Lessons on Evangelism from Jesus and Peter

---

LIKE JESUS: Fish Like Jesus #3 Luke 5:1-11







Kip Hamby May 7, 2017

Lessons on Evangelism from Jesus and Peter

I’m Kip Hamby, the Upward Sports Director here at Christ Community, and I’m truly thankful for being given the privilege to teach God’s Word this morning. It’s hard to believe, but Shari and I have been here almost a year now and I must say that it’s been a joy to serve among you and a wonderful staff team. As you hopefully know by now, we are well into our new series called “Like Jesus.” Mark started things off two weeks ago by urging us to “begin like Jesus.” Last week we heard from Kyle that we should prioritize like Him. Undergirding both of their messages, and indeed, the entire series, is the belief that we really can be like Jesus. It is a process that we call progressive sanctification. We can see amazing change in our lives as the Holy Spirit indwells and empowers us. The apostle John lays out this expectation clearly in his first letter: “whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.”i Today I’d like to speak with you about evangelizing like Jesus evangelized, because, after all, Jesus is our best example for everything good! In fact, that is the big idea for this message: Jesus is our best example for how to evangelize. So this morning…, we’re going to learn from the best! In just a moment we will look at a gospel story that uses the metaphor of fishing for men to help us better understand this call to share our faith. To get us thinking along those lines, here is a picture of Shari and I’s son-in-law Amos Greene and he and Rachel’s boys: Adam—who looks quite proud, Andrew, and Aaron. You could venture to guess two things based on this photo: one is that Amos is a pretty good fisherman and the other being that grandma Shari wanted me to show off some of our family. You would be right on both accounts. Here we have another photo of Amos during a fishing trip to Texas. What do your eyes keep going back to: the giant catfish or Amos’ “Mr. T” haircut? Both are pretty unbelievable, maybe even scary! Here’s my point. If you want to learn how to fish, you don’t want to follow me. The only thing I regularly catch is moss and an occasional submerged tree branch. But you would want to spend time hanging out with Amos. Unless the idea of catching a catfish big enough to swallow your car frightens you. In that same vein, if you want to learn how to evangelize—to fish for men—you can learn from others, but the best person to learn from is Jesus. Let’s pray Lord Jesus, will you now by your Word and Spirit teach us how to fish for the souls of men. Engage our minds, stir our passions, captivate our wills. Inspire us by your example. Amen. Please join me in Luke chapter five. That will be page 860 if you’re using the Bible beneath the chairs. This is a passage of Scripture that describes Jesus calling Peter to follow him. Peter said yes and became the primary leader of the twelve disciples. In my message this morning we are not going to focus on the strategic nature of Jesus calling his chief apostle, but I want us to

examine the account in light of Jesus’ saving work in drawing Peter to himself over the course of time. As we do that, we will unpack three helpful principles that will help us share our faith. Read Luke 5:1—11 The first thing I want you to see from the text is that if you would fish as Jesus fished, you will connect with people. We see in verses three and four that Jesus goes out of his way to connect with Peter by using his boat—not someone else’s--as a makeshift pulpit, and then by telling him to go out with him and fish some more, even though he had been fishing all night. It almost feels like a job shadow or ride-along. We understand the importance of connecting with people in evangelism, don’t we? We know that sharing our faith effectively has to be more than regurgitating a gospel outline to a cornered stranger. We intuit that there is an important relational component to sharing something so personal and so important, and that people are more likely to respond positively to the Lord if we connect with them in a loving, meaningful way. I want to talk about two ways that we can connect with others if we would influence them towards Christ. First of all, as fishers of men we will patiently pursue people. If you’ve been fishing before, you know the importance of patience. That’s why some of you gave it up after fishing…once. It can be disappointing to discover that you can’t just throw your top-water lure or minnow out there and catch a hog bass every time! The spiritual parallel is easy to make. People need time to make a life-changing decision. For us to see that in the case of Peter, let me digress for a moment so we can more clearly see what’s really going on. One of the best ways to grow in our understanding of the Scriptures is to remember the hermeneutical principle that the Scriptures interpret the Scriptures. This principle of Bible interpretation basically says that no passage is an island unto itself. That’s why it’s important that we read the entire Bible and learn the whole counsel of God, and not just camp out in our favorite books all the time. A couple of ways that we can do that with the four gospels is by reading a Chronological Bible or by using a harmony of the gospels. A harmony of the gospels is really helpful in that it focuses on laying out each of the four gospels in chronological order. These tools will help us better understand the order of events, strategies, and relationships in the life and ministry of Christ. Why do I say all that? It’s because it’s helpful to know that this is not the first time that Peter and Jesus meet one another. We see their initial introduction taking place in the first chapter of John’s gospel. Peter’s brother Andrew, who was a great networker, tells his brother Simon that he has met the Messiah, and brings him to Jesus. John records that Jesus looked at him

