“A New Morning With Jesus” (Luke 5:1-11)

Luke 5:1-11 “A New Morning With Jesus”

 

Beloved saints! Today we are gathered in church to give glory to God at the moment when the old year of 2009 passes and we usher in the new morning of 2010.  I pray that God’s grace and peace be with you and in your homes and God’s grace and blessing be upon our church, where we serve.  I don’t know how many churches give a New Year’s Eve service, but this is a good chance to look back at the past one year in this special time.  No human beings are perfect, we may do some good before God, but we also do some not so good.  We have no regrets for the things we did good, but we have regrets for things we do not do good.  We make up our minds to do good in the beginning of the year; but when December comes, there are things that we regret.  Therefore I pray that at this time we make decisions not to repeat the same thing over again before God in 2010.  St. Paul says in Philippians 3:13B, “But one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead.”  I believe we must live well with newness in our hearts in the New Year.  I believe this is the right attitude as a saint.

 

First, let’s go back to today’s text.  Peter has toiled all night fishing in the Lake of Gennesaret (Sea of Galilee) with his companions, but did not catch one fish.  But after he met Jesus, he ushered in the new morning with Jesus.  This beautiful, blessed experience was written in today’s text.  I pray that a great blessing will come through the words in the text to us who usher in the year of 2010.  Do not give up easily in the time of trouble.  ‚Abide with Jesus in our lifeboat.  ƒObey totally the words of Jesus.  Peter toiled all night but failed to catch even one fish, but he did not give up, how do we know this?  It shows us in verse 2 (Luke 5:2), “And saw two boats standing by the lake; but the fishermen had gone from them and were washing their nets.”  In this, one of the fishermen was Peter; he was washing his nets in preparation for the next day. 

In order to continue fishing, one would have to wash and clean the nets to be ready for the next day, isn’t this right?  Their action in not throwing the nets away but washing them so they would be clean shows that even though they did not catch any fish all night, they would not give up.  They did not give up on the next day just because today’s failure.  What kind of person is the most difficult for Jesus to use?  It is the one who gives up on their life.  However, even though this society or parents and relatives forsake and give up on a person if that person has a heart with hope and says to himself, “I can do it, I can overcome it and not give up on it,” then that person has hope.  It is the same in our life of faith.  In spite of difficulty, we must endure and be with Jesus until the end.  We must not give up.  As we read the Bible, the Lord says constantly, “I am the Lord, I am the Lord God Who saves you, Almighty God, God says . . . etc.  We see that when a person stays within the line of belief in God, then this person receives God’s love, but when a person is out of line then the trouble comes upon him.  Therefore after we hear the sermon titled “A new Morning With Jesus,” I pray that you become beautiful saints, who walk with God in this new year of 2010, like Enoch (Genesis 5:21-24).

 

Secondly, Jesus came to see Peter.  Jesus came to see Peter when he was cleaning the nets, for he would not give up but endure to the end in spite of unproductive work.  Jesus gave Peter a new idea “Launch out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch” (Verse 4B).  What was Peter’s response?  Verse 5 states he said, “Master, we have toiled all night and caught nothing; nevertheless at Your word I will let down the net.”  This was Peter’s response, which is the response of faith.  After his response of faith to Jesus’ request, he threw out the nets, then he caught a great number of fish and his nets were breaking.  So he signaled to his partners in the other boat to come and help him.  They came and filled both the boats so they began to sink. 

I pray in the name of our Lord that our life will be like this as we are about to begin today, the year of 2010.  I pray we may be blessed that our boat will be filled and other boats will be filled also.  How did Peter do this?  He failed but never gave up.  ‚He met Jesus.  ƒHe threw his net out in the sea in obedience.  Beloved saints!  I finish preaching.  Do you want a new beginning in the new morning of this year 2010 with Jesus?  Do you want to be successful and victorious in life, coming out of failure?  Do you want to fill your neighbor’s boat through yourself?  Then I believe we need to obey the word of Jesus Christ and walk with Him every moment of your life.


By: Rev. Samuel Choi