When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, "Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch." Simon answered, "Master, we've worked hard all night and haven't caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets."
-Luke 5:4, 5
After spending some time teaching and ministering to the people, the Lord Jesus said to Simon (later to be called Peter), “Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets…” I don’t know a great deal about fishing, but that certainly sounds like good advice. You haven’t caught much at the present depth, so the next step is to go deeper. Hopefully, the application to life in this verse is apparent. When we find that at the present depth we are not catching much in terms of fulfillment, happiness, and joy, then the next step we should try is going deeper. The problem is that people often seek to go deeper into the wrong direction. They launch into something which the Lord never intended for them to do. It could involve all sorts behaviors which are contrary to the Godly life to which we have been called in Christ Jesus. For the follower of Christ, the invitation is to cast out deeper into a relationship with the Lord Jesus.
Peter confessed to the Lord that they had fished all night, but had caught nothing. However, they would follow the Word of the Lord and let down their nets. Do you see what’s going on here? Following the confession of disappointment is the obedience to the Lord’s Word. Failure to do what the Lord has told us to do is a guarantee that the net remains empty. Faith involves taking heed to what the Lord has instructed. Rather than wallow in despair over an empty net, we become proactive – we are obedient to the Lord’s command and we cast the net out into deeper water.
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