I have entitled our message this morning, “For the Sake of the Call,” and we are going to look at how Jesus called a bunch of smelly fishermen to share in His ministry. Allow me to get started with a joke: “Why did Jesus call so many fishermen to become apostles? He was always looking for a ‘net prophet’.”(1) So, why would Jesus call so many fishermen to His side? Well, “consider the fact that fishermen generally have the qualities that make for success in serving the Lord. It takes courage and daring, patience and determination to work on the seas, and it also takes a great deal of faith. Fishermen must be willing to work together and help one another; [and] they must develop the skills necessary to get the job done quickly and efficiently.”(2) So, when Jesus comes-a-knocking, it means He sees great potential in us.
It is one thing to hear the call, or sense the Lord’s calling; but it is another thing altogether to respond! And our passage of Scripture deals primarily with the response. When Jesus extends a call – whether it be to surrender to Him as Savior and Lord; or perhaps, as a Christian, follow Him on mission – what does His call (or calling) look like? What does it entail? What might He ask us to do? Or, what might we have to let go of in order to serve Him? These are a few questions for which we will seek an answer, as we look at our primary text. Now, since we have been doing a series on Matthew, I want to provide you a reference to go back and read sometime; which is Matthew 4:18-22. So, let us all stand at this time in honor of God’s Word, as we read Luke 5:1-10.
Luke’s Account of the Calling (Luke 5:1-10)
1 So it was, as the multitude pressed about Him to hear the word of God, that He stood by the Lake of Gennesaret, 2 and saw two boats standing by the lake; but the fishermen had gone from them and were washing their nets. 3 Then He got into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, and asked him to put out a little from the land. And He sat down and taught the multitudes from the boat. 4 When He had stopped speaking, He said to Simon, “Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” 5 But Simon answered and said to Him, “Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless, at Your word I will let down the net.” 6 And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish, and their net was breaking. 7 So 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. 8 When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!” 9 For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish which they had taken; 10 and so also were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men.”
The scene that unfolds here took place at “the Lake of Gennesaret” (Luke 5:1). Matthew called it “the Sea of Galilee” (Matthew 4:18). This body of water “is called by three names – the Sea of Galilee, the Sea of Tiberias and the Lake of Gennesaret. It was thirteen miles long by eight miles wide. It lies . . . 680 feet below sea level. Nowadays, it is almost deserted, but in the days of Jesus it had nine townships clustered around its shores, none of them with fewer than 15,000 people.”(3) Luke’s account is more descriptive than Matthew’s, in that he tells us why Jesus was “by the Sea of Galilee.” He was there to preach to a multitude of people from one of the fishermen’s boats – specifically, Simon Peter’s boat (Luke 5:3).
Right away, you will notice some differences between Matthew’s and Luke’s account. One is how Matthew’s telling is concise, whereas Luke’s was much more elaborate. Another difference concerns what the fishermen were doing when Jesus arrived on the scene. Matthew said that Jesus saw two brothers “casting a net into the sea” (Matthew 4:18), whereas Luke said the fishermen were “washing their nets” (Luke 5:2). These details might seem to contradict one another, but in addition to casting their nets into the sea in order to catch fish; fishermen would also cast their nets into the sea in order to wash them.(4) They did not wash them on the shore, but in the water away from the boats.
Luke begins by telling us that “the multitude pressed about Him to hear the word of God” (Luke 5:1); so, it was getting crowded! They were almost on top of Him! So, Jesus climbed into Simon Peter’s boat, and had him launch and move out into the shallow water, where He began to preach to those sitting on the shoreline (Luke 5:3). We do not know the content of His message, but based on the fishermen’s later response, Jesus probably shared something like what He taught His twelve disciples, as seen in Matthew 10:37-38: “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me . . . And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.”
Perhaps Jesus preached on faith. In Matthew 17:20, we see where He told His disciples, “Assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.” So, why do I suggest that He might have taught them about faith? Well, because the text flows from saying that “He sat down and taught the multitudes from the boat” (Luke 5:3), to telling us in the very next verse that “He said to Simon, ‘Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch’” (Luke 5:4), where Jesus was getting ready to teach them a lesson on faith – one that would be taught not through words, but through action!
