Russell Edward Herman died in August 1994 and left untold riches to people and organizations that never knew him while he lived. The tiny town of Cave-In-Rock, which Herman, bequeathed a staggering $2.410 billion. "It's an odd thing to happen isn't it?" stated the Mayor who had no trouble coming up with uses for the money. It further bequeathed:
- $2.410 billion to the impoverished community of East St. Louis,
- $2.410 billion in "American Gold Dollars" to each person who has lived in Gallatin County for at
least ten years.
- $2.41 billion for national forests.
- Various amounts to restore the national railroad system and to dredge primary rivers in order to
provide navigation and prevent flooding.
The generosity of Mr. Herman is astounding, particularly in light of the fact that apparently the only thing of any value that he possessed upon his death Aug. 29, 1994, was joint ownership in a beat up 1983 Oldsmobile Toronado. Lacking any monetary foundation, and no legal standing, the strange will probably would have excited little more than some amusing gossip in local coffee shops excepting that some conspiracy theorists along with people named in the will believe the will to be valid. They wanted a piece of it and they know that “you-know-who” is trying to stop them.
Suspicion and fear set in when promises are broken.
I am confident that each of us has been in place where we have been burnt by a broken promise. We have been lied to and/or betrayed. Often our pain comes not from the betrayal itself, but rather the sudden fear that there is no one we can trust! Did I mention that suspicion and fear set in when promises are broken? In those moments, we often even grow suspicious of God. After all, if God is in control, couldn’t He have stopped this all from happening?
Perhaps you are at the point where your faith is running empty because of a broken promise … Let me tell you a story about promises made and promises kept and in turn offer you another Free Refill.
Jesus once again finds Himself surrounded by a large crowd. As the crowd presses in, Jesus steps back and back (well at least as imagine it) and finds His-self knee-deep in the water. About that time Jesus notices Peter and his fishing boats by the shore. Jesus, asks Simon to take him out a ways into the water so that he might continue to teach. The sea shore created a natural ampitheatre for him to teach. When Jesus finished teaching, He turned to Simon. Not to say thank you, not to bid him farewell, not to pay him for the use of his boat, no – He wants to go fishing! (v4)
I can imagine that Simon was in no real mood to fish. They had already been at the night before with nothing to show for their efforts. They most likely had just finished cleaning the nets from the night before and were done for the day. Besides – you don’t catch fish going out into the deep waters – then again what would a carpenter know about fishing?! Honestly, Peter had every right to say, “Sorry Charlie, maybe some other day.” But he didn’t.
I wonder if Jesus was able to keep from grinning – knowing what was about to happen. In a matter of minutes Peter will haul in more fish than two boats can handle. Peter responds by falling to his knees. When the boats and the fish were brought ashore, Peter and his partners, James and John, left everything behind and followed Jesus.
I believe the point of this miracle was for Jesus to impress on Peter, James, John, Andrew and those to come that Jesus was someone they could trust. So when Jesus said, “Let down your nets and you will catch many fish.” That is exactly what Jesus meant would happen and the same would be true of the many other promises Jesus would make. Jesus would teach this lesson over and over in the years to come, but this would be one of the first times.
For those of us who have been burnt by broken promises, this story brings us hope and a challenge: amidst the broken promises of this world, how can I trust Jesus’ promises?
The promises Jesus makes will require us to go against the grain of our feelings. If you are at a point where your faith has bottomed out, you probably don’t feel very spiritual. You might even stop praying, stop reading the Bible, or stop going to church. You might even remember a better time with God, but that memory isn’t strong enough to overcome your feelings. This is one of those moments where your feelings will rob of you of one of life’s greatest blessings. That’s why this story is so important.
I am sure that the disciples were exhausted. I am sure they didn’t “feel” like fishing. But the only way to find out if Jesus was the real deal was to put him to the test and ignore their feelings. So often in our lives, in order to see God’s promises come to be in our lives, we will have to go against the grain of our feelings. To experience God’s promises we often have to do things we don’t feel like doing – like going the extra mile or turning the other cheek – or casting a net one more time.
Additionally, Jesus’ promises will cause us to go against the grain of our relationships.
And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life. Mathew 19:29
We like the blessing, we dislike the choice. God’s promises often cause to make choices in our relationships. Often the choices we will make in claiming God’s promises will put us at odds with family and friends.
Jesus’ promises will also cause us to go against the grain of culture. Culture wants us to believe that broken promises are the norm. Culture wants you to believe that faith in God is a weakness. Culture will always “roll its eyes” at you when you make choices that are biblically-based. Culture will laugh at you when you speak of God’s promises. This is why Jesus said,
Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. Matthew 5:11-12
Every promise Jesus makes comes with a call to action and that action will challenge us. The good news is that every promise comes with a blessing! Blessings can be physical (like two boat loads of fish). They can also be spiritual – I got eternal life! They can also be emotional - like a peace that passes all understanding, or relational - like you will never be alone.
If you are running low on faith, it may be because it has been awhile since you took God at his word. Perhaps a broken promise has broken your trust … Let me encourage you once again to read Hebrews 6:17-19a:
Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, He confirmed it with an oath. God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged. We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.
Whatever it is that we need - whatever it is you need - God is able to keep His promises. Go ahead, put God to the test. See if God will deliver on the promises. When you and I learn to trust God and live according to His promises our lives will never be the same and in that moment …
Your life will be changed. Your fears will be calmed. Your suspicions removed. Your hope restored and your faith will be refilled.
PRAYER: God, amidst all the broken promises in my life. Amid my own broken promises, I come to You. I come empty and broken. I come needing refilled. I come claiming Your promises. Help me in my mistrust and fear to trust You once again. AMEN
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