KC Tsai—Toronto, Canada

 

Simon Peter was a fisherman from the small village of Bethsaida by the Sea of Galilee (Jn 1:44). He made his living by casting his net to catch fish, but after meeting the Lord Jesus, he became one of the fish caught in the net of God's salvation grace (Mt 13:47–50).

         So it was, as the multitude pressed about Him to hear the word of God, that He stood by the Lake of Gennesaret, and saw two boats standing by the lake. ...Then He got into one of the boats, which was Simon's, and asked him to put out a little from the land. And He sat down and taught the multitudes from the boat. When He had stopped speaking, He said to Simon, "Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch." (Lk 5:1–4)

Peter, exhausted and disheartened, replied, "Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless, at Your word I will let down the net" (Lk 5:5). Without expectations, he and his companions let down their nets and caught such a great number of fish that their net was filled to bursting. The massive haul filled two boats, causing them to start sinking.

Peter personally experienced this miracle firsthand, witnessing the power of the Lord Jesus. At the same time, he perceived his own sinfulness and felt extremely unworthy. He fell at Jesus' knees and said, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!" (Lk 5:8). This miracle not only provided him with an unexpectedly huge catch of fish, but also the realization that he was a sinner, unable to stand before the Lord without any shame.

LAUNCH OUT INTO THE DEEP

"Launch out into the deep" was the command the Lord gave to Peter. His words carry great authority, beyond all human imagination (Mt 8:8–12), bestowing great grace upon those who believe. For Peter, Jesus had already prepared a great catch in the deep waters before he launched out. Although Jesus' instruction to let down their nets did not specify what would happen, His commands always carry unimaginable promises. Whoever believes in Him and follows His instructions will receive His blessings, just as Peter did with his two boatloads of fish. This is similar to God's command to Abram: "Get out of your country, from your family and from your father's house to a land that I will show you" (Gen 12:1–3). This simple command from God was followed by a series of promises—that He would make Abram a great nation, and all families of the earth would be blessed through him. Sure enough, because of Abram's faith and obedience, those promises were fulfilled (Heb 11:8–12; Gal 3:7–8, 14).

Life-Changing Grace

Before we open our hearts to see the Lord's glory, we often fail to recognize our own sins and shortcomings. We become stuck in our routines, like Simon Peter, who spent his days casting, hauling, washing, and mending nets. When he obeyed the word of the Lord to launch out into the deep and let down his net, his expectations were upended. He was astonished by the sight of the heavy, straining nets being brought onto the boats.

Though the Lord Jesus' appearance and attire did not change during the miracle, the miracle itself revealed His spotless purity, making Him seem too holy to look upon. In fact, it was Peter's heart that changed—he saw himself as a sinner and recognized that the Lord Jesus was no ordinary Man. This was the first grace he received.

 

Peter said, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!" But the Lord did not leave him. Instead, Jesus said to him, "Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men." So, Peter and his companions brought their boats to land, forsook all, and followed Jesus (Lk 5:10–11). Thus, the second grace Peter received was his calling to follow the Lord and be a fisher of men.

"From now on you will catch men." The task of casting a net is the same, except the target would no longer be fish but human souls. Being a fisher of men is the noble task of preaching the gospel, allowing others to gain life by knowing the Prince of life. It is a blessed and pleasing service in the sight of the Lord.

CASTING THE NET ON THE RIGHT SIDE

Peter did not become a fisher of men during the three years of following the Lord Jesus. It was after the Lord's ascension, when Peter received the promised Holy Spirit, that he became a fisher of men and led three thousand souls to the Lord on the Day of Pentecost. But before this point, he became dangerously close to losing himself. Despite having seen the resurrected Lord twice, Peter told six companions by the Sea of Tiberias, "I am going fishing." His companions followed him in the opposite direction to their calling. They planned to return to their old occupation and resume their life as fishermen.

