is often in direct proportion to the depth of where God is taking me and the length of time that he is calling me to this new thing now if that has ever happened to you and you're feeling a little inadequate well we're in good company because as I read through the Bible I find that men and women of God went through those seasons just before God did something radical something big in Exodus chapter 3 and verse 11 for instance when Moses was called to liberate the people of God from Egypt he said but Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh and bring the Israelites out of Egypt Who am I he went through a season of self-doubt but it wasn't just Moses Gideon in judges chapter 6 went through exactly the same thing but Lord Gideon asked how can I save Israel my clan is the weakest and Manasseh and I'm the least in all my family Isaiah was called to do something radical for garden to proclaim restoration and judgment on idolatry and his response was well to me I am ruined I'm a man of unclean lips and I live among a people of unclean lips Jeremiah exactly the same thing happened God called him to speak judgment over Israel and he said I can't do it our Sovereign Lord he says in Jeremiah chapter one verse six I don't know how to speak I am only a child so if you're feeling a little inadequate sometimes when God ask you to do something don't panic join the club we're all in the same boat but I need to say something to you in January of this year when we said that this year was going to be a year of revival and God challenged me to speak out a year of significance and multiplication over the congregation every time I got up to speak on the subject that feeling of inadequacy grew and the more we proclaimed that God is going to do something radical in our community and change lives and save whole families and change our workplace and bring life to our community I felt even more filled with self-doubt I was just pondering this a few weeks ago when I was speaking of the creative team at Hills and I was thinking maybe I'm just having a bad year and then God spoke to me he said I'm calling you just something way beyond yourself something more grand more glorious more extravagant than you've ever experienced in your Christian life and the reason that you are feeling filled with self-doubt and filled with inadequacy is that I'm calling you to deep water he spoke to me from Luke chapter 5 and verse 4 when God spoke to Simon the fisherman and said when he had finished speaking he said to Simon put out in through deep water and let down the nets for a catch and God said to me I'm calling you to deep water and I felt that it wasn't just for me I felt that it was a prophetic word for this church if you want to title to this message it's called a call to deep water I believe God is calling us to something beyond ourselves it's no good just saying this is going to be a year of revival without understanding the significance and the price and the responsibility that that revival will bring well that's what this message is about now when you talk about self-doubt and inadequacy there's a lot of people out there who challenge that mindset they say doesn't the Bible say don't throw away your confidence doesn't the Bible say that doubt is a poison you shouldn't be confessing inadequacy and self-doubt I need to say something - I'm not talking about self-doubt I'm talking about self-doubt and those two things are very very different see if I said I went through a season of self-doubt what I'm really saying is that I don't God's ability I doubt his capacity I doubt his word I doubt his desire well I want to say tonight I have no doubts whatsoever that God will do what he will do he will and longs to change lives he will save households he will turn our lives up to upside down he will save souls and heal the sick he will make a difference in this community this is a year of significance multiplication and revival I have no doubt in God what so ever but I do have doubt in my abilities I've got a lot of self-doubt but I'm encouraged by Luke chapter 9 in verse 23 because when Jesus called his disciples he said if anyone would come after me he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me in other words if you're gonna do what God wants you to do if you're gonna follow him with all your heart and with all your soul the first casualty in that formula if you will is you we're gonna have to die to ourself we're gonna have to die to our pride we're gonna have to die to our arrogance we're gonna have to die to our self-consciousness we've got to die to our independence die to our self-protection that's the first thing that Matt's go and that's the call to these people these fishermen put out in a deep water I'm going to do something radical and powerful among you let's have a look at what it actually means turn with me to Luke chapter 5 Luke chapter 5 verse 1 one day as Jesus was standing by the lake of ganas right that's the Sea of Galilee it's the same thing with the people crowding around him and listening to the Word of God he swore on the waters edge two boats left there by the fishermen who were washing their it's he got into one of the boats the one belonging to Simon who went on to become Peter and asked him to put on a little from the shore then he sat down and taught the people from the boat and when he had finished speaking he said to Simon put out into deep water and let the net stand for a catch well if you don't know the story let me just tell you that he then went out into deep water and they put down their nets and they saw such a miraculous catch of fish that their nets began to break they had to call on other boats and both boats were totally filled and Peter saw things that he had never seen before before we get on to talk about what Peter did and how he responded to this call let's establish what the call was because if this is a call to the church we need to understand what God is calling us to well the first thing he's calling us to is a call to the deep it says in the first couple of verses that they were at the water's edge they were in the shallows they were within their own compass they were in the realm of the normal the natural this was their average day their routine and God was saying I want you