Luke 5 (2)

Pray Psalm 107.1-3.
Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever.
Let the redeemed of the LORD say so,
Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy,
And gathered out of the lands,
From the east and from the west,
From the north and from the south.

Sing Psalm 107.1-3.
(Faithfulness: Great Is Thy Faithfulness)
Lord, You are good, we give thanks and we praise You!
Your steadfast love will forever endure.
Let the redeemed, who from trouble You rescue,
gather and say that Your mercy is sure!
Refrain vv. 1-3
Lord, for Your wondrous works, and for Your steadfast love,
we give You thanks, we exalt Your great Name!
We who from east and west, north and south gather,
boldly redemption in Christ we proclaim!

Read Luke 5.1-11; meditate on verses 4-11.

Preparation
1. What did Jesus tell Peter to do?

2. What did Jesus promise Peter?

Meditation
Peter appears to have been a little slow on the uptake. This was the third time Jesus called him to leave all and follow Him (cf. Jn. 1.40-42; Matt. 4.18, 19). But Peter had not yet arrived at that point of full commitment that Jesus was seeking. It was time for a little show-and-tell.

Notice that Jesus’ word to Peter was both command and promise: “Launch out into the deep and let down your nets [command] for a catch [promise]” (v. 4). Peter, however, was trapped in his own experience and reluctant to obey: “We tried that, Lord, and it didn’t work” (v. 5). Then, perhaps seeing the firmness of Jesus’ face, he acquiesced: “nevertheless at Your word I will let down the net.”

When Peter obeyed Jesus’ command, he realized Jesus’ promise: fish more than their little boat could hold! Peter knew what to do: call for help (vv. 6, 7). The lesson struck deep into Peter’s soul, and he fell on his knees before Jesus, ashamed of his little faith (v. 8).

Jesus had made His point, and James and John got it as well (vv. 9, 10). Then Jesus gave the application: “Jesus said to Simon, ‘Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men’” (v. 10). From fish-catchers to men-catchers, Peter’s life and that of his friends were changed forever. When we obey the command of Christ, the promises of the Lord will overflow to us. We will be men-catchers and Kingdom ambassadors as we embrace and obey the Word of the Lord.

Treasures Old and New: Matthew 13.52; Psalm 119.162
Peter, although slow on the uptake, did learn something already from Jesus. As we saw in yesterday’s lesson, Jesus could’ve handled the boat Himself as He “put out a little from the land” (Lk. 5.3), but He asked Peter to do it for Him. To bring him along to watch how to minister to others. Now, when Peter needed help with the “great number of fish” (Lk. 5.6), he “signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them” (Lk. 5.7). He watched Jesus and learned something about working together! That was a success.

In the quote today from Matthew Henry he said, “We must not abruptly quit our callings because we have not the success in them we desire.” What did he mean by success? What do we mean by success? What constitutes a good day? A good witness? A winning day in our Personal Mission Field? The answer is: faithfulness. Were we faithful to what God has called us to do? Are we living within the boundaries where God’s love can reach and bless us? (Jude 21) Did we follow God’s Law to the best of our abilities in the power of the Holy Spirit? Success is the accomplishment of an aim or purpose. Realizing success depends entirely on what our aim and purpose are. Did we reach what we were aiming for?

God told Joshua the way to success and how to aim for the right goal: “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success” (Josh. 1.8). Guaranteed.

We are commanded to do what we have been called to do. In so doing, we may never experience great numbers of people turning to God for new life or see large numbers of changed lives due to our faithful work. But what we will see is God’s delight in our obedience. “The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD, but the prayer of the upright is His delight. The way of the wicked is an abomination to the LORD, but He loves him who follows righteousness” (Prov. 15.8, 9). “LORD, I hope for Your salvation, and I do Your commandments” (Ps. 119.166). Praying and following Jesus in righteousness, and doing His commands is success (Ex. 20.1-17). The results of what we do are always in the hands of the Holy Spirit. As Paul said, “I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the increase. So then neither he who plants is anything nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase” (1 Cor. 3.6, 7).

As Peter and the others “forsook all and followed Him” (Lk. 5.11), and Paul and his cohort were “God’s fellow workers” (1 Cor. 3.9), so we are called to the very same work. With the very same Holy Spirit power, and the same Law to guide us. If that is our aim, success will be the outcome. Regardless of appearances.

For reflection
1. What will success look like in your Personal Mission Field today?

2. What believers can you encourage today in working their Personal Mission Field?

3. What do you need to do now to prepare for a successful day in your Personal Mission Field?

Though they had taken nothing, yet Christ told them to let down their nets again. We must not abruptly quit our callings because we have not the success in them we desire. We are likely to speed well, when we follow the guidance of Christ’s word. The draught of fishes was by a miracle. Matthew Henry (1662-1714), Commentary on Luke 5.1-11

Pray Psalm 107.33-38.
Pray for all believers today, that they may embrace their calling as disciple-making witnesses for Jesus. And pray for those who will hear the Good News today, that the Lord will open their hearts to believe. Pray for yourself, that you may have many opportunities today to sow the good seed of the Kingdom in the hearts of the people of your Personal Mission Field.

Sing Psalm 107.33-38.
(Faithfulness: Great Is Thy Faithfulness)
You make the desert a river o’erflowing;
You make a wasted life fruitful and strong!
You bless the hungry with fields for the sowing;
bless and increase us who to You belong!
Refrain vv. 1-3
Lord, for Your wondrous works, and for Your steadfast love,
we give You thanks, we exalt Your great Name!
We who from east and west, north and south gather,
boldly redemption in Christ we proclaim!

T. M. and Susie Moore

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Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter (Williston: Waxed Tablet Publications, 2006), available by clicking here.