Today’s in-person worship service (February 9/25) is cancelled due to weather and road conditions.
Today’s Worship Guide (PDF text format)
FIFTH SUNDAY AFTER EPIPHANY February 9. 2025
The story of ‘the great catch’ of fish reveals Jesus’ divinity and it expresses God’s abundance. More than that, we get a glimpse of God’s liberating intentions for us all.
Prayer of the Day Most holy God, the earth is filled with your glory, and before you angels and saints stand in awe. Enlarge our vision to see your power at work in the world, and by your grace make us heralds of your Son, Jesus Christ, our Saviour and Lord. Amen.
Gospel: Luke 5:1-11 1 Once while Jesus was standing beside the Lake of Gennesaret and the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, 2 he saw two boats there at the shore of the lake; the fishermen had gotten out of them and were washing their nets. 3 He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little way from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat. 4 When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.” 5 Simon answered, “Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.” 6 When they had done this, they caught so many fish that their nets were beginning to burst. 7 So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both boats, so that they began to sink. 8 But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’s knees, saying, “Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!” 9 For he and all who were with him were astounded at the catch of fish that they had taken, 10 and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. Then Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching people.” 11 When they had brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed him.
SERMON
The miraculous catch of fish is just for openers as Jesus reveals God’s intention to bless and rescue humanity. Here is where a closer translation makes all the difference…the phrase, “fish for people” actually connotes rescuing people FROM death-A universe away from netting us into captivity wild eyed, flopping and flailing and gasping for air.
So compelling is Jesus’ recruiting of these fisherfolk to carry out God’s agenda to rescue the world , that Simon, James and his brother John to leave everything…their jobs, their families, their network of emotional and social support —-everything—and they follow Jesus.
Now that I’ve given away the peak of the story and its conclusion, let’s start again from the beginning:. Crowds press upon him waiting to hear a word from the Lord. It’s not as if Jesus needs to drum up business. There’s a hint that fishing for people isn’t about drawing crowds just to draw crowds.
Jesus spots fishing boats and sort of charters one, figuring sound travels on open water so everybody will hear what he says. Luke doesn’t let us in on what Jesus spoke about that day. Instead, Luke tells us what Jesus does next.
After the sermon, Jesus directs Simon Peter to chart a course into deep water and start fishing. What does a carpenter know about fishing? Simon’s crew and those in Zebedee’s boat had come up snake-eyes from their last outing and that meant no meal for the day. Nevertheless…..
When Simon waves another boat over to help haul up all of those fish he must have felt like the widow at Zaraphath who hosted the prophet Elijah—God just keeps providing! Maybe Simon identifies more closely with Isaiah when the Holy presence of God overwhelms him and the foundations of the Temple were shaken. Simon Peter is undone…so painfully aware of his frailty in the face of the Divine, he says he is a sinful person. Jesus doesn’t even seem to hear Simon’s confession! Instead he says to him and to James and John, “fear not”.
I pause here to relay what my mentor Dr. Anna Madsen says about “Fear Not”——it always comes when there is legitimate reason to fear. “Fear not. I am calling you into God’s Holy work of rescuing humanity from death”. I’m not sure which would freak me out more—a miraculous catch of fish, an encounter with the Holy, or a call to a whole different life dedicated to God’s agenda to bless and save the world.
What does the church need and what do we need right now to carry on the work Christ has called us to do? Do we need a Word from the Lord? An encounter with the Divine? An experience of God’s abundance? Assurance that despite every good reason to fear, God can lead us ahead anyway? A reminder that of the stakes of God’s mission is the healing and rescuing of humanity and even of creation itself? May God grant us what we need so that we may follow Jesus in proclaiming and being the Good News for the world God so loves —a world God intends to restore. Amen.
St. Matthew's Evangelical Lutheran Church, Welland, Ontario, Canada 
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