Fishing

Christian Working Woman Transcript

Monday, October 22, 2007 - Jesus Teaches Peter How To Fish- Part 1

Do you remember when Jesus taught Peter how to fish? I'm sure Peter must have thought, "You're a carpenter, not a fisherman; what do you know about fishing?" But he soon learned that Jesus could be trusted to help him in his chosen profession. I think we can learn from Peter's experience.

In Luke 5 we read how Peter had fished all night and caught nothing, and he was ready to give up and go home. But Jesus said to him, "Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch." Peter didn't go to Him for fishing advice, because he'd never thought of the Lord as an expert on fishing.

No, instead Jesus intervened in this business dilemma without being asked. And He gave Peter some strange instructions. Peter knew that you don't fish in mid-day, you fish at night. And you don't catch fish in the deep waters.

Reading between the lines a bit, he says to Jesus, in effect, "Lord, it's not going to do any good. I appreciate your concern, but you just don't understand fish, Lord. However, I'll give you a lesson in fishing, and since you asked me, I'll go through this futile exercise and take the boat out, though of course it's just a waste of time."

So weary Peter, having worked a futile night, obeys the Lord, probably with a martyr's complex. And, of course, he learns a great lesson: Jesus knows how to fish, because He is God and He controls the fish. Peter broke all the fishing rules, and he almost broke his nets because he caught so many fish.

Do you and I do the same thing? Do we exclude Jesus and His authority from certain areas. After all, what does Jesus know about my difficulty at work? How could He help me with my job, or coworker, or manager? So we go on in our own strength, fishing all night, working hard, and finding few if any solutions or answers or success.

Jesus has authority, power and knowledge of all things, and if we allow Him to guide us in all areas, we will discover, like Peter, that He knows what He's talking about. His methods are usually unorthodox. Our faith will be tested. But then, how else would we know who was in control? If we succeeded by our own methods, we'd take the credit. But when Jesus intervenes and we follow His non-traditional instructions, we learn who He is and who we are, just as Peter did.