and said, “You are Simon the son of John. You shall be called “Cephas” (or Peter, which means rock). Talk about a first impression! It’s not every day that you meet someone who is thought to be the Messiah, and they look you right in the eye and give you a new name. In the days and weeks that followed, Simon may have been remembering how God changed people’s names in the Old Testament, like Abram, Sarai, and Jacob, and that it indicated a special calling on their life. So fast forward at least six months after several other interactions between Peter and Jesus, and you’re now ready to better understand this watershed, life-changing moment in Peter’s life. Our Lord has been building relationship and trust with Peter over time, and will continue to patiently pursue him. But I need to be transparent with you guys at this point. I confess that I am often reluctant to share Jesus with others. There are several reasons why, including the fear of man. But most recently the Holy Spirit has been convicting me of what John Ortberg calls “failure to love”.ii I can be so self-absorbed that I would rather give myself to reading or landscaping than to take the time to love my neighbors. Neighbors with eternal souls. I desperately need Christ’s compassion for the lost, or as Kyle put it last week, I need to prioritize like Jesus. Not just during Upward season, but out of it also, wherever God has me. If you can relate to me in this battle with selfishness and fear—then let’s be encouraged that God is persistent and effective in his work of making us fishers of men. As we follow Jesus, He will do it! Another way that we can connect with others for the sake of introducing them to the Savior is to use their vocations and interests as a bridge to share Christ Jesus obviously knew Peter was a fisherman, so he decided to connect with him in a personal and powerful way. Jesus easily could have reserved room C1 at the local synagogue and scheduled a meeting with Peter and shared a power point with him that said, “Peter, I am the Son of God and have all power and authority, and you should follow me”. But Jesus didn’t do that. Instead, he told Peter to join him in his own boat and go fishing. This was something that Peter could relate to far more easily than a formal classroom with a syllabus and handouts. So what does this look like for us? One of my great joys in Upward is sitting down with people and getting to know them, whether it’s in the bleachers on game day or over a cup of coffee. And we all know that two of the easiest things to talk to people about are their jobs and interests. When you have those conversations, let me encourage you to do three simple things: listen really well, ask good questions, and look for opportunities to genuinely affirm them. Many people have jobs or do volunteer work that involves them helping others. Don’t let that go unacknowledged! Pull that compassionate nurse aside and tell her that you really appreciate how she reflects God’s image in her care for hurting people. Write your kid’s teacher a note thanking him specifically for the different ways that he has helped develop your child’s intellect and character. Taking the time to do small things with great love will impact

people more than you can imagine. Little things—with a lot of love—this is how we care for people—this is how we fish for men! Jesus pursued and connected with Peter in his world, and we can do the same. It’s a vital part of fishing like Jesus fished. This leads to our next point: If you would fish as Jesus fished, you will help your friends experience the holiness and power of God (vv. 6-9) But before we talk about how we can do this, let’s put ourselves in Peter’s soaked sandals for a moment. Imagine Peter not knowing whether to laugh for joy because he’s never seen so many fish in his life before at one time, or to freak out because all those fish are making his prized bass boat sink. His sinuses are bombarded by the overpowering smell of fish that are almost knee deep in the boat, and all he can hear are the cries of the gulls that came from nowhere and the booming voices of the always excitable “Sons of Thunder”, James and John. Jesus is the only one in the two boats that seems calm. And it’s when Peter looks at Jesus…that something profound strikes him to his very core. As a professional fisherman he knew that there was no chance of such an amazing catch, since the best fishing was done by night, and last night produced nothing. (And don’t forget that it was a carpenter that was giving him fishing advice!) In the chaos of the moment he recognized that the man sitting in the boat with him was…holy! There was an “otherness”, a separateness, about him that made the hair on his neck stand up, that suddenly unsettled him and made him feel completely out of place, even though he was in his own boat. This realization about Jesus’ transcendence was terrifying because the man Peter in that same moment felt the gap, and knew he was undone. Peter did not feel like a spiritual rock as his new name suggested, but more like the chief of sinners in felt danger of annihilation before one who had such supernatural power and authority. Before he could even think about it he was laid out before Jesus, totally oblivious to the flopping fish and sinking boat and all other surroundings. Trembling uncontrollably, he cried out with unfiltered passion “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!” Peter experienced the holiness and power of God embodied in the second person of the Trinity. How can we do this for our friends? I’m not suggesting that we take our friends fishing and try to duplicate this miracle of catching so many fish. (In East Texas where I grew up they call that dynamite.) But I am suggesting that there are three things that we can do to help them experience the Son of God in this way. To begin with, pray for God to fully reveal himself to them I’m going to give you guys a pop quiz! I’m going to give you the first three words of Christ Community’s outreach strategy, if you will, and you give me the final word. Are you ready? Say it out loud and proud! Prayer, care, and “_________!” (share) Great job! Brent has beat that drum faithfully, and it’s becoming a part of how many of you now live out your evangelism.

