As the sun rises on the Sea of Galilee there are four very frustrated fishermen with no fish stories to tell, cleaning and repairing their nets. Wait a minute those four guys look really familiar, well they should, it’s Peter, Andrew, James and John. These men have spent the last year travelling with Jesus. They have witnessed Jesus healing people, cleansing the temple and even turning water into wine. They have sat at His feet hanging on every word as He taught. If anyone really knows Jesus it would have to be these four men. In fact these four men probably think they know Him better than anyone else, but today everything is going to change. They will soon discover that they are quite clueless in regard to Jesus’ true identity. What they are about to experience will stretch their faith and destroy all their preconceived notions about Jesus. When they witness Jesus’ power on their own turf not only will they be humbled, they will ask Him to leave their presence. It will be during this time of fear, confusion and discomfort that their relationship with Jesus will change forever. It will be at this point that they will see Jesus for who He really is. As it was with these four men, when someone sees Jesus for who He really is, they understand that they cannot just be casual followers. A clear understanding of who Jesus is literally upsets our comfortable existence. However, it does help us see that we need to be a totally devoted follower. Today as we open this text our goal is to bring Jesus into clearer focus and understand the changes that requires.
I. Jesus is actively continuing His Galilean speaking tour.
A. Large crowds have once again gathered to hear Jesus teach.
1. Word about Jesus has spread far and wide and a large crowd has gathered on the hillsides that surround the Sea of Galilee.
2. Due to the increasing size of the crowds Jesus now had to move from teaching in the synagogue to areas that would accommodate larger crowds.
3. The Sea of Galilee was a large fresh water lake that was about 650 feet below sea level and was approximately 150 feet deep. The lake was 13 miles long and seven miles wide and surrounded by hills.
4. This was the ideal place to speak to large crowd because the lay of the land formed a natural amphitheater.
5. On this day the crowd must have been exceptionally large as they have begun to press in on Jesus.
6. With His back against the lake Jesus decides to borrow Simon Peter’s boat and push out from shore enough where He could comfortably teach the people.
B. This passage highlights the fact that Jesus’ ministry actually had three facets.
1. Jesus’ teaching and preaching communicated the Word of God.
2. His healing and other displays of compassion reflected God’s power and love.
3. The recruiting and training of His disciples lay the ground work for the beginning of the church and the spreading of the Gospel.
4. In our text Luke very skillfully weaves all three facets through one account.
5. However, Luke’s main focus is the miracle that Jesus performs since he does not provide us with the content of Jesus’ teaching on this particular occasion.
II. A surprising teaching moment and startling revelation.
A. Jesus now instructs Simon to head out into the deep waters apparently ending the teaching session but the most important lesson is about to be learned.
1. Simon along with the other three was a professional fisherman, they knew their trade and they knew the Sea of Galilee. Despite this they fished all night and came up empty.
2. You have to wonder if these four worn out fishermen felt like telling Jesus to stick to the carpentry business and leave the fishing to the professionals.
3. We need to take note of Simon Peter’s response. He calls Jesus master and says because you say so, I will do it.
4. The Greek word for Master is epistata and it is only used by Luke in the New Testament. It was used to recognize Jesus’ authority and is only used by His followers.
5. So some faith is implied here, they were doing more than just humoring Jesus.
6. There was no way that they were prepared for what would result from their obedience.
B. Simon’s obedience on the surface seems quite foolish but this only serves to highlight the impact of the miracle that happens.
1. They drop their nets over the side probably expecting the same results they had gotten after fishing all night.
2. Can imagine Simon’s eyes as the nets began to fill with fish? In fact they kept filling with fish till their weight caused the nets to begin breaking and the boat to begin to sink.
3. Simon is speechless, all of his knowledge and years of experience cannot explain what has just taken place.
4. Simon had witnessed Jesus healing the sick and driving out demons but he wasn’t prepared for this happening in an arena that was so familiar.
5. This was Simon’s territory; this was what he did day in and day out. This is what made the miracle impact Simon so greatly.
