February 4, 2006
Luke 5:1-11
“Depth Perception”

When I hear the phrase “Go deep!” I do not tend to think football, even if it is Superbowl Sunday. I tend to think about my brother, Pat, and me teaching our nephews to swim. We would be with them at the swimming pool down the street from us. A lot like the pool over at Lincoln park in Tremont. Daniel was too close to my age, but Steven was younger and more gullible… I mean, easier to teach.

We’d have him jump off the side of the pool in the shallowest part of the pool, lift him back to the side, and move just a little bit further down, deeper. Usually we could get him to go a few feet, before he’d figure it out and then stop completely, angry at being duped. But gradually, he’d work his way down.

At first it was fun just trying to trick him into getting into deeper water. But as he got older and more adventuresome, it became clear that what Pat and I were doing was to teach Steven to be safe and comfortable in the deep because, even if he never swam there, we knew if he was safe in the deep end, he’d be much safer in the shallow end.

The phrase that resounded for me in today’s scripture was the phrase “put out in deep water,” or simply, “go deep.” I think this concept is rich in meaning for us on so many levels.

• Jesus comes to John, James, and Peter in the midst of their daily work. Sometimes God calls us to fulfill the work to which we are already called. Go deep.

• Jesus is a carpenter and Peter is a fisherman. God sometimes teaches us through unexpected means. Go deep.

• Peter and the guys have just come back from a long and unsuccessful night of fishing. God sometimes calls us when we are weary and frustrated. Go deep.

• Even though the technique was wrong, the crew was weary, a preachy carpenter was telling them what to do… Peter still replied, “Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.” God sometimes works in us with even the smallest amount of trust and faith. Go deep.

• An abundance of fish came beyond anyone’s wildest expectation. God sometimes gives us what we ask for, and we must accept it graciously. Go deep.

• When Peter saw the abundance of fish, he dropped to his knees repenting of his sin. We sometimes overcome our arrogance and pride by humbling ourselves in the face of success. Go deep.

For me, the most powerful connection I make in this story is that it begins with Jesus teaching. Almost overlooked by the enormity of the miracle was the fact that at first Jesus borrows the boats to go out onto the water to teach and preach. Only then, after the lesson is done, does he send out the disciples to fish. “You can’t have your miracle until your homework is done!” Jesus says.

I had several professors and pastoral supervisors who would not only teach me the lessons, but would challenge me to “go deep.” They would not let me get away with the simple or obvious facts of the lesson, but always asked probing and even sometimes unanswerable questions in order to get me to “go deep.”

Walter Johnson, my college history professor, who would laugh out loud at my simplistic and shallow answers. “Go deep, Allen.”

Nancy Duff, my ethics professor, who made sure I knew the best of the brightest thinkers in the field, but then would ask, “and what would you do?” Go deep, Allen.”

John Wade Payne, my colleague in New York who would give me honest feedback about my sermons and edit my newsletter articles, always with grace, but in detail. Go deep, Allen.”

The miracle, of course, has been the abundance of lives touched by God through my ministry, and, the biggest miracle of all, me being transformed by God day by day by day. That’s a miracle.

This process very much reminds me of the film “Dead Poet’s Society,” starring Robin Williams as professor Keating, and Robert Sean Leonard and Ethan Hawke as two of his students. “Carpe Diem,” or “seize the day” was all about “going deep” into the words and the feelings of poets long dead in order to discover words of life for today.

“We don't read and write poetry because it's cute. We read and write poetry because we are members of the human race. And the human race is filled with passion. And medicine, law, business, engineering, these are noble pursuits and necessary to sustain life. But poetry, beauty, romance, love, these are what we stay alive for. To quote from Whitman, "O me! O life!... of the questions of these recurring; of the endless trains of the faithless... of cities filled with the foolish; what good amid these, O me, O life?" Answer. That you are here - that life exists, and identity; that the powerful play goes on and you may contribute a verse. That the powerful play *goes on* and you may contribute a verse. What will your verse be?”

Go deep.

What I try to do with all my teaching and all my preaching is to model what Jesus models for all of us… the challenge to “go deep.” Especially when it comes to our knowledge of the Bible and our understanding of theology, simple thoughts can be profound, (“Let go and let God” or “What would Jesus do?”) but they are richer, fuller, more meaningful if they are built on a foundation of wisdom. I believe simplistic thinking can even be dangerous. Especially when life offers up for us tragedies, wild possibilities, and chaos, we will need the skills learned from going deep.

Some tried and true techniques for “going deep:”
Prayer
Bible study
Reading theology
Faithful conversations
Personal devotions
Sharing your faith

And if in any of these practices you find yourself only saying, “Yes, yes, yes!” and never “But wait!” then you’re in shallow water and you need to go deep. Going deep isn’t surrounding yourself with like-minded people, but with faithful people who will challenge you, and who need to be challenged!

It isn’t easy. No one said it would be. Going deep involves work, plus lots of humility and openness to new possibilities. But if we do, if we are willing to risk our own sensibilities, to stick with it, to go deeper than we’ve ever gone before, to develop our “depth perception,” and to humbly recognize when God’s abundance is finally found, then, really only then, can God use us for that which is greater – to fish for people!

Amen.




Rev. Allen V. Harris
Franklin Circle Christian Church
www.FranklinCircleChurch.org


 

Copyright 2007 -- The Rev. Allen V. Harris

Franklin Circle Christian Church (Disciples of Christ)

1688 Fulton Rd., Cleveland, OH 44113-3096