Prayer is powerfully linked to evangelism, isn’t it? I know that first-hand, in a good way. I chose a senseless, rebellious path when I was in high school and my first year in college. My mother and grandmother prayed for me during those years, and even if they weren’t the most impressive theological-sounding prayers, I know they were heartfelt cries. Their sincere faith reminded me of Timothy’s mother and grandmother, Eunice and Lois,iii and I am convinced that God responded to their prayers and decisively won my heart at the end of my freshman year at Iowa State. What lost person are you needing to pray for? A foul-mouthed co-worker, an old high school buddy who blasts Christians on Facebook, an estranged family member? Pray that God will reveal himself in all of his beauty to them, including the beauty of his holiness. Another important application for prayer here goes back to the idea of patience. Just as we need to patiently pursue people, we need to persevere in prayer for them. Praying for someone for years to come to Christ may seem like a long time in our culture of instant gratification, but in light of eternity, it’s a snap of the finger. George Mueller, who saw God quickly answer countless prayers in his ministry to orphans, also saw the Lord answer prayers that required perseverance on his part. Listen to this account: “In November, 1844, I began to pray for the conversion of five individuals. I prayed every day without a single intermission, whether sick or in health, on the land or on the sea… Eighteen months elapsed before the first of the five was converted…Five years elapsed, and the second was converted…Six years passed before the third was converted. I thanked God for the three and went on praying for the other two…[I prayed] nearly 36 years for the conversion of these individuals, and yet they remained unconverted. But I hope in God, I pray on, and look yet for the answer. They are not converted yet, but they will be.” Those prayers? You ask…they were not converted after he had entreated God for 52 years daily. But after his death God brought them into the fold.iv Prayer, care, and share. Even if it takes 52 years. In addition to praying for your lost friends to experience God’s holiness, also share your stories of when God worked powerfully on behalf of you or your family Think of the demoniac from Gadara, who Jesus would later deliver from a Legion of demons. He too experienced Jesus’ power and holiness. After releasing him from his physical and spiritual chains, Jesus told him to go home to his friends and tell them how much the Lord had done for him. It’s hard to argue with someone’s testimony, isn’t it? And as you know, God made us so that we are drawn to stories. One of our most delightful basketball game days this past season was when different coaches shared their God-stories during halftime. Some of them were quite powerful! We’ve got such a great group of basketball and football coaches, and refs and other volunteers! Pretty amazing.

If you know Christ, you have an amazing testimony to share! It doesn’t have to be littered with drug use and slave trade to be powerful. Maybe you need to place the emphasis of your story on how God has been transforming your life after your moment of conversion, instead of focusing too much on your life before Christ. Let’s learn to share our stories well, and often. A third and final way that we can help our friends experience God’s holiness and power is to let them feel and confess their sinfulness Let’s go back to our story--listen again to verse 8: “When Simon Peter saw it (the miraculous catch of fish), he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord” Did you notice that Jesus doesn’t rush in to correct Peter’s self-image? He doesn’t pat him on the back and say, “Peter, you’re not really that bad.” Far from it! He is not concerned with Peter’s self-esteem; his desire for all of his disciples—us included—is that we would die to self. He lets Simon feel the full weight of his sin, and as we will see in just a moment, he then gives him grace! In the same way, as we patiently pursue people and better yet--pray for God’s Spirit, the Bloodhound of Heaven—to pursue them, there will hopefully come a day when they feel convicted of their sin. They will feel both guilt and shame, which are biblically proper responses. They will realize they have broken God’s laws, and are guilty of cosmic treason against their righteous Creator. This is good and necessary—otherwise they will feel no need for a Savior. John Newton is best known for writing the hymn “Amazing Grace.” He also wrote a lesser known but powerful hymn called “The Look.” Consider how the first of these lyrics describes Peter as he falls before Jesus, and how important it is that they are experienced by all those who are moving towards Christ: “My conscience felt and owned the guilt, and plunged me in despair. I saw my sins His blood had spilt, and helped to nail Him there.” Only God’s Spirit can bring this type of conviction that leads to repentance and faith. Modern psychologies tell us that we are victims of dysfunction or something’s the matter with our brain. We can be victims, and something can be wrong with our brain, but our fundamental issue is that we are responsible moral agents who often choose rebellion over submission to God. Guilt is real, and shame is good, if they goad us to turn to the Savior for forgiveness and new life. If you would fish like Jesus fished, you will help your friends experience the holiness and power of God. You will make every effort to connect with them. And, you will also show your friends that the holy Son of God loves them Peter, awestruck at what he has just experienced, humbly asks Jesus to depart. Like the prophet Isaiah in the throne room of God, he realizes that it’s a dangerous thing to be a sinner in a holy God’s presence.

