“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. He noticed two empty boats at the water’s edge, for the fishermen had left them and were washing their nets. 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.” (Luke 5:1-3)

One of the many remarkable designs in God’s creation is the affect water has on sound. Scientists have even studied this phenomenon; sound travels better over water. Today we build amphitheaters to carry sound, but bodies of water will carry sound naturally in a more efficient way than over land. Jesus, of course, knew this and would often teach from a boat on the water so His words would reach larger and larger crowds. 

“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.’
‘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.’” (Luke 5:4-5)

What was Simon doing before he agreed to do as Jesus told him? He was listening to Jesus teach! Simon was a professional fisherman; it’s what he did for a living, and he had been out fishing all night—which, experts say, is the best time to fish because fish are more active at night due to the cooler temperature of the water—and they hadn’t caught any fish at all. Why would an expert fisherman listen to this carpenter? There must have been something in what and how Jesus taught that convinced Simon he should listen to Him. Even though Simon had tried it his way all night and it didn’t work, he was willing to do what Jesus said after listening to Him. That can be a nutshell for a lot of our lives: we can spend years “doing it our way,” the way we think or know it needs to be done, and we can find that it doesn’t work out. Then Jesus comes along and makes all the difference.

“And this time their nets were so full of fish they began to tear! 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.” (Luke 5:6-7)

Fishing all night without Jesus didn’t work, but one morning with Him and the nets began to tear and the boat began to sink from the weight. Have you been trying to do things your way, the way you know it needs to be done? How has that worked for you without Jesus? 

“When Simon Peter realized what had happened, he fell to his knees before Jesus and said, ‘Oh, Lord, please leave me—I’m such a sinful man.’ For he was awestruck by the number of fish they had caught, as were the others with him. 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!’ And as soon as they landed, they left everything and followed Jesus.” (Luke 5:8-11)

What was the first thing Simon realized in the presence of Jesus? How sinful he was. In the Light of Jesus’ perfection, we can feel our sins and feel unworthy to be in Jesus’ presence—and, frankly, we are. But Jesus reconciles us to Himself and to God. If we confess our sins and repent of them, Jesus doesn’t hold our sins against us. Jesus not only stays with Simon but tells him that He will make him and his companions fishers of men. If you’ve been trying life on your terms, why don’t you stop and listen to some of Jesus’ teachings? Take this week and read through the Gospel of John. If you read three chapters a day you’ll be able to finish the book in seven days. We can fish all night and catch nothing—but with Jesus, our nets will be near the breaking point because Jesus makes all the difference. He can take the ordinary and make it extraordinary. Just as He did this with Simon Peter’s life, He can do this with your life too, as long as you listen to and trust Him.

May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

—Redeemed