C. Simon realized his own insignificance as he stood face to face with the creator of the universe.
1. No longer can Jesus be classified simply as a prophet. This goes way beyond that, this is a God thing.
2. As Simon Peter falls on His knees before Jesus, he is showing an appropriate response and reverence to being in the presence of God.
3. Simon displays the same reaction displayed by Abraham, Job and Isaiah as they each found themselves in the presence of God.
4. Simon also acknowledges the fact that there were areas of His life that do not line up with God’s will as he confesses his own sinfulness in Jesus’ presence.
5. When we find areas in our own lives that do not line up with God’s will we need to acknowledge and confess them.
6. We also need to seek the Lord’s help in bringing them in line with His will. The rewards for doing so will definitely surprise us.
7. Jesus calms Simon’s fears and the words, “Do not be afraid” reflect more than a calm reassurance they reflect Jesus’ forgiveness.
III. A challenge to step up to a new level of faith and commitment.
A. Jesus challenges Simon Peter, Andrew, James and John to leave their old lives behind and to enter His service full-time.
1. This account teaches us that we need to listen to Jesus and obey His commands, however difficult they may be to do.
2. We learn from Simon Peter that questions and sin do not disqualify someone from the Lord’s service.
3. These men had witnessed Jesus establishing His authority in the synagogue as He healed the sick and drove out demons but now Jesus through the miraculous catch of fish establishes His authority over their lives as He met them on their own turf.
4. Jesus had not come to provide them with a good day’s wage; He had come to call them to change their profession and priorities forever.
5. Jesus does not call everyone to leave their professions and serve Him in vocational ministry. What He does call every believer to is to make Him the center of their lives and to rearrange their priorities and serve Him.
6. These four men have known and loved Jesus for a year now, but now the time has come for them to step up to a new level of faith and commitment.
7. From now on Simon Peter would be casting his nets into a different sea, the sea of humanity’s need for God. So they willingly park their boats and walk away from everything they have known.
B. Following Jesus involves more than just acknowledging who He is. It means leaving the past behind and committing the future to Him.
1. There are three main requirements for coming to God.
a. Recognition of our own sinfulness.
b. The impossibility of earning salvation on our own.
c. Willingness to relinquish control of our lives to Him.
2. Those who realize that they need help and that Jesus is the only one that can provide the help that they need will more readily make Him the priority and unconditionally follow Him.
3. Once He has shown who He is, He refuses to leave us alone. He is always demanding and relentless and passionate in His pursuit of us.
4. Like these four disciples we need to realize that there are more fish to catch and that this is the very task to which the Lord has called us.
5. Now that you have seen Jesus in an entirely different light, how are you going to respond?
6. Will you courageously stand for what is right? Will you be the one who walks through the crowds, head up, and eyes fixed on the one you have been called to follow?
A federal judge had ordered New Orleans to open its public schools to African American children. White parents in the community decided to keep their children at home if this verdict was enforced. They made it known that any African American children who came to school would suffer the consequences. So the African American children in fear, stayed home too.
That is everyone except six year old Ruby Bridges. Her parents sent her to school all by herself. Every morning she walked alone through a heckling crowd to an empty school. White people lined up on both sides of the way and shook their fists at her. They threatened to do terrible things to her if she kept coming to school. But every morning at ten minutes till eight Ruby walked, head up, eyes ahead, straight through the mob; two U.S. marshals walked ahead of her and two walked behind her. Then she spent the day alone with her teachers inside that big silent school building.
Robert Coles a Harvard professor was curious about what went into the making of courageous children like Ruby Bridges. He interviewed Ruby’s mother and, in his book “The Moral Life of Children,” tells what she said: “There’s a lot of people who talk about doing good, and a lot of people who argue about what’s good and what’s not good, but there are other folks who just put their lives on the line for what is right.”
Knowing the difference between right and wrong is one of the greatest battles raging in our culture, but taking the next step is quite scary. It requires great courage. The kind of courage that changes lives.
