"NEVERTHELESS, AT THY WORD"

Luke 5:1-11

(Luke 5:1 KJV) "And it came to pass, that, as the people pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he stood by the lake of Gennesaret,"

(Luke 5:2 KJV) "And saw two ships standing by the lake: but the fishermen were gone out of them, and were washing their nets."

(Luke 5:3 KJV) "And he entered into one of the ships, which was Simon's, and prayed him that he would thrust out a little from the land. And he sat down, and taught the people out of the ship."

(Luke 5:4 KJV) "Now when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught."

(Luke 5:5 KJV) "And Simon answering said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net."

(Luke 5:6 KJV) "And when they had this done, they enclosed a great multitude of fishes: and their net brake."

(Luke 5:7 KJV) "And they beckoned unto their partners, which were in the other ship, that they should come and help them. And they came, and filled both the ships, so that they began to sink."

(Luke 5:8 KJV) "When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord."

(Luke 5:9 KJV) "For he was astonished, and all that were with him, at the draught of the fishes which they had taken:"

(Luke 5:10 KJV) "And so was also James, and John, the sons of Zebedee, which were partners with Simon. And Jesus said unto Simon, Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men."

(Luke 5:11 KJV) "And when they had brought their ships to land, they forsook all, and followed him."

 

Introduction:

As I prayed, seeking the Lord's will for this service, He directed my heart to this passage of scripture. It is a very convicting and soul-searching passage because it points out a dilemma which faces the church (and individual Christians) today. And, I do not mean just the church in a general way but our church in particular.

I ask you to open your heart to the ministry of the Holy Spirit this morning while I share with you what the Lord showed me about this event and how it relates to us today.

If you drift in your thinking or otherwise allow your mind to wander, you will not receive any inspiration or help from this message. But, I am convinced, if you will hear what God has to say, your Christian life will be challenged and you will leave this place with a deeper burden for souls and a keener edge on your obedience.

  

1. First, let's look at the disciples and what they were busy doing.
  1. They were washing their nets after having a fish-less night. They were doing what they would normally do after a fishing trip. The disappointing evidence of a fruitless effort was the empty nets.
  2. We spend too much time washing empty nets. We engage the sea of life with our tools of fishing but return to the shore with empty nets. The sea of humanity is teeming with possibilities but we, nevertheless, sit in our comfortable surroundings and wash nets.

2. Secondly, notice that Jesus sees their empty nets.
  1. He offers to use our vessel, as He did Simon Peter's, to reach the people with the gospel. Although our nets are empty, the Lord can still use the church for the preaching of the gospel. Good can still be done. There was nothing wrong with the boat - it was usable.
  2. The problem was that the nets were not serving their purpose. The boats were full of fishermen but the nets were empty of fish. Jesus saw the empty nets. He also is aware of our empty nets.

  

3. While Jesus is on board, He tells Simon where and how to fish.
  1. Fishermen don't like to be told how to fish. (illustration) Simon Peter and his fellows had fished all night, which is the way it is still done in that lake. They were tired, their muscles ached, and they wanted to finish their chores and go home.
  2. But, and here is the telling difference between catching the fish and having empty nets, he said, "Nevertheless, at thy word I will let down the net."
  3. Everyone was surprised at the results. They had to call for help!
  1. Jesus went on to tell them that they would become fishers of men.
  1. That's our calling today. We also are to be fishers of men.
  2. But, there are two definite realities which must be in our lives in order for us to fill the nets with fish.
  3. First, is the requirement that Jesus be on board. We can do nothing unless we have His presence (Holy Spirit) with us.
  4. Second, we must hear his voice, obey Him (away with our excuses and our self serving reasons for failure) and put the nets to use.
  5. Our church as a body, and we as individuals, are called to reach people with the gospel. That is the message of this lesson which Jesus was teaching the disciples.

 

The boat is the church; the water is the world; the net is our witness; and the fish are the souls we must win.