“Risk Takers”
(No Fear, pt. 4)
(Luke 5:1-11)
Dr. Richard S. Koole
Chapel Pointe
November 22, 2009
I. Introduction
A. Introduce Charles
1. Charles and the hay wagon
2. Will see something similar today
a. A small business in trouble
1. Working all day…and no income
b. They finally hit it big
1. And they left it all behind
2. People probably thought they were nuts
3. Took the biggest risk of their lives
B. Risk taking
1. Young couples in California….Bad risk taking
a. “Flipping houses”
b. Then the meltdown
c. All lost their houses
2. People becoming “risk averse”
a. Stock market
b. Jobs
c. Real Estate
3. Today….risk taking in uncertain times
II. Review
A. The Deliverer has come
1. Luke proving the case
2. Jesus publicly demonstrating his credentials
B. No Fear
1. II Timothy 1:7
“For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.”
2. Christ has delivered us from the fear of:
a. Devil and demon
b. Death and disease
3. Now, delivered from the fear of risk
IV. Text
A. The Setting (v. 1)
(1) One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, with the people crowding around him and listening to the word of God,
1. The Sea of Galilee
2. Picture the sight
3. As the crowds grow
4. Pushing closer
B. The Teaching (v. 2-3)
(2) he saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. (3) He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon (Peter), and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.
1. Why did Jesus teach from the boat?
a. The crowds are continuing to grow
b. Jesus could reach more if he went out on the boat
2. Why were the crowds so large?
a. Fake healers today draw large crowds
b. Can you imagine if somebody could do the real thing?
c. It appears that Jesus healed all who came
d. Plus…his message had authority
3. Let’s meet the fishermen
a. Simon (Peter) and his brother Andrew
b. James and John, the sons of Zebedee
4. They were partners in a small business
a. They caught and sold fish
b. They’d had a bad night
1. Lots of work…but no fish
2. Empty nets
c. Exhausting work
1. And they were tired
C. Fishing Lessons (v. 4-11)
1. Don’t panic when your nets are empty
a. These are tough times
1. Speech in Detroit
a. “Buddy can you spare a dime”
b. The Riverwalk
2. The State’s budget crisis
3. Uncertainty in world markets
b. But when it gets personal…it really hurts
1. “Downsizing”
a. Cornerstone
2. Small businesses
3. Wages dropping
4. Health care
5. How low can it go?
c. The fear of not having enough
1. Losing homes
2. Running out in retirement
3. Replacing a roof
a. Car
b. Refrigerator
4. Maxed out credit cards
d. God knows and cares
Matt. 6:25-27
(25) “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? (26) Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? (27) Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
2. Obey even when it doesn’t make sense
(4) When Jesus had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.”
a. Jesus had finished his teaching
1. But the people probably lingered
2. What’s going to happen next?
b. Jesus’ request
1. Row out to the deeper water
c. An odd thing to request
1. Wrong time of the day to go fishing
a. Usually fished at night
b. Cleaned and mended the nets afterwards
2. Fish were more likely to be near the shore
d. Peter’s skeptical reply
(5) Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.”
1. Peter reminds Jesus who the fishermen were
2. And he reminds him that they’d fished all night
a. Tiring work
b. And the fish weren’t biting
c. Their nets were empty
3. And yet Peter obeyed!
e. God was showing them He knows where the fish are
1. God knows the right time and place
a. The when and where
2. Need to be ready to move when it’s time
a. Even if the timing seems wrong to you
f. Some of you are ready to give up
1. Afraid to try something new
2. Is it your time?
3. Opportunities disguised as a job loss
f. The catch (v. 6-7)
(6) When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began 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 full that they began to sink.
1. Had never seen a catch like this before
2. Larger than their nets could hold
3. Signaled for the other boat
4. Boats so full they began to sink
5. As the crowds watched from the shore
6. Bailing water as they rowed toward shore
g. They figure it out (v. 8-10)
(8) When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” (9) For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, (10) and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners.
1. Peter realized who Jesus was
a. The fear of being in the presence of a holy God
2. Peter, James, and John
a. The “Big Three”
b. Key lessons for key leaders
3. Our mission is to fish for people
Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will catch men.” (11) So they pulled their boats up to shore, left everything and followed him.
a. What was Peter afraid of?
1. Of who was in his boat?
2. Of running out of fish…money?
3. Of his new assignment?
4. Of taking a tremendous step of faith?
5. Of leaving security behind?
b. I will make you fishers of men…their mission
d. The Memorial service at Fort Hood
1. Words of the Generals Cone and Casey
2. “The American Warrior’s Ethos”
a. I will always place the mission first
3. Next week a special guest
a. Will help me with numbers 2, 3 and 4
e. The three keys to our mission
1. To introduce the lost to Jesus Christ
a. Fish for men
b. Our children
2. To help believers grow in their relationship to Jesus Christ
3. To glorify God through our lives and worship
f. Must accomplish all three
1. Even though some are better at one or two
g. People and churches often get distracted from the mission
1. It’s not about buildings, programs and activities
2. “Did you accomplish the mission?”
