Pastor's Corner

Note: This is Part 1 of a sermon from July 4, 2021 and is slightly adapted from the original. Part 2 will be in next week’s issue of The Record-Times.

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen!

Today’s Gospel (Luke 5:1-11) is the miraculous catch of fish and the calling of Peter, James, and John as “fishers of men.” It’s not a sermon or a parable but a history, so it does not teach us directly by words of instruction but indirectly by words of example. It has much to teach us, but the main idea, I daresay, is this: Jesus is Lord over all labor and livelihood, with a higher labor and livelihood of His own that He calls us to share in.

Let’s consider this idea according to its two parts.

First, Jesus is Lord over all labor and livelihood.

This is demonstrated to us by the miraculous catch of fish. The Gospel says, “And when he [Jesus] had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ‘Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.’ And Simon answered, ‘Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.’ And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish, and their nets were breaking. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, ‘Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.’ For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken” (Luke 5:4-9, ESV).

Here we see Jesus’ word is divinely powerful to accomplish miraculous things. This is highlighted for us by Simon Peter’s statement, “But at your word I will let down the nets.” Jesus’ word brings Simon Peter so many fish—and at a time when they couldn’t catch any—that Simon perceives something supernatural is at work. This is no ordinary, or even extraordinary, catch of fish. This is a miraculous catch of fish. Furthermore, Simon is moved to fall down at Jesus’ knees in a posture of worship, where He confesses His sin and asks Jesus to depart from him. (Because sinners are terrified by God’s presence and cannot stand the judging power of His holiness). Jesus is Lord, even over all labor and livelihood.

What, then, does this mean for you?

This means Jesus is able to make all your labors wildly successful if He wants to. He can turn a single cast of a fishing net into a net-breaking, boat-sinking catch of fish. He can turn a single year’s plowing and seeding into a bumper crop worth many year’s plowing and seeding. He can turn a single summer into a string of lucrative home sales. He can turn a season or year of schooling into a rare, profoundly educational experience.

On the other hand, Jesus is able to make all your labors wild failures if He wants to. He can keep a long, hard night of fishing from catching a single fish. He can turn many years of planned farming into a bankruptcy. He can turn every realty appointment into a busted waste of time. He can turn a season or year of extra-mile educational planning into a wasted, even mind-dumbing, experience.

This also means that if your labors are successful, and your livelihood is comfortably secure, you should fear God and give Him thanks. It’s entirely by His grace that you have succeeded. Even your talents, powers, and energies are on loan from Him, whether or not you use them to His glory. He can take them all away and not be cruel for doing so. If He blesses you with all this, and you still do not fall down at His knees and worship, what more must He do for you to think Him worthy?

On the other hand, this means that if your labors have been stymied, and your livelihood trashed, Christ is able to prosper you anyway. Hope is not lost, but summoned and called for until the time of His deliverance. He might be disciplining you for your hardness of heart. He might be teaching you sorrow over the sins of pride or doubt. Or He might simply be displaying in you the heart of a faithful, patient Christian, touched by His lovingkindness. He might be using your hardship for the gracious blessing of someone else.

— Rev. Pierce Chadburn, Pastor

Zion-Emmanuel Lutheran Church