The Many and the Few

Texts: Isaiah 6:1-8; 1 Corinthians 15:1-11; Luke 5:1-11

The more time I have spent this week pondering this story from St Luke, the more strongly two things have struck me about it. First, it is clearly structured along the same lines as St John’s story of the Wedding at Cana, which we had a three weeks ago. Secondly, the story tells us something very important about the mission of the Church, particularly what we call evangelism.

First, then, the structure of the story and its similarity to St John’s account of the wedding. A large crowd is present in each case, but in both cases they play no part in the real action in the story. Remember how clear St John was that it was Jesus’ disciples who, as a result of Jesus’ turning water into wine, put their faith in him. The other guests were oblivious to what had happened. Even the servants, who knew what had happened, do not seem to have committed themselves to Christ. In this morning’s story, the crowd had dispersed and gone home before the real action began.

Then Jesus performs a sign or miracle. He changed water into wine at the wedding; here he tells expert fishermen where to catch fish, even though they had fished all night and hadn’t caught anything. In both cases, the sign or miracle proves life-changing for those few disciples present with him. And each account concludes by making that point clear. St John, the lover of words, spells it out: St Luke, the lover of the dramatic, shows us.

That’s the first point then – these stories have a set format, and I’ll come back to that in a moment. But let’s now look at what these stories are telling us about evangelism. I once rather shocked one of my Wellington colleagues by saying that I didn’t have an evangelistic bone in my body. That was just a colourful way of saying that I do not attend – I do not believe in the usefulness of – evangelism conferences. I know that is offensive to some people. But I see little if any evidence that such conferences do anything more than make the attendees feel good about themselves.

The same is true about evangelistic programmes, schemes, crusades and consultants on evangelism. We have as a church had periodic outbursts of evangelistic fervour. But has anyone done a follow-up assessment further down the track – after 1 year, or after 5? I recall an ecumenical crusade that it was held over an entire week in Otaki many years ago. Our own church put an enormous amount of time and energy and other resources into it. For months nothing else was on the radar, as we say. And when it was all over, not one new member of the church was to be found.

And this morning’s gospel passage, and others like it, can explain to us why that was so. Jesus does not produce mass conversions. The happy couple at Cana, the bridal party, the guests – all of them went home unconverted, as fas as we know. The vast crowd at water’s edge this morning, who heard Jesus preach to them, went home unconverted, as far as we know. Only the chosen few, only the disciples, heard and saw and were convinced.

St John the Baptist, it would appear, was far more ‘successful’ as an evangelist than Jesus. He pulled in vast crowds, and many of them were baptised. We can imagine how good his parish stats would have looked, in the short term. In the very short term. Because what happened to those vast crowds of ‘converts’? Only one or two of them took John’s teaching to heart and followed Jesus. And when Jesus died after three years of ministry of word and miracle, he left behind about 120 believers. Mass evangelism does not bear fruit that will last. It doesn’t work.

What does work? First of all, before we can be convincing about anyone or anything, we must first be convinced. If someone sings the praises of a breed of dog he’s never owned, or a make of car she’s never driven, or a particular sport he’s never played or watched, or a play she’s never seen or read, we’re not likely to be won over. Conviction must be rooted in personal experience if it is to be convincing to others.

And I stress the word ‘personal’. Peter in this morning’s story was convinced in a way that may not have convinced others. He was an experienced fisherman. He had been out fishing all night and had been unsuccessful. He was tired and ready for home. Jesus the carpenter told him to go out again; reluctantly he did so, and caught a huge haul.

What does that say about Jesus? That he had keen eyesight – that he had just seen a dark shadow moving across the lake – or the surface of the water disturbed in a particular way – that suggested fish present? Or that he took a gamble and guessed right? It was just an extraordinary coincidence? That’s how many would interpret such an event today. But not Peter; to him it was a sign of the divine – the power of God present in this man called Jesus.

He responded as men and women do when suddenly finding themselves in the presence of the divine – in fear and awe. That’s why we have this passage from Isaiah today to accompany this story. Peter’s reaction is very similar to Isaiah’s. Isaiah was a priest in the Temple, no doubt going about his priestly ministry in a conscientious manner. Then suddenly he experiences the glory of God filling the entire building, and he is terrified. Like Peter, his first response is to be all too aware of his sinful nature and his complete unworthiness to be in the presence of the all-holy God.

But he experiences forgiveness – cleansing – the grace of God – and that fits him for his new ministry as a prophet. In the same way, Jesus reassures Peter, and empowers him to take up his new ministry as an apostle.

St Luke gives us some further clues in this story. The crowd meet Jesus at the shoreline. They are on safe ground. They are free to turn around and leave at any time. But Peter and Jesus are in the boat, and the first thing that Jesus says to him is, ‘Put out into deeper water’. We have some interesting expressions today that might hint at the point St Luke is making. We might say, ‘we’re getting into deep water’ or ‘we’re out of our depth here’, when we mean we are in a difficult or challenging situation. We also say ‘ we are all in the same boat’!

All these sayings were applicable to Peter and Co on that day. Jesus is inviting him to go deeper – to take more risk – to leave the safety of firm ground – to be in the same boat as Jesus, and so on. To leave certainty – represented by all he has known up to that time – and to venture into the uncertain future of faith.

Like Isaiah and St Peter, St Paul also had a life-changing encounter with the divine. and the three of them together illustrate a line of development, as it were. Isaiah met God in the Temple. St Peter met God in the flesh of Jesus. St Paul met God in the Rien Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit. But the effect in each case was the same. Each became convincing because each was first convinced.

And each was first convinced because God took the initiative to convince him. None of them got there by reason or intellectual effort. In each case, he was taken by surprises. In each case it was a personal, individual experience. One on one, so to speak, God and one other.

Were they then wildly successful? In worldly terms, no. Far less successful than the Emperor Constantine, who converted the whole Roman Empire by the stroke of a pen. And there are still those who dream of the same approach today. We ask Parliament to legislate to enforce God’s laws, because not enough people will obey them willingly. Not enough people are convinced. Our crusades and programmes, our conferences and seminars and consultants, are not getting us anywhere; so in desperation we try evangelism by legislation.

It won’t work because that is not God’s way. When evangelists remind us of the so-called Great Commission, they tend to overlook what Jesus actually said. He did not tell us to convert the nations of the world, or to make believers of all peoples. He told us to make disciples in every nation. A few people who are convincing because they are convinced.

Isaiah, not every priest. St Peter, not every fisherman. St Paul, not every persecutor of the Church. you and me, not everyone in Port Chalmers and Warrington. Let the crowds go home - and let Peter’s boat, the Church, continue into the ever deeper waters of faith crewed by those whom Christ has called..