to move from the shadows to the deep I want you to go beyond yourself I want you to do what you've never done before I want you to break out of your normal routine stop just going to church and start seeing revival break out in your community that's what God was saying to them a call to the deep in 1 Corinthians chapter 2 and verses 9 it says this however as it is written no eye has seen no ear has heard no mind has conceived what God has prepared for those who love him but God has revealed it to us by his spirit the spirit searches all things even the deep things of God God wants you to go beyond what you know you want you to meet God in a way that you've never met him you want you to know things about him that you've never known he wants you to explore things in his word that you have never explored the word deep is the word pathos in the original Greek it's the word from which we get the English word bath escape that small submarine that is sent down to the ocean depths in 1960 they sent down a bath escape called Trieste to the deepest part of the ocean the Mariana Trench just off the island of Guam they went lower and deeper where there is more pressure than they have ever experienced before 40 years on still 95% of the ocean floor is unexplored and unseen by the people on this earth can I just suggest to you that what you know of God is a tiny facet a tiny part a tiny bit even if you've been a Christian for 50 60 or 70 years you only know a tiny bit of God and God is saying come on get out of the shallows get out of the average get out of the mediocre push out into deep water I want you to do what you've never done before Christian Kane at the color conference said in this last year she's been called to study in a way that she'd never study before she's served God faithfully for years but in the last year she's been studying the Bible two three four hours a day putting out into deep water understanding things that she'd never experienced before and I believe even after 40 years of serving God God is calling me to do the same and I suggest you he's calling you to do the same as well in 1904 I was sitting in this congregation just like many of you are tonight and God called me to go to Toronto where God was doing something radical I had an experience and an impacting revelation of God that changed me forever did I feel inadequate before that absolutely was I going through a season of doubt absolutely but God taught me from what I knew to what I could know and now years later he's saying I'm gonna do it again but this time it's grander this time it's better this time it's more significant get ready for this get out of the shallows move out but it isn't just a call to the deep it's called to new experiences he's saying I'm calling you from your old experience to new experience and calling you to what you have never ever seen before in mark chapter one I love this they saw a a miracle a paralytic gets healed Tory mark 2 and verse 12 he got up took up his mat and walked out in full view of them all this amazed everyone and they praised God saying we have never seen anything like this would you like that to be your confession in 2013 at the end of this year to say hey we've had such a significant amazing here we've never seen anything like this well I believe that's gonna be our confession in 1984 I remember going through this same season of Southtown this season of inadequacy how could God possibly use me how could God do what he wants to do and at that time I went to Soweto in South Africa in Johannesburg and went to visit Reinhardt bonkers tent the same Reinhardt Bonnke that is coming to our church this Easter Sunday the same person that he's gonna preach the gospel that you can bring your friends to that you can bring your colleagues to that you can bring your community to and when I went there there were fifty thousand people in that first meeting 6,000 people got saved that first night I saw people healed I saw people blind eyes open I saw what I had never ever seen before and it changed me forever I went to his season itself dad before that but it's nothing to the decision itself doubt on going through now I want to tell you I am scared rigid for what God is gonna do because he's calling me to the deep he's calling me to new experience we see sin kid how did the average don't just come along to church do something you do something new believe for something greater if you've never prayed for the sick pray for the sick if you've never believed for we believe for money whatever it is get out of the shallows and leaving your boats where you have always left them but it's not just a call to the deep it's not just a call to new experiences it's a call to practice what you believe you see this was a call from preparation to practice this wasn't just sitting at the edge of things mending their nets now he said stop mending their nets and start using your nets you know Saturday night is a net mending session but are we gonna just is this it is this our Christianity are we gonna just come to church once on a weekend or when we feel like it and listen to some good advice and mend some Nets together and feel good no I don't think so God is saying come on I want you to put into practice I want you to turn your preparation into practice many of you been Christians 20-30 years you've been preparing for a revival for 20 years well now it's the time to get up and do something put out into deep water see what happens who knows God may Turner could you just turn shut my jacket toward me I think this was Elijah's experience sorry Elijah's experience in 2 Kings chapter 2 and verse 14 it says this and then he took the cloak that had fallen from him and struck the water with it where now is the Lord the god of Elijah he asked when he struck the water it divided to the right and to the left and he crossed over we read a version like a passage like that sounds very exciting but I want you to see something here this man was called by God 10 years before this call to be a prophet called to be a man of God called to be the person that was going to make a difference in his community and for 10 years he just followed the path of Elijah faithfully for 10 years the Bible says he poured water on Elijah his father in the faith he