The Calling
Luke 5.1-11
Midweek Bible Study
August 20, 1997
1. What is happening in the passage? Jesus is beginning another phase of His overall ministry and Luke records this text as a base point for the establishment of Jesus’ followers. Jesus is working at building His ministry in the area of Galilee and great crowds of people were coming to hear Him preach and teach. The need becomes crucial to move from the shore into a boat because the people were crowding Him toward the water. This passage moves in three key stages; The Crowds, the Catch and the Call.
The crowds of people follow Jesus to the Lake and then force Him into a boat because of the massiveness of the crowd. This reveals the magnitude of Jesus’ message and His personal ability to relate to people. Jesus drew people because He was indeed a genuine representation of the love and power of God. These crowds had heard Jesus preach and had seen Him perform miracles. This aspect of Jesus’ ministry had a tremendous impact and imprinted on the people the love that He had for them. The crowds were there because they saw the Truth in Jesus actions and His teachings.
The fishing on this lake was very poor at times and often caused the fishermen to be in times of extreme poverty. These fishermen were hard workers and they had spent the night casting and drawing their nets with not a single fish. Fishing is often a lesson in frustration and these people had their fair share of frustration. It was almost outlandish for Jesus to ask them to go back out to fish again after they had worked all night and caught nothing but Simon did what was asked of him. The result was a miraculous catch of fish that swamped the boat and caused it to nearly sink. This catch would be a once in a lifetime event that cause great joy and elation because of the fortune it would bring.
The call comes after Simon’s statement about being a sinful man and asking Jesus to leave him but Jesus calls Simon and the others to become fishers of men. Jesus saw the potential in this rough and burly fisherman. Potential to change the world and build the future of the church. The whole purpose of the passage becomes the calling of the first disciples to follow and serve the Kingdom.
2. Who are the major characters?
A. Jesus: It is the ministry of Jesus that brings this event about and it is the ministry of Jesus that causes the miracle and the call of these first followers. It is amazing to see how God works in unusual ways to accomplish the goals of the Kingdom. Jesus works to build the Kingdom through these few fishermen and He uses this rag tag bunch to do the will of the Father. Jesus chose those who would be faithful, available and teachable.
B. Simon Peter: Simon was one of the first true followers of Jesus and he made the commitment to be an active part of the ministry of Jesus. Simon left the new found fortune that came to him in this spectacular catch of fish and chose to follow Jesus. He gave up everything to do the work of the Kingdom and this work became the central part of his life. Simon’s faith and work for Jesus led to his death. Church traditions state that Simon Peter was crucified on a cross up side down.
When Jesus called Simon he was not known as the rock or Peter. The Greek term petros which means solid place or rock and it is this same term that is used in the parable of the builders. Simon was anything but a rock or a solid place to build the Kingdom because he was brash, impulsive and unstable. Jesus did not give Simon this name for what he was but rather for what he would become through God’s grace. Simon Peter became one of the key leaders, if not the key leader, in the early church This name was given to him by Jesus at a later time during the three year ministry.
There are two distinct accounts of this name change and there is somewhat of a controversy over this event. In John, the event seems to occur at the time when Jesus meets Simon. (John 1.42) However, the other gospels that account the event have this taking place at Simon’s proclamation of Jesus being the Christ. The most reliable evidence appears in the gospels other than John. This is not to say that there are errors in the scripture but John is not a complete chronological account of Jesus’ life and it is not meant to be a chronology. John is meant to be a defense of the theological statements and standards of the early church.
C. James and John, Sons of Zebedee: These two people play a very minor role in this text but they would become two of the key disciples that would accompany Jesus in His ministry. These three men had a close relationship with one another and this may be one of the key reasons that they became so close with Jesus. It would be logical to assume that Jesus would have built the inner relationships of the Apostles upon the ones that they already had in existence.
3. When does this event take place? Luke does not give any time references to this passage but he does seem to keep all of the events in chronological order and so we can then assume that this is a very early event. This is an event that takes place in the beginning stages of the public ministry and during the Galilean campaign. This is the first major part of the calling of the disciples of Jesus. Acts records the fact that there were others who had followed Jesus from the very onset of his public ministry and it was from those people that Judas was replaced. So we know that there were followers from the onset of Jesus ministry and that Simon, James and John were among the central individuals.
4. Where does this event take place? The exact location is undetermined but it is evident that this takes place at the Lake of Gennesaret. Luke is the only writer who records this location in his accounts of Jesus’ ministry. This is the sea of Galilee. Luke uses another term for the area for an unknown reason but there is only one major body of water in the entire Galilean region.
5. Why is this happening? Jesus is using this event to make Himself known to the people and to Simon. It is through this event that Jesus is able to make the call for Simon to join Him in His ministry. This is one of the key events in the life of Simon Peter and it is from this point that he becomes a follower of Jesus. This event changes his life and the rest of the world forever.
6. How does this event take place? This event occurs through a chain of happenings that lead Jesus to tech the crowds from Simons boat. It is from that point that the real power and position of Jesus is revealed because He uses His power over creation to reveal the message to Simon and the others that God is doing a great work in Israel. He shares the message of God’s love and grace with the people and they are then changed in a real way.
7. How does this apply to my life? Jesus used a miracle to show Simon the love and power of God. It is this fact that made Simon fall on his knees and ask Jesus to go away from him. Simon saw the power of God at work in that little fishing boat and in his own life. We need to remember that God still is at work in the lives of people today and that he is still in the process of changing lives.
Jesus also saw the potential in Simon that was not evident but Jesus sees people for who they can be rather than for who they are now. Jesus sees people through the eyes of grace and love and it is the grace and love of God that changes lives in an eternal way. Every person has a tremendous potential and God wants to see everyone realize their own personal potential. Everyone can do a great work for God and be effective in the Kingdom.
