Peter’s Confession to Jesus (Luke 5:1-11)

This incident occurs after Peter had met Jesus through the instrumentality of Andrew and after the occasion when Peter and Andrew and James and John had followed after Jesus when he had called them to leave their boats and follow him. That particular trip must have been a short one because here the disciples are back fishing. We can note some details from this incident.

The first is that the preparation for serving Jesus will take a period of time and may be done in stages; the second is that there is no reason why someone cannot go back and work awhile at a job during this period of preparation; and the third is that Andrew is not mentioned as being present whereas James and John are. I think Andrew is in the story because we are told at the end that all those who were in the boats went and followed Jesus, and one assumes that the one helping in Simon’s boat was Andrew. Instead, we should see that there is a special focus on Peter, a defining moment for him.

What had Peter experienced so far from Jesus? After meeting Jesus in the south of the country through the witness of Andrew, Peter had travelled north with Jesus and saw him call other people, such as Philip and Nathaniel, to follow him as disciples. Then he had been a guest at the wedding in Cana where Jesus turned the water into wine, and John tells us that observing that miracle had helped increase the faith of the disciples. Then after a short while they went back down to Jerusalem for the Passover during which time they had seen Jesus cleanse the temple and speak with Nicodemus, the prominent Jewish leader. Then Jesus and his disciples went into Judea where some people were baptised by him (John 3:22). After that, they returned to Galilee and on the journey stopped at Sychar, where many of the Samaritans believed in Jesus (John 4). Back in Galilee, Jesus later called the two sets of brothers to follow him which they did for a short time (Mark 1:16-45). During this period, Simon’s mother-in-law was healed by Jesus (Mark 1:29-31).

All of the above had happened, yet Peter needed this special experience. I can think of two reasons why he may have needed it. One is that he needed it because he was going to have a prominent place among the disciples, and the other is that he had not yet responded fully to Jesus as he should have done. As we think about those two possibilities, and of course there may have been other reasons, we have to remember that Jesus is in the process of turning Peter into a rock. So Peter, we could say, is in the Sculptor’s workshop being changed and equipped for his future role. What does the Sculptor do?

Jesus uses what Peter has

It is obvious from Luke’s description that Jesus was popular at that time and large crowds of people wanted to hear him. The Saviour was willing to teach them, but he also wanted to teach from a place that suited him. What was the place that would do? Luke points out that there were two boats available, and that Jesus chose to use the one that belonged to Peter. He could have chosen the other one, but he did not. Having entered the boat, he then asked Peter to move away a little from the shore. Obviously, this was an easy request for Peter to meet. He was not stretched at all by this requirement. No doubt, Peter was very happy for his boat to be used by Jesus in this way.

Then Jesus asked Peter to do something with his boat that was much more difficult. Peter was commanded to go out into the sea and put down his nets for a catch. Here we see Jesus stretching the faith of Peter, especially since Peter had spent the previous night fishing and caught nothing. Jesus was asking Peter to repeat an action in which we could say that he had just failed.

I suspect if we had been speaking to Peter we would have said to him, ‘Peter, can you not see what providence is telling you? You are a seasoned fisherman, and if you have caught nothing, God is obviously telling you to give up fishing and follow Jesus.’ That would have been true, but it would not be encouraging truth. And Jesus wanted to give encouraging truth to Peter. So he tested his disciple’s faith. And that is why we get tested. If we do what he says, we will receive great encouragement.

Peter’s response does not seem wholehearted. He reminded Jesus that he and his friends had fished all night, presumably in areas where they had expected to find fish. Yet he says that once they are out in the deep, he will follow Jesus’ orders at whatever spot Jesus chooses. He does not sound confident, but at least he is willing to obey what Jesus requires.

Jesus must have given the instruction and the outcome was that Peter was given a great catch of fish, enough to fill his boat and the other boat that belonged to James and John. So we can see that blessings come when we follow the difficult commands of Jesus as well as when we engage in easy ones.

The response of Peter

What would you do if you were in a boat that was sinking because of the catch of fish? I would either jump out or throw the catch out! Peter did neither. Instead, right there in the sinking boat he falls down at the knees of Jesus confessing that he had sinned. ‘Can you not wait until you get ashore, Peter, before you start praying, especially since the boat is sinking?’ Peter was more concerned about his soul than he was about his sinking boat.

