Isaiah 6: 1-8
6 In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lofty, and the hem of his robe filled the temple. 2 Seraphs were in attendance above him; each had six wings: with two they covered their faces, and with two they covered their feet, and with two they flew. 3 And one called to another and said,
“Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts;
the whole earth is full of his glory.”
4 The pivots on the thresholds shook at the voices of those who called, and the house filled with smoke. 5 And I said, “Woe is me! I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, yet my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!”
6 Then one of the seraphs flew to me, holding a live coal that had been taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. 7 The seraph[b] touched my mouth with it and said, “Now that this has touched your lips, your guilt has departed and your sin is blotted out.” 8 Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I; send me!”

Luke 5:1-11
5 Once while Jesus was standing beside the Lake of Gennesaret and the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, 2 he saw two boats there at the shore of the lake; the fishermen had gotten out of them and were washing their nets. 3 He got into one of the boats, the one belonging to Simon, and asked him to put out a little way from the shore. Then he sat down and taught the crowds from the boat. 4 When he had finished speaking, he said to Simon, “Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.” 5 Simon answered, “Master, we have worked all night long but have caught nothing. Yet if you say so, I will let down the nets.” 6 When they had done this, they caught so many fish that their nets were beginning to burst. 7 So they signaled their partners in the other boat to come and help them. And they came and filled both boats, so that they began to sink. 8 But when Simon Peter saw it, he fell down at Jesus’s knees, saying, “Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!” 9 For he and all who were with him were astounded at the catch of fish that they had taken, 10 and so also were James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. Then Jesus said to Simon, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching people.” 11 When they had brought their boats to shore, they left everything and followed him.

Breaking the Nets
This morning, church was cancelled because of a snowstorm. It was a good decision because the snowfall was heavy just as we would have been walking into the church. We didn’t want anyone to slip on snow or ice this morning. (Ironically, while I was sweeping off the front porch this morning, there was a thin layer of ice under the snow on the front steps, and I slipped and fell! Thankfully, without injury.) But even though we did not have a worship service this morning, I want to write a few comments about our scripture readings for this week. This is not a carefully formed sermon, but rather, just a few notes about the readings. We have a reading from Isaiah 6 and a reading from Luke 5.
Isaiah 6:1-8: Isaiah’s call story
This is an important text because it describes Isaiah’s mystical vision of God followed by God’s call to Isaiah. God calls Isaiah to be his prophet. So this text marks the beginning of Isaiah’s career as a prophet. It is his call to ministry.
Many Words for God
In the vision, Isaiah sees the Holy. He has a direct experience of Holy God. This is where the chant, “Holy, Holy, Holy” originates. Sometimes we see these words embroidered on the tablecloths that cover church altar tables. We sing this expression in one of our hymns, too. “Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty.” The early church took this triple repetition as an expression of the Trinity: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. It was chanted as part of the eucharistic prayers.
An interesting side note, which I have probably mentioned before, is that according to some Old Testament Hebrew scholars, the triple repetition of the word “Holy” was not originally meant to be pronounced, but rather was meant to indicate emphasis. This was because in ancient written Hebrew there are no exclamation marks. Emphasis could only be shown by repetition. So repeating the written “Holy” three times was a way of shouting the single word very loudly. It would be like writing in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS! HOLY! GOD IS HOLY! The only way to show this emphasis in ancient Hebrew was by repeating the word.
And, as you probably know, in the Jewish faith, the reality of God is so awesome and so holy that the word for God is unpronounceable. It is written YAHWEH, or, without the consonants, YHWH. But this word is not supposed to be spoken because it is too sacred. So, another word is substituted: “Adonai” (My Lord).
In any case, no matter the word used to describe the indescribable mystery that is God, when Isaiah has the mystical vision described in the 6th chapter, his response is one of humility: “Woe is me!” he cries. “I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!” When faced with the incredible purity and holiness of God, Isaiah feels completely unworthy, unclean, and guilty.
Isaiah’s Experience of Salvation
Immediately after this, there is an expression of God’s salvation: a seraph flies to Isaiah and touches his mouth with a hot coal. “Now that this has touched your lips, your guilt has departed, and your sin is blotted out.” It is interesting that Isaiah receives God’s grace on his tongue, burning it purified. At this point, his speech is completely pure and holy. He is ready to be God’s prophet.
Here I am, Lord.
