This brings me to my address:
“Called to Catch Men by the Word of God” Luke 5:1-11 NKJV
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." 11 So when they had brought their boats to land, they forsook all and followed Him.
“Called to Catch Men by the Word of God” Luke 5:1-11 NKJV
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." 11 So when they had brought their boats to land, they forsook all and followed Him.
My Christian friends: The Apology of the Augsburg Confession of the Lutheran Church states, “It is by faith that God wants to be worshiped, namely, that we receive from Him what He promises and offers” (Apology AC IV:49). In the Old Testament, Yahweh spoke through the prophet Jeremiah expressively saying: “Behold, I will send for many fishermen,” says the LORD, “and they shall fish them.” This is the primary lesson being taught in today’s Gospel.
This lesson came to the people that stood by the Lake of Gennesaret in Galilee. The Incarnate God, Jesus Christ, who had gotten into one of the boats asked Simon Peter to launch out a little from the land. From that boat, the multitude heard Law and Gospel from the very lips of the Master fisherman. It is this very Gospel that is being preached creating faith in the promises of God’s gifts of salvation, in the forgiveness of sins. It was that many people followed Him to the lake who also, after many heard Him preaching in the synagogues of Galilee, wanted to hear the promises of the Gospel message. Yes, many were declared right with God, not by hearing the law but rather the promise of the Gospel; the promises apprehended by faith, of mercy and abundant blessing for the penitent sinner.
Jesus told Simon Peter, “Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.” St. Peter is the recipient of a direct promise of God Himself, that he would receive a large catch of fish when he would let down his nets just this one more time. But it would avail Peter nothing unless he acted by faith to do the thing he was commanded to do. What is the response? The words that came from Peter’s mouth were, “Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless, at Your word I will let down the net.” Peter had faith to do what Jesus asked, not knowing that Jesus was preparing him, by this miraculous sign, for his own preaching ministry of the Word.
So how did the command of Jesus affect Peter? Peter’s response was essentially saying, Master, the truth is that we have been toiling all night and have caught nothing. Our own works were of no benefit. Nevertheless, despite our fruitless works we have Your word and at Your word I will let down my nets. Human reason might ask, “How can casting the nets into ‘the deep waters’ make a difference? How can a carpenter’s son know more about fishing than a man like Simon Peter who was a commercial fisherman by vocation?” But it isn’t the deep water that yields such a great catch but the Word of God that made all the difference. It is the promise of God apprehended by faith that made all the difference.
For instance, it is not the water in baptism that yields the promise of forgiveness of sin, deliverance from death and the devil, and eternal salvation. But it is the promise of the Word of God connected with the water that can do these powerful things.
In the Catechism it is asked, “How are forgiveness of sins, deliverance from death and the devil, and eternal salvation obtained by baptism”? Answer: “The word of God places these great blessings into Baptism; and through faith, which trusts the word of promise, we accept the forgiveness, life and salvation offered in Baptism and make these blessings our own.” Of course, any Christian should know what Scripture says about faith that receives the promises, namely, that it too is a gift of God. The Holy Spirit works through the means of grace to create the faith that accepts the promise of God. As it is written that faith “is not of ourselves; it is a gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9). For without the Word of God water is just water, but with the Word of God the promise is sure, whether it be a great catch of fish or forgiveness of sins and eternal salvation.
Promise and faith make for a sure combination. Be hearers of the Word and consider another example of God’s promise and the necessity of faith. St. Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 11:23 25, “For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, ‘Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.’ In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.’”
This is a direct promise and expresses a wonderful miracle ripe with benefits that Jesus earned for us when He suffered and died upon Calvary’s Cross thus atoning and paying for the sins of all people. The promised blessing in the eating and drinking the Lord’s Supper is also for the forgiveness of sin and, as Luther says, where there is forgiveness of sin there is eternal life and salvation. That is God’s own promise. And yet these old certainties show the need for faith to trust such marvelous promises to be your own.
Regarding this promise of life and salvation it is asked, “Who, then, receives the Sacrament worthily?” He is truly worthy and well prepared who has faith in these words, “Given and shed for you for the remission of sins.” Anyone that doesn’t have faith in these words of Christ is neither worthy nor prepared. If anyone doesn’t believe that there is forgiveness of sins actually bestowed in the Lord’s Supper, then they are denying the forgiveness of sins that God has promised and is calling God a liar!
Faith in the promise of God is essential. As Simon Peter said, “Nevertheless at Your word I will let down the net.” Notice what Peter and the others did: They acted upon the word of promise and let down their nets.
