“One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, the people were crowding around him and listening to the word of God. He saw at the water’s edge two boats, left there by the fishermen, who were washing their nets. He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from shore. Then he sat down and taught the people from the boat. When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch.” 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.” When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break. 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. When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!” For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken, and so were James and John, the sons of Zebedee, Simon’s partners. Then Jesus said to Simon, “Don’t be afraid; from now on you will fish for people.” So they pulled their boats up on shore, left everything and followed him. While Jesus was in one of the towns, a man came along who was covered with leprosy. When he saw Jesus, he fell with his face to the ground and begged him, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean.” Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. “I am willing,” he said. “Be clean!” And immediately the leprosy left him. Then Jesus ordered him, “Don’t tell anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer the sacrifices that Moses commanded for your cleansing, as a testimony to them.” Yet the news about him spread all the more, so that crowds of people came to hear him and to be healed of their sicknesses. But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed. One day Jesus was teaching, and Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there. They had come from every village of Galilee and from Judea and Jerusalem. And the power of the Lord was with Jesus to heal the sick. Some men came carrying a paralyzed man on a mat and tried to take him into the house to lay him before Jesus. When they could not find a way to do this because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered him on his mat through the tiles into the middle of the crowd, right in front of Jesus. When Jesus saw their faith, he said, “Friend, your sins are forgiven.” The Pharisees and the teachers of the law began thinking to themselves, “Who is this fellow who speaks blasphemy? Who can forgive sins but God alone?” Jesus knew what they were thinking and asked, “Why are you thinking these things in your hearts? Which is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up and walk’? But I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins.” So he said to the paralyzed man, “I tell you, get up, take your mat and go home.” Immediately he stood up in front of them, took what he had been lying on and went home praising God. Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God. They were filled with awe and said, “We have seen remarkable things today.” After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. “Follow me,” Jesus said to him, and Levi got up, left everything and followed him. Then Levi held a great banquet for Jesus at his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who belonged to their sect complained to his disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?” Jesus answered them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” They said to him, “John’s disciples often fast and pray, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours go on eating and drinking.” Jesus answered, “Can you make the friends of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; in those days they will fast.” He told them this parable: “No one tears a piece out of a new garment to patch an old one. Otherwise, they will have torn the new garment, and the patch from the new will not match the old. And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins. And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for they say, ‘The old is better.’ ””
In the first part of the story, we see Jesus use a physical miracle to produce a spiritual miracle. Peter has a miraculous catch of fish, but instead of celebrating, he says, “Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man” (Luke 5:8). Peter realizes he is unworthy to be in the presence of Jesus. This is the first stage of understanding the gospel for us too: we need to see our own sin and brokenness. We need to recognize that we NEED saving. Recognize that we fall short and need forgiveness. Like Peter, we can’t ignore our need for grace.
How does Jesus respond? Jesus doesn’t reject Peter. Instead, He says, "Don't be afraid. From now on, you will be catching men" (Luke 5:10). Jesus invites Peter to follow Him and gives him a new purpose. Verse 11 ends with sating “they left everything and followed him”. This is the second stage of understanding the gospel: We see Jesus as the one who forgives us and calls us to a new life. He offers us grace, forgiveness, and a mission to follow Him. When we understand this, our response is to follow Him with our whole heart.
In the next part of the story, we see two more responses to Jesus.
The Pharisees: Their response was one of doubt and grumbling. They knew the scriptures but didn’t believe in Jesus. They didn’t see Him for who He really was. They didn’t see their need for a savior.
The Paralytic: A paralyzed man and his friends showed faith. They believed Jesus could heal him and didn’t let anything stop them from getting to Him. They showed faith to pursue him (vs 18), trust to obey him (vs25), and worshipped God for the gift of healing (vs 26)
This story calls us to respond to the gospel with true faith—acknowledging our sin and our desperate need for a Savior. It reminds us that Jesus is that Savior, offering an abundance of grace for all our failures. The call is clear: in response to His love and forgiveness, we are to follow Him, live for Him, and obey His call.