Trinity 5 Sermon

 

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit +

There's a beautiful little transition in our lectionary – the set of readings that we go through in the Church year. Last week we heard Jesus say, “A disciple is not above his teacher, but everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher.” And then this week we get the calling of the first disciples. In the Old Testament lesson we even get Elijah the great prophet calling forth Elisha to be the next prophet. So the theme of the day would appear to be making disciples. Now, normally what I do when this week comes around is I spend a lot of time looking at the disciple – at Peter. However, rather than pondering Peter and His reactions (which often are like ours), let's ponder this – everyone when he is fully trained will be like his teacher. Let's look specifically at Jesus in this text and see what we learn about Him.

On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in on [Jesus] to hear the word of God, He was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, and He saw two fishing boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon's, He asked him to put out a little from the land. Alright, so what do you make of Jesus here? What's He like? Well, we come across Jesus in the middle of a sermon, and there's a problem – people are pressing in, it's getting crowd. The simple, practical reality is that it's getting hard for people to hear. Now, I know this might be hard for you people of Trinity to believe, but 2000 years ago people would have been fighting to sit up front – well, to stand up front. It was a crowd milling around, jostling – and when you have a crowd pressing, it's just harder to hear. So, Jesus is preaching, and He wants to be heard, so He hops in a boat – Jesus turns that shoreline and crowd into a natural amphitheater so that everyone can hear.

What is Jesus like? Well, He wants people to hear the Word of God and believe. That's His focus, that's His priority. Jesus isn't hopping in the boat because He loves boat rides. He isn't hopping in that boat because He likes annoying Peter and giving Him more work. The focus is upon giving the Word of God to those that hear. Do you see how Jesus accommodates the crowd that has gathered – He acts in such a way so that they all would hear and believe. Or in other words, Jesus loves His neighbors – He thinks about the good of that crowd. Fair enough.

But what of loving Peter? Poor, tired Peter. And when He had finished speaking, He said to Simon, “Put out into the deep, and let your nets down for a catch.” Yes, Jesus had focused on the crowd, but now His attention shifts to Simon Peter, to one person. Even as Jesus had focused on the crowd, He also sees the individual. And there's Peter, tired, worn, frustrated – we toiled all night and took nothing! There's a frustrated cry, if ever there was one. And what comes next – the miraculous catch of fish. Do you see what Jesus is doing here? He is tending to Peter, He is providing for Peter. Jesus provides for Peter in a way that Peter cannot expect, isn't aware of, and possibly doesn't think is a good idea. Yet that doesn't stop Jesus – the fact that Peter doesn't understand (yet) doesn't stop Jesus. Jesus just remains patient and kind, directing, instructing, tending to Peter.

Then, of course, comes the miraculous catch. The boat is swamped, Simon Peter's co-workers begin to rush out to help pull in the catch – there's going to be an abundance, there's frantic energy, but in the middle of this Peter stops – But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, 'Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.' Peter is terrified – He has just seen the finger of God at work, worked by this man Jesus whom Peter had been perhaps a little short with. This is the sort of situation that would get people killed in the Old Testament even accidentally – therefore leave me, go away Jesus, this isn't safe for me. And now our Lord's reaction – Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men. So what is Jesus like? Well, He remains calm, and Jesus is comforting, but Jesus doesn't placate Peter. He doesn't follow Peter's requests to leave – instead Jesus knows what He is going to do, and even what He is going to have Peter do. All throughout this Jesus remains focused on the task – the task will be the catching of men – the task will be delivering the good news of the salvation that Jesus Himself will win with His death and resurrection unto the world. And Jesus will spread this Gospel not just by using Peter's boat, but by using Peter himself, his own life, and through Peter Jesus will have His Gospel preached throughout Judea, even to Rome, and through the Epistles that Peter wrote, even unto us this very day.

What do you see when you see Jesus here? You see your Lord and Savior who is determined to make disciples, who is determined to see that the Gospel is proclaimed. Yes, Jesus overcomes lack and bad days at work; yes, Jesus provides abundantly – but that's all just a matter of course. That's just evidence that He is in fact God made Man, the Messiah. The point for Jesus is always winning salvation for you and seeing that salvation delivered unto you. Or in other words, you see Jesus's steadfast love, His forever-enduring mercy being acted out here.

