Jesus teaches from Simon's boat, then tells Simon to let down his nets, resulting in a miraculous catch of fish. Simon and his partners James and John leave everything to follow Jesus. Jesus heals a man with leprosy with a touch, telling him to show himself to the priest. Jesus forgives the sins of a paralyzed man, healing him to prove his authority. The people are amazed at Jesus' power over illness and demons.

1. Barry Hollis
bnh@bnhollis.com bnhollis.com
The Gospel of Luke
Fall Semester
Session 03
October 7, 2015

3. The First Disciples
5 As the crowd was pressing in on Jesus to hear God’s word,
He was standing by Lake Gennesaret. 2 He saw two boats at
the edge of the lake; the fishermen had left them and were
washing their nets. 3 He got into one of the boats, which
belonged to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from the
land. Then He sat down and was teaching the crowds from
the boat.
4 When He had finished speaking, He said to Simon,
“Put out into deep water and let down your nets for a catch.”
Luke 5:1 - 4

4. 5 “Master,” Simon replied, “we’ve worked hard all night
long and caught nothing! But at Your word, I’ll let down the
nets.”
6 When they did this, they caught a great number of
fish, and their nets began to tear. 7 So they signaled to their
partners in the other boat to come and help them; they came
and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.
8 When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees
and said, “Go away from me, because I’m a sinful man, Lord!”
9 For he and all those with him were amazed at the catch of
fish they took, 10 and so were James and John, Zebedee’s
sons, who were Simon’s partners.
Luke 5:5 – 10a

5. “Don’t be afraid,” Jesus told Simon. “From now on you
will be catching people!” 11 Then they brought the boats to
land, left everything, and followed Him.
Luke 5:10b - 11

6. A Man Cleansed
12 While He was in one of the towns, a man was there
who had a serious skin disease all over him. He saw Jesus, fell
facedown, and begged Him: “Lord, if You are willing, You can
make me clean.”
13 Reaching out His hand, He touched him, saying, “I
am willing; be made clean,” and immediately the disease left
him. 14 Then He ordered him to tell no one: “But go and show
yourself to the priest, and offer what Moses prescribed for
your cleansing as a testimony to them.”
15 But the news about Him spread even more, and
large crowds would come together to hear Him and to be
healed of their sicknesses. 16 Yet He often withdrew to
deserted places and prayed.
Luke 5:12 - 16

7. The Son of Man Forgives and Heals
17 On one of those days while He was teaching,
Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there who had
come from every village of Galilee and Judea, and also from
Jerusalem. And the Lord’s power to heal was in Him. 18 Just
then some men came, carrying on a mat a man who was
paralyzed. They tried to bring him in and set him down
before Him. 19 Since they could not find a way to bring him in
because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered
him on the mat through the roof tiles into the middle of the
crowd before Jesus.
20 Seeing their faith He said, “Friend, your sins are
forgiven you.”
Luke 5:17 – 20

8. 21 Then the scribes and the Pharisees began to think:
“Who is this man who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive
sins but God alone?”
22 But perceiving their thoughts, Jesus replied to them,
“Why are you thinking this in your hearts? 23 Which is easier:
to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Get up and
walk’? 24 But so you may know that the Son of Man has
authority on earth to forgive sins”—He told the paralyzed
man, “I tell you: Get up, pick up your mat, and go home.”
25 Immediately he got up before them, picked up what
he had been lying on, and went home glorifying God. 26 Then
everyone was astounded, and they were giving glory to God.
And they were filled with awe and said, “We have seen
incredible things today!”
Luke 5:21 – 26

9. This boat, known as “the Jesus boat,” is a first-century fishing boat. Its buried remains were
found in 1986 along the shore of the Sea of Galilee. This kind of boat is thought to be similar to
those used by Jesus and his disciples in the Gospels. It measures 8.27 meters long by 2.35
meters wide, and it may well be similar to those used by Simon and Andrew and the sons of
Zebedee. - France, Luke, 80-81.

10. The First Disciples
5 As the crowd was pressing in on Jesus to hear God’s word,
He was standing by Lake Gennesaret. 2 He saw two boats at
the edge of the lake; the fishermen had left them and were
washing their nets. 3 He got into one of the boats, which
belonged to Simon, and asked him to put out a little from the
land. Then He sat down and was teaching the crowds from
the boat.
4 When He had finished speaking, He said to Simon,
“Put out into deep water and let down your nets for a catch.”
Luke 5:1 - 4

