Latest / HBCWestminster / 3.22.20 Luke 5:1-11 Pastor Danny Gardner

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3.22.20 Luke 5:1-11 Pastor Danny Gardner · HBCWestminster

• 0:00
  Well, our text this morning is going to be Luke chapter 5, and we're just continuing in our study of the gospel of Luke. As is our tradition, I would ask you, even if you're able to at home, to stand in honor of the reading of God's word. I'm going to read chapter 5, verses 1 through 11, and then we'll take a few moments to study it, and then we'll be done for the morning. Beginning in verse 1, it says, On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret.
• 0:28
  And he saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. Getting into one of the boats, which was Simon's, he asked him to put out a little from the land, and he sat down and taught the people from the boat. And when he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, Put out into the deep and let your nets down for a catch. And Simon answered, Master, we toiled all night and took nothing. But at your word, I will let down the nets.
• 0:53
  And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish and their nets were breaking. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees saying, Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord. For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken. And so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, Do not be afraid.
• 1:23
  From now on, you will be catching men. And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him. Let's pray. Lord, I pray that this viral pandemic ends shortly. I pray that the devastation it causes would be limited. I pray that you would use it even for your glory. Lord, we can't even imagine how that would be done. But God, your ways are higher than our ways.
• 1:54
  We pray that this would be a reminder to your people around the world that our hope comes not from governments and economies, but from you. Lord, your word says in Psalm 20, verse 7, some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God. And we know, Lord, that some trust in vaccinations and some trust in toilet paper and some stockpile food and Kleenex for years, but we will trust in the name of the Lord our God. We trust you, our Heavenly Father.
• 2:26
  And it's in the name of Jesus we pray. Amen. Amen. Thank you. You can be seated. When I was in my early 20s, I and a friend traveled for several weeks through Europe. We went to all of the countries that we could by any means possible, but we didn't really have any money. And so we slept wherever we could find. Youth hostels.
• 2:48
  On trains, oftentimes we would look at train stations, what train is offering an overnight train to wherever it was. And we didn't necessarily even have a destination in mind, but if it was an overnight train, we would use it to sleep and then wake up in whatever new city. Oftentimes we would even sleep on park benches. And one sunny afternoon, my friend and I were in Amsterdam in the Netherlands. I was extremely tired. We came across a square in the center of town where they had held some kind of concert or something
• 3:19
  The square was kind of closed down. There were hundreds and hundreds of these white folding chairs all aligned in perfect rows. But the concert had finished. The people had dispersed. And so now these chairs were just sitting out there. I was really tired. And so I told my buddy, I'm going to go into the middle of the white chairs. I'm going to sit down for a few minutes, take a nap. And he said, OK, I'll go wander around town while you're doing that. And so he left.
• 3:44
  We kind of parted ways. I went and sat down, and I slumped down. When I was in college, I was very good at sleeping just about anywhere. I'm less good at that now, but I slouched down real low, and I kind of crossed my legs. I put my hood up, and man, I was out. I was out right in the middle of this closed-down square. I woke up. I don't know how long I was asleep, but I woke up after some time.
• 4:10
  to the sound of cars, and I thought, well, that's a strange sound. It kind of woke me up. I was startled. I woke up. I was in the chair still, but it turns out I was in the middle of a street, and now all of the other chairs were torn down. The stage that had been set up was gone. All of the other chairs were gone, and it turns out that what they had done was actually closed a major intersection in the city.
• 4:36
  And now they had reopened the intersection. Some guy had come and torn all of those other chairs down, but he couldn't move mine because I was still asleep. And so I woke up in the middle of an intersection. There were cars going both ways. I was sitting there in the middle of this intersection in the middle of the road. And I woke up startled. I stood up real quick and looked around. I'm in the middle of the street. And so I stopped traffic and started moving my way over. I eventually found my friend standing there a ways off.
• 5:06
  I said, man, what happened? He says, I don't know. I came back. He's like, Dan, you were in the middle of the street. And you know, church, in times like these, my natural inclination, I think, is just to want to disappear. I want to hide. I want to go to sleep. When I wake up, I just want everything to be over. I just want everything to be okay. I want to go to sleep. And then while I'm asleep, I want the world to have changed around me all by itself. But church, that is not our job. We, the people of God.