But did you see in the story that Jesus didn’t depart from Peter? That he didn’t walk out of the boat, maybe on top of the water for added emphasis, to never see Peter again? No, Jesus gave him mercy and grace. Jesus had already set his love on this this brash, overconfident man. He loved this rough, passionate fisherman with his eyes wide open, and further welcomed him into his life and mission. The last thing he was going to do was leave Peter. His love for him was not fickle, but steadfast; not conditional, but unconditional. He had always loved him with an everlasting love.v Aren’t you glad that the Son of God doesn’t depart from us whenever we are laid out bare before him in our sinfulness? Paul wrote that nothing can separate us from the love of Christ. That even includes your sins that seem most damning, those sins that you have never told another person about. He knows about them and still loves you. Tim Keller sums up God’s love for us in the gospel beautifully when he says “We are all more sinful and flawed than we ever dared believe but more loved and welcomed than we ever dared hope.”vi How can we apply this good news to others? Let’s not be easily shocked or thrown off balance by our friends’ sinfulness, and part company from them simply because their life is messy and they make us feel awkward. Jesus got a bad reputation with the religious folk of his day for being a friend of sinners. He welcomed them, just like he welcomes us. It is only fitting that we would do the same! Wouldn’t it be great if Christ Community’s growing reputation around town was “that’s the place that welcomes sinners!” Jesus also demonstrated his love for Simon by making two short but powerful statements: The first was “Do not be afraid”. Jesus was comforting his future lead apostle by telling him that he was not going to be abandoned, condemned, or destroyed. O how unbelievable, how relieving, those four words—“do not be afraid”--must have sounded to this man! One moment he was fearful of judgment, and in another he realized that God was for him! My friends, that is the gospel! We no longer have to quake in fear before this all-knowing, always-present, all-powerful God. Those three attributes of God would be our total undoing if it were not for the fact that God’s Son, out of a deep, deep, love, submitted himself completely to the Father’s will and was crushed in our place. He took on the wrath of God that we deserved, and we in return receive his perfect righteousness by faith. God is also for us in Christ! The second short but powerful statement from Jesus to Peter was “from now on you will be catching men”. Jesus spared Peter from deserved death—which is mercy; he now makes him an important part of building his kingdom—which is grace! I don’t think the Sea of Galilee had an amusement park, but Peter was riding quite the emotional roller coaster! He goes from being toast, to being forgiven, and to being commissioned in just three seconds! I don’t think Adventure Land can pull that one off!

And men…hear me on this. We were made for challenge! We were not wired by God to be passive, in fact, we were created for something far more adventurous than fishing, hunting, or sports. We are called by Jesus to follow his example of true manhood, to lead our families, and give our lives away for the sake of others. Jesus still calls us today to join him in catching men! It’s called the Great Commission for a reason. And let me share one more thought along these lines. One of our Upward basketball coaches understands what we’re talking about here. He gives each of his players a challenge before each game. He will amble up next to them, put his hand on their shoulder, and say something like, “I think you can get 10 rebounds today. Are you up for it?” So what’s my point? As a church that highly values intergenerational discipleship, how are you doing dad and mom with challenging your children to share their faith? Grandpa and grandma, how is that going for you? Are your kids seeing you actively love and pursue non-Christians? Are you living in a Christian bubble, or are you taking risks to love and serve the dying? Let’s put some wear and tear on our welcome mats! Conclusion This metaphor “fishing for men” works well for evangelism, doesn’t it? But there is one aspect of it that doesn’t fit. You know, fishing, from a fish’s perspective, is a pretty negative thing. Several years ago I was fishing with Amos at Lake Okoboji, and he landed a nice pike. I was shut out... At the risk of sounding overly dramatic, this fish was caught for death, which meant he ended up in a skillet after being rolled in some corn meal. But…we catch men for life, not for death. We had almost 150 different Upward basketball, football, and cheer coaches this past season, and over 600 individual kids participating. The majority of those families do not attend here. Many do not attend church at all, or at least not a gospel-believing church. And you have co-workers that you see on a regular basis, or fellow students that you sit next to in your classes, or neighbors that are coming out of hiding because the weather is warming up. Many of them would be interested in connecting with you if you reached out to them. Some of them would even be drawn to a holy and powerful God, if they knew that He loved them. Let’s catch them for life. Let’s follow Jesus’ example. _________________________ I

1 John 1:6 John Ortberg, All the Places to Go: How Will You Know?, p. 204 iii 2 Timothy 1:5 iv Basil Miller, George Mueller, p. 146 v Jeremiah 31:3 vi Timothy Keller, The Centrality of the Gospel, p. 3 ii