Discipleship Essentials*
Sunday, October 24, 2004
My Prayer Today
Dear Heavenly Father, I thank You for the glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ! I thank You that You have given us the Word of Life to live by. Help me to make the reading and listening of the Word a priority in my life. Help me never to forget the profound message of the Bible and of Your love for me. I ask that You would teach me Jesus how to live this day in a way that pleases the Father. I ask this in Your name. Amen.
God’s Word Today
Luke 5:1-11
1 "One day as Jesus was preaching on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, great crowds pressed in on him to listen to the word of God. 2 He noticed two empty boats at the water's edge, for the fishermen had left them and were washing their nets. 3 Stepping into one of the boats, Jesus asked Simon, its owner, to push it out into the water. So he sat in the boat and taught the crowds from there. 4 When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, 'Now go out where it is deeper and let down your nets, and you will catch many fish.' 5 'Master,' Simon replied, 'we worked hard all last night and didn't catch a thing. But if you say so, we'll try again.' 6 And this time their nets were so full they began to tear! 7 A shout for help brought their partners in the other boat, and soon both boats were filled with fish and on the verge of sinking."
8 "When Simon Peter realized what had happened, he fell to his knees before Jesus and said, 'Oh, Lord, please leave me -- I'm too much of a sinner to be around you.' 9 For he was awestruck by the size of their catch, as were the others with him. 10 His partners, James and John, the sons of Zebedee, were also amazed. Jesus replied to Simon, 'Don't be afraid! From now on you'll be fishing for people!' 11 And as soon as they landed, they left everything and followed Jesus."
Background on the Text – Who Wrote It? Why Was It Written? Who Was the Audience?
The author of this text, and this entire Gospel, is Luke. Luke was responsible for writing more of the New Testament than any other author (including Paul) because of the length of his writings in Luke - Acts. Luke was a Gentile convert, the only non-Jewish author of a Bible book. The Holy Spirit prompted him to write to Theophilus (whose name means "one who loves God") in order to fill a need in the Gentile church for a full account of the beginning of Christianity.
Observation – What Does the Text Say?
According to Luke 5:1, what was Jesus doing while at the Sea of Galilee?
What did Jesus do in verse 3 when the crowds pressed in on every side?
According to verse 1, what is the adjective used to describe the size of the crowd?
Interpretation – What Does the Text Mean?
Why would Jesus need to step into a boat in order to preach?
How does Luke 4:40 help to reveal Jesus' need to enter the boat to preach?
From Jesus' standpoint, was the "miracles" he performed more important than the "message" he proclaimed? Explain.
Application – How Can I Respond to the Text’s Insights and Teachings?
If Jesus got into a boat to preach, it meant that he couldn't touch people so they could be healed. What does this say as to the priority in Jesus mind of the "message" he is preaching over the miracles he was performing?
If Jesus "message" is so important to hear, how often do you hear it each day in your life?
What are some ways in which you can hear the message of Jesus each week? Do you regularly do them?
Each Week’s Check List
After reading and studying this text, reflect on the following discipleship growth points:
Growth Point |
How |
Encouraged and strengthened me by |
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Fallen short areas |
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What will I do with these insights? |
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What did God say to me today? |
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Share insights and growth points |
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Changed/transformed how? |
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Thoughts...
One of the things that I have always wished that I could do was to go back in time and witness the events of Scripture. Have you ever wished you could do that? It would have been amazing to see the awesome miracles that Jesus performed. I think that I would most especially like to go back in time to hear one of Jesus' sermons! To hear the power and authority of the words of God would have been incredible. So many times in Scripture we see the crowds simply amazed at the authority by which Jesus' preached. People simply came to Him wherever He was. Jesus did not have newspaper promotions, business cards, television, radio, or even a microphone, He just spoke and the crowds would come to Him. He would preach with so much power that thousands of people would gather without food for hours on end to hear him preach in a field. He would go to a house and the place would get so full that the only way to get in was through the roof! When Jesus spoke, the crowds listened!
In Luke 5:1, we see Jesus preaching to a large crowd of people. Because everyone was healed from simply being touched by Him (Luke 4:40), it is no wonder why Jesus had to enter into a boat in order to preach. The fact that Jesus went to the boat to preach rather than heal, emphasizes His priority in preaching a "message" rather than performing a "miracle." Although the message and miracle would go hand-in-hand, Jesus wanted people to hear the news about the coming Kingdom of God. In our lives everyday, we also need to sit at the feet of Jesus and glean from His word. The message of the Gospel is powerful, and we need to continually learn from Scriptures. We as Christians must be committed to daily study of the Bible, as well as consistent attendance at church. We cannot grow spiritually, if we do not hear Jesus' Words!