Now to ponder. We see who Jesus is – what stops us from seeing this Jesus always? What tries to get in our way, what tries to obscure Jesus from us, from hearing and remembering and speaking that Good News that He has spoken to us? Well, what was hindering Peter – what was getting between Peter and hearing Jesus – because Peter's right in the middle of the miracle here, and he doesn't see right away. Peter is frustrated, for work, for life in the world hasn't gone well. It's been hard and not all it's cracked up to be, and the simple tasks of life distract him and keep him away from Jesus – at least until Jesus literally pulls Peter back onto his boat. Isn't this the same way things go today – isn't this the same sort of trial you see and live all the time? The week goes on, things go poorly, there's even just general busy-ness – and in the midst of that, Jesus and His preaching get pushed off to the side, maybe not utterly forgotten but just overlooked, not applied to the moment? And understand that Satan would have Jesus be pushed ever more and more to the side, and further and further away – yet what has Jesus done? He's pulled you back into the boat – literally, look up – you're sitting in the part of the church building called “the nave” - the boat, the ark. Jesus pulls you away from the busy-ness of your life and brings you His Word again.

And then there's the work that Jesus sets Peter to. It's a normal, typical thing Peter is asked to do – to fish. He is a fisherman. Perhaps the time is strange, but the action wouldn't be. And Peter laments and whines – as frankly we so often do when we are called upon to live our own vocations that God has placed us into. The Catechism instructs that we are to consider our place in life; dimes to donuts you complained or lamented something normal and typical to your life this past week. And yet, what does Jesus do – He blesses Peter. He blesses you. He provides for Peter; He provides for you. Simply, straightforwardly, in and through the vocations that He has given you. Even this miracle is accomplished in a typical fashion – you fish, I'll bless you via fishing. Whereas we can disdain the simple things of our lives, our normal callings – Jesus doesn't. Jesus knows that your vocations, your callings, your stations in life, these are all gifts to you where by He provides for your needs and also gives you opportunities to serve God in God pleasing ways. Our flesh would forget this fact, but Jesus doesn't, and even when you're grumbly He still uses your vocations for your good and for the good of the neighbor.

And then there's the end – Jesus will not depart from Peter. Jesus won't leave Peter alone. When Peter is aware of his own sinfulness, when Peter becomes aware that he is not worthy to receive such great and marvelous things from God, Peter becomes fearful. And Jesus forgives him. Away with that fear – “Do not be afraid” is a word of forgiveness. Yes, your sins are great, Peter – but so is My forgiveness and salvation. No, Peter, you are not worthy of these things, but Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, and He chooses to be with you and bless you because of His love for you. Likewise, fear can drive you – fear of your sin, fear of death. And these are fearful things – but they don't stop Jesus from being Jesus for you. Instead, even to this day, here in this place Jesus declares your sin forgiven, declares peace unto you, gives Himself to be with you in His holy Supper. The sins, the fears that would keep you from this place and from the presence of Jesus – Jesus forgives those.

That is who your master is, O disciple. And know what Jesus is doing. In His forgiving of you, in His mercy, He is making you like Himself. His peace makes you to be full of peace, His mercy to you makes you to be full of mercy, His patience makes you to be patient – and indeed, we could go through all the fruit of the Spirit and see that these are all things Jesus gives to you and then works in you through the Holy Spirit. Yes, in this life you still struggle with sin and your flesh – yet Jesus still is working for you. And come the day when you die, when the scariest threat snaps shut – so be it. Christ the Crucified will be there, and He will give you new life, and you will be raised, and lo and behold you will be fully trained, fully like your teacher Jesus for all eternity. In the meantime, we live in Christ's word, over and against the tricks of Satan that would wrest you away from the Word of God. Jesus catches you, brings you back to Himself again and again – He will even open your lips so that He catches other people through you – and together we live in Christ's love even until He comes again and we see Him face to face freed from fear and sinning. Come quickly, Lord Jesus! Amen. In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit +