Fresh Bread

Guest (Male): You are listening to Fresh Bread, Dr. Harry Reeder's daily devotional from the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals.

Harry Reeder: Chapter 5, Luke. When Jesus is doing his evangelism in the opening year of his three-year public ministry in Galilee, he, number one, shows us you got to have fishing pools when you're going to preach the good news. He would go to the towns. That's where the people would gather.

And then he aims where he has automatic contact and credentials as a rabbi. He goes to the synagogues. The seven synagogues around the Sea of Galilee and it's really something to stand there and realize you were standing right in the location where Jesus would preach and teach in that first century. He's also in his fisherman work going not only to the towns, he goes to the synagogues, and now he's going to begin to evangelize and then equip his disciples.

Chapter 5, Luke. On one occasion while the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret, that's the lake of Galilee. And he saw two 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. And he sat down and taught the people from the boat.

And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch." Simon answered, "Master, we toiled all night and took nothing, but at your word I'll let down the nets." And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish and their nets were breaking. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats so they began to sink.

But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, "Depart from me for I am a sinful man, O Lord." For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken. And all who were with him were astonished and what did they do? James and John, the sons of Zebedee, they were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, "Do not be afraid. From now on you'll be catching men." And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.

Just a couple of thoughts here. First of all, Jesus now he's going to call his disciples. He's going to start here. He's already met them by the way at a place called Bethany. You can go read about that in the gospel of John. But here he comes alongside of them as they're fishing. We're told by Josephus about this time that there were 242 fishing boats on the Sea of Galilee and a bunch of them were owned.

I think this is interesting because I have actually been in and on a rescued boat from the seaside from the first century, a fishing boat. I have seen it there by the lake of Galilee. I take people to see it when I go to Israel and here's what I tell them. This is one boat of 242. And Jesus worked with James, John, Peter, and Andrew and they had a conglomerate along with John and James' father, Zebedee.

So a number of those 242 belonged to them. I wonder if this could be one of the boats belonging to James and John or Simon and Andrew. But Jesus is out there, they're washing their nets, they haven't caught anything all night. Jesus says to them, "Let down your net on the other side." And he said, "We have been fishing all night. Professional fishermen, Jesus, we've been fishing all night, but at your word I'll put the net down." Of course you know what happens. The catch almost sinks them. They got to bring out other boats. It's unbelievable what's happening and everybody is amazed.

And then he says, "Peter from now on you'll be catching men." Well, that's exactly what Peter will do. Peter will let down the gospel net at a place called Jerusalem after the ascension of Jesus. And 3,000 and then 5,000 will come and he will almost break the nets again, but he will not as God would use him to bring men to saving faith in Christ. And God will use you.

Now sometimes you're an Andrew. He's the one that brought Peter to Jesus. But sometimes you're a Peter. He's the one that brought thousands to Jesus. But we are all fishers of men and we have a gospel net. Let's toss it indiscriminately out in the world and see who Jesus brings to himself. And that's another slice of Fresh Bread.

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