poured water on his hands he served him he'd never seen miracles in his own hand he'd never seen the prophetic word come from his own mouth he was preparing preparing preparing and then one day Alijah his father was taken up into heaven on a chariot and as he went up his cloak representing his authority his prophetic office fell down from the sky and landed at Elijah's fee and all the prophets were around and they looked at Elijah and they looked at the cloak and they thought is this gonna be the day is he gonna take up this mantle this office and Elijah picked up the cloak that represented his future he had never D seen anything like this before he had never done anything like this before it spent 10 years preparing for this event but now he had to actually go and put it into practice and he got up and he walked up to the river and he didn't know what God was gonna do and he said shout it out where God where now is the God of Elijah in other words God if you don't turn up I'm gonna look an idiot and then he hit the river and the waters split in front of him he walked through and all the prophets said the same spirit the was on the previous generation is on this one the same revival that has hit various parts of the world in the past is on these people see we've gotta do it I remember being called into the ministry in the early 70s and then went into full-time ministry in 1978 and I was so enthusiastic so passionate but I'd literally seen God work miracle through my own hands there was always someone else I was just preparing and then one day in 1978 it all changed I've been in a meeting like this and other people had prayed and miracles had taken place and lives were changed but it was always through someone else and then at the end of the night I walked across the field on my own going back to my lodgings and I was walking across a field called miles platting in Manchester and this man just walked walked up to me he couldn't hardly walk and he walked up to me limping like this grab man he said pray for me pray for my healing and I looked around there was no evangelist there was no helper there was no support team it was just me and God in a field and a crippled man and I thought well let's give this a go I don't know what's gonna happen but I'd rather die trying than just practice for the rest of my life so I said in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth Nazareth get up and walk I thought I'd quote the scripture and he was instantly miraculously healed and after thanking me I ran across the field was the first time I actually saw it and Maya this was this was my coat this time are you with me some of you need to take someone else's coat as it were and put it on your own shoulders and get out there and put into practice what God has told you to do there's no point in us just listening to yet another sermon we've got to get off excuse me our backsides and actually see this revival for ourselves put out it's a call to the deep it's a call to new experiences it's a call to practice and fourthly it's a call to the impossible the impossible I want you to hear this a lot of people think Christianity is easy and then there's others that think Christianity is difficult you're both wrong it's neither easy nor is it difficult it's impossible and if you think it's difficult you'll try it and if you try it you'll fail at it the reason that you're failing at your Christian life is because you're a tainting it Christianity is not difficult it is completely and utterly impossible and unless you will allow God to do the impossible in your life you will never experience what he wants you to experience you see here they were in the shallows able to do what they could do but God was calling them to do something that they couldn't do and God says in Hebrews chapter 11 I want you to see the invisible have you ever thought to yourself that is actually impossible when he says in Ephesians chapter 3 that he wants you to have a not know a love that surpasses knowledge have you ever thought to yourself that it's impossible to know a love that surpasses knowledge have you ever thought that nothing your enemy is actually impossible because Jesus said no love no man has greater love than theirs then he lays down his life for his friend and having told us to lay down our life for our friend he then says I want you to do the impossible and love the enemies say well I can't do that that's the point while you attend your Christianity you just come along - you just come along on Saturday night you'll think you're pretty good see if it's difficult then you've achieved it and if you've achieved it you get the credit and you take the glory if it's impossible only God gets the glory no place for arrogance no place for pride no place for me saying look at me aren't I good I go to church on Saturday night look at me on Tigard I go to church I read my Bible every now and again hey I can't do this that's why God gets all the praise and all the glory and if you don't believe me have a look at this scripture Luke chapter 18 verse 25 jesus said when they were talking about a rich man getting saved it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God they thought about that for a minute and thought that doesn't sound very possible so jesus said those who heard this or it went on those who heard this asked who then can be saved jesus replied what is impossible with men is possible with God now I want you to see this because a lot of people over the years read that scripture and said look it is it is difficult for a camel to go through the eye of a needle it must be difficult because if it's difficult then it's possible but with efforts but it can't be impossible because otherwise rich people could never get saved so in India in the 11th century a man a Greek theologian by the name of the offal act came up with a little theory he said I can explain this scripture to you and this scripture this this theory has been used ever since he said in Jerusalem there was a little doorway a little gate called the eye of the needle and for a camel to go through it it would have to bend down on its on its knees and just shuffle through without any burdens on it back and it's difficult but possible to go through for a camel to go through the