No one else but you

Matthew 14:23–33 ESV

23 And after he had dismissed the crowds, he went up on the mountain by himself to pray. When evening came, he was there alone, 24 but the boat by this time was a long way from the land, beaten by the waves, for the wind was against them. 25 And in the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea. 26 But when the disciples saw him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, “It is a ghost!” and they cried out in fear. 27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.” 28 And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” 29 He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus. 30 But when he saw the wind, he was afraid, and beginning to sink he cried out, “Lord, save me.” 31 Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?” 32 And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. 33 And those in the boat worshiped him, saying, “Truly you are the Son of God.”

John 6:60–70 ESV

60 When many of his disciples heard it, they said, “This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?” 61 But Jesus, knowing in himself that his disciples were grumbling about this, said to them, “Do you take offense at this? 62 Then what if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? 63 It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. 64 But there are some of you who do not believe.” (For Jesus knew from the beginning who those were who did not believe, and who it was who would betray him.) 65 And he said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.” 66 After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him. 67 So Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you want to go away as well?” 68 Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, 69 and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.” 70

Pray

ALL IN - Lock in for a series called ALL IN.

Are you all in when it comes to the things of God? and if you are all in then you could probably testify to some of the miracles that the disciples experienced whilst with Jesus

Many Professing Christians live their lives with one proverbial foot out of the boat and one in it. insure. Lacking confidence and clarity and instead of experiencing miracles they experience mundane religious experiences which dont bring about transformation …. but just result in frustration.

When you go all in for God, what takes place in your life?

You see the enemy doesnt want someone like you going all in for God. He doesnt want you to take that leap of faith - why? - because what that means and what progress can be effected for the kingdom

How much of a problem are you for the devil?

Because if you are all in, like Peter was - then youre a problem.

Who was all in?

Peter…. I want to take a few weeks and look at scripture and specifically peters life and what we read about him in the gospels. Because Peter was all in.

I believe you will be inspired and also challenged by some of the scrpture we read about peter

So as we begin: Here is a few things about him

Peter was a Galilean fisherman who became one of Jesus’ closest disciples and a leading voice in the early church.

His story shows faith growing through courage, misunderstanding, failure, and restoration.

His background:

Jesus called him Cephas, an Aramaic name rendered in Greek, meaning “rock” (John 1:42).His original name was Simon.Peter

and later had a home in Capernaum (John 1:44; Mark 1:21–29).He was from Bethsaida

, working alongside his brother Andrew and in partnership with James and John (Mark 1:16–18; Luke 5:10).He was a fisherman

Jesus healed his mother-in-law, and Paul later refers to Cephas traveling with a believing wife (Mark 1:29–31; 1 Corinthians 9:5).He was married.

after telling him they had found the Messiah (John 1:40–42).Andrew introduced him to Jesus

His relationship with Jesus

Peter belonged to Jesus’ inner circle with James and John. These three witnessed the raising of Jairus’s daughter, the transfiguration, and Jesus’ anguish in Gethsemane (Mark 5:37; 9:2; 14:33).

He often acted as the disciples’ spokesman. He confessed that Jesus was the Messiah, yet shortly afterward rebuked Jesus for speaking about His coming suffering—and received a strong correction (Matthew 16:16–23). Peter could recognize Jesus’ identity while still misunderstanding His mission.

His personality and struggles

The Gospels portray Peter as outspoken, eager, and sometimes impulsive:

He stepped out of the boat to walk toward Jesus, then became afraid (Matthew 14:28–31).

He initially refused to let Jesus wash his feet, then asked for his hands and head to be washed too (John 13:6–9).

He promised to remain loyal even if everyone else fell away (Mark 14:29–31).

He drew a sword during Jesus’ arrest (John 18:10–11).

He denied knowing Jesus three times, then wept bitterly (Luke 22:54–62).

His restoration and leadership

After the resurrection, Jesus asked Peter three times whether he loved Him and commissioned him to care for His sheep (John 21:15–19).

At Pentecost, Peter publicly preached about Jesus, and about 3,000 people were added to the believers that day (Acts 2:14–41). He became a prominent leader in Jerusalem and later brought the gospel to the household of Cornelius, a major moment in the inclusion of Gentiles in the church (Acts 10).

Peter continued to need correction. Paul confronted him at Antioch for withdrawing from eating with Gentile believers out of fear of others (Galatians 2:11–14).

His later life

The New Testament contains two letters bearing his name, 1 and 2 Peter. Jesus foretold that Peter’s death would glorify God (John 21:18–19). Later Christian tradition holds that Peter was martyred in Rome; the familiar account of his being crucified upside down comes from tradition, not from the biblical account.

For preaching, a useful thread is: Peter’s confidence in his own loyalty gave way to a deeper dependence on Jesus’ grace. The man who denied Jesus later encouraged other believers to stand firm through suffering.

WHAT DOES IT LOOK LIKE TO LIVE A LIFE THATS ALL IN

4 WORDS THAT I BELIEVE REPRSENT THE ALL IN LIFE

Who wants them?

Presence //

When you are all in - you experience His presence greater yhan you ever have before!. ….And that experience is something that changes you forever.

Everything in the spiritual life begins here. It starts with and is sustained by first being in and then continuing to grow in the presence of the almighty. 

Do you know how to get into the presence of God?

Do you know how you can experience His presence?

This is Church and beyond. Church is the primary place for us because we are a special people connected to

Christ as the head of the church and we the body of Christ will experience His presence when we meet.

(When two or more a gathered in my name, I am there in the midst). 

Moses was on the mountain

The burning bush

Jesus is 

Power //

your move in extraordinary and supernatural power. 

Matthew 14:27–29 ESV

27 But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.” 28 And Peter answered him, “Lord, if it is you, command me to come to you on the water.” 29 He said, “Come.” So Peter got out of the boat and walked on the water and came to Jesus.

When you are ALL IN - you move and you do life with kingdom power. Kingdom blessing. You walk in the favor of the almighty. you depend on him greatly and you get to experience the power of God working through you.

Peter didnt walk on the water because Peter was special.

Peter walked on the water becuase Jesus was special. and Peter believed in Jesus. He was all in on Whatever JEsus was doing.

Are you all in on whatever Jesus is doing?

Purpose //

WHen you are all in - you experience a clarity of purpose. youre purpose is exposed because of your commitment to Christ.

When we commit our lives and fully submit to the person of JEsus (relationship) and the cause of Jesus (gospel work) then our purpose if uncovered for us to see it.

But its only when we GO ALL IN do we discover it.

Here is my question - Do you want to know what your God Given purpose - because if you do - youve gotta be all in.

Over the next few weeks were going to keep talking about this but i want to encourage you to pray and seek the Lord on this… am i all in? am i still all in?

Lets do that right now?

Notes:

ALL IN:

When your all in, nothing else matters

When your all in, you hear his voice

When your all in, purpose and people collide

When you’re all in, faith rises and God saves.