In our daily devotionals over the next few weeks, we will focus on the miraculous acts of Jesus in the Gospel accounts. Because of my earlier years as a commercial fisherman with my father, there is one story of Christ’s power that I particularly enjoy.
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3He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat. 4When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch." 5Simon answered, "Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets" (Luke 5:3-5).
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Imagine what it was like for Peter. He had been fishing all night (v. 5), and now, after cleaning the nets of all the weeds, he was exhausted and wanted to go home. When a fisherman returns to port, it is disappointing to catch no fish and admit to failing at his work, and that was precisely Peter's situation. The last thing he wanted was for Jesus to get into his boat and speak to the people from it. I'm sure he was tired after fishing all night, but since Jesus had healed his mother-in-law the day before (Luke 4:38-40), he had no choice but to let Jesus use his boat to teach the people. Peter responded graciously and obediently. He got into the boat with Jesus, pushed out from the shore, and began to listen to Jesus teach. They were about to witness a miracle.
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During my year and a half living in Israel, I had the chance to go out with the local fishermen from the Galilee region in Tiberius, drawing from my experience as a fisherman in my youth. I asked them why they fished at night, and they explained that it was virtually impossible to catch anything during the day, as the fish could see the nets and easily avoid them in the clear water. In the darkness of night, it was easier to catch fish.
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The Lord instructed Peter to venture further from the shore into the deeper waters to catch some fish (v. 4). The Sea of Galilee has a depth of 200 feet, and Peter likely thought that since it was daytime and hot, the fish would be staying cool in the deeper parts, which his nets couldn’t reach. When it came to fishing, Peter was the expert, and Jesus was a builder/carpenter; what did He know about where the fish were and how to catch them? Yet, because Jesus had asked, he stepped out in obedience.
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6When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. 7So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them, and they came and filled both boats so full that they began to sink. 8When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus' knees and said, "Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!" 9For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, 10and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon's partners. 11Then Jesus said to Simon, "Don't be afraid; from now on you will catch men." So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him (Luke 5:6-11).
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God finds ways to capture our attention. For Moses, it was the experience of a burning bush (Exodus 3:3-5); for Peter, it involved an astonishing catch of fish at an impossible hour. Peter observed a series of events that convinced him Jesus was the Messiah. In the synagogue where Peter worshiped, a demon was expelled (Luke 4:33), and shortly after, his mother-in-law was healed right before him. Additionally, there was an entire evening filled with extraordinary healings and deliverances, during which Jesus healed everyone who came to Him for relief from sickness and demons (Luke 4:40-41).
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The Lord was catching more than just fish that day; He was after people. Christ involved Peter in a miraculous catch of fish, but He had much greater things on His mind. I believe He has you on His mind, too. Keith Thomas
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Taken from the study in the Gospel of Luke, study 8, Jesus Goes Fishing, can be found in the All Studies box on the Home Page.
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