Pastor Matt Higa
July 24, 2011 - W1130

Sometimes God will ask us to do something that is so inconceivable and beyond our comprehension that our first response is “YOU WANT ME TO DO …..WHAT!?”

Abraham could have said that when God told him to sacrifice his only son. Noah too could have responded likewise when God asked him to build a big boat in the middle of nowhere and far from an ocean.  When God, in essence, said, “Go ahead and do it Noah because I am asking you.” Noah could have replied, “YOU WANT ME TO DO….WHAT!?”

God is saying something similar to some of us today.  He might be saying to go and bless that person that you cannot stand or the co-worker that talks behind your back and falsely accused you and turned you into your boss.  You could be in a restaurant and see a couple that owes you money and they ignore you.  But God might tell you to go and pay their bill.  Your first response could be, “YOU WANT ME TO DO….WHAT!?”

When God makes an unusual request of us, many times it results in an unusual miracle.  Many examples of this can be seen and read through out the Bible.

Syria and Naaman was a leper.  He is told that a man of God, whose name was Elisha could call upon the Lord to heal him. So Naaman went to see Elisha “But Elisha sent a messenger out to him with this message: ‘Go and wash yourself seven times in the Jordan River. Then your skin will be restored, and you will be healed of your leprosy.’ But Naaman became angry and stalked away. ‘I thought he would certainly come out to meet me!’ he said. ‘I expected him to wave his hand over the leprosy and call on the name of the Lord his God and heal me!’” (2 Kings 5:10-11 NLT)

Naaman was angry because he wanted but did not get a quick fix. He knew of better rivers to wash himself and thought he would be healed instantly. We are like that too. We are an instant gratification generation. But God says that we have to go through His proper process because shortcuts cut short miracles. Taking shortcuts might have bad side effects.

Jesus told Peter, “However, we don’t want to offend them, so go down to the lake and throw in a line. Open the mouth of the first fish you catch, and you will find a large silver coin. Take it and pay the tax for both of us.” (Matthew 17:27 NLT)  I wonder what kind of bait was used to catch fish that have money. Must be char siu because it must be a Chinese fish! Jesus is saying to Peter to put his line in the water and the first fish he catches will have money in its mouth. It was an unusual request culminating in an unusual miracle. Peter was on a personal journey. It was his test of faith and obedience to the Lord.  We can learn these things from Peter.

Sometimes God will ask you to do things that do not make sense to you. Early in my marriage I had an argument with my wife in which I knew I was right but God wanted me to apologize. I did learn from that that being right is not always all right.

 A while back, while living in Kalihi I was asked to attend Christian meetings in the Ward area and then go to work at the airports. At the time I was so frustrated because it was so inconvenient and time consuming to back track like that. But I learned discipline and faithfulness from that.

Another Bible lesson is illustrated after the disciples went fishing but caught none. “Master,” Simon replied, “we worked hard all last night and didn’t catch a thing. But if you say so, I’ll let the nets down again.” And this time their nets were so full of fish they began to tear! (Luke 5:5-6 NLT) Peter remembered the miracle with the fish and the coin so that he showed his faith by replying to Jesus, “But if you say so, I’ll let the nets down again.”  The Bible goes on to say that they caught so many fish that they needed help from other boats.  This was a test of perseverance and faith. So do not to give up and always have faith when working for the Lord!

Study Suggestions

1. How should we handle our desire for instant gratification?
2. What are the things that we can learn from Peter with the fish and the coin?
3. Why doesn’t God explain sometimes when He requests something we don’t understand?
4. What do unusual request from God sometimes result in?
5. What will you do when God makes an impossible request of you?