[0:00] according to Luke chapter 4 and we'll start the reading at verse 40 and then we'll go into first 11 verses of chapter 5 and after the reading could I ask Donald McKinnon to lead us in prayer after we finish the reading. Now when the sun was setting and they that had any sick with diverse diseases brought them unto him and he laid his hands on every one of them and healed them and devils also came out of many crying out and saying the word Christ the son of God and he rebuked them rebuking them suffered them not to speak for they knew that he was Christ and when it was day he departed and went into the desert place and the people sought him and came unto him and stayed him that he would not depart from them and he said unto them I must preach the gospel of God to other cities also for therefore am I sent and he preached in the synagogues of Galilee it came to pass that as the people pressed upon him to hear the word of God he stood by the lake of
[1:09] Gennesaret and saw two ships standing by the lake but the fishermen were gone out of them and were washing their nets and he entered into one of the ships which was Simon's and prayed him that he would thrust out a little from the land and he sat down and taught the people out of the ship now when he had left speaking he said unto Simon launch out into the deep and he let down and let down your nets for a draft and Simon answering said unto him master we have toiled all the night and have taken nothing nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net and when they had done this done they enclosed a great multitude of fishes in their net break and they beckoned into their partners which were in the other ship that they should come and help them they came and filled both the ships so that they began to sink when Simon Peter saw it he fell down at Jesus's knees saying depart from me for I am a sinful man O Lord for he was astonished and all that were with him at the draft of the fishes which they had taken and so was also James and John the sons of Sebedee which were partners with Simon and Jesus said unto Simon fear not from henceforth thou shalt catch men and when they had brought their ships to land they forsook all and followed him amen may the Lord bless that portion of his truth to us we turn again to the word that we read and to meditate for a short while in the gospel according to Luke chapter 5 and chapter 5 we're going to look at this episode in the life of Christ here and if we were going to take a text out of it is an appropriate one in in verse 4 know when he had left speaking as Jesus had left speaking he said to Simon launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a draft lodge out into the deep first of all look at the context that this is is that we've got in this story here regarding Jesus we find that Jesus is in the north of the country he's up in his own hometown we see that in in chapter 4 if you look back in chapter 4 we notice that he was going from place to place preaching the gospel the good news of Jesus Christ he is preaching and we see him there at verse 4 you see him going through different districts around his hometown and then there is the response that you have in verse 4 to the good news look at verse 28 they in the synagogue when they heard these things were filled with wrath the good news and they were angered the critics of the day they couldn't bear with anything that Christ would say and they tried time and time again to catch him out they were filled with wrath what a word to find in the gospel that people were filled with wrath isn't it but yet there are others look at verse 28 verse 22 prior to that they bear him witness and wondered at the gracious words
[5:10] which proceeded out of his mouth they wondered at the gracious words that came out of his mouth and then in verse 36 of that chapter you've got the same they were all amazed amazed and speak among themselves saying what a word is this for with authority and power he commanded the unclean spirits and they come out they were amazed and then we read in verse 37 and the fame of him went out into every place of the country round about what a contrast and that's friends what the gospel brings it brings either hatred anger anger wrath or it brings amazement and astonishment and it still does that in our days doesn't it we have nowadays we have those that have no time for the gospel they have no time for the Christian witness and there are others thankfully or thankfully that there are those that are still amazed and astonished at the at this doctrine and then we have it in chapter 5 we find him that he's going from place to place and here we have him coming down by the sea of Galilee and there's a crowd listening to him they're gathering in the crowd and I get the impression that chapter 5 begins in the morning early in the morning
[6:40] I've got that and I was thinking that this evening by the time I was coming out here by the way I know exactly what Donald had in the prayer there I think I've I've ripped up in the last half hour before I came out here I've ripped up over three bits of paper that I was going to say the devil is coming to you and telling you you shouldn't be saying this you shouldn't be saying that you shouldn't be saying the next thing but I was what what what what we have here is is that as he is by this the lake that the people are so many they're pressing upon him as I said that it would appear that he's in the morning look at verse 38 of the previous chapter and maybe I'm this is my my this is not anything that I read or anything but we've got him there and he's in Simon Peter's house and Simon Peter's mother is sick of a fever and he heals her and look what the word there verse 39 she arose and ministered unto him and then we have it then we find that the sun is setting then the next day he was departed in verse 42 and he went into the desert
