Fifth Sunday after
the Epiphany (C)
February 10, 2019
Text: Luke 5:1-11
The
boat, the Word, the water, and the nets.
A sinful man, a fisherman by trade, named Simon, and the people who have
come to hear the Word of God from the mouth of the Lord Jesus. That is the scene. The crowd is great in number, and they are
pressing in on Jesus. He gets into the
boat belonging to Simon and asks him to push out a little from the land. And there He sits and teaches the people from
the boat. Jesus is in the boat, speaking
His Word across the water while the fishermen are washing their nets. And this is how it will be now that the
Kingdom of God has come in the flesh of Jesus of Nazareth. For the boat is a picture of the Church. The Church is the ark by which we are saved
through the flood of Baptism. We even
call the sanctuary of the Church where you are sitting “the nave,” a nautical
term. We get the word “Navy” from the
same root. It is in the Church where
Jesus sits, speaking His life-giving Word to those gathered to hear Him. He gathers them by the Gospel in the water,
the nets in the sea, the water included in God’s command and combined with
God’s Word. He gathers them into the
boat, into the Church. And in this way,
they are saved.
The
sinful man, Simon (we know him as Peter), is at the helm of the boat. He and his partners (his brother Andrew and
the sons of Zebedee, James and John) know how to fish. Or so they thought. But here they’ve toiled all night and caught
nothing. Now Jesus, who has finished His
sermon, tells them to put out into the deep and let down their nets for a
catch. Well, that’s just silly. It’s not the right time for fishing. If we didn’t catch anything all night, we’re
not going to catch anything now, in the light of day. And who are You, anyway, Jesus, to tell us
how to do our job? The disciples had not
yet been called, but they did know Jesus.
Why, it wasn’t so long ago that Jesus had healed Peter’s mother-in-law
of the fever, and many others of their afflictions and cast out demons in front
of Peter’s house. So, while the request
is rather absurd, let’s humor the Preacher once and do what He says. At Your Word, Jesus, I will let down the
nets. And what happens? Such a large number of fish the nets begin to
break! Both boats are filled, and they
begin to sink! It’s such an over-the-top
miracle, which is just like Jesus to do.
There is always more with Jesus, more than we can think or ask.[1]
And
Peter is terrified. He’s a sinful
man. And Jesus is holy. It’s a rerun of our Old Testament reading
(Is. 6:1-13). Isaiah, the sinner, the
man of unclean lips in the midst of a people of unclean lips, believes he is a
dead man in the presence of the thrice-holy God. And he’s right! He would be, were it not for the cleansing
that comes from the altar, the coal with which the angel touches his lips to
purify him. Here in our Gospel, Peter
falls down before the Lord Jesus, confessing his sins. And Jesus absolves him, takes away his
sin. “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men” (Luke 5:10;
ESV). “Do not be afraid.” “I am not
here to condemn you, Peter. I have not
come to kill you, but to forgive you and give you life. And I have come to call you as my own, and
ordain you my Apostle, a preacher in my stead, to pilot, not just a fishing
boat, but my holy Church. The net you
will be casting is my Word, the preaching, the Gospel. And this forgiveness of sins I have bestowed
upon you, you and your fellow Apostles will bestow upon others as my own
mouthpiece. You will cast the nets into
the water. You will wash my people
clean. That is the Office I here
create. The Preaching Office. The Office of the Keys. The Office of the Holy Ministry.”
“From now on you will be catching men.” Actually, that doesn’t quite catch the
Greek. Better would be, “From now on you will be catching men alive!” What a beautiful
phrase. Not only will you not be
catching men unto their death, as you have been catching fish, but you will actually be catching men into life. That is what happens when you catch men by
the Gospel in the water and bring them into the boat that is the Church. They live.
They do not die. For the first
time in their lives, they live! Because
Jesus is in the boat. The Gospel is the
Word of Jesus. The water is that
included in Jesus’ command and combined with Jesus’ Word. Therefore it puts the very life of Jesus into
those who were dead in their trespasses and sins.
So
Jesus is in the boat, and at His Word, the nets do their thing, and in comes
the catch. Get it? When Jesus is not in the boat, and has not
given His Word, Peter and the guys fish all night and catch nothing. No matter how hard they work. No matter what tricks they try. But when Jesus is in the boat, speaking His
Word, the Word does what He wills it to do.
It reminds us of what we confess in the Augustana, Article V: That we
may obtain justifying faith in Christ, “the Ministry of Teaching the Gospel and
administering the Sacraments was instituted. For through the Word and
Sacraments, as through instruments, the Holy Ghost is
given, who works faith; where and when it pleases God, in them that hear the Gospel, to wit, that God, not for our own merits, but
for Christ's sake, justifies those who believe that they are received into
grace for Christ's sake.”[2] The Spirit works faith when and where it
pleases God in those who hear the Gospel.
