4 When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.”
Jesus wanted a better platform from which to speak. He hopped in a fishing boat and had the owner push out a little bit from the shore and he taught. When he finished he tells the owner something surprising. He gives a lesson to the fisherman about fishing! Simon probably was busy during Jesus’ teaching keeping the boat oriented in the right direction. Boats have a tendency to move in water. Keeping it turned in the proper direction so Jesus could address the crowd would have taken vigilance. Now Jesus finishes his teaching and talks directly to Simon. Jesus knows their previous night of fishing has yielded nothing. These waters have been unable to yield a harvest, a probably much needed harvest. So he instructs Simon to go fishing with him. But the simplicity of the request astounds me. It is as if Jesus already has caught the fish and just needs Simon to pick them up for him. Simon knows that fishing takes effort. He and his crew have toiled all night without success. Their morning routine has been interrupted by Jesus and His crowd. His usually quiet stretch of shoreline has been invaded by hundreds of people seeking something. He was in the middle of his “after fishing” routine when Jesus asks for a preaching platform. He has worked while Jesus preached, his arms are tired and he wants to get back to his routine. But Jesus wants to go fishing! Jesus says to Simon that if he just goes into deep water, drops the net, a catch of fish will be there for him. Unbelievable! That is not how fishing works. And yet as the story continues, that is exactly what happens. The fish are waiting for the net. When we are willing to obey Jesus, even when the requests seem to go against our expertise, fruitfulness will result. Do you want results in your life? Obey!
The Arnold Journey 