Explore the depths of spiritual warfare and the everyday battle for our souls. Rabbi Schneider walks us through the transformative lessons of obeying God’s voice even when it defies understanding, sharing personal insights and biblical teachings that challenge us to rise above our natural instincts. As we learn to subject every thought to the Lordship of Christ, we discover the supernatural power available to those who walk in faith and surrender.
If you and I will obey Him completely, God is going to do great and wondrous things that we know not of. God is supernatural.
SPEAKER 03 :
One of the most exciting stories from the Sea of Galilee is when Jesus challenged Peter’s natural reasoning with a simple command, put out into the deep water and let down your nets. Well, today on Discovering the Jewish Jesus, Rabbi Schneider is going to challenge us. to choose obedience over logic, even when God’s commands defy our understanding. You can learn more about Rabbi in this ministry just by visiting us online at discoveringthejewishjesus.com. Now here’s Rabbi with our message titled, When God’s Instructions Don’t Make Sense. Rabbi.
SPEAKER 01 :
I want to begin by going with you to the book of Luke chapter number five. Now, as we come to Luke chapter five, Yeshua is teaching on Simon’s boat from the lake. There’s people on the shore. Yeshua had borrowed Simon’s boat. He’s teaching the people on the lake. And then afterwards, Yeshua tells Peter to cast the net over the boat. So let’s pick up now where that episode begins. When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, put out into deep water and let down your nets for a catch. Simon answered, it’s in mass who have worked hard all night and have caught nothing. But I will do as you say and let down the nets. So once again, this is against natural reasoning. Yeshua was telling Simon to do something that didn’t make sense to him in the natural. Simon had already been fishing all night. He hadn’t caught anything. And Yeshua says, go out into the deep, let down the nets. And to Simon, that seemed like a waste of time in the natural. It seemed to make no sense. And the lesson there is that oftentimes in our lives, as we grow in grace and grow in faith, the Lord is gonna tell us to do something. He’s gonna give us instructions to do something that don’t make any sense in the natural. And if we don’t obey, we’re gonna miss out on a blessing. Remember the man of old recorded in the Hebrew scripture that got sick? And he came to Elisha to get healed. And he thought that Elisha would come out from his residence and do some supernatural thing and wave his hand over him and say a blessing. And that he’d be supernaturally healed. That the man of God would do something spectacular and glorious. But instead what happens… He gets to Elijah’s house, and rather than Elijah coming out himself, Elijah sends his servant to come out. So the one that had come all this way to be healed by Elijah didn’t even have the courtesy of meeting Elijah face to face. Instead, he meets the servant, and then Elijah’s servant says to him, go wash in the Jordan. And the guy was furious. He said, I’ve come all this way. I expected God to do something and Elisha to wave his hand over me that I’d be supernaturally and gloriously healed. Instead, he doesn’t respect me enough to see me himself and sends out a messenger and tells me to watch in the Jordan. I know rivers that are way bigger than that. But this servant, this one that had come for the healing, he had a servant himself, and his servant said to him, listen, if he would told you to done some great thing, would you not have done it? We’ve come all this way. Now let’s just go and do what he said to do. So the man probably is, you know, shaking his head. He’s probably still frustrated, but he agrees, okay, I’ll go to the Jordan and wash. So he goes to the Jordan, dips himself seven times. He comes out. He’s supernaturally healed. What’s the point? God gave him instructions to do something that in the natural didn’t make sense. And that’s the same situation we find right here with Simon. Simon had been fishing all day, all night, had caught nothing. Now Jesus says, go back into the deep and let down your nets. And Simon’s in the natural thinking, what’s the use? I’ve already been here all day. But he humbles himself and submits to the Lord’s word and does what God said. And so I just want to encourage you right now that there’ll be times when God’s gonna tell you to do something that won’t make sense. But if you don’t obey him, you’re gonna miss out on a blessing. So let’s pick up right now where we left off. When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch. Simon