A PARTNERSHIP WITH JESUS
Luke 5:1-11
The text in this lesson is Jesus choice of His disciples. Before Jesus
Started His teaching on the earth In Israel. They had been without a King for 400 years. I want to give a brief background of the situation in Israel
Before Jesus stated His teaching.
INTRODUCTION TO THE TEXT
God has a way to make a whole nation call on Him for relief. In the past
God has allowed the oppression of the nation of Israel so that they prayed for His intervention. All throughout the Old Testament this was the case. God consistently gave Israel the same message
2 Chron 7:14 Then if my people who are called by my name will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land.
By the time of Jesus birth Israel had not had a king for 400 years. In 586 BC, because of Israels sins, God sent Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon to destroy Israel, burn down the city and the temple and take the people
Captive. The last king from the line of David was killed in captivity.
In 63 BC the Roman empire under Pompey the Great captured Israel and Installed Herod the Great an Edomite ( a descendant of Esau) as King of the Jews. He enlarged the temple and built a royal palace for himself. Jerusalem became the religious center and a metropolis. The Sanhedrin, the Jewish council made of 70 elders required all Jews to make a yearly pilgrimage to the city and bring sacrifices for their sins.
The Jewish children starting at the age of 5 or 6 were required to study the
Torah, the first 5 books of the Bible. They were required to attend Synagogue services on the Sabbath learning the Old Testament through adulthood.
Imagine Jewish men studying the Old Testament knowing that Israel was
A nation of 12 tribes promised by God to have a King on the throne from the line of David forever. In addition knowing the prophecies from
Hundreds of years earlier predicted the coming of a messiah (Isa 7:14, Micah 5:2, Daniel 7:13). They were hopeful for that day.
The nation was oppressed by heavy taxes, limited freedom, and inaccurate interpretation of the Old Testament scriptures. By the time of Jesus the nation of Israel was ready for a King to dispose the Roman government. They were willing to take acting to restore Israel to God’s promise.
John 6:15 Jesus therefore perceiving that they were about to come and take him by force, to make him king, withdrew again into the mountain himself alone.
John 12:13 took the branches of the palm trees, and went forth to meet him, and cried out, Hosanna: Blessed (is) he that cometh in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel.
At the age of 30 Jesus picked 12 men as disciples who were waiting and hoping for a King. This brings us to our text.
THE TEXT
Luke 5:1-11
1 One day as Jesus was preaching on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, great crowds pressed in on him to listen to the word of God. 2 He noticed two empty boats at the water’s edge, for the fishermen had left them and were washing their nets. 3 Stepping into one of the boats, Jesus asked Simon, its owner, to push it out into the water. So he sat in the boat and taught the crowds from there.
4 When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Now go out where it is deeper, and let down your nets to catch some fish.”
5 “Master,” Simon replied, “we worked hard all last night and didn’t catch a thing. But if you say so, I’ll let the nets down again.” 6 And this time their nets were so full of fish they began to tear! 7 A shout for help brought their partners in the other boat, and soon both boats were filled with fish and on the verge of sinking.
8 When Simon Peter realized what had happened, he fell to his knees before Jesus and said, “Oh, Lord, please leave me—I’m too much of a sinner to be around you.” 9 For he was awestruck by the number of fish they had caught, as were the others with him. 10 His partners, James and John, the sons of Zebedee, were also amazed.
Jesus replied to Simon, “Don’t be afraid! From now on you’ll be fishing for people!” 11 And as soon as they landed, they left everything and followed Jesus.
AN ENCOUNTER WITH JESUS IS ENLIGHTEN
Peter encountered Jesus on two previous occasions. Andrew, His brother introduced him to Jesus (John 1:35). Jesus healed Peter’s mother in law (Luke 4:38) the previous day.
Also on the day before, Jesus cast out demons and heal all the people
Who were brought to Him. Because of these events crowds began to follow Him.
WHY DID JESUS CHOOSE FISHERMEN?
Fishermen have trained qualities useful in discipleship
It takes courage, patience, persistence, and determination to work
In the seas, where conditions can change in a moment
Fishermen must work together as a team to lower the net and pull the catch into the boat.
They must maintain the boat, the nets and all equipment necessary for the job of catching fish.
Disciples of Jesus must be trained to know the Gospel and how to proclaim it to those God place in their midst.
There are different kind of fish in different environments that require different fishing techniques.
There are different people from different backgrounds that need a message from God that identifies with their situation.
A DAY WITH JESUS IS LIFE CHANGING
Some time later Jesus was at the sea shore teaching the word of God
When He encountered Peter and his partners who had been fishing all night and caught nothing. Jesus can take your nothing day and make it extraordinary.
JESUS CHOSE YOU FIRST
There were two boats at the shore line. Jesus entered the one owned by Peter. He entered the boat, sat down and taught the crowd.
Jesus choice of you is deliberate and purposeful. There were two boats at the shore. Jesus chose Peter’s. Jesus chooses the best in us. He knows what we are capable of and how we will react to His commands. For certain tasks, Jesus chooses those who are leaders and have the right influence over others. Jesus knew Peter’s family ties and his devotion to family. God chooses working people to serve.
LET JESUS USE WHAT YOU HAVE
Peter was obedient to the command of Jesus. It was a small boat, probably smelled of fish and dirty. Jesus sat down and used it as His teaching platform. When the teaching section ended, Jesus had some alone time with Peter.
