LAUNCH OUT INTO THE DEEP

(DISCIPLES ON THE SEA by Henry Ossawa Tanner circa 1910)

LAUNCH OUT INTO THE DEEP

In my Sunday Preach letter I included a testimony by a friend on a healing situation he was involved in. I was so happy to hear about it. Many born again Christians are still very timid about ministering healing, but he was not timid. He was loving enough to step up to the situation and rise to a new level of faith in God. It’s one thing to pray, but it’s another level of bravery and faith to minister the healing power of God to one of His children. Way to go, Dan! As we seek to grow spiritually, we need to be willing to expand our thinking, and be willing to go further with God, no matter how frightening it may be to take those first steps into something we’ve never experienced before.

 

In Luke 5:4 we see that Peter was challenged by Jesus to step up in ministry. Jesus teaches, then tells Peter, “Launch out into the deep.” What did Jesus mean?

 

The word “deep” has several meanings. It is the Greek word “bathos,” and means depth, as in “deep water,” which is what we assume Jesus is talking about here in Luke 5. Peter was fishing but didn’t catch anything. Jesus told Peter to go out deeper. We see from the definition of the word “deep” that it wasn’t just deeper physical water that Peter needed.

 

He wasn’t getting much out of fishing in shallow water, and he wasn’t getting much out of living at a shallow faith level either. This is the Lord’s challenge to all of us. Sometimes in our Christian walk, it may seem like our everyday life is a little shallow and we’re not getting that much out of it.  The problem just may be that we haven’t accepted the Lord’s challenge to “launch out into the deep.”  

 

The word Jesus used for “deep” is “bathos,” and it also means “profound.” In the 60’s we used to say about ideas that were profound, were “heavy!” They were things that were earnestly important to the heart, concepts with deep levels of understanding and perception, insights that were enormous beyond our world, thoughts so beautifully intricate, fulfilling and so full of mysteries. Jesus was telling Peter to get out into the deeper water of spiritual matters.

 

First Corinthians 2:10 uses this same word translated “deep”: “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.”

 

When Jesus challenged Peter to “launch out into the deep,” Peter lacked total trust, but he was at least brave enough to go for it the best he could and the Lord honored him. Peter learned that when Jesus gave a command or a challenge, it always worked out great.

 

Peter took his boat out to the deep, “And when they had this done, they inclosed a great multitude of fishes: and their net brake.  And they beckoned unto their partners, which were in the other ship, that they should come and help them. And they came, and filled both the ships” (Luke 5:6-7).

 

I can hardly wait to hear of the wonderful events that will be happening for us and our friends when we accept the Lord’s next challenge to “Launch out into the deep.”

 

Love, Carolyn