answered and said, master, we worked hard all night and caught nothing, but I’ll do as you say and let down the nets. When they had done this, they enclosed a great quantity of fish and their nets began to break. And then they signaled to the partners in the other boat for them to come and help them. And they came and filled both of the boats filled with fish so that they began to sink. Both boats now began to sink. There was so much of a quantity of fish, so much weight that the boats couldn’t contain it. So when Simon Peter saw that he fell down at Yeshua’s feet saying, go away from me, Lord, for I’m a sinful man. God is going to do something spectacular with your life, my friend, if you’ll obey him. If you and I. We’ll obey him completely. God is gonna do great and wondrous things that we know not of. God is supernatural. And the Bible says he’s looking to and fro across the earth to show himself strong to the one that will be fully obedient to him. And so I just want to say to you, if you sense the Lord telling you to do something, it doesn’t make sense to you in the natural, or it seems like a scary thing to do. If in fact, it’s God that you’re sensing, if you’ll obey him, he’s going to do above all things. that you can ask or think in your life. That’s what happened to these fishermen, right? That’s what happened to Simon. There were so many fish that not only could his boat not contain them, but the other boat that he called alongside to help him, that boat couldn’t contain all the fish either. Listen, God is wonderful. He’s looking to show himself strong. but we have to be willing to let go of our own natural thinking. We have to surrender to him, let go of our own ways and follow his spirit. And it’ll do exceedingly above the Lord said that he’s able to do exceedingly above all that we ask or think. I mean, I think about my life and where the Lord’s brought me from. And I could have never gotten, my beloved friends, to where I am today in a million years on my own. I mean, the things that have brought me to where I am today, to be able to preach the gospel all over the world through television, radio, on the ground crusades, the amount of people that we’re reaching, the people that we’ve met, the presidents that I’ve prayed for, the parliaments that I’ve spoken to, I could have never in a million years with all my effort got myself to those places. But because the Lord humbled me and made me fully dependent on him, he was able then to go before me knowing that I would be faithful to him because of the way that he had broken me and remade me in him. And he’ll do the same for everyone, beloved, that is submitted to himself. into the Lordship of Yeshua in their life. They’ll do the same for you. It doesn’t have to be something big in the world. It doesn’t mean that you have to have a world platform. That’s not what satisfies. I don’t get satisfaction from preaching to hundreds of thousands of people. That’s not what gives me satisfaction. So it doesn’t have to be something big in the world. What gives satisfaction is the things that God will do and confirm in our own souls when we obey Him. The peace that we’ll have from knowing that we know, place of fellowship that will be brought into, that he’ll become more intimate to us than the best friend that we’ve ever had in our life. That’s what’s gonna satisfy, and that’s what we’re gonna be brought into if we’ll let go of our own ways and follow him, just like Simon did in this case. He said, Lord, it doesn’t make any sense to me. I don’t think anything’s gonna happen, but I’ll do what you told me to do. And he did what God told him to do, and he had a supernatural harvest and increase as a result.
SPEAKER 03 :
You’re listening to Discovering the Jewish Jesus with Rabbi Schneider, and he’ll be right back. And I want to share with you that in the rush of everyday life, sometimes it’s a challenge to connect with God. And that’s why Rabbi Schneider launched a one-minute audio devotional that’s here to help you. You can start each morning with a powerful message. I believe it’ll give you spiritual insight and strength for your day ahead. Just search for A Minute with Rabbi on your favorite podcasting platform or or visit discoveringthejewishjesus.com. At Discovering the Jewish Jesus, we are looking for like-minded people who are ready to partner with us. If you’re sensing the Lord leading you to offer a financial gift of support, would you please contact us today? Become a monthly partner. Go to discoveringthejewishjesus.com. or to give a gift of any amount today, just call 800-777-7835. That’s 800-777-7835. And now here’s Rabbi Schneider with the rest of today’s message.
