August 18, 2013
Evening Service

We are going to double back and finish the study in the Book of Luke that we began earlier this year.  Jerry will be speaking on Sunday mornings about the foundations of the church and we will be in Luke on Sunday nights and Wednesday nights, the Lord willing.

Last Wednesday we reviewed the first four chapters of Luke, which dealt with the Lord’s birth and all the events and people surrounding that.  We also saw the beginning of His ministry after His baptism and His temptations from the enemy.  Jesus returned home to Nazareth, but did no miracles because of their unbelief.  Their true spirit was shown as they even tried to push the Lord off a cliff.  He left town and began teaching in Capernaum where He healed all who came to Him.  Let’s begin now in chapter 5.

Luke 5:1-3 And it happened that the crowd pressed on Him to hear the Word of God, He stood by the lake of Gennesaret.  (2)  And He saw two boats standing by the lake. But the fishermen had left them and were washing their nets.  (3)  And He entered into one of the boats, which was Simon's, He asked him to thrust out a little from the land. And He sat down and taught the people out of the boat.

• We can picture the scene.  As a big crowd pressed down on Him, and He used a boat (Simon’s) as a pulpit to teach from.  He was always using His surroundings as a base to teach from.

 

Luke 5:4-7 And as He stopped speaking, He said to Simon, Launch out into the deep and let your nets down for a haul.  (5)  And answering, Simon said to Him, Master, we have toiled all the night and have taken nothing. Yet at Your word I will let down the net.  (6)  And doing this, they enclosed a great multitude of fish. And their net was being torn.  (7)  And they signaled the partners, those in the other boat, to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats, so that they were sinking.

• Jesus again uses His surroundings to illustrate a lesson.  These professional fishermen had fished all night and caught nothing.  A simple Carpenter comes to them and gives them advice on where to fish.
• Notice the attitude in which this advice was taken.  They realized this was no simple Carpenter.  Simon did not understand, nor probably agreed with the command but. “At Your word I will let down the net.”
• Many times we find ourselves in that situation.  God asks us to do something that just doesn’t make sense.  Obedience is a key in our walk with God.  We may not understand, but we are taught to “Trust and Obey.”
• Look at the results.  The fishermen’s greatest hopes had come to fruition.  They had made a catch of a lifetime.  A haul like this could pay for new nets, or even a new boat.  It would be a great blessing to have the extra income.  But that was not Simon’s reaction at all.

 

Luke 5:8-11 And seeing, Simon Peter fell at the knees of Jesus, saying, Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, Lord.  (9)  For he and all who were with him were astonished at the haul of fish which they had taken,  (10)  and so also were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, Do not fear, from now on you will be taking men alive.  (11)  And bringing their boats onto land, forsaking all things, they followed Him.

• Simon has tried the spirit and knows he is in the presence of Holiness.  He was overwhelmed with a sense of unworthiness, much like Isaiah experienced upon seeing a vision of the Lord in His glory.

Isa 6:5 Then I said, Woe is me! For I am undone; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, Jehovah of Hosts.

• Have you been there?  Have you gotten a glimpse of who He is and just been overwhelmed by unworthiness to be in His presence?
• We never want to downplay the majesty of our Lord and Savior.  We serve a BIG God who created and rules all that we see and will ever see.  Yet, we are able to stand on promises like the one we heard from Matthew this morning, “I will be with you always, even unto the end of the world.”
• We are by faith, asked to put our minds around a God who hung the moon and the stars in place but yet, knows the number of hairs upon our head.
• Simon, James and John’s reaction was to forsake all (fish, money, family, and occupation) and follow Jesus.  We are called to do the same.  As we realize His Holiness, we must choose to accept Him as our Savior and forsaking all else put Him in the pilot’s seat of our life.  We trust Him to guide and direct our lives, obeying even when it does not make sense.
• What happens if Simon looked back and thought of all the money he was walking away from?  His life story changes.  Acting in the “will of God” he answers the call and obeys.
• He never regretted his choice.

 

Luke 5:12-15 And it happened, as He was in a certain city, behold, a man full of leprosy! And seeing Jesus, he fell on his face and begged Him, saying, Lord, if You will, You can cleanse me.  (13)  And stretching out the hand, He touched him, saying, I will! Be clean! And immediately the leprosy departed from him.  (14)  And He commanded him, Tell no one, but go and show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing, as Moses commanded, for a testimony to them.  (15)  But the word about Him spread even more. And great crowds were coming to hear, and to be healed from their infirmities by Him.

• Notice Dr. Luke mentions this man was “full of leprosy.”  His fate was sealed and his future was quite hopeless.
• The man’s faith comes out in his request to the only One who could offer him any hope.  He did not claim or demand any healing, but simply in a statement of faith said, “If You will, You can cleanse me.”  He cast himself solely upon Jesus’ mercy and grace for healing.  Is that how we approach God with our requests?
• Leprosy was a painful, lonely, hopeless and fatal disease.  They were outcasts of society.   They were literally avoided and no one would ever dare touch someone with the disease.  Jesus did.  He again acts upon the situation He is in to teach others.
• “I will be clean,” was His answer.  The leprosy was gone immediately.  That is the power that can “Break every chain” that holds us down.
• What request of yours has He said “I will” to?  Just as the leper spread the news of his answered prayer to all, so should we.

 

Lord, thank you for allowing us to read of the wonderful things that that you have done.  May our lives prove we believe You can and are doing wonderful things now.