Peter’s response tells us several things. The first is that we should not be ashamed of a public confession of Jesus. After all, Peter was on his knees in front of Jesus in full view of others. Their presence did not prevent him confessing who Jesus was, and we should do so as well.

Second, we see from Peter’s response the value of spontaneity. What would have happened if Peter had decided to wait until he got ashore before making his profound comments? He would have lost the moment, and a moment lost cannot be recovered, even if other opportunities are given. Speaking to Jesus in a sinking boat full of the fish that he had provided was a moment that would not happen again in Peter’s experience. He would be in a sinking boat later on when Jesus was asleep, but that was not the same circumstances has here. We learn from Peter here to value the moments, the opportunities that God gives us to respond to his grace.

Third, we observe from the sculpting of Peter by Jesus the importance of realising that we are sinful. From one point of view, it is an easy thing to say that we are sinful because we know that we are not perfect. Yet there is a huge difference between that idea and the experience of Peter here.

We can also recognise that we are sinners through conviction of sin that comes through the law of God being applied to our consciences by the Holy Spirit, and when that happens we are appalled at our sinfulness and, like the tax collector, call out to God for mercy. Often this happens before conversion or at conversion.

Of course, believers sin after conversion and we have an example of that in the case of David and the penitential psalms he wrote afterwards (Psalms 32 and 51). He had realised that it was a bitter thing to sin against the Lord and he had to plead for mercy. It is no doubt true that Peter may have had sins to confess about his discipleship before, but that is not the cause of his confession here.

Instead, he sees himself as sinful in light of the incredible miracle that he had witnessed performed by Jesus. He saw that Jesus was capable, yet caring, that he could control the creation, which meant that he was divine, and control it in such a way that blessings could be channelled wherever he wished. It is in the light of the beauty of Jesus that we have the profoundest awareness of our own sin. There, in his presence, we realise that our sin, whatever it is, makes us ugly, that it demeans us, that it prevents us living for God’s glory.

Fourth, we see that Peter has grown in how to address Jesus. The first recorded words of Peter are in verse 5, and there he called Jesus by the title ‘Master’. That was the title that any follower would give to his teacher. For example, the followers of John the Baptist could have used it when speaking to him. But in verse 8, Peter calls Jesus by the title ‘Lord’, which in Peter’s confession is linked to the creatorial powers of Jesus that he has witnessed. The word could be used merely to express respect, but it is obviously much more than respect that is expressed by the mouth of Peter.

Fifth, Peter made a wrong deduction when he discovered his sinfulness in the light of the beauty of Jesus. Peter assumed that someone has perfect as Jesus would never use someone as imperfect as Peter. Thankfully, he discovered that this was not the case, that having seen himself in the light of the glory of Jesus, he was ready to be used by Jesus, and in ways beyond Peter’s ability to grasp at that moment.

The comfort of Jesus (v. 10)

Jesus then said to Peter that he did not need to be afraid because Jesus was not going to use his power to destroy him but to enable him to catch men, a task more difficult than catching fish (the word that Jesus uses for catching means to catch alive, which is very different from what a fisherman usually aims for). It may have been the case that what Peter was afraid of was going out to evangelise in his own strength because he knew what kind of man he was. If that was the case, then he was reassured here of success despite his sinfulness. The Lord would help him catch people through the gospel, and we see how that happened in the records in the Book of Acts.

It is also the case that Jesus here is informing Peter, and us, that the ones who catch sinners are the one who know themselves to be sinners. Knowing that we are sinners create sympathy in our hearts for those who don’t know that they are sinners. Is this not what drove Paul, when in one of his closing letters of his life he described himself as the chief of sinners in a context in which he mentioned that Jesus came into the world to save sinners?

For Peter, and indeed for Andrew and James and John, this incident seems to have been a defining moment because Luke tells us that they left all and followed Jesus. In order to fulfil their calling, they needed a sight of the power of Jesus. And we need to see a similar sight so that we will understand his own words that without him we can do nothing. He did not mean that we should do nothing, but that we should experience what it is like to have Jesus with us.

Preached on 17/7/2016