SPEAKER 01 :
I want to go to one more incredible episode in the Gospels that took place on the Sea of Galilee as we turn now to the Gospel of John, chapter number six. And what I want to talk about is something that we’re all familiar with, anybody that knows the Gospel at all. We’re talking about the incident where Yeshua walked on the water. You might say, you know, I’ve never seen anybody walk on water. And you might not have faith to believe that you can walk on water. But I’m going to make an application for your life right now that is deep and will cut right to the core of your being if you’ll receive it. So let’s read the episode first. John chapter 6, beginning in verse number 15. So Jesus, perceiving that they were intending to come and take him by force to make him king, withdrew again to the mountain by himself alone. So Yeshua was aware that his popularity was getting out of control, that they were wanting to take him and they were idolizing him as they should have, but the thing was getting out of control. They were gonna come and take him by force and make him king. And it says, Now when evening came, his disciples went down to the sea, and after getting into a boat, they started to cross the sea to Capernaum. It had already become dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. So Jesus is alone. He withdrew into a lonely place, and the disciples set out on the Sea of Galilee on a boat, and Jesus had not yet come to them. The 18th verse, the sea began to be stirred up because a strong wind was blowing. Then when they had rowed about three or four miles out, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near to the boat and they were frightened. But he said to them, it is I, do not be afraid. So they were willing to receive him into the boat and immediately the boat was on the land to which they were going. So I just want to talk about this concept of walking on water. Do you know that you and I, literally, in the spirit realm, walk on water in our lives when we subject every thought that comes into our mind to the Lordship of Messiah? You see, the battleground for us is in the realm of the spirit, and the realm of the spirit is the realm of thought. And when you and I are empowered enough to cast down every thought that comes to us, that exalts itself above the Lordship of Messiah Yeshua, and that reality, when we cast every thought down under him, thoughts of fear, thoughts of anxiety, thoughts of disobedience, thoughts of lust, thoughts of selfishness, every thought that enters our mind that is not in harmony with the Ruach HaKadosh, the Holy Spirit, when we take those thoughts and subject them to the law of Christ, we are in the spirit world, listen to this now, walking on water. When we’re no longer living by the natural, living by the course of the natural mind, by the course of the eyes, or by the course of the world, when we’re subjecting all that to the living word of God, taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, we then ascend up in the realm of the spirit in that place where we’re seated at the right hand of God, according to the book of Ephesians, and just like Jesus, we are walking on water in the realm of the spirit world. And this, my beloved friend, is what God has called us to. This is a fight that we wage every day. Every day from the time that we wake up, we’re making choices. You and I are making choices all day long. The choices that we’re making are mostly in the realm of thought. We’re choosing what we’re gonna let in and what we’re gonna focus on. We’re choosing what thought we’re gonna act on. We’re choosing what we’re gonna say and what we’re not gonna say. And when we become master in that realm, when we become master over our speech, over our thoughts, and as a result, over our actions, we will find the truth that is revealed to us in the book of Colossians chapter three, that our lives are hidden with God in Christ In Ephesians chapter two, we’ve been raised up with Christ in the present tense and are seated with him in the heavenly realm. You and I can reign in life in the spirit through Messiah Jesus. We can literally walk on water in the realm of the spirit. But in order to get to this place, we need to be strengthened with power from the Ruach HaKadosh. How do we do that? We do this by clinging to God in our weakness. See, the Bible tells us that his power is perfected in our weakness. So when you begin to talk to God all day long, it doesn’t have to be out loud. Sometimes you talk to God out loud. Sometimes you talk to God in your heart. Sometimes you talk to God with your mind, but you talk to God all day long. You cling to him. Devakut, it’s called in Hebrew. We cling to God as we cling to God through everything. Like Moses had said to the Lord when the Lord commissioned him to lead Israel to the promised land. Moses was terrified of the task. And he said, Lord, unless you go with me, I’m not going to go. He was terrified to move out in life on his own. And if you and I are going to be made strong enough to ascend in the spirit world, to take every thought captive, and to subject every thought that Satan tries to put into our mind and heart, if we’re able to subject every thought under the feet of Jesus through the power that has been wrought within us, if we can do that, we will find ourselves ascending in the spirit and literally reigning in life through Christ Jesus. And so I want to try to bring this story that we read about in the gospels of Yeshua walking on the water to something that’s applicable to your life. Seven times the book of Revelation chapter two and chapter three, Yeshua said, he that overcomes. He that overcomes will inherit these things. He that overcomes will be with me in the paradise of God. So what is it that we have to overcome? We have to overcome, beloved, in the thought realm. And so I want to encourage you to recognize that life’s a battle. A lot of God’s people are just looking to how they can experience pleasure and they’re trying to avoid the battle. But you can’t avoid the battle. You’ve got to run into the battle. You’ve got to come to the realization and accept the fact you’re in a battle. Satan is constantly bombarding you with lies. And he’s constantly trying to appeal