Turn and Follow

This sermon was heard at the First Presbyterian Church in Berryville, Arkansas on Sunday February 7, 2010, the 5th Sunday in Ordinary Time.

Isaiah 6:1-8
Psalm 138
1Corinthians 15:1-11
Luke 5:1-11

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to you, O Lord, our rock and our redeemer. Amen.

We all know this story in one way or another. It’s been a long day at work, and frankly, it hasn’t been too productive. You’ve done the hard work, you haven’t just gone through the motions; and still what’s to show for it all, nothing, nada, bupkis. But the day isn’t over yet. Somebody, maybe it’s your boss, or that clown down the hall; maybe it’s come down from the school Principal or the district Superintendent; if you work at home maybe it’s one of your kids, or worst of all—your spouse, somebody gives you one more thing to do.

You’re tired, you’re frustrated, and if you get paid by the unit you have nothing because that’s what got at the end of the long work day, or as it would be for a fisherman a long work night, either way it’s nothing. You’re living a country-western song and it’s not one of those cheery Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys Texas swing songs, you’re living Patsy Cline.

You know what’s coming next. Simon Peter, James, and John, three partners in a fishing business, were coming in after a very long very unproductive night. They had all of the danger of working all night with none of the reward. Now, just to add insult to poverty, they had to clean and mend their nets so they could do it again the next evening. Fatigue, despondency, worry, sorrow, grief—all of the makings of a Patsy Cline hit were staring them in the face and Jesus wants them to push out from the shore.

Simon knew who Jesus was, and knew he could heal miraculously. The way we receive the story, Jesus healed Simon’s mother-in-law in the previous chapter of Luke’s gospel. So when Jesus asked Simon to push out into the lake so he could teach without being crushed by the crowd, surely it was the least he could do. I imagine Simon would have just assumed get everything done at the shore so he could get on with his day. Still, Simon did as Jesus requested.

The teaching finished, and the words of this teaching lost to the ages, Jesus asks Simon to head out to deep water and cast his nets for a catch. Simon, a man who was seemingly never at a loss for words, says, “Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.” Another way to translate “if you say so” is “because you say so.” Simon is firmly placing the emphasis on Jesus’ command for the reason he is returning to deep water.

Whether he says it to give Jesus the glory if the catch comes in or the blame if something goes wrong is lost with Simon’s vocal inflection. As for me, I imagine this was said with all of the irony Simon could muster. “Sure, we’ll go out but only because you say so.” Do I have evidence to prove this, no; but you can’t tell me that you can’t imagine this as a possibility.

The man is tired after working all night, he gets to go tell his wife and his recently healed mother-in-law that there is nothing for the kettle, and now Jesus wants him to let down the nets into the sea where nothing had been snared all night long so he can be late to go home after he tends and mends his nets again after this fool’s errand.

“Sure, we’ll go out but only because you say so.”

This is where Simon pays the price for getting snippy with Jesus.

Something wonderful, glorious, miraculous happens. The nets are filled with fish. There is a bounty so great that there is no way one boat can haul in the catch. The bounty is so great that two boats can barely haul in the catch.

Peter bows before the Lord who tells them that they will be catching people, not just fish from now on. This is where we receive the phrase “fisher of men.”[1]

We get focused, overly focused on the miracle in this story. Let’s face it, miracles are flashy. They get attention. It’s the reason we are attracted to miracles, they are meant to draw our attention. For what purpose are we drawn to them, well, that’s the question. It’s tempting to use this miracle to preach a gospel of prosperity, obey and get blessed by the Lord. But this is not what follows. No, Simon’s reaction is not one of thanks for all the fish.

Simon fell down at Jesus’ knees saying, “Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!” Simon says this when he sees the bounty God has laid before him in such a great catch of fish. Simon Peter knows that he is not worthy to receive such generosity. He knows that he has done nothing to earn such a gracious gift. The bounty of God is before him and Simon knows he is sinful. He knows his sin runs so deep that he begs the Lord to go away.

But that’s not Jesus’ style. He doesn’t use recognition of our sin to turn people away from him; he uses it to turn people toward him. Jesus demonstrates what he wants from us; he wants us to respond to him. He shows us that he wants us to turn to him and follow.

Garrison Keillor writes about Larry, a resident of the fictional town of Lake Wobegon. I would love to read this story as Keillor read it, but any attempt I make at imitation will be weak. Doubtless though, I will fall into his cadence.