You and I after the work of the day is done need to find alone time to talk with Jesus. He can reveal to us plans that includes His will for us. It is obvious that the best time to catch fish in the Sea of Galilee was at night.
From a fleshly point of view it wouldn’t make sense to repeat what failed
When Jesus is directing your plan, success is assured. Jesus commanded
Peter to let down the net. From his experience this was hopeless. By faith
In the Word ofJesus, Peter took the boat out and cast the net in the day time. Jesus controlled the feeding and the location of large a number fish to Peter and His partners nets. This was the largest catch they had had. The catch was so large, that Peter call for help from his partners to bring the catch to shore. The catch stretch the limits of the net, the capacity of the two boats and strength of the men.
The size of the catch made Peter realize that this was a miracle of God. It
Reminded Peter of the scripture, that no man can see God and live.
The miracle catch made Peter aware of his sinfulness and the need to confess. The men had previously recognized Jesus as the messiah. They heard His teaching, witnessed His miracles yet were not fully convinced who He was. It was the catch that affected them personally that finally convinced them that Jesus was God or at least operating under the power of God.
Until Jesus does something personally amazing to us individually, we may not truly accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior. God gives us testimonies to
Strengthen our faith.
Peter amazed and fearful had to be comforted by the Lord. Fear not Peter, from now on you will be fishers of men. At Jesus’ acknowledgement, Peter and his partners, James and John left their boats and followed Jesus.
Of course we know there must be more to the story that God does not tell us. They had two boat loads of fish that had to be sold, traded, or prepared
For storage. Nothing God does for us is wasted. The conversation with Jesus may have been more prolonged for them to walk away from their trade and means of support for their families.
AN ENCOUNTER WITH JESUS CHANGES DIRECTION AND PURPOSE
We know Jesus stance on family and His requirements to be His followers. His requirements takes a strong faith in Him to make the change. We are not told but I suggest that conversation between Peter, James and John
Was considerable longer than what’s in include in the text. God can change
Hearts and minds with the snap of his fingers, so nothing is impposssible for Him.
Luke 14:26-27
“If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison—your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters—yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple. 27 And if you do not carry your own cross and follow me, you cannot be my disciple.
We must take it literally that Peter, James and John left their profession and trusted Jesus to make away for their families to be taken care of. We do not
Have any indications that Jesus, His disciples or families went lacking or were in need doing the three years of discipleship.
The text points out several things that are important in our relationship with Jesus.
JESUS MEET YOU WHERE YOU ARE
Jesus calls us when we have been exposed to the Word of God
Jewish boys from the age of 5 or 6 were trained in the Old Testament
The study of the Old Testament was continuous in the Synagogue
Every Sabbath day.
Jesus meets us where we are. Jesus came to the work place of Peter, James, and John. They were dirty, tired and disappointed. Dirty and tired because they had worked hard all night, Disappointed because they caught no fish.
They were troubled because of the oppression of the nation by the Roman empire. And may have been troubled by the misapplication
Of God’s Word by the Jewish hierarchy. They were waiting on the
Promised King of the Old Testament prophesies.
They had been introduced to Jesus as the Messiah, heard his teaching and witnessed His miracles. But still was not sure who He was.
It was not until they had a personal testimony of their own that believed Jesus was the Messiah. It was not until they had an unsully
Large catch of fish orchestrated by Jesus that they knew Jesus and was prepared to follow Him
All of us need a personal testimony about the goodness of the Lord to strengthen our faith. Jesus taught from Peter’s boat, then stood watch when fish appeared from nowhere filled his net to the breaking point.
THERE MUST BE A TIME WHEN WE ACCEPT JESUS AS LORD
Peter fell down at the feet of Jesus, worshipped Him and confessed his sins. All of us must come to confession before Jesus each day.
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God
Blessings follow confession. From fear to joy. From failure to success,
From guilt to peace. From a relationship with the world, to a relationship with the almighty creator.
TRUSTING JESUS IS REWARDING
When we let Jesus take charge of our lives He will bless us with more than we can conceive or imagine.
Peter with doubt in his mind, at Jesus command moved the boat back into the sea, and cast his net. He could not conceive what Jesus what
Jesus was had caused to be. From no fish in the sea to an abundance at place the boat sat in the water.
Peter was amazed at the miracle Jesus performed. Each day God performs miracles in our lives. It good for us to get up each expecting God to amaze us with His works.
Peter called James and John to help with the catch of fish. His influence was immediate. It was part of Peter’s personality to
Speak up and let others know what was on his mind.
GOD VALUES PARTERSHIPS
Peter, James and John were partners in fishing. It was a trade that was probably handed down from their fathers. They were dedicated to the trade working day and night to provide for their families.
It was Peter who recognized Jesus as Lord first. It was Peter who
Feared the Lord and humbly confessed his sins. It was Peter who the Lord gave peace first. It was Peter who Jesus said, I will make you fishers of men.
It may have been Peter’s decision to leave his boat and follow Jesus
That influenced James and John to do the same.
Jesus started His discipleship with partners. Jesus wants us to partner with Him in the Gospel.
SUCCESS IS ASSURED WHEN JESUS IS LORD
The Word of God is like a net, cast wide will draw men to Jesus.
When we partner with Jesus in lifting Him up all men will be drawn to Him
We never know how many people we are influencing when we proclaim the name of Jesus.
Success is assured when it is the will of Jesus and not our will
