UCC Church of Charlotte

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Casting Nets Again
Psalm 138
Luke 5:1-11

Grace and Peace to you this morning.  Grace and Peace.

I want us to approach this morning’s Gospel reading from two sides –
the human and the divine.

Most of us will recognize the human side of this story.  These
fishermen have been fishing all night.  They haven’t caught enough for
them to snack on, much less take to market and sell.  They are tired,
they are sore, they are frustrated, but they are doing their duty of
cleaning and mending their nets so that they are ready for the next
time they go out.

Ever work all day or all night and not get done what needed to get
done?  Ever get frustrated by the lack of progress?  We recognize this
story, don’t we?

And along comes this man, this teacher, this preacher, who comes up
with a crowd.  And this man, this teacher, this preacher, gets in
Simon’s boat.  Simon, who has been working all night, and is tired and
sore and probably grumpy at this point, rows him out onto the lake so
that the whole crowd on the shore can hear him.

And this man teaches and preaches from the seat on Peter’s boat.

Luke doesn’t tell us here what Jesus says.  But we know his other
sermons, no need to assume this one is different.

“The kingdom of God is at hand.”
“Do not be anxious, for God knows your needs, and being one who loves
you will take care of you.”
“Love the Lord your God with all that you have and all that you are
and love your neighbor as yourself.”
“Blessed are you poor, for yours is the Kingdom of God.”

We can imagine what Jesus said, for he said it over and over again.

But then he stops teaching and preaching, and he turns to Simon and he
says, “Put out into the deep water, and cats your nets again.”

“But sir, we have fished all night and caught nothing.”

And here is the moment that changes everything.  Peter can stay there
arguing; he can sail back to shore; or he can try it.

One of the great tasks of Scouting, just like church, is mentoring,
which often means to push people just past where they are tired, just
past where they are comfortable, just past where they are sure of
everything and get them to try something new.  A good mentor helps us
to stretch and grow past the limitations we have always assumed and
bring us into the world of wonder and possibility and awareness of how
amazing life really is.

Maybe it is camping in the ice and snow, or doing a high ropes course,
or something simpler, like teaching you how to mix a few ingredients
and make something delicious over a fire pit, or team building
exercises.

And with any learning experience, we can sit there and argue that we
can’t or don’t want to or are too tired to try it.  We can simply give
up and walk away (or row away in Simon’s case).  Or we can cast our
nets again.

And when he casts his nets again, the fish are so plentiful that it
strains the nets, and he has to call for another boat, and it nearly
swamps both of them.

That’s the human side of the story.

And hopefully our Pack and Troop and Crew, and our Girl Scouts, and
our church and Sunday School and Bible Studies and Capital Campaign
and mission work and everything else we do around here helps to mentor
people, helps to build up leaders who are trustworthy and capable of
drawing people into deep waters and getting them to cast their nets
again, challenging us to grow in our abilities and our faith and
confidence and our community.

Peter will become such a leader.  But only because he chose to put
aside his weariness and go to the deep waters and cast his net again.

What about the divine side of the story?  Is it not hidden because we
don’t hear what Jesus taught the crowd?

By no means; it is right there for all to see.  Jesus teaches that the
least of these will be the greatest.  And a tired, worn out, grumpy,
sweaty, smelly fisherman casts his net one more time, and shows what
the kingdom is like – one more cast of the net, just past where we are
willing to go by ourselves, and the boat is swamped with the bounty
and abundance of creation and God’s goodness.

Jesus teaches that those who listen to God will find blessing.  Simon
does not argue, does not walk away from this moment.  Instead, he
finds in it a blessing that will have him and his crew and the crew
from the next boat walking away from fishing and following Jesus
throughout his life, through to his death, and into the resurrection.

What we see is that with Jesus, there is enough.  With Jesus, there is
abundance beyond reckoning.  With Jesus, there is no need to fear.
With Jesus, all things become new.

The divine side of this story is found in the willingness of people to
listen to God, and to follow.  For on these fishermen will be built
the apostles, and on the apostles will be built the community of the
resurrection, and on the community of the resurrection will be built
the faith in which we stand.

The divine side of this story is the amazing possibility that this
moment, or any moment, no matter how tired we are, no matter how lowly
or unworthy we think we are, no matter how much it is just another day
of work or school or scout meeting or whatever – into such a moment as
that may come our time to listen, to hear God in that moment, and to
find our lives set on a new and better path, serving God and serving
our neighbor, loving God and loving our neighbor.

Each moment is a gift.  Each moment, an opportunity to listen for God,
who is still speaking.  Each moment, a chance to learn again who we
are, and to whom we belong.

Thanks be to God.
Amen.