Luke 5:1-11 Pastor Nathan P. Kassulke
The Fifth Sunday After Epiphany Sunday, February 9, 2025 “Let Down Your Nets for a Catch”
There are any number of websites that provide services today where companies hiring can post their job listings and people looking for work can share their resumes. There are other ways that this same process is handled by particular companies, but most jobs are determined in some regard along these lines. The person looking for a job has certain skills, education, abilities, and interests. The person in charge of hiring tries to look for a good fit with what the job has to offer and what it demands. And the best candidate for the job is probably the one whose resume most closely lines up with the job description. Not today in our Scripture readings, in the ministry of Jesus and his disciples, and in our latest Epiphany Moment. Today, we see one of the most important jobs there is, sharing God’s Word, and it is given to people whose resumes look terrible. We’re going to primarily focus on Peter (also called Simon or Simon Peter), whom we heard about in the Gospel from John 5. His example helps us to think about what God calls all of us to do as well. As we consider the example of Peter, we also find echoes of what happened when Isaiah was called to be a prophet. Same job, different era. The job was to speak God’s Word, to tell people the message that God has given. Isaiah got the assignment as he saw the Lord’s throne room. The Lord was seated on his throne with his robe filling up the temple. And there were seraphim. These angels flew all around with wings also covering their faces and their feet in honor of God and his glory. They sang praises and the whole place shook. And Isaiah was overwhelmed by everything that he saw. He was so taken by the impressive and amazing display of glory that he couldn’t help but feel amazed, unworthy, even worried about what such glory meant for such a lowly sinner. Thankfully for Isaiah, God had an answer. God had a plan. God forgave. God gave his servant his words and empowered Isaiah to be his prophet. He is the prophet well-known for speaking about the virgin birth of Christ and the gift of a Son, a suffering servant, stricken, smitten, and afflicted. Centuries later, the promised servant was by the Sea of Galilee, as Luke calls it, the Lake of Gennesaret. He was going to speak his own words and do his own teaching, but the crowds pressed in on him. Simon’s boat was nearby, so Jesus borrowed it as his pulpit. Putting out a little way off the shore allowed Jesus to speak without the people rubbing shoulders with him or blocking each other’s ways. And along with the crowds, Simon once again heard the preaching of Jesus. Simon’s boat, along with his partners’ boat, were there because the fishermen were done. They had been working hard all night with less than impressive results. It was time to wash their nets and prepare for the next night. It was time to regroup and ready themselves. But Jesus had another plan. He finished his sermon and was ready to share a powerful object lesson. He told Simon that it was time to launch the boat into deep water and let down the nets once again. Simon’s response tells us everything we need to know about this order. These fishermen knew the process. They knew that the night was the best time to catch fish on the Sea of Galilee. They knew the places that were best for letting down nets, and those weren’t the deepest parts of the Lake. They knew that they had done their best for a full night of work without any success and that sometimes that happens, and the only thing you can do is wait for the next opportunity. Jesus said, “Don’t worry that it is daylight. Don’t worry about finding shallower waters. Don’t worry about working hard and giving extra effort. Here’s my plan: go out where it is deep and let down your nets for a catch.” Just think about how you would feel receiving such a command. This is not what the science says. This is not the way that experienced experts do it. This is not something that would have the support of politicians or coworkers or neighbors. This is something weird and different. But Jesus says. That’s what is so remarkable about Simon’s response. He alluded to all the reasons this wouldn’t work, but his conclusion was, “But at your word I will let down the nets.” And then it happened. So many