It was at this moment that the Lord Jesus gave them another timely command:

         And He said to then, "Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some." So they cast, and now they were not able to draw it in because of the multitude of fish. ...Then, as soon as they had come to land, they saw a fire of coals there, and fish laid on it, and bread. Jesus said to them, "Bring some of the fish which you have just caught." (Jn 21:6, 9–10)

The Lord Jesus did not need the fish that they had caught. He could obtain the fish He wanted by Himself, even without lighting a fire to grill it. Our gospel work is the same. The Lord knows who His sheep are; they hear His voice and follow Him (Jn 10:27). In preaching the gospel, He may not need human "help," but He is willing to give believers the opportunity to work with Him. When He said, "Bring some of the fish you have just caught," it was not because He lacked fish, but because He wanted His disciples to participate. The boatload of fish was His reward, from which He expected His disciples to bring a few fish to share with Him. If He is willing to accept the contribution of His disciples in providing breakfast, how much more is He willing to accept their participation in the task of saving souls.

THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS LIKE A NET

         "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a dragnet that was cast into the sea and gathered some of every kind, which, when it was full, they drew to shore; and they sat down and gathered the good into vessels, but threw the bad away. So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come forth, separate the wicked from among the just, and cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth." (Mt 13:47–50)

The parable of the dragnet describes the kingdom of heaven as a net cast into the sea, gathering all kinds of fish before the final judgment. This net does not refer to the eternal kingdom that believers will eventually enter after judgment, but to the true church on earth, the kingdom of God. In this parable, there is only one net in the vast sea, and it gathers various kinds of fish—some good and some bad, to be later discarded. This signifies that within the church, there will be both righteous and wicked people. God's salvation is highly selective. There is only one true church where we can receive salvation, but those who enter must rely on the Holy Spirit to learn, pursue, and keep God's word, becoming righteous and acceptable to God. Not only must we enter the only true church, but we must also humbly and diligently hold fast to the true faith lest we lose our salvation.

The Direction and Depth of Our Preaching

"Launch out into the deep" signifies the direction and depth required by the Lord. "Cast the net on the right side" signifies having and obeying the word of the Lord. The disciples had worked hard all night and surely had cast their net on the right side already. Therefore, the problem was not the location of the casting but whether they had the Lord's word and obeyed it.

Preaching the gospel requires the depth and direction demanded by the Lord. Today, the testimonies presented at evangelistic services or truth-seeker classes often focus on healings from illness and protection from accidents. While miracles can confirm the preached word (Mk 16:20), they cannot replace the truth. Although such testimonies can pique the interest of truth-seekers, they are like shallow waters near the shore. We must go deeper in preaching the truth of salvation.

The word of the Lord is the source of winning souls. Therefore, we must be deeply rooted and established in God's word. Some believers are enthusiastic about the gospel work and are eager to share, but it is possible that they only have a superficial understanding of our basic beliefs. Due to worldly values and influences, they may struggle to grasp spiritual principles from the Bible. Some believers, after decades of believing, still lack spiritual wisdom and understanding and are unable to discern the truth clearly. As warned by the apostle Paul, they are "always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth" (2 Tim 3:7).

Thus, those involved in evangelism should not rely solely on eloquence and skills, but on the Holy Spirit, praying for the Lord to draw people to Him. They must diligently grow in the knowledge of the truth and humbly submit to the guidance and training of the church. Only then can they cast the net to win souls and share in the blessings of the gospel (1 Cor 9:23).

CONCLUSION

When Peter, dejected after a long and unsuccessful night of toil, obeyed Jesus' command to launch out into the deep, he could never have imagined the new direction his life would take. From witnessing the impossible, to realizing the divinity of Jesus and his own sinfulness, to accepting the call of becoming a fisher of men, and finally living out his calling, each step Peter took was guided by the word of the Lord Jesus and brought him deeper into the grace and knowledge of God. So in our role as fishers of men, let us follow the same trajectory—to humbly follow God's calling and instructions; to understand our status before the Lord Jesus and the grace of participating in His gospel work; and to rely on the Holy Spirit to bring people into the dragnet of salvation and guide them to deep understanding of God's word, holding fast to the truth.