So, we’ve been given a free river cruise on a 90-passenger ship in Europe with a travel company founded by a Christian couple, Jeff and Gina! We had a great time with Teerming River Cruises two years ago. Their cruises are about 1/3 of the cost of Viking Cruises and their website is here.
The cruise two years ago gave us some great opportunities to share the gospel with the other passengers. I will be conducting a Sunday church service on August 25th. I have chosen Luke 5 as my text and want to begin thinking through it in these posts. Here’s that great passage:
A Few Preliminary Thoughts:
1. The text has to do with water and a boat and fish! So it fits with the cruise experience.
2. We see that Jesus was teaching the people the word of God, but He had a very practical problem. The people were crowding around Him (v. 1), so He used Simon’s book to achieve a bit of auditory distance (v. 3).
3.”When he had finished speaking” (v. 4) — There should be a conclusion to a person’s sermon! 
4. Simon Peter must have been proud that he could help out the wandering rabbi Jesus with His speech. But then Jesus leaves the role of spiritual teacher and takes on the role of master fisherman (v. 4).
5.This is an incursion into Peter’s area of expertise! His excuse: v. 5 – “We’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything!”
6. Where is your “but because you say so” (v. 5)? Simple obedience to Jesus which seems contrary to reason!
7. The supernaturalness of Jesus becomes evident by the catch of fish (vv. 6-7). As Creator, He knew where the fish were!
8. Fortunately, Jesus didn’t take Peter’s advice (“Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!”). Instead of abandoning him, Jesus enlists him into the business of catching people!
The Challenge for Today: Please pray for me as I work on this message. I want to make the best of this one shot I have of presenting the gospel to folks on board. Thank you!
Dr. Larry Dixon
larrydixon.wordpress.com 