[8:09] I was wondering do you think he spent the night with Simon Peter and his and his mother-in-law I think he did I think he spent the home this night in the home of Peter what a thought friends isn't it that the Lord of Glory would stay in the home of Simon Peter because I get the impression she ministered unto him unto him you get the impression that Simon Peter was living with his mother-in-law and his mother-in-law was living with him and that was the case when I was growing up and you all know it you had mothers-in-law you had the mother-in-law and the father-in-law on one end of the house and the married couple were building an extension on the house on the other side of the house and you had the two living together you get the impression that that's the case here and Simon Peter Simon Peter may be either in the house or he's got an annex to it and they're in the house together and I was just thinking that before I came out here we have him and he's coming to the
[9:13] Sea of Galilee and look at what he saw there he came to pass that as the people pressed upon him near the Sea of Galilee he stood by the lake and he saw two ships standing by the lake but the fishermen were gone out of them and it would appear to me that the fishermen Simon Peter is one of them and we have we have we have James and John the sons of Sebedee the other boat and more than likely it was Andrew alongside Peter so we've got four individuals here and do you notice that they're fishing and I get the impression that before before this Christ had met with them Matthew Henry has it he puts it very well they had some conversation with him that is the four of them before which began at John's baptism they were with him at Cana of Galilee they were with him in Judea but as yet they were not called to attend on him constantly and you get the impression that Jesus came to the village that they were in they had met him before they had met him before at Cana of Galilee they had met him at the Jordan
[10:28] John's baptism he had called John there remember no John had followed him and he had asked him to come after them he had called Peter before this to be one of his disciples but yet they weren't constantly with him they weren't in fellowship with him you get that impression there and here they are here and it would appear that they've gone back to fishing do you get that impression and they weren't very successful were they because you find later on them saying that they had toiled all night and what were they doing there they had been out during the night and they were there and you get the impression that they were washing their nets or mending their nets so here they are and they're here and Christ was coming to them at that specific time four of them I don't mention it doesn't mention any of the other disciples because some of them weren't called yet Matthew hadn't been called he was in the process of calling his disciples and at this time there was four of them only four of them
[11:31] I thought about that when we were listening to the prayers today sometimes we can be downcast friends numerically and it is times when people have been taken away from us who used to attend the means of grace and our numbers are small the church at this time was four men am I right Peter John James and Andrew and I believe this at this time here he was taking them going to take them out and he was going to teach them a lesson he was going to and the lessons of Jesus friends are lessons in love and I think that's what he was doing here with them Jesus is going with them so there we have the context of it he's at the lakeside the crowd is pressing upon him and he asks Peter if he could go out and he prayed him look at verse 3 he entered into one of the ships which was
[12:39] Simon's and prayed him that is a wonderful word there he prayed him he asked him he asked him and you get the impression that he asked him in such a lovely way can I use your boat imagine can I use your boat this is the saviour saying to Peter can I say to and I'm sure Peter would have said without a doubt without a doubt take what I have and they would have jumped into the boat and he would have gone out into the boat but notice first of all that he went out he thrust out a little from the land in other words he thrust out into shallow water let's look at this first of all the command the command launch out into the deep this time friends it wasn't a request look at it he says no when he had left speaking and finished speaking he said to Simon launch out into the deep it was a command you see there's a number of things about this command first of all
[14:01] Jesus did not want them to stay in shallow water friends that's the same with you and me tonight Jesus doesn't want us to stay in shallow water he doesn't want us to be in spiritually shallow water we feel so often that we're going through the motions don't we if we're honest we feel so often that we're going through just when we're going to pray we don't feel as if we're getting anywhere we pretend to read a bit of the word of God we're really in shallow waters friends and Jesus doesn't want us you know when he said these wonderful words in Matthew 11 come unto me all you that labor and are heavy laden and
[15:03] I will give you rest look what he says take my yoke upon you and learn of me for he says I am meek and lowly in heart and you shall find rest into your souls that there's a word there learn of me and you shall find rest into your souls oh friends how do we learn from somebody you know how we learn from somebody we stick close to them we stick close to them if you were an apprentice some of you have been apprentices or when I was an apprentice teacher I was looking at others how do they do this how am I going to be better at this how am I going to be better you stick close to them you spend time in their company that's what you learn of somebody spend time in their company that's what we must do friends if we're to learn of