3. Did you catch fish?
i. Keys to successful fishing include:
1. Work hard
a. my commitment to outwork other guys
b. and to never complain
c. never become discouraged
2. Catch fish
a. The mission comes first
4. We must be willing to risk it all
Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will catch men.” (11) So they pulled their boats up to shore, left everything and followed him.
a. “Risk taking”
1. What they left behind
a. “left everything”
2. What if they hadn’t left it all?
3. What they got in return
a. The pain
b. The blessing
4. No way to hedge their bets
a. “All in”
b. When God calls you to do something
1. Is it your time of opportunity
2. Want a safety net
c. As a church
1. My first meeting with the leaders
a. “Fix us or close us”
b. Not an ounce of pride in that room
c. Had nothing to lose
2. Chose to start a great adventure
a. If we went down at least we’d be on fire when we hit the ground
b. The early steps of faith
c. God was always faithful
3. When we built this building
a. Hadn’t sold old building yet
b. Even if we had….the giving needed to go up 40%
c. Economy since then
d. Yet God has always gotten us through
4. Our greatest vision still lies ahead
a. Because we haven’t yet completed our mission
b. God will ask us to take some incredible steps of faith
1. Will be days of empty nets
2. When he asks us to leave the security of full nets
c. Sometimes easier when a church is small
5. When churches are afraid to leave the comfort of full nets
a. I want a risk-taking church
b. Willing to risk it all to fish for people
e. What does God want you to risk?
1. We’ve become “risk averse”
a. Banks and corporations down in smoke
b. New rules and regulations
1. New standards….less risk
2. Yet great churches are risk takers
5. Their struggles were just beginning
a. Peter, James, John and Andrew
1. Their lives would be filled with struggle and sorrow
2. Yet they persisted
b. At times their faith grew thin
1. Yet in the end…
c. Followed Jesus all the way
1. “followed” is a technical term used by Luke for “discipleship”
d. The Warrior’s Ethos….they placed the mission first
e. What is your mission in life?
1. And have you placed it first?
2. Next week…. “Small Wings…Big Wind”
3. If you’re starting to lose hope…
“Risk Takers”
(No Fear, pt. 4)
(Luke 5:1-11)
Dr. Richard S. Koole
Chapel Pointe
November 22, 2009
I. Introduction
A. Introduce Charles
1. Charles and the hay wagon
2. Will see something similar today
a. A small business in trouble
1. Working all day…and no income
b. They finally hit it big
1. And they left it all behind
2. People probably thought they were nuts
3. Took the biggest risk of their lives
B. Risk taking
1. Young couples in California….Bad risk taking
a. “Flipping houses”
b. Then the meltdown
c. All lost their houses
2. People becoming “risk averse”
a. Stock market
b. Jobs
c. Real Estate
3. Today….risk taking in uncertain times
II. Review
A. The Deliverer has come
1. Luke proving the case
2. Jesus publicly demonstrating his credentials
B. No Fear
1. II Timothy 1:7
“For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline.”
2. Christ has delivered us from the fear of:
a. Devil and demon
b. Death and disease
3. Now, delivered from the fear of risk
IV. Text
A. The Setting (v. 1)
(1) One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, with the people crowding around him and listening to the word of God,
1. The Sea of Galilee
2. Picture the sight
3. As the crowds grow
4. Pushing closer
B. The Teaching (v. 2-3)
(2) he saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. (3) He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon (Peter), and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat.
1. Why did Jesus teach from the boat?
a. The crowds are continuing to grow
b. Jesus could reach more if he went out on the boat
2. Why were the crowds so large?
a. Fake healers today draw large crowds
b. Can you imagine if somebody could do the real thing?
c. It appears that Jesus healed all who came
d. Plus…his message had authority
3. Let’s meet the fishermen
a. Simon (Peter) and his brother Andrew
b. James and John, the sons of Zebedee
4. They were partners in a small business
a. They caught and sold fish
b. They’d had a bad night
1. Lots of work…but no fish
2. Empty nets
c. Exhausting work
1. And they were tired
C. Fishing Lessons (v. 4-11)
1. Don’t panic when your nets are empty
a. These are tough times
1. Speech in Detroit
a. “Buddy can you spare a dime”
b. The Riverwalk
2. The State’s budget crisis
3. Uncertainty in world markets
b. But when it gets personal…it really hurts
1. “Downsizing”
a. Cornerstone
2. Small businesses
3. Wages dropping
4. Health care
5. How low can it go?
c. The fear of not having enough
1. Losing homes
2. Running out in retirement
3. Replacing a roof
a. Car
b. Refrigerator
4. Maxed out credit cards
d. God knows and cares
Matt. 6:25-27
(25) “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? (26) Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? (27) Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life?