11. 5 “Master,” Simon replied, “we’ve worked hard all night
long and caught nothing! But at Your word, I’ll let down the
nets.”
6 When they did this, they caught a great number of
fish, and their nets began to tear. 7 So they signaled to their
partners in the other boat to come and help them; they came
and filled both boats so full that they began to sink.
8 When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees
and said, “Go away from me, because I’m a sinful man, Lord!”
9 For he and all those with him were amazed at the catch of
fish they took, 10 and so were James and John, Zebedee’s
sons, who were Simon’s partners.
Luke 5:5 – 10a

12. “Don’t be afraid,” Jesus told Simon. “From now on you
will be catching (zogreo) people!” 11 Then they brought the
boats to land, left everything, and followed Him.
To see parallel passages: Matt 4:18-22 & Mark 1:16-20
Rabbis and their disciples.
Jeremiah 16:16
The Hobbit
Luke 5:10b - 11

13. Peter, James, and John left their boats and nets behind to follow Jesus. Here is a modern
fisherman with his nets on the Sea of Galilee. - R. T. France, Luke, 82.

14. After their miraculous catch of fish, Peter, Andrew, James, and John recognize the authority of
Jesus and respond to his call to “fish for people.” This sixth-century AD mosaic in the main
nave at San Apollinare Nuovo in Ravenna, Italy, is called St. Andrew and St. Peter Responding to
the Call of Jesus. One lucky fish is escaping, a detail that brings humanity to the scene and a
touch of humor that serves to make one pay more attention to the familiar. - France, Luke, 84.

15. A Man Cleansed
12 While He was in one of the towns, a man was there
(idou) who had a serious skin disease all over him. He saw
Jesus, fell facedown, and begged Him: “Lord, if You are
willing, You can make me clean.”
13 Reaching out His hand, He touched him, saying, “I
am willing; be made clean,” and immediately the disease left
him. 14 Then He ordered him to tell no one: “But go and show
yourself to the priest, and offer what Moses prescribed for
your cleansing as a testimony to them.”
15 But the news about Him spread even more, and
large crowds would come together to hear Him and to be
healed of their sicknesses. 16 Yet He often withdrew to
deserted places and prayed.
Luke 5:12 - 16

16. R. T. France, Luke, 86-87.
The term “leprosy” was used for a variety of skin
complaints, not necessarily leprosy proper as we know it
today (Hansen’s disease). Those affected were regarded
as unclean and were forced to live outside normal society
for fear of contagion (see Lev. 13:45–46). “Leprosy” was
regarded as incurable (2 Kings 5:7). Yet Leviticus 14 made
provision for someone whose “leprosy” had been
“cleansed” (the term regularly used for this disease,
rather than “healed”), presumably by direct divine
intervention, to be examined by the priest and so
restored to society.

17. The Son of Man Forgives and Heals
17 On one of those days while He was teaching,
Pharisees and teachers of the law were sitting there who had
come from every village of Galilee and Judea, and also from
Jerusalem. And the Lord’s power to heal was in Him. 18 Just
then some men came (idou), carrying on a mat a man who
was paralyzed. They tried to bring him in and set him down
before Him. 19 Since they could not find a way to bring him in
because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and lowered
him on the mat through the roof tiles into the middle of the
crowd before Jesus.
20 Seeing their faith He said, “Friend, your sins are
forgiven you.”
Luke 5:17 – 20

18. A paralyzed man was brought to Jesus by lowering him down through the roof. Homes during
this time period had flat roofs with an outer staircase leading to the top similar to those shown
in these photos from the modern village of Der Samet near Hebron in the Palestinian territory. -
R. T. France, Luke, 88.

19. 21 Then the scribes and the Pharisees began to think:
“Who is this man who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive
sins but God alone?”
22 But perceiving their thoughts, Jesus replied to them,
“Why are you thinking this in your hearts? 23 Which is easier:
to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Get up and
walk’? 24 But so you may know that the Son of Man has
authority on earth to forgive sins”—He told the paralyzed
man, “I tell you: Get up, pick up your mat, and go home.”
25 Immediately he got up before them, picked up what
he had been lying on, and went home glorifying God. 26 Then
everyone was astounded, and they were giving glory to God.
And they were filled with awe and said, “We have seen
incredible things today!”
Luke 5:21 – 26

20. The Christ Who Defeated Satan In The Wilderness Also
Has Authority Over All Demonic Forces
Marcus Borg, Jesus, A New Vision.
More so than extraordinary cures, exorcism is especially alien
to us in the modern world. In part, this is because we do not
normally see the phenomenon (though are there cases of
“possession” which we call by another name?). Even more, it
is because the notion of “possession” by a spirit from another
level of reality does not fit into our worldview. Rather,
possession and exorcism presuppose the reality of a world of
spirits which can interact with the visible world; that is, they
presuppose the truth of “primordial tradition.”