eye of a needle and that he said is what God is teaching it is difficult to serve God but if you do it now on your knees in penance you can actually do it can I suggest you that that is absolute rubbish on two grants one there has never been nor is there a gate in Jerusalem called the eye of the needle and Jesus didn't say it was difficult he said it was impossible so what's he talking about I'll tell you what he's talking about he's talking about a camel and the eye of a needle and it's impossible for a big camel to get through a little eye that's why they said but then how can anyone get saved and that's why Jesus said what is impossible is possible with God and just to prove the point in the next chapter Zacchaeus is described as a very rich man so God did the impossible by saving him and his family just to prove the point and can I just say your family that you think is impossible is a wonderful candidate for the gospel your colleague your community this city this situation that's way beyond your expectation excellent just perfect stop paddling around in your little Christianity your average in your mediocre and get out into deep water where God is gonna show you what he's never shown you before where you're gonna experience things that you've never experienced before where you're actually gonna practice what you prepared and where you see impossible things take place that's where I want to live I don't want to play this Christianity lark any longer I don't want to just come to church and listen to an interesting little sermon I want to actually see the revival I've read about I want to believe for things that I've never believed for before and if God doesn't turn up well I'll sink and die that's okay by me but I'd rather confess it believe it and try it then sit on my backside in church doing nothing if you think I'm a little uncomfortable at this point I'm just being able John the Baptist just remember you've got to love me isn't that what Esther said in Esther where she was called by God to go and liberate the people of God she said if I perish I perish but I'm not just gonna sit here doing nothing I'm gonna fast and pray for three days then I gotta go to King on the behalf of this people and if I die I die but I'm not gonna give up isn't that isn't that what this is all about or maybe you don't want that sort of Christianity maybe you want easy Christianity or worse difficult Christianity if you like impossible Christianity what do we do I'll tell you what we do we followed their advice is this helping anybody Luke chapter 5 let's have a look at what they did verse 4 when he had finished speaking he said to Simon put out into deep water let the net stand for a catch Simon answered master we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything but because you say so I will let down nets when they're done so they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break so they signaled their partners in the other boat duty to come and help them can I just say at this point that 20 years ago Brian Houston's father Frank sat on what was the platform over there and he said there will come a time in the future where this church will have over 10,000 people in it and the buildings will not be able to contain what God is going to do this weekend that word is coming to pass you've been praying for a revival maybe just maybe you're right in the middle of an answer to prayer maybe just maybe you're actually beginning to see what God saw and what he hinted at so the man of God all those years ago signal to your partners in the other boat and listen to this it goes on to say when they came both were so full that they began to sink and can I just say George Pingel on the front row you're going to take responsibility for some of the duty work it won't be very long before it's too full and we just can't contain what God is gonna do in the name of Jesus because we're gonna move into the realm of the deep we're gonna we're gonna move into the realm of the impossible and Simon Peter saw this he fell to Jesus's knees and say go away from the Lord I'm a sinful man for he only all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken and so were James and John the sons of Zebedee Simon's partners and then jesus said to Simon don't be afraid from now on you will catch men so they pulled up their boats on shore left everything and followed him you want to know what to do if you want this in your life you've got to do what these guys did number one they took a journey of face can I just suggest to you that you've actually got to stand up and you've got to take a journey of faith you've got to move from here to there you know there's an amazing scripture in 1 Kings chapter 17 verse 2 it says then the word of the Lord came to Elijah leave here turn or eastward and hide in the carrots for a be nice to the Jordan you will drink from the brook and that and I have ordered that Ravens feed you there they had he in order to see the miraculous he had to move from here to there he had to go from his own experience to beyond his experience where God was going to send Ravens miraculously to feed him and listen when he got there after a few weeks they're here but there became here and God said to him I want you to go to Zarephath where there will be a widow and she will feed you there so he had a journey from here to there some of you been here far too long this has been your experience far too long and God saying go there go there whether a miracles go their way you're gonna make a difference go there take a journey and what do these guys do they not only took a journey of faith but they committed to obedience that really just did it it's fine just listening to a message like this but we've actually got to do it it said okay Jesus because you said so I'm gonna do it how many tongues I i've done this i remember it many years ago i was standing on a platform like this preaching and god said to me get off the platform go and pray for that woman over there and i said all right it was speaking my spirit what do you want me to say I'm not gonna tell you just do it so I said well what do I say I can't just get off and start praying said that's exactly what I told you to do so I said I got it down off the platform and eyes and I just