2. Obey even when it doesn’t make sense
(4) When Jesus had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.”
a. Jesus had finished his teaching
1. But the people probably lingered
2. What’s going to happen next?
b. Jesus’ request
1. Row out to the deeper water
c. An odd thing to request
1. Wrong time of the day to go fishing
a. Usually fished at night
b. Cleaned and mended the nets afterwards
2. Fish were more likely to be near the shore
d. Peter’s skeptical reply
(5) Simon answered, “Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets.”
1. Peter reminds Jesus who the fishermen were
2. And he reminds him that they’d fished all night
a. Tiring work
b. And the fish weren’t biting
c. Their nets were empty
3. And yet Peter obeyed!
e. God was showing them He knows where the fish are
1. God knows the right time and place
a. The when and where
2. Need to be ready to move when it’s time
a. Even if the timing seems wrong to you
f. Some of you are ready to give up
1. Afraid to try something new
2. Is it your time?
3. Opportunities disguised as a job loss
f. The catch (v. 6-7)
(6) When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began 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 full that they began to sink.
1. Had never seen a catch like this before
2. Larger than their nets could hold
3. Signaled for the other boat
4. Boats so full they began to sink
5. As the crowds watched from the shore
6. Bailing water as they rowed toward shore
g. They figure it out (v. 8-10)
(8) When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” (9) For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, (10) and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners.
1. Peter realized who Jesus was
a. The fear of being in the presence of a holy God
2. Peter, James, and John
a. The “Big Three”
b. Key lessons for key leaders
3. Our mission is to fish for people
Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will catch men.” (11) So they pulled their boats up to shore, left everything and followed him.
a. What was Peter afraid of?
1. Of who was in his boat?
2. Of running out of fish…money?
3. Of his new assignment?
4. Of taking a tremendous step of faith?
5. Of leaving security behind?
b. I will make you fishers of men…their mission
d. The Memorial service at Fort Hood
1. Words of the Generals Cone and Casey
2. “The American Warrior’s Ethos”
a. I will always place the mission first
3. Next week a special guest
a. Will help me with numbers 2, 3 and 4
e. The three keys to our mission
1. To introduce the lost to Jesus Christ
a. Fish for men
b. Our children
2. To help believers grow in their relationship to Jesus Christ
3. To glorify God through our lives and worship
f. Must accomplish all three
1. Even though some are better at one or two
g. People and churches often get distracted from the mission
1. It’s not about buildings, programs and activities
2. “Did you accomplish the mission?”
3. Did you catch fish?
i. Keys to successful fishing include:
1. Work hard
a. my commitment to outwork other guys
b. and to never complain
c. never become discouraged
2. Catch fish
a. The mission comes first
4. We must be willing to risk it all
Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will catch men.” (11) So they pulled their boats up to shore, left everything and followed him.
a. “Risk taking”
1. What they left behind
a. “left everything”
2. What if they hadn’t left it all?
3. What they got in return
a. The pain
b. The blessing
4. No way to hedge their bets
a. “All in”
b. When God calls you to do something
1. Is it your time of opportunity
2. Want a safety net
c. As a church
1. My first meeting with the leaders
a. “Fix us or close us”
b. Not an ounce of pride in that room
c. Had nothing to lose
2. Chose to start a great adventure
a. If we went down at least we’d be on fire when we hit the ground
b. The early steps of faith
c. God was always faithful
3. When we built this building
a. Hadn’t sold old building yet
b. Even if we had….the giving needed to go up 40%
c. Economy since then
d. Yet God has always gotten us through
4. Our greatest vision still lies ahead
a. Because we haven’t yet completed our mission
b. God will ask us to take some incredible steps of faith
1. Will be days of empty nets
2. When he asks us to leave the security of full nets
c. Sometimes easier when a church is small
5. When churches are afraid to leave the comfort of full nets
a. I want a risk-taking church
b. Willing to risk it all to fish for people
e. What does God want you to risk?
1. We’ve become “risk averse”
a. Banks and corporations down in smoke
b. New rules and regulations
1. New standards….less risk
2. Yet great churches are risk takers
5. Their struggles were just beginning
a. Peter, James, John and Andrew
1. Their lives would be filled with struggle and sorrow
2. Yet they persisted
b. At times their faith grew thin
1. Yet in the end…
c. Followed Jesus all the way
1. “followed” is a technical term used by Luke for “discipleship”
d. The Warrior’s Ethos….they placed the mission first
e. What is your mission in life?
1. And have you placed it first?
2. Next week…. “Small Wings…Big Wind”
3. If you’re starting to lose hope…