[16:07] Christ we're to stick learn of him we're going to look into his word we're going to delve into his word spend more time with him oh friends maybe you're here tonight and if you're like myself you're saying my prayer life is terrible I was speaking the other day we had family worship and I can't remember where I had seen it but Luther used to say that in order to spend a day a day he had to my three hours with his Lord that's Luther three minutes is a long time for some of us if we're honest three hours that's what he was doing oh friends that's where we're going to learn of him I know it's difficult sometimes to go on your knees in a secret place I know it's difficult to get into communion with him in prayer but go go and go again don't let it stop you don't let it stop you we're to find him in his word let's get reading let's deepen our understanding of his word and then he did this didn't want him to stay in the shallows he wanted them to go into the deep
[17:30] I like that word in the AV launch launch I'm not discrediting but in the ESV it's got put out it's a nice word but this launch launch it means something that we have to do and we have to do suddenly and with earnestness let's get out launch out it's a strong word why did he want to go out into the deep well it was easy that's where the fish were fish weren't to be found in the shallows if you've been out fishing you're not going to fish by the stones are you you've got to cast out into the deep as deep as you can that's what he's wanted to do this with the feeding that's where there was food that's where the feeding was the feeding was to be found out there friends that's where we're to find him in the depths of we find him what he has done who he is what he has done for what he came for we heard that tonight in the prayer why did he come who did he come from where did he come from where was he going going to the cross and where is he today to be like the church there in the song of
[19:01] Solomon I can't remember where it is I think it's in the command that was the command but you know there was a concern in the command there was a concern on behalf of Peter and the disciples there was a certainty in the words of Christ launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a draft for a full fishing humanly speaking the order
[20:02] Jesus gave there was will be strange to them here we have the carpenter instructing the fishermen the carpenter who had never fished before and yet he was telling the fishermen to go out at a time of day which they knew there would be no fish which they thought there would be no fish I should say the middle of the day that's when the fish were at the bottom that's why he said the deep and you notice how Peter questions us look what he says in verse five when he was told to go out Peter says to him master we've toiled all night we've spent all night master he says to teacher look at the word because we come back and we'll see what word he had later on master he says teacher we've toiled all night and we've caught nothing you detect a doubt isn't there a doubt in Peter and friends there can be a doubt in us with the word of
[21:05] God but then there is this you can see almost a failure on the part of Peter we've toiled all night but but nevertheless what a lovely word that is nevertheless he says look at him there nevertheless he says at thy command I will let down the net this was faith taking over faith overcoming feelings that's what it is and friends that's the case with us we have feelings our feelings can be so far off the mark our feelings can be so down in our boots and we're far off the mark and then but yet at his word at the word at thy word I will let down the net I will let down nevertheless at thy word I will let down the net oh friends that's what I was saying there are times and times and times when we think we should go to prayer
[22:08] I don't know sometimes you like me and you say to yourself maybe I should go this afternoon this evening instead of watching this program on television I'll go to pray then when you go to pray you can hardly spend five minutes on your knees you're directed back even to the newspaper or something like that your mind is almost taken away persevere that's what we need perseverance this is the place nevertheless he says he was convinced that this word I'll do it because the Lord has told me to do he tells us to come to him in the secret place and we're to do that so there is concern but there was certainty verse 6 when they had done this you know this you get almost the impression that no sooner did they let down the net and then fish were in the net I get that impression because when they had done this they enclosed a great multitude of fish and their net was breaking their net broke you see friends
[23:18] Jesus doesn't deal in half measure he doesn't deal in little things in measly measurements I'm reading a book at the moment it's called out of out of the black shadows it's a book and it's written it's an autobiography really by a man called Stephen Lungu it's set in Rhodesia in the 1960s well it's now Zimbabwe in the 1960s it's when up the black people were thought as nothing Stephen Lungu was a black man and he was converted at a mission of the Dorothea mission that came from South Africa to preach up in Rhodesia and he was actually his conversion is an amazing conversion he was actually going to he was with a gang of 12 of them and they were going to bomb the tent that night and he went in to check who was in and he sat at the back and the preacher the word of the
