LESSON X.—SABBATH, MARCH 10, 1894
MIRACULOUS DRAUGHT OF FISHES.
1. Now it came to pass, while the multitude pressed upon him and heard the word of God, that he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret; 2. And he saw two boats standing by the lake: but the fishermen had gone out of them, and were washing their nets. 3. And he entered into one of the boats, which was Simon's, and asked him to push out a little from the land. And he sat down and taught the multitudes out of the boat. 4. And when he had left speaking, he said unto Simon, Put out into the deep, and let down your nets for a draught. 5. And Simon answered and said, Master, we toiled all night, and took nothing: but at thy word I will let down the nets. 6. And when they had this done, they inclosed a great multitude of fishes; and their nets were breaking; 7. And they beckoned unto their partners in the other boat, that they should come and help them. And they came, and filled both the boats, so that they began to sink. 8. But Simon Peter, when he saw it, fell down at Jesus' knees, saying, Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord. 9. For he was amazed, and all that were with him, at the draught of the fishes which they had taken; 10. And so were also James and John, sons of Zebedee, which were partners with Simon. And Jesus said unto Simon, Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men. 11. And when they had brought their boats to land, they left all, and followed him; 12. And it came to pass, while he was in one of the cities, behold, a man full of leprosy: and when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face, and besought him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean. 13. And he stretched forth his hand, and touched him, saying, I will; be thou made clean. And straightway the leprosy departed from him. 14. And he charged him to tell no man: but go thy way, and show thyself to the priest, and offer for thy cleansing, according as Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them. 15. But so much the more went abroad the report concerning him: and great multitudes came together to hear, and to be healed of their infirmities. 16. But he withdrew himself to the deserts, and prayed. CHAPTERS 1-3 have been sufficiently outlined in previous lessons; let us see into how small a compass we may compress the contents of the fourth chapter, for convenience in carrying in our mind: (1) The temptation in the wilderness: (2) return to Galilee: (3) preaching and rejection at Nazareth; (4) at Capernaum,—casting out a devil in the synagogue, healing Peter's wife's mother and the multitudes. It will not take very long to master so brief a summary as that, and then the entire chapter is at your command. Do not, however, try to master the summary by memorizing the outline here given; master it solely by reading the chapter so carefully and so often that its contents become indelibly fixed in your mind. Use the outline here given, simply as an aid to getting each section of the chapter to stand out clearly and distinctly as you read it. The lesson now before us is very simple in outline. Verses 1-11 record the miraculous draught of fishes, after a night of useless toil, and the calling of Peter, James, and John. Verses 12-15 tell of the cleansing of a leper. The two phrases, 'miraculous draught of fishes,' and 'cleansing of the leper,' bring the entire lesson to mind. Verse 16 presents Jesus at prayer. - Where was Jesus standing as the people pressed to hear him?
- What were near at hand?
- What course did Jesus take to relieve himself from the pressure of the crowd?
- After he had finished speaking, what did he say to Simon?
- What reply did Simon make?
- What was the result of obeying the word of Jesus?
- To whom did they call for help?
- How large a quantity of fish had they taken?
- When Peter saw the result, what did he do and say?
- What did Jesus say to them?
- What did they do as soon as they came to land?
- As Jesus was in a certain city, who came to him?
- What faith did the leper show?
- How did Jesus respond to his faith?
- What was the result?
- What charge did Jesus give the man?
- Did this diminish the fame of Jesus?
- For what purpose did multitudes come to Jesus?
- Where did Jesus go to be free from the multitudes? and why?