Jesus told Peter to leave the shallow water of the shoreline, and move into the deeper water. In the song Oceans (Where Feet May Fail) by Hillsong, the lyrics state, “You call me out upon the waters; the great unknown where feet may fail. And there I find You in the mystery; in oceans deep, my faith will stand . . . Spirit, lead me where my trust is without borders; let me walk upon the waters, wherever You would call me. Take me deeper than my feet could ever wander, and my faith will be made stronger, in the presence of my Savior.” Jesus told Peter to launch out into the deep, because it was only there that He could see a miracle. It is in the safety of the shallows near the shore where we hear the Word preached; but it is in the deep where we apply the Word and see it fulfilled!
And what was Peter’s initial response? He replied, “Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing” (Luke 5:5). The word “Master” comes from the Greek epistata. This verse “is the first place where this word occurs” in Luke. In fact, this word is used only by Luke; and not by the other gospel writers. “It properly signifies a prefect, or one who is set over certain affairs or persons. It is used also for an instructor or teacher.”(5) Perhaps Peter was thinking, “I will do what you ask, because you are my Master; but I’m not so sure about this!” When he declared, “We have toiled all night and caught nothing,” this statement carries with it an objection.(6) They had already been fishing at night, which was the best time for fishing; and they were out all night long! They were tired and their labor had been in vain.(7)
But, Peter did what Jesus told him, and verse 6 says that “they caught a great number of fish, and their net was breaking.” I think three things should be noted. 1.) When Peter moved into the deep and trusted Jesus, that is when he witnessed a miracle! 2.) It is only through faith in Jesus, not our own works, that we receive the Lord’s help (Ephesians 2:8-9); and 3.) Peter was not the only one in the boat who experienced this miracle! Up until this point the text only mentions Peter, but now we read about “they” – “they caught a great number of fish” (Luke 5:6). We read in Matthew 4:18, that Jesus “saw two brothers, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea; for they were fishermen.” So, the other one was Andrew!
We read in verse 7 that “they signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them.” So, where was the other boat in relation to theirs? Well, back in verse 2, Jesus saw the two boats by the lakeshore. So, it was still somewhere near the shore. Luke also said that “one of them had moved away from the other, as the fishermen were washing their nets” (Luke 5:2). So, not only was it back close to the shore, but it was further down the beach; and all the while, Peter and Andrew were out in the deep. In the Greek, the word “signaled” (kateneusan) refers to hand signals. “They were too far away for a call to be [heard and] understood.”(8) The other boat was a long way off, and so they hustled out to Peter’s boat, in order to help them before their net fully broke.
Notice that they called on their “partners” to help them (Luke 5:7). In the Greek, the word “partners” (metechos) means “participation with another, while having a common endeavor.”(9) Commentator Adam Clark made some observations about cooperation among believers. He said, “What a pity there should be such envious separation among the different [groups] that profess to believe in Christ Jesus! [Should] they help each other in the spirit of Christian fellowship, more souls would be brought to the knowledge of the truth. Some [would] rather leave souls to perish than [work with] partners.”(10) He goes on to say, “There are [plenty of] fish to be taken, were there skillful hands to take, and vessels to contain them. Many are disputing about the size, capacity, and goodness of their nets and their vessels, while the fish are permitted to make their escape.”(11)
In verse 8, Peter responded by crying out, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!" The Greek word here for “Lord” is kyrie, which is a title given to God and the Messiah; so, it is possible to say that Peter recognized Jesus as the Messiah; and no doubt, after witnessing such a miracle! Peter alone called Jesus “Lord,” yet all of them were filled with “astonishment” (Luke 5:9). Why? Because they had witnessed something beyond explanation – something extraordinary; something supernatural! Matthew tells us that when Jesus said, “Follow Me” (Matthew 4:19), that “they immediately left their nets” and “they left the boat and their father, and followed Him” (Matthew 4:20, 22). If the Holy Spirit has convicted you that Jesus is Lord, or if you have ever witnessed what can only be explained as a miracle, will you respond the way these fishermen did? So, what do I mean when I ask this question?
Well, let us look again at the word “partners” (metechos). We read in Luke 5:10 about “James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon.” In this verse, the term is meant to convey that these two pairs of brothers owned and shared a business together under Simon’s leadership.(12) So, when Jesus said, “Follow Me” (Matthew 4:19), they gave up their partnership, or their fishing business. One commentary observes that Peter himself, for example, “was established in business. He was married. He had a house. Giving up his business to follow Jesus was not easy, but His experience with Jesus brought him to the point of commitment.”(13) So, again I must ask, “Will you respond the way these fishermen did?” “Are you willing to abandon it all for the sake of the call?”
