DAY Six of Twenty-one "Son of God"

DAY Six of Twenty-one "Son of God"

Luke 5:10b-11

10His partners, James and John, the sons of Zebedee, were also amazed.

Jesus replied to Simon, “Don't be afraid! From now on you'll be fishing for people!”

11And as soon as they landed, they left everything and followed Jesus.

Luke 5:1-11

1One day as Jesus was preaching on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, great crowds pressed in on him to listen to the word of God.

2He noticed two empty boats at the water's edge, for the fishermen had left them and were washing their nets.

3Stepping into one of the boats, Jesus asked Simon, its owner, to push it out into the water. So he sat in the boat and taught the crowds from there.

4When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Now go out where it is deeper, and let down your nets to catch some fish.”

5“Master,” Simon replied, “we worked hard all last night and didn't catch a thing. But if you say so, I'll let the nets down again.”

6And this time their nets were so full of fish they began to tear!

7A shout for help brought their partners in the other boat, and soon both boats were filled with fish and on the verge of sinking.

8When Simon Peter realized what had happened, he fell to his knees before Jesus and said, “Oh, Lord, please leave me—I'm too much of a sinner to be around you.”

9For he was awestruck by the number of fish they had caught, as were the others with him.

10His partners, James and John, the sons of Zebedee, were also amazed.

Jesus replied to Simon, “Don't be afraid! From now on you'll be fishing for people!”

11And as soon as they landed, they left everything and followed Jesus.

SORTING IT OUT Simon must have thought Jesus was crazy. First Jesus commandeers his boat, and then He tells Simon to let down his nets and catch fish.

Simon had been fishing, all night, with nothing to show for it. Now this man Jesus, who isn’t even a fisherman, gets into his boat and tells him what to do.

Yet Simon obeyed. He lowered his net, and—miraculously—caught so much fish the nets could barely withstand the weight. And Simon realizes that this is a miracle. This is the same Simon who, when later asked who he thinks Jesus is, will answer, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16).

Simon got it. He understood who Jesus was. And he and his fellow fishermen left everything they had and followed Jesus.

Simon would have missed out on a miracle if he had refused to obey Jesus. Sometimes, what Jesus asks us to do doesn’t seem very logical—turn the other cheek, give away our money, trust someone we cannot see. But Jesus knows His plan for us is even better than our plans for ourselves.

YOUR TURN Try this out. Post something like the following on Facebook, and see what you get back: “Is there anything you’d give everything for?”

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