The next line is very famous. It is both a hymn and a prayer. God asks, “Whom shall I send?” And Isaiah answers, “Here I am; send me!” In our hymnal, this is beautifully expressed in #541, Here I Am, Lord. This hymn has been one of my personal favorites ever since I first felt called to ministry. I remember singing it often, not knowing where the call would take me, not knowing the future or where I would go. But I simply offered my life to God. Perhaps you feel this, too? If you do feel some kind of calling in your heart, I would encourage you to pick up our hymnal sometime and sing #541. Sing it quietly to yourself, as a prayer, and see what happens. Perhaps there is something there for you. Remember, Isaiah did not feel worthy. And yet, he answered God’s call. “Here I am, Lord. Send me!”
Connecting our Readings
There is a connection between our two readings. Can you find it? I will give you a hint. It has to do with humility. Let’s take a look at the passage from Luke now.
Luke 5:1-11, Jesus Calls the First Disciples
The Lake of Gennesaret is another name for the Sea of Galilee. We are most familiar with this later name, although the body of water has been called by several different names at various times in history. So much of Jesus’ ministry occurs on or near this freshwater lake. For Christians, the “Sea of Galilee” is rich with associations and images of Christ’s early ministry. In this text from Luke 5, Jesus steps into a boat and speaks to the crowd on shore. Then, he tells Simon-Peter to go out into the deep water and let down nets for a catch. Simon-Peter responds, “We have worked all night long but have caught nothing.”
They let down the nets anyway and are shocked to catch more fish than they can handle. The nets are completely full of fish. The concentrated weight of the fish almost sinks the boat. At this point, Simon-Peter realizes that something strange is going on. He immediately falls down at Christ’s knees and cries out, “Go away from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!” (Perhaps you can see here the connection between the two readings.) At least, for me, personally, I find Simon-Peter’s response extraordinary. He is so shocked by what he sees, namely, the holiness and purity of Jesus, that he feels much the same way that Isaiah did, when faced with complete holiness.
And yet, Jesus does not push him away, but rather, brings him nearer, saying, “Do not be afraid; from now on you will be catching people. Is this not another expression of saving grace? Simon-Peter, kneeling in humility, is raised up and accepted as Christ’s disciple. There is a lot to reflect on here. Peter’s journey with Jesus begins in complete humility, and yet, Peter becomes the rock upon which the church is built.
At this point, the other fishermen, James and John, along with Simon-Peter, make a life changing decision. They decide right then and there, to leave everything and follow Jesus. “When they had brough their boats to shore, they left everything and followed him.”
This is a powerful scene. But what exactly makes it powerful? One thing that stands out, to me, at least, is the intensity of the image. Imagine, nets so full of fish that they nearly break! They are so heavy that they nearly sink the boats! This is a concentrated catch. The power here is in concentration. This is not just a few fish here and there. It’s a massive concentration of fish!
So here is the point I’m getting at: the power of concentration. And now, I’m talking about mental concentration. I’m shifting the metaphor. But I think you will see the point.
Concentration is the ability to focus and sustain one’s attention. Concentration is important for anyone who wants to accomplish a task or achieve a goal. It is impossible to accomplish a task or achieve a goal without mental concentration. The ability to stay focused on a task, to keep one’s mind concentrated on a goal, is fundamental to accomplishing anything.
We could see a lack of concentration as just catching a few fish here and there. This is a mind that is weak and scattered; attention is scattered all over the place. There is no power in this. But when our mind gets totally focused on one thing, then this is powerful. We gather all of our mental energy into one net, so to speak, and that net is full to overflowing. The weight and the power of this is so strong, it’s enough to achieve the goal we have set before us. Developing concentration is an imperative skill in achieving one’s goals.
I have actually seen people’s lives changed when they learn how to focus their minds. Concentration is a mental skill that can be developed. Sometimes it’s called “mindfulness.” Sometimes it’s called “single pointed mind.” Sometimes it’s called “the ability to focus.” I think you know what I’m talking about here.
So, perhaps you find that your life is not working so well. Things in your life are not going very well. You can’t seem to get ahead of the problems, and you feel overwhelmed. One suggestion here is to work on your concentration. If you want to talk more about this, feel free to contact me. This is such an important aspect of life, and yet, one that is not discussed very much. I see so many people who would benefit from developing more concentration.
These are some of my reflections on our readings this week. As I mentioned, this is not meant to be a developed sermon, but rather, it’s more like the notes I gather before forming them into a more structured sermon. One of the reasons I can do this here is that I am not under a time constraint! So, I can ramble a bit.
Blessings to you all. Have a good week. May God’s love and peace be with you all. May you know the joy and peace of salvation. Until we meet again. Amen? Amen.