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Put out into deep water
Luke 5:1-11
Key Verse 5:4 When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch."
In 5:1-11, Jesus calls Simon the fisherman as one of his first disciples. Jesus prayed all night and chose his disciples to train them at the outset of his gospel ministry. From this passage, we learn what kind of person Jesus calls and what the purpose of his calling is.
First, Jesus teaches the word of God to the crowd of people (1-3)
Look at verse 1. “One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, with the people crowding around him and listening to the word of God…” Jesus came out to the lake in the early morning before the people crowded around. For Jesus this early morning time by the lake must have been the time get some fresh air and to pray before beginning group Bible study. Jesus had an early morning prayer life and it was his custom to go out early in the morning to a solitary place to pray. In the background were the sounds of seagulls and the gentle waves splashing against the shore. Fishermen had fished the shores of this lake for centuries. It had three names: the Sea of Galilee, the Sea of Tiberias and the Lake of Gennesaret. It is three miles long and seven miles wide. It lies deep in the earth’s surface, 680 feet below sea level. Its low elevation gives it an almost tropical climate. This is the beautiful seashore where Jesus called Simon, and it is where the Risen Jesus again visited him and cooked a delicious breakfast for him.
Out of nowhere, the lovely calm of the lake was disturbed by a crowd of people. Look at verse 1b, “...with the people crowding around him and listening to the word of God.” They were mostly sick and needy people. Yet these people were listening to the word of God in the quiet of the morning. They came to Jesus to be healed of their various physical diseases. But when Jesus taught them the word of God first, they were not grumpy; they were happy to listen to Jesus. They were like thirsty deer who found fresh water in the desert. Jesus knew that they were miserable because they were physically sick. Moreover, they were even more miserable because they were sick with sins. So Jesus taught them the word of God to heal them from their sinsickness. The word of God is the word of life. 2 Timothy 3:15 says, “...and how from infancy you have known the holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.” I pray that we can learn from Jesus who taught the Bible to all kinds of people with that the word of God heals those who are very sick with sins.
The people listening to the word of God became so many that the seashore was filled with people. Jesus realized the danger of being pushed into the water. The situation was desperate. Look at verse 2. “…he saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets.” These fishermen were not listening to the message. They were busy washing their nets from a night of working hard but catching no fish (5). A man named Simon seemed to be the leader of the fisherman and he did not look happy that morning. Jesus knew that he had to get inside Simon’s boat. But Simon didn’t seem like the man to welcome anybody into his boat. Simon was a strong fisherman, strong not only in size but also in smell. He was strong in character. It would be hard for Jesus to ask him a favor to let him into the boat, but Jesus asked this strong fisherman a favor. Look at verse 3. “He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.” Simon didn’t ask Jesus to come in, but Jesus just stepped into Simon’s boat, Simon said nothing he just did what he had to do. Next Jesus asked Simon a favor, “Would you put out a little from shore?” Simon nodded his head as the expression of “Okay.” And Jesus sat down in the boat and taught the people continually.
During this short encounter, Simon was obviously moved by Jesus’ humbleness in asking a favor of him, even when Simon himself looked like a difficult person to talk with. Simon could not be indifferent to Jesus any more. He was no longer the background to the Bible study, Jesus was in the boat. The more Simon tried not to look at Jesus, the more his eyes were fixed on Jesus. Simon felt that he was the closest friend to Jesus. This mysterious relationship lasted forever. I pray that we can follow Jesus who got into Simon’s boat with a humble heart and asked him a favor. May God bless you to make many friends like Jesus.
Second, put out into deep water (4-7)
This part tells us how Jesus tested Simon in the hope of choosing him as one of his disciples. What kind of person was Simon? First of all, Simon was a hardworking man. Simon and his fellow fishermen worked hard all night and didn't catch anything (5a). It had been a bad night for them. Now, they were weary and hungry. So Simon could have gone home to eat breakfast and go to sleep because he was so tired and discouraged. But he didn’t go back home. Simon mended and rearranged his nets for a new day’s work. In short, Simon the fisherman was a hardworking man and a man of no discouragement.
When we study Genesis, we learn that God made man to work hard. For example, God made the world and everything in it and asked Adam to name all the animals in it. Man is happy when he works hard for God’s mission. In fact the first time the word blessed appears in the Bible is Genesis 1:28. “God blessed them and said to them, ‘Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground.’” When Man works hard for God’s mission, he is true man, truly blessed and very happy. Simon’s hardworking spirit was a great quality for him to become a fruitful and happy disciple of Jesus.
Simon also had a learning mind. Look at verse 4. “When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ‘Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.’” As far as fishing was concerned, Simon was a senior fisherman and Jesus was a junior carpenter. Night was the time for fishing, and now it was bright morning. But Simon did not say, “What do you know about fishing, you’re a junior carpenter?” A great thing happened when Jesus entered Simon’s boat, Simon became humble. Simon the expert fisherman was willing to learn fishing from a junior carpenter. He said, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets” (5). Although he had no formal education, he had a great learning mind. This enabled him to grow up to be the greatest teacher who ever lived in history. One of God’s blessings upon mankind is that he made man to grow endlessly through a learning mind. A learning mind gives man a new day and a new knowledge and a new life every day. A learning mind is the gift of God.