• 5:39
  have a responsibility to be the people of God. Let me say that again. We, the people of God, have a responsibility to be the people of God. We have a responsibility to stay awake. We are the change. We do the work and will of God on earth, and especially in times like these. Now, I love this story of Christ from Luke chapter 5, one that is very often overlooked. It shows
• 6:09
  Our Lord's passion for His Father's work, and it shows His passion for the people to whom He ministered. We'll notice first, and in verse 1, that the Lord would not be dissuaded from ministering to people when they needed and wanted it. Look at verse 1. It says, On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in on Him to hear the word of God, He was standing by the lake of Gennesaret. Gennesaret, Kennesaret, and the Sea of Galilee were all the same lake. So He's...
• 6:38
  on the shore of the sea of galilee and he's being pressed in upon the lord jesus was never put off by the circumstances massive oppressive crowds lack of shelter lack of seating lack of security lack of a pulpit even the relative health of the people in need the lord was always ready at a moment's notice and church i would ask are we are we ready at a moment's notice
• 7:11
  Or do the conditions for our ministry to others have to be just right? You know, I've noticed that there are snobs in every discipline. There are book snobs and car snobs and food snobs, fashion snobs, sports snobs. There are even coffee snobs. You know, there are fly fishing snobs. Fly fishing snobs. Those who will only use certain types of equipment. Those who will only fish certain types of ways.
• 7:39
  You know, I love watching my sons, and especially when my sons were even younger, when Zach and Pearson were much younger. Zach was maybe 10 or 11 years old, and watching him in his low-budget fly-fishing waders and boots and using the bottom-shelf fly-fishing gear and rods and reels and all of that and outfishing the guys who upstream are wearing $2,000 worth of equipment. You know, unfortunately...
• 8:10
  There are even evangelism snobs. And church, if we're honest, we might be them. If the fish are rising, which means you can watch and you can imagine, even just close your eyes and imagine just this clear blue mountain lake early in the morning. The fog is still there on the water and you see all of those little rings.
• 8:33
  all being created on the surface of the water as the water is perfectly still. All of those fish coming up and just sipping little tiny mosquitoes or gnats or whatever it is off the top of the water, just creating those little rings. If the fish are rising, I will go anywhere. I will do anything. I will sacrifice myself. I will put myself in harm's way, put my physical well-being even in jeopardy because I love it so much. But then when it comes to evangelism,
• 9:01
  When it comes even to ministering to those whom I have a hard time loving, I will drop almost any excuse in the book not to do what the Lord is prompting me to do. Listen to J.C. Ryle. Personal inconvenience, he says, was allowed no place in Jesus' consideration. God's work must not stand still. God's work must not stand still.
• 9:32
  We must not wait until every little difficulty or obstacle is removed before we put our hand to the plow or go forth to sow the seed of the word. And church, if you have to wait for the right building or the right classroom or the right stage or the right sound system, if you have to wait to be told, if you have to wait for permission, then you will never do anything. Gospel circumstances will never fully align. You must decide to start plowing regardless of the weather, regardless.
• 10:02
  of the hardness of soil my former senior pastor used to say this nothing will ever be accomplished if every conceivable obstacle must first be overcome a woman it is said one time approached the famous pastor of last century dwight d l moody and she said pastor i don't care for how you do evangelism and he replied well i don't much like it either tell me how do you do it and she said well i don't
• 10:34
  And he replied with this, you know, I like how I do it better than how you don't do it. J.C. Ryle again, if we can't do all we want, if we can't do all we want, let us do all we can. While we are waiting and delaying, souls are perishing. That's first. The Lord would not be dissuaded from ministering to people when they needed and wanted it. But notice second.
• 11:03
  The Lord would use any and all means necessary, even creative means, if it meant an opportunity. Look at verses 2 and 3. It says that he saw two boats by the lake, but the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. And getting into one of the boats, which was Simon's, he asked him to put out a little from the land, and he sat down and taught the people from the boat. Here we have Scripture's first example of social distancing. He gets into the boat, he rows out a little ways from the shore, and he begins to preach.