Christ is in His Gospel. The
Gospel delivers Christ. Men are caught,
that is, come to faith in Christ, as it pleases God to make it so in the
preaching.
And
not when we’re trying our own gimmicks and tricks. Not by our hard work, toiling all night. Not by our know-how and ingenuity. Men aren’t caught and the Church doesn’t grow
by Church-growth principles, denominational programs, or religious fads. Men are not caught by attractive people in
skinny jeans with drums and guitars singing meaningless mantras that ape the
culture and may or may not even mention Christ.
Certainly withholding certain doctrinal articles, keeping mum certain
teachings of Christ because they might be offensive to newcomers will never
catch men. There is only one thing that
catches men. Jesus in the boat, speaking
His Word.
And
by the way, we don’t always see the spectacular results. Here we are, trying to launch a boat, a brand
new congregation, and we know Jesus is with us in the boat, speaking His Word
of life, but we’re not in any immediate danger of sinking because we have too
many people. That would be great, but
that isn’t the promise here, and you’ve missed the miracle if you think it
is. People come to faith where and when
it pleases God in those who hear the Gospel.
The catch is up to Him. Not you
and me. We are not called to
success. We are called to faithfulness. We are called to take the boat into the deep
and let down the net. We are called to
go into the deep darkness of this world and proclaim the Gospel. And it’s silly. We often toil all night and seems like
there’s no reward for our work. You
really want us to keep at it, Jesus? To
keep preaching the Gospel to a world that doesn’t want it? Okay.
We’ll humor you. At your Word we
will let down the nets.
And,
of course, we’re blind to the miracle it is any time a baby is baptized. Or an adult, which is an even greater
miracle. We’re blind to the miracle it
is when sinners repent of their sins and believe the forgiveness given in the
Absolution, when men and women, young and old are catechized in the faith by Jesus’ continued teaching, when the
crucified and risen body and blood of Jesus Christ is placed into your mouth to
give you life. You are the miracle! You’ve been caught by the net of the Gospel
in the water. You’ve been brought, by
grace, into the boat. Because Jesus sent
His disciples fishing.
“Do not be afraid,” Jesus says to Peter,
absolving his sins. And He says it to
every Christian pastor, and to every Christian.
Do not be afraid. You are a
sinful man, but your sins are forgiven.
I take them away by my death. I
nail them to my cross. I cover them with
my blood. I bury them in my tomb. I am risen from the dead, but your sins will
never rise. They are separated from you
as far as the east is from the west.
They no longer accuse you. And
such Absolution always leads to mission.
You, being forgiven of all your sins, declare that forgiveness to
others. The Church is the lifeboat for
sinners, forgiving their sins. Peter and
the sons of Zebedee heard this forgiveness, and they got up and left everything
to follow Jesus. They became the first
Christian preachers. Understand, the
fishing business was much more lucrative and prestigious than we give it credit
for. Remember how John was able to gain
entrance to the High Priest’s house because he was known to him? Probably the High Priest was a customer of
John’s. It’s a big operation, this
fishing business. And they leave it all,
their livelihood, their possessions, in the case of James and John, their poor
father. It reminds us of the seminary
students who leave lucrative and influential positions in the world to study
for the Holy Ministry. I’m not talking
about myself, by the way. I came to the
seminary right out of college, and my whole education was theology and
preparation for ministry, so if this doesn’t work out for me, I’m in
trouble. But these guys are the real
heroes who leave everything behind, secure employment and large salaries, pack
up their wives and children to become servants of the Word. What on earth possesses them? Jesus and His Word of forgiveness. Their sins are forgiven. That drives them to preach it to others.
But
it isn’t just pastors. It’s you. Here you are in a mission congregation. Okay, maybe we’re not a mission congregation
anymore now that we’re self-standing, but for all practical purposes. We don’t even have an office or a building to
call home. We’re totally at the mercy of
our gracious hosts, and we’re very thankful for them. But again, we’re just trying to launch a
boat. It’s hard work. Humanly speaking, things are not all that
certain. The experts said we wouldn’t
make it this far. What on earth possesses us to do such a
thing, to engage in such a venture? Our
sins are forgiven. And that drives us to
preach that forgiveness to others, to confess Christ to our community, to our
friends and family and neighbors, to invite them to Church, to welcome them
here as our own, members of our family, fellow forgiven sinners, caught by the
net of the Gospel in the water, hauled into the boat where Jesus is, speaking
His Word. “Do not be afraid,” Jesus says to us. Whatever happens here, Jesus is doing His
thing. The Holy Spirit is working faith
where and when He pleases. The Gospel is
preached. Sinners hear. Men are caught. Faith is bestowed. The dead are brought to life. That is what happens when Jesus is in the
boat, speaking His Word. And so it is,
here and now, today. So let down the
nets, beloved. Let’s go fishing. Invite your friends to Church. Bring them to hear Jesus in the boat, that
their sins be forgiven. God will bless
it. He has promised. In the Name of the Father, and of the Son
(+), and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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