Obedience and Faith: Lessons from Simon Peter

“Master,” Simon replied, “we’ve worked hard all night long and caught nothing. BUT IF YOU SAY SO, I’ll let down my nets.” Luke 5:5

I recently noticed that the first time Simon Peter interacts with Jesus, he obeys Him before knowing who He was. Unknowingly, obeying this stranger’s ask would change his life forever. After he casts the net, Jesus provides Simon Peter with many fish. The catch was so large that “their nets began to tear.” Next, Jesus tells Simon and Andrew to follow him, to which they “instantly left their nets and followed him.” Matthew 4:20

Later in his walk with Jesus, Simon Peter obeys Jesus’ command to come to Him on the water. This act requires him to step out IN FAITH of the boat. He does this while in the middle of the sea. His faith in Jesus led him to obedience even without knowing what would happen. He trusted without knowing that Jesus would carry out another miracle in his life to protect him.

How often do we wait to move until we see God move first? How often do we wait for 100% certainty before making a decision? Maybe sometimes, God wants us to take a step of faith or obedience first. Christian’s profess faith in God but we often freeze when faced with walking that faith out. What step of faith or obedience is God waiting for you to take? Let our response be “but if you say so!”