The Fifth Sunday After The Epiphany - February 9, 2025

Summary

Grace Community Missioner Ed Carrette reflects on Jesus' call to become "fishers of people" in Luke's Gospel, reminding us that while church attendance has declined post-COVID, our mission remains unchanged. Just as Jesus instructed Simon Peter to cast his nets into deeper waters, we too must venture beyond our comfort zones to engage with our neighbors, show compassion to those in need, and respond like Isaiah who said, "Here I am. Send me" (Isaiah 6:8).

THE GOSPEL                                                                                                                            Luke 5:1-11

Once while Jesus was standing beside the lake of Gennesaret, and the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he saw two boats there at the shore of the lake; the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. 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. 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." When they had done this, they caught so many fish that their nets were beginning to break. 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. But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, "Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!" For he and all who were with him were amazed at the catch of fish that they had taken; 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." When they had brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed him. 

Artwork: "Fishers of Men" by Victor Bregeda, 1963

Transcript

Grace Community Missioner Ed Carrette:

Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, whom shall I send and who will go for us? And I said, here I am. Send me in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen. Please be seated. Isn't it wonderful to reminisce about the good old days? It is early into a new year, and yet it is not too soon to long. For the days that felt better and more certain, many congregations continue to feel attention and a desire to increase their number of congregants. Even now, the disruption of regular services that resulted from COVID continues and exacerbates the concerns about people in the pews and the need for more servant leaders. The lessons on this fifth Sunday of Epiphany after epiphany offer a roadmap. Jesus is calling on disciples to drop their fishiness and become fishers of people.

There was a time when fishing for people was considered easier because so many folks were eagerly searching for a church home. For a variety of reasons, people were drawn to church and it was normal to worship prior to engaging in other activities. On Sunday last weekend, mother Suzanne said Wayne Bell attended the 8:00 AM services so he could get on the golf course later on Sunday. Churches were an essential part of most communities throughout the country. Families came together not only to worship, but to fellowship as well. Potluck suppers, coffee hours, book readings, grace Collins' knitting circles were considered necessary ministries to come alongside. Hearing the word on Sunday, singing in the choir and attending Sunday school, there was something for all ages and genders. It was a wonderful era. Remember that while times have changed, church can still be an essential and vital place within a community. In the gospel of Luke, Jesus calls on all of us to be catalysts of bringing people to Christ.

There is still a great need to proclaim the love of Jesus to those who do not know the love, compassion, and mercy of God. The message has never changed. Although the methodology may have in the gospel. Simon is a master fisherman. His livelihood depends on the number of fish he catches on a daily basis. Imagine that in addition to his physical fatigue, his emotional concern, when his nets come up empty at the end of his shift, there are likely people counting on him and a payroll to deliver. Yet on this occasion, there is nothing. How many other nights had the net yielded no fish. Along comes Jesus to offer a helping hand. Jesus tells him to go out a little further. Simon is exhausted and perhaps a bit cynical. He listens to Jesus and goes deeper into the sea. Lo and behold, there was an abundance of fish more than he could capture so many that he needed help. From his partners, James and John, they rushed out with nets and were amazed at the catch of fish they had taken.

Those men delivered the fish to shore and dropped their nets to join Jesus in his ministry. As they discovered time, and again, this was no simple mission, there would be days of very full nets and days when they would come up empty. Whenever they would feel a sense of dread, Jesus gathered them and reminded them of the assignment. Just like then, Jesus reminds those who may feel weary that if we put out into the deep water, we may catch some new fish. There is no miraculous solution to garnering new members, and if that is the only goal of a church, chances are the nets will continue to be empty. The strategy should never be to simply add Sunday attendance, but rather the goal is to be a positive and productive presence in the mission of Christ and to work toward becoming a beloved community.

Fishers of people are as important today as ever. There is a great concern about the divisions in the land that are stretching the fabric of love for our neighbors. At a time when food insecurity and homelessness are on the rise and affordable housing is strained, people of faith must go out into the community in the ways in which Simon and Andrew and James and John went out, to let the people know that God loves them and that better days are ahead. For those who cannot see through the fog of food, insecurity, homelessness, and rising rents. A helping hand is necessary to remind those in mourning and those in despair, that God hears the cries of God's people and that suffering need not be all consuming.

As disciples, our next task is to model what compassion looks like. It is not enough to repeat the words found in the confession of sins. We have not loved our neighbors as ourselves. That is a call to action. Do we even know our neighbors? Do we know who lives beyond the church doors? Have they been invited into our sacred sanctuary? Are they included in our coffee hours, lunches and special events? Becoming fishers of people requires a level of commitment from all disciples. Jesus did not promise that serving people was an easy task. As contemporary disciples, we should know that rewards can be remarkable. We have an amazing opportunity to reach out and become fully present about our surroundings.

Now let's see what's happening in your neck of the woods. God is inviting us to determine and respond to what is happening in our part of God's vineyard. There are times when the most important ways in which we can exhibit God's love is simply to smile and look into the eyes of our neighbor. In an age when people mindlessly walk down the street fully engaged with their cell phones, it is often difficult to get anyone's attention, but everyone wants to be seen even in the midst of advanced technology, like a phone that is used for everything except talking to one another, people still need each other. The next time we are at the grocery store or waiting to be seated at a restaurant, let's intentionally smile and say hello to someone in our orbit. It's likely both of us will be enriched by that activity. We may even connect with someone who will eventually join us in being fishers of people, there is no special person assigned to this work. We are all up for the task, whether we consider ourselves introverts or extroverts.

In the Old Testament lesson, Isaiah's sin is blotted out as he becomes a messenger of God. When God says, whom shall I send and who will go for us? Isaiah says, here I am. Send me. That is the commitment that God seeks from us. Today, we are being asked to go out and invite people to hear the word of God and to be nourished and fed. If the first answer is not yes, that is not a signal to give up and retreat back into the church. Keep going, keep talking and remember the love of God that we feel in our hearts, and allow that to be the catalyst that moves us forward.

All are called to care for the stranger in our midst. Not only in times of catastrophic episodes like devastating fires and the disruptions of hurricanes and tornadoes, but really every day there is always a need to care for those in distress and those whose lives have been disrupted. Pray for them and pray with them. Feed them, clothe them and help them quench their thirst. Remember the words from the first letter of John. Those who do not love, a brother or a sister whom they have seen cannot love God whom they have not seen. Therefore, my amazing grace family, we must love our neighbors even when it is not easy. When we feel overwhelmed, let's lean on God and community. Release our tensions and refresh our own souls. Listen to the words of our Lord. Join hands and community at the table of God and partake in the nourishment that can only come from the body and blood of Christ. Finally, let us go in peace to love and serve the Lord. In time, our collective nets will be filled. Amen.