When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon,
"Put out into the deep, and let down your
nets for a catch."
Simon answered him, "Master, we worked all night, and took
nothing;
but at your word I will let down the net."
When they had done this, they caught a great multitude of fish, and
their net was breaking.
They beckoned to their partners in the other boat, that they should
come and help them.
They came, and filled both boats, so that they began to sink.
But Simon Peter, when he saw it, fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying,
"Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, Lord."
For he was amazed, and all who were with him, at the catch of fish
which they had caught;
and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners
with Simon. Jesus said to Simon, "Don’t be
afraid. From now on you will be catching people alive."
What does this reveal about Jesus?
He can easily obtain for us what we may never even obtain by our own hard work.
Application:
By submitting to Christ as Lord, obeying His commands, we may find our small efforts blessed with much fruitfulness. But we must go into deeper waters, developing a deeper relationship with Him, and allow Him to use our resources in doing so. This prepares us to be effective ministers of the gospel.
For the humble, experiencing God's gracious blessing often leads to conviction of sin.
"Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness leads you toward repentance?" Rom 2:4Whether or not you feel close to God may have little correlation to the truth. There are those who lacking conviction of sin who sense that they are close to God. They are mistaken, having an unhealthy conscience. But there are those who actually are closer to God who realize the degree of His holiness and recognize how far they fall short. It's like comparing those who merely bath in the sun from a distance, to those who take a trip to the sun and try to walk around on it. Sinful man can never stand in the presence of a holy God.