282. Fifth Sunday after Trinity. I.
Lord Jesus, help us to give heed
to thy words of instruction. Amen.
Gospel Lesson, Luke 5, 1-11. And it came to pass, that, as the people pressed upon him to hear the word of God, he stood by the lake of Gennesaret, and saw two ships standing by the lake: but the fishermen were gone out of them, and were washing their nets. And he entered into one of the ships, which was Simon’s, and prayed him that he would thrust out a little from the land. And he sat down, and taught the people out of the ship. Now when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Launch out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught. And Simon, answering, said unto him, Master, we have toiled all the night, and have taken nothing: nevertheless, at thy word I will let down the net. And when they had this done, they inclosed a great multitude of fishes: and their net brake. And they beckoned unto their partners, which were in the other ship, that they should come and help them. And they came, and filled both the ships, so that they began to sink. When Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord. For he was astonished, and all that were with him, at the draught of the fishes which they had taken: And so was also James and John, the sons of Zebedee, which were partners with Simon. And Jesus said unto Simon, Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men. And when they had brought their ships to land, they forsook all, and followed him.
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Out of the wealth of instruction contained in this gospel we will today treasure up in our heart the following two lessons: 1) That men may be caught for the kingdom of God, be led to Jesus, believe in him, and continue in the faith, is God’s loving purpose in all that he does; and all the events of our life are shaped to serve this end. The will of God is that you shall save others, in order that there may be a saved human race. He wants us to come out of the darkness of sin into the light of his grace; to receive again the wisdom which we have lost; that we may know his love, and love him with holy joy. It is his will that we shall again have dominion over all creatures, and that all the forces of nature shall willingly obey our command. But the way of salvation is humility and penitence from beginning to end. When Peter and his partners toil all the night, and take nothing, this is a part of God’s plan to make them fishers of men. When Jesus begins by giving them the bread of life, and then fills their ship, we understand what important object the Lord has in view; and when the great draught of fishes causes Peter to fall down in astonishment and fear at the feet of Jesus, we see what the Lord’s purpose was in working this miracle. Let us understand that the Lord knows all which happens to us; that his purpose is to promote our eternal welfare, make us efficient workers for the kingdom, and allow us to labor on in our earthly vocation with the things of heaven before our eyes.
2) At the Lord’s word we shall let down the net. We are not to trust in our own skill, but are to expect everything as a result of his blessing; expect it with certainty, but only according to his gracious promise, and as an undeserved gift from his hand. Why must Peter toil all the night, and take nothing? He is to learn that the Lord rules in all things, and especially in the work of catching men, to which Peter is now called. He is to know of a certainty that the word which the Lord commands him to preach accomplishes that whereto it is sent; he is to learn to trust in the Lord, and commit all things into his hand! “At thy word I will let down the net;” that is, I will do it in obedience to the Lord, and trusting in him. We are to do all our work unto the Lord. Whatsoever he says unto you, do it gladly, and without question, whether you be a magistrate, or a teacher, or a master, or a servant; and whether it promise to pay, or seem useless. Lend the Lord your ship, and he shall return it to you full of fishes. Let down the net at his word, and at the proper time you shall have a great draught. All are not called to be apostles or teachers; but still it is the duty of all to labor for the salvation of souls. Live in the Lord; do your work in his service; follow Jesus in humility, love, self-denial, and patience; confess his name by the word and sacraments, and by holiness in all your speech and conduct; — then shall you catch men. Thus we, together with the apostles and the whole church, draw the net, and lift the souls into the ship to our Lord Jesus.
Grant us this grace, dear heavenly Father. Help us to say from our heart: Lord, at thy word I will let down the net. Take from us all carnal self-confidence, and give us the childlike and simple faith of the lowly of heart. Lord Jesus, we commit ourselves to thee. Do thou in mercy take me and all that is mine, and make use of me for the furtherance of thy kingdom, for the salvation of souls. Amen.*
Spread, oh, spread, thou mighty Word!
Spread the kingdom of the Lord,
That in earth’s remotest bound
Men may hear the joyful sound.
Tell them how the Father’s will
Made the world, and keeps it still,
How his only Son he gave,
Man from sin and death to save.
283. Fifth Sunday after Trinity. II.
Holy God, sanctify us in heart and
deed by thy holy word. Amen.
Epistle Lesson, 1 Peter 3, 8-14. Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another; love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous: Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing; but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing. For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile: Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it. For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil. And who is he that will harm you, if ye be followers of that which is good? But and if ye suffer for righteousness’ sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled.
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If you wish to gather souls for Christ, live according to this epistle lesson. He who thus walks confesses Christ unceasingly, magnifies his name, and leads souls to him. And for himself also he has the joy of the true life and the blessings of the cross. The peace of God reigns in his heart; he experiences the Lord’s help in every trouble, and he is grateful for it all. “He that will love life, and see good days,” let him speak and do that which is good. The Lord himself says: “He that loveth his life shall lose it.” “Life” and “life” are two different things. The life which we are to love is the fellowship with God; while the life which we are to hate is the life in carnal and sensual lusts. The Lord himself shall be our life; we shall love him with such devotion that everything else which we love must pale and disappear before him, our soul’s delight, even as the stars are blotted out when the sun rises. Then he will fill our hearts with heavenly joy, and make our lives full and rich. For this Christ has taught us to pray in the Third Petition of the Lord’s Prayer. As the blessed angels in heaven praise God and serve us, so shall we gladly serve one another and praise the Lord. This is the life which we shall love. Be ye, then, Christian brethren, all of one mind; be all like-minded according to Christ, that you mind the same thing, have the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Regard yourselves as nothing, and adorn yourselves with humility. In the humble souls love increases; without humility the brotherly spirit cannot thrive. Have compassion one of another; for are you not members one of another? And when one member suffers all the members suffer with it. Love ye as brethren; for “by this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.” (John 13, 35). “See that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently,” and show this in being courteous, and having active sympathy with all. Do not close your hand to the necessities of others, but practice heartfelt mercy, even as you are the children of mercy. Let it never be said of the faithful that they are slow to give, and that it is better to seek assistance from others; but let experience ever teach people that none shall knock in vain at the door of a Christian. Render not evil for evil; but love your enemies, do good to them that hate you, heap coals of fire on their head. Bless them that curse you; carefully consider their case; consider how unhappy they are, and do not forget how great and undeserved a mercy you have obtained. Even as your Father in heaven makes his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, so also shall your heart and tongue and hand do good to all, so that the curse hurled against you by the wicked may return from you as a blessing upon them. This is happiness; this is life! And God bestows this great mercy on you!
Give us now the mind and strength of thy Holy Spirit, merciful God. Give us a loving and saintly mind; and let all our conduct please thee, and be a blessing to mankind. Amen.*
I love thy Zion, Lord!
The house of thine abode,
The church our blest Redeemer saved
With his own precious blood.
I love thy church, O God!
Her walls before thee stand,
Dear as the apple of thine eye,
And graven on thy hand.
[TLH 462, LSB 651; listen here]
* Here the head of the family says a short morning or evening prayer in his own words, and closes with the Lord’s Prayer and the Benediction. This is to be done every day. If the stanzas are not sung, they may be read in their proper place before the impromptu petition and the Lord’s Prayer.