Jesus Calling - Lectionary Reflection for Epiphany 5C (Luke 5)

Luke 5:1-11 New Revised Standard Version

5 Once while Jesus was standing beside the lake of Gennesaret, and the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, ² he saw two boats there at the shore of the lake; the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. ³ He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little way from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat. ⁴ When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.” ⁵ Simon answered, “Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.” ⁶ When they had done this, they caught so many fish that their nets were beginning to break. ⁷ So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both boats, so that they began to sink. ⁸ But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!” ⁹ For he and all who were with him were amazed at the catch of fish that they had taken; ¹⁰ and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. Then Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching people.” ¹¹ When they had brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed him.

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                After his baptism by John the Baptist and sojourn in the wilderness where he was tested, Jesus began his preaching ministry in Galilee. He seemed to be pretty effective as a preacher and healer, but things didn’t go so well for him when he returned home to Nazareth and accepted an invite to be the guest preacher (Luke 4:14-30). After he got run out of Nazareth, he went back to the fishing village of Capernaum where he resumed his preaching and healing ministry. While he was there Jesus stopped by Simon’s house, where he healed Simon’s mother-in-law (apparently so she could make dinner for him). The next morning, he went out to pray and then continued preaching (Luke 4:38-44).

                When we turn the page to Luke 5, we find Jesus engaged in preaching along the Lake of Gennesaret (Sea of Galilee). Since the people were pressing in on him, hoping that they could hear him preach, he decided to find a way to preach without getting pushed into the lake.  So, when he saw a couple of boats being attended to by fishermen, he climbed into Simon’s boat (you know the Simon at whose house he had spent the previous evening) and continued teaching. From the previous chapter, you would have thought Simon was one of Jesus’ followers, but here he’s just another fisherman tending to his nets and boats.

                When Jesus finished teaching, he told Simon to take the boat out to deeper water and throw out the nets. Now Simon might not have known a lot about religious matters, but he did know fishing. So, he told Jesus that they’d been out all night and hadn’t caught anything. So why now. After all, the best fishing times came at night, not in the daylight. However, he did what Jesus asked. When the crew threw out the nets, they pulled in a huge load of fish. In fact, Simon had to call out for help to bring it in. As a result of their teamwork, they brought in so many fish that the boats began to sink. Who knew that Jesus was an expert in fishing in daylight! At least Simon, along with his fishing partners, James and John, were surprised. Simon was so overwhelmed by it all that he fell on his knees before Jesus and told Jesus to go away from him. According to Luke, Simon told Jesus was a sinful man. He wasn’t worthy to be in Jesus’ presence. Once again, everyone involved is amazed and in awe of this seemingly simple man from Nazareth.

                As we ponder this scene, we should take note of the symbolic elements of the story. The reference to deeper waters might have been understood in terms of chaos, which threatens God’s order (Genesis 1:1-2). Then there is this huge catch of fish taken from the deep waters/chaos. As Ron Allen notes, “the extravagant size of the haul points to the abundance of the coming Realm of God” [Feasting on the Gospels: Luke, 1:123]. We need to keep this imagery in mind as we hear the next word from Jesus.

                All of this business about going fishing and hauling in the big catch is only a prelude for what comes next. According to Luke’s account, up to this point, Jesus had been engaged in a solo preaching ministry. But now it’s time to start building a team. So, instead of acceding to Simon’s plea to go away, Jesus invites Simon to take up a new kind of fishing enterprise. This time, it will be people he’ll be catching. Luke says that after this, when the boats returned to shore, those with him left everything and followed him. I would assume that included James and John, along with Simon. At least that’s the way it works elsewhere in the Gospels.

                Jesus was an itinerant preacher, teacher, and healer. He traveled around Galilee, and many embraced his message. So, it’s not surprising that at some point he decided that it was time to gather a group of disciples with whom he could share ministry and prepare to take over from him or at least at some point expand the reach of his ministry. Each Gospel has its own version of how Jesus began to do this. Though in the Synoptics the first called are the fishermen. In Matthew Jesus is walking by the lake and comes upon Simon and his brother Andrew, and he calls them to join him in fishing for people, then nearby are James and John who join the troop (Matt. 4:18-22). In the Gospel of Mark, it’s essentially the same story (Mk 1:16-20). Here in Luke, Jesus waits to call them after the fishing incident, though Andrew is not present, which is interesting. Of course, John has his own very different version. In the Gospel of John, the first disciples follow Jesus at the Jordan, after John the Baptist points out that he is the Lamb of God. In this case, it’s Andrew who does the recruiting of his brother Simon (John 1:34-42).

                In the Synoptic Gospels when Jesus calls, true disciples drop what they’re doing and follow Jesus. There are no making provisions for their jobs, saying goodbye to loved ones, or anything else. They just up and follow Jesus, not knowing where this will take them. They know something is special about Jesus. They’ve seen amazing things. They’ve heard amazing messages. So, there is nothing they can do but follow Jesus. In this case, the three new disciples take up their calling to fish for people, with the expectation that the haul will be great. The reference to fishing in the deep water of chaos may symbolize for Luke the future ministry among the Gentiles, as they too might experience the abundance of the Realm of God.   

                So, where does that leave us? Must we leave everything we know and love and follow Jesus toward destinations unknown? Perhaps we need not drop our current vocations and head out on a mission, but we are called to follow Jesus, often to parts unknown, to draw others into God’s realm. As Pamela Cooper-White writes:

Like the disciples, we also have to throw our nets out into the deep waters. Shallow, tentative paddling is not allowed if we are to discern where God is calling us. This requires us to take risks. We could fail and come up with nothing. The boat could capsize. The nets we have fashioned for our safe, contained selves might break under the weight of our unlived lives. Jesus tells us, as he tells Simon and the others, not to be afraid. When we risk what we have known for the sake of responding to Gods’ call on our lives, we will be given all the abundance we need and more.  [Feasting on the Word: Luke, 1:126].

As this is a text for Epiphany, which highlights manifestations of God’s presence in the world, as we take these steps into the deep waters and cast our nets there, we may find ourselves being a manifestation of God in the world. As the readings for the season from 1 Corinthians 12 remind us, we are sufficiently gifted for the tasks at hand.  

          Image Attribution: Raphael, 1483-1520. Miraculous Draught of Fishes, from Art in the Christian Tradition, a project of the Vanderbilt Divinity Library, Nashville, TN. https://diglib.library.vanderbilt.edu/act-imagelink.pl?RC=55340 [retrieved January 30, 2022]. Original source: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:V%26A_-_Raphael,_The_Miraculous_Draught_of_Fishes_(1515).jpg#.