Jesus and the Miraculous Catch of Fish

First Reading: Isaiah 6:1-2a, 3-8

In the year King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord seated on a high and lofty throne, with the train of his garments filling the temple. Seraphim were stationed above. They cried one to the other, “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts! All the earth is filled with his glory!” at the sound of that cry, the frame of the door shoot and the house was filled with smoke. Then I said, “Woe is me, I am doomed! For I am a man of unclean lips, living among a people of unclean lips; yet me eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!” Then one of the seraphim flew to me, holding an ember that he had taken with tongs from the altar. He touched my mouth with it, and said, “See, now that this has touched your lips, your wickendness is removed, your sins pruged.” Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?” “Here I am,” I said; “send me!”

Gospel: Luke 5:1-11

While the crowd was pressing in on Jesus and listening to the word of God, he was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret. He saw two boats alongside the lake; the fishermen had disembarkced and were washing their nets. Getting into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, he asked him to put out a short distance from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat. After he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water and lower your nets for a catch.” Simon said in reply, “Master, we have worked hard all night and have caught nothing, but at your command I will lower the nets.” When they had done this, they caught a great number of fish and their nets were tearing. They signaled to their partners in the other boat to come and help them. They came and filled both boats so that the boats were in danger of sinking. When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at the knees of Jesus and said, “Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man.” For astonishmenbt at the catch of fish they had made seized him and all those with him, and likewise James and John, the sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching men.” When they brought their boats to the shore, they left everything and followed him.

Fr. Michael Willey of All Saints Church gave what I thought was a marvelous homily this morning. I would like to try to share one of the larger points of his homily.

Father made the point that the image Isaiah experienced in the first reading was the form of what Peter experienced in the Gospel reading. Like the picture of a building that the contractor plans to build and the actual building, the form and the reality are different, and we experience them differently. The form is, in a sense, a statement of hope – we hope that the building we look like this. The reality is something quite different, for it is the concrete reality that the form could only partially express.

Isaiah’s vision was the form. He experienced a vision of the Lord God. He decried his doom, assuming, naturally, that he would die because he had seen God. He was a sinful man, while the Lord is holy, eternal, and powerful. To see God is a terrible thing, for who can stand in the presence of the Lord? Yet, the Lord is merciful to Isaiah. He forgives his sins, burns them away with the ember from the altar’s fire that is before Him. Then the Lord calls out, “Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?” Isaiah recognizes now the purpose of the vision, and the purpose for cleansing him of sin. He responds, “Here I am; send me!” This is the correct response when the Lord calls out to His people to engage in mission. Here I am; send me. He had made Isaiah ready for this mission. How could Isaiah refuse?

Just so with Simon Peter. After hearing Jesus teach the crowds and then experiencing the miraculous catch of fish, how could Simon Peter refuse Jesus’ mission. At first, as with Isaiah, he is fearful. He now appreciates before whom he stands. He asks Jesus to depart, because he is a sinful man. But Jesus doesn’t depart. No, instead he calls Simon to mission.

In Isaiah’s vision, he sees the Lord, mighty and powerful, is cleansed of his sins, and set out on a mission. In Simon’s experience, he meets the Lord, not in a vision, but face to face. The Lord here is not mighty and powerful, but lowly as a man among men. Even still, His might and power are demonstrated in His teaching and in His miracle-making, so that Simon comes to realize who it is that stands before him. Just as Isaiah did, Simon recognizes his sinfulness, that he is not worthy to stand before the Holy of holies. And, just as with Isaiah, Simon’s sinfulness is not an obstacle to the mission God calls him to, because God can deal with his sins. Isaiah’s vision is the form of Simon Peter’s reality.

The same is true of us, of course. We are sinful, and the only proper reaction to our standing before the Lord is one of fear because of our sins. Yet, the Lord does not remove Himself from our presence, repulsed by our sins. No. Instead, he removes our sins so that we can participate in His mission. Even when we humbly request that He depart from us because of our sins, He doesn’t depart. He doesn’t leave us behind. Instead, He leaves our sins behind. Cleansed by Him, we are prepared for the mission to which He calls us.

And He does call us. Regardless of our situations, our circumstances, and our abilities, He does call us. This can, at times, seem rather inconvenient. After all, we have our own plans. But, as the old Yiddish saying goes, Der Mensch Tracht, Un Gott Lacht – “Man plans and God laughs.” Perhaps it even happens that we use our sins as an excuse for not responding to God’s call to us for mission. “O, Lord, I am not worthy!” The problem is, God already knows we’re not worthy. Of course, who is worthy to carry out the Lord’s work. Sadly, He is left only with us retched sinners to carry out His work! But rather than dismiss us, reject us, or depart from us, He instead heals us from our sinfulness and works with us, calling us still to the mission He has in store for us.

It is not because we are worthy that God calls us to His mission. It is because He is gracious.

Be Christ for all. Bring Christ to all. See Christ in all.