Larry was saved 12 times at the Lutheran Church, an all-time record for a church that never gave altar calls. There wasn't even an organ playing “Just As I Am Without One Plea” in the background. Regardless of that, between 1953 and 1961, Larry Sorenson came forward 12 times, weeping buckets and crumpled up at the communion rail, to the shock of the minister, who had delivered a dry sermon on stewardship. But now he needed to put his arm around this person, pray with him and be certain he had a way to get home. “Even we fundamentalists got tired of him.” God didn't mean for you to feel guilty all your life. There comes a time when you should dry your tears and join the building committee and grapple with the problems of the church furnace and the church roof. But Larry just kept repenting and repenting.[2]

Keillor catches something in our reading in Larry’s story. Larry keeps falling to his knees and crying “Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!” but he never gets to verse 11 where after “they had brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed him.” Larry keeps turning away from sin, but never makes the turn toward following Jesus.

There is something interesting about the way we translate “catching people” and even “fisher of men.” One of the things that gets lost in the translation is that the catch is made while the quarry is alive. This makes the verb particularly appropriate for Simon, James, and John. Fishermen bring their catch into the boats alive, fishers of men became a standard, but it lost something in the translation.

In the 1840’s, J. W. Etheridge produced a very literal translation of the gospels which renders Luke 5:10 “henceforth the sons of men shalt thou catch unto life.”[3] What Etheridge found which other translators lose is that part of our vocation is to bring them in alive. What we miss is the intention that by catching the sons of men we catch them unto new life in Jesus Christ.

The miracle shows that there is abundant life in Christ, and Christ’s words show us that our response is to share that word of abundant life with the world as he shares it with us.

Today we celebrate the Lord’s Supper; we celebrate the meal Christ shared with his disciples. As we prepare for this meal today, we will hear these words:

Therefore, loving God,
recalling now Christ's death and resurrection,
we ask you to accept
this our sacrifice of praise.

Send your Holy Spirit upon us
and our celebration,
that we may be fed with the body and blood of your Son
and be filled with your life and goodness.
Strengthen us to do your work,
and to be your body in the world.
Unite us in Christ
and give us your peace.

May we praise you
and give you glory through your First-born, Jesus Christ.

Through Christ, with Christ, and in Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in your holy Church,
we worship you, O God,
in songs of everlasting praise.[4]

In these words, we remember this supper with a spirit of repentance. We remember both the turning from our sin which was taken in Christ’s death and resurrection, and we will also remember that by this meal we will be strengthened to do God’s work and be God’s body in the world. We pray that we will be united in Christ to receive his peace.

Then together we will pray to the Gracious God who has made us one with all God’s people in heaven and on earth; fed us with the bread of life; and renewed us for holy service. We will then pray that we who have shared Christ's body and received his cup be Christ’s faithful disciples reaching out into the life of the world through the love of Jesus Christ our Lord.[5]

In the words of the Orthodox liturgy, “The poor eat and are satisfied; those who seek the Lord shall praise him, and their hearts shall live forever.”[6] We receive the bounty, and when we follow the Lord Jesus, when we praise him, we live the life abundant which he has proclaimed, which he has ordained. He calls us to follow, not to enjoy the fish. He calls us that we live forever.

Yes, it’s the flashy miracles that draw all the attention, but it’s what we find in the still deep waters that lie under the surface where we cast our nets, just like Simon did, that brings us to life abundant in Christ. It is in these waters that we receive eternal life and it is in his life giving words that we follow him into the world.

[1] Luke 5:10, The English Bible in Basic English. Printed in 1965 by Cambridge Press in England. ASCII version from the Online Bible Foundation and Woodside Fellowship of Ontario, Canada. Copyright © 1988-1997
[2] Keillor, Garrison, “Leaving Home.” New York: Viking Press, 1987, 182 as found at Homileticsonline.com.
[3] Luke 5:10 and notes from Etheridge Translation of the NT Peshitta (1849), public domain.
[4] Eucharistic Prayer 3 from Celebrating Eucharist Chapter 21 from Liturgy.com, http://www.liturgy.co.nz/resources/epce3.html. Retrieved February 1, 2010
[5] Presbyterian Book of Common Worship, Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press, pages 69-70.
[6] Byzantine Daily Worship. Allendale, NJ: Alleluia Press, 1969, page 76.