• 11:32
  From the boat. You know, I wrote this sermon a week and a half ago, before the world had turned upside down. We had no idea, a week ago even, that we would be where we are now. I had no idea that this would be our first ever church at a distance. But it causes me to ask, what am I willing to do? What means am I willing to use? Any and all necessary means, even creative means, if it means an opportunity for the gospel.
• 12:05
  You know, Billy Graham was often criticized for his use of television in order to share the gospel. There were many in the church generations ago who were very much opposed to the television as a medium. But Billy Graham was not. Billy Graham even was eventually called the television evangelist, the first.
• 12:28
  television evangelist. He appeared on many different TV shows. In fact, I tried to figure out how many it was. It was innumerable. He even had his own evangelism show on television for a while. He had a 60-year evangelistic career. He even appeared multiple times on CNN and C-SPAN, Larry King Live. He appeared on The Tonight Show. People reamed him for it. He said this, we must use any means at our disposal.
• 13:01
  radio, television, and he said, I will do anything if it means preaching the good news. When Billy Graham passed just a few years ago, he was said to have shared the gospel with well over 200 million people. And church, what means are you willing to use? What lengths are you willing to go to in order to reach the lost? Notice also,
• 13:31
  Verses 4 to 7, the expectation our Lord has on immediate and unwavering obedience. Look at verse 4. When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, put out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch. And Simon answered, Master, we toiled all night and took nothing. Now here is the key. Here is the phrase that I just have been so convicted by all week. He says in verse 5, but at your word, I will. But at your word, I will.
• 14:01
  Let down the nets. And when they had done this, they enclosed a large number of fish and their nets were breaking. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both the boats so that they began to sink. Imagine a carpenter from a country town telling a fisherman from a lake town how to do his job. Simon had already finished fishing for the day. He had struck out. They hadn't caught a single thing. He had cleaned his nets. He'd packed up his stuff. He'd beached the boat.
• 14:32
  But Simon also knew something that the crowd didn't. Simon, you may recall from a couple of Sundays ago, Simon was in the living room with this country carpenter when Jesus rebuked his mother-in-law's sickness and it left. You can imagine Peter thinking, if he's the king over fevers, could he also be the king over fish? Look at this fisherman's response of faith. But at your word, I will. And I think we could just put the period right there.
• 15:04
  But at your word, I will. Throughout God's word, we see the obedience of nature to the command of God. Frogs and flies and fish are obedient to the Lord. Fire and storms, even hail, are obedient to the Lord. Sicknesses, disease, and death are obedient to the Lord. In fact, only one creature in all of God's creation hears the command of God and then stiffens his neck in rebellion. One creature, and that is humans. Hillsong United.
• 15:37
  wrote a great song called, So Will I. Listen to the words. It says, As you speak, a hundred billion galaxies are born. In the vapor of your breath, the planets form. If the stars were made to worship, so will I. I can see your heart in everything you've made, every burning star, a signal fire of grace. If creation sings your praises, so will I. God, of your promise, you don't speak in vain, no syllable empty or void. For once you have spoken,
• 16:09
  All nature and science follow the sound of your voice. And as you speak, a hundred billion creatures catch your breath, evolving in pursuit of what you said. If it all reveals your nature, so will I. I can see your heart in everything you say. Every painted sky, a canvas of your grace. If creation still obeys you, so will I. If the stars were made to worship, so will I. And if the mountains bow in reverence, so will I.
• 16:41
  And if the oceans roar your greatness, so will I. For if everything exists to lift you high, so will I. And if the wind goes where you send it, so will I. And if the rocks cry out in silence, so will I. If the sum of all our praises still falls shy, then we'll sing again a hundred billion times. And let us adopt this phrase, but Lord, at your word I will. Let us make that phrase.
