Into the Deep - Fifth Sunday after Epiphany
Author: Pastor Scott Schul
February 09, 2025
Friends, last weekend
you might have seen that a couple of highly influential national political
advisors took a few very public swings at the Lutherans. They claimed that our network of social
service and community charitable endeavors, which operate in partnership with
the federal government, are in reality a subversive group of money launderers
that need to be shut down. At first, I
was outraged that someone would make such a preposterous claim against
Lutherans. Money launderers? I’ve seen a lot of congregational and
synodical budgets in my day, and believe me, there isn’t much of anything there
to be laundered!
But the more I thought
about these laughable and attention-seeking antics, the more delighted I
was. I mean just think about it: for the
first time in about 500 years, we Lutherans were in the news! We were relevant! People were noticing us! Usually we’re about as harmless and benign as
butterflies in a flower garden. When you
think of Lutherans, you think of Jello salads, midwestern accents, casserole
dishes, and painfully strong coffee. That’s
our “brand,” right? If you look up
“boring” in the dictionary, there we are! Money launderers? Please. If only we could be so very dashing and
dangerous, someone might finally think we’re cool!
But for a minute at
least, let’s seize this fleeting moment of relevance to learn a little about
how we Lutherans care for our hurting world. We know very well one of the agencies that was named: Allegheny Lutheran
Social Ministries. Grace is a regular
and longstanding supporter of ALSM. For
75 years they’ve been offering crucial services to seniors, children, and families. ALSM operates the Lutheran Home in
Hollidaysburg and the Oaks at Pleasant Gap. They’re active in eight Pennsylvania counties with family centers, head
start programs, and affordable housing for seniors.1 I thank God for ALSM and the work they do,
and I’m proud that Grace is partners with them. Our federal government should be proud too!
ALSM is part of an even
broader network of Lutheran social service agencies called Lutheran Services in
America. It’s an umbrella of 300 health
and human service nonprofits who each year collectively reach one in 50 people
across 1,400 communities in the United States. As their website makes clear, LSA “advances equitable outcomes for
children, youth and families, improves independence and choice for older
adults, champions meaningful services and support for people with intellectual
and developmental disabilities, and strengthens stability and purpose for
veterans, refugees, new Americans and more.”2 It’s even one of those rare endeavors where
ELCA Lutherans and Missouri Synod Lutheran actually work together. Money launderers?! Try “angels of mercy!”
So I give thanks that
we’ve been given this unexpected opportunity in the national news to tell our
story. And here it is: Every Sunday, Lutherans
gather together to worship and grow in faith and love for God so we can
be propelled back into the world the rest of the week as the beloved, forgiven,
and redeemed people of Christ, whom God has called and equipped to love and
serve our neighbors around the block and throughout our nation and our
world. We do it because this is who God
created us to be, and this is what God has called and commanded us to do.
But maybe this isn’t
just a story for us to tell others. Maybe we also need to be reminded of what an opportunity,
responsibility, and blessing it is to follow Jesus as Lutheran Christians. Consider today’s Gospel lesson. This is more than just a fishing story, or a
miracle story, or even a history story. This is a call story. It’s
Luke’s account of that unforgettable moment when Jesus called Simon, James, and
John to put away their fishing nets and follow him. But this isn’t just a story of the call of three
disciples. This is our call
story too, because Jesus is speaking just as personally to all of us as
he did to the people at the lake that day.
“Put out into the
deep.” Those are the words of counsel
Jesus gave to the fishermen, and it’s the direction Jesus is giving us right
here and right now. “Put out into the
deep.” It must have sounded like sheer
foolishness. Simon and his colleagues
were skilled, experienced fishermen. After a full night of hard labor, don’t you think they had tried every
possible thing to fill their nets? Such
elementary advice, coming from a carpenter, not a professional fisherman, must
have seemed insulting or at least annoying. But they trusted Jesus and did as he counseled. They put out into the deep. And to their shock, their nets filled to
overflowing. It demonstrated Jesus’s
power and authority in such a convincing and compelling way that Simon, James,
and John left their homes, their families, their business, their nets, and that
astonishing haul of fish behind… and followed Jesus.
Friends, it is time for
us to likewise “put out into the deep.” For several months now I’ve been preaching about this subject and
writing about it in Grace Notes. I fear
that too often we have taken our faith far too casually. This trend isn’t something we can solely
blame on COVID. For decades and decades
belief in Christianity, church attendance, church involvement, and giving have
been declining nationwide, across all denominations. There are many reasons for this, but I think
that at the heart of it all is a fundamental misunderstanding of God’s grace, a
misunderstanding that even Luther battled to correct.
Some of Martin Luther’s
most famous words came from his pen in 1520 when he wrote that, “A Christian is
a perfectly free lord of all, subject to none. A Christian is a perfectly dutiful servant of all, subject to all.”3 What does that mean? Well, let’s put out into the deep. The first part celebrates that Jesus has done
for us what we sinners could not do for ourselves. By his gracious sacrifice on the cross and
his glorious Easter resurrection, he has saved us, redeemed us, made us
righteous, and given us the gift of eternal life. It is because of Jesus Christ that we are, as
Luther said, “perfectly free lords of all, subject to none.” Thanks be to God!
But it’s the second part of Luther’s summary of the Christian way that I fear we’ve forgotten. Shouldn’t God’s freely given gifts of such
priceless, eternal magnitude have a transformative effect on us? Jesus’s most famous parables, like the
Prodigal Son and the Good Samaritan, illustrate for us what it means to be a
freed and forgiven people. It should
move us to become, as Luther put it, “dutiful servants of all, subject to
all.” In that same document from 1520
Luther makes the point even more directly when he says that although a
Christian is free from all works, we should in this liberty empty ourselves, and humbly serve, help, and in every way deal with our neighbors
just as Christ has dealt and still deals with us.
In short, it's time to
“put out into the deep.” It’s time to
embrace our faith as more than an entitlement or a private club or a consumer
item we use or discard based on its utility or entertainment value. Jesus is calling us to be disciples just like
he called Simon, James, and John. If you
don’t think you’re qualified, look again at those disciples. They were lacking in courage, wisdom,
competence, and even morality. But Jesus
always equips those who he calls. It
was true then and remains true now. So no
more excuses. Together, let’s put out
into the deep, trust Jesus, and show up. Leave your worldly nets behind and worship regularly. Dwell daily in God’s Word. Pray. And then as Christ’s redeemed and transformed people, roll up your
sleeves and help your neighbor in need.
Believe it or not, it’s
actually a lot of fun. And who
knows. Spread enough grace and love and
you just might end up in the news. Amen.
Copyright Rev. Scott E. Schul, 2025 All rights reserved. May not be reproduced in whole or in part without written permission.
Citations:
1 See www.alsm.org
2 See lutheranservices.org/
3 The Freedom of a
Christian (an English translation and study guide can be accessed at
www.elca500.org)
Gospel Text: Luke 5:1-11
1 Once while Jesus was
standing beside the lake of Gennesaret, and the crowd was pressing in on him to
hear the word of God, 2 he saw two boats there at the shore of the
lake; the fishermen had gone out of them and were washing their nets. 3 He
got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out
a little way from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the
boat. 4 When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put
out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.” 5 Simon
answered, “Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet
if you say so, I will let down the nets.” 6 When they had done
this, they caught so many fish that their nets were beginning to break. 7 So
they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they
came and filled both boats, so that they began to sink. 8 But
when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, “Go away from
me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!” 9 For he and all who were
with him were amazed at the catch of fish that they had taken; 10 and
so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon.
Then Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching
people.” 11 When they had brought their boats to shore, they left
everything and followed him.
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