The Other Side of the Boat
December 12, 2004
Dear Friends,
John 21 records an interesting incident with a few of the apostles and Jesus. Peter, Thomas, Nathanael, James, John and “two other of his disciples” decide that they are going to go fishing one night. Despite their efforts, the Scripture says “they caught nothing.” As morning came, Jesus is standing on the shore and tells them “”Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” (NKJV) They did what he asked, not knowing it was him. The catch was so large, they could not even drag the nets in.
Although there are many lessons that can be drawn from this passage, it seems to me that there is an important lesson regarding preaching. Peter had been fishing his whole life. Did he need some landlubber (remember, he didn’t know it was Jesus) telling him what to do? If he wanted to fish off of the left side of the boat, by golly, he could fish off of the left side of the boat. And what difference would it make anyway? But Jesus wanted Peter to fish another way. Of course Peter did begin preaching in a radically different way when he was the first apostle to preach to the Gentiles.
Perhaps we do the same thing with preaching. We have “our way” of preaching. Maybe it is not bringing about results, but we are doing something. Let’s be clear, there aren’t enough people preaching. Those who are preaching, even if they are catching nothing, are to be commended. At least they are trying. But don’t we think people are a little bit odd that keep doing the same things over and over with the same results but keep expecting a different result. It is like going to the movie Titanic over and over with the expectation that they surely they won’t hit the iceberg AGAIN.
We hope via this venue to keep you up to date on new, successful preaching programs and exhortations concerning preaching. We will be sharing brave new feet-on-the-street success stories, not untried ideas. Lord willing, I will report to you in a few months on a new WCF-sponsored program called the Gospel of Peace. If it continues to deliver on its initial response, it will be truly remarkable. So far, twenty-two people have been through the program and it has resulted in eleven baptisms. Eleven! For those who are not good in math like me, that is a 50% conversion rate. (I used a calculator!) Any program that one out of every two people that come through it are baptized is highly effective.
People are literally and figuratively dying to hear the Gospel. In some countries it is a capital offense to convert to Christianity. Although we may think people are not interested in our materialistic society, I would suggest to you that people are craving some sense of centeredness or spirituality in their lives. This may be more true now than ever as people are searching in all the wrong places for meaning in their lives.
In our first preaching example, for those who feel they are lacking in certain areas but strong in others, try a team approach. Find your talent and then find someone else to partner with that has the talent you lack. There is a young couple that has a Bible study in their home every Monday night. Lorie, the mother and wife, has a gift for bringing up the subject of the Bible in a non-threatening way, but is not comfortable teaching. She has invited about half of her neighborhood to this class and at one time or another about half of them have attended. She gets the people in and I teach it. It is our “tag team” approach. So far one person has been baptized and a sister who had stopped coming to meeting is now attending again. By the way, this young couple has three young children (and another one on the way). Despite the excellent excuses they have not to preach, you couldn’t stop them. They have a passion for the things of God.
“Also I say unto you, Whosoever shall confess me before men, him shall the Son of man also confess before the angels of God.” (Luke 12:8)
Have a great week!
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