• 17:14
  The mantra of our lives. Notice, lastly, the responses of one who has been overwhelmed become overwhelmed by the presence of God. Peter knew that he was in the presence of God, and he responded a certain way. How do I know if I've been in the presence of God? And I think we see it here three ways. How do I know if I've been in God's presence? First, the weight of the glory of God confronts us.
• 17:46
  with the weight of the suffocation of sin. The weight of the glory of God confronts us with the weight of the suffocation of sin. Look at verse 8. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, Depart from me, for I am a sinful man. For he and all who were with him were astonished at the catch of fish that they had taken. You know, when we're confronted with our sin, we turn to the Lord like we turn to a respirator.
• 18:19
  He is the air that we need. He is our very breath. One of my favorite men in the world is a pastor named Cliff Huffmeyer. One of the most influential men I've ever met. He is a man that I mentioned by name in my testimony. And when he's sharing in front of a new group of people, he'll introduce himself this way. He'll say, I've been married X number of years. I've been married 30 years, he'll say. But it feels like five minutes.
• 18:50
  And everybody in the audience will go, oh, you know, it feels like five minutes. And he'll let it stop. And he'll say, underwater, five minutes underwater. Everybody kind of laughs. Why would Peter say, depart from me, Lord? Granted, as Peter uttered these words, he was still but an infant in his faith. Later, he would cling to Christ. He would preach Christ and abide in Christ. But when he was here in our text confronted with a sin.
• 19:22
  He could never be completely comfortable in God's presence. Like he was holding his breath. And this is why unbelievers feel like uncomfortable coming to church. They'll say things like, if I go to your church, I'll be struck by lightning. If I go to your church, the walls will fall in. You know, while we remain in our sin, we remain in fearful expectation of the judgment of God. But the Spirit of Christ casts fear far from us. In Christ, even the vilest sinner may draw near.
• 19:53
  But apart from Christ, even the strictest moralists should tremble. The worst sinner on earth in Christ has no reason to fear God. But apart from Christ, even the most righteous man should tremble. Approach God apart from Christ and quake. But church, here's the good news. Approach him in Christ and be at peace no matter what you've done.
• 20:22
  How do I know if I've been in the presence of God? The weight of the glory of God confronts us with the weight of the suffocation of sin. But notice second, the weight of the glory of God confronts us with the weight of our own transformation. Look at verse 10. It says, and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, quaking, right? They knew that they were in the presence of the Lord. They were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, do not be afraid. From now on,
• 20:54
  you will be catching men. The weight of the glory of God confronts us with the weight of our own transformation. Nobody ever confronts God, is in the presence of God, comes into the presence of God and is overwhelmed with the weight of the glory of God. No one ever left the presence of God unchanged. And that is what happens to Simon Peter. What he had given his life to as a fisherman of fish has now been transformed.
• 21:25
  gloriously, graciously redeemed. From now on, he will no longer be a fisher of fish, but now a fisher of men. How do I know if I've been in the presence of God? Has your life changed? And last, how do I know if I've been in the presence of God? Verse 11 says, the weight of the glory of God confronts us with the lack of satisfaction in anything else. And look at verse 11. When they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed him.
• 21:56
  When we come face to face with the presence of God and when we relinquish control of our own lives and when we repent from our sin, from that suffocating force that keeps us out of the respirator of God's sanctification and salvation, when we are confronted with the glory of God, from that point forward, nothing on earth will ever satisfy us. Simon Peter was willing to leave everything behind.
• 22:26
  livelihood, his boats, his nets, even his friends, even his family, in order to follow Christ. Well, church, no falling asleep. It is true that we may have to be creative. We may be just having to use any and every necessary, even creative means possible, just like the Lord Jesus did when he got into the boat. But church, let's make sure that our nets
• 23:00
  are out because god's work must not stand still and i'm going to invite pastor sam to come back up he's going to close us with music one more song just like we always do and when he's done he'll close us in prayer and we'll be finished but church listen every sunday we meet this way online my prayer will be we will finish the same way every time next week together next week together
• 23:27
  And there will be, I don't know how long this is going to last, there will be a day when that prayer comes true. Next week together, and church, what a sweet reunion that will be. Pastor Sam, let's close in a song and prayer.