“When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.”

Do you remember when you made a clear decision to follow Jesus? For people raised in church, the first step might have been easy: trusting Jesus just seemed the normal thing to do. Adults who don’t have a church background might find it harder, or at least more momentous, to leave the old life behind and make a firm choice to become a disciple.

Try to recall what it was like for you. What elements went into that decision? Now think about this: how hard would it have been if you were the first to make such a decision?

To this point, as Luke tells the story, Jesus followed his baptism and temptation with a period of traveling and teaching with no apparent support or company. Mark’s gospel has Jesus calling disciples before the first chapter is ended, but Luke gives readers an opportunity to learn more about Jesus before challenging them, like Simon and the fishermen, to follow him. [DD]

A sermon in a boat (vv. 1-3)

The previous chapter described how Jesus appeared in the synagogue of Nazareth, his hometown. There he declared his mission statement and implied that he had come in fulfillment of a prophecy from Isaiah 61:1-2, but his former neighbors were so offended that they tried to throw him from a cliff (Lu. 4:22-30). [DD]

Jesus managed to slip through the angry crowd and walked the 25 miles or so northwest to Capernaum where he also taught with authority in the synagogue, healed a man, and was more gladly accepted. In fact, Jesus became so popular that it was hard to escape the constant presence of people seeking his touch (Luke 4:37, 42-43). But Jesus was not interested in attracting groupies. This sets the stage for Jesus’ call to several persons to follow him in a way that would go beyond fascination and make them models for discipleship.

Simon Peter plays a very prominent, though not always favorable, role in both Luke and Acts, so it is not surprising that his strong personality dominates this story. Note that Luke’s account differs somewhat from that in Mark and Matthew, where Jesus appears to have called Peter, James, and John the first time he met them. John 1:35-51 suggests that they had been acquainted earlier, and Luke says plainly that Jesus had not only eaten dinner at Peter’s house, but healed his mother-in-law of a serious fever (4:38-39).

Luke 4:42-44 indicates that Jesus had left Galilee and begun to teach in the synagogues of Judea, 100 miles or more to the south, but the following story strangely finds him still – or back – in Galilee. Crowds in search of healing pressed so incessantly against Jesus that he had little opportunity for teaching, even the text insists that some among them “wanted to hear the word of God.”

As Jesus continued to teach, the crowds continued to grow, and a day came when the people pushed Jesus to the edge of Lake Gennesaret, an alternate name for the Sea of Galilee (v. 1). [DD] With his back to the water and hardly room to breathe, Jesus noticed two boats on the shore. Knowing that one of them belonged to Simon Peter, Jesus called him over and asked permission to teach from his fishing boat. From this floating pulpit he safely and calmly taught the multitude, now gathered around the small bay as if in an outdoor amphitheater (vv. 2-3). [DD] [DD]

A miracle in the nets (vv. 4-7)

Surprisingly, after setting up Jesus’ sermon-on-the-sea, Luke tells us nothing about what he had to say, only that “he taught the crowds from the boat.” Perhaps Luke knew that readers would be more interested in what happened next: after concluding his sermon, Jesus turned away from the crowds and called to Peter, challenging him to “launch out into the deep” and go fishing again (v. 4).

This may have served several purposes: in addition to thanking Peter for the use of his boat by providing fish, Jesus also managed to put some distance between himself and the crowds. In the process, he had a quieter opportunity to reveal himself personally to Peter, the “Rock” upon whom so much would depend.

Peter is generally portrayed as the real leader of the disciples. All twelve disciples are listed four times in scripture (Matt. 10:2-4; Mark 3:16-19; Luke 6:14-16; Acts 1:13). In every case, Peter is listed first (and Judas Iscariot last).

Many preachers have taken Jesus’ challenge to Peter as a metaphor for personal evangelism, turning it into a three-point sermon: (1) “Launch out into the deep . . .” (“Take the risk!”), (2) “. . . and let down your nets . . .” (“Share your faith!”), (3) “ . . . for a catch . . .” (“Expect results!”).

As attractive as that might be, the story was not about evangelism, but a challenge to faith and obedience. If we grant Luke’s order of events, Peter would have heard Jesus’ teaching and witnessed his healing power. Still, he must have questioned Jesus’ surprising suggestion that they go fishing again, and in deeper water.

Peter was a professional fisherman, and he had already toiled all night, which he must have considered the best time for fishing during that season. Despite his expertise, he had caught nothing, and it may have hurt his pride that Jesus — trained as a carpenter — was telling him how to fish.

Yet, Peter obeyed: “If you say so, I will let down the nets” (v. 5). And, as we know, Peter’s faith was rewarded with a miraculous catch, bringing in “so many fish that their nets were beginning to break,” and Peter had to signal for James and John to bring their boat and help them get the haul to shore (vv. 6-7).

Peter’s experience suggests that we might think about what tasks Jesus might be calling us to “launch” into. Could it involve sharing our faith with a neighbor, learning to control some negative habit, or serving the church or a social ministry in some way? It is not the size of our ability that matters – Jesus didn’t ask Peter how big his net was – but our willingness to use it.

A confession amid the fish (vv. 8-9)

The flabbergasting catch of fish was all Peter needed to put him over the top. Coupled with his previous encounters with Jesus, the experience led Peter to believe that he was in the presence of God himself — or at least God’s earthly representative. The rustic fisherman knelt amid the pungent catch and confessed his sinful nature (v. 8). Many remember Peter for his later denial of Jesus after the crucifixion. Luke shows us that, from the beginning, Peter knew he had a dark side – as we all do.

Since we are also sinful, Peter serves as a fitting model for us. We remember that Isaiah, when confronted by the presence of God, also confessed to his own sinfulness (Isa. 6:1-6). When our sinful human nature comes in contact with God’s holiness, the contrast is obvious.

Luke notes that this miracle made an equally strong impression on “all who were with him” (v. 9). James and John are mentioned by name and called Peter’s “partners” (v. 11). Surprisingly, Peter’s brother Andrew is not named in the story, though we would have expected him to be in the boat with Peter. Jesus offered to his future disciples a teachable moment, and they made the most of it.
Can you remember any spiritually “teachable moments” in your life — particular events or experiences in which you felt the Spirit nudging you toward a greater understanding of or response to Jesus’ call?

A new kind of catch (vv. 10-11)

And how did Jesus manage this moment? He predicted that his follower-friends would no longer catch fish, but people. This would be a major change. Those who catch fish do so in order that the fish may die and the fishermen might be fed or enriched. In contrast, those who “catch” people do so because they have already been “caught” by Jesus, and so the persons they bring into the kingdom might live and not die.

In the Old Testament, fishing was sometimes used as a metaphor for gathering people for judgment (Amos 4:2; Hab. 1:14-15; Jer. 16:16). That eschatological theme is not absent from Jesus’ teachings, but the emphasis is more on bringing people into the kingdom of God rather than just gathering them to be judged, as in the parable of the dragnet (Matt. 13:47).

It is notable that Luke records no vocal response from the newly challenged disciples. There is no debating of pros and cons, no private discussion, no pursuit of further information about potential benefits. There is not even a recorded disposition of the net full of fish, the professional gear, or the valuable boats.

The new disciples did not respond with words, but with actions: “When they had brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed him” (v. 11). One assumes that there were other family members or hired crew who stayed behind to look after the boats, nets, and fish. For Peter and Andrew, James and John, however, their lives as fishermen were over. They left it all to enroll in Jesus’ traveling school of faith and ministry.

Following Jesus’ call required radical changes in the lives of these four fishermen. If we were to whole-heartedly respond to Jesus’ claim on our lives, what changes might he lead us to make?