Pastor Timothy Patoka 5 Sunday After The Epiphany: February 10, 2019 A Catch Unlike Any Other Luke 5:1-111 th
1) The Miraculous Catch Of Fish 2) The Comforting Catch Of Peter 3) The Continuing Catch Of People If you’ve ever talked with someone who has gone fishing, then I’m sure you’ve heard a story that probably seemed too good to be true. Perhaps it’s about the one that got away or a debate on its actual size. We tend to exaggerate a bit when we recount the past. And it’s not just about fishing experiences we exaggerate. Listen to a child’s memory of some experience and distinguish between what’s fact and what’s fiction. Ask the married couple how they met or got engaged and you’ll probably hear different versions that favor the person telling the story. Or maybe that’s just me. We know that when we’re talking to someone in casual conversation, it’s typical that there will be some exaggeration involved on both sides. But sometimes you come across instances that seem like an exaggeration when in fact they are not. One such instance is what we have before us from Luke’s Gospel, chapter 5, with a catch of fish unlike any other. While some may be tempted to pass this historical account off as yet another exaggeration, we know it is not. God’s Word is true in all it says, including this miraculous catch of fish. But there’s more to this account than simply a miraculous catch of fish. There’s also the comforting truth of Jesus as our Savior and Lord who charges us to catch people with the gospel’s good news. 1) The Miraculous Catch Of Fish People were always following Jesus to see and hear what he had to share. We begin our verses with a crowd that has gathered around Jesus by the Lake of Gennesaret or, as it is more commonly known, the Sea of Galilee. Jesus was speaking the Word of God to them all. But because there were so many people, it was getting difficult. So Jesus, seeing that his friend Simon Peter had an unused fishing boat nearby, decided to put out a bit and speak from the boat so that everyone could hear him. After Jesus was done talking, he transitions to the miraculous catch of fish so as to show Simon Peter, the other fishermen, and us who exactly Jesus is. Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Put out into deep water, and let down your nets for a catch.” (Luke 5:4b) Simon Peter, in likely wonder replied, “Master, we worked hard all through the night and caught nothing. But at your word I will let down the nets.” (Luke 5:5) Simon Peter and the other fishermen were professionals. They knew that if you wanted to catch fish, it was best to do it between dusk and dawn. And they had done that. They spent the entire night fishing, came up empty, and just finished their long workday by washing their nets. The last thing they wanted to do was to go 1