Take Him at His Word
Luke 5:1-11
July 5, 2026 anno Domini
Jesus speaks three miraculous words to Simon in the text. They are words for you, for your faith that God will provide for you and forgive you
The first word of Jesus is “Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.”
Jesus gave this word to Simon after he had preached a sermon from Simon’s boat. It was probably a long sermon — so long even Jesus sat down to preach it. It was long because people’s attention spans had not been shortened to 3.6 seconds due to their phones chiming and dinging to let them know someone posted a picture of their kid on Facebook or that Menards is giving 11% rebates. It probably didn’t seem long because whenever Jesus taught and preached the crowds were amazed – it was like He was God in the flesh and He was.
Luke doesn’t tell us what Jesus preached from the boat, but in Luke 6, Jesus will deliver His sermon on the plain. There Jesus describes what it is like to follow Him. His followers will be poor, hungry, and weep. He pronounces woe on the rich, the full, and those who laugh. He instructs them to love their enemies, not to judge, but to forgive. He says that their faith will be accompanied by good works, just as a good tree bears good fruit. He instructs them to build their faith on His Word, just as you should build your house on a rock so that when the floods come it won’t be washed away.
Think about that sermon – how shocking were those words of Jesus. Blessed are the poor, the hungry, the sorrowful. Who wants that? Woe upon the rich, the full, those who laugh – that’s what I want in life. Love my enemies. Forgive those who sin against me. That won’t get me anywhere but trampled on. And I’m supposed to take the guy who said all this – at His Word? That seems to be a fool’s errand.
In addition to hearing Jesus preach, Simon had also witnessed Jesus perform a miracle in his own house. Simon’s mother-in-law was ill with a high fever and they asked Jesus to help her. He stood over her and rebuked the fever. Now, don’t miss that point, Jesus spoke to the fever. He rebuked the fever. Fever, be gone. Get out of her and out it went. Jesus’ Word did what Jesus said.
When the sermon in Luke 5 is over, Simon is wiped. He worked all night – because that’s when you fish. He still had his nets to clean and organize and now he was three hours behind because Jesus preached so long. And then this preacher has the audacity to tell Simon how to fish. “Put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.”
Now all reason and fishing expertise that Simon had went against Jesus’ word, like common sense goes against loving your enemies and forgiving those who sin against you. Simon fished for a living. They fished at night, near shore. Not in the heat of the day, not in the deep part of the lake. Oh, the arguments Simon could have raised. “Jesus, you’ve never caught a fish in your life and you’re telling me, a professional, how to fish. I’ve fished all night. Trust me, if there were fish to be caught, I would have caught them. Why don’t you worry about your preaching and I’ll take care of the fishing?”
How many times have you tried to reason your way out of God’s Word? Or thought you knew better than Jesus? Do you know how to be a better husband or wife, son or daughter? Do you know more about charity and stewardship? Do you know so much about Scripture that you don’t need to read it and yet still disagree with it?
Learn from Simon what faith is – faith trusts the Word of Jesus, takes Him at His Word, believes the Lord will do what He says, even when it is contrary to reason, experience, and your own expertise. Master, we toiled all night and took nothing! But at your word I will let down the nets.
Simon obeyed the Word of the Lord and the Lord delivered as promised. Simon had more fish than his nets could hold, more fish than two boats could haul in. And then Jesus’ Word and the miracle revealed to Simon the truth of the man standing in front of him – this man, this Jesus of Nazareth, was the Son of God – God Himself. “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.”
There’s a change in Simon’s language between his agreement to let down the nets and the realization of Jesus as God. He first calls Jesus “master” – and that word indicates a commander or a chief – first among many. But after he limits out on fish, he calls Jesus “Lord” – that’s God’s Old Testament name, that’s Yahweh, that’s God Himself.
Once again, Simon’s response makes complete sense. If you are a sinner the last place you want to be is standing before the Lord. That’s why most sin takes place at night, or behind closed doors, when you’re away from your wife or home. We foolishly think we can hide our sins from God. Just imagine the last sin you committed. You lusted, coveted, spoke in anger to your wife, thought ill of your neighbor, slandered your rulers – how would you have felt if at that moment Jesus appeared, or God the Father shown in His glory and said, “I saw that. I heard that.” If you didn’t shrink in fear and cry out in panic – well, to quote Jesus – woe is you.
As it made no sense for Jesus to say, “Cast out your nets into the deep” so Jesus’ next words to Simon make even less sense, “Do not be afraid.” Earlier Simon had to forget he was a fisherman and trust the Word of God. Now he had to forget he was a sinner and trust the Word of God. As it made no sense to cast his net into deep water so it made no sense that a sinner could stand in the presence of the Holy God. But what did Simon go with? What should you go with? Go with the Word and the deeds of Jesus.
This is why you need the Word of God, not just for 20 minutes once a week, but every day. The Devil is going to magnify your sin, wreck your prayers, rob you of joy and hope and love. He’s going to appeal to your reason – none of that Jesus’ stuff will do you any good. Don’t read the Psalms, watch some more reels on your phone. Don’t worry about good works, worry about yourself. Besides that, look at your sin, you really think God’s forgiveness is enough for you, for that sin – you know the one I’m talking about. Between the distractions of the world, the accusations of Satan, and your own common sense – you’ve got an unholy trinity of enemies against God’s Word. So, hear the Word with Simon, “Do not be afraid.” Did Christ not carry all the sin of all the world to the cross? Is there one of your sins that He somehow forgot, left, held back? No, not according to his Word – His forgiveness covers 70 times seven, forgives 10,000 years of debt. He ate with tax collectors, prostitutes and sinners – so He would eat with you, even as He has forgiven you.
Finally, Jesus says to Simon, “From now on you will be catching men.” There’s another sermon in the irony that Simon had everything he ever wanted as a fisherman in that great catch and he left it to follow Jesus. But I’ll spare you that sermon since I need to finish this one.
With these final words to Simon Jesus begins to establish the Apostolic office – Apostle means “one who is sent.” Soon, Jesus would send Simon and Andrew and James and John, and the rest of the 12 to catch men. They would cast the net of the Gospel – the good news that since Christ hung on the cross sinners like you can stand before God. They would not pull men out of water, but plunge them into the waters of baptism so they could die to sin and live to Christ. They would call them repentance and hook them with absolution – with the declaration that in the stead and by the command of Christ I forgive you all your sins. And since God’s goal is to catch you into life – they would feed men the body and blood of Christ for forgiveness, life, and salvation.
These words of Jesus in Luke 5 are for your faith, that you trust God’s Word, especially when it makes no sense. The Lord does what He says – He will provide for all you need and forgive all your sins. In the name of Jesus. Amen.