Luke 5:1–11

Read the passage.

“On one occasion” sounds like a signal that this story happened during the ministry that was summarized in the previous chapter. The fisherman Simon is the same one whose mother-in-law was healed of a fever, but it is hard to say which event happened first.

At this time Jesus was drawing crowds of people who wanted to hear Him tell them God’s word. But there were so many trying to get close to Him that He decided to find a platform to teach from. At the time it was traditional for teachers to sit while they taught, but with so many people so close to Jesus, no one could see or hear Him very well. Jesus gets into Simon’s boat and teaches from there.

After the lesson, Jesus tells Simon to go fishing again, after a hard night of catching nothing, at the wrong time of day. But Simon does it anyway, and he and his crew nearly lose their boats from pulling in the huge catch. At this point, Simon realizes he is in the presence of a holy prophet, and he confesses that he is a sinful man. This is what our response should be when we encounter holiness: a fearful recognition that we are incredibly not holy.

Show us Your holiness, O God, that we may know the depths of our sin and repent.