1. Please pray with me. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of our hearts be pleasing in Your sight, O Lord, our Rock, and our Redeemer. Amen. The message from God’s Word on this 5th Sunday after Epiphany is taken from Luke 5:1-11 and is entitled, “A Love/Fear Relationship” dear brothers and sisters in Christ.
2. The miraculous catch of fish happens not just once in the ministry of Jesus but twice. And, this miracle happens twice to the same person: Simon Peter. We often think of miracles as singular events. Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead. Jesus heals the ten lepers. Jesus casts out demons from the man wandering among the tombs... and it is true. Many miracles are once-in-a-lifetime events for people.
3. But, sometimes, miracles come in pairs. And when miracles come in pairs, it is helpful to consider how they interact with one another. For example, the feeding of five thousand among the Jews is paralleled by the feeding of four thousand among the Gentiles. From this, we see the expanding ministry of Jesus who has come to save not only Israel but all nations.
4. The reason I point this out is because in our text from Luke 5:1-11 we have a miracle that, when read in light of the life of Peter, is part of a pair. In the first occurrence of the miraculous catch of fish, Peter is washing his nets after a long night of fishing. They have caught nothing. Jesus uses the boat to speak to the crowds, and Peter doesn’t mind. After all, it might as well be used for something, since last night wasn’t a good night for fishing. After Jesus finishes teaching the crowds, He turns to talk to Peter and teaches him in a very different way. Jesus will explode Peter's conception of Him as figure of high status (e.g., “master” in Luke 5:5) and reveal Himself to Peter as Lord (Luke 5:8).
5. Jesus does this by asking Peter to go against his experience, to deny his fruitless night of fishing, to defy his lifetime of knowledge about his vocation, and simply trust in a word from Jesus. When Peter does this, puts out the boat, and drops the nets, a miraculous catch of fish appears. While the fishermen strain to draw in the nets, while others come out to help, Peter turns and looks at Jesus and falls on his knees. He asks Him to go away. Being in the presence of such a miracle causes Peter to sense his sinfulness and fall on his knees begging not for mercy but rather that this Lord would just walk away.
6. Love/hate relationships are a part of life. We all have them. I have a love/hate relationship with my former mechanic in Waupaca, WI. I loved his work. But, I hated his prices. The apostle Peter, in Luke 5, has a similarly mixed relationship with his Lord. No, he doesn’t have a love/hate relationship with Jesus. He has a love/fear relationship.
7. On the one hand, Peter loves Jesus. For even when Jesus gives Peter what must have seemed like foolish fishing advice, Peter graciously complies. “Master,” Peter says, “we toiled all night and took nothing! But at Your word I will let down the nets” (Luke 5:5 says). Peter addresses Jesus respectfully and heeds His guidance obediently. And when he does, they have success fishing.
8. It’s at this point when Peter’s love for Jesus melts into fear of Jesus. Peter falls on his knees and exclaims, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord” (Luke 5:8 says). Peter’s fear is straightforward: Jesus is perfect; Peter is not. Peter knows that he is out of his league. And Peter is scared. But then, Jesus comforts Peter: “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men” (Luke 5:10).
9. “Do not be afraid.” This is the most common command in the Bible. It is spoken to a despondent mother named Hagar who is afraid for the well-being of her son Ishmael (cf. Genesis 21:17). It is spoken to a commander named Joshua as he prepares to fight a battle at Ai (cf. Joshua 8:1). It is spoken by an angel to shepherds who are “keeping watch over their flock by night” (Luke 2:8) when they receive word of Jesus’ birth. And now, Jesus speaks this same command to Peter: “Do not be afraid.”
10. Thankfully, Peter learns this command well. Later, when Jesus’ teaching has become controversial and many disciples have begun to leave, He asks His disciples in John 6:67-68: “Do you want to go away as well?” Peter’s answer is clear: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (John 6:67–68). Peter no longer fears Jesus because of his uncleanness. Rather, he loves Jesus because of his uncleanness. For Peter now recognizes that only Jesus offers words of eternal life to unclean people. So rather than wanting Jesus to depart from him, Peter now wishes Jesus to remain close. May we all wish the same.
11. The second occurrence of this miraculous catch of fish happens at the end of the Gospel of John 21:1-8. Here we see how the Apostle Peter has matured in his Christian faith. There, the disciples are out on the shore of the Sea of Galilee fishing. They have spent all night fishing and caught nothing. Suddenly, a figure appears on the shore. He asks them if they have any fish, and they reply they do not. He then instructs them to drop their nets in the water for a catch. Once again, they are engulfed in a miracle. The disciples are overwhelmed and strain to gather the nets because of the large quantity of fish.
12. But, this time, when Peter recognizes it is Jesus, he does not fall on his knees and beg Him to go away. No, this time, Peter puts on his outer garment to make himself presentable and jumps into the water to get to Jesus as fast as possible. This one who had denied knowing Jesus, who lived with the guilt of that sin, came swimming as fast as he could to Him.
13. Why? What has happened to make such a difference? Between these two miracles stands the death and resurrection of Jesus. Between these two miracles is a long three years of following Jesus and watching as heavenly grace breaks forth upon earth. Peter has seen how Jesus cares for those who are in need. To the hungry, He provides food. To the sick, He provides healing. To those who are hiding in shame, He provides a place of honor. To those who have sinned, He promises forgiveness.
14. Peter has not changed. He is still a sinner in need of forgiveness. But Peter’s knowledge of who Jesus is has changed and, when faced with the choice of living in his sin or entrusting his life to Jesus, Peter rushes to come to Jesus for he trusts Jesus forgives. Jesus is the One who forgives. He died to pay the penalty of all sin and God raised Him from the dead to live and offer forgiveness to all who come to Him. Because of the love and mercy of Jesus, we can come into the presence of our all-powerful and just God.
15. So, come today: Come to Jesus. He is here, waiting to receive you. He promises that no sin, nothing you have thought, said, or done, will be held against you. He has risen from the dead and He has come here to forgive you. Jesus is here, teaching us today through these memories of miracles, that He has not come to send you away with all sinners but rather to forgive you and receive you and all sinners who trust in Him as their Savior and Lord into the Kingdom of God. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus until life everlasting. Amen.
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