Peter and his brother had fished all night and caught nothing. As Jesus challenged them to go out deeper, He also challenged them to let go of their past failures, their past discouragements, and their past pain. We can’t follow God to the future while we’re staring back at where we’ve been.

A deeper walk with God requires us to take deeper steps of faith. Steps into waters we’ve never been in before. Sometimes, the greatest obstacles to the work that God wants to do in us are the comfort zones we refuse to leave. Our faith is the doorway to the deeper things God has for us.

God is always taking steps in our direction to work in our lives. But WE have to welcome Him in! This message will look at how giving God time and space in our lives to work is the beginning of the “deeper” work He does. The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

Easter is an empty tomb, death defeated, sin forgiven. Easter is brokenness restored, a new covenant, a promise fulfilled. Easter is our redemption, eternal life, a celebration. Easter is a Risen Savior.

Jesus is coming back! Though the disciples didn’t understand what He was talking about at the time, WE DO! This promise gives us hope, no matter what the circumstances. This promise reminds us that we are living for something bigger, something greater than just the here and now. This promise fills our lives with joy even in the face of death. We are people of hope because Jesus is coming back!

Jesus gave his followers a mission as he prepared them for his death, "Go, make disciples." He let them know they are the ones who will take the mission forward. The path forward relies on those who trust Him and go and make those disciples. His disciples held the key to sharing the good news of what was about to happen. And you do to.

The Christian life isn’t for sissies. Jesus didn’t promise an easy road for those who follow Him. He knew not only what was ahead for Himself, He knew the persecution and trouble that was ahead for those who wore His name. Pain and sacrifice were a price we would all have to pay.

Another major thought Jesus tried to communicate before He left was the importance of the disciples staying connected to Him. It’s a major mistake to believe that we can do God’s work out of our own strength. We need His Spirit. We need His Word. It is not OUR talent the world needs. It’s the Presence and Power of God. That comes from abiding in Him.

Throughout history, there have always been things that distinguished the people of God from the rest of the world. Festivals and feasts, holy days and sabbaths, rituals, and even dietary habits. One of the key points of Jesus’ ministry was that all those other things didn’t really matter. What DID matter was one Big Thing. That big thing was love. Love would be the way the world would know we were His.

One of the ongoing arguments that disciples had was probably the most annoying to Jesus. They wanted to know who would be the “greatest.” Jesus called them back to reality with one of the most unbelievable acts He could have done shortly before He died. He washed their feet. That’s how a true leader leads.