to our flesh to do that which feeds the flesh but makes the spirit weak. He’s trying to appeal to our selfishness. He’s trying to appeal to thinking in a way that is not conformed to the law of the spirit. So we have to recognize that we’re having to choose every day whether we’re gonna sow to the spirit or sow to the flesh. Whether we’re gonna be led by the law of the spirit or that we’re gonna be led by our own selfishness and our own lust. And if we’re willing to accept that battle and fight this fight and realize there’s a choice that we’re making all day long, every single day, what’s gonna happen is we’re gonna realize that we’re in a war for the full sanctification of our soul. And in this war, we’re gonna find ourselves constantly crying out to God for help. And as we’re crying out to the Lord for help, we’re gonna be strengthened By the same power that raised Messiah Yeshua from the dead, his power’s gonna be perfected in our weakness as we continue to cry out to him from the middle of the war when we’re fighting the lust of the eyes, when we’re fighting the lust of the flesh, when we’re fighting anger, when we’re fighting bitterness, when we’re fighting frustration, when we’re fighting fear, all these things, when we’re fighting emptiness, when we’re continually asking God, help me, Lord, help me, Lord. Sometimes the strongest prayer that you can pray And the most effective prayer that you can pray is what? Help me, Lord. When the disciples were sinking, what did they say? Save us, save us. That was the most powerful prayer that they could have prayed. So you just continue to reach out to Hashem, to reach out to God in the spirit from your heart. Fight the fight of faith. Resist every thought, beloved, that’s selfish. Resist every thought that’s jealous. Resist every thought that is trying to make you accusatory against someone. Come against every thought of hatred. Resist hatred. Resist selfishness. Resist small-mindedness. and overcome with the love of God, with the spirit of generosity, with the spirit of love towards all mankind, even loving those, Jesus said, that hate you, overcoming by the power of the Holy Spirit. And as you overcome, my beloved friend, you’re gonna find yourself ascending in the resurrection in the spirit. You see, Yeshua said, I am. the resurrection of life. You’re gonna find yourself being strengthened, being raised up in the Spirit, and as you are, you’re gonna find yourself walking on water in the realm of the Spirit. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord. This is our heritage, beloved children, of those that are born again. He that’s born of God overcomes the world. Yeshua said, if the Son shall set you free, you shall be free indeed. Do you believe it? Will you receive it? If you do, beloved, then continue to fight this fight. Continue to fight the fight of faith, bringing every thought captive to the obedience of Messiah. And as you do once again, you will ascend in the resurrection strength of Messiah. Your mind is going to become freer and freer. Your love is going to become greater and greater. You’re going to live in more and more peace. And you’re going to realize, just like Jesus, you too are walking on the waters of the spiritual realm. I want to ask you to think about something carefully with me. This is what Yeshua said. That which is born of flesh is flesh, and that which is born of spirit is spirit. Paul in his writings goes on to talk about the difference between the nature of the flesh, versus the nature of the spirit. Now, one of the natures of the flesh is that the flesh, beloved ones, I think we can all identify, is selfish. I mean, for example, when we eat food, do we eat for ourselves or somebody else? The flesh is by nature selfish, whereas the spirit is by nature generous and giving. And if we’re not careful, sometimes we can operate as takers in the flesh and not be a blessing to other people. I just want to simply say to you, beloved, we depend on you to continue to reach the world with the gospel. If this ministry is being a blessing to you, I want to ask you to open up your heart in the Spirit, be generous, and sow financially into the ministry, because we’re to support those ministries that are doing good and blessing us.
SPEAKER 03 :
Amen. Thank you, Rabbi. Friends, I want to encourage you, keep listening because Rabbi’s going to be right back with a special blessing. But first, like Rabbi said, if the Lord is leading you to financially support Discovering the Jewish Jesus with the gift of any amount, would you please reach out to us today? You can call us at 800-777-7835. If it’s easier for you, just go online to discoveringthejewishjesus.com. And if you’re really enjoying this ministry, I want you to know that you can access all of Rabbi’s teachings 24-7. That’s right, you never have to miss an episode. So make sure to check out all of Rabbi’s authentic and uncompromising messages streaming on demand on Roku TV. That’s right, from the comfort of your home, you can experience Rabbi’s passionate teaching style. Just search for Discovering the Jewish Jesus on your Roku TV. or you can learn more at discoveringthejewishjesus.com. And friends, we want you to know that these resources are available because of friends like you. It’s through your generous support. So thank you for giving today. And if you haven’t given and you’d like to, once again, call us at 800-777-7835. And now as promised, here’s Rabbi Schneider to share God’s sacred and special blessing. Rabbi.
SPEAKER 01 :
In the book of Numbers chapter six, the Lord gave instructions to Moses and Aaron to speak this blessing over his people. And the Lord said, when you speak these words over my people, I will place my name on them and bless them. Receive the impartations of the Lord’s blessings.
The Lord bless you and keep you. The Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift you up with His countenance. And the Lord give you, beloved one, His peace. God bless you and shalom.
SPEAKER 03 :
I’m your host, Dustin Roberts, and this program is produced and sponsored by Discovering the Jewish Jesus. Join us again next time when Rabbi Schneider shares God’s covenant names. Get to know God personally, Friday on Discovering the Jewish Jesus.
