Bible Reading: Luke 5:1-11
Do you ever feel like no matter how hard you try, the fish just won’t take the bait? This, of course, is a fishing analogy, and to the best of my knowledge, I am not aware of anyone here who takes an interest in fishing. But I hope you can appreciate the sentiment.
I think we have all experienced times when we have tried to do something, and no matter how hard we try, it just won’t happen. It could be big things like trying to pass your driving test. My late grandmother Lillian could drive perfectly fine, but every time it came to the test, she was so nervous and anxious that she could never pass. I believe she had six or seven attempts. Or perhaps you tried your hand at the piano but things just never clicked into place. It could even be that jam jar that you just can’t get open. No matter how hard you try, it just doesn’t happen. The fish won’t take the bait.
This was the very literal case for the disciples in our story: Simon (who was called Peter), Andrew, James, and John. They were fishermen. They had been out all night on the lake with their nets but had caught nothing. Now, if you are a recreational angler, this isn’t the end of the world; it’s just a bad day. But for these full-time fishermen, this was their job, their livelihood. If they were failing to catch fish, it meant no income and no food to eat. Imagine a teacher who couldn’t teach or a preacher who couldn’t preach. It is not good. So, I suspect that Simon Peter and the others were feeling quite disheartened. They might have felt frustrated, as if they were failing in the one thing they needed to do, the one thing they needed to succeed.
The reality is that most people experience something like this at some point in their lives. It may not pertain to work, but maybe to family life, such as being a spouse or a parent. Alternatively, it could be the small things, like when I attempt to roll my ‘R’s and it just sounds like I’m making demented noises. In situations like this, it can be tempting to give up. You think, well, what’s the point? It’s never going to happen.
Some of the clearest moments for us when we experience this are when we are kids. Can you remember learning to tie your shoes? You watch your mum or dad take you through the steps, and you try to copy them. Again and again, you try, but you just can’t seem to get it. In a huff, you scream at your parents, ‘I can’t do this! I’m just going to wear Velcro shoes for the rest of my life.’ But what do they say? ‘Have another go.’ Parents will encourage their kids to have another go, to keep going again and again, because they know and believe that you will get there in the end. You don’t believe them, but you soften enough to fathom giving it another go. Then, what do you know, you’ve tied your shoes for the first time.
Like a parent telling a kid to keep going again and again, Jesus invites his soon to be disciples to cast out the net again. As I said, Simon Peter and the others would have felt disappointed after a whole night on the lake with not a single fish to show for it. Then, Jesus appears. He hops onto Simon Peter’s boat and teaches the crowd. After this, Jesus says to Simon Peter, ‘Cast your nets out again.’ Imagine the nerve. Who was this teacher who saunters in and tells the fishermen to put their nets in the water, like they hadn’t already tried that, like they didn’t know what they were doing? But then Simon Peter does something unexpected. He says, ‘Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.’[1]
I am deeply moved by what Simon Peter says here: ‘Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.’ His experience that night had given him nothing. He was tired and spent. He didn’t believe there were any fish to be caught because he had tried all night and got nothing. But ‘yet,’ Simon Peter says, ‘Yet,’ that is, in spite of all I know and have experienced; I will do what goes against what I know. I will do what seems foolish and pointless because of who asks me. Simon Peter agreed to cast down the nets because, even though he thought nothing would happen, he had encountered something of Jesus on that boat that seemed worth trusting, even if it didn’t make sense. So, Simon Peter lets down the nets and makes a catch so large that his nets begin to break. He shouts to the other boats to come and help pull in the fish, as there are so many. It was a miracle.
What I love about this story is that Jesus does something amazing in a hopeless situation. The fishermen had given up hoping for fish. They had failed. There was nothing more left to do at this point. Yet, Jesus invites them to carry on, and even though they didn’t believe anything would happen, they did it anyway, and as a result, they discovered more of the good blessings that Jesus had for them.
So often in life, when we feel like we have been failing attempt after attempt, we decide that it’s hopeless and choose to throw in the towel. This is across all aspects of life. But in those situations when we are ready to stop, God speaks to us and leads us in a new direction. Sometimes, it’s to keep doing what we have already been doing. Sometimes, it’s to try something new. It’s in these situations that Jesus turns to us and says, ‘Will you let down your nets for a catch?’ Will you take the step of faith to trust Jesus and see what catch he might bring to your life? This is the question that this story leaves with us.
How are we going to respond when Jesus asks us to take a step of faith? Will we listen to him, trust him, and be obedient to what he says? Or will we ignore him and put our trust in our experience so far? The choice is up to us. Jesus instructs Simon Peter to let down the net, but Jesus leaves the decision up to Simon Peter to choose to follow Jesus’ instructions. Our call from Jesus to follow him and where he leads us is, ultimately, not a command, but an invitation to enter deeper into him and his glory. I know that it is not easy. Everything going on can say that it doesn’t make sense to take the step. But when we choose Jesus over our fears and doubts, we are stepping further into his glory and wonder in our lives and in this world.
Just to be clear, when we step out in faith, it does not mean that it will all go well. Simon Peter let down the net not knowing or expecting anything to happen, yet still he let down his net. The story of the early church shows us that many early Christians would die for their faith in Jesus, for stepping out to follow him. So, why take the step? We take the step of faith because of Jesus. We take the step because whatever the outcome, it will always be better to have more of Jesus in our lives, and even in pain, hardship and suffering, we will see more of God’s glory and presence.
So, if you feel like giving up on work, your family, a hobby, or a daily task, whatever, I ask you to think again. Perhaps you even feel like giving up on following God and being a Christian. If you do, I implore you to hear that God wants you to keep going, to take the step of faith, to let down the net for the catch. Hear how God says to you, ‘There is so much that I have to show you, so much that I have to give to you.’ But God isn’t going to force us like a slave, but invites us like a friend.
When Simon Peter let down the net for the catch, he made the biggest catch imaginable. What do you think God will do when you let down your net for the catch? If you have felt stuck and unable to see any success or progress, trust in God, and wait and see what he is going to do.
As a slight caveat, I think it’s worth saying that I don’t believe God has designed us to be capable of everything. God will help us do things that we couldn’t do on our own, but it is worth remembering that God will not transform us into people who can do everything. That is not how He designed human beings. In the New Testament, Paul goes on and on about how the church is made up of people with different gifts and abilities, indicating that each of us is unique because God has designed each of us a unique part to play. When we step out in faith to follow God’s calling, it’s okay if it doesn’t work out like we hoped or expected. God may have a different part for you to play. But we must take the step to discover what that part is. Simon Peter didn’t find out that he would be called to be a fisher of people until he had let down his net for the catch.
Is there something that you feel stuck on in your life? Have you given up on God? If you have, I want you to know that God is inviting you to take a fresh step of faith, to let down your net for the catch. You may have been up all night and have nothing to show for it, but when we trust in Jesus and accept his invitation to follow him, we will see a great catch of his glory in our lives. It often doesn’t make sense, and there is no guarantee of an easy ride, but the miracles of God happen when we step out in faith. It is only when we let down our nets that we have a chance of catching more of God. Simon Peter didn’t believe anything would happen, yet because of who was asking him, Jesus, he took the step of faith. Will you follow that same heart and say to Jesus, ‘Yet, if you say so, I will let down the nets.’[2]
Amen.
[1] Luke 5:5 [NRSV].
[2] Luke 5:5 [NRSV].
Shakeel Nurmahi 