Launch Out

“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.” ‭‭Luke‬ ‭5‬:‭1‬-‭11‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Here in Luke chapter 5, we see Jesus getting into Simon’s boat and asking him to go out a little. Next, He asks Simon to launch out further. Many sermons and lessons have been given on faith, obedience, net versus nets, etc. from this passage. 

Today, I would like to ask you a simple question. 

What has God asked you to launch out and do?

When He told Simon to launch out, He wanted him to do it right then. Christ still expects immediate obedience from His children. 

In verse 5 we see Simon’s reasons for not going. Now, don’t you beat him up. His reasons were valid to him and to those around him. You have given Jesus your own reasons and explanations, too. 

Would Jesus have asked Simon to launch out for no reason?

Didn’t Jesus know they had toiled all night? That they were exhausted? That they were discouraged because they didn’t catch a single fish?

Of course, He knew! 

So, would Jesus have asked them to launch out, after all that, for nothing?

No. Absolutely not. Jesus is not interested in idle business, in wasting time. Everything He does and asks us to do has a purpose. Everything.

Are you concerned with your comfort zone, abilities, resources, or the opinion of others?

Christ isn’t. He is concerned with things that are for your good and His glory. Something that will bring others to Him. And we should be, too. 

Christ knew exactly how many fish were in the water and how many the nets and ships could hold. Simon threw out one net and it nearly broke. His partial obedience did not leave him prepared to receive all that Christ had for him. 

I fear we are also missing out on blessings because we won’t go all in for Jesus.

We all have responsibilities, fears, limited resources, etc. We all could give God any number of reasons as to why we aren’t the right choice for whatever He had asked us to do. That’s what our flesh and the devil want us to do. 

That is why we are to rely on and trust Him. God is not going to call you to do something just to watch you fail. That is not His goal. We may not get the results we hope for right away or at all, but that is not up to us. It is not our name we are operating under. It’s His. The results are up to Him. 

Is God calling you to soul win? Teach a class? Reach out to someone? Love a difficult spouse? To keep praying for a lost or wayward soul? 

Whatever it is, do it. Do it with all your heart and soul until He says to stop. 

Ask for His strength to stay the course. 

We have been called to be committed, not comfortable.

“He must increase, but I must decrease.”
‭‭John‬ ‭3‬:‭30‬ ‭KJV‬‬

Stay in the Word, stay close to the Shepherd, and let Him lead you in paths of righteousness.

With Hope in His Service,

Heather