1. WHEN Peter and John left their business to follow the Saviour, they might have argued that it would be too bad to leave their work now, when they were so successful; but they knew that their success was wholly due to Jesus, and that he had given them that success for the purpose of showing them his power to help them in the new work to which he now called them. The power of Christ had brought the multitudes of fishes into the net. It was not a favorable time for fishing. The men had toiled all night in vain, and they would not have thought of going out to fish in the morning, even if the night had been favorable. But they followed the word of the Lord, and he gave them more than they could ordinarily have caught under the most favorable circumstances. But this was not done wholly for their sakes. It was written for our sakes also. If the Master has called us to become fishers of men, we may know that if we follow his word we shall have divine power. 'At thy word,' said Peter, 'I will let down the net.' So those who go out into the work of God may expect large results if they use only the word of the Lord. The injunction is, 'Preach the word.' The word of the Lord is all-powerful, if it is only allowed free course. 2. THE man who came to Jesus was 'full of leprosy.' So we may be full of sin, yet there is as much hope for our cleansing as there was for his. The Lord speaks thus to his people: 'The whole head is sick, and the whole heart faint. From the sole of the foot even unto the head, there is no soundness in it; but wounds, and bruises, and putrefying sores.' Isa. 1: 5, 6. One word from Jesus made the man clean from his leprosy. So one word from Jesus will make a man clean from sin. John 15: 3. To the same ones described in Isa. 1: 5, 6, the Lord speaks in verse 18: 'Come now and let us reason together, saith the Lord; though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.' God 'calls those things which be not as though they were.' Rom. 4: 17. So when he 'declares his righteousness' upon a man who is full of sin, then that man becomes righteous; for whatever God says, must be. God spoke to vacancy, and the earth was. He said to the thick darkness, 'Let there be light,' and there was light.' To the troubled waters he said, 'Peace, be still,' and immediately there was a great calm. So he speaks to the troubled soul, and there is peace. We cannot understand how a man's leprosy can be healed in an instant by a word, but it was done; and it was done to show Christ's power to cleanse from sin. If we do not learn this lesson from the miracle, we read the record in vain. 3. 'And he put forth his hand and touched him.' Note that Jesus was not afraid of the leprosy. Any other person in the country would have run in horror from a leper. No one would have allowed so loathsome an object to come near him. But Jesus touched him. Disease could not stay a moment after his divine, life-giving touch. This is to show how close Jesus comes to us in our sinfulness. He will not turn away from the vilest. Sin cannot withstand his life-giving touch. If the leper had said, 'I am too vile to come into the presence of Jesus,' he would not have been cleansed. Was it not presumption for him to come?—No; it was knowledge of Christ's power, and confidence in his goodness, that brought him. These are the qualities with which the Lord is well pleased. 'Thus saith the Lord, Let not the wise man glory in his wisdom, neither let the mighty man glory in his might, let not the rich man glory in his riches; but let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the Lord which exercise loving-kindness, judgment, and righteousness in the earth, for in these things I delight, saith the Lord.' Jer. 9: 23, 24. So God wants the sinner to come trusting in his power and mercy. If he says, 'I am too sinful,' that shows a disposition that would glory in self. He would come if he had something to boast of. But God delights in mercy, and mercy is unmerited favor. 4. WHEN the leper said, 'Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean,' Jesus promptly responded, 'I will.' The willingness of Jesus to relieve distress is the marked feature in his earthly life. But in this he was simply revealing to men the character of God in heaven. See 2 Cor. 5: 19. He delights in mercy. Read Micah 7: 18, 19. Jesus 'gave himself for our sins, that he might deliver us from this present evil world, according to the will of271God and our Father.' Gal. 1: 4. We may not always know as surely as the leper did that it is the will of God to heal us at once from bodily infirmity; but we do know that it is always according to his will to heal us from the infirmity of sin. Of that we have the most positive assurance in the death of Christ. The apostle Paul says, 'This is the will of God even your sanctification.' 1 Thess. 4: 3. Now hear the words of inspiration through the apostle John: 'And this is the confidence that we have in him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he heareth us.' 1 John 5: 14. Then since it is God's will to save us from the infirmities of the sinful flesh, we have full assurance that he hears us whenever we ask him for cleansing and strength. But read the next verse: 'And if we know that he hears us, whatsoever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we desired of him.' Blessed assurance! Shall we not come as confidently as the poor leper did, and be as sure as he was that we have the things that we so much need? 'Let not conscience make you linger,
Nor of fitness fondly dream;
All the fitness he requireth
Is in feel your need of him.'