wpc
Westminster Presbyterian Church
Bradenton, Florida
Sermons
A Net Full of Blessings
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This is the fifth in a series outlining and introducing our new mission statement. Our new mission statement is Loving God, Loving Life, and Loving our Neighbors. Read below for what we are to do now...
A Net Full of Blessings
Luke 5:1-11
The Reverend Chris Adams
February 7, 2010
Our story today is a story about nets. Then again, it’s not really about nets at all.
Our story today is a story about fishing. Then again, it’s not really about fishing at all. In fact, it’s always more accurate to say any story about fishing is really about catching and not at all about fishing.
Our story today is about boats. Then again, you should know that often times in the New Testament the image of boats is meant by the writers to represent the church.
Have you ever been in one of those churches with the long wooden beams across the ceiling? Did you know that in those churches those beams are supposed to represent the inside hull of a ship. It’s like the ship is turned upside down. Boats as the church, is the image we get.
What I mean to say is that this story is not really about boats, fishing, and nets. Oh, there are boats, fishing or catching, and nets in it, but it’s really a story about the church of Jesus Christ.
I want to warn you of something. Today’s message is going to be a little shorter than normal. Today is Communion Sunday after all. We have received new members. Today we need to talk about stewardship, because next Sunday is Commitment Sunday. So I don’t have a lot of time to talk scripture with you today.
That’s okay with me, and I’m sure ok with you. The good news is that today’s story is about simple things like boats, and fishing and nets; and of course the church of Jesus Christ. The good news of the gospel today is that it’s not really very complicated. After all, we have been talking about the mission statement and all it means for weeks now. After all, enough is enough.
So on to our simple story... When Jesus arrives beside the Lake of Gennesaret, things are just as they have always been. There are boats there, and fisherman cleaning their nets. The workday is almost over, for a fisherman in the first century by about noon. You see, the common practice was to fish at night so by mid-day you were all finished cleaning up and were ready to quit and go home.
When Jesus arrives beside the lake on this particular day, he is greeted with a crowd. I don’t know whether or not it was because the fishing had not been good that night and the people were feeling anxious or if there are other things to be anxious about, but when Jesus arrives people are desperate to hear the Word of God. They clamor for a blessing from Jesus. “Teach us Lord how to be your people,” they say!
Then I imagine Jesus getting that little gleam in his eye just before he is about to do something really important. He sits in a boat that belongs to Simon Peter, by the way, upon whom the church would be built, and asks to be taken out into the lake. Simon is faithful and Jesus begins to teach from the boat. I wish we knew what he taught, but we don’t have that information.
Then once the teaching is over, Jesus makes a strange request. Let’s go fishing he says.
Now, you can imagine, as far as a professional fisherman like Simon is concerned, the fishing is all over for at least the day. The night has been long, the fish have been scarce, and he is not very excited by this request. Still, Simon is faithful and does what he is told. I imagine him thinking, “Okay Lord, but this is a waste of time!”
But then, something amazing happens, especially for an old fisherman like Simon Peter.
His expectations are turned upside down. Simon expected the nets to be empty, he had given up on the fish, and it was time to go home. But then Jesus said, “let’s try one more time!” This time, let God fill the nets. That would make the difference.
In an instant, Simon gets a very important lesson about blessings. You can’t catch blessings. Blessings don’t come from long hours and hard work. I know that’s not a very good example of the “good old protestant work-ethic,” but I believe is the theology of this story nonetheless.
Simon learns on this day, taught by Jesus, that with God anything is possible. Even when you believe it’s over, and you’ve done all you can do, sometimes then is exactly when God will offer the blessings that turn our expectations upside down.
That doesn’t just count for fish, because remember this story is not really about fishing or boats or nets. This story is about that, but it’s also about people and the church. It’s a story with a message.
I have here in my hands a net. In this net, are all the things we have used over the last few weeks to communicate our mission statement.
There are books in here, the books we used as a Dream Team. There are t-shirts in here, the ones with the purposes of the church. There are footprints in here, just one to represent all the ones we are seeing showing up around campus. And finally there are magnets with the new logo on them.
When I look at this net, I am aware of all the work that has brought us to this point. Over a year of prayer, study, discernment, and decisions that have brought us to this point. What a journey... there are already lots of footprints that have been left!
But here’s the thing... from this point forward, all this is just the work of a night of fishing. We have made every effort imaginable to bring us to the morning and the dawn of a new day of fishing.
My question for you today is what do you expect to happen now?
Are you an experienced old “fisher of men,” and maybe you are not really all that optimistic that anything much will happen with all this. Like Simon Peter, maybe you figure your work is done and now it is time to retire, to go home after a long life of service.
Well, friends, I believe Jesus Christ is back on the lakeshore again calling us to again put our nets into the water. Even if we are pessimistic about anything really important happening, I wonder if we can be faithful enough to try.
The truth of the gospel is that blessings still come from God. We can do our work, and should do our work, but before we get very far along here we had better realize that it will be God’s blessings that truly fill our nets with blessings.
If you are tired and weary from church, and the night has been too long, I would ask just one more time to put your nets down again. Open yourself to what God may be doing in your life and in your church.
Will you support all the work that has been done and commit yourself to the new mission statement? Will you open yourself again to the blessings God is offering to those who continue to fish?
By now you have all received your newsletter, Footprints@WPC and your stewardship packet of materials. By now you all know it is time again to prayerfully decide how much you can pledge. Next week I will invite you forward, to bring your pledges forward and to put them in this net.
The question for you and for me is how much? How much will you commit of your resources to seeing this net filled with blessings? How much will you commit to Loving God, Loving Life, and Loving our Neighbors? How much?
You see, right now, this is just an empty net of our work. But next week, we will begin to see this net as a net full of blessings. So far it has been the work of just a few, but next week, I believe will be your turn. Next week, this net will become the work of this congregation.
Then, and only then I believe, we will begin to see the blessings God has in store for this congregation. Then our nets will be filled with such a bounty of blessings, just like in the story other boats will have to be called over to hold it all. A net full of God’s blessings to be sure.
The blessings of God do that, don’t you know, they turn our expectations upside down. Jesus is on the scene, fisherman are called to the nets, and the nets are filled. Sounds like Loving God, Loving Life, and Loving our Neighbors to me...
Remember this story is not really about boats, fishing and nets. It’s really about the church. Thanks be to God.
Amen.
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