[24:33] Lord spoke to him from the back so that he had to come straight down to the preacher confess his sins and say to him with the word of Christ had come with power he was a poor man he had nothing he was staying under a railway bridge he had absolutely nothing his bed was sand he had found a sack an old sack of potatoes and he would wrap himself up and he would put the sand on top of it so that he could get a little bit of heat at night but anyway he was converted and when he was converted he joined the Dorothea mission and he came under the stewardship of a missionary called Hans Joubert I think he was a Dutchman and he was taught in these days the mission had two principles guiding principles one was they had to walking in the light they called it in other words they had to live a holy life walking in the light with Jesus holy life and the second was everything and literally everything they needed they depended on God alone to provide everything they were never to ask if they were needing something they were never to ask somebody they were never to beg and the
[25:56] Lord provided everything for them but I'm going to tell you a little story that's in that book one day Stephen he had got a pair of shoes and a couple of months had gone down the line and the shoes had started to wear out as a matter of fact there was holes in the soles of his shoes and he used to say that he was so ashamed he would put cardboard into his shoes in order to have soles and he would go and he was thinking about it he went to his mentor and he said pray for everything but he was so embarrassed that he had worn out the shoes that he didn't like to tell Johannes and he was back back and he says do I really need to ask the Lord for a pair of shoes and yet he did he says I became shy he says when kneeling down in prayer meetings where Hans Hubert's friends would see my feet so in our prayer meetings I spent a lot of time maneuvering myself into corners and making sure that when
[26:59] I knelt to pray my back was up against the wall so that he couldn't because they would be kneeling to pray in these days somehow I felt that all my past inadequacies were summed up in these shoes in my heart I believed I didn't really deserve decent shoes he'd come to that holy shoes were good enough for the likes of me I hand the faith or the strength to tell Janice Hubert or pray for a new pair a while later he says a visiting team came to them and they came from South Africa they were on their way to Kenya and in amongst this was a man called Thomas Barlow Thomas Barlow had come from quite a wealthy family and in amongst them he was one of the missionaries and he took Stephen one day just out of the blue he took him down to the shop and he says to Stephen I want to buy you something and he took him down to the shop and outside the shop he says what do you want he couldn't believe it what do you want me to buy you he says a pair of shoes he said so he took him by the hand took him in and not only did he buy him a pair of shoes he bought him three trousers two pairs of shoes and he says even a suit and this is what he said
[28:32] I prayed he says for a pair of shoes and the Lord gave me all this all this I prayed for a pair of shoes and the Lord gave me all this what a generous God oh friends that's the same here with him in the ship he provided not only a little fish he provided and that's what he does today he is the same God today friends and the same providing God as that now we move on to the confession this is what we want to get on the confession what was the result of it all the whole the whole of fish was so much that they beckoned their partners who were in the other ship it looks as if the two ships went out it's absolutely true that the two ships went out so you had Simon and you find out that James and John were in one Simon and more than likely it would be Andrew in the boat that the saviour was in Peter what does Peter do sees all this abundance of fish he's cast down and he goes on his knees look what he calls him master look what he calls him there instead of teacher he's now going to call him depart from me for I am a sinful man oh
[29:54] Lord it's moved from teacher to Lord so overtaken was he with the revelation of who this Jesus was that he went on his knees and realized that he was in the presence of not the man but the God man Jesus Christ this was a lesson to him friends that is what we need today if there is anything we need today it is to see the majesty of God I don't think we're seeing the majesty of God as much as we should I think sometimes we're relegating Jesus to just an ordinary man a prophet but he is the God man Jesus he is the almighty God that's why we've got Peter he says to him depart from me oh Lord depart from me for I am a sinful man oh Lord he saw his own utter sinfulness and he saw the majesty of God
[31:00] I wonder if you're like me when is the last time we saw the majesty of God when was the last time we went on our knees before the Lord and said to him Lord I am such a sinner oh Lord I am such a sinner go like the confession of the man in the temple wouldn't that be good for us even tonight we saw a little oh just a little of the glory of God this is what he saw this is what the disciples saw this is the teaching that the saviour was going to get them to do when he said to them launch out into the deep he was wanting them to get into the deep where he could show them who they were and who he was remember the kitchen maid when she said remember when she was there with I think it was Lachlan Mackenzie you remember the story and she wasn't she didn't come to family worship because she didn't think she was she was she was good enough for me go home he says and says to the Lord show me myself and she came and he showed her herself in such a way that when she came back she was so downcast that then
