Jesus and the Fishermen

Intro. The gospels present Jesus as the Son of God and also as the Carpenter from Nazareth. It takes faith for a fisherman to take advice from a carpenter. Jesus was not speaking to them as a fellow fisherman, or as an expert on the migratory habits of Galilean tilapia. Jesus, because he was God in the flesh, is Lord over all creation. He could make the fish come to the nets. He knew when and where they would be. His word to the disciples was to bring them to believe on Him and be willing to follow Him as His disciples.

Jesus is the world’s leading expert in every field of study. He is not only the Carpenter, He is the Good Shepherd, the Merchant, the Husbandman, the Great Physician, The Teacher, our Advocate, Prophet, Priest, and King! Not only can He predict the weather, He can create it or make be still! Not only does He know about the sea, He can walk on the water! Not only does He know the Law, He knows the spirit and meaning of the Law and how to justly apply it.

His wisdom is applicable to any business. His truths are applicable to any science. For the believer, there is no such thing as secular. Jesus is Lord over all!

When Jesus tells you to throw the net one more time, you would be very wise to do as He says. If Jesus tells you to throw the net from the other side of the boat, you would be wise to do as He says.

I. Consideration - Peter allowed Jesus to occupy his boat. There were many times when people rejected Jesus’ presence or discounted his words. Peter not only gave him audience, he considered what he said. He was listening. He was open. He was willing to consider what He had to say, and even help him say it.

II. Command - Jesus, when invited, will always take over. He will start telling us what we should do. If you don’t want Jesus as Lord, don’t expect to have Him as Savior. He is a package deal!

Jesus doesn’t think that your way is as good as his. He respects our autonomy and free will, but he will lovingly rule in our lives for our present righteousness and eternal reward.

*** Note: Peter was under no obligation to follow Christ’s command. However, failing to do so would have caused Peter to miss out on a great blessing! The same is true for all of us. Once we learn the value of having a wise Lord who loves us and is willing to die for our benefit, we can confidently follow Him.

People today do not like the idea of a Jesus who insists He is right, but He does.

People today want a Jesus that will not tell them what to do, but He will.

People today do not want a Jesus that expects them to repent of their sins, but He does.

Until and unless we surrender to His Lordship, we cannot expect to benefit from His Lordship. We cannot choose Him as Savior while rejecting Him as Lord.

III. Cynicism - Peter expressed his skepticism that this attempt would be any better than previous attempts. It is a difficult thing when you are asked to try again. To us mortals, failure has a way of diminishing our expectations and robbing us of our motivation. They had toiled all night and ended up with nothing! It is human nature to doubt. It is normal to hesitate.

“Lord, I believe. Help thou mine unbelief.”

IV. Compliance – Nevertheless! At thy word! Go ahead and believe. Go ahead and put some action to your faith. Peter is like you and me. He was initially reluctant, but decided to try Jesus’ advice. Everyone who ever became a practicing Christian had a point where they laid aside their skepticism and made a choice to believe!

V. Compensation – Trusting Christ will bring blessings! When we trust and obey God, we experience his supernatural blessings! Doing things the way God would have us do them makes us partners in the doings of God. Jesus took over Peter’s fishing business and made it better.

VI. Cooperation – Working with others is essential for gaining the greater good. Our blessings are to be shared with the community at large. The blessings of Christianity are the blessings of Fort Collins. Salt and light are good for the community at large.

Benjamin Franklin was a good friend to George Whitefield. Even though Franklin did not have a personal saving faith in Jesus, he understood the benefits that Whitefield’s preaching had in the community. New England was a better place because of the gospel. Franklin befriended Whitefield and printed Whitefield’s sermons for free!

VII. Contrition – Peter expresses his unworthiness as a sinner. When convinced of the holiness of Christ we are made aware of our own lack of holiness. Notice, Jesus did NOT depart from Simon Peter as Peter emotionally requested. Instead, He called him to full time service.

When we stand in awe of Christ’s holiness, and are aware of our own unworthiness, then we are close to righteousness. When we are overly familiar with Christ and comfortable with our own righteousness, we need to be spiritually revived!

VIII. Commission – Jesus called them to discipleship. It is believed that these men had already been disciples of John and were now listening to Jesus as their spiritual teacher.

“For many are called but few are chosen.”

Christian author James Stewart wrote:

What God claims, I yield.
What I yield, God accepts.
What God accepts, He fills.
What God fills, He uses.

IX. Commitment – They leave all and follow Jesus.

All this came from the beginning act of consent to Jesus’ ministry. An attitude of acceptance of what Jesus wants to do can result in a personal call to discipleship!

Friend, Jesus wants your boat. He wants to use it as a stage for ministry. If you receive Him, he will tell you some things to do that will improve your life and bring you joy. He will honor you to include you in His ministry.

He called the “LORD Jesus” because He IS the Lord Jesus!

“Follow me and I will make you fishers of men.”