Jesus has begun the three and a half years of His earthly
ministry. He is healing the sick, giving sight to the blind, causing the lame
to walk, feeding the hungry, casting out demons, and preaching the Gospel of
the Kingdom to the multitudes. But Jesus needs help! On this occasion in Luke
5, Jesus is preaching to the multitude that is pressing upon Him and He needs
help. He sees two boats nearby, one of which is Simon Peter’s, so He gets into it
and goes out a little way from the shore and continues His message (vv. 1-3).
Now in verses 4-11, there are so many wonderful things to
learn, it will probably take us a few days. First, we see that Jesus was not
only preaching and ministering to the multitude, but He is also preparing His
disciples for ministry. Jesus is in Peter’s boat where during His sermon, Peter
has been washing and preparing his nets for another night of fishing the next
evening. But when Jesus finishing His message to the multitude, He stops speaking
and turns His attention to Peter who is alone with Jesus in the boat.
Jesus had been speaking to the multitudes but now He speaks
to the individual. Jesus speaks to Peter. I’m convinced that you might be in
the crowd when the message is being preached but you might hear personally the
voice of the Jesus speaking directly to you. When you get close and alone with
Jesus, you will hear Him speaking to you.
Jesus speaks directly to Peter and this time says to him, “Launch
out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch”. Remember just
shortly before, Jesus had asked Peter to “put out a little from the land”.
Peter stopped washing his nets and obeyed the request of Jesus and moved his boat
out a little way from the shore so Jesus could preach from it. But now after
Jesus speaks to the multitude He speaks to the individual.
You can be sitting in church in the congregation listening,
as the preacher is bringing the message, but then the small still voice of Jesus,
the Holy Spirit, speaks directly to you. Remember in Isaiah 6, how Isaiah was
caught up into a worship scene in the temple in heaven and senses his uncleanliness.
After Isaiah confesses his sin, the angel touches his lips with coals from the altar,
and it was then that he hears the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I
send and who will go for us?” Isaiah
with a cleansed heart now overhears the Lord speaking and he responds, “Here
am I, send me”.
That is what happens to Peter! He hears the voice of Jesus
saying, “Launch out into the deep”. My friend, it is when we surrender
to the Lord ourselves and our possessions that we will hear His commission
personally. “Launch out and let down” (v. 4). Today, if you have been
sitting fretting over your own weakness, "Launch out into the deep"
of His divine strength. Today, if you are despairing over your own
unworthiness, “launch out into the deep” of God's infinite love (Eph. 3:18,
19), and let down the net of restful trust. If you are floundering in the
shallows of your own feelings, “launch out into the deep” of God's
faithfulness.
The multitudes of great fish are in the deep, and when we
by faith launch out into the deep, we will be amazed how the Lord might use us
to bring them to salvation. It is in “the deep that we see the footsteps of God,
and it is there His wonders are seen” (Psa. 107:24).
Today, the Lord might be speaking to you to launch out of
your comfort zone and join Him in ministering His grace to the world around
you! Are you listening and prepared to obey?
God bless!