[32:22] Mackenzie then said to her Mackenzie then said to her go and say to him now show me thyself and that's when she then was got such a view of herself and of himself that she could say he is my Lord he is my saviour there was I'm sure some of you are old enough if you're like me you remember Bill Shankly Bill Shankly was a Liverpool manager in the 1960s and 1970s when Liverpool were one of the great teams he was the manager he was a Scotsman this is what he said towards the end of his life I have devoted all my life to football all all was thrown overboard for this that's all he had all he had was football friends not so with the disciples look look what he did he was astonished and all that were with him in verse 9 and so also was James and John then he said to Simon fear not from henceforth thou shalt catch men now although it was to Simon he said it it was to the four of them
[33:49] I believe well not only to Simon because we look at the next text it says when they had brought their ships to land they forsook all and followed him it wasn't just football it wasn't fishing it was a different type of fishing they were to follow him they forsook all and followed him friends that's the day they had and that's the day we're reminded of tonight he says to us tonight launch out into the deep this is the beginning of 2022 and the Lord says to us he encourages us with his word here tonight and that's what I would like to emphasize more than ever before is that there is an encouragement in this first 11 verses of chapter 5 of Luke's gospel for us all if we are to trust implicitly trust entirely our all on Christ
[35:02] Jesus on our saviour Christ Jesus he will provide an abundance for us maybe you're here tonight and you're thinking and we're seeing the numbers we've got here and we're depressed sometimes and we get that way don't we we get very much down we've never been so low we're thinking ah friends we're this is this is the saviour of plenty and if we come to him with our desires and what is our desires our desires is that this place would be full isn't it that our children and our children's children would come to a knowledge of Christ isn't that what you desire above everything else isn't that what I decide and what you desire our children and our children's children in this day that we're in an awful day it was an awful day in the day of Christ there was only four of them but he said to them don't be satisfied with the shallows launch out into the deep give your concerns cast your net out put them out in the faith that
[36:28] I will fill it he knew who the fish was he knew exactly the second the minute that they would put down that fish there was fish there and he knows every single soul that's going to be converted in Tolstah and in back he knows that we don't we didn't the fishermen didn't know if they would take in five or one or ten but they cast out their nets and we are to take courage friends in this saviour this is the great saviour he is able willing and able to save sinners and let's put our prayers into him into his hands and I'm sure that's the lesson he's telling us tonight that's the lesson yes yes we get downcast at times yes we get downcast in our shelves we sometimes we're like we're like the man who came out of a meeting one time many years ago
[37:36] I was told of a story he was at a question meeting in Glasgow one time in a church in Glasgow and he came out and he said after he finished it I could spew myself out do you ever feel like that yes I could spew myself out we feel like that but yet friends let's look away from ourselves and into this glorious saviour who came into the world why to save sinners and why can't he not save sinners in Tolstair tonight let us pray let us go away with this lesson I was reading finally in Charles Wesley he's got a wonderful hymn through all the changing scenes of life and he finishes it with this oh make but trial of his love experience will decide how blessed they are and only they who in his truth confide fear him ye saints and you will then have nothing else to fear make you his service your delight your wants shall be his care make you his service your delight your wants shall be his care that's what we must look at friends his cause it's his people and his church will be triumphant we know that don't we he will be triumphant he will come oh lord let us finish with a short word of prayer oh lord oh god we come again to thee this evening confessing that we are in need of a view of thyself to which we can say like
[39:26] Peter depart from me for I am a sinful man oh lord oh eternal one help us to look to Christ anew today look to Christ anew as we are found at the threshold of another year as we heard already we don't know what a day or an hour is to come to bring to us but we know this that everything is certain with thee we ask thee oh lord that we would see many many caught in the gospel net from our families from our districts and that we would rejoice in the lord seeing them from our families from our communities from our neighbors from our land even at this time oh bless us eternal god take away our sins wash us for jesus sake amen we conclude by singing in psalm 24 psalm 24 just as everything does as the fish and the net belong to the lord so is the case here the earth belongs unto the lord and all that it contains the world that is inhabited and all that there remains for the foundations thereof he on the seas did lay and he hath it established upon the floods to stay who is the man that shall ascend into the hill of god or who within his holy place shall have a firm abode whose hands are clean whose heart is pure and unto vanity who hath not lift up his soul nor sworn deceitfully we sing these four verses to the lord's praise in conclusion here be all and to the lord who and all that is all things the world of dancing hill o what e mean one damn way is modulus neither oh star forge know
[42:34] And then be the hell of God.
[42:44] All within this holy child I offer now.
[43:04] To the hands of the new heart is beautiful.
[43:15] And on the vanity you are not limited of his hope.
[43:33] Amen.
[44:05]