Because Jesus Said So

February 4, 2007

“When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, ‘Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.’  Simon answered, ‘Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing.  Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.         Luke 5:4-5

            I remember when our children were young and we were living in Nome and one of our weekly activities was walking to the library for a new stack of children’s books to read together.  Joel’s favorite book was Peter Pan.  You might think that we checked it out every couple of weeks… you know, returning it one week and checking it out again the next.  But this was not the case.  We checked out Peter Pan every week because the Nome Public Library had three different copies… same story, different illustrations!  Joel never tired of hearing the story.  There was something new in it each time we read the book.

            I would hope that we can say the same thing about the Gospel story… you know, that we never tire of hearing it… of reading it.  And I hope we can say that there is something new in it for us each time we encounter the Gospel. 

            I believe that there is something new for us in today’s familiar story about empty nets and an over abundance of fish.   I think it is a familiar story to most of us.  Many of us can retell it from memory. Jesus was teaching at the lakeshore and needed a little more room because the word had spread and he was drawing big crowds.  So he borrowed a fishing boat and went just a little ways out into the lake as he taught the crowd.   When he had finished speaking, he told Simon, the fisherman who owned the boat to push out into deeper water and put down his fishing nets for a catch. 

Now, if we have spent any time at all thinking about this text from Luke’s Gospel, we know what was probably going through Simon’s mind at that moment.  “Are you kidding me!  Who is this guy?  Why should I put out into deeper water and let down the fishing nets.  I’m exhausted!  I’ve been fishing all night and haven’t caught a thing!  He may know something about the Kingdom of Heaven but he doesn’t know anything about Kingdom of Fishi!  Anyone who knows anything about fishing knows that you can’t catch fish in broad daylight!  Fishing now would be a waste of both time and energy!”

            Since we have heard the story before, we know, of course, that if Simon had any of these thoughts he kept most of them to himself and that was a good thing because he was wrong.  Fishing with Jesus in the boat turned out to be great.  There was “a huge haul of fish, straining the nets past capacity.”  According to Luke’s story, they filled two boats with nets full of fish, “nearly swamping them with the catch.”  And, as a result of the miraculous catch, three fishermen became disciples that day, leaving their boats and nets behind as they followed Jesus.

            So what’s new in this Gospel story?  In the past, when I have read or studied this passage I have paid attention to the fishing part and to the following part, both important aspects of the Gospel story.  This week, though, as I prepared for worship, I found myself paying attention to just four words tucked into the middle of the fishing and the following.  When Jesus had finished teaching and said to Simon, “Push out into deep water and let your nets out for a catch,” Simon responded offering first an excuse, “we’ve been fishing all night and haven’t even caught a minnow,” but then Simon said “if you say so, I’ll let out the nets.”

            “If you say so.”  Just four little words!  “ If you say so.”  Simon pushed out into deeper water and let down his nets because Jesus said to do so.  If he was thinking about all those excuses for why he wouldn’t, he ignored them.  If he was putting a list together in his head of all the logical reasons why he shouldn’t, he didn’t share the list.  According to the Gospel writer, Simon simply did what Jesus said to do and the nets almost broke because there were so many fish!  All because Jesus said so!

            How many of you have ever utter the words “because I said so?”  It is one of those phrases that we hate to hear from our parents if we are children.  It is one of those phrases that we wish wouldn’t escape from our mouths when we are frustrated.  It is one of those phrases that gives us trouble.  How well I remember those times when I was parenting young children and one of them wanted to know, for the 20^th time in two minutes why they should do something I asked them to do and, having exhausted all of the reasons I could possibly think of, I resorted to “because I said so” thinking it would put an end to the whys!  Silly me!  “Because I said so,” at least to many of us, is never reason enough to do something.  “Because I said so” usually just escalates things!

            But not for Simon in the passage from Luke’s Gospel.   He said to Jesus, “If you say so, I’ll let out the nets.”  It was an affirmation of faith.  It was his answer to Christ’s call.

            There are biblical scholars today who have spent their entire professional lives trying to determine exactly what Jesus said.  Scholars continue to search the ancient manuscripts seeking to find the authentic words of Jesus so we will know without a doubt, what he said.  Those who participate in the Jesus Seminar continue to discuss and debate what words actually came from Jesus and what words were attributed to Jesus by those who followed after him.  But the truth is, we will never know for sure what Jesus actually said.  Instead, as people of faith… as people who choose to follow Christ… we look to the biblical story and trust that what we find there is at the heart of the Gospel.   While we may not discover the exact words that Jesus spoke, we will find the meaning of his message and we will be able to discern and decide how to follow faithfully because of what Jesus has said we should do.

            So listen for a moment to some of the things we believe Jesus said about how we should live together as children of God.  Here are some of the words… translated and interpreted over the centuries… that we believe proclaim the heart of the message of Jesus Christ…

·        “I give you a new commandment: Love one another.  As I have loved you, you must love one another.” (John 13:34)

·        “You used to be told, ‘Love your friends and hate your enemies.’  But I tell you, love your enemies, and pray for those who use you badly…. If you love only those who love you, how will you be rewarded?” (Matthew 5:43-44,46)

·        “They used to say ‘an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.’  But I tell you, do not resist one who is evil.  Instead, if he strikes you on the right cheek, offer him the left.  If he takes your coat, let him have your jacket as well.  If he forces you to walk one mile, walk two.”  (Matthew 5:38-41)

·         “Do not collect wealth for yourself on earth, where moth and rust ruin and thieves can steal it.  Instead store you wealth in heaven…  Where your treasure is, your heart will be also.”  ( Matthew 6:19-21)

·        It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the Kingdom of God.  (Mark 10:25)

·        “Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who have sinned against us.”  (Matthew 6:12)

·        “I was hungry, thirsty, a stranger, sick, in jail, and you welcomed me.  What you have done for the least human being, you have done for me.” (see Matthew 25:35-40)

·        “Why do you see the speck in your neighbor’s eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye?” (Matthew 7:3)

·        “You are the light of the world… let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your God in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14,16)

·        “If anyone wants to follow me, he must deny himself.  He must take up his cross every day and follow me.”

·        “You are my friends when you do the things I command you.  I’m no longer calling you servants….  No, I’ve named you friends because I’ve let you in on everything I’ve heard from God.” (John 15:14-15)

Because Jesus said so.  We might be thinking of the list of excuses… all of the logical reason why we can’t do what Jesus says to do.  Be we must love one another because Jesus said so.  We must love our enemies and pray for those who use us badly because Jesus said so.  We must forgive because Jesus said so.  We must care for our neighbors because Jesus said so.  We must distribute our wealth because Jesus said so.  We must let our light shine… because Jesus said so.  We must believe… because Jesus said so.  We must  follow… because Jesus said so.

            In you and in me, the words of Jesus must come to life.  Yesterday, today, and tomorrow the words of Jesus are being written anew.  As people of faith… as followers of Jesus Christ… we choose to do what we do… to live as we live… to love as we love… to hope as we hope… to forgive as we forgive… to believe as we believe… because Jesus said so.