So, what does it mean to “abandon it all”? What did they sacrifice when they left their fishing business? Commentator Matthew Henry says, “When they had brought their ships to land, instead of [seeking] a market for their fish, that they might make the [most money] they could of this miracle, they forsook all and followed Him, being more [desirous] to serve the interests of Christ than to advance any secular interests of their own . . . They left all to follow Christ, when their calling prospered in their hands more than it had ever done, and [when] they had [experienced] uncommon success in it.” He notes that when riches increase, and we are therefore most tempted to set our hearts upon them, that when we leave those riches for the service of Christ, it is commendable.(14) They left their business, success, steady income and even their families, in order to follow Christ. So, what are you willing to abandon “that [you] may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and the fellowship of His sufferings,” as we read about in Philippians 3:10?
In verse 10, Jesus told Peter, “Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men.” We also read in Matthew 4:18-19, where Jesus told Peter and Andrew, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.” So, they traded catching fish for catching people. The Greek phrase for the statement “you will catch men” (esei zogron anthropon; Luke 5:10) means, “to catch alive, [and] not to kill . . . Peter is to be a catcher of men – not of fish – and to catch them alive and for life; not dead and for death.”(15) When literal fish come out of the water, they suffocate and die. Jesus was telling them, “These fish are taken to be killed and fed on; but those who are converted under your ministry shall be preserved unto eternal life.”(16) Matthew implies that it was this prospect of catching men to preserve them alive that got them so excited that they left everything behind, in order to follow Jesus (Matthew 4:19-20).
A good question to ask ourselves is this: “Is my occupation, activities or interests leading to life or death?” God can use our job, our community involvement, and even our hobbies as a means of reaching people for Christ. So, if we find ourselves fulfilled, then what we are doing is leading to life. But if we have no Christian influence, and if these things are leaving us feeling drained and on a one-way street to a dead end, then what we are doing is something that leads to death. If we are not where God wants us to be, then we might be stuck in a net with a bunch of people who have no interest in knowing Jesus; when we need to be out there in the deep catching live fish (those who are seeking life in Christ) and keeping them alive. If you find yourself in a place of death, then perhaps you need to let go and move into a place of life! Quite often when we abandon it all for Christ, it leads to an unexpected blessing!
Time of Reflection
I want us to consider something as we close. Proverbs 14:12 says, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death.” When we try to do our own thing apart from the Lord’s leadership, it only leads to death. Our own plans will falter and leave us flopping around like a suffocating fish out of water. This goes for anything we do in life. However, spiritually, there are people trying to do their own thing to make it to heaven, such as doing good deeds and attending church; but the Bible is very clear in telling us that we are not saved by our own works (Ephesians 2:8-9).
In Luke 5:8, after Peter witnessed the massive haul of fish and realized that his own plans and methods had failed, he cried out to Jesus, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!” Remember, the Greek word for “Lord” is kyrie, which is a title given to the Messiah, Jesus Christ. When the Holy Spirit shows us that our own way only leads to death (when we are convicted of our sins), then we need to do as Peter, and acknowledge our sins and “confess that Jesus Christ is Lord” (Philippians 2:11). Romans 10:9 in the NIV says, “If you declare with your mouth, ‘Jesus is Lord,’ and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.”
NOTES
(1) https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/u0hhuf/why_did_jesus_call_so_many_fishermen_ to_become/ (Accessed March 28, 2023).
(2) Warren Wiersbe, “The Complete New Testament in One Volume,” The Wiersbe Bible Commentary (Colorado Springs, CO: David C. Cook, 2007), p. 150.
(3) William Barclay, “The Gospel of Luke,” The Daily Bible Study (Philadelphia: The Westminster Press, 1956), p. 52.
(4) John Gill, John Gill’s Exposition of the Bible: https://www.biblestudytools.com/commentaries/gills-exposition-of-the-bible/luke-5-5.html (Accessed April 25, 2023).
(5) Adam Clark, “Adam Clarke’s Commentary,” Power Bible CD (Bronson, MI: Online Publishing, Inc., 2007).
(6) Gill.
(7) Ibid.
(8) A.T. Robertson, “Robertson’s NT Word Pictures,” Power Bible CD (Bronson, MI: Online Publishing, Inc., 2007).
(9) Clark.
(10) Ibid; Adam Clark lived from 1762-1832.
(11) Ibid.
(12) Ibid.
(13) Robert J. Dean, “Luke” Layman’s Bible Book Commentary (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1983), p. 44.
(14) Matthew Henry, “Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible,” Power Bible CD (Bronson, MI: Online Publishing, Inc., 2007); Matthew Henry lived from 1662-1714.
(15) Robertson.
(16) Clark.
