As a Christian, your calling comes from Jesus Christ. And your confidence comes from your calling.

Peter was called to follow Jesus Christ. A calling is not always clear or understood at first. A calling requires a response to Jesus by faith. But, a calling from Jesus requires humility, yet releases confidence into your life. It is a great juxtaposition that a Christian can simultaneously be both humble and confident. It is only through knowing Jesus Christ and holding to his word in your calling that you can live and exude this humble confidence. We are humble with our own ability, but confident in Christ’s ability.

Jesus had an interesting way of calling Peter. To call someone you have to get their attention. You never grow more confident if you are living in distraction. Peter was distracted. Jesus got his attention…

“And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” And Simon answered, “Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.” And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink.” (Luke 5:4-7)

In Luke 5, Jesus met Peter on the shore. He was putting his nets away. Peter was tired from a long night of fruitless fishing and empty toil. But, Jesus got in his boat. I believe he got in his boat because he already knew him. Jesus already knew Peter because he had already called him once before. This happened in John 1:40-42, where Peter’s brother Andrew heard Jesus and went and got his brother, Peter, and brought him to Jesus. However, it is my conclusion that Peter after meeting Jesus did not immediately follow his call, but at some point went back to fishing, went back to his old life.

Peter’s inability to grasp his calling revealed is insecurity and independence from Christ.

See we lose our confidence when we lose sight of Jesus and when we lose sight of our calling. Remember, later Peter would walk on water. There are only two men to ever walk on water: Jesus & Peter. Jesus was the sinless, perfect Son of God and well, Peter was very much sinful, but called by the Son of God. But, he wasn’t there yet.

When you fail to grasp your calling, you fail to grasp confidence.

Confidence is security of purpose and position. When you know that you are where you are supposed to be with Jesus, your confidence remains. When you are not where you are supposed to be, whether you are drifting or you are running from God, then it is impossible to be confident in Christ. Sin erodes your confidence. Because sin is an act of rebellion. When you sin, it creates a temporary disconnect with God, not from God to you, but from you to God. God doesn’t disconnect from us. But, we can disconnect from him.

When you disconnect from God, you disconnect your confidence.

Peter went back to his old habits. Old habits never inspire confidence, they inspire comfort. We will accept the wrong things in our lives because they are familiar and comfortable. Jesus made Peter uncomfortable. A calling will make you uncomfortable, because if you are going to live in your calling you are going to have to live and exercise faith. Not faith in your own ability, but faith in Jesus Christ and his ability. Jesus told Peter to take his boat back out in the water. Jesus was no fisherman. Peter surrendered to Jesus and obeyed.

You can’t follow Jesus without surrender.

Peter had to surrender what he thought, what he wanted and what he believed. He had to allow Jesus the first place in his heart, in his mind and in his strength. You can’t follow Jesus without loving Jesus. Otherwise, all you are doing is following his principals not his person. Confidence comes into a relationship through love. Jesus loved Peter, but Peter didn’t love Jesus enough yet, because he wasn’t broken enough yet. But, when the thing that Peter trusted in, his nets, began to break, Peter’s heart broke and look at his response (Luke 5:8-9):

“But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken.”

Going deep with Jesus strengthens both your humility and your confidence.

Peter obeyed Jesus and rowed back out into the deep water. Peter had been sitting in the shallows. And this, Christian, is a major problem with Christianity in America today: we are too shallow. We have too many shallow services, shallow songs and shallow disciples. We have too many preachers preaching a shallow faith, a shallow following and a shallow Jesus. Jesus is more than a self-help guru or a good guide. Jesus Christ is God in the flesh, King of kings and Lord of lords. And to more fully know Jesus, you have to go deep with him. You can’t sit in the shallows of your faith, of your Bible or of your calling and expect to have any sort of confidence. We are like grown ups playing in a kiddie pool. Grown ups need to be jumping of the diving board and swimming in the deep end of the pool.

Shallow Christians have shaky confidence.

Humility comes as you learn to listen to Jesus. Reading your Bible and learning to trust God’s word as supremely and absolutely authoritative solidifies your calling and strengthens your confidence. When you learn to dive deep, the pressure is intense and the risk is great. When you come back up, you are humbled by the experience. But, you are also more confidence because you learned more about Christ and more about yourself.

Faith tested is confidence.

Peter throws his nets back in to the deep. He had just enough faith to do it. But, all he need was a little faith. A little faith placed in the right direction will return to you great confidence.  See Peter’s little bit of faith returned to him nets that were full and breaking packed with fish. Peter didn’t have faith in his own ability, he had faith in the word of Jesus Christ. When your faith is tested and you cling to your calling in Christ, you will come through stronger, more humble and more confident that Jesus Christ is always able to do what he says he will do.

“Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.” (Hebrews 11:1, NLT)

Christians do not gain confidence from the world or from their own ability. They can assurance and confidence as they walk humbly with Jesus Christ in greater understanding of their personal calling to follow him all the days of their lives. They must hold fast to the word of God which as been kept and recorded for us as Holy Scriptures in the pages of the Bible.

Confidence is gained as calling is maintained.

(c) Alex Vann, 2018