God said, “Let there be light”; and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. God also spoke through His angel Gabriel to a virgin named Mary, saying, “Behold, you shall conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name Jesus.” A twofold miracle took place: a virgin conceived, and the Child she conceived in her womb was the eternal Son of God. Years later, when He and His disciples were caught in a fierce storm on the Sea of Galilee, Jesus rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace, be still!” The wind ceased, and there was great calm. So it went throughout the three years of His earthly ministry. When Jesus commanded diseases to leave, they left. When He told demons to depart, they departed. And when He cried out, “Lazarus, come forth!” the man who had been dead four days came out of his tomb alive and well. For God’s Word, because it is the Word of the Almighty God, always does what it says.

So why should any of us be surprised that when Jesus said to Simon Peter, “Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch,” they caught so many fish that they filled two boats to the point where they began to sink—even though they had caught nothing the previous night and were now fishing at the wrong time of day, in the wrong part of the sea? But this is not just a fish story. The reason Jesus performed this miracle was to substantiate the message He was preaching to the multitudes gathered on shore to hear Him. The most obvious thing they learned from this event was that Jesus is who He claimed to be: the almighty Son of God. For who could do what He did here but God alone?

But that’s not the only truth He proclaimed by this miracle. He also showed where His people are to find Him for salvation and life. It’s not on the Sea of Galilee, of course. Rather, His presence with the disciples in that boat was a visual reminder that He is present with His people in the Holy Ark that is His Church. To ensure they receive the blessings He offers there, He ordains men into the Office of the Holy Ministry to do what He called Peter, Andrew, James, and John to do—literally, in the Greek, “to catch men alive.” As fishermen, they pulled fish from the water into their boats to die. But as fishers of men, they were to bring sinners—who are by nature dead in their trespasses and sins—into the Church, that they, through Christ, might live and never die—not an earthly death, but eternal death.

In fact, our Lord performed that very miracle on Simon Peter right then. Consider Peter’s reaction to the great catch of fish. It reminded him, in a terrifying way, that he was in the presence of a holy God. “He fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, ‘Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.’” Peter was right. He was a sinful man. How, then, could he stand in the presence of this holy, almighty God, who condemns sinners to the everlasting fires of hell? What Peter had forgotten was that this holy, almighty God was also his gracious and merciful Savior. It was He upon whom the sins of the world would be placed—He who would suffer the punishment God imposed upon all men for their sins. By this, He would pay the price of redemption from sin and merit for all men God’s full and free forgiveness.

So rather than condemn Peter for his sins, Jesus said to His frightened apostle, “Do not be afraid.” And Peter, who was feeling the pangs of death over his sins, was miraculously raised to life by the power of that almighty Word.

But if God’s Word is so powerful, why is it that the churches which preach it most faithfully are the ones that appear to be struggling most severely? Such a question, though asked frequently, reveals a lack of both understanding and gratitude. It shows a lack of understanding because it fails to acknowledge that God’s will will always be done. As He said through the prophet Isaiah, “My Word shall not return to me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.” Not everyone who hears His Word, even when rightly preached, will believe. Sometimes, as with Pharaoh, it is God’s will to harden the heart of the unbeliever. But whatever God in His infinite wisdom wills to do through His Word, it will always accomplish what He pleases.

This also points to a lack of gratitude. Instead of trying to dictate to God what His will should be, we should rejoice and give thanks for what He has accomplished in us through His almighty Word—namely, our salvation. He pulled us out of the murky depths of hell and brought us into the Holy Ark that is His Church. Though we were dead in sin, we were raised to new life as God’s forgiven children in Christ. Rather than harden our hearts, He, through the preaching of His Word, brought us to faith in Christ as our Salvation and Life. This, too, is a miracle—one we should not be surprised by, for He said, “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.”

As evidence of this faith, we earlier in this service did what St. Peter did in that boat. We fell on our knees before the Lord—if not physically, then certainly and more importantly in our hearts and minds—and confessed our sinfulness to Him. And just as He did for St. Peter, He removed our fear by speaking to us through the voice of His minister: “I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”

Now, having had our faith renewed and strengthened through the preaching of His almighty Word, we will come to this altar for the Feast. It is a Feast served by His minister’s hand—not just of bread and wine, even though that is all we see, feel, and taste, but of His Body and Blood, miraculously united by His Word to the bread and wine, for the forgiveness of our sins.

And our Lord, in His grace and mercy, will continue to do this for us until He brings us—in the full boat of Holy Christendom—to the eternal shores of heaven.

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.