It also would have done the Hebrew people no good, for instance, to stand in awe and gaze upon the miraculous parting of the Red Sea. Instead the Hebrews had to actually take the step necessary to walk between the waters to escape to the destruction of the Egyptians. It is faith that acts on the promise of deliverance. “At Your word I will let down the net. And when they had done this, they caught a great number of fish, and their net was breaking.” But this faith is not of the disciples own doing but it is of the Lord. Jeremiah, again, in chapter 16 speaks God’s Word, prophesying: “Therefore behold, I will this once cause them to know, I will cause them to know My hand and My might; And they shall know that My name is the LORD.” Simon Peter’s faith responded to the Word of God and the promised result became his very own possession.
Take for another example that Commander of the armies of Syria, Naaman the leper, and the initially stupid blunder he was about to make. The prophet’s promise of healing Naaman was connected only with the waters of the Jordan, but he thought that the rivers of Damascus had better water. That may very well have been true, but the promise of God was attached to the Jordan River. Only there did God promise to be a cleansing for his leprosy. Naaman could have spent every day for a year soaking in the waters of Damascus and yet he still would have remained a leper.
Likewise, in Christian baptism do we have God’s promise of the healing for our souls. The word “baptize” means the application of water; so why do we baptize with water? Because it is the promise of God that is attached to water sanctified for the forgiveness of sin. It is both the water along with the Word of God. Also, we don’t celebrate the Lord’s Supper with cookies, Ritz crackers and coke, or with donuts and grape juice. Why not? It is because God has not spoken His promise in connection with such things. It is simply with bread and wine...at God’s Word. Christ Himself prepares His own supper table; Christ Himself consecrates the specific elements of bread and wine, making them no longer common food and drink but His essential and true, substantial, physical body and blood along with the elements of bread and wine given to you to eat and drink for the forgiveness of sins and the strengthening of your faith.
In our text, Simon Peter suddenly realizes that he is in the presence of the Incarnate Lord. Through the spoken Word, it was revealed to Peter that this Jesus is very God of very God. Therefore, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying: “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!” For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish which they had taken. Sinful man is now in the presence of the Son of God, Who alone is holy. God Himself had come to Peter and the natural reaction of sinful man is to flee from God and hide from Him, but Simon Peter had nowhere to go so he begged Jesus to depart from him for he is a sinful man. What then is Jesus’ response to Peter’s earnest plea?
Learn to trust in this spoken word of absolution, Peter, “Do not be afraid.” WITH THESE WORDS you have the animal skins given to Adam and Eve; WITH THESE WORDS you see the burning coal that touches Isaiah’s lips for his purification; WITH THESE WORDS Mary found comfort in the presence of the angel Gabriel; and, WITH THESE WORDS the shepherds watching their flocks by night were greeted, and then were given the good news of great joy that were expressed in the words: Peace on earth and goodwill toward men! They first had to have their fear dispelled.
So, it was with Simon Peter that his fear had to be dispelled in order for him to comprehend what Jesus was saying to him: “Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men.” It is as if Jesus said to Simon, I have demonstrated to you the lesser miracle in this catch of fish – you are now going to be My instrument in the greater miracle of taking My Word of promise and casting it into the sea of this world bringing into the boat of My salvation the young and the elderly, the rich and poor alike. Here, Jesus foretells the office of the preaching ministry to the one whom He had just now absolved. Simon Peter is now commissioned into his new vocation to go out and proclaim that word of promise to all who would believe.
The Apology of the Augsburg Confession, Article IV, states “The promise is accepted by faith; the fact that it is free excludes our merits and shows that the blessing is offered only by mercy; the merits of Christ are the price because there must be a certain propitiation for our sins...and so at the mention of mercy we must remember that this requires faith, which accepts the promise of mercy. Similarly, at every mention of faith we are also thinking of its object, the promised mercy.”
Again, the promise of eternal life through the forgiveness of sins is accepted by faith. The fact that it is a free gift excludes our works and shows the blessing is offered only by mercy, mercy gained through the merits of Christ’s suffering, death, and resurrection. As it is written in Romans 4:16: “That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may be guaranteed.”
Remember Romans 4:16, as Jesus called his first disciples, He was choosing them to not only inherit the promise of salvation but to preach this message of reconciliation to all creation. Are you among that creation which would receive that promise by faith? By faith, take hold of and grasp that which St. Peter said in today’s Epistle: “You have been called to obtain a blessing!”
Amen.
Amen.
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