walked up this lady she was called Maureen and just walked up she was literally on the third row just where you are here and I didn't know her circumstance or situation and I said so what do I do now Jesus who like he's a pray for him Sidious but what I mean everybody's looking at me just like you on that so I started praying so god bless you you know what do you pray and suddenly I don't mind mouth I moved from the possible to the impossible I moved from my practice to beyond my experience I moved from the preparation to the practice are you with me and I suddenly said i quoted isaiah 54:17 set your face like a flint everybody thought what and i thought what why did i say that what a ridiculous thing to say and then she burst into tears and I talked to her at the end she said I've been coming to church for many years but everything is falling apart so I decided to give up on my Christianity she said I said to God this morning I'm never gonna come to church again unless you speak to me this morning and she randomly opened the scripture and it fell open at Isaiah 50 and verse 7 and she read the scripture that morning set your face like a flint and she walked to church and I get off the platform and I quote the very verse over her life why did I do it because I knew what I was doing no because I was obedient it's as simple as that I just did it and years later that lady was still in church are you getting the idea this these people took a journey of faith they committed to obedience and finally they fell on their knees in an act of humility and inadequacy and so God go away from me I'm a sinful man but God didn't say all right he embraced them and said come on leave everything and follow me and from that moment they left their boats on the shore they left their mended nets in the shallows and they walked and they miracles and they saw revival and Peter the fisherman became Peter the Apostle I believe God is calling us to take water as for me in my house I'm in amen let's all stand well if that was the word of the Lord that was a pathetic little clap remember yes I didn't do that so it doesn't matter clapping me does it cuz you weren't you were clapping God because you believe God's boat you who believes God has spoken to today his challenge is spoken G God has spoken to not me God has spoken to you it's not just another sermon it's not just a little foundational exercise God's actually calling us to something radical something supernatural and as for me I'm gonna give it a go just in case God turns up I mean he might just do that my name he doesn't tell us what's gonna happen he just says put out injured eat water he didn't say hey you're gonna you get your necks are gonna break he said we gonna have a catch of fish that's what he said you're gonna catch men he didn't say what was gonna happen before I call you did the deep which is what I want you to do I want to ask you a question it may be that you're a visitor here all well this is all a bit strange to you and maybe this message is like what is this all about well can I just ask you this question first if I were to walk up to you at the end of this service and just have a one-on-one conversation and ask you this question I want you to be real and honest what would you say if I said how do you got a real personal current relationship with Jesus Christ would you be able to say yes I have would you be able to say no or I'm not sure cuz you can walk out of here knowing Jesus so how'd you do that what why would that make any difference listen God loves you it's got an amazing plan and purpose for your life but you along with all the rest of us like to do our own thing and we've walked away from God so what God did was that he sent His Son Jesus Christ into this earth to live the kind of life that we could live and die in our place why so that we can be made right with God so that we can be reconciled to God so that we can be forgiven and changed and then he rose again so that he could give us the ability to live the kind of life that he wants us to live Jesus is alive he's here and if you just ask him into your life he'll forgive you change you forever there's nothing you and I can do that will get us right with God we put our faith in what Jesus has already done you give up in effect and say god I can't do this but please come into my life Jesus and forgive me and change me and he does exactly that and then you can live the kind of life that God's caught in it I'd like everybody if you were just to close your eyes if you're in this auditorium you don't know Jesus or you're not sure that you know Jesus and you'd like to be sure I'd love to pray with you I want you to be real I want you to be honest with me in a minute I'm gonna count to three and when I get to three I want you to respond I'm just gonna pray for you where you stand but if you're in this auditorium and you don't know Jesus if you if you want to be forgiven if you want to get right with God if you want to get back to God this is you this is for you I'm gonna count to three and then I want you to be real honest and brave I want you to put your hand in the air one two three slightly hand up if you want Jesus Christ to come into your life thank you thank you thank you just slip your hand up high enough I've seen it god bless you anyone else someone over here someone over here on my right someone at the back there someone over there fantastic anyone else want to join these people so it be hand up Johnny's people someone right at the back over there anyone else so good people are responding all right we're gonna pray this prayer but if you just put your hand in the air this is for you but everybody's going to pray I want you to mean this say with me Oh Lord Jesus Christ Jesus tonight I ask you to do what I cannot do cannot change me come into my life forgive me I turn my life over to you you're now in charge you announced with your help I'm gonna follow you thank you Jesus that life changes tonight oh man get these people are here

Channel: David309211

Views: 42,868

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Keywords: Jesus, Robert Fergusson, Life, Christianity, Gospel, Prophecy, Prophetic, Bible, Biblical

Id: OTiXzdU_twk

Length: 42min 43sec (2563 seconds)

Published: Sat Mar 23 2013