To our surprise, Simon had an obedient mind. A learning mind is the source of obedience. Obedience is also the expression of love. John 14:21a says, “Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me.” When Jesus said, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch,” Simon obeyed Jesus’ command unconditionally. It was because Simon Peter fell in love with Jesus. We don’t know why he fell in love with Jesus. Probably Simon felt that Jesus recognized Simon Peter and became his friend and saw in Simon best leadership material in the whole world. Obedience is based on a love and trust relationship. One who loves God can obey God and can obey others. It is not easy for anybody to obey. But Simon obeyed Jesus’ word.
What was the result when Simon obeyed? Look at verses 6-7. “When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.” When Simon obeyed, Jesus restored him from his failure. Jesus enabled him to experience a great success. There’s no failure in Jesus. Jesus restores all our failures. Amen.
Finally, Simon came to know that he was a sinner. Look at verse 8. “When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, ‘Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!’” Why did Simon cry out like this? After Simon had a great catch of fish, he saw God Almighty in Jesus (8). He saw that even the fish in the sea obeyed Jesus’ word. In the past, Simon had no concept of God, not to mention a concept of sin. But after meeting Jesus, he could see God in Jesus. Also, he realized that he was a sinful man. In the past, he thought he was a good man. But when he met Jesus, he realized that he was a sinful man.
What kind of sinful man was he? First, before God, he was a morally sinful man. Nobody can say that he has kept all the Ten Commandments. Maybe he had violated all the Ten Commandments one by one. In order to eat three meals a day, Simon became a selfish man, so he was a morally sinful man. Second, Simon was an ethically sinful man. He never cared for others. Third, Simon was a spiritually sinful man. Simon did not live for the glory of God. Instead, he lived a selfish life. At the moment he met Jesus, he saw God in Jesus. Before Jesus, he felt like dying. So he cried out, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” This realization made him a truly humble and great man in history.
Look at verse 10b. “Don’t be afraid...” Jesus saw his inner man. Outwardly, Simon looked bold as a man of the sea. But inwardly he was a slave of fear because of his sins. Simon may have said, “How long do I have to work in the night sea? What do I do if I get sick and die?” Sin makes us slave to fear and death. Simon was afraid and worried because of living a selfish and meaningless life. Life without Jesus is fearful. Those who are outside of Jesus are all slaves of fear (Ro 8:15). But those who are in Jesus are full of love and power (2Ti 1:7). As soon as Simon heard Jesus’ voice, his fear was gone and God’s peace was overflowing in him.
Third, “from now on you will catch men” (10-11)
Look at verse 10b. “Then Jesus said to Simon, ‘Don’t be afraid; from now on you will catch men.’” What does it mean, “from now on you will catch men”? Matthew and Mark said, “fishers of men,” instead of “catch men” (Mt 4:19; Mk 1:17). It is better to think a little more about “from now on you will catch men.”
God gave Peter new life in Jesus. In the past, Simon was a fisherman. People thought he was a courageous man of the sea and the leader of all fishermen, at least in the Galilean district. But inwardly he was very fearful and sorrowful. One night, he tried all night to catch fish but he caught nothing. Nevertheless, Jesus showed him God by restoring his great failure of catching fish. Before conversion, Peter was a smelly fisherman, a very sorrowful man. Before conversion, Peter was a smelly fisherman and a sorrowful man and a really wounded man (1Pe 2:24). Since Jesus came into his heart, he became a happy man.
Jesus’ words, “from now on you will catch men” meant you will be my disciple. When we read gospel stories very carefully, from the outset of the gospel ministry Jesus called his first disciples. Through common life together, Jesus taught them that he is God through his healing and teaching and by many miracles. Once, Jesus gave them a test, “Who do you say I am?” Peter answered immediately, “The Christ of God” (Lk 9:20). Outwardly, Peter looked as though he were learning nothing. But through Jesus, Peter came to know that Jesus is the Christ of God, which means Jesus is the King who destroyed the power of sin and death through his death and resurrection. In this way, Jesus became our eternal King.
Jesus’ words, “from now on you will catch men” meant you should be a shepherd of God’s flock of sheep. Once Jesus went on a retreat with his disciples to a quiet place. But the crowd of people came to him for help. They were really shameless people. But when Jesus saw the crowd of people they were like sheep without a shepherd (Mk 6:34). In other words, they could have been much better people, but because they did not have shepherds they became wretched people. When we study the gospel narratives, Simon Peter was a domineering character. But he was raised as a shepherd of God’s flock of sheep in the early Christian days. Simon Peter said, “Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care” (1Pe 5:2).
Later Simon Peter wrote: “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” (1Pe 2:9) This meant Simon Peter will be a kingdom of priests and a holy nation and a man who is responsible to bring to gospel to the whole world and declare the marvelous grace of Jesus. Jesus gave Simon a new name, “Peter” which means “Rock.” Jesus wanted to establish Peter as the foundation stone of the Christian church (Mt 16:18).
What was Peter’s response to Jesus’ calling? Look at verse 11. “So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him.” Before meeting Jesus, Peter was in the darkness of the sea with great fear. After meeting Jesus, he was to be the shepherd of God’s flock under his care in the early church. May God bless you to hear Jesus calling you, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will catch men.”