And he said, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.”
“Where are you?” God was calling out to Adam hut Adam was hiding from God for he had eaten the fruit and caused the fall of men. Today I’m going to bring the Adam out of you and you will make a choice whether are you going to be like Adam or not.
Many of us, like Adam, have heard the call of God or we may think we have but are not sure. But we are “afraid” and we hide or in Jonah’s case, run away (Jonah 1:1-3).
God has His specific calling for different people. My calling to go into ministry in the church may not be your calling. Your calling to be a teacher in a kindergarten may not be my calling. Your brother’s calling to migrate to Australia to work in a bookshop may not be my or your calling.
BUT there is ONE call of God that goes out to EVERYONE.
Matthew 4:19
“COME, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.”
Matthew 28:19-20 (The Great Commission)
Therefore GO and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
The call of Jesus to Peter and Andrew (Matthew 4:18-19) was short in words but had authority. Jesus’ call for them IS our call now. to “come” to Jesus. That’s only the beginning, Jesus goes on to tell them to “follow me” and so they did.
We go on to see Jesus choosing the Twelve disciples and the Twelve did miraculous things under the care and nurturing of Jesus. They in turn changed the world, but what made them able to do so?
The answer is pretty simple, they HEARD the voice of God, and they responded by GOING to Jesus and FOLLOWING Him. But that’s not all, what is vital here is that they GO FOR Jesus. Note, they did not only go to Jesus but FOR.
Matthew 28:19-20 is the continuation for Jesus’ words to us in Matthew 4:19. First we are called to go to Him, then to follow Him and at last, to go for Him, that is to go into the world to preach the Gospel.
Let’s go back to Adam. His respond to God’s call (Genesis 1:9, 10) was, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.”
Like Adam, we are in the garden. A garden is a place of serenity and peace. A place surrounded by nature and warmly kissed by the sun. A place where we would love to hang out with our love ones and just enjoy nature and the beauty of peace. It’s a place where we can lie on the thick green grass and go into a deep slumber. I can go on and on, but to sum it all up, a garden is a place you would want to be in and never leave, its our COMFORT ZONE.
So Adam was in his comfort zone when he heard God calling out to him. And he quickly went to look for a hiding place because he was afraid. Why? - Because he was naked.
Many of us are like Adam; we hide when we hear God calling out to us because we are “naked” and are afraid.
I’m getting to the point now.
God calls us to get out of our comfort zone and go to spread the Gospel. But we ignore His call because we are afraid to do it knowing we are “naked”.
To be naked is to lack something, in Adam’s sense – clothing. Yes we are beautifully clothed but we are still “naked”. What we (or I would prefer to use, many of us) lack is the courage to spread the Gospel. Many of us feel afraid to tell others about Jesus because we are lacking courage and are not eloquent in speech.
But that is not to be a problem at all!
Moses was afraid to go when God called him because he complained that he was not eloquent (Exodus 4:10)
Sarah complained she was too old to bear a child (Genesis 18:11)
Jeremiah complained that he was too young to be used (Jeremiah 1:7-9)
Jonah ran away when God called him to preach (Jonah 1:1-3)
Do we want to be like these people? Certainly not. We do not have to be afraid to go and preach the Gospel for God has already given us His promise that He will be with us, even to the end of the age (Matthew 28:19-20)
Matthew 4:19
“COME, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will make you fishers of men.”
Matthew 28:19-20 (The Great Commission)
Therefore GO and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
Acts 1:8
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
Matthew 10:19-20
Do not worry about what to say or how to say it. At that time you will be given what to say, for it will not be you speaking, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.
And finally,
Deuteronomy 31:8
The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged.
Now GO....
I Heard, I Responded, I Followed, I Went.
Out fishing. Won’t be back soon,
Zlwin Chew
i miss my hair...
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